The Dead Sleuth

The Dead Sleuth Family History Hawkshaw. Research Fiend and Genealogist for Hire as THE DEAD SLEUTH. Sleuthing YORK and Beyond. Jobbing Grave Hunter as THE GRAVEYARD SQUIRREL.

TEE TALK Speaker, Obituary Crafter and Ancestral Storyteller. THE – determiner. Denoting a person that is already or about to be mentioned. DEAD – adjective. No longer alive. SLEUTH – noun. A person who investigates mysteries. As the founder and director of THE DEAD SLEUTH Tee Bylo Hitching is a genealogist, writer, family History detective, research consultant and obituary crafter. Tee is als a s

peaker of TEE TALKS, ancestral storyteller and grave hunter. THE DEAD SLEUTH is a registered company located in the City of York offering professional genealogical services for those looking to solve the riddles and absurdities of their own family history. With access to a wealth of local repositories and archives throughout York, Yorkshire and beyond – Tee works with those who need an experienced and dedicated history sleuth by their side as they embark on a fascinating journey to uncover the lives of their ancestors. From genealogical advice, family history research, probate transcription, archive retrieval, to photography, lineage reports and ancestral storytelling – THE DEAD SLEUTH offers a rich menu of research services. And as every research commission is as unique as the person who is requesting it – Tee offers a FREE initial thirty minute consultation to ensure that she is the perfect sleuth for her client. THE DEAD SLEUTH also offers bespoke ancestral tours for visitors who are curious about understanding their family history in the context of location and would love to walk in the footsteps of an ancestor, visit the place they once called home or stand at the foot of their grave in a quiet churchyard. And, if Tee is not in search of a missing ancestor or poring over the details on a newly discovered death certificate or trawling through the parish records in search of a burial entry – she will wandering among the tombstones somewhere with notebook and camera in hand. As a enthusiastic taphophile with an interest in tombstone symbolism – Tee undertakes grave hunts with the use of parish records and newspapers as the location and image capture of the resting place of our ancestors can be a poignant piece of the jigsaw. In the absence of a marked grave Tee can research and photograph the surrounding vicinity in which an ancestor rests. Tee shares the tales and triumphs of family history and of her wanderings among the tombstones in search of the unquiet dead as THE GRAVEYARD SQUIRREL. Tee is a public speaker and is happy to chat with eager ears and curious minds about the tales of Victorian criminality, tombstone tourism, sleuthing those elusive ancestors and fallen women. Passionate about the benefits of Ancestral Healing – Tee now works alongside those who are seeking to understand, reveal and free inherited grief and trauma from their family histories. And with her love of family history, storytelling and Victorian crime – Tee sleuths, and scribes at THE DEAD SLEUTH on Substack. You can find Tee at the Association of Professional Genealogists, and Public Speakers Corner. See YOU on the other side?

Kind followers of my ramblings, I shall be thus shuttering my cluttered den, unplugging the computer, silencing the tele...
19/08/2026

Kind followers of my ramblings, I shall be thus shuttering my cluttered den, unplugging the computer, silencing the telephone, and setting aside my worn pencil and notebook for awhile as I ready my departure for fareaway shores.

And, if you find yourself wondering as to my exploits in a land far, far away, your curiosity may yet find a modicum of satisfaction at Tee Bylo Hitching

Go well.

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To the sea I return within the pages of the AUGUST publication of  as I muse upon my love of the picturesque fishing vil...
18/08/2026

To the sea I return within the pages of the AUGUST publication of as I muse upon my love of the picturesque fishing village of Staithes, the amazing legacy of the Victorian photographic pioneer Francis Frith and sleuthing those coastal ancestors.

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It may be a small letter from the year 1874 and penned by the shaky hand of one not long for this earth but nevertheless...
10/08/2026

It may be a small letter from the year 1874 and penned by the shaky hand of one not long for this earth but nevertheless, it is a letter packed with tantalising genealogical hints about the author's fascinating ancestral backstory.

What a day to be alive in the archive!

🔍 Explore York Archive

'Ey up! Today is Yorkshire Day!And if you are celebrating - 'av a good 'un.            🔍
01/08/2026

'Ey up! Today is Yorkshire Day!

And if you are celebrating - 'av a good 'un.

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The ‘who’s who’ of the peerage, along with a clerical directory for the year 1872 and the epistles of Edward Bouverie Pu...
28/07/2026

The ‘who’s who’ of the peerage, along with a clerical directory for the year 1872 and the epistles of Edward Bouverie Pusey, the leading light of the Oxford Movement and now one of my most favourite historical characters.

Yet another fabulous day to be alive in the archive!

🔍 Borthwick Institute for Archives

And, so having made an wholly unexpected and a very welcome acquaintance some weeks ago at Explore York Archive of one E...
22/07/2026

And, so having made an wholly unexpected and a very welcome acquaintance some weeks ago at Explore York Archive of one Edward Bouverie Pusey (1800-1882) - my relationship with this unique clergyman, Oxford professor, and social reformist who once enjoyed a brief flirtation with Byronism continues apace Borthwick Institute for Archives as I enjoy a peek at some of his epistolary musings from the year 1870.

What a day to be alive in the archive!

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Imagine if you will that you are sleuthing some family correspondence at a local archive for a client and opening an env...
06/07/2026

Imagine if you will that you are sleuthing some family correspondence at a local archive for a client and opening an envelope from the year 1862, you discover the author was once Archbishop of York and Canterbury and that he had been embroiled in a very controversial theological debate over the Parish Church of St Saviour in Leeds in 1839.

Further discovery reveals that his protagonist one Edward Bouverie Pusey, Professor of Hebrew at Oxford and said benefactor of St Saviour’s was a zealous campaigner for penitentiary reform and that the penitentiary just happens to be your field of academic study.

What a day to be alive in the archive!

🔍 York Explore Library and Archive

Against a backdrop of pale grey, framed by a doorway of honey blush stone and protected by creeping fauna and flora - th...
02/07/2026

Against a backdrop of pale grey, framed by a doorway of honey blush stone and protected by creeping fauna and flora - this quaint chancel door awaits the curious church crawler.

⛪ The Parish Church of St Mary Bishophill Junior. York. UK.

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Nestled under an old tree and topped with haphazard tiles peppered with moss - this quaint lychgate remains a rich witne...
29/06/2026

Nestled under an old tree and topped with haphazard tiles peppered with moss - this quaint lychgate remains a rich witness to the lives of the folk who once walked the pathway of this deconsecrated medieval church within the historic Parish of Fulford.

⛪ The Parish Church of Old St Owald. Fulford. York. UK.

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Proud to champion Armed Forces Day.For all past and present members of our British Armed Forces - THANK YOU for your ser...
27/06/2026

Proud to champion Armed Forces Day.

For all past and present members of our British Armed Forces - THANK YOU for your service, your dedication and your courage.

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Heslington
York
YO10 5DD

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