I have been searching the Cityark Medway parish records for my shipwright ancestors living in Chatham.
On going through the burials at St. Mary the Virgin (Chatham)I noticed a number of soldiers deaths in the early 1760's and as my knowledge of history is not too good I went on to the BBC Timeline to find any hostilities around that date (the start of seven year war with France was in 1756) I then checked the records again and found burials for named, and mostly un-named, soldiers of the Black Musketeers, Kings Royal Musketeers, Cornish Militia, Dors. Militia (Dorsetshire?), Scotch Fusileers (as shown) to name a few.
As I worked forward I came across another batch of soldiers' burials - this time it was the Peninsular War and among English, Scottish, Irish casualties there were also Hanovarian soldiers, Russian Soldiers etc.
I later noticed that a Mr. and Mrs. Salisbury buried four of their children - the first child was buried on the 20th of the month and child No.4 was buried on the 28th of the month. To bury four of your children in just over a week seems unbearable. Although I searched I was unable to find any outbreaks of cholera, smallpox etc. around the dates of the burials.
I only started my family tree three years ago and I have researched back from both my parents to the 17th Century collecting certificates and copies of parish records along the way (not all records, I must admit, as funds are limited), but I have also learned about ag. labourers, shipwrights, farmers, countrydwellers moving to London for work, others emigrating to Canada, the U.S.A. and Australia.
To be honest I have learned more by doing family history than I ever learned at school, both from my own research and the help given on this, and other, sites. I don't think I will ever be as knowledgeable as some of the members here, but I am getting better!
Jean
On going through the burials at St. Mary the Virgin (Chatham)I noticed a number of soldiers deaths in the early 1760's and as my knowledge of history is not too good I went on to the BBC Timeline to find any hostilities around that date (the start of seven year war with France was in 1756) I then checked the records again and found burials for named, and mostly un-named, soldiers of the Black Musketeers, Kings Royal Musketeers, Cornish Militia, Dors. Militia (Dorsetshire?), Scotch Fusileers (as shown) to name a few.
As I worked forward I came across another batch of soldiers' burials - this time it was the Peninsular War and among English, Scottish, Irish casualties there were also Hanovarian soldiers, Russian Soldiers etc.
I later noticed that a Mr. and Mrs. Salisbury buried four of their children - the first child was buried on the 20th of the month and child No.4 was buried on the 28th of the month. To bury four of your children in just over a week seems unbearable. Although I searched I was unable to find any outbreaks of cholera, smallpox etc. around the dates of the burials.
I only started my family tree three years ago and I have researched back from both my parents to the 17th Century collecting certificates and copies of parish records along the way (not all records, I must admit, as funds are limited), but I have also learned about ag. labourers, shipwrights, farmers, countrydwellers moving to London for work, others emigrating to Canada, the U.S.A. and Australia.
To be honest I have learned more by doing family history than I ever learned at school, both from my own research and the help given on this, and other, sites. I don't think I will ever be as knowledgeable as some of the members here, but I am getting better!
Jean
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