Family history

I may try it, as my maiden surname is that of a famous prime minister from the past and my paternal grandfather shared that name and was convinced that we were related. So - worth a look.

Luckygirl - when we moved to this part of the world some twenty five years ago I stood on the front doorstep and declared that I felt I had come home. Some ten years ago my son bought me an Ancestry subscription for Christmas and I soon discovered that my father’s family came from a village a few miles away. I had absolutely no idea that I had deep roots in rural Somerset but it explained my feeling of connection.

I also discovered a half sister who nobody knew about, my father’s wartime indiscretion. We correspond regularly and have a lot in common. So you never know where Ancestry will lead you, though not to fame or fortune since there are a lot of agricultural labourers in my past.

If you find Ancestry tricky at first then persevere, as with everything!

You can research your tree (births, marriages, deaths, census returns etc.) and also have a DNA test which will throw up your heritage. The two things do not always agree. The DNA test throws up dozens of relatives but you can't always match them to your own tree research because the DNA matches go back further in time than your research. When you write to people they don't always write back which is annoying if you know you're related.

Most important thing is not to blindly take information from other people's Ancestry trees because some of them are complete fairy tales. Write down what they say and then research it yourself. The information MAY be accurate and could prove helpful, but could just as easily be completely wrong.

I think they're giving 14 days free at the moment.

You could do quite a lot in 14 days and it would still be there if you decide to join, or you could perhaps print some off.

I subscribe to Ancestry. I have found out lots of interesting information. I don't find it difficult, although I have been using it for a long time. It's an interesting hobby. I have photos of my uncles grave in Burma, which my mother would have loved to see. I have built a comprehensive family tree, from a base of very little knowledge. You can give it a try if you want, sometime you can get a free month.

My D in Oz does but I think I've told her more than she's found on the site as my late cousin tracked down loads before he died.
Much the same as many, we have relatives all over the world on mum's side. I only know snippets from my dad's past so hoping D gets on to that being as she's the one who's a member.
The DNA test which she had done through them didn't throw up much either other than it was mainly British with a smattering of Gaelic and European.

I've used it. It can be frustrating at times but if you enjoy doing a bit of detective work it can be quite illuminating.

As far as your possible African ancestry is concerned, DNA testing might be of use. I discovered I had North African DNA, not surprising really as my mother was Italian.
I also found out I had Scandinavian ancestry which was probably Danish, introduced into the family around the mid 17th century.
I took that information with a pinch of salt until further research on ancestry showed that I did indeed have Danish ancestors.
Good luck with your research.

They, not Rhey

What a coincidence. It is surprising what you find out.

I do subscribe but haven't used it for a while and, really, this is the time to do research.

If you do join I would advise keeping your tree private. It is wonderful to see connections in other people's trees, yes, but if it is private you could always message them to ask for access or further details. As with all sites, there are one or two odd bods to beware of.

It's not complicated and, if I can use it, I'm sure you'd be able to.
Rhey may be offering a free trial at the moment. You see if you like it or try a couple of others too eg FindmyPast