How soon we forget! Genealogy research has never been free. Before Scotlandspeoples site, the only way to get your data, without being in Scotland, was to go to an LDS Family History Library and sit at a microfiche or microfilm reader for hours looking at photocopied records. It cost three dollars to have a microfilm brought in, and three hours to read it. Ayrshire records required three films for each years births, three for deaths, and three for marriages. I read all the years from 1855 - 1875, plus a few others as available. You do the math, that is $540.00 dollars, plus 540 hours of reading, plus your driving time to get there. And let us not forget the hours spent reading microfiche copies of the OPR's. I for one was thrilled when Scotlandspeoples website was made available. I was able to search my names of interest from the comfort of my own home at much less expenditure of time, and considerably less money. I have baulked at the cost of Amazon.com, but have found records there I would never have uncovered on my own. My parents emigrated to Canada in 1923 when they were still single, and I had all that data. I knew they had gone back to Scotland for a visit before their marriage, but had no dates. Imagine my pleasure, and surprise, to find the records of not only that trip, but of an earlier one my father made of which I was not aware. So the point is, family history research is a great hobby with much pleasure derived for not only you, but all your extended family. But it is not, and has never been free of cost. George M. McCaig Burlington, Ontario. Sent from my iPad

Also we are lucky to be researching Scottish records - I've started researching my OH's family who are almost all in England, and for every stage you need to order the relevant certificate, at considerable cost (especially if you've come across the wrong person -and there's a high chance as all you can see online is the index). Scotlandspeople is such a blessing!!! Louise On 18 March 2013 14:54, George McCaig <[email protected]> wrote: > > How soon we forget! > > Genealogy research has never been free. Before Scotlandspeoples site, the > only way to get your data, without being in Scotland, was to go to an LDS > Family History Library and sit at a microfiche or microfilm reader for > hours looking at photocopied records. It cost three dollars to have a > microfilm brought in, and three hours to read it. Ayrshire records required > three films for each years births, three for deaths, and three for > marriages. I read all the years from 1855 - 1875, plus a few others as > available. You do the math, that is $540.00 dollars, plus 540 hours of > reading, plus your driving time to get there. And let us not forget the > hours spent reading microfiche copies of the OPR's. > > I for one was thrilled when Scotlandspeoples website was made available. I > was able to search my names of interest from the comfort of my own home at > much less expenditure of time, and considerably less money. I have baulked > at the cost of Amazon.com, but have found records there I would never have > uncovered on my own. > > My parents emigrated to Canada in 1923 when they were still single, and I > had all that data. I knew they had gone back to Scotland for a visit before > their marriage, but had no dates. Imagine my pleasure, and surprise, to > find the records of not only that trip, but of an earlier one my father > made of which I was not aware. > > So the point is, family history research is a great hobby with much > pleasure derived for not only you, but all your extended family. But it is > not, and has never been free of cost. > > George M. McCaig > Burlington, Ontario. > > > Sent from my iPad > > > > ------------------------------- > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to > [email protected] with the word 'unsubscribe' without the > quotes in the subject and the body of the message >

Anyone who is loathe to pay, can go the tedious route. I began 30 years ago, sitting at a table in the George Peabody Library in Baltimore, Maryland, with pencil and paper, reading through nearly 100 volumes of extracts of marriages, baptisms, and testaments published by the Scottish Record Society. Today, at least you can sit in the comfort of your home and find many of those volumes in .pdf form at Google Books and perhaps elsewhere online. Like many of my fellow Scottish genealogists, I tremendously appreciate scotlandspeople.gov.uk, and I do not see that there would be any justice in having taxpayer dollars fund my genealogical pursuits. It's only right that the people using the service pay for them. Loretta (Lynn) Layman