The Family Histories Podcast

Series One Trailer

Series One of The Family Histories Podcast is coming! If you make sense of the census, go potty for parish registers, or gaga over gravestones, then this is the show for you.  Our host - author and family historian Andrew Martin - will be meeting the quiet army of family historians who are tirelessly breathing life back into our collective family and social history.Each episode we'll meet a genealogy addict, find out how they got hooked, hear about one of their most fascinating relative's good, bad, or ugly life stories, and then try to solve their research 'brick wall'..... and they'll find out what exactly Andrew has in his garage, and how it might help.Subscribe now for free to ensure you can get the latest episode.Find out more about our show at familyhistoriespodcast.com.Support the showThank you for listening! You can sign up to our email newsletter for the latest and behind the scenes news. You can find us on Twitter @FamilyHistPod, Facebook, Instagram, and BlueSky. If you liked this episode please subscribe for free, or leave a rating or review, or consider giving us a 'tip' to keep the show funded.

S01EP01 - 'The Tyrant' with Daniel Smith-Ramos

In this first episode of Series One of The Family Histories Podcast sees host Andrew Martin talks to his guest Daniel Smith-Ramos - a genealogist with Spanish, English, and Italian-American ancestry. Daniel explains how he got hooked on researching his family history, the challenges of researching in Spain and the Spanish language, and we'll find out about how his new venture Revista Descendientes hopes to help make it easier.  THE LIFE STORY - ALONSO MARTÍNEZ Daniel chooses to share the life story of his tyrannical 5x Great Grandfather Alonso Martínez (1765-1837) from Galicia, Spain, whose hypocritical and calculative behaviour manipulates his entire family, leaving them feeling alienated.THE BRICK WALL - MARY ELIZABETH VICKRESS Finally, Daniel will introduce us to his current research Brick Wall - Mary Elizabeth Vickress - a Victorian woman who seemingly outlived her entire family, only to go missing in 1886 in Birmingham, UK. Can you help Daniel to find the next clue in this mystery that could bring that brick wall crashing down? If so, you can message Daniel via his twitter @DSRGenealogist, or alternatively you can head over to our contact form and we'll pass your message on to him.In the meantime, Andrew offers Daniel some help with solving this puzzle using something he keeps in his garage....- - -Episode creditsSeries One, Episode One:Andrew Martin -  Host and ProducerDaniel Smith-Ramos - GuestEliot Lees - FoleyShow notes: familyhistoriespodcast.com.Find your genealogy course from Pharos Tutors today.Support the showThank you for listening! You can sign up to our email newsletter for the latest and behind the scenes news. You can find us on Twitter @FamilyHistPod, Facebook, Instagram, and BlueSky. If you liked this episode please subscribe for free, or leave a rating or review, or consider giving us a 'tip' to keep the show funded.

S01EP02 - 'The Laundress' with Jane Hough

In this episode, host Andrew Martin talks to UK genealogist Jane Hough about how she got hooked on researching her family tree in the 1980s, and her impressive DNA deciphering tactics that is getting her closer to solving an illegitimacy mystery. Relatively Speaking - Mary Stone Jane chooses her 5x Great Grandmother, Mary Stone, as the life story to share with us - detailing her life in Stourton, Gloucestershire as a laundry worker, through to an error of judgement that saw her being transported to Australia as a convict.The Brick Wall - Thomas Edwards Jane's Brick Wall sits right at the beginning of the Victorian era, with the origins of her 3x Great Grandfather Thomas Edwards. Jane is fairly sure the evidence points to his family having come from Wales, but with a mixture of theories and a name that is fairly common in Welsh records, it's over to you listeners to help solve it.If you have a clue or a research idea, then you can head over to our show contact form, and we'll pass your message on. Jane jumps at the offer of research help from Andrew, but it doesn't go completely to plan....- - -Episode Credits Series One, Episode Two:  Andrew Martin (Host/Producer) Jane Hough (Guest) Eliot Lees (Foley) Show notes at: familyhistoriespodcast.comFind your genealogy course from Pharos Tutors today.Support the showThank you for listening! You can sign up to our email newsletter for the latest and behind the scenes news. You can find us on Twitter @FamilyHistPod, Facebook, Instagram, and BlueSky. If you liked this episode please subscribe for free, or leave a rating or review, or consider giving us a 'tip' to keep the show funded.

S01EP03 - 'The Butcher' with George Hall

In this episode, host Andrew meets George Hall - a fairly recent convert to researching family history, who will talk about how he got into researching as a Generation Z genealogist. He'll  explain what it's like to be a younger researcher, the tools he uses, and the work of The Hidden Branch, and his One-Place study.Note: There is a background sound throughout this episode that was not detected whilst recording. Unfortunately despite our best efforts, we've not been able to remove it, and hope you will forgive us.Relatively Speaking - Henry Hopkinson George chose to tell the life story of Henry Hopkinson, his 4x Great Grandfather, from Birstall, West Yorkshire, UK. Henry made it somehow from the textiles industry to becoming an empire-building Butcher, whilst doing his best to raise his family with his wife Agnes. This came with plenty of challenges, often seeing Henry falling foul of planning laws, fines, and money troubles.The Brick Wall - James Conley It's off to census night 1871 in Sunderland, UK, where we hear about George's attempts to discover the origins of his 3x Great Grandfather James Conley. James seems to have origins in Ireland, but with a lack of clear evidence, a place name that doesn't seem to exist, and a mystery Catherine Collins, it's left George with a puzzle.Can you help George demolish this brick wall? If you think you have a clue or a research idea, then you can contact him via our show contact form and we'll pass the message on. - - -Episode CreditsSeries One, Episode Three:Andrew Martin (Host/Producer)George Hall (Guest)Eliot Lees (Foley).Show notes at familyhistoriespodcast.comFind your genealogy course from Pharos Tutors today.Support the showThank you for listening! You can sign up to our email newsletter for the latest and behind the scenes news. You can find us on Twitter @FamilyHistPod, Facebook, Instagram, and BlueSky. If you liked this episode please subscribe for free, or leave a rating or review, or consider giving us a 'tip' to keep the show funded.

S01EP04 - 'The Entrepreneur' with Lisa Louise Cooke

In this episode, host Andrew is joined by family historian, author, lecturer, and podcaster Lisa Louise Cooke (Genealogy Gems). She talks about how she got hooked on researching her own family history as a child. Relatively SpeakingLisa chooses her husband's entrepreneurial grandfather Harry Cooke as her life story. We follow him from his beginnings in mid-19th century rural Huntingdonshire, to Kent in England, before a double family tragedy sends the family off for a brand new life in Canada. The Brick WallThe hunt is on for Lisa's great grandfather Gustaf Sporowski, born in Kotten in Kreis Johannisburg, East Prussia (modern-day Poland). Do you have any research ideas or clues that could help her demolish her research Brick Wall? If you think you can help, then head over to Lisa's LisaLouiseCooke.com website, or alternatively you can visit our contact form and drop us a message (we'll pass it on). Andrew offers to help with Lisa's research by using something special he keeps in his garage. How could she refuse?- - - Episode CreditsSeries One, Episode Four:Andrew Martin (Host/Producer)Lisa Louise Cooke (Guest)Show notes: familyhistoriespodcast.comFind your genealogy course from Pharos Tutors today.Support the showThank you for listening! You can sign up to our email newsletter for the latest and behind the scenes news. You can find us on Twitter @FamilyHistPod, Facebook, Instagram, and BlueSky. If you liked this episode please subscribe for free, or leave a rating or review, or consider giving us a 'tip' to keep the show funded.