Guest contributor: Marie Hickey

As Autumn approaches some of you will be looking forward to an overseas trip to the Northern hemisphere during their warmer months. For those who may be, including the Merseyside and Manchester areas, you may be interested in the following:

The People's History Museum at Left Bank, Spinningfields, Manchester M3 3ER. Admission is free and it is open Monday to Sunday.
Ancestor's Arms, Wallasey, Merseyside, is the first family history themed pub to open in the UK. Newton & Ridley (the well-known Coronation Street brewers) are said to be brewing two special ales for sale at the pub.

If you are intending to visit the Somerset Record Office records on micofiche and micofilm only will be available for consultation 6 April to 5th July. After this period the centre will be closed for at least two months while records are moved to the new Somerset Heritage Centre which is envisaged to open 6 September 2010. Further information can be found on their website.

Want to experience what a Family History Fair in the UK can be like? Then you may wish to attend one on 11 September 2010 at Newcastle Central Premier Inn, Newbridge Street, Newcastle-upon-Tyne. Check the website for further information.
Of course the 'big one' - Who do you think you are? LIVE- is now being held in London at the end of February. Check the Society of Genealogists' website for further information closer to the time.

If you are one of those lucky people travelling abroad and planning to do some research do go prepared (do you need identification? what are the opening hours & regulations?), your time will be more productive and more enjoyable.

Finally, those who enjoy reading the Ancestors magazine published by TNA (the National Archives, UK) will be disappointed to learn that this has now ceased publication. It is envisaged that a different magazine will be produced possibly later in the year.

Guest contributor: Marie Hickey

Those of you who enjoy reading Ancestor magazine published by The National Archives will be sorry to learn that the April 2010 issue is to be the last in the current format.  A new magazine is apparantly envisaged but as yet no details are available. For all those with London connections, the February 2010 issue is completely devoted to this City.

New databases are coming available all the time and it is hard to keep up with them all. Some recently added databases of interest are: -

New additions from findmypast:
Approximately 20,000 entries have been added to Essex Memorial Inscriptions bringing the total number of entries to 170,875 convering the years 1100-2007.

St John Wapping records for 1655-1707 and 1734-1780 have been added to the Docklands Christening records. Other areas included (but not necessarily comprehensively) are: Bermondsley, Isle of Dogs, Limehouse, Mile End, Millwall, Newington, Poplar, Ratcliff, Shadwell, Spitalfields, Stepney and Whitechapel. Unfortunately date range and parishes covered is not given.

Chelsea Pensioner Records: soldier's documents (W097) 1760-1913 and Militia Attestation Papers (WO96) 1806-1915 are being digitised and added to this site. The project is due to be completed in 2011. See findmypast for the proposed release dates. The first section to be released covers WO97/2172-4231 (1883-1900).

Ancestry has added Famine Relief Commission Papers (1844-47). These cover letters, minutes etc sent to the Royal Commission mainly from local relief committees, local clergy, lieutenants and concerned citizens from Cork, Galway, Clare, Mayo and Limerick counties. They are name searchable and provide good back ground knowledge of what conditions were like and steps taken to provide relief. The National Archives of Ireland website explains these papers.

Last but not least, for those of you who have not heard, the cost of certificates from the General Register Office (England and Wales) will increased on the 6th of April 2010 from 7.00 to 9.25. This fee is the same whether or not you quote the volume and page number reference or place your order online.

Historical Australian newspapers from every Australian state have been digitised, some more than others. Some of the 30 plus newspapers are the Sydney Morning Herald, from 1842 to1954, the Melbourne Argus, from 1848 to1954, Tasmania's the Mercury, from1860 to1954, the Brisbane Courier, from 1864 to1933, and the Northern Territory Times and Gazette, from 1873 to1927. Going on to About Us from the home page shows you a list of the newspapers and the years covered. You can browse these newspapers by title, search by state or click on to Advanced Search to limit your search to specific newspapers and a range of years.

Papers Past, the National Library of New Zealand's initiative, is also a work in progress and added to on a regular basis. New to the website is the Thames Star, from 1874 to 1900 (although in May they will be covering up to 1920), the Ashburton Guardian, from 1890 to 1920 (with some gaps), and the recently added colourful NZ Truth, from 1903 to 1930. The Manawatu papers are to be added this month, from1877 to 1886, as are the Waipu Church Times and Waipu Church Gazette, between them covering the years 1907 to 1920. The Lyttleton Times is to be introduced in May and issues of the Evening Post will carry on to 1920. In June the Otago Daily Times is to be launched, starting from 1861 with its period of coverage yet to be confirmed. The newspapers can be searched by title, region and year. Clicking on More search options though will allow a more specific search.

Historical newspapers are full of gems for genealogists with, for example, family notices, passenger lists, reports of accidents and lists of school prize winners.