Study An Ancestral Hometown

A really unusual online database of information on ancestral homelands is titled “One Place Studies“. Its purpose is to gather and share information about as many villages, towns, cities, so that those researching their own family ancestral places and not living there can have a much better idea what that place is like and especially how it was when an ancestor lived there. Most of the locations to date are in the United Kingdom. There is England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland. Other homelands added are in Australia (New South Wales, Western Australia, Victoria, South Australia), plus a few states in the United States (New York, Virginia, Louisiana, Michigan and Massachusetts). There are a couple in Italy and one in Canada.

The ones listed for the United Kingdom are fairly complete. For England select a county your ancestors had as an original residence. A map will appear of that county and to the right a list of cities and towns available with information. Not every town is completed yet, but select a city that was nearby. A list of subtopics appears next to a brief history of each location. They range from maps, people, churches, streets, buildings and misc. other topics.

When looking for any specific surname it provides instruction of how to ‘find’ a name, which is in bold print. In the buildings, streets, churches, where photos are available, that is included besides information. For maps, current and any older maps of an areas are available on the site. What subtopics that are available will vary with each place.

Besides learning more about an ancestral home you can also share any maps, photos and information you have gathered so that can be placed on the site. Another contribution can be where you the researcher lives now. You could have some information to start a new link for the site.

An excellent web site with some very useful maps, photos and information.

Photo: A street named Longfield in Prestwich, Lancashire Co., England with a row of typical houses in 1938.

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