Take a Genealogy Road Trip. Family Wise, genealogy specialists based in Wiltshire, are calling for this summer and summers to come to be a great time for discovering family history through genealogy tourism.
Genealogy tourism, or ancestral tourism, refers to when someone travels to places connected with their family history. This could be visiting a town where a great grandmother was born. Or standing in a church that witnessed the baptism of ancestors. Or exploring the streets of a place generations of families once walked.
Family Wise is a Calne-based business in Wiltshire. They’ve been operating for over ten years in the field of heir tracing, people finding and genealogy.
Start locally
Kirsty Gray, managing director, thinks genealogy tourism is best when it starts at a local level.
‘When looking for family history in the British Isles, it’s best to start with:
- local archives and record offices
- churches and churchyards
- local libraries
- historical homes
- newspaper archives, and talking to people in the community,’ commented Kirsty.
‘Summer is the perfect time to go digging for family adventures. The sun is out for longer and the weather is generally better. Plus, record offices and local museums have summer hours. So, you can seek the help you need to for longer and with more local knowledge.’
Where to start
Popular places to start among those who’ve already embraced this type of tourism, are:
- In agricultural hubs in rural Cornwall and Yorkshire villages
- And industrial heritage in Manchester, Birmingham or Sheffield
You’ll also find genealogy tourists visiting the Scottish Highlands and islands exploring clan heritage. Or exploring Northern Ireland’s wealth of records of those who crossed the Irish sea.
‘You’ll need to prepare for your historical adventures. Make sure you bring:
- research notes
- photographs of ancestors
- lists of questions you want answered
- a camera, a notebook, an address book and maps.
You’ll need to be ready for emotional moments and also for unsuccessful searches,’ Kirsty continued.
Beyond visiting ancestral homes or local archives, tourists can join a guided family history walking tour, visit local county record offices or archives or a local living history museum.
One example of this in Wiltshire is the Athelstan Museum in Malmesbury, located within the town hall. Run by volunteers, there is often someone who knows someone who remembers someone leading to a treasure trail of clues. Ditto with Swindon Local Studies.
‘Doing a genealogy trip is about making your trip meaningful by visiting places with your family’s name stamped on it and knowing the places you’re walking are where your ancestors once walked or where they lived,’ Kirsty concluded.
Family Wise
Working since 2012, Family Wise is a professional family history and people finding company. They’re dedicated to uncovering family trees and assisting with people-finding needs. They specialise in locating beneficiaries in estates, solving family mysteries and working as professional people finders.
Kirsty researched her own family history from a very young age. In 2013, she published a book entitled ‘Tracing Your West Country Ancestors’ to help others to research their own heritage in the South West.
Family Wise has a team of expert genealogists to help connect you to ancestors. To get a free, no obligation quote to start a genealogical journey, visit: https://family-wise.co.uk/
