Family History Groups and Courses
If you're interested in family history, it can be helpful to have some support to help you get started and to keep you motivated as you hit the inevitable brick walls in your research.
Solihull Libraries run a series of family history courses to help kick-start your research.
First Steps in Family History (beginners' family history courses)
This course is for you if you're starting from scratch or want some help getting to grips with the most important records (birth, marriage and death records, census etc.). It's never been easier to start researching your family tree but it's also never been easier to go wrong or get lost amongst the many available websites.
Our courses will help you get started effectively so that you don't waste time looking for people and records in the wrong places! You will also be able to take best advantage of Solihull Libraries' Virtual Reference Library subscriptions, including Ancestry and Find My Past. Staff will be able to guide you to get the best out of the sites and ensure that you're able to use them more efficiently.
The course is overseen by our Local Studies Librarian, who is a Chartered Librarian and qualified archivist, and has almost 20 years' experience of family history research, as well as having a teaching qualification. The First Steps course will concentrate on English and Welsh genealogy and will help you find out about your ancestors over the last 200 years.
The next course will run at Solihull Central Library on Mondays 2-4pm, starting on 27th February 2012. The course will last for 6 weeks and cost £72. If you are interested in the courses but can't make this time, please contact us as we may be able to offer additional sessions if there is sufficient demand.
To book a place or to find out any more information, please contact us (e-mail heritage@solihull.gov.uk or phone 0121 704 6934). We'd also be delighted to hear from you if you have any ideas for any other courses that we could run that you would find useful for your family history research.
There will also be a 6-week beginners' course starting at Knowle Library on Tuesday 28th February 10.30-12.30pm (cost £72). Places are limited and advance booking via Knowle Library is essential.
Next Steps in Family History (intermediate family history courses)
This course is for you if you're already familiar with census records, birth, marriage and death indexes and certificates and have researched your family tree in England & Wales back to the early 1800s.
The course will cover how to overcome some of the brick walls you hit, records that can turn your family tree into a family history and how to take your family history research back beyond the 1830s/40s when census records and certificates are not available. You will learn about church records, electoral registers, rate books, school records, occupational sources, newspapers and what may be found in archive repositories. You'll also learn about useful websites and what can be found online on sites other than Ancestry and Find My Past.
The next course will run at Solihull Central Library on Thursdays 2-4pm, starting on 2nd February 2012. The course will last for 6 weeks and cost £72.
Additional courses will run from Monday 27th February 5.30-7.30pm and from Thursday 29th March 2-4pm.
If you are interested in the course but can't make these times, please contact us as we may be able to offer additional sessions if there is sufficient demand.
To book a place or to find out any more information, please contact us (e-mail heritage@solihull.gov.uk or phone 0121 704 6934). We'd also be delighted to hear from you if you have any ideas for any other courses that we could run that you would find useful for your family history research.
Further Steps in Family History
If you want some help with specific one-off topics, then the Further Steps in Family History sessions may help. We currently offer sessions on military records and wills and probate, but would be delighted to hear your suggestions for any other courses that you would find useful. Please e-mail us on heritage@solihull.gov.uk or phone 0121 704 6934. Forthcoming sessions are:
- Military records
Saturday 11th February 2012, 10am-12pm
Cost £12
This session will help you to understand the background to service in the British Army, Royal Navy and Royal Air Force. You will learn how to identify regiments, where to find records and how to put some 'flesh on the bones' of your ancestor's military service. There will be time at the end of the session for your own individual research.
- Wills and probate
Saturday 25th February 2012, 10am-12pm
Cost £12
If you're wondering whether ancestor left a will, where to find it and what information it may tell you, then this session will be helpful. You will find out about the civil and church probate systems and indexes. There will also be time at the end of the session for your own individual research.
- Family history on the Internet
Saturday 10th March 2012, 10am-12pm
Cost £12
This session will be useful if you've done family history research without using the Internet or if you're familiar with the Ancestry and Find My Past websites and want to know what else is available that you may find useful. There will also be time at the end of the session for your own individual research.
Informal family history groups
If you're already doing research and would like to join an informal group for mutual help and support, then there are a number of self-organised groups that meet regularly in our libraries. There is no charge for attending the group meetings.
An informal group meets weekly on Thursdays 5.15-7.15pm on the first floor at Solihull Central Library and would welcome new members to join. There's no need to book - just turn up to the meeting.
Groups also meet at community libraries - contact the library for further details.
Caribbean Family History Group
A Caribbean Family History Group meets six times per year 2-4pm on the last Saturdays of January, March, May, July, September and November at Solihull Central Library.
Irish Family History Group
A group for people researching Irish family history has started to meet monthly at Solihull Central Library. Meetings generally take place on the second Tuesday of the month 10am-12pm but check the Irish Family History board on the Solihull Heritage Forum for further details. You can also ask any questions about your Irish family history research there as well.