Guest post: Scottish resources on Ancestry

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Guest contributor: Frances Devaney

Many people when using Ancestry get stuck on the major collections - the UK census collection, military records etc and forget that some of the smaller resources can provide rich untapped seams for the family historian. It's always a good idea to go browsing and see what's new and explore some of the lesser known collections on this fantastic resource.

I was enthralled when browsing through Ancestry.com recently to find two resources of which I had been previously unaware. Fife, Scotland, Cupar Library Newspaper Index Cards, 1833-1987 and Perth, Scotland Newspaper Index Cards, 1809-1990. Both can be found under the births, deaths and marriages Scotland section.

The first contains a collection of index cards referencing articles and announcements found in several Fife area newspapers from 1833-1987. I was delighted to locate information pertaining to various family members who resided in the area ranging from birth notices to their involvement in the local dramatic society.

This Perth database is similar in that it contains a collection of index cards referencing articles and announcements found in several Perth area newspapers from 1890-1990 (with a gap in coverage from 1890-1920). Although it is recorded as being only up to 1990 I have found reference to family members up to 2006. Most of the cards reference births, deaths, retrials, golden and diamond wedding anniversaries, or personal tragedies.

And finally a reminder that anyone, member or non-member,  can access Ancestry from any of our 17 Auckland City Library sites.

Guest post: New Zealand newspapers on microfilm

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Guest contributor: Frances Devaney

Can’t find a record of that ancestor? Have a gap in your family history? All avenues leading to a cul-de-sac? Have you tried our collection of newspapers on microfilm?
 
Newspapers are an important resource for family historians and researchers. They provide information that may pertain directly to your own ancestors but also document the social history of the period. As was highlighted in Kintalk, September 2008 Auckland Public Libraries provides access to important historic British newspapers through the digital library while for New Zealand the National Library’s Papers Past website has revolutionised access to late 18th and early 19th century newspapers.
 
However Auckland Research Centre has an extensive collection of New Zealand newspapers on microfilm many of which are not available through Papers Past. Although customers may be aware of some of the most obvious items in our collection for example the much loved and used New Zealand Herald from 1 May 1863, I want to highlight some of the lesser known titles.
 
If your ancestors are Roman Catholic or of Irish origin you may wish to have a look at the New Zealand Freeman’s Journal (1879-1887), a weekly Catholic journal published in Auckland. It carried general news items, family notices, news items from Ireland as well as advertisements and could help fill some of these gaps in your research.
 
For those with Yugoslavian ancestors we have on microfilm several issues of Napredek (Progress) written in the Croatian language and published irregularly in Auckland from December 1906 – June 1909. As well as publishing news from Yugoslavia and beyond,  it includes items like marriage notices, reports of weddings, advertisements etc providing a rich resource for family historians.
 
It may be possible to track ancestors linked to the Thames gold mines in the following titles. Our earliest Thames paper is the Times and Thames Miners Advocate, dated February 1869, followed by The Mail, March 1870. For each title we have only one volume on microfilm. These were followed by the Thames Guardian and Miners Record, published 1871-72 and the Advocate and Miners News published 1974-1899. Both titles published a range of content from business advertisements, local news and court reports to issues and events surrounding the mining industry and land ownership.
 
The Waitemata Post 1910-1914 continued by the Waitemata News 1914-1917 provides a glimpse of life on the North shore. Covering Devonport, Northcote and Birkenhead it provides a great source for North Shore news, issues and events including news from the Borough Councils, some personal notices, and even news of people entering and leaving the area.
 
This is a very brief selection from some of our lesser known items. So what are you waiting for? The centre is open Monday-Friday 9-8pm, and Saturday/Sunday 10-4pm. We have ten microfilm readers five with the capacity to either print, or scan and save an article as an electronic file, so remember to bring a memory stick with you. We look forward to seeing you there soon!

Guest post: Historical New Zealand BDM's now online

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Guest contributor: Bridget Simpson

As you probably know by now we are lucky  to have New Zealand historical BDM's accessible online.

There is more to this searchable website than meets the eye. Click on the Timeline for a wealth of facts to help you in your New Zealand research for, say, finding a marriage. Did you know that it was up to as late as 1933 that 12 year old girls and 14 year old boys were able to marry? Or that in 1911 a separate registration for Maori marriages was introduced?

What information is actually available online?
  • Births that occurred at least 100 years ago
  • Still births that occurred at least 50 years ago
  • Marriages, and eventually Civil Unions, that occurred 80 years ago
  • Deaths that occurred at least 50 years ago or the deceased's date of birth was at least 80 years ago
Although official registrations didn't start until 1848 there are earlier records taken from church and place registers dating back to 1840 included.

When seaching you will be asked to include two mandatory fields; one has to be the family name, the other a seach from date.  If you want to search the entire family name or have no idea when to start searching from, simply type in 01/01/1840. Of course, for a specific search, the more detail the better. You are able to order a printout or certificate online, unless you require a certificate for legal reasons our preference is for the printout because of the extra information it usually includes.

www.bdmhistoricalrecords.identityservices.govt.nz/Home/

Enjoy!

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