Genealogy Chat

Hi Vikki and Maureen Sorry I wasn't around earlier. I've had a bit of a busy day. Vikki - sounds like you're doing everything fine. No telling off's from me - I'm just as confused as you half the time! lol Maureen I'll try and go through each issue as you posted it. Doc no 4015980-00023 page 10 is blank - If another main census sheet preceded this blank page then I would key in the ED, Folio and page numbers, put an x in column H and a comment in column Y. If only summary sheets etc preceded this page then don't bother entering anything. Doc no 4015980-00024 says page 23 folio 9 schedule 1 Address is 'A house adjoining the parish of Withernwick'. The pages list 5 people with all details. Then written underneath 'Taken from book 3 of 522' - Am I right in thinking that this page is following the one above? If so, I would enter the ED, Folio, page and schedule numbers as usual. You will obviously have to abbreviate the address. Then an x in column H and a comment about the address and the note 'Taken from book 3 of 522' in column Y. Then just enter the family as usual. Doc no 4015980-00025 page 24 is blank - Am I right in thinking that it's the summary sheets for the next ED following this? If so don't bother entering it. If there is another main census page to follow, enter ED, Folio and page numbers as usual, an x in column H and a comment in column Y. Doc no 4015980-00026 is the enumeration district sheet for next area - Don't enter this. What do I do about missing folio numbers. The first enumeration district finished on folio 9 (doc no 4015980-00022 see earlier query). Folio 10 is stamped on the new enumeration district sheet (ED 2) but the next image has folio 13 (page 1) - If folio 13, page 1 is your first main census page after the declaration then that's where you start from. The numbers will go a bit out of sync because of the summary sheets. The image shows sch 4,5 do I enter as this in column E. The names are listed head and wife (with the same surname) and the third person is a different surname and description could be widower (sorry the image is a bit faint but does not say son or daughter etc). The schedule numbers then carry on okay i.e. 6 - Bit confused with this one Maureen! lol.Who is at scedule 4 and who is at 5. You can't have 2 schedule numbers on the same line in column E. Could it be that the man and wife are at one address and the widower at the next house? It could even be that the widower is a lodger with the man and wife, in which case you would change his scedule number to 0, put an x in column H and a note in column Y. Get back to me on this one and we''l work it out I hope! lol. Getting some place names that are very strange and can not find on GENIE - Slacholer or Horrinslaam - on this same faint image and I hate it when I can not suss it out. - Yes it is a pain when you can't work it out. I hate to be beaten! But don't spend too much time over it. If anything is illegible use the default hyphen, an x in the appropriate box and a comment in column Y. Hope this has helped a bit Maureen. Stick with it me duck, you're doing a grand job! Jeanette x

Thanks Jeanette. Hope you had a great day and I did not spoil the end of it. Will have a look at the answers in the morning - sorry later today - and let you know if it makes sense. Cheers. Maureen

Jeanette, Now had a look at your answers and I seem to have done it okay so far. Doc no 4015980-00032 This is the image with the schedule number problems. Sch 1 - Warner family Sch 2 - Blenhim family Sch 3 - Greenwood family Sch 4,5 - Christopher Duke, head, mar, 72, ag lab Ann Duke, wife, mar, 70 Thomas Smith, widower, 30, ag lab Sch 6 - Ellis family The numbers 4 and 5 are both written in the same box as '4,5'. They are not written on different lines as normal. If I put sch no 4 against Christopher and Ann. Put sch 5 with an x in col H and a note in col Y. Put an 0 in sch for Thomas, x in col H and a note in col Y. Best of luck with this. Maureen

Sounds good to me Maureen! Susie Materfieild once inadvertantly mistyped 'transcribing' as 'transcribling'. Think she had a point! lol Jeanette x

Jeanette, Cheers - I probably owe you a good drink after all that. Maureen

Hi All A nudge and a big thank you to jeanette for all the help you give us (along with other helpers/advisors too) - just so I dont leave you out....lol Gonna be a good girl now and get back to doing some transcribing! lol Vikki xx

Just wondered if it was worth mentioning a couple of tips for anyone not used to using Excel spreadsheets. To keep the headings (Civil Parish, ED, Folio etc) at the top of the page as you work down do the following: click on row 3 - actually on the number 3 - this highlights the row. Then look across the top of the spreadsheet (File, Edit, View, Insert, Format, Tool, Windows, Help) and click on Windows. Click on freeze panes. This can be easily undone by clicking again on row 3, Windows, unfreeze panes. It might look strange to start with as the rows you have typed seem to disappear but I like to keep the headings in view when I work. I am working split screen with images at the top and Excel at the bottom. This does not leave much space on the spreadsheet to view more than a couple of rows at one time. I remove the toolbars by clicking on View(across the top) and then remove the ticks against Formula, Status, Standard and Formatting toolbars (or any that are ticked that are not needed). I can now view 8-10 rows. Unfortunately if you use Excel for anything else you will need to put the toolbars back when you open any other Excel document. Just go back to View and click on any that you removed. Better go and do some more transcribing. Maureen

Well thankyou Vikki! Blushing now! lol Nice tips Maureen! (can I say that! lol) I haven't got the hang of split screen myself and do like to see full pages on the images and spreadsheet. I'm just stuck in my ways! lol So what I do is flit from image to spreadsheet. I do this pressing Alt and Tab. Just incase there's any more fuddy duddies like me! lol Jeanette x

Jeanette, How about a thread just for me !!! LOL Did the enumerators get paid by the word? The two that I have transcribed so far got a bit carried away. If the head of the household was a farmer then his wife had the occupation of farmers wife - the son occ farmers son - the daughter occ farmers daughter. Any wife is listed as occ wife likewise son occ son and daughter occ daughter. I know I have to be accurate but do I really have to keep putting this for occupation as this is more like a relationship than actual occupation? On the standard abbreviations for 'Relationship to Head' there is no mention of visitor. Do I use something like visitr? Only another 1400 plus documents to look at. I find the split screen is easier to use. You can view the image while typing on Excel. Maureen

Lol Maureen! Yes use visitr for visitor. I know isn't it a pain in the bum when they ramble on. But I'm afaraid if they've put farmer's daughter then that is what we have to type. Similarly, if they have spelt anything wrong, we have to spell it wrong too (really annoys me that one! lol). I have found that enumerators usually start their area putting in farmer's daughter and such, but by the time they get to the end they've given up! lol Jeanette x

Jeanette, Thanks again. Maureen

Can anyone help? I've been given instructions to get he relevant software to start transcribing, I've been told to download the 'software to do it' on to a floppy disc. Problem is I've bought this flashy new computer recently but it doesn't have a floppy disc drive! Does it make a difference if I just download it staight to the hard drive? Nikki

Hi Nikki Mine is just downloaded onto the hard drive with the icons on my desktop. The only time I use a floppy (cos I've got a crappy old computer! lol) is to back up my transcription from time to time. Of course if you've got it you can back yours up onto cd. Jeanette x

That's superb Jeanette, guess I know what I'm going to be doing this weekend!! Nikki

Well have fun Nikki! lol Me and Ann Lazenby won't be around on Saturday as we're off to the Geordie meet. But I'm sure if you get stuck, there will be others around to help. Good Luck! Jeanette x

On the standard abbreviations for 'relationship to head' I do not have anything for great grandson. Any ideas - ggrson perhaps? Maureen

Hi Maureen As there is no standard abbreviation I would use the default hyphen in that column, an x in the next appropriate column, and a note in column Y. Jeanette x

Thanks Jeanette. Enjoy the meeting at the weekend. Maureen

Hi All I've come across a missing schedule number. At the end of my page the last schedule number is 22 and the people at this property continue onto the next page. The next schedule number is 24. There is no mention anywhere that I can see, of why 23 would be missing. Do I just carry on and ignore it or do I have to insert something to say why it jumps from 22 to 24? Vikki xx

Hi All Thought I would post this site for a list of census occupations. Dont know if any of you have been here before but it has helped me a little. Reomove brackets: http://dspace(.)dial(.)pipex(.)com/town/terrace/adw03/peel/economic/census(.)htm The site is moving soon but has a link to its new one on it. Vikki xx