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Black Sheep Ancestors

Pirates, Outlaws and Ne’er do wells; it would be uncommon to research any family tree without finding at least one skeleton in the closet.

Ancestors with a criminal record can range from unfortunate debtors who paid a price for being poor to thieves and pickpockets or even those executed for murder. Although none of us wants to find we descended from a cold-blooded killer, having a rogue in the family tree does add a little excitement.

 

Throughout history there have been criminals and alongside them court systems and institutions for dealing with them. With prisons and courts come the records they generate and those records are a wonderful resource for genealogists and family historians looking for a missing ancestor.

Information found in court and prison records can include the accused or inmate’s next of kin, name and age. Whether or not they could read, their trade, the reason they were in trouble and the sentence they received for their crime.

Finding Criminals Past

Blacksheep Ancestors is a free genealogy site filled with prison lists and court records that encompass Great Britain, Canada and the US.

One fantastic and free searchable list is The Proceedings of the Old Bailey, 1674-1913, which has a fully searchable database that contains 197,745 criminal trials from London’s central criminal court.

The site also has links to the biographies of petty and master criminals alike where you can read the stories about:

• Catherine Hayes, who in 1725 conspired with her lovers to kill her husband and was tried, convicted and executed for her crime.

• The Fourth Earl Shirley, Laurence Ferrers, who was the last peer of the realm convicted as a common criminal and hanged

• Eliza Fenning, a young cook who was found guilty of the attempted murder of her employers by poisoning their food. Up until the moment Eliza was put to death, she claimed her innocence.

Whether you have an ancestor who was a minor miscreant or someone with an infamous criminal past, Blacksheep Ancestors is a fascinating genealogy website dedicated to helping you trace the romantic rogues and villainous scoundrels in your ancestral line. Share your Black sheep story on Genealogy in General.

What is a Resident Genealogist?

A resident genealogist is a professional on staff at a library, archives or even on a genealogy website who is there to provide family tree research advice and guidance, particularly to genealogy beginners.  A quick question to the resident genealogist may save you time as well as a great deal of frustration and it can be a lot of fun.

If nothing else your Genealogist in Residence is almost certainly, part detective and part historian. A website with a resident genealogist is showing you how much they care about you, their members and how important it is to them to help you in every way they can.

What Does a Resident Genealogist Do?

A resident genealogist:

• Searches out new genealogy resources
• Provides educational materials
• Writes articles about genealogy
• Answers questions about family tree research
• Can help genealogy beginners to understand genealogical documents
• Provides tips and inspiration to keep you motivated

The primary duty of a resident genealogist is to help you learn to conduct your own genealogy research.

How can a Resident Genealogist Help Me?

When you have hit a brick wall a resident genealogist can help you find more resources or make suggestions on where to look next. If you are having a difficult time understanding your ancestor’s birth, marriage or death certificate, a resident genealogist is always happy to help.  Any problem you come across is like candy to a resident genealogist, so do not be shy about asking.

What Kind of Questions can I ask?

You can ask any questions you need; no question is too big or too small. When asking your question include the details, give the names dates and places of the ancestor you need help with. State why reading a particular document is a problem, is the writing is too faded or messy. Want to know what a third cousin twice removed is or what all those numbers on a Family Tree form mean…just ask!

Genealogy Beginner encourages you to go to our resident genealogist with your questions. You can usually find her on the Ask a Genealogist forum or on our Facebook page.

Image Credit: dbickert via Photobucket