ARE YOU A MEMBER OF A FAMILY HISTORY SOCIETY?

[JillJ]

I have often thought about joining a Family History Society but have not taken any steps towards this for two reasons:  a)  I don't think my local one would be much use because my research is mostly in Leeds, and b) if I joined Leeds I would not be able to attend meetings (assuming they have them) because of the logistics and distance involved.

I would be very interested to hear how many of you are members, if so whether it is your local Society or not, and what benefits you have gained from being a member.

Jill

[Jane Masri]

Hi Jill,
I don't even live in the UK but I belong to the Sussex family History Group, which is where my early interests are. It all depends on what your family History group can offer, some are more active than others.  From Sussex I get quarterly magazines which are full of interesting articles & information.  Access to free look-ups.  Publications lists etc, etc.  I think the main thing is that you are part of a like-minded group of people who are researching in the same place and therefore can be of the most help.  In my opinion, family research is not just about birth's death's & marriages, it's about the places and times of our forebears, so the local family history group is the best place to soak up the atmosphere!  So check out Leeds & see what they offer.
Jane

[kmo]

Joining a Family History Society is one of the easiest ways of meeting other people researching the same families as yourself. For instance, Powys Family History Society of which I am a member, publishes a magazine several times a year. Members can get their "family interests" included, or ask others for help with their researches. This could put you in contact with other researchers who may not be reachable through the internet.

[Boongie Pam]

Shockingly I'm not!!!  But I will be joining Dumfries & Galloway FHS in January.  I haven't been doing my Family History very long so wasn't really knowledgable but having seen all their publications I definitely need to join.

The subs run Jan to Dec so there's no point joining in September LOL!  That's my canny Scots heritage talking!

All the best,
Pam
 

[JDG]

Joining and supporting a family history society is very worthwhile.

I am lucky enough to be able to belong to several. The majority of my research focus' on Hampshire, Sussex & Surrey (West), so I belong to all three, plus one where I live.

I can rarely get to meetings, but if I am in Surrey, I do try to get to a meeting. Despite the fact of living in Devon and belonging to the Devon FHS I haven't managed to get to a meeting due to work committments, but both Devon and Dumfries have research rooms and these are well worth it.

Dumfries & Galloway is a friendly FHS and all members have use of their research room, so I normally make a visit twice a year while visiting my in laws -  its a welcome break!

[JillJ]

Thanks very much to all of you for bothering to reply.   Your comments are all very interesting and lead me to think I should be finding out what goes on in Leeds - and what the subs are!

Regards to you all.

Jill

[Amy K]

I'm a member of several groups, Sussex, Cambridgeshire, Hampshire, Glamorgan and Camarthenshire.   I joined all of them this year. I intend to join some other areas of intertest next year too, mainly Wakefiled and District.

However, I will NOT be renewing Camarthenshire FHS subscription as it was by far the most expensive FHS I joined and the one with which I am least satisfied. I may or may not renew Cambridge as only a very small amount of my family originates from there.

I must say however that I LOVE Sussex Family History Group, I enjoy the Hampshire quarterly journal, but find the members services quite poor (not in scope, but that they seem to be very money orientated ie you have to pay for everything. A search of the marriage index cost me £16.00)

Anyway, in short, I would highly recommend joining a FHS.

[dinkey]

I have also pondered this question. My research is mainly in Oldham/Rochdale area and I live in Fleetwood which is the other side of the Penines and I have no transport. As I would be unable to attend meetings I would be relying on receiving information via email or post. Amy seems to have answered a question that I was going to ask, do all FHS charge the same. It would seem they do not and what you get for your fee would seem to differ from area to area.

In view of what has been said here, I wonder whether I should contact the FHS (can anyone tell me which would be the nearest for the area of my research) and ask them what the fees are and what I can expect to get from them.

regards

dinkey

[JDG]

The membership fee is for the cost of the journal and includes the postage. Details from Society indexes tend to have a small charge as this usually goes back into society funds.

As with anything what you get for your money varies greatly, but I think that on the whole, most journals are of good standard. I would agree though, with the earlier poster (apologies, I can not remember who it was) who commented that the Camarthenshire FHS is more expensive than most.

On looking at what I pay for various FHS, the costs vary between £6.00 and £12.00, although the Anglo Italian FHS has two rates -  email journal (£5.00) and £10.00 for postal.

Nevertheless, I would certainly recommend joining a FHS and if funds are restricting possibly join one what is relevent to the main line of research and one that is in georgraphical location, thus potentially allowing attendence at meetings.