Future Meetings
Meetings are held at the Guide Hut HQ, Moorgate, Ormskirk L39 4RU
Talks start at 7.30pm (doors open at 7pm)
Non-members are welcome (£2.00 admission)
We do not hold meetings in December, the next meeting will be January 2025.
Wednesday 22nd January 2025
Manuscripts in Medieval Lancashire
Brian Farrimond
Wednesday 28th February 2025
A Slice of Gingerbread
Kathryn MacDonald
Wednesday 26th March 2025
The Enumerator's Walk 1911, Long Lane, Aughton
Norma Gregson
Wednesday 23rd April 2025
Celebrating VE Day - Remembering World War II
Wednesday 28th May 2025
Annual General Meeting followed by a short presentation (subject to be announced)
Wednesday 25th June 2025
Ormskirk Library's facilities for Family / Local History Research
Elizabeth Russ (Ormskirk Library Manager)
Wednesday 23rd July 2025
A Song Seeker Found (including the work of Emma Vickers)
Peter Snape
Wednesday 27th August 2025
The Lathom Almonry
Dot Broady-Hawkes
Wednesday 24th September 2025
The Derby Cinema Restoration Project
Kevin Whittaker
Wednesday 22nd October 2025
A Day out with Mona - Memories of Local Historian Mona Duggan
Dennis Walton
Wednesday 26th November 2025
Quiz and Social Evening
Quizmaster - Colin MacDonald
ZOOM TALKS
Wednesday 4th December 2024
ZOOM TALK - The Boat Families of the Leedsand Liverpool Canal
Kate Hurst
2pm repeated at 7pm
13th February 2025
Virtual Family History Chat
6pm-8pm
Please email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. for Zoom login details
Previous meetings 2024
Lancashire Day - 27th November 2024
From Ormskirk to the World - the stories of Arthur William Davenport and Cecil Edward Maples
Keith Broadbent and Kathryn MacDonald
Ormskirk Library
Wednesday 27th November 2024
Annual quiz and social evening with raffle and refreshments, come along and test your general knowledge.
Hosted by Ormskirk Quiz League's Colin MacDonald
Wednesday 23rd October 2024
The Boat Families of the Leeds and Liverpool Canal
Kate Hurst
Our October meeting attracted a large audience, we were particularly delighted to welcome over 30 non-members, keen to find out more about ODFHS's work on the Boat Families Database and life on the Leeds and Liverpool Canal. Kate Hurst, ODFHS Chair, led those attending through the history of the canal, from the first cut to the many years it took to complete the project. She gave examples of how life and trade on the canal began to develop in its earliest days including the importance of Top Locks at Lathom to the canal intrastructure.
The work of Keith Jenkins, who started the Boat Familes Database in 2010, has gone from strength to strength and Kate demonstrated how this data could be used to track familes and make connections between them.
This talk can be booked by other groups and societies, please contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. for more information.
Wednesday 25th September 2024
Arthur William Davenport - Ormskirk Boy / Man of the World
Keith Broadbent
The story of how Arthur Davenport, an Ormskirk lad, earned a place of honour in the museum of one of Uruguay's top football teams.
Wednesday 28th August 2024
Sent to the Madhouse
Louise Wade
Wednesday 24th July 2024
Inns and Beerhouses of Ormskirk
Dot Broady-Hawkes
Wednesday 26 June 2024
Honoured by a King
Wednesday 22nd May 2024
Annual General Meeting followed by a raffle and presentation:
Family History and the Lost Buildings of West Lancashire
West Lancashire's rich heritage is not always obvious in the 21st century. Many architectural features of the past have been lost due to the effects of wars, politics, changing fashions or neglect. Funded by Lancashire County Council and crowdfunded donations ODFHS have published a freely available booklet which brings the family history of these important buildings to life. The booklet will be officially launched at Ormskirk Library (11 am Monday 11th June), but there is an opportunity for a preview and a chance to hear more about the buildings following the 2024 Annual General Meeting.
Wednesday 24th April 2024
A 16th Century presentation by Lizzie Jones
In celebration of Shakespeare's birthday, actor and author Lizzie Jones gave an enthralling performance as Anne Hathaway.
Wednesday 27th March 2024
"Gingerbread": Ormskirk's Lost Victorian Magazine
Roy Bayfield
The Ormskirk Advertiser is familiar to us all as the town's newspaper, but did you know that for three years in the 1880s another periodical recorded the people and happenings of the area? Gingerbread was a monthly magazine that ran from 1886 to 1889, being renamed along the way as The Ormskirk Yeoman. Containing news and opinions about current issues, humour, fiction and articles about 'local celebrities' - as well as advertisements for Ormskirk businesses - Gingerbread is a fascinating document of its times. Roy Bayfield has researched the magazine at The British Library; his presentation will bring to life the history of Gingerbread, showing examples of what was found in its pages including jokes, poems, controversial stories and profiles of local dignitaries.
Wednesday 28th February 2024
The Civil War in Lancashire
Civil War enthusiast Phillipe Le Pinnet and his son, Freddie, gave a packed audience some fascinating insights into what life would have been like for the ordinary fighting man in the 1640s.
Wednesday 24th January 2024
The History of the Masonic Hall and Lodges of West Lancashire
Fred Hargreaves
Meetings 2023
The ODFHS 2023 talks programme was varied and enjoyable with excellent support from members and visitors alike.
These are the subjects of our 2023 meetings;
Wednesday 22nd November 2023
ODFHS annual social evening including a quiz and raffle.
Hosted by Colin MacDonald
Wednesday 25th October 2023
Clothing the Skeleton
Ernie Savage
Wednesday 27th September 2023
Workhouse Ancestry
Louise WadeLouise’s lively and engaging talk discussed the career of John LIVESLEY, her 4xgreat-uncle, setting it against a detailed examination of the workhouse system. As John LIVESLEY wasn't her direct ancestor at all, Louise asked the question, “Do I want him in my direct line - do I love him or loathe him?” She invited her audience to share their thoughts at the end of the talk.
Wednesday 23rd August 2023
Is it Art? The Creative Branch of My Family Tree
Kate Hurst
Wednesday 26th July 2023
The Archives of Edge Hill University
Dan Copley, Edge Hill University Archivist
Wednesday 28th June 2023
Westhead Through Time
Members of the ODFHS Committee
Wednesday 24th May 2023
AGM followed by Old photographs of Ormskirk and District and another chance to see displays from the Library Open Day
Wednesday 26th April 2023
Ormskirk's Royal Visitors
Members of the ODFHS Committee
Wednesday 22nd March 2023
Not just the 3 "R"s; Life in a Lancashire School - Louise Wade
Louise recounted her experiences in researching the history of Shevington Community Primary School, which was 200 years old in 2014, whilst placing the school's past in the context of the national education picture. The school closed in 2017, but Louise's extensive research is now housed at Wigan Archives.
Wednesday 22nd February 2023
Skelmersdale from the Domesday Book to New Town - Skelmersdale Heritage
Wednesday 25th January 2023
New Year, New Start: Enrich your research with ODFHS Publications by ODFHS Committee Members.
Family history researchers know the thrill of finding a new piece of information about their ancestor and the world in which they lived. The aim of January's meeting was to demonstrate how resources from the ODFHS Library, video and data collections might provide researchers with those all important insights to the past.
ODFHS 2022 talks programme
Wednesday 23rd November 2022
Our traditional end of year quiz and raffle by Colin MacDonald
Six teams competed for the honour of becoming ODFHS quiz champions for 2022.
Wednesday 26th October 2022
What Connects William the Conqueror, Monty Python, Burscough Wheelwrights and Manchester Airport? by Keith Broadbent
Keith began researching family history about four years ago and quickly became hooked as he looked into Percival, Birtwistle, Forshaw, Woodall and Dearden ancestors.
Wednesday 28th September 2022
An Ormskirk Murder Mystery by Dot Broady Hawkes
An unsolved murder at Halsall. Dot related the little-known story of the murder by drowning of Elizabeth Threlfall in October 1832. Did the chief suspect, Elizabeth's husband Thomas Threlfall, do it?
Wednesday 24th August 2022
The Lost Crosby Fort by Dr Alison Burns
Wednesday 27th July 2022
Around Ormskirk and District in 6 Objects : Stories From the Society's Archives - Kathryn MacDonald
Wednesday 22 June 2022
Useful Free Websites: Creative Ways To Research Your Ancestors For Nothing by Kate Hurst
Understanding that the lockdowns of 2020 and 2021 prompted many people to take an interest in researching their family history, Kate (ODFHS Chair) presented a brief guide to six useful websites packed with unusual information that can add extra details to the life stories behind the names in our family trees - with the added bonus that every single one is completely free to access!
Wednesday 25 May 2022
Platinum Jubilee Show And Tell Evening
To tie in with the celebrations for the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee, we invited anyone with interesting stories or artefacts relating to previous royal events to bring memories and souvenirs to our May meeting.
Wednesday 27 April 2022
The Stanleys and the Wars of the Roses by Jean Gidman
ODFHS member Jean Gidman gave her new talk on the Stanley family and their involvement in the thirty-year conflict better known as the Wars of the Roses. Over the years, Jean has done a huge amount of research into the Stanleys, and has written multiple books about the various personalities hiding in their family tree. Her presentation left us all in no doubt that, to get on in late mediaeval England, it was very much a case of "who you know, not what you know"!
Saturday 2 April 2022
The 1921 Census: Searching for Grandad by Kate Hurst (via Zoom)
A Zoom alternative to our live March talk was given at 10a.m. and 6p.m., allowing several ODFHS members from overseas to join us. Following each talk, audience comments provided some interesing talking points.
Wednesday 23 March 2022
The 1921 Census: Searching for Grandad by Kate Hurst with Using The 1921 Census for House History by Keith Broadbent
ODFHS committee member Keith Broadbent gave a brief overview of how he had used the 1921 census to research the history of his own home, offering tips about how to search creatively, the benefits and drawbacks of the new data, and how to fill in the gaps in your research using alternative resources.
Afterwards, Kate Hurst (ODFHS Chair) gave a new talk, based on her first encounter with the newly-released 1921 census, to demonstrate how it helped her to learn more about the early life of William Everard Siggs, the grandad that she never met.
Wednesday 23 February 2022
Welcome back and remembering Bill Huyton.
A link to a YouTube video for this meeting can be seen on the Members' Pages.
Wednesday 26 January 2022 - 19:30 (GMT)
ZOOM TALK: Researching House History
Guest speaker Jackie Depelle (a former Chairman of the Yorkshire Group of Family History Societies, who has previously given presentations for public events like the Really Useful Family History Show, The Family History Show Online and The Genealogy Show) gave a talk showcasing the extensive collection of sources (both online and awaiting discovery in archives) that researchers can explore to investigate the history of their own homes (or those of their ancestors).
- See the Members' Pages for a handout/list of potential resources
Wednesday 27 October 2021 - 19:30 (GMT)
ZOOM TALK: The Salvation Army Tracing Service
ODFHS member Stephen Huyton gave a very informative talk about the Salvation Army's family tracing service, which was established by the Booth family in the late nineteenth century, in an effort to re-establish contact between families who became separated due to migration for work and social reasons. An overview of what the Family Tracing Service can and can't do, the costs involved and the impact of the relatively recent GDPR regulations were all considered in a presentation that concluded with many questions from the audience and an interesting discussion of some of the points raised.
Wednesday 22 September 2021 - 19:30 (British Summer Time)
ZOOM TALK: Lost Crosby Fort
Our guest speaker Dr. Alison Burns gave a talk focusing on the story of the now demolished site between Crosby and Hightown that used to be the location of Fort Crosby.
The research for Fort Crosby was carried out on behalf of the Sefton Landscape Partnership Scheme who commissioned a booklet on the history of Fort Crosby. The Fort was established at the end of WW1 and was finally demolished in 1967. It still holds a place in the memory of many local people and, although this area now forms part of the landscaped coastal path, it remains of interest as part of the recent history of the area.
Wednesday 25 August 2021 - from 19:30 (British Summer Time)
ZOOM TALK: DNA and Me - a personal case study (Alan Cooper)
A bluffer's guide to DNA and examples from our webmaster's own family tree of what DNA analysis can (and can't) reveal.
- Members may view the slides from this talk on the Members' Pages
- Links to online DNA genealogy resources may be found on the More.. page
Wednesday 28 July 2021 - from 19:30 (British Summer Time)
ZOOM TALK: Dating Old Photographs (Stephen Gill)
NOT A MILLSTONE ROUND YOUR NECK (VIA ZOOM)
Wednesday 23 June 2021 - 8p.m. (British Summer Time)
Dot Hawkes, the ODFHS Programme Secretary, will give her new talk on the Graham family of Aughton Street, Ormskirk, who established themselves as millstone manufacturers. The presentation hopes to explore why the Grahams (who had Irish ancestry) might have been drawn to Ormskirk, what made their French burrstones so useful, and also explains how they became millionaires.
Invitation links will be sent out by e-mail approximately one week before the talk. If you do not receive a link and would like to join this meeting, please contact chairman [at] odfhs.email (replace [at] with @)
Not only will this help us to get a better idea of the level of interest in this meeting, it will also allow us to make sure that we’ve got the right Zoom subscription to accommodate everyone on the day.
ODFHS ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING (VIA ZOOM)
Wednesday 26 May 2021 - 8p.m. (British Summer Time)
Our 2021 AGM was guided by our Secretary's comprensive report, compiled using contributions from various committee members. Thanks to the virtual format of this year's meeting, out-of-area Society members (including those in Canada, New Zealand and Australia) were amongst the attendees.
Due to the postponement of the 2020 AGM, Kate Hurst (Honorary Chair) and Pam Richardson (Honorary Secretary) were re-elected for the period 2020-2022, and Sally Dean (Honorary Treasurer) was re-elected until 2023.
Papers for the AGM may be viewed via the Members' Pages.
After the AGM, Kate Hurst (our Chair) gave a shortened version of her talk on researching 17th century people from Ormskirk who were fined for recusancy (or, refusing to attend Anglican church services), prompting many useful and interesting comments from the audience.
FAMILY HISTORY HELP DESK (VIA ZOOM)
Wednesday 28 April 2021 - 8p.m. (British Summer Time)
ODFHS held a virtual Family History Help Desk, which allowed many members to attend one of our meetings for the first time, and allowed for a discussion on a wide variety of topics that individuals had encountered in their research. The Stanley Earls of Derby, Latin records, why women "took in washing", pre-1800 Catholic records, tips on using the Lancashire BMD and Lancashire Online Parish Clerks websites, searches for grave locations, newspaper obituaries, asylum records, DNA testing and the many related ethical issues, identifying an unknown 4xgreat grandmother and local medical facilities were some of the subjects that found their way into the conversation.
VIRTUAL TALKS ON YOUTUBE
Since April 2020, we have produced occasional "virtual talks" and other videos for our YouTube channel. All are between 20 and 60 minutes in length, and cover a range of subjects - feel free to explore any link that interests you!
A Virtual Talk | Christmas Beef In Burscough (3 January 2023)
A Virtual Talk | An Introduction to our Boat Families Website (14 November 2021)
A Virtual Talk - Ormskirk Gingerbread | Exploring A Tradition (10 September 2021)
A Virtual Talk - A World Before Surnames (29 May 2021)
A Virtual Talk - The Renovation Of Ormskirk Parish Church (27 February 2021)
A Virtual Talk - Unusual Records From West Lancashire (19 January 2021)
A Virtual Talk - Christmas 1870 In Ormskirk (12 December 2020)
A Virtual Talk - Dining With Our Ancestors: 1600-1800 (13 November 2020)
A Virtual Talk - The 1918-19 Flu in the Ormskirk Area (18 September 2020)
Rufford Old Hall | History and Lancashire Day Events (16 July 2020)
A Virtual Talk - Birth, Marriage and Death in Old Newspapers (5 July 2020)
A Virtual Talk - Illegitimacy in Your Family Tree (2 June 2020)
A Virtual Talk - Complementary Resources in Family History (5 May 2020)
A Virtual Talk - Celebrating 10 Years of the Boat Families Website (8 April 2020)
Following requests from members; on the fourth Wednesday’s meetings, from now on we will open the Guides' Hut earlier, at 19.00 (7.00 p.m.) to allow members to meet and chat. We will also stay open a little longer after the talk has concluded, again to allow members to exchange information.
FREE ENTRY for MEMBERS, Visitors £2.00 admission.
All meetings are on the fourth Wednesday-evening of each month (except December, when we do not meet).
