Spot of rain this afternoon.
I spent some time sorting out items I downloaded from 'Find my Past,' the people given the 1921 census to offer to the world. Cynic that I am, I almost wrote '..given the 1921 census to rip off as many people as possible and feed the cash to the grasping government.' But I didn't.
Once you have paid the fee to join, you then seek out the person/street you wish and then, when offered, splash out £2:50 just for a look at the record. A copy can be obtained if you pay £3:50! No chance. My copy cannot be 'cut & pasted,' it can be downloaded only by use of the 'screenshot' on my laptop, but it does not come out well. Even then it cannot be 'cut & pasted,' so making use of the info you paid for is not easy. All this to grab cash.
So after a struggle, and I mean struggle, I printed things off, have got the info I want, and spent some time sorting it out. By 'sorting it out' I mean 'getting confused.' I have worked out who is where on the street I am looking at for 1921, however, the 1911 census (obtained for no cost other than the registration fee) is a wee bit harder as almost no-one has a number, some have names on the house, and according to my guess two families live in the one house. I later realised that he lived at No 21 until she moved out of No 9, but this is not clear on the forms. Tsk! Census people are very confusing.
This town was recorded well, except the streets do not always run on one page, some are covered in several places, and the copperplate writing so loved by Victorians (my father was writing like this well into the 1960's) is not that easy to read, especially with an ink pen that has a wide nib.
How interesting however, it is to look at the information and try to assemble in the mind the people of the day, the attitudes, the outlook, and wonder how they saw themselves and their future. Looking back gives one idea of their lives, but for them it must have been strange to look forward into an unknown future. We do not look forward like that these days.
6 comments:
What about taking a photograph of the screen?
Fly, Yes that is worth a thought. However, I have finally managed to get hold, through faffing about, of all I want so far. Picturing the screen might be the next thing.
Currently trying to take a screenshot...none of theinstructions i have found look remotely like my keyboard....
Fly, Yes indeed, they include a cover all' that rarely includes your machine.
I foolishly thought that once I had paid the money I could download the information but reading your post that's obviously not the case. Thanks for the info.
Fun, Yes, I fell for this. I paid the membership fee and then found it was £2:50 a download.
As I was doing quite a few, dating from some of the war memorials and other things I researched in the museum, I wanted quite a few. I got lucky when I discovered they were doing them at half price one day, so I jumped in and obtained all of them! This was not the way when I used Ancestry, however, only this lot have the 1921 census. There is of course the 1939 'register.' This was taken to give some idea of who was where before the war began. If still alive they are rescinded however, but many names are shown. Ancestry do this, it did not cost anything before.
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