Genealogy Chat

Hi All, Am researching my friends family tree, and am going to present her with it soon! Does anyone know of any ways of bringing In a bit of history to spice it up a bit? Trouble is her family were mostly Sheffield Cutlers, and I cant find anything interesting about that!! Dont really want to give her just a list of names, and Census forms - even though she would be grateful for that!! Would love to hear of any ideas?? Thanks!!! x

Kim, Try googling around for some 'local colour' ... Sheffield scenary and local politics. Also, you might be able to 'weave' some national things into your story as well - like who was on the throne, what wars were going on in the background and what effect locally that might have had. Once you start looking, you'll find it comes easily .... Good luck, Jane

Thanks for that Jane!! Will have a go!! Been visiting the court cases in that area, but her family must have been very law abiding! Did find a 'Skargell' linked to her family!!!! In the 1700s though!!!

How about adding a breif history of the oragin of a few of names in her tree?

Yes Lunar!!! Didnt think of that either!! Will buy you a drink later!!!! xx

You could add some pictures of the churches that her ancestors married in. Plus pictures of the area they lived in. Irene

You could try seeing if any of her ancestors homes/streets are still around and get photos of them - they may even be on the net or local archives.

Kim, Another thought .... howabout looking at their neighbours? A bit of local gossip maybe?? J

Hmmmmmm - gossip about neighbours eh? Sounds good to me!! Her family were whiter than white by the looks of it!!! No children born out of wedlock or anything naughty like that! Unless they covered their tracks well!!!

Kim Were any of them involved in any of the wars? Debby

Got any of the Sheffield street names and the dates they lived there? I can try and let you know if the Street still exists and if it may have any of the original buildings. Maybe get some photo's to you? Helen in Sheffield

Hi Kim Hubby and I both grew up in Sheffield - he has lots of books about the history. I will root through and see if I can find some interesting tit-bits and send them through to you. How long have I got - not very good at doing anything fast these days! Tina

Jim, Debby, Helen and me ole mate Tina!! Thanks so much!! Will ressurrect this thread again tommorrow, with more details!!!

There were some very specialised jobs - one of my ancestors dealt exclusively with making handles for dinner forks ! Some very dirty jobs too, particularly for the women. I think that bits of scrap metal collected from the area when it was redeveloped were used to construct a sculpture that stands in the Meadowhall Shopping Centre. I reckon you could write a book - but someone has probably already done that !

A search at the Library regarding the old newspapers may spice it up a bit too. For Instance I too have ancestors who were law abiding , however came across a clipping of a story that had the name of the my ancestors street they were living at - they almost must have seen the event occur : Merlin. 6th June, 1851 Taken In and Done For A Welsh tailor, from North Wales, last Saturday morning walked up into commercial Street from Friar's Fields stripped of all his clothes, and talking as stupidly and strangely, as if he had been drugged. He said he had 'been taken in and done for' at some house in Friar's Fields, but his head was too bewildered apparently, to lead the police officer to the particular den, and so his plunderers escaped detection.

Thanks for your help everyone who posted! Names of my friends family are Glaves, Booker, Truelove, Walker, Hall. Areas of Sheffield they lived: Nether Hallam, Ecclesall Bierlow, Brightside Bierlow.

I found this lovely site about ecclesall bierlow - but its all about the workhouse there. Theres a black-and-white map that may be nice to use as a background - just fade it out a bit and type over it :) users.ox.ac(.)uk/~peter/ workhouse/EcclesallBierlow/ remove ()

Sheffield cutlers: http://www.littlemesters(.)com/sheffield_history.htm http://www.channel4(.)com/history/timeteam/2004_sheff_steel.html http://www.eskimo(.)com/~verne/knife.htm http://freepages.history.rootsweb(.)com/~exy1/fh_material/cutlery_and_cutlers.html http://www.localhistories(.)org/sheffield.html remove all () also found this at 'shefftek': 'in the 1380's Chaucer wrote about a Sheffield knife in the Reeves Tale. Interestingly portraits have been painted of Chaucer wearing such a knife.'

Hi Kim, my little drinking buddy. What have you found so far about your friend's family? Have you got any of them on the censuses (try saying that when you're drunk). Walker and Hall were a very famous and upmarket firm of Sheffield cutlers and silversmiths (now part of Mappin & Webb). Wonder if she is part of that family? Found a brief mention of the firm, copied below: Apparently Walker and Hall were 'extremely prolific manufacturers.' And, 'the workshop of Walker and Hall was founded in 1845 by George Walker ('..a mediocre knife maker.'), who had started in the trade age 7 to help his family. In 1890 Walker & Hall employed 700 people, with a production that ranges from silver plated to high quality silverware. In 1971 Walker and Hall was absorbed by Mappin & Webb.' Shame it does not say how old George Walker was when he started the firm. Hallam and Ecclesall both now quite posh areas, for the most part, so it sounds as if the family were moderately well off. In the 1800s the Sheffield cutlers were for the most part small firms in tiny premises employing just a few men and women. As time went by, some of the firms grew, but many small business continued right through the first part of the 20th century. They were know as the 'Little Mesters' (little masters, for those of you who don't speak Yorkshire!). Some of the trades were highly skilled and very dangerous - the knife grinders generally did not make it to a ripe old age. I will try to hunt down some books and pictures over the weekend. Tina

'Not Really Here!' Hi - Just had a look at couple of your websites, and came accross some really interesting info about the 'Sheffield Flood' which Ive never heard of before, The Dale Dyke Dam burst and about 280 people were drowned, in 1864! So if anyone finds relys in 1841-61 census, then thay disappear - they could have died in this terrible disaster!! There is a list of all the names and ages of the deceased.