B is for Brick Walls

The words "Brick Walls" sends shivers down a genealogists back.

Session Title
Ask Us About Your Brick Walls 

Session Description "They had hundreds of questions and obviously were not able to answer all of them. What they hoped is that as they answer the ones they do during the session, that their methodology and clues they share will help to answer your brick walls. Here are some items in just the first 15 minutes.

• A surname of Drage. How do you pronounce that? Their first comment is about accents and that they may determine how a name is written down. The spelling may have been a y not a g at one time and transcribed incorrectly.
• They also mentioned what a word means changes from location to location.
• Surname distributions in Ireland website by John Grenham.
• They also talk about how DNA can help you.
• Think outside of the box. Not all children are born to married couples.
• Contact people who live in the area today.
• Look for gaps in records. Your family might be in that gap. You don't want to spend time searching for your family and later find out they are in the gap area or years."

I love the story shared by Michelle about a man who left Ireland in 1850 to Australia during the gold rush. Only stated Ireland on the records. But they found family through DNA living in USA who have letters of the family in Ireland and USA. The letters mention three brothers who went to Australia.

They go on to talk about occupations, locations, Australia and New Zealand records, online databases, newspapers, church records, railway records, and Tips to break your own brick walls.

Presented by Fiona Brooker (New Zealand) and Michelle Patient (Australia)

Link: https://www.familysearch.org/rootstech/session/ask-us-about-your-brick-walls