The 10 year gap
I have been reflecting on how when we start family research we often rely on the census returns that give us that snapshot of the family every ten years, how many family members there are, where they live and what they do and we may end up making assumptions.
But 10 years is a big gap – alot can happen in between (not least the birth and death of children or even an emigration that goes wrong).
This was brought home to me recently as I continued my research into my husband’s family. The death certificate of his 3 xgreat-grandmother, Hannah, said she died in the Leicester and Rutland Lunatic Asylum. I was curious as to when she had been admitted and why, so I went to the Leicester Records Office to read any records I could from the Lunatic Asylum. The records were huge ledgers with at least a double page spread
