During the nineteenth century, there was a move away from regular styles of handwriting, and subsequently individuals developed their own styles which makes Victorian handwriting very challenging.The traditional method of teaching palaeography - literally “old writing” in Greek - concentrates on recognising established letter forms but Victorians did not write in this way. This course is designed to help participants develop the skills needed to read 19th and early 20th century documents with an emphasis on records useful for family history.  

The first session will be an introductory presentation on the techniques to use in deciphering unfamiliar handwriting which is illustrated with worked examples. The second will look at reading the 1851 census which has more details of interest to genealogists than the earlier 1841 census. This session will also introduce the tools that can be used to make on-line documents easier to read and give participants their first transcription exercise. The third and fourth sessions will cover reading the census from 1861-1921 and developing transcription skills.  Independent transcription exercises will involve participants working on transcriptions with feedback. The remaining two sessions will provide facilitated practical transcription exercises using parish registers and family correspondence to give confidence in reading Victorian handwriting.  

Participants are invited to provide, in advance of the course, copies of documents from their collections that they have difficulty reading so that they can be incorporated into the exercises.  

The course has been created by Janet Foster who taught herself palaeography whilst researching 16th century manuscripts for her PhD and has enjoyed exercising this skill in deciphering documents of all ages ever since.  She has been providing training in this aspect of palaeography for more than 15 years.

• 20% Discount for all Society of Genealogists Members
• Recordings available until 24 August for everyone who pre-books

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