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Jenni Phillips

@jenniph.bsky.social
976 followers 300 following 58 posts

Qualified genealogist (RQG member) based in Cardiff. MSc Genealogical, Palaeographic & Heraldic Studies (University of Strathclyde). Member: Royal Historical Society.

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Jenni Phillips @jenniph.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
It’s also got a very mid 20th century England/Wales border in respect of Monmouthshire. Although I don’t suppose that matters so much when ‘Touring England’ takes in the entirety of Wales anyway …
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Jenni Phillips @jenniph.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
As part of a fundraising initiative for 2wish.org.uk, I’ve selected a genealogy-related challenge. 74 short biographies of direct ancestors, with exactly 74 words each. This is the first instalment (including a link to donate if so inclined): jenniphillips.home.blog/2026/09/20/7... #Genealogy
jenniphillips.home.blog
74 ancestors – part 1: female ancestors on my paternal side
I’m taking part in the #Select74CharityChallenge to raise money for 2wish, an amazing charity that provides support for those affected by sudden death in young people. It probably comes as no surpr…
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Jenni Phillips @jenniph.bsky.social · 12/09/2026
Great to be @glamarchives.bsky.social for Open Doors today. A brilliant turnout for my talk on ‘Researching Your Irish Family History’, with questions on a wide range of topics. Pleased to see so much curiosity about different resources from amateur family historians. #Genealogy #Ireland #Glamorgan
A blonde-haired woman in a red polo shirt, black cardigan and blue jeans stands behind a pale grey metal lectern. There is a large digital screen to her left, showing the title slide of a talk on ‘Researching Your Irish Family History’
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Jenni Phillips @jenniph.bsky.social · 12/08/2026
Parish register entry from Donyatt, Somerset, 1st April 1764, recording the burial of my putative 8 x great-grandfather on the day of a solar eclipse … “John Grabham Buri[e]d out of [th]e Alms House April 1st which was [th]e day that the Sun was 3 parts Eclips[e]d" #Genealogy #Somerset #Eclipse
Image of parish register entry from Donyatt, Somerset, 1st April 1764:

John Grabham Buried out of the Alms House April 1st which was the day that the Sun was 3 parts Eclipsed
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Glamorgan Archives Archifau Morgannwg @glamarchives.bsky.social · 12/08/2026
Today will see the most significant solar eclipse since 1999, with over 90% of the sun covered across Wales. This document, found within our Fonmon Castle Collection, details the total solar eclipse of 1715, as predicted by astronomer Edmond Halley.
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Jenni Phillips @jenniph.bsky.social · 01/08/2026
I’ll be presenting a free short talk on Researching Your Irish Family History as part of Open Doors at Glamorgan Archives on 12 September. I’d recommend early booking for tours, as numbers are limited. No need to book for talks though, just turn up on the day! #Genealogy #Glamorgan #Cardiff #Irish
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Jenni Phillips @jenniph.bsky.social · 14/07/2026
In a similar vein, my younger cousins used to call my grandmother “Grandma With The Sticks”, as she used two walking sticks due to severe arthritis. This led to one of my aunty’s friends asking if her maiden name was ‘Withersticks’
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Jenni Phillips @jenniph.bsky.social · 14/07/2026
I’m looking forward to presenting a paper at the Women’s Archive Wales Conference in October. I’ll be speaking about early 19th century sexual slander in South-East Wales, derived from my academic research. #Genealogy #History #Glamorgan #AncestryHour #GenHour #Swansea
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Jenni Phillips @jenniph.bsky.social · 07/07/2026
Pleased to be selected as a speaker for #AATP26 on Changing Places day, focusing on a historic migration story. Looking forward to discovering the full line-up for the event and learning about different perspectives on local history. #History #Genealogy
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Jenni Phillips @jenniph.bsky.social · 29/06/2026
Her mum is the visitor in the household, so I wonder if she might’ve come to care for her ailing daughter. Lack of children from 13 year marriage perhaps adds an extra layer of sadness/health issues to Elizabeth’s story. John had three with his (much younger) second wife, who he married in Dec 1861.
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Jenni Phillips @jenniph.bsky.social · 28/06/2026
Thanks Dave. Agree the early completion sounds plausible. The note from the enumerator really should’ve made it obvious to the registrar that something was amiss. Makes me wonder how many unannotated corpses may be lurking elsewhere in census records …
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Jenni Phillips @jenniph.bsky.social · 28/06/2026
Very true! And I suppose she also tenuously fits the brief of “sleeping” there on the night of the census, although I’m not sure that was meant to include eternal sleep …
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Jenni Phillips @jenniph.bsky.social · 28/06/2026
I spotted her initially because my direct ancestors are on the same census page, and subsequently worked out that her husband was a first cousin of my 4 x great-grandfather. It’s one of those villages where almost everyone is related somehow if you look closely enough!
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Jenni Phillips @jenniph.bsky.social · 28/06/2026
Death registered on 9th April, with the same registrar who signed off the census for accuracy on 25th April, which makes me wonder about his attention to detail in other matters …
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Jenni Phillips @jenniph.bsky.social · 28/06/2026
I’ve got an example of someone recently deceased on the 1861 census. Elizabeth Vickery of Ashbrittle, Somerset, was recorded as “lying corpse”. I ordered her death certificate out of curiosity. She’d died from consumption on 5th April, so shouldn’t have been included (but intriguing that she was).
Screenshots of census record and death certificate for Elizabeth Vickery, showing that she was “lying corpse” on the 1861 census, having died a few days earlier
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Jenni Phillips @jenniph.bsky.social · 18/05/2026
Disgraceful proposal from Cardiff University. ASSL’s physical collection of humanities books was invaluable for completing my MSc research. Lots of texts that aren’t digitised, and aren’t easy to access via other libraries or on the second-hand market. #History #Genealogy #Humanities
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Jenni Phillips @jenniph.bsky.social · 03/05/2026
I used the same tool to map ancestral counties of birth instead (red = maternal only, blue = paternal only, yellow = both), although it irked me that the Welsh counties are the 74-96 ones - and I had to do an edit afterwards to add a ‘blob’ for Co Louth!
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Jenni Phillips @jenniph.bsky.social · 02/05/2026
I wrote this a few years ago about one of my supposed ‘centenarian’ ancestors (spoiler: he wasn’t): jenniphillips.home.blog/2019/12/29/a... - I also have a verifiable centenarian ancestor, whose story I ought to write up as a comparative piece (he has so far only made cameo appearances in talks!)
jenniphillips.home.blog
A Somerset centenarian?
William MEAD (or MEADE) was a boatman on the river Parrett and on the canal near Bridgwater in Somerset. He certainly lived a long life and raised a large family, but did he really live to the age …
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Jenni Phillips @jenniph.bsky.social · 14/04/2026
Some reflections on my work as a researcher on the Papal Dispensations for Marriage project at the University of Strathclyde (featuring a cameo appearance from the Princes in the Tower, and the Pope enjoying some French cheese): jenniphillips.home.blog/2026/04/10/t... #Genealogy #Medieval #History
jenniphillips.home.blog
The Papal Dispensations for Marriage project: my role, and reflections on the project
In July 2022, while I was a student on the University of Strathclyde’s postgraduate Genealogical, Palaeographic and Heraldic Studies programme, I was asked if I would like to work with Graham Holto…
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Jenni Phillips @jenniph.bsky.social · 01/02/2026
Excellent news for genealogists & historians in South Wales (and visitors from further afield) - there are some very useful records on FamilySearch that can only be viewed at affiliate libraries … #Genealogy #Glamorgan #FamilyHistory #History
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Jenni Phillips @jenniph.bsky.social · 08/01/2026
I suspect the father may have been a National Land Company shareholder (on my to-do list to check next time I’m at Kew). He was a sailcloth weaver, emigrated to Australia, acquired land, and lobbied for Parliamentary representation for farmers, which strikes me as aligning rather well with Chartism.
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Jenni Phillips @jenniph.bsky.social · 08/01/2026
The sole entry in the dataset from Yeovil registration district is my great-great grandma’s cousin, Feargus O’Connor Randle. He sadly died young in 1848 (Ancestry have unhelpfully indexed his burial record with his forename as Hergusolomor 🙄). His sister Grace also had O’Connor as a middle name.
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Jenni Phillips @jenniph.bsky.social · 07/01/2026
I screenshot it last week to read the Latin at the bottom: “Inter amicas intimas latent hastes occultisimi cave ni fiducia tua fiat causa tuas ruinas atque exitii” - essentially, a warning against misplaced trust in ‘close friends’ that may lead to your downfall … make of that what you will!
Family tree image/screenshot from The Traitors UK 2026. Latin text at the bottom reads: “Inter amicas intimas latent hastes occultisimi cave ni fiducia tua fiat causa tuas ruinas atque exitii”
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Jenni Phillips @jenniph.bsky.social · 01/01/2026
I’m also a fan of Histpop. I’ve found that using www4.histpop.org provides access to the website without the frustration of frequent timeouts.
www4.histpop.org
Redirecting to: https://www4.histpop.org/ohpr/servlet/
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Jenni Phillips @jenniph.bsky.social · 09/12/2025
I think GRO may be missing a chunk of entries for Auckland RD in that quarter - I can’t find other people with same vol & page number in that quarter on GRO website either (but they’re on FreeBMD/FMP), nor those on some adjacent pages. I’d suggest sending message or calling them to flag the problem.
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Jenni Phillips @jenniph.bsky.social · 09/12/2025
How did an unqualified Irishman become a Government Medical Officer in Papua New Guinea? The story of John Taaffe, my great-great grandfather’s cousin, who forged a successful medical career thousands of miles from home, despite never qualifying as a doctor … jenniphillips.home.blog/2025/12/05/j...
jenniphillips.home.blog
John Taaffe: medicine man
“Perhaps he was only one of the many who has drifted to these coral specks on the outer rim of civilization with the intention of severing their connection with the outside world and the memories i…
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RegQualGenes @regqualgenes.bsky.social · 30/10/2025
Discover new insights and future trends in #genealogy and talk to qualified genealogists at the RQG 2026 Conference in Birmingham, UK — open to everyone eager to explore #familyhistory and connect with leading experts. More information: www.qualifiedgenealogists.org/2026-confere...
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Dysgu Gydol Oes / Lifelong Learning @learncardiff.bsky.social · 27/10/2025
Our next Exploring the Past public lecture is taking place soon. This fascinating and free talk will be online. Title: Caribbean and West African Lives in British Ports Date: 12.11.25 Time: 19:00 bit.ly/4hubwQH @webstermedieval.bsky.social @cuhistarchrel.bsky.social
bit.ly
Exploring the Past/Historical Association free lecture, 12 Nov 2025, 7pm
Our next online free lecture takes place on Weds 12 Nov 2025 at 7pm. Please sign up to book a place.
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Jenni Phillips @jenniph.bsky.social · 12/10/2025
Always pleasing to find someone with an occupational surname employed in the appropriate line of work (C 5/619/99, Mason v Mason, TNA, 16 Dec 1699) #Genealogy #FamilyHistory #EarlyModern #Chancery
Excerpt from handwritten late 17th century Chancery document stating: “paid Willm Mason for mason worke”
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Glamorgan Family History Society @glamorganfhs.bsky.social · 12/10/2025
This week’s events: Aberkenfig Resource Centre open Tuesday 14 Oct 10am-2pm - visit to explore our extensive library & research collection, with help from friendly volunteers: www.glamfhs.org.uk/home/aberken... Merthyr branch AGM: Tuesday 14 Oct, 2pm, Soar Centre, Pontmorlais (members only)
glamfhs.org.uk
Aberkenfig Resource Centre
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Cambrian Archaeological Association @cambriansarch.bsky.social · 07/10/2025
🥁The Winner of the 2025 Gwobr Archaeoleg Cambrian Archaeological Award is Fiona Gray-Davies for her dissertation 'A genealogical study of Welsh immigrants to the United States of America' (MSc) University of Strathclyde. Well done, Fiona! 👏🎉 More here > bit.ly/3KKRtwL @unistrathclyde.bsky.social
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Jenni Phillips @jenniph.bsky.social · 07/10/2025
I associated it with being a magazine my mum & aunties used to read, but had a brief period of readership post-Bunty … once I had autonomy over magazine choices I was more inclined towards Just 17, Smash Hits, Mizz, More, etc. - I think poor Jackie was too wholesome for the 90s!
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Jenni Phillips @jenniph.bsky.social · 07/10/2025
03 April 1971 - another Jackie genealogy reference: “Take a tube to the Strand and walk down the Strand until you come to Somerset House. A must for all egotists. Look up the record of your own birth, check that Grandpa really married Grandma in 1921. Browse to your heart's content completely free.”
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Jenni Phillips @jenniph.bsky.social · 07/10/2025
Teenage nostalgia spoilt by the issue of Jackie dated 16 April 1988, page 27, which has genealogy listed in an A-Z of boring hobbies in an article titled ‘Do you bore for Britain?’
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Jenni Phillips @jenniph.bsky.social · 01/10/2025
Huge congratulations to fellow Strathclyde alumnus Fiona Gray-Davies. More details about her excellent dissertation research here: cambrians.org.uk/grants-and-p... - great to see research from a genealogical perspective being recognised in the wider academic history sphere. #Genealogy #FamilyHistory
cambrians.org.uk
Dissertation Prize – Cambrian Archaeological Association
The Gwobr Archaeoleg Cambrian Archaeological Award Each year the Cambrian Archaeological Association gives a prize for the most original contribution to the archaeology and/or history of Wales and the...
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Glamorgan Family History Society @glamorganfhs.bsky.social · 30/09/2025
We’ll be at Kempton Park this Saturday (4th October) for The Family History Show. Visit our stand to find out more about the society, ask our volunteers for help with your research, or just stop by to say hello! thefamilyhistoryshow.com/london/ #Genealogy #FamilyHistory #Glamorgan
thefamilyhistoryshow.com
About The Family History Show, London
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Jenni Phillips @jenniph.bsky.social · 30/09/2025
A busy and enjoyable day on Saturday fielding research queries for @glamorganfhs.bsky.social - from absolute beginners to some unusual & complicated scenarios. Pleased to see lots of interest in the archive tours, and great to have an engaged audience for my talk, with lots of questions afterwards.
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Glamorgan Family History Society @glamorganfhs.bsky.social · 24/09/2025
REMINDER: we’ll be at Glamorgan Archives for Open Doors this Saturday (27th September). Get help with your research from our genealogy experts, and join us for two FREE talks on using the census (11am) and breaking down research brickwalls (1.30pm). #Glamorgan #Cardiff #FamilyHistory #Genealogy
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Society of Genealogists @sogorg.bsky.social · 03/09/2025
📸 A snapshot of the people and activities shaping our programme at the Society of Genealogists! Talks, visits, book club & more — always something to inspire family historians. 🍂 👉 Explore what’s coming up: portal.sog.org.uk/ev...
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Jenni Phillips @jenniph.bsky.social · 04/09/2025
Congratulations John!
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Jenni Phillips @jenniph.bsky.social · 27/08/2025
Come along to Open Doors at Glamorgan Archives on 27 September. I’ll be presenting a free talk at 11am, on behalf of @glamorganfhs.bsky.social, about using the census for family history research. Find out more about what the Society has to offer, and get help with your #Genealogy queries.
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Jenni Phillips @jenniph.bsky.social · 25/08/2025
New blogpost, exploring the connection between my eighteenth century ancestors in Wiltshire, and General Sir William Howe ... #Genealogy #FamilyHistory #Wiltshire #RevolutionaryWar #EighteenthCentury jenniphillips.home.blog/2025/08/25/m...
jenniphillips.home.blog
My Cholderton ancestors and General Sir William Howe
Cholderton is a village in Wiltshire, about nine miles from Salisbury, and close to the county border with Hampshire. It is often referred to as West Cholderton, to distinguish it from the hamlet o…
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Jenni Phillips @jenniph.bsky.social · 19/07/2025
I will be giving a talk about mortality and how our Victorian ancestors died as part of this event. A great learning opportunity for anyone researching the lives (and deaths) of people who lived in Victorian London. #Genealogy #HistMed #FamilyHistory #Victorian #London
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Glamorgan Family History Society @glamorganfhs.bsky.social · 12/07/2025
Our special commemorative publication for the Society’s 50th anniversary has been distributed to members, and can also be viewed in the members’ area of our website. It includes fascinating articles on the Society’s history. Thanks to all contributors. #FamilyHistory #Genealogy #Glamorgan #History
Front cover of Glamorgan Family History Society - A Fiftieth Anniversary Commemorative Edition. There are four photographs - two black & white historic images, a picture of two people consulting some documents, and a partial image of a birth certificate. The Society’s logo for the fiftieth anniversary is in a circular frame in the centre of the cover.
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Glamorgan Family History Society @glamorganfhs.bsky.social · 13/06/2025
Next week’s branch meetings: Mon 16th June - Bridgend, 7.30pm, Len Evans Hall, Aberkenfig Tue 17th June - Pontypridd & Rhondda, 7.00pm, Pontypridd Museum - No Pasaran: Welsh Volunteers and the International Brigade - talk by Darren Macey #Genealogy #FamilyHistory #Glamorgan #Bridgend #Pontypridd
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Jenni Phillips @jenniph.bsky.social · 07/06/2025
Working ok for me, although I’ve had issues with it in the past. Have you tried the beta version to see if that works better for you? beta.thegazette.co.uk - I’ve not looked at it on a laptop yet, but I like the UX for mobile …
beta.thegazette.co.uk
Homepage | The Gazette
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Jenni Phillips @jenniph.bsky.social · 01/06/2025
Following on from this post, I have written about Jane in more detail here: jenniphillips.home.blog/2025/06/01/j... #Genealogy #FamilyHistory #HistMed #Swansea
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Glamorgan Family History Society @glamorganfhs.bsky.social · 29/05/2025
The June 2025 edition of the society’s journal has been uploaded to our website for members to access via the Journal Archive: www.glamfhs.org.uk/journal-arch... - it includes a variety of articles, letters, news from our branches, and more. #Genealogy #FamilyHistory #Glamorgan
glamfhs.org.uk
Journal Archive
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Lucie Matthews-Jones @luciejones83.bsky.social · 28/05/2025
Are you a neurodivergent researcher who uses archives? We want to hear from you! We will be running our 1st Divergent Minds in the Archive workshop at Imperial War Museum on 4th July, 10-4.15. More info👇🏻. Sign up here lnkd.in/eUFBQg3p. Closing date for applications June 4th #skyhistorians
A word document with various logos. Text reads 

Neurodivergent experiences of archives - call for workshop participants
Are you a (UK-based) neurodivergent researcher who has used archives in your work? Or an archive professional who would like to inform discussions on neurodivergent user access? Or a neurodivergent archive professional who can offer insights into accessibility?
As part of the EDI Caucus funded project 'Divergent Minds in the Archive', we, a group of neurodivergent humanities academics, will be running a series of research and knowledge exchange workshops at archives around the UK, and online, in summer 2025. These workshops will bring together archive users and professionals to share archive experiences, identify potential barriers for neurodivergent users, and creatively 're-imagine' archival spaces through
zine-making.
The first workshop will be hosted by:
• Imperial War Museums, Lambeth Road, London - 4 July 2025, 10am to 4:15pm.
We can fund limited travel expenses
for participants, including support worker travel and
overnight accommodation where necessary.
For detailed information about our London-based workshop, accessibility, and what participation will involve, please see this link. Deadline for application is Wednesday 4 June at 5pm.
Future workshops will be held in Cardiff, Liverpool, and online - please sign up to our mailing list for more information in due course.
Please feel free to get in touch with further questions at divergentmindsarchive@gmail.com.
All the very best,
Ria, Lucie, and Ann-Marie
The project is led by Dr Ria Cheyne, Liverpool John Moores University; Dr Ann-Marie Foster, Robert Gordon University/Imperial War Museums; and Dr Lucinda Matthews-Jones, Liverpool John Moores University. Our partners are Glamorgan Archives, Gwent Archives, History UK.
Imperial War Museums, Liverpool Record Office, Scottish Council on Archives, and Tyne and Wear Archives.
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RegQualGenes @regqualgenes.bsky.social · 22/05/2025
#savethedate The RQG Conference 2026 will be held on Saturday 25 April 2026 at the Birmingham & Midland Institute, Birmingham. Updates via the newsletter @RegQualGenes #Genealogy #FamilyHistory www.qualifiedgenealogists.org/2026-confere...
qualifiedgenealogists.org
2026 Conference - Register of Qualified Genealogists
RQG Conference 2026 Birmingham Ticket details, call for presentations and updates to be posted shortly - sign up to the newsletter hear about our plans and updates about the conference.
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