Hello everyone. I have a number of brick walls that I have come across, but the most frustrating one is my grandmother's family. My grandmother maiden name is Kelly with Irish connections. I have her mother and father Philip and Mary, but thats about all I can completely conform with certainty. I know Philips father is Thomas Kelly (1859-1926) and his mother is Bridget Whelan (1860-1902), but these names are so common in Ireland and Liverpool/Manchester that trying to figure out which ones are mine is proving to be very difficult. I have some names in my tree, but I have stopped researching as I have gone wrong before and had to delete a load of research as I had gone down the wrong family! Any help or advice very gratefully received!

The National Blue Plaque Scheme celebrates people from all walks of life who have made a significant contribution to human welfare or happiness, and/or have made an exceptional impact in their field, community or wider society. Designed to spark curiosity in people of all ages and backgrounds, each plaque is a tangible, physical link connecting people to place through a building that was part of their history and is still standing. Run by Historic England on behalf of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, the national scheme expands on the value and success of the London scheme (which continues to be led by English Heritage) and local schemes across the country. Key Aspects of Blue Plaque Schemes: - London Scheme (English Heritage): Founded in 1866, it is the oldest in the world, featuring over 1,000 plaques honoring diverse figures. - National Scheme (Historic England): Launched to expand the success of the London scheme across England, allowing public nominations to highlight diverse contributions to national heritage. - Other Schemes: Local councils (e.g., St Helens) and societies (e.g., British Plaque Trust) run independent, regional, or specific theme-based schemes. Eligibility and Nomination Criteria (National Scheme): - Time Passed: Nominees must have been deceased for at least 20 years. - Significance: The person should have made a significant contribution to human welfare or happiness, or had an exceptional impact in their field. - Buildings: A surviving building linked to the person must exist, which they would have recognized. - Visibility: The plaque must be visible from a public highway. I've attached the local Gateshead Blue Plaque walking guide for people of historical importance here in Newcastle & Gateshead.

Before I take the plunge and order a marriage certificate, can anyone advise where else I can seach for the marriage details of Hannah Ferry born 1855, Sunderland (Parents William Ferry and Hannah Clark). I have found 2 possible marriages - Robert William Evans (Married 1875 - Sunderland) William Clouder (Married 1877 - Sunderland) I have searched - Ancestry, Findmypast, Familysearch, and Durham Records Online, but they have only resulted in the Index record which doesn't show her fathers details etc. On the census of 1871 Hannah was living at 12 Gerald Street, Bishopwearmouth, Sunderland, if that may help. Thank you

I keep seeing in some groups on FB, where people are editing and enhancing their old family photos then colorizing them. I became interested in doing this with some old family photos I have that are in poor condition and you can't really clearly see the person. At first, I was looking at apps for photo editing, I had to get a new computer about a month or so ago and discovered I had an app on my new computer that would do this. It is the Copilot AI powered app. I started playing around with the app to see how it worked. I think I pretty much got it down now. You have to type in command prompt for what you want to do, and it does it. Anyways, I tried out editing and enhancing a few really old photos of family members and WOW! They turned out so awesome. I am attaching a few I did. Here are the before and after photos. Let me know what you think. These are my great grandparents Henry Hamilton Weakley and Mary (Sedden) Wilson Weakley.

Ceri has shared some great templates and help to keep you on track with your research in the ‘Genealogy Library’ but just thought I’d share my experiences of the benefits of being organised with your research. For more than 20 years, I've been tracing my family history, and I can only imagine how much money I've spent—and wasted—because I haven't consistently organized my research notes. Too many times I have found documents (that I have had to pay for) but I still haven’t been convinced that it is for the correct person so I haven’t added to my desktop family tree, only to go back to researching this person years later and paying for the same document again because my research material has not been organised!! Only last week I found my grandfather’s birth certificate (original copy) with some random paperwork in one of my folders and then realising that in 2024 I paid £11.00 for a transcribed copy of it from the Isle of Man Government (they do not provide copies of the original), nightmare!! And this is just one example. On a positive note, I’ve just renewed my subscription with Find My Past as they offered me a 50% discount after my old one had lapsed. I recommend disabling automatic renewal on your subscriptions. Usually, companies will send you special offers once your subscription ends. Although you might have to wait a few days, it’s often worthwhile. I now keep a spreadsheet where I set myself a monthly budget and keep a list of everything I purchase and always try to double check it before I buy anything to make sure that I haven’t already got it. Genealogy can be an expensive hobby, but there are some great ‘free’ websites out there which I would always recommend using first, and always stay on the look out for any offers for the paid sites. Hope my experiences help 🙂