I am a neophyte here and I know you don't like unprofessional messages, but I
feel really lost.
This is sort of a plea for help. My situation is that at present I am
unemployed and therefore have time to do some research. I worked for the last
15 years for a company averaging 6 days a week and 55 hours per week and never
had time for anything. Now, resources are limited but I have time. I have
taken an interest in genealogical research, but can't afford the $25.00 here
and the $50.00 there for the census lookups - never mind the researchers who
contact me willing to work for $50.00 per hour.
I would love to know more about my great-grandparents and the lives they must
have led. My grandmother, (my father's side), in busy Newport Wales with her
eight child; My great grandmother (mother's side) in Castlereah outside of
Belfast with her 11 children; and, the other great grandparents in their
Tyneside flats with their eight children in Newcastle Upon Tyne. What were
their lives like? How did they live? It just fascinates me.
My father was born in 1911, in Wales and was sent to a boys school in
Birmingham. I have his birth certificate, which tells me his mother was Emily
Gould (formerly Williams), but not much else. I know he had seven sisters, all
older named Margaret, Rose, Violet, Gladys Maude, Laura, Beatie, and Ruby, but
there is no father's name is on the birth certificate. Our family has lost all
contact to this side of the family.
On the other side of the family, I have traced a Great grandmother and
grandfather to Ireland (John McCourt and Jane McCallum) and the other Great
Grandfather and grandmother to Newcastle Upon Tyne (Thomas Harrison and
Margaret Scott). I know all the grandparents and great uncles - I sent the
Harrison names to this site - but I am now stuck.
I read all the stuff on the newsgroups, I do searches on the World Wide web,
but I find nothing. I wrote to possible relatives (I sent twenty letters to
random Goulds in South Wales, and five letters to Harrisons in Newcastle). I
have sent letters to newspapers in Wales and England, I have left posting on
the soc.culture and the soc.genealogical newsgroups and I written to
organisations (My father's old school, the church, the orange lodge, etc.), but
I am coming up with nothing.
Am I missing a place to do research? Is there some place with online
registries? I am a neophyte, but I feel like I am missing something. Is there
someplace to download lists that I can pour over? Maybe I am just dreaming,
but at least I would like to know this so I can give up.
If anyone can be of any help with any sort of tips, I sure would appreciate
it.
Richard Gould
[email protected]
Any tips for a novice would be appreciated.