First published in 1687, in Latin, the ideas contained within ‘Philosophiæ Naturalis Principia Mathematica’ are better known as Newton’s Laws of Motion. These laws work extremely well in most cases. Over time, certain minor discrepancies began to be noticed. For example, the orbit of Mercury does not quite accord with the theory. Einstein came up…
All posts in Geography
Labourer to hairdresser
The fact that Patrick is missing from the 1921 census (see The Irish Pimpernel) is doubly frustrating due to the amount of information recorded on that occasion. The occupation and place of employment are both part of the census return. For example, his brother-in-law Ernest Delves worked as a Suction Gas Plant Attendant at John…
From Dewsbury to Brighton
Following my visit to the back-to-Backs in Birmingham, I started to think about Patrick’s accommodation in both Dewsbury and Brighton either side of the First World War. In 1911, Patrick, following eight years’ service in the Army, was living at 20 Elmwood St, Dewsbury. He shared the house with his widowed sister Mary Muldoon and…
More back-to-backs
Despite being (virtually) on my doorstep (less than 20 miles, or 30 km away) I had not visited the Back-to-Back houses in Birmingham until recently. That oversight has now been remedied. As mentioned in ‘Back to backs’ these particular houses were left standing, almost by accident. This type of development was generally deemed as unfit…
What’s in a name?
“What’s in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet” (Romeo and Juliet – Act 2, Scene 2) An admirable sentiment to be expressed in a love story. Not exactly much help to a genealogist. I have been looking at just a few of the variations in…
DNA ethnicity update
In August 2020, my ethnicity profile, according to Ancestry, was as follows: SE England (with Kent highlighted): 41% (range 39-43%) Ireland (with Connacht and Roscommon highlighted): 36% (range 4-39%) Scotland 21% (range 0-23%) I had serious concerns about these results at the time. I haven’t delved too deeply into the algorithm that they use. Far…
The Irish Pimpernel
I seem to have mislaid my grandfather. He has disappeared, again. I started my search for Patrick Stanley in 2006. The lack of census returns for Ireland in 1891 was a known problem. I looked for him in both Ireland and England on the 1901 census (taken 31st March) without success. (I rechecked earlier to…
More heartbreak for Patrick (2)
There is a major unanswered question. When did Leslie Dunn first meet his future wife? He married Kathleen Stanley, my aunt, in Brighton Registry Office on 12th May 1944. Their daughter was born on 23rd November, six and a half months later. She must have conceived in the middle of February 1944. This is only…
What to believe (3)
Whilst proof reading the final draft for “What to believe (2)”, I had a flash of insight. “Any account of events written more than 40 years later is likely to contain errors. Dates can become mixed up. Events can be forgotten. Others can be, albeit unwittingly, exaggerated. Details become blurred.” Almost all accounts of historic…
Kane cluster
I have been examining the family trees of people in one of the DNA clusters that I have accessed from Ancestry. The fact that there is a cluster tells me that there should be a common ancestor. I do not know where. I do not know how far back in history to look. Geography helps…