Saturday 28 May 2011

Even less to do with Genealogy


This was sent to me by a friend. It's not new, but in view of the defence cutbacks etc in the UK and the money we are spending on Libya it is quite relevant. It represents a very cynical view of what goes on in the Civil Service

A Vision of the future - It's 2038. HMS Indefensible has been handed over to the Royal Navy...

Today in a grand ceremony at Portsmouth dockyard HMS Indefensible was commissioned into the Royal Navy. Described as the most stealthy warship in the world, she is now the only vessel in the Royal Navy and replaces 2 mothballed aircraft carriers, 6 destroyers and 4 submarines. Responding to criticism about the shrinking fleet, the MoD replied "It's not about numbers, it's about quality not quantity. HMS Indefensible represents a revolution in naval procurement, stealthy, light and agile she will provide a highly flexible platform. She is invisible to radar and almost immune to torpedo or missile attack. Her shallow draft makes her ideal for work in the littoral (coastal) areas. She is also highly efficient with virtually zero carbon emissions and zero fuel consumption "
Admiral Sir James Bland added "She is ready to respond instantly to events and can be deployed to trouble spots anywhere in the world. The RAF have promised to fly her to wherever she's needed provided (1)They are not busy (2)The weather is OK (3)There is a large airfield provided by a friendly foreign nation close by".
Constructed by Britain 's only ship builder BVATe Systems in Birmingham , taking 8 years to build, and costing just £1.5 Billion she is a triumph of British engineering. Her forward section was built in China in 2 weeks and then shipped to the UK . The forward section was then joined to the stern built in Birmingham and the complex technical systems installed. However the programme was not all plain sailing and has not been without its problems "The original design included an outboard motor but early in the building process the Treasury insisted cost savings had to be made so out went the motor. After some time spent on computer-modelling and research we selected oars" said a BVATe spokesperson.
Although £1.2 Billion over-budget and 3 years late, Secretary of State for Defence, William Bragg says we can all be proud "The Type 48 programme has sustained 10,000 British manufacturing jobs in addition to 30,000 civil servants in the MoD project team. She will represent the leading edge of British manufacturing wherever she goes and is worth every penny" Bragg is also says he is hoping to see export orders soon although as yet there has been little interest.
Some observers have commented that her lack of any armament could be a problem but the MoD answered robustly "The Foreign Office advised us that carrying weapons can be seen as provocative and that actually firing a weapon at someone would definitely infringe their human rights. We considered this advice at an early stage in the design process and together with the fabulous cost-savings, the case for having no armament was overwhelming".
Her commanding officer, Commander Rupert Tubworthy-Pollock said "To be selected from the 1,200 officers still serving in the RN for the only seagoing command available is a great privilege. Bringing her out of build and into commission has been a huge challenge but I'm confident she will prove to be a great asset".
With a crew of just 2, she is a fine example of lean-manning, reducing running costs and lessening the RN's recruitment headaches. Her crew, AB "soapy" Watson said "On my last ship I had to share the mess with 40 other men but on the new Type 48 sharing is far a less of a problem. As I'm now the only rating in the Royal Navy I have a lot of responsibility".
HMS Indefensible is expected to complete sea trials shortly, go to Plymouth for Operational Sea Training, have a short refit in Rosyth and then and be deployed as part of the new Euro-Navy task force.
Today in a grand ceremony at Portsmouth dockyard HMS Indefensible was commissioned into the Royal Navy. Described as the most stealthy warship in the world, she is now the only vessel in the Royal Navy and replaces 2 mothballed aircraft carriers, 6 destroyers and 4 submarines. Responding to criticism about the shrinking fleet, the MoD replied "It's not about numbers, it's about quality not quantity. HMS Indefensible represents a revolution in naval procurement, stealthy, light and agile she will provide a highly flexible platform. She is invisible to radar and almost immune to torpedo or missile attack. Her shallow draft makes her ideal for work in the littoral (coastal) areas. She is also highly efficient with virtually zero carbon emissions and zero fuel consumption "
Admiral Sir James Bland added "She is ready to respond instantly to events and can be deployed to trouble spots anywhere in the world. The RAF have promised to fly her to wherever she's needed provided (1)They are not busy (2)The weather is OK (3)There is a large airfield provided by a friendly foreign nation close by".
Constructed by Britain 's only ship builder BVATe Systems in Birmingham , taking 8 years to build, and costing just £1.5 Billion she is a triumph of British engineering. Her forward section was built in China in 2 weeks and then shipped to the UK . The forward section was then joined to the stern built in Birmingham and the complex technical systems installed. However the programme was not all plain sailing and has not been without its problems "The original design included an outboard motor but early in the building process the Treasury insisted cost savings had to be made so out went the motor. After some time spent on computer-modelling and research we selected oars" said a BVATe spokesperson.
Although £1.2 Billion over-budget and 3 years late, Secretary of State for Defence, William Bragg says we can all be proud "The Type 48 programme has sustained 10,000 British manufacturing jobs in addition to 30,000 civil servants in the MoD project team. She will represent the leading edge of British manufacturing wherever she goes and is worth every penny" Bragg is also says he is hoping to see export orders soon although as yet there has been little interest.
Some observers have commented that her lack of any armament could be a problem but the MoD answered robustly "The Foreign Office advised us that carrying weapons can be seen as provocative and that actually firing a weapon at someone would definitely infringe their human rights. We considered this advice at an early stage in the design process and together with the fabulous cost-savings, the case for having no armament was overwhelming".
Her commanding officer, Commander Rupert Tubworthy-Pollock said "To be selected from the 1,200 officers still serving in the RN for the only seagoing command available is a great privilege. Bringing her out of build and into commission has been a huge challenge but I'm confident she will prove to be a great asset".
With a crew of just 2, she is a fine example of lean-manning, reducing running costs and lessening the RN's recruitment headaches. Her crew, AB "soapy" Watson said "On my last ship I had to share the mess with 40 other men but on the new Type 48 sharing is far a less of a problem. As I'm now the only rating in the Royal Navy I have a lot of responsibility".
HMS Indefensible is expected to complete sea trials shortly, go to Plymouth for Operational Sea Training, have a short refit in Rosyth and then and be deployed as part of the new Euro-Navy task force.

Nothing to do with Genealogy

Someone sent me this today. For us that are from the "older" generation it all rings true

Ain't it a shame that WE were not GREEN when we were kids?

In the line at the store, the cashier told the older woman that she should bring her own grocery bag because plastic bags weren't good for the environment. 
The woman apologised to him and explained, “We didn't have the green thing back in my day."
 

The clerk responded, "That's our problem today.  The former generation did not care enough to save our environment."
 
He was right, that generation didn't have the green thing in its day.  Back then, they returned their milk bottles, soft drink bottles and beer bottles to the store.  The store sent them back to the plant to be washed and sterilised and refilled, so it could use the same bottles over and over. So they really were recycled.
 
But they didn't have the green thing back in that customer's day.
 
In her day, they walked up stairs, because they didn't have an escalator in every store and office building. They walked to the grocery store and didn't climb into a 300-horsepower machine every time they had to go two blocks.
 
But she was right. They didn't have the green thing in her day.
 
Back then, they washed the baby's nappies because they didn't have the throw-away kind. They dried clothes on a line, not in an energy gobbling machine burning up 240 volts - wind and solar power really did dry the clothes.  Kids got hand-me-down clothes from their brothers or sisters, not always brand-new clothing.
But that old lady is right; they didn't have the green thing back in her day.
 
Back then, they had one TV, or radio, in the house - not a TV in every room.  And the TV had a small screen the size of a handkerchief, not a screen the size of the wall ..
In the kitchen, they blended and stirred by hand because they didn't have electric machines to do everything for you.
  When they packaged a fragile item to send in the mail, they used a wadded up old newspaper to cushion it, not styrofoam or plastic bubble wrap.
 

Back then, they didn't fire up an engine and burn petrol just to cut the lawn. They used a push mower that ran on human power.  They exercised by working so they didn't need to go to a health club to run on treadmills that operate on electricity.
 

But she's right; they didn't have the green thing back then.

They drank from a
bubbler when they were thirsty instead of using a cup or a plastic bottle every time they had a drink of water.  They refilled their writing pens with ink instead of buying a new pen, and they replaced the razor blades in a razor instead of throwing away the whole razor just because the blade got dull.
 

But they didn't have the green thing back then.

Back then, people took the
train or a bus and kids rode their bikes to school or walked instead of turning their mums into a 24-hour taxi service.  They had one electrical outlet in a room, not an entire bank of sockets to power a dozen appliances.  And they didn't need a computerised gadget to receive a signal beamed from satellites 2,000 miles out in space in order to find the nearest pizza joint.

But isn't it sad the current generation laments how wasteful the old folks
were just because they didn't have the green thing back then?

Thursday 26 May 2011

My Paternal Family

My father’s paternal grandparents Joseph & Leah Balsom came to England about 1888/89 from a part of Russia that is now in Poland. They were probably already married when they left Russia. The reason for leaving Russia was probably due to the “pogroms” against the Jews.

Leah was born Leah Malnick and was born about 1863. Joseph was born about 1862.

The surname Balsom was traced from the 1891, 1901 and 1911 censuses, but I can find no other reference to this surname, although some children were registered with it. My father never mentioned it and I don’t think he was aware of it.

On 23 May 1890 Joseph and Leah had their first child, Harry who is my grandfather. The birth was registered as Harry Balzum. The family were living at 14 Nottingham Place, Mile End.

At the time of the 1891 Census, which was held on the 5th April, the family was living at 11 Anna Place, Whitechapel, above a Furniture shop. Joseph’s employment is shown as “Carpenter”.

In 1892, Ada Belson was born in Whitechapel
In 1895, Sarah Bulsom was born in Whitechapel
In 1897, Fanny Balsom was born in Whitechapel
In 1901, Myer (David) Balsom was born in Stepney

At the time of the 1901 Census, which was held on the 31st March, the family was living at 110 Stepney Green Buildings, Stepney. Joseph’s employment is shown as “Cabinet Maker”.

In 1902, Rose Bolsam was born in Stepney
In 1903, Eve Balsom was born in Stepney
In 1905, Pincus Balsom was born in Stepney
In 1907, Annie Bellson was born in Stepney

At the time of the 1911 Census, which was held on the 2nd April, the family was living at 30 Dunstan Houses, Stepney. Joseph’s employment is shown as “Cabinet Maker”. Harry is also shown as a Cabinet Maker, Ada as a Clerk/Bookkeeper and Sarah as an Underclothing Machinist. The rest of the children are shown as Schoolchildren except for Annie who was only 4 years old.

Wednesday 18 May 2011

Surnames the end

The next batch of surnames relating to direct ancestors, covers N - Z

Penha – de la Penha – the line starts with Franciscus Fernandez de la Penha born 1550 in Spain. He is Diane’s 10 x great grandfather.

Pereira – this line starts with Isaac Pereira who was probably born about 1780. He is Diane’s 3 x great grandfather.

Printsman – this line starts with Jacob Isaac Printsman possibly born in France in about 1770. He is Diane’s 3 x great grandfather.

Robart – this line starts with Diane’s dad Max who changed the family name from Rubinstein in about 1950.

Rodrigues-Ribera/Ribeiro – this line starts with Abraham Rodriques-Ribera born about 1700. He is Diane’s 6 x great grandfather.

Rodrigues – this line starts (and ends) with Bianca Rodriques born about 1587 in Argentina. She is Diane’s 9 x great grandmother.

Rubinstein – this line starts with Diane’s paternal great grandfather David Rubinstein who was born in Russia and came to England in about 1880.

Singer – this line starts (and ends) with Diane’s paternal grandmother Minnie Singer who was born in Russia and came to England in about 1880.

Tubi – this line starts with Abraham Tubi who was born in Livorno, Italy in 1670. He is Diane’s 6 x great grandfather.

Walbaum – this line starts with Woolf Walbaum born in Russia in about 1850. He is my maternal great grandfather.

Tuesday 17 May 2011

Surnames Continued

The next batch of surnames relating to direct ancestors, covers I - M

Isaacs – this line starts with John Isaacs born in London in 1796. He is Diane’s 2 x great grandfather.

Joshua – this line starts (and ends) with Eve Joshua who married John Isaacs (see above) in the Hambro Synagogue, London in 1819. She is Diane’s 2 x great grandmother.

Levy – this line starts with Yehuda Levy born about 1780. He is Diane’s 3 x greatgrandfather.

Malnick – this line starts (and ends) with Leah Malnick born in Russia in about 1863. She married my great grandfather Joseph Balsom in about 1888 probably before they came to England.

Martin - Martines – Nunes Martines – this line starts with Jose Nunes Martinez who was born 1690 and was married in Bevis Marks in 1711. He is Diane’s 6 x greatgrandfather.

Mendoza – de Mendoza- Mendosa – this line starts with Patriarch de Mendoza born about 1624 in Seville, Spain. He is Diane’s 8 x great grandfather.

Miller – this line starts (and ends) with Yetta Miller born in Russia in about 1858. She married my great grandfather Solomon Godalski in about 1877 before they came to England.

Mizrahi – this line starts (and ends) with Palmona Mizrahi who married Abraham Rodriques-Ribera. She is Diane’s 6 x great grandmother.