The Family Histories Podcast

Send us a message 💬
In this special extra episode in Season Eleven, host Andrew Martin sets out on a visit to the Society of Genealogists, but ends up making unintentional visits to three places. Along the way he meets genealogists Lori Samuelson, Debbie Bradley, and Dr. Patrice Connelly and learns that when researching your family history, it really is All About The Place!
- - -
This episode is recorded as part of the All About The Place event in 2026 which runs with more than 150 speakers delivery almost 200 free talks from 7th October to 16th October 2026.
- - -
THE INTERVIEW - LORI SAMUELSON
Andrew's first unintentional stop is in Indiana, USA where he surprises professional genealogist Lori Samuelson. She then explains how she got hooked on researching, her love of technology, how her old boss talked her into setting up as a professional genealogist, and her thoughts on the direction of the family history industry, and concerns about cuts to the US archives.
With a few adjustments, Andrew heads off on his way to the Society of Genealogists in London...
THE LIFE STORY - GEORGE HENRY CLARKE with DEBBIE BRADLEY
... however, he manages to get a bit closer - arriving in Norfolk, England instead, where as if by chance, he bumps into professional genealogist, speaker, AGRA member and Administrator of the Family History Federation - Debbie Bradley.
Debbie share the life story of her elusive ancestor George Henry Clarke, whose life has been a true genealogy puzzle to trace. Despite living during the time of the modern census, his constant name changes and geographic moves has led Debbie round in circles a few times, until a witness at a wedding helps to unlock the mystery.
THE BRICK WALL - JOHN CARSON and MARGARET SMITH with DR. PATRICE CONNELLY
Despite tweaking settings, Andrew arrives in Brisbane, Australia where he soon finds Dr. Patrice Connelly - musicologist, genealogist and lecturer at University of Queensland.
Patrice is trying to solve a brick wall around her ancestors John Carson and his wife Margaret Smith. She finds them marrying in Stepney, London in 1808, but would like to know more about their origins.
John's career as a Mariner makes Patrice believe that he moved around a lot, and that this was perhaps the reason why his children with Margaret are baptised later than expected.
Can you help her find evidence of John Carson and Margaret Smith's early life and parents? 
If you think you can help Patrice with a research clue or idea, then you can message her via the email address she gives in the episode or alternatively, you can send us a message and we'll pass that right along.
In the meantime, Andrew thinks he's finally got the right coordinates... but will he find the correct Place?
- - -
Episode Credits:
Andrew Martin - Host and Producer
Lori Samuelson - Guest
Debbie Bradley - Guest
Dr. Patrice Connelly - Guest
Ruth Willmore - Guest
John Spike - Sándor Petőfi
Stephane Flux - Foley Artist

Support the show
Thank you for listening!
You can sign up to our email newsletter for the latest and behind the scenes news.

You can find us on Bluesky, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
If you liked this episode please subscribe for free, or leave a rating or review, or consider giving us a 'tip' to keep the show funded.

Send us a message 💬
This short bonus episode follows on immediately after 'The Overlooked' with Olwen Moseley, and therefore we recommend you listen to that first.
Lightning has struck. Olwen is missing.
That's not the only problem though as Andrew awakes to the sound of something large moving outside the garage... 
- - -
Episode Credits:
Andrew Martin - Host and Producer
John Spike - Sándor Petőfi
Support the show
Thank you for listening!
You can sign up to our email newsletter for the latest and behind the scenes news.

You can find us on Bluesky, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
If you liked this episode please subscribe for free, or leave a rating or review, or consider giving us a 'tip' to keep the show funded.

Send us a message 💬
In this final full episode of Season Eleven, host Andrew Martin meets genealogist, writer, and storyteller, Olwen Moseley. She tells him how she got hooked on researching family history and how she inherited lots of research, she shares her love of death certificates, and explains how she feels like a detective when researching.
THE LIFE STORY - MARY ANN BOWLER
Olwen has chosen to tell the life story of Mary Ann Bowler - but it took Olwen a long time to realise that Mary Ann existed. 
This is a case of a group of young women - all cousins - united by the care of their grandmother and the fact that they were mostly all orphans, and died as young adults. 
When research hints keep flagging a connection to Bristol in England, rather than Llangybi in Wales, Olwen kept dismissing them... but... a newspaper article caught her eye, with Olwen assuming they'd made a mistake with the name 'Mary Ann Bowler' rather than Mary Jane Bowler.
Further investigation was needed when the references started to stack up... resulting in Olwen discovering Mary Ann Bowler existed, and that her story was just as fascinating as the others.
THE BRICK WALL - ELIZABETH BOWLER
An Elizabeth Bowler (another of the cousins) is what is giving Olwen a research headache - particularly when it comes to her life after the 1851 census.
Where did Elizabeth go after appearing on the 1851 census with her parents Joseph and Elizabeth at Market Street, Newport, Monmouthshire, Wales? Olwen knows that Elizabeth (her mother) dies in 1858... so what becomes of the family by then?
If you think that you can help Olwen with a clue or a research idea, then you can send her a message via her Substack account, or via the email address she gives in the episode. Alternatively, you can send us a message and we'll pass it along to her.
In the meantime, Olwen is happy to accept Andrew's offer help, but they're in for a bit of a shock...

- - -
Episode Credits:
Andrew Martin - Host and Producer
Olwen Moseley - Guest 
MATTIE ON THE HOMEFRONT
Letters from a mother (Mattie) to her son (Ken) during World War Two give Mattie’s grandson and great grandson a new view of their family as they read one of her letters, and then discuss the family history and world history around it. It’s a wonderfully warm and reminiscent podcast, and I think you’ll enjoy it too. Check out Mattie on the Homefront!
Support the show
Thank you for listening!
You can sign up to our email newsletter for the latest and behind the scenes news.

You can find us on Bluesky, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
If you liked this episode please subscribe for free, or leave a rating or review, or consider giving us a 'tip' to keep the show funded.

Send us a message 💬
Joining host Andrew Martin for this sixth episode of Season Eleven, is public historian and award-winning author Tamiko Nimura, who tells Andrew about how she got hooked on history, how she ended up deciding to publish her father's memoir of his time as an incarcerated Japanese-American child, and her thoughts on the future of archives.
THE LIFE STORY - JUNICHI 'FRED' NIMURA
Tamiko has chosen to tell the life story of her Grandfather - Junichi Nimura who was born in Hiroshima, Japan in 1885.
Junichi emigrates from Japan to Mexico in 1925, before entering the US the following year. His first wife, unhappy with life in the US, returns to Japan, and so Junichi then meets his second wife via the 'picture bride' service (think; Tinder by mail). The couple stay together, and raise a family.
However, when World War Two begins, Junichi, his wife, and their children, have to leave their home with whatever they could carry and move to a concentration camp at Tule Lake, California, where they lived for years.  Junichi becomes separated from his family and is taken miles away.
Eventually Junichi was reunited with his family and they all left the camps for home - but everything was lost. The impact of this time never left Junichi, but his son - Tamiko's father, recalled his childhood years at the camp - which Tamiko has now published as her book 'A Place For What We Lose - A Daughter's Return To Tule Lake' (UW Press, 2026). 
THE BRICK WALL - JUNICHI NIMURA
It's a brick wall in Mexico that has Tamiko scratching her head.
Whilst researching her Grandfather, Junichi Nimura, she found a tourist certificate in Mexican Spanish, dated 19th November 1926, which states that her 41 year old married Grandfather was traveling alone and had been permitted to spend 15 days in Mexico.
Tamiko would love to know;
Why was Junichi there? 
What did he get up to?
If you think that you can offer Tamiko a research idea or clue to help her solve her brick wall, then you can send her a message at her website or via her Bluesky account, alternatively, you can send us a message and we'll pass it right along.
Meanwhile, Tamiko is fascinated by Andrew and Sándor's offer of help but is it safe?
---
Episode Credits:
Andrew Martin - Host and Producer
Tamiko Nimura - Guest
John Spike - Sándor Petőfi
MATTIE ON THE HOMEFRONT
Letters from a mother (Mattie) to her son (Ken) during World War Two give Mattie’s grandson and great grandson a new view of their family as they read one of her letters, and then discuss the family history and world history around it. It’s a wonderfully warm and reminiscent podcast, and I think you’ll enjoy it too. Check out Mattie on the Homefront!
Support the show
Thank you for listening!
You can sign up to our email newsletter for the latest and behind the scenes news.

You can find us on Bluesky, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
If you liked this episode please subscribe for free, or leave a rating or review, or consider giving us a 'tip' to keep the show funded.

Send us a message 💬
In this fifth episode of Season Eleven, host Andrew Martin meets Australian genealogist, tech and AI fan, and former school teacher Andrew Redfern - whom some of you may recognise from the podcast Ironclad Sisterhood which uncovers the lives of convict women in Australia.
THE LIFE STORY - WILLIAM MILLWARD BESTWICK
Andrew has chosen to tell the life story of his 3x Gt Grandfather William Millward Bestwick whose life has left a fascinating paper trail. William is born in 1818 in Derbyshire in England, but in the early 1830's his family migrated to the US. 
In the 1840s/early 1850s, William had been part of the Santa Fe Trail trade route, writes a letter who explains that he was captured during this and worked on a Man of War ship but escapes and eventually ends up in Australia. Meanwhile, his mother Amy was completely unaware that he was still alive.
William did leave Australia to return to the US, but the ship was turned around and William was escorted off the ship as he was bankrupt and trying to escape his creditors.
Andrew has worked hard to find the trail of documents scattered around the world, including a letter to the US President of the time. 
THE BRICK WALL - ROBERT REDFERN
Another globetrotting 3x Gt Grandfather is up next - this time Robert Redfern is causing Andrew a headache with his research.  
Robert was born circa 1770, and he ends up in jail, then finds himself in Portugal, then the USA, then the UK and eventually Australia... but Andrew is wanting to know about his early life, which stems back to Ireland.
However, Andrew can't find details about Robert's birth or baptism, and his cousins even consulted Australia's top psychic to help - who advised them to look for a slave trade connection.  DNA has also thrown some curious matches, and what seems to be a name change from O'Neill to Redfern...
Can you help find Robert Redfern's birth or baptism?
If you think you can help Andrew with a research idea or clue, then you can message him via the email address he gives in the episode or check out his website. Alternatively, you can send us a message and we'll pass it right along.
In the meantime, Andrew and Sándor offer guest Andrew some help... but things are about to get complicated...

- - -
Episode Credits:
Andrew Martin - Host and Producer
Andrew Redfern - Guest
John Spike - Sándor Petőfi
MATTIE ON THE HOMEFRONT
Letters from a mother (Mattie) to her son (Ken) during World War Two give Mattie’s grandson and great grandson a new view of their family as they read one of her letters, and then discuss the family history and world history around it. It’s a wonderfully warm and reminiscent podcast, and I think you’ll enjoy it too. Check out Mattie on the Homefront!
Support the show
Thank you for listening!
You can sign up to our email newsletter for the latest and behind the scenes news.

You can find us on Bluesky, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
If you liked this episode please subscribe for free, or leave a rating or review, or consider giving us a 'tip' to keep the show funded.