Solving Your Mysteries

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Solving Your Mysteries

Genealogy and historical research service dedicated to uncovering the stories hidden within family history.

Researching ancestors, solving mysteries, breaking through brick walls, and piecing together the past through records and archives.

24/08/2026

A mystery spanning three countries:

Henry Logan was born in Kentucky in 1837, but by 1855 he was living in New York with his brother Speed. Just six years later, the brothers had crossed the border into Canada, where Henry would remain for the rest of his life.

The records tell us a lot about Henry’s later life, but almost nothing about his childhood or his parents.

DNA matches connect Henry’s descendants to the wider Logan family in Kentucky, supporting the theory that Jesse Logan was Henry’s father.

And Henry’s mother? I still don’t know.

This case shows why genealogy isn’t always about finding one perfect record. Sometimes it means piecing together censuses, migration patterns, siblings, historical context, and DNA, and being willing to say “we don’t know yet.”

Read the full case study: link in bio.

09/08/2026

If you wondered why I’ve been quiet on here lately… Normal content will resume in September! In the meantime please check out my website solvingyourmysteries.co.uk - and feel free to get in touch if you have a mystery which needs solving!

30/06/2026

Don’t rely on just one record when doing genealogical research. One record is rarely enough to prove anything.

Whenever possible look to confirm facts using multiple independent resources.

27/06/2026

I first got my DNA tested when Ancestry first launched their DNA kits.

The original reason was my grandmother, who was adopted, and the hope that DNA might help us learn more about her ancestry and ethnicity. There were so many unanswered questions, and very little paper trail to follow.

Seeing how DNA connects people across generations, and how it can open up entirely new lines of research, completely changed the way I approach genealogy.

I’ve been obsessed with it ever since and it’s now a key part of the work I do with clients today. Sometimes one simple test can change the way you see an entire family history.

26/06/2026

A strong family tree isn’t built on guesswork or copied research. Records, multiple sources, clear timelines, verified relationships, and proper citations are what make the difference.

If it isn’t sourced, it isn’t reliable.

23/06/2026

This was one of those cases that took time to untangle properly.

While researching, I encountered a woman named Bernice who married a man called Thomas and had several children with him. On paper, everything looked straightforward.

But later, the records revealed something far more complex.

After separating from Thomas, Bernice went on to marry his brother and had more children. While Thomas went on to marry another woman named Bernice. This created a significant challenge in separating two closely intertwined family units, with overlapping records and repeated names.

With two Bernices appearing in the wider research, it took careful timeline building, maiden name analysis, and multiple cross-checks to correctly separate the families and confirm who belonged to whom.

It’s a perfect example of why names alone are never enough in genealogy. Context is everything.

Pictured above: Bernice Josephine McMillan (1903-1965)

21/06/2026

Thank you to everyone who joined us yesterday for the Brampton Preservation Trust Open Day at Brampton Old Church!

We were delighted to welcome dozens of visitors across three guided tours and share the history of this special place. Thank you to all who attended, supported the event, and helped make the afternoon such a success.

We look forward to seeing you again at future events!

20/06/2026

Many clients don’t just discover names; they discover living relatives, lost branches of the family, and stories that were never passed down.

If you’re curious about your family history, I’d love to help you begin your journey.

Every project is different, but they all begin the same way: with a single message.

17/06/2026

One of the most rewarding parts of genealogy is being able to reconnect people with family they never knew existed.

A client came to me with very little information about her grandmother; just a name and that she had connections to Ireland.

Through a combination of researching the paper trail and using DNA, I was able to confirm her grandmother’s identity and trace her family line back through records in both Ireland and the United Kingdom.

What began as a single name has now opened the door to an entire branch of family history, including living relatives she never knew she had.

14/06/2026

One of my favourite genealogy techniques is the sibling strategy.

When you’re trying to identify an ancestor’s parents, don’t just research your direct ancestor, but research their brothers and sisters too. Siblings often leave behind records that provide clues your direct line doesn’t.

In a recent client project, we were trying to confirm the identity of a 4th great-grandmother. We had a likely candidate, but needed stronger evidence.

By researching both the client’s direct ancestor and his sister, I located their wills and compared them with burial records. Together, these records showed that the siblings and the suspected mother were all buried in the same family plot, providing strong evidence that we had identified the correct woman.

Sometimes the quickest way up a family tree is by moving sideways first.

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