Clare Kirk

New blog out now: A cautionary tale of four Fannies Why did a man marry the same woman twice, and how did his daughter marry, but die a spinster?

What in the AI gobbledegook is this?

Memorial to the parish constable. Nuthall Church, Nottinghamshire

Chuffed for @friendlesschurches.bsky.social to see this beautiful and inspiring article about their work in the FT today.

#AncestryDNA has just doubled its number of ancestral regions. Until this update I had 5% German ancestry, which made sense as my 2x great grandmother was German. That has now been replaced by 3% France. Nein!

#31DaysOfGraves Day 22 - Mourning: I feel like depictions of men in mourning (esp. in the C19th) are pretty rare? William & Hannah Nicholson mourn their children William, Christopher, Hannah, Ralph, John Ralph, & Eliza. At the Oratory, St James' Cemetery (Sir Francis Chantrey, 1834).

Feeling miffed - a digital download of the birth of Frank Hyde arrived as Sarah Catharine Haywood. GRO confirms they can't send the correct certificate as a download so they'll refund me, but I have to pay £5 more for a PDF. Surely if they have a technical issue, they should honour the digital fee?

I spotted an impression left in the paper from a very cute doodle in the 17th-century vestry minutes book of Oxford St Aldates.

Golden putti flank the altar at Oxford St Mary Magdalen.

www.theguardian.com/food/2026/oc...

A very stylish #Roman woman's shoe with a decorative pattern punched into the leather. Found in 1907 in a well in the civilian settlement of the Saalburg fort, dating first half of the 2nd century AD. Photo: Römerkastell Saalburg

While looking for historic portraits of pub landlords I came across this one of a pub local to me. Tom Jordan, landlord of The George in Wallingford, Oxfordshire (now The George Hotel) was painted by Sir William Newzam Prior Nicholson and is in the collection of Manchester Art Gallery.

www.theguardian.com/books/2026/o...

Want to know how to cure freckles, a red face or prevent falling? We've added a fascinating, handwritten family book containing an A- Z list of ailments and cures to our archives (collection HD4543 ). Browse our collections https://orlo.uk/GUIyx

I’m absolutely delighted to be in touch with two sisters, aged 84 and 85, who lived in my house from 1949-1955. One lives in Canada and the other lives in Australia and is a famous author/playwright. They have just suggested a FaceTime so they can share memories and photos of growing up my house! 🏡

The Abingdon Naturists Society is giving a talk with the same title the following week 😉

I've posted part 2 of the history of my house, Forge Cottage: The war widow, the cadet, the geodesist and the history buff #HouseHistory #AHouseThroughTime

The first mini case in the #Uncanny Halloween Countdown is super spooky AND features census records!

To mark #BlackHistoryMonth in the US, I've shared some webinars and other free resources, focusing on African-American family research #AncestryHour #Genealogy buff.ly/4hmyqsk

I’ve been writing up the history of my house for my village magazine and I’ve been in touch with relatives of two C20th families through Ancestry. I now have photographs, and one of the contacts is putting me in touch with his mum, who lived here as a child in the 1950s! #HouseHistory #AncestryHour

AQUAHUMAN! A hybrid figure merging human and fish-like features: scales, wide-open eyes, downturned corners of the mouth, distinctive traits reminiscent of sturgeons. Discovered at the Mesolithic settlement of Lepenski Vir, the sandstone sculpture dates to approximately 6200–5950 BC. 🧵1/3 📷 me

This ledger stone of 1678 has the cutest souls and skulls (at least, I think they’re skulls, perched on top of a plinth?).

I’m always excited to come across evidence of women parish officers from before the 20th century. In 1716, Ann Bretten Widdo served as Overseer for Stratton-on-the-Fosse in Somerset. And in 1726, Mrs Green had the same role. Here are the pages of their accounts.

Many unanswered questions. ‘SHOCK FOR TWO MEN INSIDE AN “ELEPHANT”’, Illustrated Police News, 21 April 1932.

Got Huguenot ancestors? Discover Your Huguenot Heritage Day combines specialist resources, expert talks & a guided walk through Spitalfields. 📅 9 Oct | 10:30–17:30 📍 London | In person portal.sog.org.uk/Event/view/2... #Huguenot #FamilyHistory

Great news for those of us with Suffolk #OnePlaceStudies

Digitised parish registers for Berkshire, with >2M entries, were added to Ancestry yesterday. However, they don't yet seem to be complete for my home parish ... www.ancestry.co.uk/search/colle...

It’s not often that you have a chance to combine #MosaicMonday with #MementoMoriMonday. (And maybe also #MonkeyMonday?) This small mosaic, rich with symbolism, was excavated at Pompeii in 1874 and featured in Pink Floyd’s concert film, Live at Pompeii (1972).

In ancient Pompeii, it was fashionable to travel by taxicrab.

Sassy food warmer and piglet pastry mould — 1st century bronze finds from Pompeii.

Some ancestors leave behind photographs. Some leave letters. My great-grandfather left behind a tattoo declaring his love for a woman I still can't find. “I LOVE F. BEVENS” But who was she? #Genealogy #WW1 #MilitaryHistory #Gallipoli #FamilyHistory chiddickstree.substack.com/p/the-myster...

Historians of Bluesky: Do you capitalise the word 'will' when referring to the legal document? I would prefer not to, because I don't capitalise other document types unless referring to a specific record. However, sometimes when 'will' is lower case I worry it's not clear enough.

The Witchcraft Act was repealed in 1736, but vigilante murders continued. In 1751 Ruth Osborn of Gubblecote, Herts was accused by neighbours, & she and her husband John (possibly my ancestor) — elderly paupers — were subjected to a horrific witch hunt and then ducking trial, in which Ruth drowned.

Through its sumptuous collection of 19th-century stained glass, this rural medieval church has unlikely connections to both royalty and Parliament. 1/10

And also opening in September: Agatha Christie: A Tribute to her Life and Work is a new (and free) exhibition at the @berksarchives.bsky.social - which will include the only known surviving copy of the missing persons poster produced by Wokingham police. whatsonreading.com/venues/royal... 3/3

Happy birthday, Sir Roger! I enjoyed learning more about the Penrose triangle and other impossible shapes at the M.C. Escher exhibition at Somerset House yesterday.

Working in partnership with the Mining Remediation Authority, we're proud to share our new mine plan viewer which gives access to a massive resource of over 120,000 scans of mine plans, made available online for the first time. www.gov.uk/government/n...

Today is National Book Lovers Day! What is your favourite book? Here we share a delicate embroidered book cover - the perfect accessory for any book lover in the 17th century. This cover was made in England in 1632 and originally contained the third part of the bible. 🪡 WA2010.19

Yesterday I saw the brilliant #Arcadia in the West End. Although known for its mathematical themes it also says so much about historical research, the haphazard survival of documents & the feeling that as we piece together someone’s life we can almost reach out and touch them across space and time.

I have an Asclepius (Esculapius) in my family tree. He made and installed lightning conductors, frequently scaling tall towers and chimneys. A ‘striking’ character! (Maybe I will update the statue image in my blog with this newly discovered one, who has the most wonderful hair!)