FreeBMD May Update

The FreeBMD database was updated on Sunday, 25 May 2025, to contain 293,193,549 unique records, updated from 292,983,734 in April.

Years with major additions of more than 10,000 index records are, for births 1993-96, for marriages 1994-96, and for deaths 1995.

The collection, derived from the GRO indexes, is virtually complete to the early 1990s.

Today: OGS Toronto Branch May Meeting with Paul Jones

The May Toronto branch meeting will be held via Zoom at 7:30 pm. Ever-popular speaker Paul Jones will present an informative and entertaining case study outlining the most complex yet successful hunt for a single ancestor in his genealogical journey. It’s a cutting-edge DNA story, but 98 %+ of the time was spent doing traditional research. As with most complex cases, there were unexpected twists, poignant tales, and lots to learn. And there were frustrations—red herrings and blind alleys, Paul’s own failings (by his admission), inadequate tools and unavailable records.

Register via https://torontofamilyhistory.org/may-2025-meeting-online/

Sunday Sundries

Miscellaneous items I found of interest during the week.

High days, hiring-days and holidays: the seasonality of marriage and birth. From the blog Top of the Campops: 60 things you didn’t know about family, marriage, work, and death since the middle ages.

Ancestry Updates
Isle of Man, UK, Civil Birth Marriage & Death, 1849-2013,  379,142 records
Buckinghamshire, England, Electoral Registers, 1832-1971, 12,602,814 records.

An Introduction to Irish Family History
A free online course on the basics of Irish genealogy.

Documentary Heritage Communities Program
Normally, LAC would have announced the results of the 2025-26 annual call for proposals by now. Either the publication embargo around the election is still in place, or the program will not be funded this round.

The DIY guide to checking how well you’re ageing

Fish driving cars and chimps doing maths: what teaching animals ‘irrelevant’ skills reveals about our own minds

Thanks to the following for comments and tips: Alison Hare, Ann Burns, Anonymous, Glenn Wright, Lolly Fullerton, Teresa, and Unknown.

 

 

BIFHSGO Recognition

Announced at its annual family history conference, the (US) National Genealogical Society (NGS) recognized The British Isles Family History Society of Greater Ottawa (BIFHSGO) with an Award of Merit “for its outstanding work to connect, educate, share, and inspire people in the pursuit of genealogy. It supports researchers in Canada and beyond with effective research methods and practices focused on the British Isles. Its broad scope of programming includes in-person meetings, online education, publications, indexes to special populations of those of British Isles descent, and access to presentations of international speakers. The BIFHSGO continues to provide its members valuable content, a vibrant community of fellow researchers, and access to high-quality resources.”

The Award of Merit is presented to “an individual or non-profit genealogical or historical organization to recognize exceptional contributions to the field of genealogy over a period of five or more years. Their work must have significantly aided research or increased interest in genealogy.”

Congratulations to all who contribute to BIFHSGO’s success.

Findmypast Weekly Update

This week’s Findmypast additions focus on Wiltshire, with new entries that illuminate health, work, and burial practices from the 17th through the 19th centuries, many from the work of the Wiltshire Family History Society.

Salisbury Infirmary Hospital Records, 1797–1832

These records, comprising over 103,000 indexed entries, document individuals admitted to or discharged from Salisbury Infirmary. Key information includes first and last name, event date, admission or discharge status, and notes such as “cured.”

Trowbridge St James Bell Book, 1797–1855

This collection, an unusual one, preserves the tradition of tolling the church bell at funerals in Trowbridge. Transcribed from two original volumes kept by sexton William Nightingale and later his son, the nearly 10,000 entries serve as a burial register. 

South-West England Contagious Diseases in Farm Animals, 1878–1888

This unique collection of just over 2,500 records captures official notices of animal disease outbreaks. While swine fever dominates, there are also instances of anthrax, rabies, and foot and mouth disease. The linked original images of the printed notice were not properly linked when I explored.

Marlborough Apprentice Books, 1655–1693

Covering over 150 years of social history, these 198 records document the apprenticeship of pauper children under the Poor Law Acts. Details include names of both apprentice and master, occupations, dates, and locations.

Newspaper Pages Added 

Title Date Range
Belfast News-Letter31936 pages 1738-1740, 1746-1747, 1750, 1752-1770, 1772, 1775-1780, 1782, 1784-1785, 1787-1800, 1802-1803, 1806, 1816-1825, 1827, 1959-1961
Newry Telegraph6510 pages 1910-1915, 1950, 1954-1955, 1957-1959
Salisbury Times6590 pages 1938-1939, 1950-1958
Illustrated Berwick Journal10078 pages 1873, 1875-1879, 1890-1896, 1898-1899, 1910, 1912-1919, 1928
Ardrossan and Saltcoats Herald3246 pages 1911-1918
Derby and Chesterfield Reporter34602 pages  – new title 1831-1835, 1837-1840, 1843-1865, 1869-1870, 1872-1876, 1878-1886, 1890-1929
Wigan Examiner12262 pages 1865, 1867-1868, 1881-1883, 1885-1888, 1914-1920
Belfast Telegraph4996 pages 1893-1896
Baptist Times7388 pages – new title 1906-1907, 1940-1947
Driffield Times2562 pages 1950, 1997
Devizes and Wiltshire Gazette3342 pages 1891-1896, 1898-1899
Tottenham and Edmonton Weekly Herald1748 pages 1915-1916, 1918
Belfast Weekly News974 pages 1903
Halifax and District Labour News308 pages – new title 1909
Isle of Axholme & Thorne Advertiser698 pages – new title 1877, 1889, 1894
Falmouth News Slip422 pages –  new title 1881, 1889

LAC Co-Lab Update

Co-Lab appears to be going backwards. There are now 4,199 items identified as Co-Lab only contributions in the collection, down from 4,249 last month and 4,324 the previous month. 

Here are the Challenges project changes since last month.

Games of the XXI Olympiad, Montréal 1976 remains unchanged at 80.8%.

Treaty 9, with 27 images, remains at 7.4% complete.

Mary Ann Shadd Cary is 85.5% complete, down from 86.5%.

Expo67 is 5.1% complete, down from 6.1%.

Summiting Mount Logan in 1925: Fred Lambart’s personal account of the treacherous climb and descent of the highest peak in Canada remains at 17.9% complete,.

Women in the War remains 1.4% complete.

Arthur Lismer’s Children’s Art Classes remains <1% complete.

John Freemont Smith, RG10, Volume number: 4079 is 86.5% complete, down from  88.5% last month.

Molly Lamb Bobak remains at 95.1% complete,.

Diary of François-Hyacinthe Séguin remains 99% complete.

George Mully: moments in Indigenous communities remains 0% complete.

Correspondence regarding First Nations veterans returning after the First World War remains 98.5% complete.

Winnipeg General Strike of 1919 is 94.7% complete, up from 94.1% last month.

Legendary Train Robber and Prison Escapee Bill Miner remains 99.5% complete.

Japanese-Canadians: Second World War is 19.4% complete.

Projects that remain 100% complete are no longer reported here.

I asked ChatGPT for a two-line summary of the progress,

Co-Lab participation is declining, with the number of contributions and completion percentages dropping for several projects. Only one project (Winnipeg General Strike of 1919) showed progress, while others stagnated or regressed.

In a time of decreasing resources, why is the Co-Lab Challenges project continuing?

Thursday Tidbits

“Secrets for Success: How to Harness the Power of FamilySearch’s Full-Text Search” by Julia A. Anderson

This Legacy Family Tree Webinars presentation, given on Wednesday, was followed by Geoff Rasmussen applying the techniques to a search in his family tree. Highly recommended for the search tips. It was mentioned that some of the collections included on Full-Text Search can only be accessed at FamilySearch Centres or affiliate libraries. If you know which they are, please add a comment.

WDYTYA? Magazine June 2025

The feature articles in the issue are:
Get More from Social Media, by Kelly Cornwell’
Finding the Forgotten, identifying the 1,300 lost victims of Germany’s First World War air raids, by Ian Castle,
Surviving the Slums: Bethan Watts outlines the harsh realities of Victorian slums.
Also, Jonathan Scott reviews the most useful sites to uncover the lives of London Ancestors.

MyHeritage adds Phillimore Marriage Registers

It’s surprising to find that MyHeritage hasn’t had this valuable published resource all along. The 2,179,315 entries, from 1538 to 1837, include images of the original publications. Phillimore includes entries from 1,500 parishes across 29 English counties. Northern counties and London parishes have less comprehensive coverage.

Portsmouth Ancestry?

Just added to FamilySearch:
Hampshire, Portsmouth, Baptisms, 1538-1940, 541,243 records
Hampshire, Portsmouth, Burials, 1538-1926, 313,413 records
Hampshire, Portsmouth, Marriages, 1537-1930, 393,944 records.

These are sourced from the Portsmouth History Centre. Images are only available at FamilySearch Centres and affiliate libraries.

Full-text Search Ontario Additions

Two Canadian collections are recent additions at FamilySearch Full-text Search
Canada, Ontario, Biographies, from 1964 to 1976, with 23,725 records.
Canada, Ontario, Others, 1996, with 135,494 records.

Don’t take the date 1996 seriously. The collection is a mixed bag with some entries dating back to the 18th century.

This Week’s Online Genealogy Events

Choose from these selected free online events. All times are Eastern Time, unless otherwise noted. Registration is assumed to be required in advance—check the links so you’re not disappointed. For many more events, mainly in the U.S., visit Conference Keeper.

Tuesday, 20 May

1 pm: The Moral Case for Stealing Data, by Victoria Baines for Gresham College.
https://www.gresham.ac.uk/whats-on/moral-case-stealing-data

2 pm:  End of the paper trail using DNA & Patience! by Barb Roy for OGS Sudbury District Branch.
https://www.sudbury.ogs.on.ca

2:30 pm: Evaluating Published Family Histories, by Allen County Public Library Genealogy Center.
https://acpl.libnet.info/event/13427455

7 pm: A Beginners Guide to Searching Online Ontario Land Records, by Ken McKinlay for OGS Nippissing Branch.
https://nipissing.ogs.on.ca/events/nipissing-branch-a-beginners-guide-to-searching-online-ontario-land-records-ken-mckinlay/

8:00 pm: From Despair to Cargoes of Hope: WWII’s Displaced Persons, by C. Ann Staley for Legacy Family Tree Webinars
https://familytreewebinars.com/webinar/from-despair-to-cargoes-of-hope-wwiis-displaced-persons/

Wednesday, 21 May

1:30 pm: Migration patterns and how it affected families, by Laurie Page for Cambridgeshire and Huntingdonshire Family History Society.
https://www.chfhs.org.uk/migration-patterns-and-how-it-affected-families-with-laurie-page-491

2 pm: Secrets for Success: How to Harness the Power of FamilySearch’s Full-Text Search,  by Julia A. Anderson  for Legacy Family Tree Webinars
https://familytreewebinars.com/webinar/secrets-for-success-how-to-harness-the-power-of-familysearchs-full-text-search/

7 pm: AI & Genealogy: Possibilities and Pitfalls, by Marian Press for OGS Thunder Bay Branch. 
https://thunderbay.ogs.on.ca/events/thunder-bay-branch-ai-genealogy-possibilities-and-pitfalls/

Thursday, 22 May

6:30 pm: Mapping Your Family History, by Susie Wickman for Allen County Public Library Genealogy Center
https://acpl.libnet.info/event/13427504

7 pm: Discover the Ottawa Branch OGS Library, by Pam Cooper for OGS Ottawa Branch.
https://ottawa.ogs.on.ca/events/ottawa-branch-presentation-details-tbd-2025-05-22/

Friday, 23 May

Saturday, 24 May

 

 

Findmypast Update

Further to Sunday’s note about the latest updates to Findmypast, I received the following additional information.

Yorkshire baptisms comprised 10,688  from Sheffield Christchurch Pitmoor, in the Ecclesfield Deanery of the Diocese of Sheffield, for 1846 to 1925.  Hits are linked to images of the original record.

4,521 transcript baptism records are from Bawtry St Nicholas, in the Diocese Southwell & Nottingham and Archdeaconry Newark, for 1668 to 1899.

Findmypast now has 9.2 million Yorkshire baptism records.

For Nottinghamshire, the 76,897 new baptism records are from 83 different churches, many non-conformist, from all over the county. The total for the county is now 1.6 million.

Sunday Sundries

Miscellaneous items I found of interest during the week.

Ottawa Irish Famine Memorial Invitation

Time Travelling

“Wonderful stories shared by more than a dozen of the Ottawa area’s most engaging historians” have recently been produced by the Historical Society of Ottawa and Rogers TV. The first seven episodes are now available on YouTube.

Episode 1 – Paul Weber – “Go Exploring” https://youtu.be/4jbkQ1BVFEkhas the first 

Episode 2 – Kevin Ballantyne – “Glimpses of ‘Forgotten Ottawa’” https://youtu.be/c4733IZ9yNE

Episode 3 – Rick Henderson – “Philemon Wright and his town” https://youtu.be/ueJn5cBM_yA

Episode 4 – Peter Atkinson, “Gord Atkinson: Ottawa’s Oldest Teenager” https://youtu.be/nPHqdAx0V7I

Episode 5 – Michael McBane – “Bytown 1847” https://youtu.be/mJEkeHB8ugg

Episode 6 – Jim Hurcomb “Ottawa’s Golden Age of Rock and Roll” https://youtu.be/dSuX48DwIUs

Episode 7 – Paul Couvrette “The Changing World of Photography” https://youtu.be/6EKCmDYS5zA

Tracing your Staffordshire Ancestors

New this month  in the Pen and Sword Tracing Your Ancestors series

A Panorama of Victorian London

Exeter University’s story-map guides viewers through some of 1844 London’s most prominent landmarks.

New on Ancestry

Web: Caribbean, Aircrew in the RAF during World War II, 1939-1945
Just 467 records

UK, Navy Board and Predecessors Prisoner of War Registers, 1755-1831
Find 1,238,250 records.

Until 20 May 2025 at 11:59 p.m. ET, Ancestry is offering 40% off a 6‑month membership for new subscribers. That’s $50.99 for Canada Discovery Plus or $77.99 for World Deluxe.

Findmypast Updates

This week, updates have been made to Nottinghamshire and Yorkshire baptisms, Wiltshire Coroners Inquest Records and the National Burial Index. No details of how extensive these are, nor which additions were made to the newspaper collection, were provided.

Lucky Kentucky

Since RootsTech additions to FamilySearch Labs Full Text Search have focused on the US, with some for Columbia added in April. These seven collections became available this month

Collection Title
Records
Last Updated
United States, Kentucky, Biographies, from 1736 to 1880 497,529 12 May 2025
United States, Kentucky, Births, from 1914 to 1916 909,526 12 May 2025
United States, Kentucky, Deaths, 1950 1,930,558 12 May 2025
United States, Kentucky, Legal, from 1910 to 1969 6,919,277 12 May 2025
United States, Kentucky, Marriages, 1892 2,263,638 12 May 2025
United States, Kentucky, Properties, from 1879 to 1918 861,028 12 May 2025
United States, Kentucky, Religious, from 1841 to 1857 50,714 12 May 2025

Significant Dates in 21st Century History

Did you know these

11 September 2001 — 9/11.
26 September 2006 — Facebook first became generally available.
9 January 2007 — Steve Jobs announces the iPhone (smartphone era).
15 September 2008 — Lehman Brothers files for Chapter 11 – global financial crisis.
3 March 2020 — WHO declares COVID-19 a global pandemic.
30 November 2022 — general availability of ChatGPT.

Thanks to the following for comments and tips: Anonymous, Teresa, and Unknown.

 

 

New and Updated Canadian Newspapers on Newspapers.com

Here are the newspapers with additions in the past 30 days. Papers new to newspapers.com, mostly just an issue or two, are bolded.

Newspaper Name Community Dates
Number of Pages
The Windsor Star Windsor, Ontario 1893–2025 1,613,968
The Vancouver Sun Vancouver, British Columbia 1912–2025 2,228,866
The Province Vancouver, British Columbia 1894–2025 2,414,544
The Ottawa Citizen Ottawa, Ontario 1898–2025 2,124,252
National Post Toronto, Ontario 1907–2025 874,323
The Leader-Post Regina, Saskatchewan 1883–2025 1,374,209
The Gazette Montreal, Quebec 1857–2025 2,191,762
Edmonton Journal Edmonton, Alberta 1903–2025 2,103,815
Calgary Herald Calgary, Alberta 1888–2025 2,549,158
The Hamilton Spectator Hamilton, Ontario 1852–2025 2,254,625
The Times-Transcript Moncton, New Brunswick 1875–2025 901,465
The Northern Light Bathurst, New Brunswick 2010–2025 13,321
The Kings County Record Sussex, New Brunswick 2010–2025 12,556
Telegraph-Journal Saint John, New Brunswick 1874–2025 945,556
Daily Gleaner Fredericton, New Brunswick 1884–2025 992,352
Waterloo Region Record Kitchener, Ontario 1893–2025 1,369,743
The Toronto Star Toronto, Ontario 1900–2025 3,900,896
Welland Advocate and Review Port Robinson, Ontario 1852–1852 28
St. Catharines Constitutional St. Catharines, Ontario 1851–1871 2,944
The Farmers’ Journal and Welland Canal Intelligencer St. Catharines, Ontario 1826–1833 871
British Colonial Argus St. Catharines, Ontario 1833–1834 60
The Canadian Champion Milton, Ontario 2012–2023 27,517
The Mirror Midland, Ontario 2012–2023 20,544
The Thorold Post Thorold, Ontario 1885–1955 28,901
Niagara Herald Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario 1885–1886 10
Niagara Herald Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario 1828–1830 18
Niagara Herald Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario 1801–1802 251
Gleaner Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario 1818–1837 1,350
The Standard St. Catharines, Ontario 1891–2015 1,084,493
St. Catharines Journal St. Catharines, Ontario 1834–1898 5,306
The Women’s Standard St. Catharines, Ontario 1895–1895 8
Welland Tribune Welland, Ontario 1885–1892 31
The Weekly Star St. Catharines, Ontario 1901–1902 16
Weekly News St. Catharines, Ontario 1872–1893 232
The Toronto World Toronto, Ontario 1898–1898 10
The Times St. Catharines, Ontario 1869–1875 5,509
Thorold Post and Niagara District Intelligencer Thorold, Ontario 1875–1885 1,882
Weekly Register York, Ontario 1822–1826 851
St. Catharines Daily Telegraph Reporter St. Catharines, Ontario 1847–1847 1
The Globe Toronto, Ontario 1865–1867 38
The Farm and Fireside Toronto, Ontario 1893–1893 4
The Evening Star St. Catharines, Ontario 1887–1905 1,746
The Evening Journal St. Catharines, Ontario 1862–1920 12,544
Daily News St. Catharines, Ontario 1877–1889 72
Upper Canada Gazette York, Ontario 1817–1848 9,968
The U. E. Loyalist Toronto, Ontario 1826–1828 458
The Merchants’ Herald St. Catharines, Ontario 1871–1871 52
The Commercial Advertiser St. Catharines, Ontario 1870–1870 16
The Merritton Advance Merritton, Ontario 1903–1903 8
York Gazette York, Ontario 1807–1816 1,349
E. J. Palmer’s Grimsby Illustrated Grimsby, Ontario 1873–1873 4
The Academy St. Catharines, Ontario 1875–1875 4
Advocate York, Ontario 1824–1834 2,983
The Welland Tribune and Telegraph Welland, Ontario 1923–1925 220
Welland Telegraph Welland, Ontario 1881–1891 25
Reform Press Dunnville, Ontario 1878–1878 4
Port Colborne News Port Colborne, Ontario 1967–1967 42
Women’s Patriotic Journal St. Catharines, Ontario 1914–1914 18
Pelham Herald Pelham, Ontario 1982–1982 40
Niagara Advance Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario 1967–1967 12
Fonthill Herald Fonthill, Ontario 1967–1967 56
Evening Tribune Welland, Ontario 1967–1967 108
The Star-Journal St. Catharines, Ontario 1908–1909 24
The Gazette St. Catharines, Ontario 1883–1883 4
The Pioneer Smithville, Ontario 1877–1877 4
Irish Canadian Toronto, Ontario 1875–1875 8
Haldimand Tribune Dunnville, Ontario 1865–1865 15
Haldimand Advocate Cayuga, Ontario 1950–1950 12
Niagara Chronicle and Advertiser Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario 1838–1838 4
The York Weekly Post York, Ontario 1821–1821 56
The Niagara Chronicle Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario 1839–1854 568
The Niagara Argus Niagara, Ontario 1844–1846 32
The Canadian Farmer and Grange Record Welland, Ontario 1880–1881 8
The Echo of Niagara Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario 1884–1884 8
Canada Constellation Niagara, Ontario 1799–1800 84
Upper Canada Gazette, or American Oracle Niagara, Ontario 1793–1807 2,180
The Times Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario 1895–1915 8,074
The Telegraph Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario 1836–1836 2
Spirit of the Times Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario 1830–1830 12
The Canadian Argus and Niagara Spectator Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario 1816–1820 128
Weekly Post St. Catharines, Ontario 1867–1867 4
The Semi-Weekly Post St. Catharines, Ontario 1854–1861 313
The Post St. Catharines, Ontario 1867–1868 24
Lincoln Post Express Lincoln, Ontario 1895–1987 31,812
The Loyalist Toronto, Ontario 1828–1828 226
St. Catharines Herald and Niagara District General Advertiser St. Catharines, Ontario 1864–1864 4
The Morning Journal St. Catharines, Ontario 1862–1862 120
The Tribune Campbellton, New Brunswick 2002–2025 23,011
Miramichi Leader Miramichi, New Brunswick 2010–2025 26,559
Weekly Times St. Catharines, Ontario 1872–1875 8
Reporter Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario 1833–1842 59
The News Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario 1846–1871 2,983
Upper Canada Guardian Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario 1808–1808 4
The Fountain Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario 1847–1847 8
The Argus Oakville, Ontario 1875–1875 4
Niagara Peninsula Weekly Port Colborne, Ontario 1967–1967 16
Boyle McCauley News Edmonton, Alberta 1979–2025 4,912
Kawartha Lakes This Week Lindsay, Ontario 2010–2023 35,513
King Connection Newmarket, Ontario 2012–2023 10,086
Innisfil Journal Innisfil, Ontario 2011–2023 11,250
Guelph Mercury Tribune Guelph, Ontario 2012–2023 30,090
The Mississauga News Mississauga, Ontario 1982–2000 159,027
The Mississauga Weekender Mississauga, Ontario 1985–1985 226
Mississauga Business News Mississauga, Ontario 1983–1998 413
Mississauga Business Times Mississauga, Ontario 1998–1998 72
The Independent and Free Press Georgetown, Ontario 2012–2023 21,705
The Georgina Advocate Georgina, Ontario 2012–2023 13,949