Findmypast

Findmypast The UK's best family history website - unlock your family history today The possibilities are endless. Who knows what you might find?

Finding a name is just the start... Findmypast helps you understand your family history, one discovery at a time. Delve deeper into your family tree by getting to know the world your ancestors lived in — their triumphs, setbacks, and heartbreaks — to uncover your family’s unique story. Step into a map, explore your ancestor’s antics in the pages of a newspaper, and join a thriving community of pas

sionate family historians. House Rules

This is a community page for professional genealogists and family history researchers to discuss, share stories, and inspire each other. It’s an inclusive family, so we hope that both experienced historians and those just starting to build their tree will enjoy participating in our many conversations. On Facebook, as in everyday life, we expect our community to treat each other with respect and courtesy. In order to maintain a vibrant and healthy Facebook community, and to make sure everybody gets to have a say, we’ve established a few house rules. Unfortunately, we can’t respond to every single comment or query (although we’ll do our best to). We are confident that members of our community will not post any comments that fall into any of the following categories, but we reserve the right to remove any materials that are:

• Defamatory, abusive, threatening, condescending or obscene, or that violate the rights (including rights of privacy) of others.
• Fraudulent, misleading, spam, or promoting competitors.
• Protected by intellectual property laws, (or any other laws or regulations) unless you own or control the rights or have received all necessary consents.
• Offensive to our brand, our staff or members of our community.
• Advertising third party services or products. We also reserve the right to ban users from our page and report users to Facebook should they contravene the rules above or Facebook’s own Terms and Policies. Please note that content posted on our page does not necessarily represent the views of Findmypast.

She’d already helped fight two wars. At 78, she wasn’t done yet.In 1941, as bombs fell on Birmingham, Mary Ann Cottrell ...
13/05/2026

She’d already helped fight two wars. At 78, she wasn’t done yet.

In 1941, as bombs fell on Birmingham, Mary Ann Cottrell was thought to be Britain’s oldest female munitions worker. Day after day, she reported to the factory to help supply parts for aircraft, living just streets away from the devastation of the Blitz.

But Mary’s story didn’t begin there.

Newspaper records reveal she had also done her “bit” during the Boer War and the First World War. Three wars. One extraordinary life of quiet determination.

Mary wasn’t famous. She didn’t seek recognition. But her everyday resilience helped shape the world we live in today ❤️

She walked the wards by lamplight 🕯️ Florence Nightingale, the lady with the lamp, was born today, the 12 May in 1820.We...
12/05/2026

She walked the wards by lamplight 🕯️

Florence Nightingale, the lady with the lamp, was born today, the 12 May in 1820.

We thank Florence and all the incredible nurses today who are continuing her legacy ❤️

Can you guess whose parents stand in the centre of this photo? 👀The famous English actor stands back right, with his bro...
11/05/2026

Can you guess whose parents stand in the centre of this photo? 👀

The famous English actor stands back right, with his brother on the left.

What was your family's experience of the Blitz? ❤️ The last major attack on London took place on this day in 1941.800 to...
10/05/2026

What was your family's experience of the Blitz? ❤️

The last major attack on London took place on this day in 1941.

800 tonnes of bombs caused over 2,000 fires, killed nearly 1,500 people, and injured a further 1,700.

"This old photograph held so many surprises" 😮 Dawn was not only proud of herself for her discovery, but also of her anc...
09/05/2026

"This old photograph held so many surprises" 😮

Dawn was not only proud of herself for her discovery, but also of her ancestor ⬇️

"Two women, four children, and a few names I’d scribbled on the back years ago after a chat with my grandmother. That was really the beginning.

Over the last seven years, I’ve been slowly filling in the gaps, working out who everyone in the photo was and where they came from. It turns out the four children were my grandmother’s older siblings, born before her time. From there, things started to open up.

I found out Milly had 14 children in total. One of the boys in the photograph ended up in Australia. Another died in France during the First World War. Just small pieces of information at first, but each one made the picture a bit clearer.

The real surprise came when I looked into my three-times great-grandfather. I’d known he was a schoolmaster, but that was about it. By exploring newspapers, I discovered he’d actually been running his own boarding school in London, and had gained a formal teaching qualification - something none of us in the family had ever known.

That was the moment it really hit home. These people weren't just names and dates on a family tree - they led real lives.

And it all started with one photograph ❤️

Thank you, Dawn, for submitting your story!

Do you have a discovery to share? Submit it easily using our form ⤵️
https://wkf.ms/3UOGat4

Happy 100th birthday to naturalist, broadcaster, and national treasure, Sir David Attenborough 🎂 Just a few snapshots of...
08/05/2026

Happy 100th birthday to naturalist, broadcaster, and national treasure, Sir David Attenborough 🎂

Just a few snapshots of his extraordinary career from our newspaper archive 📰

Where were your family on VE Day? 🎉 On 8 May 1945, millions of people took to the streets to celebrate the end of World ...
08/05/2026

Where were your family on VE Day? 🎉

On 8 May 1945, millions of people took to the streets to celebrate the end of World War Two in Europe.

07/05/2026

Imagine the scene the night before a major moment in British history, as the nation holds its breath.

Discover more about what our ancestors experienced during the 1926 General Strike with the latest series of our podcast ⤵️
https://bit.ly/493i9GL

06/05/2026

What first sparked your interest in family history?

100 years ago this week, Britain came to a standstill.The 1926 General Strike saw millions of workers across Britain tak...
05/05/2026

100 years ago this week, Britain came to a standstill.

The 1926 General Strike saw millions of workers across Britain take part in one of the most significant moments in labour history.

Hear the story from one man's eyes in our latest podcast series ⤵️
https://bit.ly/4dl0Z9T

How are you at reading handwriting from the time of Henry VIII? 😮 This is a parish register from Paston, Norfolk, in 154...
02/05/2026

How are you at reading handwriting from the time of Henry VIII? 😮

This is a parish register from Paston, Norfolk, in 1541-42, which lists those who were baptised, married, and buried.

📷 © Norfolk Record Office https://bit.ly/4s1wyul

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