The Hampshire Family Historian | Volume 50 No.1 | June 2023

Local Group Programmes

from her son saying he will be home by 7pm the next day helped Helen contrast the harsh childhood of a mother to that of her children. Behind the image and from a few short lines on a cheap and easy form of communication Helen showed that so much more can be deduced. Do not forget that postcards sent to and from the area where your ancestors lived may well be the people they knew. Check them out! (February) The Inland Revenue Valuation Survey 1910-1915 – Gill Blanchard Gill’s Zoom talk was designed to give context to this valuable early 20th century resource including why it was instigated, how it was organised, and what the outcome was. It operates both on a family history level and for social & local history, with Gill giving us examples of how she uses it in her research. As a tax, to pay for the provision of old age pensions, it failed to deliver but as a snapshot of post-Edwardian Britain it can yield an intimate detail of your ancestor’s living conditions. With the survey comprised of three parts: the map, the valuation register, and the field book. Gill explained where to find these documents though it seems not all of them have survived. In such cases other sources may be needed such as directories, electoral registers and census returns, particularly 1911. Gill is a member of both the Royal Historical Society and AGRA, and can provide a handout associated with the talk. (March) Across the Pond and Back – Susan Way It was good to have our first physical meeting of the year and though the weather could have been better (rain), it could also have been a lot worse (snow)! Susan, a member of the Fleet U3A, gave us a talk on how she traced four branches of her family from her grandparents. But unlike other stories that feature migration, Susan’s was the other way around after she came to Britain as a student in 1971 from her native Newfoundland, a place where many generations of her family had been born. In fact, she has been able to trace all four lines back several generations, all lines having settled on the American continent in the 1700s and early 1800s. She started with an historical outline of Newfoundland, how it developed from a fishing industry with seasonal inhabitants, and covered differences in research between Britain and Canada. With no established church for much of the period, no civil registration until 1892, and no census for the whole province until 1921, it would have been an uphill struggle. What made it possible was the enviable amount of family documents that have survived, coupled with stories handed down through the generations. It now forms an impressive piece of work delivered in an informal style. Forthcoming Meetings:

Member's evening - A Tragedy in the Family

June 8th

Vagrants, Paupers & the Welfare State

July

Jan Smith

Social (to be arranged)

Aug §

Out of Sight, Out of Mind?

Sep

Julian Pooley

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