This family history is designed around families. We have found this system to be the best to contain all the information and avoid duplication.

All pages throughout the site are split into three columns, the first column of which is now mostly empty, but on the homepage and search pages contains an index of surnames which link to a series page where the surname can be found.

There are only four of these:
series 1: Pratt/Uggles family
series 2: Balaam/Stockbridge family
series 5: Tyler/Raven family
series 6: Harford/Smith family

All surnames are included in one of these series. These pages contain, in the second column, some details about the origin of the surname and/or the part of the country from which the people in this tree emanate from. The third column contains a list of family pages at present available.

In the second column of these pages (the family page proper, so to speak) each has a large green four figure number top right, the page number. The parents of the family are on the left, often preceded by a page number (in green) and a backward arrow indicating the family page in which their birth is recorded (or occasionally a previous marriage). All references to page numbers will be in green. Below this is any information appertaining to the family with the date on the left, followed by the event and the source on the right. Under ISSUE are details of their (known) children, usually until their marriage, formatted in similar manner. On marriage a forward arrow followed by a page number in green will indicate their new page.

For dates please read the note below. Events use abbreviations which are also listed below. The source is usually a number in red and refers to a document. These numbers may have to become alphanumeric soon. They all start with the series number. Verbal information is denoted by the initials of the person. These are also in red. There is a link to the relevant documents page from each family page.

The third column lists available family pages for that series.

Again there are also just the four of these pages, one for each series. The second column lists the documents in numerical order and the third colum lists available family pages for that series

Other pages are like this one, content in the second column and little or nothing in the third.

There is sometimes a little confusion about cousins. It is probably simpler to grasp the subject than to explain it, but here goes. Cousins are always descended at some stage from siblings and all cousin relationships are reciprocal. That is to say if you are a first cousin twice removed to somebody, they are first cousin twice removed to you.

First cousins are children of siblings and therefore have common grandparents. Second cousins are grandchildren of siblings and have common g-grandparents. Third cousins are g-grandchildren of siblings and therefore have common g-g-granparents, etc, etc.

The above relationships are technically known as without remove, but the term is not used in practice. Removes are simply indications of generational differences. So that a first cousin once removed is a parent's cousin or a cousin's child, a first cousin twice removed is a grandparent's cousin or a cousin's grandchild and a second cousin once removed is a parent's second cousin or a second cousin's child, etc.

In most of the Victorian censuses, a stepson or daughter is stated as a son or daughter-in-law.

Months are displayed as two letters - ja,fe,mr,ap,my,jn,jl,au,se,oc,nv,de. This is to avoid confusion between different conventions with regard to the order of day and month.

A hyphen before a date means before or on, although I intend to gradually replace this by the word 'to'; A hyphen after a date means on or after and again I hope to gradually replace this with 'from'. An event between dates is expressed as 29nv1883-4ap84. The dates are inclusive.