While I was in London attending RootsTech, I put aside a day to go wandering. Not so much tourist-style wandering, but ancestral wandering. A maternal branch of my family has strong roots in the East End of London, so I decided to walk in the footsteps of my London ancestors for a day! It is something I heartily recommend you do if you get the opportunity. However, as with trips to the archives, preparation is key. If you know exactly where key events occurred in your ancestors’ lives, or exactly where they lived, and worked, you can literally stand where they stood. An amazing feeling!
Preparing to visit your ancestral neighbourhood
Go through the documents you have collected for the ancestors in the area you will be visiting. Look for addresses, landmarks, churches, workplaces, schools etc. Make a note of the addresses. I made a spreadsheet so I could sort by street name, ancestor, event and so on. I added an additional column for ‘current street name’. Why? Because street names change more frequently than you might think! London was extensively bombed during WW2, and also underwent a lot of growth prior to that. Many many old street names were lost. I found this site invaluable in finding the current day names for 19th-century London addresses.
The next item I looked for to help me was an old street map. By using a street map from the era of your ancestors you can see not only where the streets are in relation to one another but, for example, how comparatively rural the area may have then been. Over the decades, streets may have been partly demolished, changed course or extended. I found a map from 1853, another from 1882, and even one from the late 1700s. I printed all these out, highlighted the relevant streets and attached my spreadsheet. Now I was ready to visit my London ancestors! Using Google Maps on my phone once there I could chart a course for my East End wandering.
The local church
The first place I stopped was St Matthew’s church in Bethnal Green. It wasn’t the only church used by my London ancestors. They often got married down the road at Christchurch Spitalfields. But for baptisms, burials and regular Sunday worship, this was their main church. When I arrived, to my surprise it was open, an unusual thing these days! Then I remembered it was Sunday. I tiptoed inside hoping to get a quick look at the interior, but I was spotted by the small congregation and ended up attending the service (and having a cup of tea with them afterwards!)
The church had been badly damaged during the war, so the inside was quite modern. The old font that many of my family had been baptised in was gone. But it was lovely to spend a little time in the space where so many of their significant life moments had occurred. A little later in the day I popped into Christchurch Spitalfields too.
The neighbourhood
Leaving the church, I followed the trail on my map and began seeking out the addresses my London ancestors had occupied. My main people from this neighbourhood were the Morter, Rigby, Teague, Townley, and Wright families.
Turning onto Brick Lane, I was suddenly confronted by market stalls, buskers, crowds and the smells of delicious foods! Brick Lane Market is held on a Sunday. I love markets! The sun was shining, I was on a genealogical adventure whilst simultaneously experiencing a market. Could life get any better?
Some of the original buildings at the addresses could still be found, however by no means all of them. Many old houses had been bombed and since replaced by office buildings, a school and a park. This was especially apparent when I visited New Inn Yard in Shoreditch, where hardly an old building could be seen.
Get walking!
I recommend walking in your ancestors’ local area if you get the opportunity. If nothing else it will give you a feel for the relationship of the addresses and landmarks to one another and the local geography. This will give you better insight when researching.
In my case, I truly felt a sense of belonging as well. I felt happy there. This feeling often occurs when I visit places that my family inhabited. I wonder if it is as simple as enjoying being there and seeing how my ancestors lived. Or is it something deeper? Is there something to epigenetic memory inheritance? Does it feel like home because part of me recognises it as such?
I was pleased to see some of our joint ancestors names mentioned by you…..John Morter and Sarah Wright. My line goes through their daughter Sarah. I was looking up Swan Yard/ New Inn Yard and recognised your photo from Ancestry. The article is very interesting, thanks. A small question; the birth record that you mentioned in Kidderminster about ‘Esther’ and the mistaken entry. I see lots of the trees now include this Esther, rather willy-nilly!!! Also, his father Benjamin and wife Elisabeth had children before marriage? This happened quite a lot in other strands of my family. I suppose you have to admire their gumption. My great grandparents only married after 5 children….my mother never knew. Finally, the daughter Sarah, who’s autopsy was done by Wynn Baxter…..did you look him up? Very interesting because of the Ripper murders later in the year and he also autopsied Joseph Merrick. Thanks again, Samantha.
Hi Jan,
Thanks for your comment. Yes, I fear Esther will never disappear from the online trees. Every transcript (quite rightly) gives Esther as the mother’s name as that is what the vicar wrote. Shows the importance of going back to original documents and checking not only what was written but the context, and applying some critical thinking to it!
Yes, I was aware of Wynn Baxter’s role with the Ripper murders, though I hadn’t heard about the ‘Elephant Man’ connection. Interesting – my family has a potential link with him, as he worked in a cigar factory in Leicester as a child. The closest cigar factory to where he lived was where my great-great-grandfather John Rigby was a foreman. He may well have supervised Joseph. A line of research to verify this beyond mere supposition is required!
Cheers cousin!
Regards
Samantha