Current Hertfordshire (and adjacent) papers online at the BNA

Extracted from latest British Newspaper Archive list: 

Barnet Press 13400 pages 1861-1862, 1879-1910
Bedfordshire Mercury 22174 pages 1837-1877, 1879, 1890-1895, 1898-1910, 1912
Bedfordshire Times and Independent 48802 pages 1859-1873, 1887-1888, 1891-1897, 1899-1954
Buckingham Advertiser and Free Press 37450 pages 1854-1855, 1859-1897, 1899-1911, 1913-1955
Bucks Advertiser & Aylesbury News 2294 pages 1860, 1872, 1874, 1890, 1912
Bucks Gazette 4312 pages 1829-1849
Bucks Herald 55362 pages 1833-1851, 1853-1953
Hemel Hempstead Gazette and West Herts Advertiser 3456 pages 1872, 1874-1876, 1879, 1881-1882, 1886, 1891
Hendon & Finchley Times 34728 pages 1878-1940
Hertford Mercury and Reformer 14628 pages 1834-1837, 1840-1889, 1913, 1916-1918, 1939
Hertfordshire Express and General Advertiser 2394 pages 1859-1871
Herts & Cambs Reporter & Royston Crow 12590 pages 1878-1882, 1884-1888, 1890-1898, 1900-1910
Herts Advertiser 16878 pages 1866-1895, 1897-1907
Herts Guardian, Agricultural Journal, and General Advertiser 9882 pages 1852-1867, 1883
Leighton Buzzard Observer and Linslade Gazette 14476 pages 1861, 1863-1904, 1939
Luton News and Bedfordshire Chronicle 5436 pages 1897, 1905-1906, 1917-1919, 1936, 1939, 1950, 1953-1954
Luton Times and Advertiser 15802 pages 1855-1862, 1866-1873, 1875-1880, 1885, 1894-1916
South Bucks Free Press, Wycombe and Maidenhead Journal 2672 pages 1859-1860, 1862, 1865, 1879, 1882
South Bucks Standard 9206 pages 1890-1897, 1899-1910, 1912-1914
Watford Observer 14406 pages 1863-1909

The most recent newspaper to be added is the Bucks Advertiser & Aylesbury News - and I will be watching to see when they add new pages. The paper was founded in 1836 by my great grandfather, John Gibbs and includes good coverage of the Tring area of Hertfordshire. The Births, Marriage and Deaths column often included information on Gibbs relatives  even if they had left Aylesbury many years before.  I am also waiting for some of the later years of the Herts Advertiser to appear - as it was founded by Richard Gibbs - who was John Gibbs' brother. As yet the BNA has not covered the Maidenhead Advertiser - which was founded by another of my ancestors

British Newspaper Archive - Victorian Newspapers covering Hertfordshire & Borders

Newspapers

The following list show the Victorian papers digitized at the beginning of January which cover Hertfordshire and adjacent areas, excluding London and National papers.

Bedfordshire Mercury 1837-73; 1903-10; 1912
Bedfordshire Times and Independent 1859-73; 1887-8; 1891-7, 1899-1954
Biggleswade Chronicle 1898-1954
Cambridgeshire Chronicle and Journal 1813-62, 1864-72; 1875; 1877; 1889
Cambridge Independent Press 1839-73, 1875-95; 1899-1910; 1913-1920; 1939
Chelmsford Chronicle 1783-91;1798; 1819; 1831-98; 1900-50
Dunstable Chronicle and Advertiser for Beds, Bucks and Herts 1856-60
Essex Standard 1831-1844; 1846-72; 1874-95; 1899-1900
Hertford Mercury and Reformer: 1834-37; 1840-1889; 1913, 1916-8; 1939
Hertfordshire Express and General Advertiser 1859-71
Hertfordshire Guardian, Agricultural Journal, and General Advertiser:  1852-67; 1883
Leighton Buzzard Observer and Linslade Gazette 1861; 1863-1904; 1939
Luton News and Bedfordshire Chronicle 1897; 1905-6; 1917-19; 1936; 1939; 1950; 1953-4
Luton Times and Advertiser 1855-52; 1866-73; 1875-80; 1885; 1894-1916
Watford Observer 1863-70

Recording Tring - and other distractions

I am afraid that running this site has had to slip down the queue of priorities - and as the site tends to be quietest in the summer months don't expect regular postings over the next two or three months - although I hope to continue to replay to all appropriate emails.. However some of the competing activities may be of interest to some of you.

Tring celebrates the 700th anniversary of its market charter this year - and I have become involved in helping to produces a photographic record. This fits in well with my regular keep fit walks round the town. The final archive will not appear until later and I have am using a blog, Recording Tring in the 21st century, to act as a record of what I am doing - and you are all welcome to have a look.

I am also giving two talks to the Tring U3A - one on Historical Research using old Newspapers, and the other on Brickmaking in Hertfordshire and details will be added to the Hertfordshire Genealogy web site.

A completely different activity relates to my former university research on my blog Trapped by the Box. A paper relating to the way the computer industry expanded so fast that good ideas may have been lost has been published under the title Algorithms aren't Everything. As a result I am currently drafting a paper relating to the evolution of the human brain - progress being reported on the same blog.

Another less welcome task is to sort out my computer systems. Until recently all work was being done under windows XP and I am now regretting having moved to Windows 8. There is also a related problem that means it is harder to update the Hertfordshire Genealogy web site.

And finally it is summer - and if you think I am going to spend all my time indoors at a computer keyboard - forget it - I will be trying to enjoy the fine weather as much as possible.

Hemel Hempstead Gazette (selected years) now Online

The Hemel Hempstead Gazette was first published in 1867 covering Hemel Hempstead, Great Berkhamsted, Boxmoor, Two Waters, Nash Mills, Kings Langley, Abbots Langley, Chipperfield, Watford, Bovingdon, Chesham, Gaddesden and Tring.

The years 1872, 74, 75, 76, 79, 81, 82, 86, and 91 are already on the British Newspaper Archive and more will undoubtedly follow shortly.

Old Hertfordshire News on British Newspaper Archives

Newspapers

Hertfordshire is currently not very well covered in the British Newspaper Archive (also on FindMyPast) and often you have to hope that Hertfordshire news might be covered just over the boundary in an adjacent county. I was delighted to find that they started on the Watford Observer. I have therefore updated my list of papers that are worth checking for local news, marking updates since my last update on the subject nine months ago with green.

Bedfordshire Times - 1935
Bucks Herald - 1833-51, X, 53-1900, X, 02-09
Cambridge Chronicle - 1813-31, X, 36, X, 48, X, 59, X, 61-2, X, 67, X, 71, X, 75, X, 77
Cambridge Independent - 1839-73, X, 75-92, X, 94-5, X, 98-9, X, 1910, X, 13-20
Chelmsford Chronicle - 1783-91, X, 98, X, 1819, X, 32-7, X, 39-66, X, 68-9, X, 71-83, X, 85-98, X, 1900-50
Essex Newsman - 1870-96, X, 99-1910, X, 12-50
Essex Standard - 1831-44, X, 46-72, X, 75-95, X, 99-1900
Hertford Mercury - 1834-7, X, 40-68
Herts Advertiser - [1925 withdrawn?]
Herts Guardian - 1852-6, X, 59-60, X, 62-65, X, 67
Luton News - 1917-8, X, 50, X, 53-4
Luton Times - 1856-62, X, 66-73, X, 75-80, X, 85, X, 94-1914
Watford Observer - 1863-7, X, 69-70

I have not included Middlesex and London Newspapers.

One easily overlooked factor is that there are missing years and I have therefore highlighted the gap years. I have not indicated places where a year is incomplete.

Booklet about the Tring Home Guards (2nd World War)

It is always worth checking the local newspapers of the towns you are researching, as many of them print heritage articles.

The Military

For instance the Hemel Hempsted Gazette has a weekly Heritage page and details often appear on its web site.

This weeks offering describes the activities of the Tring Home Guard during the Second World War. It is based on an informative booklet produced by the Tring and District Local History and Museum  Society.

Hertfordshire Newspapers online

Newspapers

While the British Newspaper Archive is a wonderful resource - and comes up with gems of information it can be very frustrating. I use FindMyPast to access it and if you get a "Nil" response it does not tell you that you are, for example, searching in a county for a year for which there are no newspapers available yet! It also does not remember which articles you have already viewed

The Archive is continually being updated and if you access it using FindMyPast you are regularly reminded that further newspaper pages have been added. There is a list of newspapers online and the current list has the URL 

http://www.findmypast.co.uk/cms/fmp/pdf/newspapers-coverage-060913.pdf 

which suggests that it is the list on 6th September 2013. The problem is that the list does not mark which papers have been updated since the previous list - so you don't know if there is any new material for Hertfordshire (including papers in adjoining counties which cover parts of the county). So here is a list of the current coverage - and I will post news of any updates I spot in this Newsletter.

Bucks Herald	Buckinghamshire	1833-1909
Cambridge Chronicle and Journal	Cambridgeshire	1813-1871
Cambridge Independent Press	Cambridgeshire	1839-1913
Chelmsford Chronicle	Essex	1783-1950
Essex Newsman	Essex	1870-1950
Essex Standard	Essex	1831-1900
Hertford Mercury and Reformer	Hertfordshire	1834-1868
Herts Advertiser	Hertfordshire	1925
Herts Guardian, Agricultural Journal & Advertiser	Hertfordshire	1852-1867
Luton Times and Advertiser	Bedfordshire	1856-1914
Morning Chronicle	London	1801-1865
Morning Post	London	1801-1900

I list two London Newspapers which start early - but there are many others which I am not keeping tracks of. In addition I have not included gaps in the sequence - for instance I recently discovered that the Buck Herald for 1854 is missing.

Finding the Ind Ancestors of an Baldock Brewer

Baldock

Brewing

Miriam was having difficulty in finding the parents of James Ind - the earliest "known" brewer in the history of the Ind Coope Brewery group. Prior to his marriage the surname Ind was effectively unknown in Hertfordshire and none of the contemporary records (which included a newspaper report of his death) gave any indication as to his likely date of birth. I therefore decided to closely consider the evidence available in the marriage register - which supported his social status - and included a witness, Robert Ind, that could well be his brother. Records in HALS and in early newspapers support the link between Robert and James, and provides an age at death for Robert.

Help Desk

With this information family search came up with brothers James (baptised 1754) and Robert (baptised 1756), the children of Robert Ind and his wife Ann Ralph who married in Huntingdonshire in 1749. I also found another James Ind, a farmer in Fenstanton, Huntingdonshire, who might represent an earlier generation. As the Fenstanton farm included a maltings it is possible that the brewing history of the Ind family can be pushed back two further generations - but this will need more research in Huntingdonshire records to establish. For details of this wide-ranging research, which brings together information from many different sources, see IND, Baldock, 18th century.

Hertfordshire-related updates on FindMyPast (Registers and Newspapers)

BMD

Newspapers

FindMyPast has announced that nearly 2 million new Hertfordshire register records have been added to their collection and list the current holding at http://www.findmypast.co.uk/content/news/hertfordshire

As usual they do not list the changes so there is no list that you can check to see what had changed that will affect your own research since last time. As is common with many other systems they are reluctant to tell you that a search was negative because the relevant records were not online or not indexed. If you search for my grandfather, by father, and myself in the Sandridge register, you will only find my father, who was baptised in 1908. You are given no reason for the other missing entries but a look at the list shows that the parish baptisms have been indexed between 1898-1910. Further investigation shows that the online images come from a register that runs from 19th June 1898 (on page 1)  to 5th May 1935 (on age 100). So baptisms in 1901 before 19th June 1908 are not indexed, while baptisms after 1910 are online as images - but not indexed. What is more the original register has been manually indexed by surname on the front cover (image opposite Page 1) and back cover (image opposite page 100).

The list of parishes shows Sandridge Marriages indexed between 1898 and 1901 - but I could not find a single example from the register so have no idea what, if any, has been indexed. In fact the Banns are indexed for a much longer period, including the years 1898-1901, proving that weddings did take place during this period. There are no Sandridge burial registers yet online. If you are interested in a particular village you will need to check what is (or is not) online with care.

The newspaper collection  now contains nearly 7 million pages, but the June updates did not include any papers relating to Hertfordshire. The most relevant papers already online are:

Bucks Herald	1833-1909
Cambridge Chronicle and Journal	1813-1871
Cambridge Independent Press	1839-1913
Chelmsford Chronicle	1783-1950
Essex Standard	1831-1900
Hertford Mercury and Reformer	1834-1868
Herts Advertiser	1925
Herts Guardian, Agricultural Journal & Advertiser	1852-1867
Luton Times and Advertiser	1856-1914

As can be seen the coverage of Hertfordshire is poor. Nothing from places such as Hemel Hempstead, St Albans (apart from one year for just one of the many papers published in the town at various dates) and Watford, with nothing from Hertford after 1868.

More about Buntingford

Jackson, Butchers, Buntingford

Buntingford

Last October I added a page to the main site about the Jackson family of butchers from Buntingford based on some old invoices, as an example of how interesting ephemera can be when it has survived (which rarely happens). Alison recently wrote to tell me that the invoices (and much more beside) had all been kept by a Jeffery Smith, of Buntingford and I have added details to the Jackson page.

Old News

Alison also drew my attention to the Facebook site on which she is posting news items from the Buntingford and North East Herts Gazette from 1923 to 1940. She says: Not only does it give a fascinating insight into how the town was run with accounts of how the various prominent local citizens (who often served on half a dozen or more committees) gave selflessly of their time to serve on various committees like the Poor Union, the Rural District Council, the various church councils, the burial ground committee, assorted fundraising committees particularly for the Royston Hospital, the Nursing Fund and so on, but it also gives details of funerals and who attended (most useful for genealogical research) sports results, types of entertainment, advertisements for local businesses, Petty Sessions. It takes me some time to do the uploading because I read every word! But it paints an intimate picture of life in the town at that time.

Old Hertfordshire News NOW ONLINE on FindMyPast

 The extremely useful  British Newspaper Archive has just been made available worldwide on FindMyPast - and needless to say everyone is trying to use it. As a result it is slow and occasionally throws you off with an apology, but the rush will eventually slow down.  If you try it out there are some problems which are not immediately clear from the instructions.

To illustrate the problem I did a search for Keyword "Tring" between 1830 and 1840 setting the county as follows.

• HERTFORDSHIRE - found 350 Articles in the Herts Mercury & Reformer
• BUCKINGHAMSHIRE - found 634  articles in the Bucks Herald
• BEDFORDSHIRE - found 0 articles
• OXFORDSHIRE - found 150 articles in the Oxford Journal 
• DURHAM - found 411 articles in the Northern Echo

The important thing to note is that if you select a county it is the county the newspaper is published in. Tring is close to the Buckinghamshire border and at the time was well covered by the Aylesbury papers (only one of which is currently in the archive). It is less well covered by the only Hertfordshire paper in the archive. If you search in Bedfordshire the search still takes time - and a "0" appears with any warning to tell you that there is no Bedfordshire paper for this period in the archive (yet)! The Oxford figure included references to a proposed railway line from Tring to Cheltenham which was never built.

The high figure for the Northern Echo suggests it was a much larger paper than the rest which regularly reprinted national news from other papers. In fact at least half the "Tring" responses are due to the fact that scanning is far from perfect and the real word is something like "string" with a badly printed "s" or "King". However I spotted plenty of genuine Tring references.

I will have another look - using it for personal names - and report sometime in December.

The Bedford Times coverage of Hertfordshire News in 1854

The heading on this paper reads The Bedford Times and General Advertiser for Beds, Herts, Hunts, Bucks, Cambs, and Huntingdonshire. It looks interesting ...

The Watford News that reached New Zealand ...

On the 4th October 1909 Canon David Reith, vicar of St Andrew's, Watford, collapsed and died while preaching a sermon at Greenwich. Of course there was an obituary in The Times, but to find out what actually happened I did a search on Google - and found that it was mentioned in several New Zealand papers, one of which gave quite a long account.

If you are looking for a press account of a newsworthy incident it could be worth looking at the PapersPast web site which contains the text of some 2 million pages from New Zealand newspapers.

The Illustrated London News Online

The Illustrated London News has been digitised and is available to members of subscriber organisations. In Hertfordshire you can use it either in a public library or at home (assuming you are a library member). Your own library may also have access arrangements. I decided to see if it had any information on previous drought conditions in Hertfordshire and found this picture from 1934. (Overseas visitors to this site should note that, at a time when most reservoirs should be brim full, water restrictions are in place over virtually all of South East England.)

The Reformer - a message from 1841

My New Years Resolution is to reform - as a result of buying this old newspaper. ... 

The British Newspaper Archive is up and running

At long last there is a goodly collection of local newspapers available online in digital form - and earlier today I had a online session to see how well the search facilities work. I was very impressed and have written an account of what I found. The current collection (less than 10% of the planned total) includes two Hertfordshire papers, and two that included parts of Hertfordshire in their normal coverage.  I was able to fill a missing gap in the career of my Great Grandfather - and there is much more information which relates to the "artificial fertilizer" connection. I have also discovered another ancestor whose move to Hertfordshire may  have been caused by bankruptcy.

     This is an essential resource for the serious family historian - so let me know how you get on - by adding your own experiences as a comment to this blog. Your comments will help other people to make the most of this exciting new web site.