Genealogy subscriptions? Y/N?

[Ruskie]

I'm sure this topic has been discussed before, but may be worth re-asking - what is the most comprehensive genealogy site to subscribe to?

I have had a good deal of success with Free BMD and Familysearch and also through the help of the good people on rootschat.

I am at the stage of requiring some pre 1837 records for my own research, and 1901 census information for my partner's family which I have just started on.

I am erring towards a subscription rather than pay per view as I suspect I will need loads of credits and make lots of mistakes. I'm also used to scouring many records with Free BMD and Familysearch.

I am considering englishorigins.com and ancestry.co.uk. Any recommendations? Pros and cons?

[kerryb]

I have an annual subscription to ancestry because I find I use the site so much. 

A lot of criticism for one reason or another is aimed at that site but I find it one of the most comprehensive, with all 6 census and various bmd records.  I also use 1837online quite a lot in back up.

For all its faults ancestry is well set and easy to use and yes there are problems with some transcriptions but overall I like it!

Kerry

[sillgen]

I would agree with Kerryb but it does not have much pre 1837 material unless you are very lucky.  Worth every penny though otherwise.    I have not used English Origins much although as a member of the Society of Genealogists I get so much free access per quarter.  I tend to forget about it.   If you can get to London easily then to join the SOG is well worth it as they have a very comprehensive library and most parish records on film or fiche.
I think that on the whole there is not much parish material available on the internet if the particular place is not on the IGI.   You are dependant on local family history groups or individuals if you can't get to the local record office.
Andrea

[kerryb]

Another site I have been using recently a lot, which though patchy can be really good for pre 1837 is the familyhistoryonline.org.

The problem is it varies county to county in coverage.

Kerry

[Gadget]

Ancestry, of course, seems to have the widest coverage but don't discount the  Family History Societies mentioned by sillgen above.

Many of these produce a vast array of booklets and other resources at very resonable prices. Discounts are often available to members and subs are cheap. You will then have access to their local facilities and be sent there regular journals. These journals are also useful. For example, the Dumfries and Galloway FHS sent me a couple of back copies of their journal when I joined and, low and behold, I found, in a section on old newspaper cuttings, the obituary of my great x 3 grandfather. This lead me to find cousins in Canada and I now have a whole collection of family documents.

I belong to about four because of the geographical spread of my ancestors.

Gadget

[yorkshire jen]

I use both Ancestry and Origins. Both have good resources which are easy to use.

I find Ancestry most useful to me - I mainly use it for census info. I found that the databases on Origins tend to relate to alot of London/ southern counties so it hasn't been as useful. Having said that I do use it (including Irish and Scottish resources) more now that I find ancestors further afield. I have found some ancestors on the limited availability of census records on Origins where I haven't found them on Ancestry. Both sites are adding databases so giving new options all the time.

As you go to pre 1837, records online become more scarce, as someone has already highlighted. For these then Origins is probably better but again it depends on which areas of the country you need. 1837 online has added many more databases and can be very useful as is familyhistory online. You might be wise to save your money if all you need is now pre 1837 and plan for record office visits and publications from local family history societies.

All the sites have a description of their databases - have a look and see what would suit you best. I can recommend them all for their content but in different ways. Ancestry usually have free trial periods and I think Origins has subs for 72hr access or similar - these might help you decide if one is more suited to you than the other. Depending on how much you want to do, a months sub working on the areas you need followed by a break collecting a list of "to dos" followed by another month later in the year could be most cost effective. I find that my activity comes in bursts so I could do this, but it is good to dip in anytime you like and I just don't have the patience to wait!!

HTH
Jenny

[Ruskie]

Thank you to all. Your comments have been very helpful.

Andrea - I am in Australia  . Sad thing is I lived in London for years, before I got into this family history lark.

Half of my partners family are from London/ Suffolk/Norfolk/Lincolnshire which is why I thought about origins. Half are from the Liverpool area ..... SO FAR - who knows where I might be led later in the search.

I believe I have had the best luck with my Warwickshire searches, but would like to go back further if possible. Would it be of any benefit for me to join a local history group in that area, given the fact that I could never take full advantage of that membership? What I probably need is parish records.

Jenny I will most likely take your advice and test the various waters before I commit.

Not sure if I have investigated familyhistoryonline ... will check that out too.

I have had a "fiddle" with ancestry (as much as they allow without a subscription) and even though I specified a date range in the 1800's,I seemed to get LOADS of recent material. This bugged me at the time, but it could have well been something I didn't do correctly ... like not reading the instructions ...

Thanks so much for all your help.

[osprey]

I'd agree with Kerryb and Gadget about Familyhistoryonline. You can check what databases it has before paying money and it isn't a subscription, you pay an amount and have some weeks to use it and then top up as and when you need to. It doesn't cost to look things up only to look at the record and it says how many pennies it will cost you - the fewer records, the less it costs - wouldn't recommend it for Jones in Wales unless you already know the dates.  They also remind you when any money left is about to run out which is good of them. It certainly has some coverage pre 1837 for Lincs, Suffolk, Norfolk and Liverpool. Origins has an automatically renewed subscription so you carry on paying if you forget to cancel but you can pay for 72 hours worth of use to see if it would be of use to you or just get as much done as you can.

[Ruskie]

Thanks osprey. I had a bit of a look at familyhistoryonline last night. Looks like it could be useful.