generationspan

Welcome to GenerationSpan Family History!

I aim to help you to tell the story of your family – who they were, where they came from, what they did for a living … maybe even where they are now.

I specialise in topics such as Genealogy, Family History, Family Trees, Lineage, Parentage, Pedigree, DNA, Probate, Ancestors, Descendants, Military, Local History, Houses, Occupations, Criminality, etc.

“Our relationship with our Family History can often be clouded by the  mists of time, distance, family arguments, embarrassment and missed opportunities.”

GenerationSpan Family History uses many different sources of information to shine a light on to the story of your family.

Browse through the website to see what services I can provide and contact me to discuss what you would like to discover.

I am passionate about genealogy! I shall never give up trying to fill the gaps in my own pedigree but I also love helping other people look into their own.

I have helped dozens of clients to solve a wide variety of “problems” about their ancestry. Here are just a few examples:

• Stephen had been told that his grandfather had died in a motorcycle accident in the 1920s. I discovered that he had simply moved to another part of town and lived until the 1970s! Along the way I was able to trace Stephen’s family back five  generations.
• Bob had never heard of his distant cousin Mary Ann until I discovered that she had been transported to Tasmania in the 1830s. And that she later raised a large family whose descendants are now in contact with Bob’s family.
• Pam had heard that her great grandfather had led an eventful life but was amazed when I found that he was a soldier who had won a medal in the Egyptian Campaign of 1882.
• David had not heard from a good friend since the 1980s. I found that his friend had died but we put David in touch with his friend’s daughter who was thrilled to meet “Uncle David”.
• One of our local history societies wanted to honour the village’s World War One dead. Over the course of a year I researched over 80 names from the War Memorial and built a website to make the information available to the local community.
• Keith (not me!) asked me to look into a family legend of an uncle who was said to have brought home a “Red Indian” lady in the years before World War One. My research found that the man’s wife was indeed a member of the Cherokee Nation … and that the uncle had been badly injured in a knife fight with his wife’s lawyer in an Oklahoma court-room in 1917!

Not all Family History projects have exciting outcomes but they invariably throw up interesting (and sometimes sad) surprises. And I am pleased to say that my customers are invariably satisfied with their results.

We are going to be working together for a while. We may never meet – we may not even be on the same continent – but I will do my best to develop a friendly but professional relationship.

To start off with, I will ask one fundamental question:

“What do want me to do for you?”

Each person will have a different requirement.

Here are some examples:

• “I need a full family tree going back five generations.”
• “Information about one particular person.”
• “I need you to pop into the local archives to copy an extract from an old Parish Register.”
• “I need a photo of Grandmother’s old cottage.”
• “I need you to translate the writing in this old document.”
• “I would like to contact an friend (or relative) who I lost contact with thirty years ago.”
• … etc., etc.

Prices

• I charge at an hourly rate of £30 per hour.
• If I have to order any certificates to prove any research findings, I charge for these at cost. (For example UK birth/marriage/death certificates = £9.25, UK probate and wills = £10, etc.)
• Directories for recent addresses cost about £5 per search
• Printing, postage and stationery are charged at cost.
• Travel costs over 10 miles or 1 hour charged at £30 per hour.

Spending Targets

• I usually recommend that we agree an initial spending target so that I will check back with you that you are happy with progress.
• For example we might agree to set an initial upper limit of £150 (that’s about 4 hours of research and 3 certificates).
• If there is still more to do, then you can choose to carry on to the next check point.

Payment

• I will provide you with an itemised invoice, to give you transparency of the costs.
• Payment can be by cheque or by BACS transfer directly to my bank account.
• Overseas customers, please ask for  alternative arrangements.

The Usual Deliverables

• I will send you, by email, a report on my findings.
• This will usually be in the form of a “narrative” text file, a family tree and copies of certificates, newspaper clippings, etc. Please note that this can sometimes take quite a lot of time to pull together into a useful format.
• A “hard copy” can be prepared and posted at the hourly rate quoted above.
• Of course, there may be other things to deliver. In different projects I have delivered : a set of replica World War One medals, a family tree mounted in a picture frame, the address of a missing beneficiary to a Will, etc.

What I Need From You

• As much information as possible!
• ALL  names, dates, locations, occupations that you already know about your ancestors.
• Copies of any certificates, wills, photos, letters, books, existing family trees …. paperwork of any kind that might provide clues in my researches.
• Family rumours, legends, scandal, gossip!
• It’s amazing how often a seemingly insignificant piece of information can lead to a major breakthrough.

GenerationSpan Family History Services is based in Long Eaton in the East Midlands halfway between Derby and Nottingham and within easy distance of Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire and Leicestershire County Archive Offices.

Also nearby is the University of Nottingham Special Collections Department with many  unique and valuable local and national archives. The region is blessed with many other local resources including excellent Local History collections, libraries and family history societies.

Your East Midlands ancestor lived amongst a rich industrial and cultural landscape. The area is world famous for lace and fabric manufacture. The once mighty coal industry has left its physical and psychological mark on the landscape and local communities.  The area is criss-crossed with canals, railways and roads. Famous sons include Lord Byron, D.H.Lawrence, Alan Sillitoe, Joseph Wright, Samuel Clegg, Robert Lindsey and many others.

GenerationSpan Family  History is ideally located to exploit these superb local and regional resources to explore your ancestors.