Concentrating on ancestors I have found.

[clairec666]

An example of background information for our ancestors.
Reading up on Bideford in the 17th century, who knew that Bideford was the second busiest port for tobacco, only surpassed by London? I was amazed.

I'm so much more clued-up about Britain's smaller towns and villages since I started researching my family.

Learning about Northamptonshire's lace trade has been interesting. My 3xgreat-grandmother was listed as a lacemaker on the 1851 census at the age of 10!

I've researched a bit about oyster fisherman in Essex too, because quite often the men were missing from their household on the census and would be recorded somewhere else on a boat. In one household there was an unnamed month-old baby whose name was recorded as "Baby", so I wanted to find out how long on average the men were away from home for, and whether the wife was waiting for him to come back before she gave the baby a name!

[IgorStrav]

An example of background information for our ancestors.
Reading up on Bideford in the 17th century, who knew that Bideford was the second busiest port for tobacco, only surpassed by London? I was amazed.

I've researched a bit about oyster fisherman in Essex too, because quite often the men were missing from their household on the census and would be recorded somewhere else on a boat. In one household there was an unnamed month-old baby whose name was recorded as "Baby", so I wanted to find out how long on average the men were away from home for, and whether the wife was waiting for him to come back before she gave the baby a name!

Not saying this happened in your family Claire, but husband absences and dates of birth research can be interesting for other reasons, too.

Sometimes there are very odd things - I came across one birth in 1925 in Ireland for a great aunt by marriage.
I'd been in touch with her family, who said, quite firmly, that sadly her father had died in WWI.

 

[Liviani]

I have to agree.

When I first started researching my family tree it was very much a case of getting names and going further back. Then I hit the inevitable brick walls, some quicker than others of course.

It was then I decided to research them as people rather than a set of names, it's been very rewarding. I've found the brother of my 4x great-grandmother was hung for murder. I've also found myself wanting to learn more about the history of the various areas involved. Newspaper archives have been particularly valuable for me.

[coombs]

I have to agree.

When I first started researching my family tree it was very much a case of getting names and going further back. Then I hit the inevitable brick walls, some quicker than others of course.

It was then I decided to research them as people rather than a set of names, it's been very rewarding. I've found the brother of my 4x great-grandmother was hung for murder. I've also found myself wanting to learn more about the history of the various areas involved. Newspaper archives have been particularly valuable for me.

Yes, exactly, that is what I am doing now. Collating more info on the ones I have already found such as newspaper records, electoral rolls, any school records I can find, any poor law records I can find, etc, and do research about the parish in which they lived, in order to put flesh on the bones outside the usual census and BMD records.

[pinefamily]

Don't forget parish chest records and parish poor law records. These can be invaluable with detail.
A very good friend of mine found pew seating in the Lyme Regis churchwarden records, which confirmed a family connection. What added life to the record was a map of the seating, which showed me exactly where my ancestors sat in the church.

[mckha489]

Don't forget parish chest records and parish poor law records. These can be invaluable with detail.
A very good friend of mine found pew seating in the Lyme Regis churchwarden records, which confirmed a family connection. What added life to the record was a map of the seating, which showed me exactly where my ancestors sat in the church.

And then, if you are lucky you can go to the church and sit in all the spots (because of course there is never just one family member) to see who had the best seat.  Sometimes there is some graffiti on the back of the pew!  If you are unlucky you drive for miles, having persuaded your OH that it’s “not that far, and anyway it’s YOUR ancestors” only to find the church is locked and no one about who seems to know who might be able to unlock it, and due to fly back to NZ the following day!  Aargh!  Next time.... it had a good graveyard though.

[clairec666]

Not saying this happened in your family Claire, but husband absences and dates of birth research can be interesting for other reasons, too.

Sometimes there are very odd things - I came across one birth in 1925 in Ireland for a great aunt by marriage.
I'd been in touch with her family, who said, quite firmly, that sadly her father had died in WWI.

 

Yes, I've questioned whether some people in my tree were fathered by someone else while "daddy" was away at sea. And of course the men might have had girls in other ports and there might be a few more children I don't know about!

[IgorStrav]

Yes, I've questioned whether some people in my tree were fathered by someone else while "daddy" was away at sea. And of course the men might have had girls in other ports and there might be a few more children I don't know about!

........and that's where you get those mysterious DNA matches that you can't quite fit in anywhere.

Ever interesting, family history research 

[pinefamily]

Interesting, and frustrating at times, IgorStrav. 
Mckha489, in my case it would be interesting to visit the church in Lyme Regis, as my ancestor apparently paid for the pew, and spaces on it.
Graveyards and cemeteries are great to wander around in, even just to get a feel for the inhabitants of the area.
Before cemetery records in Adelaide were put online, I remember a day where the whole family traipsed up and down one of the larger cemeteries, looking for the grave of my Swedish great grandfather. A short stop for McDonald's to placate the kids, and we were about to call off the search when one of them found it.