Family Ties

From Shropshire240508

I never really got to know the rest of my family beyond my parents. My Dad was in his forties when they got me from an adoption agency and my mum was in her late thirties. We were a self sufficient unit. I got the feeling my Dad's folks were from Cumbria - we'd see my two uncles Joe and Jim from time to time - and my mum had a brother who came round with his kids occasionally. All my Grandparents were gone by the time I was any age at all really.

Recently though my Dad has started talking about our relatives so I got busy on the PC today and subscribed to one or two of these ancestry sites that market the old census lists. Some of them even have online access to the death certificates. I found my mum pretty much effortlessly, which was as sad as you'd expect.

My Dad's side was interesting (but I admit I'm biased). It seems he comes from a long line of Cumbrian farmers which I traced back to 1840. His ancestors had loads of kids and I'd bet they led pretty hard lives, although at least they were out in the fresh air and not down a pit or something. Their farms are still there and I gazed down at them on Google Maps. I reckon I might drive up there at some point when the weather improves. I can see how people get hooked on this.