My family and other animals -the quest continues............

In September 2002 Graham read in a national newspaper that the 1901 census had been published on the internet and wasn't all that it was cracked up to be.

Having dabbled around for a couple of years just putting together what he could find out from 'The Family' he thought 'Aha!, I wonder if I can find Nan on there, she was 8 years old in 1901'.  Thus started a casual hobby that, as he found out more and more, has developed into a bit of an obsession (a bit?, now that's an understatement).

He has delved mainly into his side of the family, but has also begun work on Carol's too, the Manning side of which has already been well researched.

During his work he has made many contacts across the world, distant cousins, fellow genealogists etc, who have turned up some surprising revelations.  The royal princes William and Harry are 15th cousins to Graham, from their mother's line, and King Edward the first is a 22nd great grandfather to Carol!, who has other notables in her line such as John Evelyn the 17th century diarist and one Fortunatus Wright a famous (to nautical people anyway) privateer in the early 1700's, who had a bounty set on him by the King of France, for capture dead or alive.

You will find here the recently updated work from his side of the family, some 873 individuals from 419 families, going back to the late 1700's.  Plan is to stitch in the Manning and Wright side of things once it's been researched a bit more.

Recently he has made some great inroads into the 'contemporary' side and together with some long lost (and some never before met) cousins for his mum, he has also found a sole surviving Great Aunt who celebrated her 102nd birthday in May this year.  She is pictured below in June with his mum.  The other photo is an absolute gem!, it was kindly donated by another of Graham's newly discovered 1st removed cousins, Barbara Midwinter, and shows the (in)famous Corporal Henry Weatherhead of the 1st Battalion, 24th Regiment of Foot circa 1876.  Henry was killed by a Zulu at Isandhlwana in January 1879 , and his wife Mary Ann lived on to the great age of 96 (despite somehow celebrating her 100th birthday in 1940!) and for many years was the only person claiming a pension from the Zulu war.