Category Archives: Worcestershire

Another Eureka moment!

I always feel uneasy when researching ancestors with common name and surname combinations – it is so easy to be misled by the wrong record, and to end up barking up the wrong (family) tree! This is a lesson I … Continue reading

Posted in 1841 Census, 1851 Census, 1861 Census, Colwall, Death, Genealogy, Illegitimacy, Marriage, Worcestershire | Leave a comment

Mary Ann Allen (1807-1884)

In the course of your research, have you ever come across any relatives who just sit there, perched on your family tree, and no matter how many times you tried to find either a marriage or a death record for … Continue reading

Posted in 1841 Census, 1851 Census, 1861 Census, 1871 Census, 1881 Census, 1891 Census, Colwall, England, Family Search, Genealogy, Herefordshire, Illness, Marriage, Property, Women, Worcestershire | 1 Comment

Judith Allen (née Cooke, formerly Bond)

One of the most fascinating members of my extended family is, in my opinion, my “aunt” Judith – the second wife of my great-great-great-grandfather’s youngest brother. Although there are very few sources which shed light on her life, what we … Continue reading

Posted in 1841 Census, 1851 Census, 1861 Census, 1871 Census, 1881 Census, 1891 Census, Colwall, Genealogy, Herefordshire, Illegitimacy, Marriage, Women, Worcestershire | 1 Comment

Review: Explore The Past (a brand new guide to family history)

Lately, Worcestershire seems to be cropping up in my “genealogical life” more than usual. Not only have I just become a member of the Malvern Family History Society (thanks to whom I think I may have cracked an old brick-wall … Continue reading

Posted in Archives, Genealogy, Worcestershire | Leave a comment

My great-great-great-grandmother, Ann Rodway

On 5 May 1790, James and Elizabeth Rodway attended the burial of their first-born child, who three days earlier had been christened and given the name Ann. Twenty years, four sons and three daughters later, Elizabeth gave birth to her … Continue reading

Posted in 1861 Census, Colwall, Genealogy, Herefordshire, Worcestershire | 1 Comment

The curious private life of Mary Willoughby

On 23rd December 1880, a wedding took place in the church of Saint James the Great, Colwall, at the foot of the Malvern Hills which separate Herefordshire from Worcestershire. The bride was twenty-five-year-old Mary Willoughby, my great-grandfather’s third cousin and … Continue reading

Posted in 1881 Census, 1891 Census, 1901 Census, Birth, Colwall, Colwall Soldiers, Divorce, France, Genealogy, Herefordshire, Marriage, Worcestershire, World War I, Yorkshire | Leave a comment

A mystery, finally solved?

Conundrum Years ago, when I first started investigating the origins of my Allen ancestors, I inevitably turned to the Internet for help. The 1841, 1851 and 1861 census records I had access to at the time revealed that my most remote … Continue reading

Posted in 1841 Census, 1851 Census, 1861 Census, Adoption, Ancestry.com, Birth, Civil Registration, Colwall, Engagement, England, Genealogy, Herefordshire, Illegitimacy, Marriage, Women, Worcestershire | 3 Comments

The mystery of John Davis: Part 1

For years I have been puzzled by the figure of my great-great-great-grandfather, John Davis, whose anonymous name, death and origins are as obscure as they can get. To explain why he represents such a mysterious to me, I should at … Continue reading

Posted in 1841 Census, 1851 Census, 1861 Census, 1871 Census, Birth, Colwall, Death, England, Genealogy, Herefordshire, Marriage, Worcestershire, Work | 1 Comment

My AncestryDNA Adventure

The following entry has been written over a period of several weeks. 25 March 2016 It was one of those lazy mornings when, instead of rushing to get ready for work, as I should, I got glued to the minuscule screen … Continue reading

Posted in Ancestry.com, Andalucía, Birth, DNA, England, France, Galicia, Genealogy, Germany, Herefordshire, Huguenots, Ireland, Italy, Jewish Ancestry, La Coruña, New York City, Spain, United States, Worcestershire | 3 Comments

Remembering Ash Villa

There are not many buildings left standing where an ancestor of mine once lived. One of the few exceptions that I know of is a quaint yet ordinary-looking, four-bedroom house called Ash Villa, in Upper Colwall, Herefordshire. Nestled behind the … Continue reading

Posted in 1851 Census, 1861 Census, 1871 Census, 1881 Census, 1891 Census, 1901 Census, 1911 Census, Adoption, Birmingham, Birth, Colwall, Death, England, Genealogy, Herefordshire, Property, War, Worcestershire, World War I | 7 Comments