Seminar events On the Wrong Side of the Law Seminar *** this seminar has now been cancelled but we are looking at the possibility of running it as a webinar instead *** Ruishton Village Hall, Cheats Road, Ruishton, Taunton, Somerset TA3 5JD 09:30am for 10:00am on Saturday 16th May 2020 From big time villain to petty thief, we can probably all find one or two ancestors who didn’t manage to keep on the straight and narrow. We return to this West Country venue to discover more about the working of the criminal justice system, the court and prison records that will help us track down individuals, including those sent abroad, and to explore the fascinating links between crime writing and genealogy. Twitter #GuildCriminal Programme 09:30 – 10:00 Arrival: Registration and Coffee 10:00 – 10:10 Welcome to the Seminar – Alison Boulton 10:10 – 11:10 Social History of Prisons – Rosalind Crone (The Open University) 11:10 – 11:15 Comfort Break 11:15 – 12:15 Getting to Know Your Criminal Ancestors – Aoife O’Connnor (Find My Past) 12:15- 13.15 Lunch Break 13:15 – 14:15 Criminalising Vagrancy – Nick Crowson (University of Birmingham) 14:15- 14:20 Comfort Break 14:20 – 15:20 Crime Writing with a Genealogical Twist– Nathan Dylan Goodwin 4490 (author and genealogist) 15:20 – 15:40 Tea Break 15:40 – 16:40 Tracking Down Transported Criminals – Michelle Patient 5840 (genealogist) 16:40 – 16:45 Close of Seminar We would like to compile a Guild ‘Rogues Gallery’ of criminal ancestors to display at the event, and are inviting everyone to write something about one of their criminal ancestors, either from their one name study or elsewhere in the family tree. Applications to attend are welcome from Guild members, family historians, genealogists, and members of the general public having an interest in the subject matter. The seminar cost including refreshments and buffet lunch is £22.00 (including VAT). Ruishton is a couple of miles east of Taunton, off the A358 at junction 25 of the M5; there is free parking at the village hall. If you will be travelling by train please contact us for help in finding a lift from Taunton station. A local map is available here. We would like to ensure that any delegate with a disability can participate fully in this event. Anyone with any special requirements should telephone the Guild Help Desk on 0800 011 2182 or email seminar-booking@one-name.org. An accommodation listing is available here. A number of delegates and members of the organising committee will be staying Friday night at the Premier Inn Bridgwater Gateway (M5 j24) and will meet for dinner in the on-site Thyme Bar and Grill. Full joining instructions will be available here on or shortly after the booking closing date. What delegates said about the most recent Littleton seminar on 22nd February 2020: Primary motivation for attending? Fascinating topics Initially the talk on Romany ancestors, but the whole programme looked interesting; interest in travellers and theatre research Being with fellow ONS people; meeting other Guild members and others with family history interest General interest and it was a local seminar; local event; only 20 minutes drive from home. Always enjoy them Guild seminars are always interesting, even if the subject might not be relevant to my research; curiosity about areas never researched. Learning about new topics; to learn about more unusual avenues of research Love the social hosting aspects What aspects of this seminar went particularly well? Every presentation was engaging and interesting; excellent talks As always, all of it Talk on Gypsies; Gypsy Ancestors and Theatre Ancestors; the Remarkable Crichton To time, visual aids very good, sound quality good, great organisation and speakers Variety of speakers; excellent speakers All the fascinating background details in the talks Excellent venue, good timekeeping Well organised and welcoming, very good lunch, excellent value for money A thoroughly enjoyable day; thank you – a great day Thank you to everyone involved for your hard work in putting on such an interesting seminar What did you learn? History of Gypsies More thinking outside the box An introduction to itinerants (for a variety of reasons) and where to start looking Newspapers a great resource! I didn’t know about the existence of an online theatre database; the possibilities for researching theatrical ancestors are particularly interesting New websites, will check more on occupations in my family Number of different alternative sources to explore and investigate for family history research All quite interesting but didn’t necessarily learn anything as I have only found dull, conventional ancestors – so far! Booking To book on this seminar, you can use our online form¹ in any of three ways: Book online and pay online via PayPal or credit card; For Guild members, book online and pay by direct bank transfer through your bank, quoting the reference number on the form (this is the method which represents the least cost to the Guild); Fill in the booking form online, then print it and send it through the post with your cheque. Alternatively, you can download our booking form flyer, which can be printed, filled-in, and posted, with a cheque to: Alan Moorhouse, [Seminar Bookings], 8 Strachans Close, STROUD, Gloucestershire, GL5 3EB. Bookings close on 3rd May 2002. All online bookings made by bank transfer or PayPal will receive an automatic system generated email confirmation and bookings made by cheque will be acknowledged upon receipt. All bookings will then be confirmed by email, with full joining instructions, on or shortly after, the closing date; if you don’t then receive any of these emails please email to check that your booking has been received. Further information may be obtained by telephoning the Guild HelpDesk on 0800 011 2182, or by email from seminar-booking@one-name.org. ¹Please note, when booking on a seminar either by post or online, the Guild’s “Distance Selling” terms and conditions. Other events For details of other events organised by the Guild, go to the Events Calendar.