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  1. #1
    Heather Barford
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    Default Road Atlas walking with your fingers.

    The most useful book I have for family tree research is a Collins Road Atlas of Britain and Ireland given me as a present in 1997. I have found that family in the early days appear to start off in one village and then gradually shift out like the spokes in a wheel often from one market town to the next. Of course when walkers bus was no longer the only means of transport. Exception being if you came from a rich family that spent the season in London and summer in the country. It is quite fascinating the advent of bicycles,canal,trains, cars and buses not to mention wars and laws and unemployment, seem to have spread our genes around. But I have found that these loose rules apply in other countries as well. Even though we have google maps on our cellphone and computers, my atlas is still being used daily and starting to fall to bits.

  2. #2
    birdlip
    Guest

    Default

    I couldn't agree more Heather, mines falling to bits too!

  3. #3
    sheilastain
    Guest

    Default

    I too have an old road atlas. I highlight the places that I know my family were linked to. It then helps to see if new finds are possibles. I am constantly amazed though by the distances that people travelled when transport was so limited. Having said that, my mother told me that my grandfather used to walk from Rotherham to Nottingham regularly!!!! That was about 1900.

  4. #4
    Heather Barford
    Guest

    Default

    My great grandmother use go to town, Cairns to shop early in the morning from Queerie on the rail motor and then because she wanted to be home in time to make my great uncle tea, when he got home from work, walk back but she was from the generation that walked everywhere as a matter of course.

    My husbands early family of hatters use to walk from Luton to London to sell their wares. I suppose they were not the only people on the road with wares to sell, I imagine there was lots of companionship and the odd ride on a wagon, perhaps shared lunches of bread and cheese followed up with cider or beer. perhaps there was a bit of fruit growing by the side of the road. Maybe life was lived at a more relaxed pace by those who were fortunate enough to have a trade that brought in a reasonable living wage.

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