Using Data to Get a Different Perspective

[fitzgerc]

Randy Seaver of GeneaMusings posted something called the Great Grand Challenge in April. The idea was to collect data on your 16 great great grandparents to see what the data told you. This would include longevity,
etc. I just now got around to trying it and found it a lot of fun. You can read about HOW it's done and the results I got here: leaftwigandstem.
blogspot.com/2016/08/the-great-grand-challenge-crunching-data.html

[essbee]

A couple of years ago I did something like this after noticing that the people on one branch of my tree all seemed to marry quite late in life. When I analysed the whole tree I found a distinct difference in the age at marriage and the number of children before and after 1865. Not that surprising really, but it was interesting playing with all the possible 'reports' that my software allowed me to generate.

[Lesley Robertson]

Was there any correlation with lifestyle? For example, were farm workers having children (who could help on the farm) earlier than more urban types?

[essbee]

Was there any correlation with lifestyle? For example, were farm workers having children (who could help on the farm) earlier than more urban types?

I didn't find any difference in the average age at marriage and having the first child between the farm labourers and the mill workers. Since that covers most of my family I can't comment on other urban types!

[fitzgerc]

I actually DID find that the great grandparents and grandparents tended NOT to be farmers and I think on the male side it had an influence. I also found an upturn during and after the Industrial Revolution when people started to have and use "modern improvements". And, of course, as people got better health care, the women in particular were more long-lived.