Dumfries Newspaper

Dumfries first newspaper started in 1777. The newspaper article about Aucheninnes came from the Dumfries and Galloway Standard. I put a transcription of the newspaper article yesterday on my website dated January 7 1856. The key to using the newspaper is the paper index that is available. When I was at Ewart library in Dumfries, I couldn't image anyone trying to read the newspaper on microfiche. The print is small and somewhat blurry. The index gets you on the right page and cloumn.
The newspaper covers the Galloway region. The index on this page is Mckenzie's in the area in the 1840' and 1850's. In the parish of Urr there was only one Mckenzie family, that also included Dalbeattie. Dalbeattie was the most populated place in the parish. The Mckenzie's had a long lease on the Aucheninnes farm that apparently ended in 1856. I'm uncertain how long they were on the farm. The voters list for 1835 indicates that they were on the farm in 1835, so they were their at least 20 years or more. Lets hope that they digitize the Dumfries Newspaper soon and put it online.

Mckenzie's immigrated to Canada

Some of my Mckenzie ancestors immigrated to Canada in the 1850's. John Mckenzie was a farmer near Dalbeattie Scotland. He farmed a 200 acre farm called Auchenninnes. The lease on the farm ended in 1856. The family of 11 are recorded in the 1851 census in the parish of Urr. In the 1861 census the family is no longer recorded. Robert and Grace, two of their children, are found in later census years, but the others I have wondered about for over twenty years. Many years ago someone submitted three of the missing to the pedigree resource file; William, Agnes, and Anne. They used the abbreviation for Scotland as 'SCT'. Since the search engine did not recognize 'SCT' as Scotland they remained missing until now. I made the connection on newfamilysearch that connects people by relationships. I have been looking for direct evidence that connects the three to my line. Ancestry.com has indexed the Canadian census records and many vital records, so I was able to search for them quite easily. I found William, the oldest, in the 1901 Ontario census. The 1901 census records a birth date and it is the same as that recorded in the parish registers in the Parish of Urr, Feb 9 1830. The evidence does connect them to my Mckenzie family in Urr parish, Scotland. Agnes married 14 Nov 1861 at the age of 18 to Alexander Gibson in the St. John's, Queen's Road Presbyterian Church in Newfoundland. Their are no Newfoundland records on Ancestry.com.
The remaining three children, John, James, and David Mckenzie, I image would have settled in Canada somewhere. John was born 4 Dec 1833; James was born 26 Oct 1835; and David in 1846. If they lived to 1901 I may be able to identify them in the 1901 census. I think their descendants are going to have to find my website, as their are to many to search.

Suffolk and Galloway drovers 1600's 1700's

Sometime ago a Scoggins cousin told me that they had Scottish customs in their family, and it was thought that they originally came from Galloway. (Galloway refers to Wigtown, Kirkcudbright, Dumfries counties in Scotland) I have consulted some books listed below that verifies the connection between Galloway and Suffolk. It is reasonable to assume that some of the Scotch would have settled in Suffolk.

On the agriculture of Suffolk By William Raynbird, Hugh Raynbird, 1849 "Culley, in his work ' On Live Stock,' observes, that the Suffolk duns are nothing more than a variety of the Galloway breed, originating in the intercourse that has long subsisted between the Scotch drovers of Galloway cattle and the Suffolk and Norfolk graziers who feed them. This opinion is, I think, incorrect; the breeds agree in nothing else except in their small size and being polled."

Coddenham and Badingham are pointed out as dairy centers. The 20 mile by 12 mile area is where the Scoggins are found, and it provides a reason that a branch of the family settled in Badingham in the 1770's.

General view of the agriculture of the county of Suffolk: drawn up for the ..., 1797 "The country, which is more peculiarly, but not exclusively, the seat of the dairies, is marked out by the parishes of Codenham, Ashbocking, Otley, Charlsfield, Lethei ingham, Hatcheston, Parham, Framlingham, Cransford, Bruisyard, Badingham, Sibton, Heveningham, Cookly, Linstead, Metfield, Wethersdale, Fressingfield, Wingfield, Hoxne, Brome, Thrandeston, Geslingham, Tenningham, Westrop, Wyverston, Gipping, Stonham, Creting; and again to Codenham, with all the places within, being a tract of country of 20 miles by 12. The limits cannot be exact, for this breed of cows spreads over the whole county; but this space must be more peculiarly considered as their head-quarters."

This points to a place where further research can be conducted. The first Scoggins to be found in the parish registers is in Helmingham in 1694. Helmingham is next to Otley parish and near Coddenham. How many Scoggins families came from Scotland? Was the surname spelled the same? Were the Scoggins drovers?

1844 Suffok Gazetteer on my website from Google Books

I have started to add a new feature to my website for the places I have in Suffolk County, England. I have 148 parishes listed in Suffolk. With a click of a mouse you can go to the 1844 History, gazetteer, and directory of Suffolk, and the towns near its borders ... by William White. It gives a short description and principal residents of each parish in Suffolk.

The text above is a hyper-linked to the gazetteer where you can read the complete listing for Badingham and every other parish in Suffolk.

Now by going to a place on the website, such as Badingham, there is a google map of the area, a link to the 1844 gazetteer, and every person who was born, died, or married there. I have a lot of people associated with Badingham parish.

Scoggin's from Coddenham

I have added my latest research of the Scoggin family established in Coddenham to my website. My direct line first appears in the parish registers some five miles away in Framsden and Helmingham about 1700. I suspect this is where the Coddenham branch links into mine, but I cannot find any entries in the parish registers to establish the connection. Philip Scoggin married Mary Tyler in 1755 in Coddenham. This is when they first appear in the parish registers. Their first two sons Philip and James descendants becomes what is known as the Scoggin’s from Coddenham. They all lived to old age. Philip died in 1820 at the age of 94. He was a thatcher. He left a will in 1821 naming five children. Philip (1756-1837), James (1758-1837), Thomas (1762-1836), Mary (1764-1826), and Robert (1760-1829). Philip’s (1756-1837) will mentions a son- in law in London, Thomas Hawkes; his brother, James; and wife, Jane. The value of his estate is 5 pounds. James’s (1758-1837) will is valued at under 100 pounds. He was a gameskeeper. Thomas’s (1762-1836) will indicates that he was a thatcher, and the value of the estate was under 200 pounds. There is no indication of a marriage as he leaves it to his brother, James who dies a year later. The family started using the spelling Scoging in the 1800’s.

Flory Connections

I have been studying another family in my direct line in Suffolk County, England. Elizabeth Flurry (Flory, Flurry) was born in 1710 in the parish of Burgh to Richard Flory and Mary Guildersleve. Elizabeth had nine siblings, five of which lived to old age. I have found a number of Wills relating to the family and monumental inscriptions. The most valuable clue was recorded when Richard Flory died in 1756. His will listed his living children and his daughter 'Elizabeth, wife of Thomas Scogging'. That one sentence ties this Flory family to the Scoggins family leaving no doubt. A small percentage of people left wills and had a headstone. It is worth the search to find such documents. This includes Parish Chest records.
With the scant information found in the parish registers it can be rather difficult to identify correct relationships. With this family only a few of the children remained in the settled parish and the others obtained settlement in other nearby parishes. Case in point; Isaac Flory married Ann Pooley are in his settled parish of Clopton. They had a few children and then there is no sign of them in the parish registers. 10 miles away in the parish of Boyton I find more children. Ann’s maiden name is recorded with her children's baptisms making the connection certain. What made me look at Boyton to begin with was the burial of Benjamin in 1799 in Clopton. Benjamin was born in 1718 and was the father of Issac. The burial record records his abode as Boyton.

Laxfield Farmer

Isaac Scoggins (1799-1889) was a child of ten when his parents died. He became a successful and well known farmer in Laxfield. The farm is on the map even today. He married Mary Ann Stanford in 1822. After studying the Wills of Mary Ann’s grandfather and father it appears that Isaac married into a well to do farming family living in Walpole with lands in Cookley and Badingham. Mary Ann was only seventeen at the time and was with a child. They were married after Banns which is not customary when the ages of the couple are under 21. The Will of her father, Samuel, verifies the relationship. The census records verifies her age and birthplace. To complicate the matter, her grandfather was also named Samuel and lived to 1826, but he did not mention Isaac Scoggins as his son in- law in his will. Issac was the eleventh child of fourteen children born to William Scoggin and Ann Habbald. Isaac Scoggins and Mary Ann Stanford had eleven children. The wealth he acquired was passed on to his children.

Newspaper account of Coroner's Inquest

I was checking the Online British Library catalogue for death entries of my most recent additions to my family tree. One might assume that an ordinary person would not be found in a county newspaper. Newspapers report coroner’s inquests. Years ago I found a short entry in the Carlisle Journal in 1845 for my ancestor, John Ridley.

“On the 9th instant, at Brampton, on the body of John Ridley of that place, nailor. He was carrying upon his back a bag of coals, and he turned to rest himself against the wall, when he fell to the ground and instantly expired; Verdict, Natural Death”

One might ask why would there be an inquest for an old man that died carrying a bag of coals. One of the grounds for an inquest was a sudden death. Accidents were the most common reason. Previous to now it was not practical to read the fine print in newspapers to locate such instances. With an every name index it becomes an easy task. I found an account of Robert the son of Clement Rogers and Sarah Scoging in the Ipswich Journal published on August 21 1875 . This account has all the details one would want to know plus more.

ASHFIELD: Sudden Death. - An inquest was held before C.C. Brooke, Esq., coroner, on Tuesday last, on the body of Robert Rogers, shoemaker, Ashfield, aged 57, who was found dead in a barley field, at Monk Soham, and was carried to his father's house at Ashfield. - Maria Pepper, wife of Thomas Pepper, of Monk Soham, said; last Friday afternoon, the 13th inst., about four o'clock, He ate a very hearty tea, and left about half past seven in the evening to walk home. The deceased has for some time been wandering in his mind, but was sufficiently well to take care of himself. He complained that his breathing was short. - James Parker, labourer employed by Mr. Edwards, of Monk Soham, said; Last Friday evening shortly after eight, I saw the deceased lying on his face across the footpath in a barley field. I raised him on one side. James Hammond was with me, and we found he was dead. Assistance was obtained, and deceased was ultimately brought here.- Mr. George Fletcher, surgeon, of Earl Soham, said he saw the deceased last Friday night, between nine and ten o'clock. He had since made an examination of the body, and found the heart slightly diseased, and one portion of the brain much diseased. - The Jury returned a verdict of "Death from natural causes"

The Ipswich Journal covers East Suffolk. The British Library’s online collection does not cover every area. For instance it does not have the Carlisle Journal where I found John Ridley in 1845. If they have a newspaper in your area of research then you are in luck. The next step in the process is to seek out the actual coroner records which may be found in Record Offices.

Wesleyan Methodist Church Records

I have made progress in locating Sarah Scoging (1795-1842). She married Clement Rogers in 1817 in Earl Soham. Earl Soham is about five miles from Badingham where Sarah was born. The connection to her parents William and Ann Scoggin could appear to be in question since she died before the census of 1851 when birthplaces were recorded. I have searched through many online trees where she is recorded. There is one that connects her to Clement Rogers. Some of the trees consider her to be Rebecca Scoggins who was born in this time period. Rebecca is not in the parish registers of the area. She married a James Nichols in Bruisyard in 1823. They are definitely two distinct woman. A search of the IGI shows 34 entries for the 10 children Clement and Sarah are known to have had. A few of the entries note that the baptisms came from a Wesleyan Methodist church in Framlingham. I identified the registers in the library catalogue. I went through the baptismal register very carefully and to my surprise I found that the registers were quite detailed. In the 1820’s and 1830’s there is a preprinted form that allows for the entry of the parents of the mother of a child. Her parents were recorded as William and Ann Scoggins. This leaves little doubt that she is indeed the daughter of Willliam and Ann Scoggins of Badingham. There is a monumental inscription in the Earl Soham Church Yard that has been transcribed as follows; Sarah wife of Clem Rogers 21 Feb 1842, age 42. The burial register notes her age as 47. Clement Rogers was a cordwainer, shoemaker, and farmer of 42 acres. When he died in 1877 he left an estate valued at £300. The baptism records of the Wesleyan Methodist Church yielded much more than I would expect to find in a Church of England record and even civil registration after 1837. It may not be apparent in the IGI that you are looking at a Church record other than the Church of England.

1911 England Census

I have been searching the 1911 census for over a month now. I have the luxury of having access to it at the Family History Library in Salt Lake. The stark difference between this census and other censuses is that each page only contains one household whether it is one person or ten or more. Prior censuses made it quite easy to see the neighbors since there are 25 people to a page. I have seen a number of errors in the indexing of the census. It is obvious why this is the case. With 25 people on a page it is possible to learn the handwriting of the writer. With one family on a page there is very little to compare the writing with. It does have some details that prior census did not record, such as, how long married, how many children and how many still alive. It also goes into some more detail on occupations. Searching the index is free. It may be necessary to get creative in entering search parameters. If I don’t find what I am looking for I enter a first name with the birthplace and age; leaving out the surname. It also costs about $4.50 to view the image and another $1.50 to view a transcription. That is a steep price to pay when comparing it to other online databases. I sure hope the price becomes more in line with other databases. http://www.1911census.co.uk/

Thomas Scogings a Woolwich shoemaker

I have been going through the census records of Thomas Lay and Mary Scoging. I now have gone through the census records of their children. I have made a connection to another brother of Mary Scoging. I found Ambrose Lay living with Thomas and Hannah Scogings in the 1841 census of Woolwich. Ambrose would be his nephew. His age in the census puts his birth about 1776. Thomas Scoging and Elizabeth Loyd (Lord) had a child before their marriage in 1776. The Otley parish transcript mentions a child being baptized after their marriage. This it appears is the same child born to Elizabeth Loyd before the marriage named Thomas. I think I need to buy the Otley parish registers from the Suffolk Record Office as the research is taking me in that direction.

Thomas and Hannah Scogings had a child recorded in the 1841 census named Abigail. I did not find Thomas and Hannah in the 1851 census, but I found Abigail with her husband, George Smith, living at the same address. Abigail was born about 1821 in Woolwich. The civil registration indexes do not record the death of Thomas and Hannah. It may have not been recorded. I have determine that Thomas was a shoemaker and established resident of Woolwich. The last record I have him in is an 1845 directory of Woolwich I need to search Probate records to see if I can find him prior to 1851. I have found a marriage in Bedfordshire in 1805 between Thomas Scogings and Hannah Evans in 1805. There are more questions than answers. Now I have a location to search and more records to uncover.

Suffolk Ancestors

Thomas Scoggins and Elizabeth Lloyd had 11 children between 1777 and 1800. I have just discovered the marriage of Mary their daughter who was born in 1796. Mary was the last one to be discovered. I have accounted for all eleven children now. Ten of them survived to adulthood and married. William I believe was killed in the Napoleon Wars in 1815. Their average age at death was 77 years. Elizabeth and Deborah lived to near 100 years old. It must be assume that our ancestors lived to old age unless we can prove otherwise. They all remained in East Suffolk except for Richard who lived in London. The Ipswich Journal reported the death of Deborah. Some of the facts do not jive with what the records say.

Ipswich Journal; Feb 8, 1889: Whitton: Death of a Centenarian. Last week there died at Whitton an old lady who had reached the patriorenial age of 100 years, named Deborah Baker. The widow of Thomas Baker, a carpenter of Claydon. Mrs Baker who was the daughter of a small farmer, named Scogings was born at Badingham in November, 1788 and was the youngest of thirteen children. The old lady had been a widow 45 years and had eleven children of whom only three survive. Mrs. Baker retained the use of her faculties to within a few weeks of her death. and could also sew, &c, three months ago. She was a small woman active very simple in her manners and mode of living, and it is said a total abstainer for many years. Mrs. Baker was related to Mrs. Edwards, of Baylham, who has attained her hundredth year.

The most important clues in identifying them came from the census records. The fact that Scoggins is a relatively uncommon name and they lived to the census years when the parish of birth was recorded became invaluable clues. English research is a challenge in that death records do not record that parents names. Marriage records after 1837 only record the father’s name and those before 1837 only record witnesses. Mary mentioned above married in Little Blakenham in 1816. That is about 20 miles from Badingham. It is only three miles from where her two other sisters, Deborah and Elizabeth married and lived. A witness at Mary’s marriage was Robert Fenning. Robert Fenning is the husband of Elizabeth. It becomes obvious that we must search for clues in every record we can find. Relying on parish registers alone is not enough.

Church Records

I am often looking at church records of England. I could not do much research without them. As the nineteenth century marched on it becomes apparent that the Church of England was not dominating the religious scene. I am finding fewer of my ancestors in the parish registers as the century moves on. I can find them in the census records and civil registration indexes but not in the parish registers. Few post 1837 nonconformist records have been filmed. Civil registration started in 1837 and becomes the source for documenting people at a price of about $11 per certificate.
After 1876 it is not possible to view Swiss records. Their closure policy is currently at 135 years. That really puts a damper on finding cousins. If they want people to find a new excitement about researching in Switzerland they may want to make that a 80 year closure policy. Those church record before 1876 can be purchased on CD.
I find it interesting that I can find filmed LDS Church records prior to 1907 for members of the church in Switzerland, but in Utah I cannot find them. 1907 appears to be the year that the church started a new record keeping system. Of course there were many fewer members to keep track of in Switzerland than Utah. My great grandfather, Gottfried Jaggi, joined the Church in Switzerland on February 25, 1889 and there is a record of him and for every member of the Solothurn branch going back to the 1850’s. For members of the LDS church anywhere in the world there is a church census that was taken at 5 and 10 year intervals between 1910 to 1960.

Pension Returns WO22

When I was at the National Archives of England I made it a point to check pension returns WO22. This record is available from 1842 to 1862. This set of record records the death of a pensioner and if he moved to a new district. I had John Ridley’s death certificate which stated he died in September 8, 1845 in Brampton. I checked WO22/15 in Carlisle district and found John Ridley. This record verified that my John Ridley was indeed the same John Ridley found in the 7th Regiment of Foot. I also have another ancestor to check in these records, David Auchterlonie. He died in 1861 right after the census. In the 1861 census is says he was a Chelsea Pensioner. There is no other record that mentions anything about military service. There are some clues that he was in the military. He was over 35 when he first married and there is no record of his first marriage. When I find him in WO22 in the Edinburgh district returns for 1861 it will tell me what regiment he served in and then I will be able to recreate his military service and perhaps find the missing marriage record. He lived in Kirkcaldy, Scotland. The reference book that I am using is My Ancestor was in the British Army.

Hand Cart Pioneer William Scogings 1859

The journey of my handcart pioneer, William Bye Scogings, was recorded in journals. From the time he got on the ship in Liverpool till the time he arrived in Salt Lake City there are accounts of the trip. Some of the journals have been partially transcribed and are at the Church Archives website. While on the journey he is mentioned many times by name.

June 18 McIntyre, Thomas, Journal
We have a thunder storm this morning preventing us from starting out early. We try it at 11 o’clock[.] the roads are soft and many pools of water are formed[.] On the roads we make circutious routes to avoid them which makes it very tedious travelling. We reach a place about 5 o’clock tired and weary called "Cleveland" Travelled 10 miles[.] Our little trials are finished off today by the pesty mosquitoes. Prayer by Wm Scroggins.

Smith, John Young, [Diary],
August 14. Sabbath morning. Call to a general meeting when we are addressed by captains of Gen. Br. Scroggins thinks the Sisters are too familiar with Strangers of Gentile and Apostate Trains that we meet and instructs the Saints concerning the Sin of Selfishness . . Time is given to the saints to bear testimony, and a good time is enjoyed.

When they arrived in Salt Lake City there was quite a celebration:

Deseret News; Sept 7, 1859, page 4: News from Utah: Arrival of the handcart company.-- On Friday evening, Mr. J. Harvey arrived from Bridger with the intelligence that Capt. Rowley, with the handcart company, would arrive near the city, Saturday evening, but would not come in till Monday morning. About 2 p.m., on Suuday, a messenger arrived from Elder Benson, who went out to there camp in the morning, announcing that the company were so anxious to come in that Capt. Rowley had resolved to accede to their wishes, and they would arrive at five o'clock. Immediately every house and vehicle in the city was seemingly in motion, conveying those who were anxious to witness the egress of the company from the kanyon in that direction. Within a few minutes of the designated time, the company arrived, escorted by two or three bands of music and a vast concourse of citizens of all grades and professions, and passing through the streets lined with anxious spectators, went to Union Square, accompanied by the thousands that joined the escort as they passed along. It was certainly a stirring scene, and such a one as has not been witnessed for some time past by this community, calling forth many expressions from the beholders, mostly of the joy, but some of detestation that human beings would endure so much, leave their houses in foreign lands, traverse the seas, and cross the deseret plains with handcarts, all for their religion. The liberality of the Saints was abundantly manifest on the occasion by the amount and variety of the provisions that were provided through the Bishops of the several Wards for the wayworn emmigrants composing the company, who were thus made welcome to these once, and will be again, ere long, peaceful vales; for surely "Mormonism," so called, is not dead, as some have supposed; and truth, seemingly crushed to earth, will rise again, although it has not in these days been overcome.

IGI and Research

My aunt did a lot of genealogy work some 40 to 50 years ago. Now as I build onto the tree I can see some of the mistakes. She connected with cousins in England and Australia. It was through correspondence that she obtained much of her information. Back then there was no internet or computers. The latest England census to be released was 1871 and there were no indexes. Those mistakes which seem so obvious today were not so obvious 50 years ago. One particular mistake that I find is that many people who were not born in Badingham are recorded as being born there. That is where the family had lived a generation prior. One family who lived in London has all the children as being born in Badingham. I’ve even seen a few people created out of thin air.

I can now go through and correct all the mistakes except in a couple places. The IGI is set in stone. Therein lies the comments that I have heard about the IGI being unreliable. A distinction needs to be made between member submissions and the record extractions. Any member submission should be verified with a record. That should be a lesson for us today. We better have a record to substantiate a claim. Our mistakes may outlive us and perhaps many generations to come.

Those of us who research on a regular basis know the differences but the casual researcher may not catch on so easily and repeat those errors over again. If no record can be found it may not be best to publish it where it cannot be so easily changed. The IGI is a place to put your names if you want your names to be known for generations to come. The larger it gets the more value it has to the genealogist.

Prior to 1991 there are IGI submission forms that have been microfilmed. These forms tell you who submitted the information and sometimes even sources of information.

National Archives of Scotland

The purpose of going to Scotland was to connect to the homeland of my Scottish Ancestors and access so many of the records that were not available in Salt Lake City. It has been over 10 years since I first visited. I went to New Register House paid a fee and was able to look at births, deaths, and marriages on microfiche and get copies. That was before the time of ScotlandsPeople website. Now for less than $2 I can search the databases and buy a certificate. It is the same for census records. Within minutes it appears on my computer screen. Probate records prior to 1900 can now be searched and bought for less than $8.
A highlight of the visit was to the National Archives of Scotland. Those records referred to in the book, Tracing your Scottish Ancestors were accessible. I’m not referring to microfilm copies. The original documents are available for inspection. I obtained many copies of records. I looked at voter rolls, various tax records, Kirk Session, and church records other than the Church of Scotland. i.e. Antiburgher, United Presbyterian, Free Church, Catholic. I might add that they still are not available online.
I found a set of records only referred to in ‘Militia Lists and Musters 1757-1876’. The author of this booklet noted that he had not examined this set of records. I was quite surprised to find an extensive collection of militia lists mainly from the 1802, 1808 time period for Kirkcudbright County. I have created a website for some of these records.

Hand Cart Pioneer from Lullington England

My pioneer ancestor, Susan Page, came to Utah in 1860 with a handcart company. She was born in Lullington, which has the distinction of being the smallest parish in England. Lullington was a small community of laborers. The Cruckmere River separates Alfriston from Lullington. The Alfriston parish church sits right next to the river and is about a quarter-mile from the Lullington parish church. The picture postcard shows the Alfriston parish church. The Lullington parish church is out of view off to the right. The picture appears to be taken from the vicinity of the Litlington parish church. My ancestors can be found in these three parishes. Today Alfriston is an attraction with hotels and a feel for the past. Alfriston was the main town in the area where many tradesman worked. Life was very hard for the laborers. The book, Crime and Disorder in Late Georgian Alfriston, paints a bleak picture of the laboring class. After 1815 when the Napoleon wars had ended, the plight of the working man became quite hard all over Britain. The change in the poor law in 1834-35 forced the most destitute into work houses instead of outdoor relief. Crime was on the rise. You might even find your ancestors in the quarter sessions records. For the smallest of crime men were transported to Australia or given hard labor. Old post cards provide a look into the past. I found these and many others at a Brighton shop.

Switzerland Recherswil 1850 Census

My surname, Jaggi, originates from Recherswil which is a short distance from Solothurn. One might think that Jaggi is a rare surname. The 1850 census of Recherswil reveals that 1/3rd of the town has the Jaggi surname. Solothurn is worth a visit as it is Switzerland’s finest Baroque Town. It also has a good archive for the Kanton. I found my Ancestors in the 1850 census. Yes there is an 1850 census for the Kanton. I had to take pictures of it with my camera since the books are so large. The census records the wife’s maiden name. It also records occupations. I was quite surprised that the Bern archives has no census records. I came away from the Bern Archives with copies of picture postcards of my ancestors home towns. Try making a google search for census records in Switzerland. I found nothing but vague reference to these records. Is there a reference book anywhere that tells one what census records are available for each place in Switzerland?

Ahnentafel Organizing digital files with folders

I have organized my genealogy into 22 surname folders. In each surnames folder I created additional family folders that are broken down into family groups. The example shows Peter&Maria 10-11. Peter is 10 and Maria is 11. The ahnentafel system has males as even numbers and spouses are obtained by adding one number. The ahnentafel numbers for each generation back from Peter doubles so it is easy to see each generation. If you have hundreds of documents to organize it certainly helps to have a way to organize them. Not shown in the diagram are the folders within each family group. This is where all the files are stored, such as, certificates, census, probate, pictures. Once this system is established it is set in stone because it is from here that all the files are linked to a genealogy program with sources and transcriptions. If any of the folder names change then they will no longer be linked to the sources and transcriptions in the program. Every person has their own number. As a matter of simplicity I have started with my parents instead of myself, so I have two sets of ahnentafel numbers

John Ridley 7th Regiment of Foot

When Ann Ridley died in 1879 in Dalbeattie, I obtained her parents names from the death certificate. Her father was John Ridley, a blacksmith and her mother was Jane Mills. From the census and IGI I was able to identify her christening entry in the Brampton parish registers. John Ridley died in 1845. I found the family in the 1841 census. John Ridley’s occupation was listed as Army ?. ? was a O, D, or a P. I figured it would be worth a look to see if I could find him in the army pension records. There is a partial index of WO120 online (WO represents War Office Records) I found him in the pension records rather quickly. He was in the 7th Regiment of Foot (Royal Fusiliers). The pension record is insightful. The record indicates that he was born in Brampton in 1778. The pension record is the only record I have that records his place of birth. I now know that he was in the Army for 17 years. He joined in 1804 and was discharged to pension in 1821. He was 54 inches high and had blue eyes. He was wounded at Albuera and Orthes. These are battles that took place during the Peninsular War. Albuera was the bloodiest battle in the war. From a newspaper account I learned that 62 men were killed and 262 were wounded in that battle from the regiment. The regiment fought in numerous battles and even was at New Orleans in 1815. In 1824 he married Jane Mills. Jane was 17 years younger and out lived him by 40 years. An age difference is an indication that the man may have been preoccupied with the war.