Struck gold on the newspaper archives

[barbara lee]

I dipped a toe into the new newspaper archives site a couple of days ago, and found three articles about my g g grandfather John Nash. I knew from censuses that he was a mail cart driver, and had imagined he pottered around doing local deliveries from the station at Liphook Hants. The best of the three articles was this one.

Hampshire Advertiser Sat 13 May 1871
PETERSFIELD May 13th REMOVAL OF OUR MAIL STATION
On Monday our well-seasoned mail driver, John Nash, was removed from Liphook to his new station in this town, much against his inclination, to drive to Cosham and back nightly, thirty-six miles. He has now driven over twenty-one Christmas and New Years' days. For the first fifteen years he drove the mails from Liphook to Fareham, fifty-four miles nightly, and the last six years from Liphook to Cosham, forty-four miles a night, making together the astonishing number of 392,010 miles "in all weather", the greatest part of the road over high and exposed ground - indulging in but two nights rest at his home during this lengthened period upon the road.

There is also an article about him being stuck in a snowdrift on Butster Hill in January 1867. And it also explains where he was on census night 1851. He wasn't enumerated at home, and I have been searching for him for years. Clearly his first wife took the instructions literally and didn't list him because he was out on the road all night. Bur now I know where he was.

All in all, a great start to the New Year. I definitely got my money's worth!

Barbara

[Sandra Parker]

Yes, Barbara, it does give you a real buzz to find these little snippets of gold that make the family so much more real.It's amazing what was actually reported in newspapers about ordinary folk going about their business.
We join you in celebrating your success. Hope there's many more such discoveries in the future.

Sandra whose spectacled aura understand the thrill of discovery.

[spison]

Excellent discoveries! And now you can stop looking for him 1851!
Jane

[Zen Rabbit]

excellent stuff! I love it when extra information turns up