Take a fascinating Wokingham trip into your family history
From that first look in a shoebox full of old family papers to detailed trawls through ancient archive collections, researching your ancestry is a fascinating pastime. And anybody interested in it will want to come down to Wokingham Library on Saturday October 13 between 10am and 2pm for Family History for All – Berkshire Family History Society's open day.
This free Wokingham event, part of the 2007 Archive Awareness campaign – a national initiative – provides a chance for all those interested in family history to get one-to-one help and advice from members of the Society and staff from the Berkshire Record Office. There will also be displays, demonstrations of research techniques, a bookstall and free charts and other materials. Everyone is welcome, whether new to family history or a seasoned researcher.
Wokingham People can drop-in to the event at any time to seek advice but they can also take part in three informal teaching sessions that run during the day. Places for these should be booked in advance if possible, as places are limited. Those taking part need to be familiar with the internet too:
· At 10.30am: Making a start in the archives
· At 11.45am: Which websites do I use first?
· At 1pm: Searching sources before 1837
To book a place at one of the sessions call (0118) 978 1368. Owing to heavy demand at past open days, and to allow as many members of the public as possible a chance to take part, people will initially be invited to book at one teaching session only, although they can also add their names to a waiting list for other sessions.
Wokingham Library first teamed up with the Berkshire Family History Society to stage advice days in 2003. Since then their popularity has led to more sessions being organised.
Derek Trinder, chairman of the Bracknell and Wokingham Branch of the Berkshire Family History Society, said: “These are fantastic events for helping people to discover a little bit of their own history. The added presence of our friends from the Berkshire Record Office will make this one even better. Local family historians will find something of interest from their visit – whatever their level of experience. And it really does not matter whether the ancestors you are trying to trace lived locally or not, because Society members have research interests right across the UK. They can advise on most of the general problems that every researcher will meet from time to time.”
The Berkshire Record Office at Coley Avenue in Reading holds original material for the Royal County of Berkshire dating back to the 12th century. Among its wealth of historic documents are baptism, marriage and burial registers from the 16th century onwards, other town and village records and some non-parochial registers. Collections also include Berkshire census returns, probate records, land and estate papers, school and workhouse details, maps, directories, poll books and electoral registers. At present, few of such records can be found on the internet, whether as transcriptions or as digital images.
The Record Office also holds some material relating to the whole of England and Wales. This includes indexes of births, marriages and deaths from 1837 forward and details of wills and administrations (from 1858).
Wokingham Library has a dedicated family history PC, microfiche and microfilm readers, specialist family and local history sections and numerous computer terminals offering fast internet access.
Executive member for community development Cllr Dianne King said: ”Wokingham Library is a treasure trove of information on a variety of subjects – not least family history. Open days such as this are a great opportunity to explore some of those resources as well as get expert advice.”
This free Wokingham event, part of the 2007 Archive Awareness campaign – a national initiative – provides a chance for all those interested in family history to get one-to-one help and advice from members of the Society and staff from the Berkshire Record Office. There will also be displays, demonstrations of research techniques, a bookstall and free charts and other materials. Everyone is welcome, whether new to family history or a seasoned researcher.
Wokingham People can drop-in to the event at any time to seek advice but they can also take part in three informal teaching sessions that run during the day. Places for these should be booked in advance if possible, as places are limited. Those taking part need to be familiar with the internet too:
· At 10.30am: Making a start in the archives
· At 11.45am: Which websites do I use first?
· At 1pm: Searching sources before 1837
To book a place at one of the sessions call (0118) 978 1368. Owing to heavy demand at past open days, and to allow as many members of the public as possible a chance to take part, people will initially be invited to book at one teaching session only, although they can also add their names to a waiting list for other sessions.
Wokingham Library first teamed up with the Berkshire Family History Society to stage advice days in 2003. Since then their popularity has led to more sessions being organised.
Derek Trinder, chairman of the Bracknell and Wokingham Branch of the Berkshire Family History Society, said: “These are fantastic events for helping people to discover a little bit of their own history. The added presence of our friends from the Berkshire Record Office will make this one even better. Local family historians will find something of interest from their visit – whatever their level of experience. And it really does not matter whether the ancestors you are trying to trace lived locally or not, because Society members have research interests right across the UK. They can advise on most of the general problems that every researcher will meet from time to time.”
The Berkshire Record Office at Coley Avenue in Reading holds original material for the Royal County of Berkshire dating back to the 12th century. Among its wealth of historic documents are baptism, marriage and burial registers from the 16th century onwards, other town and village records and some non-parochial registers. Collections also include Berkshire census returns, probate records, land and estate papers, school and workhouse details, maps, directories, poll books and electoral registers. At present, few of such records can be found on the internet, whether as transcriptions or as digital images.
The Record Office also holds some material relating to the whole of England and Wales. This includes indexes of births, marriages and deaths from 1837 forward and details of wills and administrations (from 1858).
Wokingham Library has a dedicated family history PC, microfiche and microfilm readers, specialist family and local history sections and numerous computer terminals offering fast internet access.
Executive member for community development Cllr Dianne King said: ”Wokingham Library is a treasure trove of information on a variety of subjects – not least family history. Open days such as this are a great opportunity to explore some of those resources as well as get expert advice.”
Wokingham Borough Council
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