What’s been happening?
As winter looms large and the demands of golf and gardening recede, I am once again getting in to the annual swing of my family history research. In preparation for adding new information I have been making a few changes to the web site – some are purely cosmetic and for ‘fun’, whilst others are to make life a little easier for me.
Of course, if you have received web site update notifications from me in the past, then you will realise that the format of the update changes has altered completely and that you are now directed to this ‘blog’. The time saving for me is tremendous. Previously I had to design and upload several new web pages just to notify you of alterations to the web site. Now I can just type in to this blog, click, and it’s done! There are some simple navigation buttons on the right hand side of this page which, I hope, are self explanatory. (Please note that I have not transferred all the old web site update pages to this blog, just the most recent one.)
When you visit the web site, the first thing that you will notice is a new introduction page. This is the fun bit! If it annoys you there is a link at the bottom of the page to skip straight in to the ‘site proper’. (I did canvas opinion on a web design forum about the suitability of a ‘flash’ introduction to a web site and the overwhelming majority of people, including some professional web designers, said that they liked it.)
Inside the web site you will see (or should see) that the main navigation bar at the top of the pages has changed. (If it looks like the image on the left when you move your mouse over ‘About this site’, then you are seeing the new design.) It’s all very straightforward so I’ll leave you to explore! I have also added a bit of ‘magic code’ which should ensure that you always see the latest version of each page. I don’t guarantee that this will work – if you have any problems and think that you are viewing an old page then try holding down the ‘Ctrl’ key on your computer and press ‘F5’.
New information added to the site
The main addition to the site is a page showing the natural lineage of my mother, Mary Joan Louise Cowley (nee Coales), who was adopted when she was about one year old. In due course I will add the stories of her birth, her adoption, and of being reunited with the half-sister whom she did not know existed!
For those of you engaged in your own family history research you will also see some pages of links to external web sites which provide useful information.
New Contact
I have been contacted by a lady who, it transpires, is a second cousin, once removed. Another relative that I didn’t know about until a few weeks ago. And all thanks to the power of the internet! She descends from the same line as my paternal grandmother’s mother and has given me some excellent information about the Williams side of the family which I will add to the web site in due course. It was fascinating to exchange memories of ‘Marshall’s Hotel’ in Shrewsbury and to receive copies of holiday snaps of my paternal grandparents, and of my father and his sister and brother. What a small world!
What’s to come?
Long overdue are the web pages about the dairy farming side of the Cowley family. I am part way through collating the information that I have had from many different people and hope to have this completed before Christmas. (Notice that I didn’t say which year!!)
Your contributions
Your memories and feedback are so important to the continuing growth of this web site so please keep them coming. If you would like to write a short ‘life history’ of anyone featured on the family tree pages, please send it to me.
A few statistics!
In 2010 this web site received a total of some 127,000 hits – an average of 347 per day. Already this year we have exceeded that figure at around 444 hits per day. When I started building the web site I never thought for one moment that it would prove to be so popular.