Edinburgh marks its first Family History Week by offering free, expert advice
for anyone looking to trace their family tree.
During Family History Week (Monday 14 April to Saturday 19 April), experts from the Scottish Genealogy Society,
the National Library of Scotland and Edinburgh City Libraries will be
holding taster sessions and drop-in surgeries at libraries across the
Capital.
While many events do not require tickets, some are
ticketed (at no charge), which are available from the corresponding
venue.
Examples of what will be on offer during Family History
Week:
- Knowing Your Grandfather - a talk by Malcolm
Cant, one of the leading writers on the history of Edinburgh, into his own
past - Ask the experts drop-in sessions
- Talks on how the City
Archives and the National Archives of Scotland can help you in your search
for your ancestors - Help and advice about how to get started with
genealogy at Leith library - Exploring your local history with SCRAN,
the online learning resource base - Finding out more about using the
Internet to research your family tree.
"Exploring your family history requires
a lot of patient detective work," says Fiona Myles, Senior Library
Officer at Central Library. "There's so much information available in
the library, over the Internet and in other institutions in Edinburgh that
tracking your family down can be like looking for a needle in a
haystack."
"We have organised a programme of events to give people
who are interested in family history the chance to hear about the
resources available and where to find them... all for free."
To
find out more about Family History Week, please visit
www.edinburgh.gov.uk/libraries, or call 0131 242
8000.