Tree status as at 14 Jan 2013: Individuals=4066 Families=1091
Latest tree updates:
Blog=27 Jan 2011, GenesReunited=27 Jan 2011
AncestralAtlas=23 Jan 2010, Ancestry=28 Jan 2011

Overwhelmed and underachieved ….

One has to visit a cemetery such as that at Canterbury to appreciate its scale ….

I had gone along Sunday with the hope and expectation of finding missing CASTLE ancestors which I was unable to locate in St Dunstan’s churchyard. I should have been much wiser, having gone armed with a cemetery plan which show its segmentation into smaller zones. And as usual I had not contacted the local council to determine possible plots numbers…. !

All this meant that I was relying on my usual wanderings through gravestones and along paths, recording any names which were recognisable. However, this did result in my locating two or three CASTLE graves for people not in my tree, and a Charles HATTON, which I need to investigate.

One benefit of checking by this method is that one tends to find graves which may not otherwise have been found.

All this took around 3 hours – and still probably less than a third of the cemetery checked…. !

Note to self (again) – really, REALLY, must research plot numbers with councils before visiting more cemeteries!

Published in: Genealogy | on September 2nd, 2009 | No Comments »

Cemetery déja-vu

Having recently failed to find CASTLE ancestors at St. Dunstan’s graveyard, Canterbury, it would appear that, like Womenswold, I need to extend my research to a second cemetery.

David Wood, Chairman of the Canterbury Branch of Kent Family History Society (KFHS), informs me that I may find them buried at Canterbury Cemetery, Whitstable Road (just up from St. Dunstan’s). This cemetery opened for business from 1877 and, despite being registered in the parish of St. Dunstan’s, they may be buried there.

This would fit, since the earliest burial of this CASTLE family I have so far is 1883 – time to get hunting again!

Published in: Genealogy | on June 29th, 2009 | No Comments »

Mixed cemetery results …

I visited St.Dunstan’s church at Canterbury today, seeking CASTLE ancestry of my mother. Although I was unable to locate the relevant graves, I am confident of their existence from my sources. I believe that they are marked by some of the many weathered headstones.

Following this search, I moved on to nearby Blean and the churchyard at St. Cosmos & St. Damian. This was merely investigatory, with the possibility of locating a HATTON grave. Although I was unsuccessful in this goal, I surprisingly found a BALDOCK grave, for a couple I do not have, buried in the late 20th century. I now hope to trace these back for any possible links.

Published in: Genealogy | on May 31st, 2009 | No Comments »