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there were also the huge movements around the time of the Industrial Revolution when people moved from the land to work in cotton mills in Lancashire, woollen mills in Yorkshire, ship building, road building etc etc

Thanks everyone for the interesting input. I never realised there could've been so many reasons to move. I guess in those days when you didn't have much money or belongings then moving wasn't the same hassle it is today.

My father's grandmother and her family seemed to move many times within the same street. The houses look identical from the outside, so maybe landlords or more favourable rental terms applied .

In Herefordshire, many families visited from South Wales just for the hop picking season. When the harvest was over, they went back to their homes in the coal mining valleys of Wales.

Sometimes too, a woman would go back to her parents house for the birth of her first child.This might be local or some distance away. After a suitable time, the new family would reunite, where the husband was working.

I agree with mgnv. Movement can easily be work-related.

For instance, a family of ship's carvers can spread around the country from Liverpool to Cumbria, to north-east England to Scotland and even as their occupations changed to sculptors and journeymen carpenters their movements continued.

Many Essex farm labourers were emboldened to move when an influx of cheap Irish labour undercut their wages.

In mining districts, before nationalisation, men were employed on yearly contracts. Contracts not renewed meant a move to another village because miners usually lived in tied accommodation - as did farm labourers and others.

Working for the government overseas also meant another move when called home or appointed to another posting.

There are other explanations for movement too so I it's worthwhile looking at what was going on historically in the area you are interested in.

It can be work-related. My g grandad was an itinerant farm labourer. The regional standard was a 1-year contract. These are the births of my grandad and his siblings:

1878 Mintlaw Station Old Deer
1880 Balring Old Deer
1882 Nether Hythie Old Deer
1184 Downiehills Peterhead
1886 Ardlaw Hill Loingside
1888 Auchmachar Old Deer

Even the 4 births in the same parish were at different farms.
All were born in Aberdeenshire except James (1882), who was born in the Banffshire portion of this cross border parish After 1891, county borders were rationalized, and his birthplace became part of Aberdeenshire.

Thanks Kathleen. Yes, it does all make sense. There seemed to be lots of children - in one line of my family there were 8 children spread over 19 years and about 6 or 7 different addresses, so moving for more space would make sense.

We moved two years ago and I certainly don't want to do it again in a hurry!

My ancestors who lived in towns rather than villages often moved to different houses in the same street. Usually they only rented rooms in the house and if they needed more or less rooms (say if they had another child, or if one moved out for work) then that would be one reason. If the head of the house lost a job then they would look for cheaper lodgings. They certainly wouldn't have a lot of "stuff" as you say.

When we got married I left home and moved to our present house with just a suitcase of belongings. We have never moved house and I would hate to think I had to pack up all the junk we have accumulated in nearly 50 years!!

Kath. x

Thanks Andy, I guess that makes sense. I can't imagine moving so many times but I guess back then they didn't accumulate as much 'stuff' as we do nowadays.

I've seen suggested

Lower rent
Better condition property
Move from 'rogue' landlord
Move because they owed rent - moonlight flit!
Bad neighbours

Tracing some of my own family, they moved frequently right up to 1940's

Andy

While researching my family lines in the 1800's, I've noticed that families seem to move around a lot, sometimes only to another house on the same street. Any suggestions to the reasons?