July 12, 2009 at 4:00 am (Genealogy, History, Podcast)
Tags: National Archives, Royal Navy
This podcast from the National Archives discusses the Royal Naval medal rolls held by The National Archives in record series ADM 171, and explains how to interpret the most commonly used codes and abbreviations found in them. It also demonstrates how the medal rolls can be used to locate other records relating to an individual’s Royal Naval service.
July 11, 2009 at 5:15 am (History, Location)
Tags: Butleigh, Edith Shore, George Shore, Somerset
George and Edith Shore were born in Devon in the 1890s. They moved from Devon to Butleigh with their employer in 1928, the couple had a cottage in the village. It took George two days to travel from Devon with the horses and wagon; he always preferred horses to tractors. Edith made bread every week in a brick oven; along with pies, pastries, and faggots. Washing was done on a Monday morning and Edith made butter on the farm.
July 6, 2009 at 6:28 am (History, Location)
Tags: Dorset, Golden Cap, National Trust
Archaeologists working for the National Trust think they have found west Dorset’s oldest human settlement on Doghouse Hill on the Golden Cap estate.
July 4, 2009 at 4:00 am (Genealogy, History)
Did your ancestors fight in the American Revolution 233 years ago? Thousands of men answered the call to arms in 1776. These thousands probably have many millions of descendants today. Many Americans can find a Revolutionary War veteran in the family tree if they expend a bit of time and effort. Luckily, there are a number of online and offline sources to help you in that search.
Read the full article in Eastman’s Online Genealogy Newsletter
July 3, 2009 at 4:00 am (History, Location)
Tags: Dorset, Portland, Second World War
Rodney Legg tells how wartime reminiscing enabled him to re-write the story of one of the most famous disasters of the Second World War and claim it for Dorset.
June 29, 2009 at 4:00 am (History, Location)
Tags: Ron Sapsead, Somerset, Street
Ron attended the Board School, Street. As a child he played games in the street outside his home in Glaston Road, with hoops and skipping ropes. His school headmaster used a cane on the tips of the children’s fingers, and they had slates to write on. In this clip Ron describes a Sunday school outing to Burnham-on-Sea. With the advent of the railways in the 1840s and 1850s, the Somerset seaside resort became a popular destination for day-trippers.
June 28, 2009 at 4:00 am (Genealogy, History, Podcast)
Tags: National Archives
This podcast from the National Archives is an introduction, using case studies, to the records of British government departments responsible for the administration of colonial affairs from about 1801 to 1968.
June 27, 2009 at 4:00 am (History, Location)
Tags: Dorset, Keith Eldred, Wimborne Minster
Keith Eldred describes what Sunday morning service was like for a young boy in the 1880s and 1890s
June 24, 2009 at 4:00 am (History, Location)
Tags: Dorset, Eggardon, Harry Poole's
‘Once you’re through the Gate on the Hill the road runs along the top of the outside earthwork of the Ancient British camp on top of Eggardon. After about five hundred yards it disappears from view as it drops down into the village’, are the opening lines of Harry Poole’s The Road across the Top.
June 21, 2009 at 4:00 am (History, Location)
Tags: Dorset, Mappercombe, Nettlecombe, North Poorton, Powerstock, West Milton, Whetley, Wytherstone
Author Harry Poole spent most of his life farming around Eggardon Hill and is a fund of knowledge with regard to the history of Powerstock and it’s surrounding villages. Apart from the four Powerstock booklets he has written two novels and two plays, none of which have found a publisher. The booklets can however be read on-line. Powerstock, in this essay, comprises Nettlecombe, West Milton, North Poorton, Wytherstone, Mappercombe and Whetley.
