28 December 2008

I've been missing . . . .

Slight problem with the computer, the Festive Season and the beta-testing for the 1911 census site have all combined to keep me away from here for a couple of weeks, so I guess this entry had better be worth reading . . . .

What to write? I had a look through my main family file and found a few Christmas-related events. Such as:-

7 christenings and 4 marriages on Christmas Eve in various parts of East Anglia;
24 christenings and 3 marriages on Christmas Day and
a mere 3 christening and 7 marriages on Boxing Day.

I actually expected higher numbers on all three days, as most of my ancestors were of humble stock and would only have had two of these days off. Dredging my memory, I can't remember when Boxing Day actually became a holiday, so I would imagine that Christmas Eve and Christmas Day were the 19th Century days of rest.

Unlike nowadays when the whole country seems to settle down on Christmas Eve for a good ten days of holiday, and all the public transport with them! Shops, of course, only really close for one day but it's so easy to get sucked in and buy enough food for a siege!

Speaking of which, I must go and reduce the chocolate mountain . . . . !!

2 comments:

Nikki - Notes of Life said...

I've been beta testing the 1911 census too. What were your thoughts?

pengen said...

Mostly good - but I didn't look at the actual pages as I thought £3 was too much to pay! I was really pleased to get the chance to look for my grandparents. Did you fill in their questionnaire?