A Skipton pensioner has traced her great great grandmother - and discovered a link to the local canal - after winning a genealogy competition prize.
79 year old Janet Pogson wanted to find out about her mum's great grandmother, Janet Naylor, from whom she was given her name.
Through a 'Who Do You Think You Are?'-style search with Findmypast that she won in a competition - Janet has been able to find out about her relative's life working on the Leeds-Liverpool canal.
Skipton resident Janet had always been fascinated by her family history and her interest was piqued when her great uncle gave her a photo of her x2 great-grandmother – also named Janet and born in 1830. Struggling to discover any information about this ancestor, she applied to Findmypast’s ‘Where will your past take you?’ competition to win a family history experience to solve the mystery. With the help of Findmypast experts, Janet uncovered Janet’s amazing life story.
She was surprised to discover that by 1871 her ancestor had been widowed for the second time and was living aboard the Fire King, listed as its captain – highly unusual for the time. She was further shocked to find out that ten years later in 1881, Janet was on the Queen of Liverpool, moored on the Skipton basin of the canal – just a stone’s throw from her own home today.
Life on the canals would have been hard for the family, with cramped living conditions and no running water. Janet had taken over not only the responsibility for earning her family’s income but had also been left to care for her seven children.
Captains would have received a single wage – regardless of whole families helping out – which was paid by the ton of cargo they delivered not by the hour or week.
Janet also discovered the tragic reality of caring for children on the canals. Her great-grandmother Alice was from Janet’s second marriage, and she learned that Janet had also had a son Richard by her second husband. However, Richard died at the age of just 1 year 9 months, after being hit by a wagon while playing on the towpath.
Experts also found historical newspaper reports recording the death of Janet’s older son Joseph, who drowned on Christmas Eve 1914 in the 19th pool of the Leeds-Liverpool Canal at Ince, having fallen in on the dark and foggy night. Another son - also Richard - died at the age of just 8.
Experts uncovered that Janet eventually died in 1888 at the age of 58 years, after suffering from Bronchitis, possibly developed due to the damp and cold conditions on the boats.
Janet’s story has been documented in a new video by Findmypast, which you can watch below.
Janet Pogson said: “To be able to walk in my 2x great-grandmother's footsteps and find out about her life was a wonderful and emotional experience. She’s always been a mystery but stood out as the most ‘alive’ character in my family tree – perhaps because of the connection with our names.
“Visiting the places where she lived has been exciting and made me feel very connected to Janet – especially the remarkable coincidence of being just 5 minutes away from her mooring at the Skipton Canal Basin. It was moving to find out about the tragedies in Janet’s life, especially Richard, the brother of my great-grandmother Alice, who had been killed so young in a terrible accident.
“I am delighted that my daughter has continued the tradition of the name Janet for her daughter, something that has extra meaning now that we know the stories of the other amazing Janets in our family tree.”
Jen Baldwin, Research Specialist at Findmypast said: "It has been a pleasure to uncover the story of Janet’s ancestor and bring her experiences to life as we followed in her footsteps. The canal has been a focus of life and work for millions of people over the years, and Janet’s ancestors’ experiences show just how fragile and demanding their lives would have been. Our ever-growing collection of records, interconnected tree network, and collection of historical newspapers have been key to solving Janet’s family mystery, and bringing Janet’s unique story to light.
“I’d encourage everyone to start their family tree online fon Findmypast – there are some inspiring and moving stories to be found. Where will your past take you?”
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