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

Local Group Programmes

Reports by Janet Heath (January) Crime on Record – Gill Blanchard Gosport Meetings are normally held on the second Wednesday of each month in the Scout Hut, Clayhall Road, Alverstoke, Gosport, Hants, PO12 2BY from 7.30-9.30.

Contact: Janet Heath Tel: 02392 522 827 Email: gosport@hgs-online.org.uk

Gill Blanchard gave us a very informative talk on crime and other court records. She explained the different types of courts and explained what sort of things they dealt with, e.g. Quarter Sessions (QS), Petty Sessions (PS), Assize Courts. The types of records available for researchers are: Quarter Sessions Minute Books – record of cases and verdicts; Calendars of Prisoners & Criminal Registers – lists of prisoners held in jail; Depositions – evidence filed by witnesses and the accused; Indictments – the charge, or offence, often giving the criminal’s address; Prison Registers – include physical descriptions, photographs, and birthplace; Various books and journals kept by prison officials – day-to-day life in prisons. E.g. disputes, illnesses, burials, escapes, punishments, transfers, arrangements for transportation and death sentences carried out. The National Archives hold Assize Court Records that include Home Office Warrants which detail pardons, reprieves, and transfers of convicts. Many court cases were recorded in local or national newspapers, so these are always worth looking at. (February) My ancestor was on the 1939 register – well they should have been! – John Hanson With his 40 years of experience of census and civil registration, John is a mine of information about getting the most from those sources and especially the 1939 register that he has studied extensively. The 1939 register (or three registers to be exact) were compiled just before WWII. The main register covered the civilian population. The second register covered serving personnel. The third contains everyone born after 29 Sep 1939 and amendments. The register covers England and Wales. For Scotland and NI the NRO should be contacted. The registers were used for the issue of ID cards and ration cards during the war years. Later in the 1940s it was used for the creation of the NHS. It is a very useful source for genealogists, especially as the 1931 census was destroyed by fire. The 1941 census not taken during the war years, the next census to be released for researchers will be the 1951 in 2051. The 1939 Register contains the details of addresses and the people in them. Address, schedule no, sub no, surname, first name, sex, dob, marital status, and occupation. The register can be accessed via Find my past and a guide can be found here: https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/help-with-your-research/research-guides/1939-register/ John showed us some examples of entries and talked through how the entries are open or closed for viewing depending on whether the person is still alive or has died, This updating stopped in the1990s. This was an interesting zoom talk.

48