An Introduction to Researching Family History-Mansfield Woodhouse Library-Community Learning

About this course

About this course

This course is intended for those just embarking on their quest to learn about their own family history. We will discuss how to make those first steps and look at the main types of documents that are available for your research in England and Wales. We will also look at where to find both original documents and where to locate many of them on the internet, so that you will soon be able to grow your personal family tree. 

The only qualification for this course is a desire to learn about your ancestry, although a basic understanding of how to use the internet would be a great advantage.

What will be covered on the course? 

After discussing the first steps we will see how relatives can help you discover more about your family, which includes conducting oral-history interviews, not only for information but for posterity. We will take a step by step look at the most useful documents where you will find information about your ancestors, such as census returns, civil registration, parish registers, newspapers, trade directories, electoral registers, and the settlement system. 

We will show how to link the different sources together. This modern age has made documents far more accessible with the internet, so we will see what websites to use and even look at how social media can help us. Suggestions will also be given on how to record your research.

We would recommend that participants experiment with the various sources discussed each week, before the next lesson, to help them gain a greater understanding.

By the end of this course you will:

• Gain sufficient knowledge and understanding to start work on researching their own personal family history. 
• Understand which are the most important websites and other sources of information, such as libraries and archive offices. 
• Learn different ways of recording their information. Just as important, participants will become more enthusiastic and better motivated to discover their family tree.

Please bring pen & paper; you may find a folder useful  to collate handouts.

Suggested Reading for this course:

There are many teach-yourself family history books available in the library, anyone of which will compliment the course and enhance the learning experience. Typical examples include:

1) Oxford companion to family and local history; ISBN: 9780199532971 

2) How to trace your family tree by Chater, Kathy, ISBN: 9780754827719

3) Tracing your family history on the Internet by Paton, Chris, ISBN: 9781783030569

When choosing one of these books for internet searching, make sure that it is the most recent publication.

Booking your place and fee information

To secure your place on the course BOTH the following must be done:

• Complete the EVENTBRITE BOOKING.
• Complete our INSPIRE ONLINE ENROLMENT FORM for each person attending the course.

You should be redirected to the Inspire Online Enrolment Form after completing the Eventbrite booking.  If you are not redirected, please use the link supplied in the Eventbrite booking confirmation email.

To book and enrol on one of our courses, you must have been living in England and have been resident in the UK for the past 3 years.

Some exceptions may apply if you are living in England with evidence of the right to remain and are from an EEU/EEAU country (completion of a questionnaire will be required).

As we no longer receive funding for our ESFA-funded courses for learners living in the devolved areas listed below, full cost fees would apply to these courses if you live in these areas:

• Barnsley, Doncaster, Rotherham and Sheffield 
• Cambridgeshire and Peterborough
• Greater London
• Greater Manchester
• Liverpool City Region
• Newcastle Upon Tyne, North Tyneside and Northumberland
• Tees Valley
• West of England
• West Midlands
• West Yorkshire

This course is programmed as part of the Miner2Major Landscape Partnership scheme, supported by the National Lottery Heritage Fund.