Current News

Calling all World Cup Widows and Widowers! Research your Ancestry and Family Tree as an antidote.
Whilst our friends and relatives are glued to the football matches of the World Cup and our neighbourhood is festooned with football flotsam and jetsam, we suggest that for those who find the whole World cup mania a tiring if not tiresome thing that now is the time to concentrate on your family history and look at your family tree. Tracing your family tree is as absorbing a pastime as any football tussle. With 'extra time' on your hands why not fill in our on line form and one of our experts will contact you to discuss your research prospects
17 June 2010

Our ancestors as football fans and the echo of their chants, from our family history to the present day Also revealed: Chubby Victorian footballer who inspired 'who ate all the pies'.
Julia Cresswell, author of The Cat's Pyjamas: The Penguin Book of Clichés, delved through documents and records at Oxford University's Bodleian Library, to try and find the first recorded use for many phrases. The origin of the football chant 'who ate all the pies' has been revealed and found to have been inspired by a chubby Victorian footballer.
His name was William 'Fatty' Foulke, a rather large Victorian goalkeeper who inspired the derisory football terrace chant 'who ate all the pies?'.
Researchers discovered the origins of the mocking football chant and many other of the English language's most colourful chants, clichés and catchphrases.
14 June 2010    More...

Stop Press ! Achievements to merge with the Institute of Heraldic and Genealogical Studies.
We are pleased to announce, from the 1st of June 2010, the merger of Achievements with our sister organization of 50 years, the Institute of Heraldic and Genealogical Studies. Our contact details and functions remain the same, as does our commitment to provide our cherished clients and students with a first class service
25 May 2010

More gems from the family trees discovered by the family history ancestral research team at Achievements
Stan Still, Anna Sasin's behind you!
Britain's most embarrassing and bizarre names have been disclosed in a new survey. Stan Still, Anna Sasin, Hazel Nutt, Barb Dwyer and Justin Case are among some of the country's people, who have been given these names. Others to make the "Most Unfortunate Names in Britain" list include Mary Christmas, Paige Turner, Chris Cross and Barry Cade. Such wonderful combinations are of course nothing new and can be found in the indexes of the General Register Office for births, marriages and deaths back to 1837. For example Mr or Mrs Edward Codd must have enjoyed the odd jibe when registering the births of their children Harold E, Bernard and Edward in 1931, 1932 and 1939 respectively for Mrs Codd's maiden name was Haddock. Edward Codd married Ellen Haddock at Glandford Brigg in December quarter of 1927 and registered the births of two of their three sons at the same Register Office.
16 April 2010    More...

The Valentine’s Day traditions of our ancestors and their relevance to our family history.
February the 14th is upon us, but falls on a Sunday this year, so no doubt there will be more texts and e-mails than the traditional cards delivered by the Royal Mail. Our ancestors would be baffled by the technological advances of our modern age, the internet and mobile phones et al, but would no doubt be comforted to see that their traditions were still respected and those highlights of their calendar year continued to be celebrated. Valentine's Day is one such occurrence in our family history that is still as popular an occasion is it was for many of our ancestors and, in celebrating in similar spirit, we can experience a link with our family tree that has a poignancy of its own.
12 February 2010    More...

Our Family History Business is 50 Years Old This Year!
So many individuals set themselves up as genealogists or family historians, using the wonders of the internet and other digitized indexes. However, here at Achievements, we take post-graduates and then train them for another five years, before they are entirely qualified to conduct genealogical research.
Many a snare can await the inexperienced, and a combination of practical experience of cases throughout the country, including England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland, as well as further afield, a formal range of study and examinations, equips our genealogists to deal with the most difficult family history cases. Sometimes it can be a mere matter of omission that would stump many researchers. A little example is set out below:-
29 January 2010    More...