July: Monday 13, 10.00 am
Richard Marks
The Industrial Revolution was not just a story of machines and inventions — it was a profound transformation of everyday life. This talk traces the journey from cottage industries and rural handcrafts to the rise of factories, steam power, and bustling industrial towns. We’ll explore how these changes affected the work our ancestors did, the homes they lived in, and the communities they built. Drawing on vivid examples from textiles, railways, and local trades, the session will show how industrialisation created new opportunities but also new challenges, from child labour and urban overcrowding to migration and social mobility. Alongside the big picture, we’ll highlight the human dimension: how ordinary men, women, and children navigated this upheaval, leaving behind records in census returns, parish registers, and family stories. By connecting economic history with genealogical sources, the talk will help family historians see the Industrial Revolution not as distant history, but as a living context for their own ancestors’ experiences — a time when the rhythms of work, home, and community were reshaped forever.
You are invited to the Zoom meetings.
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Merton Heritage Discovery Day
Morden Library, Merton Civic Centre, London Road, Morden SM4 5DX
ESFHS will be at the show so please come and visit us. We will have our bookstall and help desk (including computer help as it's an indoor event!) so will look forward to seeing you.
Lingfield
Geoff Fairbairn
It does not matter it you do not have any Scottish ancestors as this map collection covers the whole of the British Isles. Geoff will explain how to search the database, the different map editions plus how to layer maps over one another.
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Family History Show, London
Kempton Park Racecourse, Staines Road, Sunbury-on-Thames TW16 5AQ
ESFHS will be at the show so please come and visit us. We will have our bookstall and help desk (including computer help as it's an indoor event!) so will look forward to seeing you.
Lingfield
Julian Pooley
A Burden on the Parish
Julian, Public Services and Engagement Manager, at Surrey History Centre will discuss the range of sources for the history of poor relief in Surrey from the sixteenth century to the eve of the Second World War. Parish records, family papers, quarter sessions records, charity and business papers, early printed sources and even illustrations can all provide vivid insights into the plight of the poor and the duties of those responsible for helping them.
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