Currently accepting clients for...

• Family History Research
• Writing /Publishing

I am an experienced and professional genealogist covering modern-day Cumbria and Lancashire: in other words, the historic counties of Westmorland, Cumberland and Lancashire.

Qualified with an MA (Merit) in English Local History, I have been researching family histories for over twenty years and love the buzz of excitement involved in tracking generations of families through time, in particular solving genealogical problems and dismantling brick walls where client's research has come to a frustrating halt.

I specialise in the lives of ordinary people between the seventeenth and twentieth centuries. My MA dissertation was an indepth genealogical investigation into a working-class family from Haslingden, Lancashire. I am currently researching and writing a book about the upstairs and downstairs household of an Edwardian Manchester industrialist's Lake District country home.

I am also an experienced oral historian. I have been trained by the Oral History Society in interviewing, editing and archiving recordings. I have managed projects for the National Trust and the Woodland Trust, as well as interviewing many private clients. Oral histories are a wonderful way of preserving treasured memories for future generations.

My excellent analytical, research and problem-solving skills continue to develop through further study, currently the Pharos Tutoring & Society of Genealogists Courses in Family History Skills and Strategies.

I am a Member of the Society of Genealogists, Cumbria Past, Lancashire Ancestors, Oral History Society, British Association of Local History (BALH), British Agricultural History Society (BAHS), and a Friend of the Regional Heritage Centre at Lancaster University.

Geographic Specialities
The county of Westmorland
East Lancashire

Testimonials
I have been researching my family tree for many years and consider myself fairly adept at accessing genealogical information. However, one particular line had always eluded me. I gave Helena a few facts and within a couple of hours she had discovered the records that open up this apparent dead end, enabling me to extend this line back several generations. Helena’s research skills are complemented by a genuine passion for history and, in particular, local history, and this is evident in how she presents her findings for the client. I felt she had a real interest in the people I asked her to research, and that made the whole process feel much more personal. -HK, Worcester

Working with Helena tracing my family tree has been such a wonderful experience. I was just hoping for names and dates but I was given real people and fascinating stories, which put my place within my family history into context. Her ability to draw out such fine details, tales of bravery and triumph, and to interweave them into the weft of time and place really is extraordinary. She was even able to show me photographs of my great, great, great grandfather. The difference I have found with Helena is that she cares about the families she is researching and has an insatiable appetite for information and evidence. She can show you that there is no such thing as an ordinary family. - MC, Burton-in-Lonsdale

Thank you for compiling all the information about our family’s ancestry, I’ve really enjoyed seeing your results. You’ve recorded the information so clearly, and have been so thorough – it’s been really easy to follow your research. Thank you so much! - JS, Sidcup

Publications/Media
Facilitator and Editor: 'Lives and Times of Smithills Estate' (Bolton: SERG, 2022)

Repositories
Lancashire Archives, Cumbria Archives (Kendal, Barrow, Carlisle, Whitehaven), The National Archives (London), various museum and small repositories

Research Time Periods

• 19th Century
• 18th Century
• 17th Century
• 16th Century and Earlier

Languages
English

Degrees
BA (Hons) Art History and Creative Writing (1st Class)
MA English Local History (Merit)