Skip to section
Our News
Coming Soon: The New SoG Community
SoG is excited to announce the upcoming launch of a new online community space.
The community will be free to join (with added functionality and bonus sections for members-only).
It’ll be the perfect place for sharing thoughts and questions during All About That Place.
Society of Genealogists members will have access to additional member-only spaces, activities, and features (including optional private and group messaging) as part of their membership.
This community space goes beyond the traditional forum format, offering members the chance to join and create their own online club spaces.
A club might bring together people researching the same place, surname, historical period, record type, or specialist subject. Club areas have their own discussion sections, and you’ll even be able to publish club blog posts to share with fellow club members.
Our new community is part of our wider charitable work to make family history knowledge, guidance, and opportunities to learn from others more accessible. It will be a welcoming space where researchers can share discoveries, support one another and build lasting connections.
We will be sharing more information soon, including how to register and which additional areas and features will be available to Society members.
All About That Place Update
Speaker submissions have just closed and we’ve confirmed…190 talks. 150 speakers.
It’s back, and it’s bigger and bolder than ever before! All About That Place returns 7 – 16 October 2026. 10 days of 100’s of 10-minute talks covering 10 different themes.
New to #AATP? Find out more about the event here.
Subscribe
Subscribe free to our emails to ensure you don’t miss any #AATP news!
Get ready for All About That Place
Make the most of this year’s All About That Place with three expert talks and a practical workshop designed to help you research places more confidently, uncover richer local context, and explore new ways to map your ancestors’ lives.
Across two days, our speakers will help you approach an unfamiliar place, use local history to strengthen your family research, and discover how a one-place study can reveal the people and stories that shaped a community.
Friday 18 September
When A Place is New to You with Michelle Patient
With Michelle Patient
Delving into Place: Local history enhances genealogy with Helen Smith
With Helen Smith
Saturday 19 September
One-Place Study: A tool for exploring the past
With Julie Muirhead
Walking With Your Ancestors Workshop: Mapping Strategies for Genealogists
Workshop with Sophie Kay
The three talks are included with Gold membership, available for £15 per month and cancellable at any time.
All Society of Genealogists members also receive 20% off Sophie Kay’s workshop.
Join us, sharpen your place-based research skills, and arrive at All About That Place ready to explore.
Tips from our Recent Talks
Enjoy some hot tips from our latest talks (and check out the full recordings in the Learning Hub).
- Don’t ignore the witnesses at a marriage – they can provide vital clues to family relationships and help identify the correct individuals. (My Eureka (Ethelinda) Moment)
- When using AI to transcribe old documents, tell it not to guess. Ask it to mark uncertain words with question marks or indicate when it can’t confidently read the text. (Midsummer Members Social)
- Be specific when prompting AI. Give clear, precise instructions and break complex tasks into stages rather than asking one broad question. (Artificial Intelligence for Nervous Beginners)
AUGUST EVENTS
Babies and Childhood
This month we’re thinking about babies and childhood. Kicking off with two in-person talks on 6 August Your Ancestors, Population & Birth Control – Contraception Delicately Delineated with Colin Chapman and Lying Bastards: exploring the impact of illegitimacy on family history research with Dave Annal.
We also learn about early childcare with Karen de Bruyne,
Historical Aspects of Pregnancy and Infancy with Jude Rhodes, chat about our ancestors’ childhoods with Else Churchill and Nick Barratt tells the story of his grandmother, the ultimate brick wall – informal fostering prior to official adoption records, for a child born overseas with childhood details.
Harvest Season
At the end of the month, harvest season begins, while many of our ancestors would have been bringing in the crops from the fields we are Harvesting History: learning about Agricultural Labourers in Life and Records. Learn how to use estate records to find out more about ag lab ancestors. Local historian and farmer Ashley Cooper talks about traditional harvests and folk lore. Plus learn about Irish agricultural unrest in the 19th Century and the digitisation of the 1940s National Farm Survey. Wherever in the British Isles your ancestors farmed this day will shed light on their lives.
Bringing Australia & New Zealand to You!
We’re bringing Australia and New Zealand to you — and it’s considerably cheaper than booking flights!
Join us at the Society of Genealogists’ Library on Friday 18 September for a member-exclusive opportunity to receive expert help with your Australian and New Zealand family history research. Two experienced genealogists, Michelle Patient and Helen Smith, will be available throughout the day to answer questions, suggest research strategies, and help you tackle those stubborn brick walls.
No booking is required. However, if you are travelling some distance and would like to be sure of a computer or desk space, or if you need library items ordered in advance, please see our visitor information page: https://sog.org.uk/research/visit-us/
About Michelle Patient
Michelle Patient is a genealogist, computer enthusiast and DNA researcher with qualifications in Chemistry, Geology and Family History. Growing up with her grandmother’s stories, photographs and memorabilia sparked a lifelong interest in genealogy. Her own family history spans long-established English lines, early Australian military and convict ancestors, Australian and New Zealand colonists, and post-war British naval families. Michelle has extensive experience uncovering complex family stories involving adoptions, disputed wills, bankruptcies and long-lost relatives. DNA research has become a key part of her genealogical toolkit, helping her break through many research barriers.
About Helen Smith
Helen Smith is a speaker, researcher and author with a strong interest in medical and social history. With an English-born father and a fifth-generation Australian mother, she has researched her family history since 1986 across Australia, England, Ireland and Wales, with additional research extending into the United States and many former British Empire countries. A former public health microbiologist and molecular epidemiologist, Helen has been actively involved in genetic genealogy since 2011, helping individuals understand DNA results and identify biological family connections.
Poor London Week, 21–25 September
Step into the streets, workhouses and hidden corners of London’s past with this unique five-day family history experience.
Whether you join us in person at the Society of Genealogists or online from home, you’ll explore the lives of London’s poorest families through 11 expert talks covering poverty, workhouses, foundlings, philanthropy, slum life and child migration.
Were your ancestors Londoners?
In-person attendees can also enjoy time in our Research Hub, expert guidance from the SoG team, optional guided walks and archive visits, and the chance to meet fellow family historians over lunch each day. Online participants can take part in virtual socials and co-working sessions, with all attendees receiving recordings to watch again for up to a month.
If your ancestors lived in London, or you simply want to deepen your understanding of the city they knew, Poor London Week offers an inspiring blend of history, genealogy and practical research. Click through to explore the full programme and book your place.
SPEAKER SPOTLIGHT
Say hello 👋 to Karen De Bruyne!
This month we’re getting to know Karen De Bruyne, professional genealogist, Society Trustee and popular speaker whose talks use real-life case studies to show how family history can become much more than a collection of names and dates.
We caught up with Karen to find out what first inspired her love of genealogy, the ancestor she’d most like to interrogate, and why parish registers will always win over census returns.
Tea or coffee whilst researching?
Coffee, hate tea except mint, even though I am very English
Favourite archive?
British Library
Best Doctor Who?
Tom Baker
Favourite historical period?
The eighteenth century
Early bird or night owl?
Early bird
Which decade would you most like to live in?
The 1920s – love the fashion and music.
Favourite food?
Marmite
What first got you interested in family history?
Finding my dad’s family bible – I was born a Brown and didn’t think it was possible to trace my paternal family. The names in the Bible were the key to unlocking my Brown ancestors
Favourite genealogy source or database? The Genealogist – I just love their maps!
What’s one overlooked source that can be especially useful?
Directories, particularly in places that don’t have census records
Who is your most frustrating “brick wall” ancestor?
Thomas Wright, my third great-grandfather. He was a cheesemonger in London, married Ann Isabella Guy in 1836, and died in 1850. I still have no idea who his parents were or exactly where he was born.
If you could ask one ancestor one question, who would it be?
Thomas Wright… and I’d simply ask, “Who were your parents?”
Have you ever had a “goosebumps” moment while working with records?
Yes, when I discovered Joseph Riddle and Hannah Dimmock my 5th great-grandfather married 24 Jul 1791 at St Peter & St Paul Church, Kimpton, Hertfordshire, England. 204 years later my husband and I were married in the same church, we had no prior connection with church, chose it because close to my parent’s house where we had our reception.
What will attendees be able to do/know by the end of your talks that they couldn’t/didn’t before?
I love to use case studies in my talks, and hope people can learn how to turn facts about people into stories.
Archive or online database? Archive – love to feel the paper
Parish registers or census records? Parish registers – love the variable information
Karen recently joined the Society’s Board of Trustees and is looking forward to helping support the Society’s future while continuing to inspire researchers through her engaging, story-led talks. If you’re keen to learn how to turn the facts in your family tree into compelling family histories, be sure to catch one of her presentations.
LIBRARY NEWS
Collections Update
While cataloguing a new collection for the archive, our Archives Assistant, Rebecca Carlton, came across a wonderful year photograph from Brighton College dating from October 1927. Our team would love to know whether anyone recognises a parent, grandparent, or other relative in the photograph.
The image is from the Dale, Antony – Collection. Click thumbnail to view.
For the latest on what has been happening in our library and archives, see our August Collections Update, including:
- Our new Featured Collection in the library coming in September
- New archive collections processed in the first half of 2026
- Information about resources added to SoG Explore for member access at home
Work Experience
Enquiries about student work experience placements can be directed to Volunteer Coordinator Marisa: volunteering@sog.org.uk
Your feedback can help us to continue to improve our collections and services – get in touch if you have any suggestions: collections@sog.org.uk
VOLUNTEERING WITH US
Have you ever thought about volunteering with us?
We have projects designed for the meticulous. the curious, and the creative! From facilitating events, to transcribing Pedigree Rolls – there are plenty of opportunities to learn more about the world of genealogy while also sharing your expertise.
We have over 200 volunteers working from all over the world, and in-person opportunities working from our London-based Research Hub. Training is available for all our projects, and we have a dedicated volunteers’ forum where you can ask questions or have a chat.
So, whether you would like to learn more or would just like to make new friends, why not check out our volunteers page and get in touch?
AUGUST BOOK OF THE MONTH
My Ancestor was an Agricultural Labourer
by Ian Waller FSG (2nd ed., 2019)
A comprehensive guide to researching ancestors who were ‘Ag Labs’, Ian Waller has given us an impressive work of social history that is incredibly fascinating.
When Queen Victoria came to the throne in 1837, over half her subjects relied on agriculture for their livelihoods. It is not surprising that most of us have an Ag Lab somewhere in our family tree. Ian explains what life was like for this impoverished section of society. He gives details of all the skills they needed and describes the country calendar of events, including ploughing, sowing and harvesting.
Chapters cover quarter sessions, tithe schedules, manorial and estate records, wills and migration records. Also covered are the range of jobs: casual labourers, dairy maids, child labour, thatchers’ and gamekeepers’ riots. There is a useful bibliography and a list of Parliamentary Bills that affected the lives of agricultural labourers.
The usual cost of My Ancestor was an Agricultural Labourer is £10.99 and it is currently available here to SoG members at the discounted price of £8.79 (£9.89) to non-members).
A £3.50 postal charge applies within the UK, check our website for postal rates outside the UK.
This book plus the full range of titles published by the Society is available from our bookshop through our website. Offer valid until 31 August 2026.
COMPETITION
Win a copy of August 2026’s discounted book. To enter, please answer the following question:
In what year did the Swing Riots occur?
Please email your answer to competition@sog.org.uk by midnight GMT on 10 August 2026 with the heading ‘Genealogy Gazette Competition’. Please provide your full name, postal address, and telephone number. Only one entry per person. The winner will be notified by email. Winners outside the UK will receive an eBook edition in place of a printed copy.
The winner of July 2026’s discounted book, My Ancestors was in the British Army is Kevin Harradine. The answer to ‘Which monarch founded the Grenadier Guards?’ was Charles II.
COMMUNITY NEWS
yourDNAportal has expanded its Native American Modern test and Chromosynthesis version with more than 50 new Indigenous population references from across Canada, the USA, Mexico, Central America and South America. The update, available free to existing users who have unlocked the relevant test, provides broader geographic coverage and more detailed ancestry insights, with new reference populations including Native American, First Nations and other Indigenous communities throughout the Americas. The enhanced tests are available via the Advanced Ancestry Analysis page.
Scotland’s People has released a new collection of historical church records spanning 1739 to 1900, covering the United Presbyterian, Free, United Free and other Protestant churches. These records include kirk session minutes, communion rolls, accounts, deacons’ court minutes and seat rents, offering valuable insights into community life, church administration and the lives of individuals who may not appear in other sources. Researchers can search by place and year or browse the records online to uncover new details about their Scottish ancestors.
The British Newspaper Archive has launched a redesigned platform, developed in partnership with the British Library, featuring a more powerful search experience and a range of new research tools. The updated site aims to make it easier for family historians and researchers to discover relevant newspaper articles and explore its extensive collection of historic newspapers across Britain and Ireland.
Historic England has unveiled a new National Blue Plaque honouring Frank Soo (1914–1991), the first footballer of East Asian descent to play for the England men’s team. The plaque commemorates Soo’s remarkable football career and recognises his lasting contribution to English football as part of Historic England’s National Blue Plaque Scheme, which celebrates people who have made a significant impact on the nation’s history and culture.
Researchers have developed a new genetic analysis tool, Tractor-Mix, that can identify disease-linked genes more accurately by accounting for both mixed ancestry and family relationships. Published in Nature Genetics, the method enables scientists to include more people in genetic studies while uncovering ancestry-specific genetic signals that conventional approaches may miss, helping to improve our understanding of disease risk across diverse populations.
📺 What’s On the Box?
The second part of the latest series of Who Do You Think You Are? has begun with a superb genetic genealogy mystery with Ruth Madeley. This episode offered something different from recent episodes.
Catch up with all the latest episodes from the series on BBC iPlayer.
Join the conversation!
What did you think of the use of genetic genealogy in Ruth Madeley’s episode? Or did you prefer Toby Jones or Adeel Akhtar’s episodes?
Share your thoughts with our community on our Facebook page. We love hearing from you!
THE LATEST DIGITAL COLLECTION NEWS
Ancestry has added:
- Atlanta, Georgia, U.S., Confederate States of America Quartermaster Department, 1861-1864
- S., Chinese Immigration Business Case Files, 1894-1944
- Bangor, Maine, U.S., Bangor Hotel Visitor Log 1838-1841
- Maine, U.S., State and City Institutions Records, 1832-1927
- Maine, U.S., Employment Records, 1823-1932
- Maine, U.S., Civil War Records, 1862-1866
FamilySearch has added:
Families in British India Society (FIBIS) has added:
- Cemeteries, Bengal, Jubbulpore/Jabalpur: Christ Church Balahari Jubbalpur. Plaques inside 23 entries, Memorial outside 9 entries. 24 images. [P Quinn]
- Ecclesiastical, Clergy in India: Bowen Methodist, Coloba, Bombay – Pastors who served. 39 entries, 1 images. [P Quinn]
- Cemeteries, Bombay, Poona: Church of St Mary the Virgin – Memorials and Tablets inside the church. 400 entries, 105 images. [P Quinn]
- Military, Indian Army, Unattached List: Madras Army Annual Returns and Casualty Rolls – Unattached List 1900. Includes invalids, pensioners and casualties. 173 entries. [IOR/L/MIL/11/224]
- Military, HEIC Army, Depot Lists: Military Depots Approvals and Desertions EIC 1859. Alphabetical list of Deserters. 617 entries. [IOR/L/MIL/9/76]
- Military, HEIC Army, Unattached HEIC: Madras Army Annual Returns and Casualty Rolls – Unattached Lists. European Invalids and Pensioners residing in Secunderabad including casualties 1907. 131 entries. [IOR/L/MIL/11/231]
Findmypast has added:
Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway Company
London, Chatham and Dover Railway Company
British Royal Navy, Medical Discharge Books
Hampshire, Portsmouth Dock Medical Books
British Armed Forces, Schoolmistresses and Nurses’ Pensions
Naval Charitable Societies Subscription and Grant Books
Newspapers
- Barking Gazette and South Essex Mercury, 1909-1910
- Birmingham Mercury, 1848-1849, 1851-1853
- Bishop Auckland Herald, 1857-1865
- Carlow Morning Post, 1828-1835
- Clonmel Advertiser, 1828-1838
- Devonport Independent, 1864-1865, 1889, 1891
- Irish Presbyterian, 1853-1858
- Labour League Examiner, 1874
- Lichfield Mercury, Tamworth, Burton and Walsall Gazette, 1830-1833
- Mitcham and Tooting Mercury, 1913–1919
- Nationalist (Clonmel), 1895-1896, 1899, 1902, 1906
- North Lonsdale Herald and Dalton Advertiser, 1895-1897, 1900-1910
- People’s Conservative, 1833-1834
- Sheffield Times, 1852-1856, 1858-1863, 1865-1872
- Sunderland Herald, 1859, 1861, 1873, 1897
- Walthamstow Chronicle and Leyton Intelligencer, 1872-1876
- Western Weekly News, 1877, 1889, 1899
- Westmeath Examiner and Longford and Meath Reporter, 1882–1884, 1886–1889, 1891–1896
- Young Soldier, 1881-1985
TheGenealogist has added a major new collection of early American historical and genealogical books, bringing more than 200,000 names into its searchable records. Covering the colonial period, the American Revolution and the 19th century, the collection includes Pennsylvania Archives records, Passenger Lists to Boston and the Bay Colony (1620–1640), the New Jersey Index of Wills (1705–1901) and Genealogies of the Families and Descendants of the Early Settlers of Watertown, Massachusetts. The fully indexed collection enables researchers to search by name and view original page images, making it easier to trace early American ancestors. It can be viewed at www.thegenealogist.co.uk.
Limited-Time Diamond Subscription Offer
For a limited time, TheGenealogist is offering a Diamond annual subscription for four quarterly payments of £39.95, saving £80 compared with the Diamond Quarterly Subscription. Subscribers also receive a free online family history magazine worth £36, packed with monthly research tips and inspiration. Find out more and claim the offer here. Offer expires 31 October 2026.
