Life in the Victorian Kitchen

For some reason my last post disappeared, but just to recap, late last year saw the publication of my fourth book Life in the Victorian Kitchen published by the lovely people at Pen and Sword books.

Have you ever wondered what life was like for domestic servants, the etiquette involved during upper class banquets, or simply wished for a glimpse of day-to-day life in the Victorian kitchen? During the nineteenth century,the kitchen was a place where culinary worlds collided, bridging the gap between social classes. From the rural cottage to the well-staffed country house, I aim to take readers on an entertaining and informative journey through a lost culinary world, uncovering the customs and traditions surrounding some of Britain's best loved dishes. Discover nineteenth century tips, techniques, stories and superstitions. Try your hand at foretelling the future using an egg or test recipes for everything from apple wine to sheep's head pie. Life in the Victorian Kitchen really is a fascinating place!

Why not pop over to FIRE News to read a book review and discover more about kitchen life for both the rural cottager and those who worked in the country house kitchens - http://ftnews.firetrench.com/2015/03/book-review-life-in-the-victorian-kitchen-culinary-secrets-and-servants-stories/

Ancestors on the Move

Well, I know I haven't been around for a while, but I have been beavering away behind the scenes and I'm really pleased to say that my next book - Ancestors on the Move has recently been published by The History Press.

   Packed with images of original travel ephemera from my own collection, this book is ideal if you have ever wanted to understand more about your ancestor’s sea travels, or discover what life was like aboard ship for both passengers and crew. Covering how long a journey might have taken, what kind of conditions could be expected and what exotic locations were visited along the way?

  From transportation to trade, adventure to emigration, through persecution or for pleasure, I have explained the reasons behind our ancestor’s desire for overseas travel, guiding the reader through the records and archives we can search to complete our own genealogical journey.

  'Ancestors on the Move' is available in all good bookshops and online at Amazon, WHSmiths and at The National Archives Bookshop

Are you up for a little 'Regal Research'?

        Although for many of us royal genealogical links may just be a dream, there are thousands of others who are unaware of their ‘blue blood’ connections to the royal family of Britain and by association, to the royal families of Europe. Is there talk within your family that you have such a 'regal relationship'?

   Surprisingly, this is not such a wild claim as the further back we can pursue our research the greater the prospect. Step back in time and with larger families, yet a smaller population, the likelihood of making some royal links via one of the many branches of descendants is a possibility.

Start with what you know! 

   Perhaps you have a particular ancestor in mind which links you to this claim? Consider starting at the end of their lives and work backwards. They may well have been important enough to warrant an obituary in a local, regional or national newspaper which reports a variety of details about their life, title, rank and achievements giving you other valuable avenues of research to follow. Titled males may well have had military careers, follow any leads you discover regarding this to regimental archives or museums which usually hold records such as diaries, paintings and even photographs that could help give you your first visual link to the ancestor in question.

   Family papers, bibles, correspondence and documents may unlock a few doors whilst biographical histories may have already been published on the individual; ‘google search’ the internet or ask for assistance at your local history library. Depending on their status and achievements, these biographies may have been written by professionals or likeminded historians who could also be related to the figure in question, and could also be part of your extended family tree. 

   If you're on the hunt for' Gentrified Genealogy,' get yourself access to a copy of Burke's Peerage – first published in 1826 - which lists the aristocracy and their antecedents and see if you can find any obvious links between their pedigree and yours.  If family stories of noble ties have been handed down, this may be the place to get a little more background knowledge about the surname and the location where the main families bearing that name were based.

   Your blood may not be blue, but you could have aristocratic ties.  Debrett’s Peerage and Baronetage was first published in 1769. ‘Peerage’ is the term used for ‘the hierarchy of titles of various ranks conferred by the Sovereign upon his or her subjects, which has its roots in feudal time’ whilst ‘Baronetage’ is ‘a hereditary knighthood created by James I in 1611.’  Consider checking records such as the Burkes Landed Gentry of 1906. This resource can provide details of those families who are not quite so noble but still own significant amounts of land.

 Why not pursue your family claims - who knows what you will find!

Discover Your History

Looking for a new magazine to feed your passion for family and social history? Why not try the new Discover Your History magazine?

Concentrating on 'Ancestors, Heritage and Memories', the first issue is out now and features articles on the London Underground, Mill Worker Memories, the fascinating work of plastic surgeon Archie McIndoe and explains just what it was like to travel in 'Jane Austen's England'. You even have the opportunity to 'bag yourself a free book' courtesy of Pen and Sword!

Visit the website at http://www.discoveryourhistory.net/ to find out more.

On This Day...

   So...that's it...we're officially in Autumn and Summer has hung up its hat for another year! Although the nights will gradually be getting darker, it gives us lots more long evenings to batten down the hatches and research our family tree!

   As today is the 1st of September, I thought I'd take a look at what happened on this day in history, perhaps your ancestor was there, witnessed the event first hand, or read about it in the newspapers of the time.

1532 -  Lady Anne Boleyn was made Marquess of Pembroke by her fiancé, King Henry VIII. Less               than 4 years later Henry had her investigated for high treason. She was found guilty of                  adultery and incest and was executed on 19th May 1536.

1661 - 1st Yacht race, England's King Charles vs his brother James

1752 - Liberty Bell arrives in Philadelphia

1763 - Catherine II of Russia endorses Ivan Betskoy's plans for a Foundling Home in Moscow

1831 - Charles Darwin travels aboard HMS Beagle

1865 Joseph Lister performed the first antiseptic surgery.

1870 - Napoleon III captured at Sedan

1905 - Alberta & Saskatchewan become 8th & 9th Canadian provinces

1913 - George Bernard Shaws "Androcles & the Lion," premieres in London

1914 - St Petersburg, Russia changes name to Petrograd

1914 - Lord Kitchener arrives in Paris

1939 - WW II starts, Germany invades Poland, takes Danzig

1951 - The Premier supermarket opened in Earl’s Court, London; the first supermarket in Britain.

1962 - UN announces Earth population has hit 3 billion

1971 - The British penny and the threepenny piece coins ceased to be legal tender as decimalization continued.

1979 - Pioneer 11 makes 1st fly-by of Saturn, discovers new moon, rings

1981 - Garages in Britain began selling petrol in litres.

1985 - After 73 years the wreck of the liner 'Titanic' was found, by Dr. Robert Ballard.

Researching your Ecclesiastical Ancestors

   

    Just recently I've been researching more of my own family tree and discovered a number of ancestors with connections to the church. The parish church was at the heart of every Victorian community so perhaps you've also found that your ancestor’s vocation lay within this area as there were a number of occupational paths that may have chosen to follow.

Incumbent        - this was the head clergyman who held office in the parish church, i.e. a vicar, rector, parson, etc. The parishes under his care would be known as a Benefice.

Deacon            - this individual would assist the incumbent and although was in holy orders was not yet fully ordained as a priest.

Curate              - he could hold a temporary appointment in the parish or assist the incumbent already in office.

Rural Dean       - appointed by the Bishop, this clergyman would be expected to run a small group of parishes in both rural and urban areas.

Priest                - this position was below the rank of Bishop but above that of a Deacon. Remember not all Priests were Catholics and some were appointed within the Anglican Church.

Canon              - often still holding a role as a parish priest, the Canon would also have been appointed as a member of a cathedral chapter.

The clergyman’s income would have been drawn from the weekly collections, fees for performing marriages or funerals, tithes or rent from church owned land known as a ‘glebe’ and his personality, dedication and contributions to the community would undoubtedly have had a massive impact on his parishioners and their opinion of his work.

 

Want to find out more?

  The Clergy List was published from the early part of the 19^th century and detailed all those working in the clergy at the time from prison and military chaplains to those operating all over the British Empire – county libraries will often hold a copy of this valuable book. 

   Alphabetic listings of Clergymen were produced from 1858 in the form of Crockford’s Directories which give brief biographies and the location of individuals over a certain period. A number of these have now been digitalised online at www.ancestry.co.uk and at present, allow you to search the years 1868, 1874, 1885, 1898, 1908 and 1932. Most clergy attended university in Cambridge, Oxford or Dublin so if you can track down a College Alumni record then you have the chance of discovering a wealth of details about the college attended by the individual, their graduation and degree taken as well as the churches in which they were later incumbent – excellent for tracking those who moved about the country or abroad. 

    Documenting the careers of all Church of England clergymen between 1540 and 1835, www.theclergydatabase.org.uk/index.html is an ever growing website and indispensable to family and local historians who want to find out more about the individuals connected to their parish church.

       Don’t forget! Check the front and back of the parish registers in the areas that your clergyman ancestor served – you may be surprised to find notes, inscriptions or dates relating to their incumbency providing an example of their handwriting and a glimpse into their personality.

    Perhaps your ancestor was a Churchwarden responsible for the property and moveable goods of the parish church by keeping inventories and generally ensuring that the building and its contents were well maintained. Churchwardens were usually volunteers who received expenses but no wages and were appointed each Easter from reliable members of the community that were prepared to take on the responsibilities of the role. If you’re lucky enough to discover that the Churchwarden’s Account Book has survived you can uncover a vast amount of information – not only about your ancestor but also about the parish in which he worked. 

  You can begin to establish how long he worked in the role; the labour which was employed to maintain the church and the type of renovations carried out; the names of the women (often widows) who took in church washing and other jobs to supplement their meagre incomes; payments made to local traders and the names of those who required poor relief from the parish. These are fascinating documents and help to explain parish life of the period whatever role your ancestor took within the church. 

Win a copy of' Ancestors in the Attic'

Pop over to the Federation of Family History Societies and scroll down the page to be in with chance of winning a copy of 'Ancestors in the Attic.' http://www.ffhs.org.uk/ezine/ezine1305.htm#books. This is a great site with lots of links and fantastic information for the family historian.

This is what they say:

Giveaway - 'For this month we have 'Ancestors in the Attic - Making Family Memorabilia into History' by Karen Foy, published by The History Press' To win a copy of this book, please send an email with ‘Attic’ in the subject line to competitions@ffhs.org.uk before the end of 19 June 2013.'