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Hi
I recently bought a 1 month subscription and have been trying to make the most of the search function, but I can't help but feel that it is limited compared to the British Newspaper Archive.

On Newspapers.com there doesn't seem to be a way to search for two separate words/phrases that appear close by.
For example, on the British Newspaper Archive I have often been successful in finding people by searching for a NAME + ADDRESS/VILLAGE/OCCUPATION.

When searching in the USA on Newspapers.com however, I can only search a name or an address/occupation/etc, but not both together.

If I try to search "James Lees" "Carpenter" it just searches for the whole phrase together, rather than two separate phrases within the same paragraph. Am I making sense?

Does anyone know whether there's a way to search like that?

Hi Everyone,

I am not very familiar with New Zealand research but as I understand it there are 3 main resources; 1) BMD index, 2) newspapers, 3) electoral rolls. Are there any other resources worth consulting?

As part of my study into Northern Irish Lees families I am trying to trace 2 brothers who emigrated from Tullyraw, Ardtrea, Co. Tyrone, Ireland to New Zealand.

From the obituary of Samuel H. LEE/LEES who died 1917 Illinois USA, I know that he had 2 brothers David and Isaac who emigrated to New Zealand.

The obituary does not mention where exactly in New Zealand they migrated to, but I feel positive it must have been Greymouth in Westland, as that is the only place I can find records of both an Isaac and a David Lees, though I have yet to find something definitively confirming the link.

The family appear to have run a ferry business known as Lees' Ferry.

I have found what I believe to be the death of David Lees at Ahaura in 1915 https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QG6K-2FQW
According to an Ancestry family tree he first went to Australia where he married Mary Lyons of County Galway in 1859 Victoria, before moving on to New Zealand, and they had children; William Henry 1860, Ann 1862, David Isaac 1866, John Joseph 1867, Thomas Michael 1871, Mary Catherine 1873.

The problem is, I cannot find a marriage or death record for brother Isaac Lees. This appears to be him on the electoral rolls;

1878: Isaacs Lees, 903, North of Grey River, Grey Valley, Household
1881: Isaac Lees, North bank of Grey, Ahaura, Inangahua, Residential
1893: Isaac Lees, 1486, Farmer, Moonlight, Inangahua, Residential
1896: Isaac Lees sen, 4388, Farmer, Ahaura, Grey Supp 2, Residential
1896: Isaac Lees jun, 4389, Miner, Ahaura, Grey Supp 2, Residential

I have found obituaries and more on David's family, but not much at all on Isaac, not even his death or marriage.

To summarise, I would appreciate some advice on;
- Tracing Isaac Lees and his family
- Confirming 100% that this is the same family

Cheers

This hasn't been officially announced yet, but I contacted ScotlandsPeople to ask when they would be releasing their kirk session records online and got this response:

Dear Tunji

Thank you for your email regarding kirk session records.

The part of the website that will make the kirk session (and other court) records available is under active development at the moment.

The coronavirus lockdown has hampered us a little, as no National Records of Scotland buildings are open, but we're managing to continue development work remotely. I hope it will be only a mater of a few months before the first few thousand volumes of kirk session and presbytery records appear. The first release will be minute books and accounts of Church of Scotland kirk sessions and presbyteries from 1560 to about 1860.

Yours sincerely

Robin Urquhart
Archivist
National Records of Scotland

Hi everyone,

I'm not very good with American records so I'm hoping someone can help me turn up some leads.

I have found this Lees family (also spelled Lays) recorded in a "parish census" in Ireland with 5 of the family members recorded as having emigrated to America. I would have thought it would be easy to find them in America with their dates of migration and their year of birth, but it's not so easy at all!

Teressan townland, Parish of Derryloran, Co. Tyrone, Ireland - July 22nd 1842
- John Lees or Lays born 1792
- Margaret McCord born 1801
- John born 15-May 1827, Gone to America Nov. 1850 (John married a Maria Lees in Oct 1850 before migrating)
- James born 15-Nov 1828, Gone to America March 1848
- Jane born 15-Nov 1830, Gone to America Aug. 1848
- Margaret born 03-Jul 1832, Gone to America Aug. 1848
- Sally born 12-Jan 1834, Gone to America 12 April 1858 (Sally is a nickname for Sarah)
- Mary born 15 Jun 1837, Married 1865
- Nancy born 1840
- Betty Eliza born 29-Jun 1842 Gone to England 1863 Novr.
- Martha born 1844
- Isabella born 11-Jun 1846

I've searched the immigration records on FamilySearch but I can't find any where the dates match. The only possible lead I have found is this entry on the 1860 census for a John and Maria Lees in New York https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MCWF-MLX
I cannot find them after 1860 though and don't know how I could confirm that they are indeed the same couple who married in Derryloran, Ireland.

No luck finding anything for the other siblings.

Would appreciate any guidance here.

Just wanted to share my joy at discovering the existence of a set of Irish estate papers held in England. I haven't seen the records themselves yet, but based on their description they will almost certainly list ancestors of mine! I didn't have much luck finding the family at PRONI, so this is really great!

The records cover lands in the parishes of Ahoghill and Portglenone in Co. Antrim and are not listed by Grenham or Roulson in their comprehensive Irish genealogy books, neither does PRONI or the NAI appear to have copies of them. I discovered their existence by tracing the landowning family and then found out that the lands passed to a family based in England.

The records are held by the Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent Archive. Here is the description of some of them;
- D661/8/2/1 Rental of Mountstafford and Ballylumin estates (Antrim) 1806; Gives tenant's names and rents. no description of holdings.
- D661/8/2/2 Yearly Rent rolls and estate agent's current accounts for estates at Ballylumin and Mountstafford, 1810-1829; Tenants' names only. Holdings not described or named.
- D661/8/2/3 Rent roll of Mountstafford estate, (Antrim) 1844; Gives tenants' names, acreages of holdings, and rents, with some remarks.
- D661/8/2/4 Yearly rent rolls and agents' current accounts for Mountstafford estate, (Antrim)   1851-63; Gives tenants' names, rents, arrears and rent reductions or allowances.
- D661/8/2/6/3 Account of rent rebates given to tenants because of potato famine, Mountstafford, (Antrim), 1849; with notes of improvements carried out by tenants' in lieu of rent.
- D661/8/2/6/8 three maps of lands intended to be planted with trees, showing existing tenants, and acreages of fields, 1848