Looking back and forwards...

At the start of a new year we are encouraged to reflect on everything we’ve achieved in the past year and to look forward, with anticipation, to the opportunities the coming year offers.

So what were our highlights in 2025 and what might 2026 hold?

One of the ‘stand-outs’ must be our Family History Fair in September.  This was one of the monthly Saturday events in the Heritage Hub - we’re delighted to support these and open the FH Centre from 10am.  We welcomed almost 100 visitors together with representatives from a variety of heritage organisations and other family history societies so it was a wonderful chance to share experiences with many different people as well as highlighting our Family History Centre and its resources.  We’re already planning the 2026 FH Fair which will take place on 7 November so Save the Day!

Getting out and meeting people is important to us since we’re able to encourage everyone (and anyone) with an interest in heritage in its very widest sense to include genealogy in their research.  So, in 2025, alongside attending a number of FH Fairs in neighbouring counties we helped with a Local History Day in Cirencester Library.  This was part of the town’s popular History Festival and gave us the chance to meet people who were keen to find out more about their local area but don’t find it easy to visit the Heritage Hub in Gloucester.  Looking to the future, we hope that we’ll be able build on this promising start and help with other similar events.

Back in the FH Centre we’ve welcomed a wide variety of visitors whose interests stretch from straightforward family history (if there is such a thing) to more specialised investigations including women employed by Gloucester Cathedral as ‘plumbers & glaziers’ in the late 17th and early 18th century and the creator of a 19th century patchwork quilt.  We’ve helped the GA team with a school visit and also with a group with visual impairment - we already have plans for similar collaborations in 2026.  Another first for us in 2025 was to host a regular U3A family history group - we’re anticipating that this will continue during 2026.

   

 Alongside all this, our volunteers continued with several well established projects like the post 1837 Births, Marriages and Deaths index.  We were also delighted to contribute to larger local heritage projects with an element of family history.  These included the Gloucestershire Mariners’ Project which focused on the families involved in the coastal trade from Gloucester and Sharpness.  We found some amazing stories which were included in displays and talks when this stage of the project finished. We’ll be looking for more opportunities to collaborate with other partners in the coming year.

Our monthly Zoom talks and regular live events with FoGA continue to be popular.  In 2026 we’re hoping to run some informal themed online sessions so people can share their research experiences and problems. 

 Drop into the FH Centre or visit us online here to find out more.