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Case Studies · Family History Investigations

The investigations
behind the discoveries.

Every family has history that has never been told. These are accounts of what professional investigation finds when someone decides it is time to look properly.

Featured Investigation
Prison photograph of William Goddard, Nottinghamshire, 1880. Prisoner number F938.
Nottinghamshire, 1880

William Goddard. Prisoner F938.
The missing ancestor.

Family History Research

The ancestor who was removed from the family tree.

William Goddard was a Nottingham whip thong maker, convicted of sheep larceny in 1879 and sentenced to seven years' hard labour. He passed through Pentonville, Millbank and Dartmoor Prison, served his sentence, and returned to Nottingham. His family never spoke of him again.

He was discovered a century later through a DNA match that pointed to a surname nobody recognised. What followed was an investigation through Quarter Sessions records, prison registers, medical history sheets, and census returns that eventually produced a prison photograph, a complete conviction record, and the story of a man quietly written out of his own family's history.

In over twenty years of research I have never found nothing. I may not find what a client hoped for. But I always find something. And occasionally what I find changes everything.
Subject William Goddard
Location Nottinghamshire
Period 1850 to 1900
Starting point DNA and Census records
Records found Quarter Sessions, prison registers, census, newspaper
Read the full investigation Why Gary does this work
All Investigations

What professional research finds

Each case starts differently. A DNA result, a name nobody could explain, a branch that stops in the 1800s, an adoption. All of them have more to find.

William Goddard in the Dartmoor Prison census, April 1881 Published

William Goddard: the convict ancestor hidden for four generations

A DNA match revealed a Nottingham whip thong maker who had been removed from the family record for nearly 200 years. The investigation traced him through the Quarter Sessions, prison registers, and Dartmoor census returns to a complete evidential picture.

Family History Research · Nottinghamshire Read
Grandad Wally with his motorcycle, 1940s Published

The motorcycle, the newspaper, and the question behind a family photograph

A family photograph of a man and his motorcycle prompted a question nobody had thought to ask. A newspaper report from July 1940 provided the answer. Some investigations begin with curiosity rather than mystery, and find something worth keeping all the same.

Family History Research Read
Coming Soon

John went to war in 1914 and came back a changed man

He served with the 2nd Battalion of the Lancashire Regiment, the men the Germans called "The Contemptibles". He came home, but not entirely. This investigation traces his life before, during, and after the war, and the two families he left behind. Researched through WWI service records, battalion war diaries, census returns, and civil registration.

Military Ancestor Research In preparation

Most investigations begin with almost nothing. A grandparent's name. A date that does not add up. A story that was never quite explained. That has always been enough to start.

Gary Skerritt · Meet Your Past · Nottingham
The Process

What a full investigation looks like

Every case study on this page followed the same underlying process. The sources change, the discoveries differ. The methodology does not.

1

The Free Consultation

We talk through what you know, what you want to find, and what the records are likely to hold. No preparation needed. An honest assessment of what is possible.

2

The Investigation

Primary archive research across census records, civil registration, parish registers, court records, military archives, DNA matches, newspaper archives, and whatever the specific case requires.

3

The Report

A full written Heritage Report presenting every discovery, all source citations, and the story of the family or individual as the records reveal it. A document worth keeping.

What you receive at the end of every investigation

Research is only useful if it is presented clearly. Every investigation concludes with a Heritage Report written as a narrative, not a list of names and dates. The report tells the story the records contain, with every source cited so the research can be verified and built upon.

Depending on the package, additional deliverables include a framed family tree, archival photograph prints, or a hardcover Heritage Book.

See all packages and pricing
  • Full Heritage Report in PDF format, written as narrative history
  • All source citations included and traceable
  • Copies of every document found during the investigation
  • Updates throughout the investigation, not just at the end
  • Fixed price agreed before any work begins
The Services

Every investigation is different.
Every starting point is valid.

Family History

Family History Research

A full investigation into your family history, from whatever starting point you have. Covers England, Wales, Scotland, and Ireland. Census, civil registration, parish records, wills, and archive research.

From £199 View service DNA Investigation

DNA Investigation

Results from AncestryDNA, 23andMe, MyHeritage, or FamilyTreeDNA, interpreted through shared match analysis and documentary research. For unexpected results, brick walls, and unknown relatives.

From £449 View service Unknown Parent

Unknown Parent Investigation

For adoptees, donor-conceived people, and anyone with a missing or unknown parent. DNA evidence combined with documentary research to identify biological family with a high degree of confidence.

From £599 View service Irish Ancestry

Irish Ancestry Research

Specialist Irish genealogy across all 32 counties. Working with surviving records before and after the 1922 record losses. Catholic parish registers, Griffith's Valuation, Tithe Books, and estate records.

From £349 View service Military Research

Military Ancestor Research

Tracing soldiers, sailors, and airmen from both World Wars and earlier conflicts. Pension records, medal cards, service records, regimental histories, and campaign documentation.

From £299 View service Gift

Family History as a Gift

A meaningful gift for a significant birthday, retirement, or family occasion. A full investigation and Heritage Report presented as something permanent, personal, and genuinely unlike anything else.

From £199 View service
See all services and pricing
The first step

Could there be a story like this
in your family?

Most people who come to me have no idea what the records hold. The William Goddard investigation started with a DNA match and a name nobody recognised. If you have something similar, or simply a question you have never been able to answer, that is enough to begin.

Book a Free 30-Minute Call

Free·No obligation·No sales pressure·Bring whatever you have, even just a name