Open Day 2014 Talks
By Sue Harvey and Maura SellarsThis year there will be a series of short talks on offer again at the Open Day. There is no charge for the talks but because of limited space in the talks room tickets need to be obtained on the day from the Volunteers Registration Table. The following talks are planned and timings for these will appear on the website nearer the date. Where time permits there will be a short question and answer session at the end of each talk. However, some of the speakers will be available for most of the day working in the Research Room or Hall 2 and will be happy to answer further questions.
Dr.Brian Swann – ‘Recent Advances in DNA and in Welsh Family History’ This presentation will review the current status of DNA testing. It will cover the basics quite quickly and focus on new developments on partial genome sequencing of the Y-Chromosome. This has the potential to revolutionise again family connections and migration patterns. For Wales, what is online will be reviewed and, as importantly, what is not online. The potential of DNA to transform the study of Welsh surnames and Welsh family history will be illustrated.
Alan Crosby - ‘Sex and sin in the seventeenth century: discover the seamy side of your ancestors’ We all hope our ancestors were God-fearing respectable people like ourselves ... or do we? In reality, it’s quite exciting to discover some dodgy characters, and if a bit (or maybe a lot) of sex and sin is involved that’s even better! This talk considers the 17th century, when Puritans vied with the likes of Nell Gwynn, and virtuous morality competed with free love. What can we discover about our own forebears? Using entertaining and enlightening real life examples (sometimes quite vividly described!) we learn how church court and quarter sessions records can provide fascinating insights into sexual [mis]conduct, marital relations and society’s attitudes 350 years ago. It might explain a few puzzles on the family tree, too!
Captain Graham Bandy - ‘A Short History of the Army Medical Services’ Capt. Bandy has been a popular speaker in army related topics. This talk on the history of the army medical services will be of interest to anyone with an ancestor who served in the army during WW1, and particularly for those whose relative was in the medical services. Come and listen to what will be a very interesting talk.
Julian Pooley - ‘Discovering the lives and experiences of our ancestors, using archive and printed sources’ This talk discusses the amazing variety of archive and printed sources that can be used to build up a picture of the past lives and experiences of our ancestors. Drawing upon the rich collections of Surrey History Centre, it will show how early illustrations, the Gentleman’s Magazine, parish correspondence, quarter sessions papers, institutional records, personal letters and diaries can vividly illustrate the personal experiences of ‘ordinary’ people. This talk looks beyond parish registers and census returns to explore a range of materials that can help you piece together your family tree, and also to bring the past to life.
Graham Walter – ‘Cloud Computing – storing sharing and collaborating’ As one of the "Census Detectives", along with Jeanne Bunting, he attends various family history fairs and society open days showing people how to make use of online services for their family history research. “The Cloud” is something often referred to but not necessarily always understood. It not only offers us a way to collect the data associated with family history but also to share and collaborate with other people all over the world, in real-time if we want. This talk is how one family researcher makes use of cloud tools in his family research – some tricks, traps and techniques.