Northumbrian StoriesDec 3, 2022

Thanks to everyone who followed along and enjoyed that little story I posted! I was going to do a few different snippets, but that one ended up being five posts long, so that'll do for now. 😂

I have a lot of these stories, either local or family history, covering various periods. I like the stories that start personal and/or individual, and lead to explorations of historical context and social history. At one point I thought I'd start a blog of them, but I got one post in and never managed to do any more. If there's interest, I might resurrect that project!

#FolkHistory #LocalHistory #FamilyHistory #SocialHistory

Show thread🌬 NorthWindDec 3, 2022
@northfolk Love the work you’re doing, thank you! I posted a story (link below) about my grandfather who was born at sea. My #Scottish sea-faring family saved everything. Because of our interest in genealogy, my cousin & I have become the keepers of a large, rich history of Scottish Sea Captains, made their home in #NovaScotia & sailed all over the world. We have troves of old letters, photos, newspapers clippings & stories about ..1 of 3
Show thread🌬 NorthWindDec 3, 2022
@northfolk …19th century travels to China, Australia, Hawaii, South Africa, WW1 & more. We have my Great Aunt’s diary about her life onboard ship, wife of the Captain & only woman, she died at sea. My GG grandfather was killed in a terrible shipwreck off of Nova Scotia & so much more. We’ve started to transcribe the diary & all the letters - it’s overwhelming! ..& I feel so responsible. This is history that belongs to all of us. …2 of 3
Show thread🌬 NorthWindDec 3, 2022

@northfolk …Do you have any advice about what we can do with all of this? How to preserve it, organize it, bring the stories to life & where to share? Or can you direct us to someone who can help? Thank you! ..3 of 3

Link: https://mstdn.social/@NorthWind/109366976988471871
#Genealogy
#FamilyHistory
#Maritime
#MaritimeHistory

🌬 NorthWind (@[email protected])

Attached: 2 images I come from a long line of #Scottish Sea Captains. My cousin found some old negatives & had them developed - found a few treasures. This is my Grandpa in San Francisco, he was born at sea during a storm, my G Grandfather was the Captain & delivered him. His place of birth gives latitude & longitude in the Pacific Ocean (& of course his 🌞sign is ♋️) He was the best grandpa. I love & miss him so much. #Genealogy #Astrology

Mastodon 🐘
Show threadNorthumbrian StoriesDec 3, 2022
@NorthWind Wow, what an amazing collection to have! Honestly, I am never sure what do with what I've put together either - and I don't have this sort of treasure trove. I suppose it depends whether you want to preserve it mainly for your family, or share it with the wider world. I know there are people who would put it together into a book for you, but that tends to be just for personal use, unless you want to take on the bigger project of writing into a book for publication. Do you know whereabouts in Scotland or Nova Scotia they came from? It's possible that there might be local museums in those places that would take an interest!
wayfarer1010Dec 4, 2022
Show thread🌬 NorthWind

@northfolk Yes thank you, I guess we’re all in the same boat with our genealogy work. It really can be overwhelming. I know they lived in #Weymouth #NovaScotia, we traveled to the museum there & exchanged ’lots of info. Scotland is where the trail runs cold. We know they’re from the #ScottishHighlands near Inverness & that’s about it. Grant is a common name. Next steps: learning to navigate the online Scottish genealogical & #Maritime resources 🫣.

#Genealogy

Dec 3, 2022 at 11:08pmWeb
Show threadNorthumbrian StoriesDec 3, 2022
@NorthWind If you want any help with the Scottish stuff, a quarter of my family tree is in Scotland, so I'd be happy to have a look or give some pointers. I also have Highlanders from around Inverness, although no Grants! It can be really tricky, because there are a lot of repeated names. https://www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk/ is the place to go (which you may already know), but it's pay per view unfortunately!
Explore your Scottish heritage | Scotland's People

Show thread🌬 NorthWindDec 3, 2022
@northfolk Thanks! I did not know about the website. I just went there and registered.😃 Thanks to you I’ve just taken my first steps wading into the unknown sea of online Scottish genealogical resources. I found out that as a member, I can search the indexes, which is great, I’ll see if I get any hits, and then I’ll go from there. Thanks again!
Show threadNorthumbrian StoriesDec 4, 2022
@NorthWind You're very welcome, good luck with the search! I'll be interested to know if you find anything. Funnily enough I have a book by Isobel Grant, who founded the Highland Folk Museum, about folk beliefs and life in the Highlands in the 19th century and earlier. No idea if she's any connection to your Grants, but it's a good book (if quite old now, published in the 60s)!