Guest Post: Town I Loved So Well

A second guest post by my erudite friend Bryan Cook

A poignant modern Irish folk song by Phil Coulter, the “Town I Loved So Well” reminds me of how vital it is for us “golden years” genealogists to document our memories of our lives in the towns and villages of our youth.

I have gained wonderful insights with which to leaf out my family tree from, for example, Frank Atkinson’s “Life and Tradition in Northumberland and Durham” (1977, ISBN 0-460-04243-2); from the audio records of Northumberland County in which my great grandfather and great uncles recount on tape (now available as MP3’s), in broad “Geordie”  from their old age homes, their life and times in Newbiggin-by-Sea; and from Phyllis Surman’s “Eliza of Otmoor”, all about the life of my great great aunt. I got another suite of insights from a local history written by a 19th century vicar in Great Clifton, Cumberland.

It often took a number of Google searches to even know of the existence of such sources followed by an online hunt for sellers as they are generally out-of-print.

I have begun a little historical writing of my own experiences but am woefully lacking in dedication.That is why I applaud those authors in Anglo-Celtic Roots (the Journal of British Isles Family History Society of Greater Ottawa) who have taken up this challenge. A fine example in recent issues is the series by Charles Morton documenting in considerable detail his life in Manchester through the Blitz of WWII and the Depression Years.