Every life story is extraordinary.
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Eliza Saword — a short life remembered
Eliza Saword was paralysed and had epilepsy. She only lived to the age of 17. In this blog I investigate medical treatments and social attitudes towards these conditions in the 1860s, and consider how her disabilities would have affected her short life.
After the Great War: Part 1 — Lighter Work
Experienced soldier William Walter Talmer returned from the trenches in 1916 with a disabling disease. Now, he had a new fight — to persuade the Appeal Tribunal for an exemption from active service.
Back to England: the search for my English ancestors who emigrated to Canada
I’m trying to trace my English ancestors who emigrated to Ontario in the 1840s-50s. Can you help me break down this brick wall?
Becky Flood’s Gypsy Caravan
A mysterious figure in my family history — “Aunt Becky” — lived in a traditional Romani caravan. While searching for her true identity I also investigated why in 1901, numerous children from London were living in a small village in the Chilterns.
Deserted, Defaulted, Discharged
Three young men in my family tree left the British army suddenly in the 1700s-1800s. Through a variety of records I’ve investigated the causes, and outcomes, of their choices.
A Tale of Five Camillas
Tracing the lives of the first five Camillas whose births were registered in Great Britain highlights class differences and women’s experiences in Victorian Britain.
William Gunton Saword: Part 2 — Butler of Greenwich Hospital
William Saword was the Butler of Greenwich Hospital for naval pensioners from 1772 to 1812. He faced two government enquiries into corruption, a devastating fire and the loss of two wives, and he experienced royal visits and the lying-in-state of Lord Nelson.
Field Punishment Number 1
At the outbreak of WW1, English seaman Richard Maultby was nearly 43 when he volunteered with the CEF. His service record reveals that he was disciplined twice with Field Punishment Number 1.
The Artist and the Pacifist — Two brothers’ WW1 stories
Brothers Sidney and Algy Saword were newly settled in Canada in 1914 when war was declared. One volunteered to fight, while the other refused to be a combatant. Both served with the Canadian Expeditionary Force.
William Gunton Saword: Part 1 — Clerk of the Royal Yacht Augusta
From 1764-1772, William Saword was the Clerk of the Royal Yacht Augusta, which conveyed the royal family of George III around Britain and to and from Europe.
Who Was Harriet Horlock? Part 3: Harriet’s Secret Is Revealed!
According to family lore a mysterious relation called Harriet had a royal lovechild, Violet, who became a silent movie star. In 2021, I received a startling message from someone who could finally reveal the true identity of Violet’s father …
A Sense of Duty: 1907 triple drowning in San Francisco Bay
This is a true California story of heroism, murder, and tragedy — with a Hollywood ending.
EXTRAORDINARY ACTION FOR SEDUCTION
When 19-year-old Hannah Maultby became an unmarried mother in 1866, her fiancé promised to marry her. But two years later, he had failed to keep his word, and Hannah’s mother Martha took him to court for Seduction.
The brother who never came home
Brothers Harold and Neville Underwood fought in WW1. One received a gallantry medal; the other was a POW. Only one of them came home.
Five reasons why ancestors used surnames as middle names
Why did our ancestors sometimes give their children surnames as middle names? Here are five reasons I’ve found in my family tree.
My strangest (and spookiest) heirloom
I don’t have any valuable heirlooms but I have a very unusual one: a set of psychic portraits that belonged to my great grand aunt Marjorie.
Polly Smith & ‘the Gosling’ (Servants & Employers Part 1)
My great grandmother Polly Smith worked as a domestic servant for Nicholas Gosselin aka ‘The Gosling’ — head of the Irish Special Branch.
Millicent Gifford & D’Arcy de Ferrars (Servants & Employers Part 2)
Millicent Gifford left a mining family in the Forest of Dean to work as a cook for a singer, composer and organiser of grand Elizabethan style pageants.
Deodatus Eaton: A Life of Scandal
Deodatus Eaton IV of Oxford (1819-1879) was an army surgeon, notorious bankrupt, scandalous divorcé, and Australian emigrant.
‘Peculiar’ & ‘Unnatural’ Crimes (Part 1)
‘Wilfully murdered by his mother’: In 1851 Fanny Talmer was accused of murdering her nine week old son Henry in Amersham workhouse.
More blog posts to explore …
- From Suffolk to Scotland Yard
- ‘Peculiar’ and ‘Unnatural’ Crimes (Part 1)
- ‘Peculiar’ and ‘Unnatural’ Crimes (Part 2)
- Alfred Munday: ‘an expert orchid grower’
- James Benwell: a humble man of science
- Blazing Dresses (Part 1)
- Blazing Dresses (Part 2)
- Mabel Maultby: a WW2 nurse and civilian casualty
- My Bucks Posse
- A double murder attempt in Drayton
- The lightning rod of Esculapius Wood
- One wedding, one fake marriage and no funeral
- I’m a British Library reader, and you can be one too!
- Queen Alexandra and a progressive police orphanage
- Christmas cheer in the workhouse
- Wot no German DNA?
- Crowdfunding, Georgian style
- Geagle Badcock sniffs out a criminal
- Raised by an aunt and uncle; part 1: The mysterious locket
- Raised by an aunt and uncle; part 2: A transatlantic record
- A person unknown drowned in the Thames
- Who Was Harriet Horlock? Part 1: A Genealogical Puzzle
- Who Was Harriet Horlock? Part 2: The Skeleton in the Cupboard
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