Geneageek's Gems

Black Country Bigamy In this episode, we travel to the Black Country in the early 19th century to meet the Webb family, and follow the story of Dorcas Webb and her husband David Baker Aston. When David remarried less than 2 years after his first wedding, he sparked a legal case that was reported in newspapers across England. What drove him to marry again? Did he think he could get away with it? An...

My Belgian grandmother often told the story that she was named after Queen Astrid, who was her godmother. She also said she was once invited to play with the young princess but they fought over toys so she wasn't asked back. Was there ever any family connection to the Belgian royal family, or was it all just 'a load of waffle'? This episode explores the validity of these seemingly tall tales, and...

In 1898, Ellen Cook began working for a carting company in Glasgow, Scotland, and soon became involved with the owner's son. 15 years later, in 1915, their relationship made the international newspapers when Ellen sued John Sinclair for breach of promise. After stringing her along for years, John had decided not to attend his own wedding because 'the weather was bad', and went home to bed instead....

In 1852, it was claimed that a young girl from a tiny village in rural Suffolk was blind, deaf, confined to her bed, and had lived without food for several months. Elizabeth Squirrell became known as 'The Shottisham Angel'. But the sensation soon turned to scandal with accusations that she and her family were frauds. Was Elizabeth Squirrell an imposter? Or had others just been spreading misinforma...

In 1852, it was claimed that a young girl from a tiny village in rural Suffolk was blind, deaf, confined to her bed, and had lived without food for several months. Elizabeth Squirrell became known as ‘The Shottisham Angel’. But the sensation soon turned to scandal with accusations that she and her family were frauds. Was Elizabeth Squirrell an imposter? Or had others just been spreading misinforma...

When a body is discovered on a rocky beach in Victorian northeast Scotland, it unravels the buried history of a fishing family marked by tragedy. Life in their harsh coastal village was unforgiving—but what led at least four of them to be committed to the Royal Lunatic Asylum in Aberdeen? Was it madness, misfortune, or something more? Guest: Eddie Surnames: Buchan, Strachan, Carle, Tait Places: Ca...

 On a Friday night in September 1842, some young men – local agricultural labourers – went out for a drink or three in Hadleigh, Suffolk. A few hours later, one of them would be found slumped on the road dead. In part 1, we heard all about the coroner’s inquest looking into John Blandon’s death on the streets of Hadleigh. The inquest decided that Charles Smith had a case to answer, and he was com...

On a Friday night in September 1842, some young men - local agricultural labourers - went out for a drink or three in Hadleigh, Suffolk. A few hours later, one of them would be found slumped on the road dead. My guest's family turned out to be linked to this story in a surprising number of ways. For show notes, please go to: https://geneageek.com/podcast/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for...

Suffolk native, Margaret Catchpole, was a REAL person, and shining star of Australia’s convict history. Unfortunately the story often told about her is largely false. 25 years after her death, the Reverend Richard Cobbold wrote a fictionalised account of Margaret’s life which he declared to be a “perfectly true narrative”. It was not. Unfortunately, Cobbold’s novel, with all its embellishments and...

Hannah's story comes to its conclusion in this fourth and final part. Drunkenness, sham marriages, assaults, disorderly houses, attacks, wife swapping, neighbourhood quarrels, domestic abuse... life in the Derby slums is HARD. How will it all end? For show notes, please go to: https://geneageek.com/podcast/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We learn more about how difficult life in 'the slums' of Derby could be, as Hannah and William fight to survive... literally. What other shady practices will our friends on Willow Row be involved in next? (Images discussed in the episode can be found in the show notes.) For show notes, please go to: https://geneageek.com/podcast/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Our guests finally learn about the incident involving their 2nd great grandmother, that the newspapers labelled 'Shocking Immorality'. Fights, assaults, infidelity, drunkenness and even disorderly houses... the story of Hannah Bates continues in the West End of Derby in the 1880s. For show notes, please go to: https://geneageek.com/podcast/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more informati...

If you lived in the West End of Derby in the 19th century, you were considered to live in the slums. It was in these conditions that Hannah Bates was born and lived most of her life. Her life story may not have been heroic, but it was fascinating all the same. For show notes, please go to: https://geneageek.com/podcast/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A newspaper article titled, 'Alleged Outrage by a Walsall Man', led to the discovery of an interesting couple living in Newcastle-under-Lyme, Staffordshire in the late 1800s. In part 2, we continue to throw some 'sidelights on low life' and explore the circumstances of two less-than-fortunate people. This episode focuses on the life of the so-called 'Walsall Man', Samuel Hartshorne. For show notes...

A newspaper article titled, 'Alleged Outrage by a Walsall Man', led to the discovery of an interesting couple living in Newcastle-under-Lyme, Staffordshire in the late 1800s. This episode throws some 'sidelights on low life' and explores the circumstances of two less than fortunate people. Were they really so outrageous? For show notes, please go to: https://geneageek.com/podcast/ Hosted on Acast....

In 1863, a rural village in Essex made news all over the world after some of its inhabitants took part in a ‘witch trial’ of sorts. What happened that summer night at the Swan Inn in Sible Hedingham? Who was accused of practicing witchcraft and why? How would it all end? For show notes, please go to: https://geneageek.com/podcast/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In about 1875, newlyweds William Diaper and Mary Ann Risby left Lavenham to settle in Bramford. This episode discusses what life may have been like for the Diaper family in rural Suffolk and how it may have been affected by events happening at the time. For show notes, please go to: https://geneageek.com/podcast/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Craik family lived at 107 River Street, Brechin from around 1881 to at least 1955. In that time, the family encountered births, marriages, neighbourhood disputes, bureaucracy, domestic violence, mental illness, deaths and many, many floods. Was this family really as respectable as they appeared? For show notes, please go to: https://geneageek.com/podcast/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/pr...

Thomas and Eliza Playle had been married 20 years when an event occurred that 'created much excitement' in the usually quiet village of Little Baddow, Essex, that became 'a fertile subject of gossip among the parishioners'. What happened? And what role did this couple play in the proceedings? For show notes, please go to: https://geneageek.com/podcast/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for mo...

The Whittaker family story takes another tragic turn... What lay in store for Edwin’s son, and fellow shoemaker, Samuel Whittaker after his father’s demise? And, what was Samuel’s role in the crime known as "one of the most fiendish" in the criminal history of Cambridge, Massachusetts? For show notes, please go to: https://geneageek.com/podcast Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more infor...

Edwin Whittaker was born and raised in Sandbach, Cheshire. A shoemaker by trade, he was involved in a range of escapades before emigrating to America with his son, Samuel in 1871. Why did he decide to move to Lowell, Massachusetts, and did he manage to achieve the American Dream? For show notes, please go to: https://geneageek.com/podcast/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more informatio...

George Ebbans & Sarah Ann Crossley married in Walsall, Staffordshire during the Great War. By the 1920s, the marriage had broken down and George ultimately disappeared leaving behind his wife, two small children, and a family mystery. Did George desert his family willingly or did 'Sarann' kick him out? For show notes, please go to: https://geneageek.com/podcast/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/...

Hello, I'm Alison - also known as 'GeneaGeek'. I've been researching my family history for over 20 years now and have probably been using the 'GeneaGeek' name for just about as long. I don't just stop at my own family though. I also research my friends' families and anyone I take an interest in really - alive or dead. I have a website - <a href="https://geneageek.com">geneageek.com</a>...