So, here we are again, at the end of what seems to have been another generally rubbish year for most people around the world, for one reason or another. Still, at least (hopefully) we made it through to try and look forward to some semblance of normality in 2025. I’m pretty sure I said exactly the same last time.
Anyhow. We would like to wish all our family, relatives, friends, visitors and especially our Contributors a very (belated) Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. Please also raise a glass to our ancestors, without whom none of us would be here today.
At the moment, I’m 2 years into a deep dive of Swaledale and surrounding areas. It’s probably around 15 years since I last dipped my toes into the murky waters there, and a lot more information has appeared online during this period. Already there are hundreds of new people, and a shed-load of images
In the meantime, I seem to have been distracted by another tranche of house improvements, which has now given us a game room, rather than a double sh!t-tip, which never saw a car parked in there since the day we moved in. Looking forward to our second granddaughter, who is due imminently, if not sooner.
Many thanks once again to everyone who has contacted me over the past couple of years with various things. I try to answer everyone, so keep these coming. I’m always happy to hear about your research and offer advice wherever I can, and I promise I will get around to publishing everything that’s been sent to me. Honest.
It’s also nice to see the subscriber count for these emails slowly increasing. Maybe when I manage more than one issue every 2 years, you’ll finally get some benefit from them! Sorry! Bear with me.
Also, many thanks to everyone who has sent a donation. It’s very much appreciated, and it all goes to the upkeep of the site. With over 20,000 people and 68,000 images, it’s turned into a bit of a monster since the early days, and it all needs money to feed it. So, if you do feel an overwhelming urge to support a worthy cause, then pop along to the site and help us out with a few quid.
Finally, sorry I missed Christmas (again), but hope everyone had a good one. Here’s to a prosperous, productive and above all healthy 2025.
Have fun, be happy and stay safe.
Andy
And now for a bit of housekeeping
See the wood and the trees
We publish everything we have in our fabulous trees, so basically if you can’t find it, we don’t have it. With over 20,000 people, 5,000 families, 12,000 sources, and 69,000 image references currently sat in our database, you’ll appreciate the amount of work that has gone into this over the years.
You can see more in the Close Ancestry Trees.
Donations
We know that everyone in the world is after your hard-earned cash, but if you do feel a donation coming on as a result of your visit here, then please feel free to send it our way. It all goes towards the upkeep of the site, for which we charge absolutely nothing. So, please help us to keep the site free to use. Thanks.
Contacting us
If you find anything that you think may be of interest to us, then drop us an email at stuff@closeancestry.com
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