WELCOME TO THE BAYLISS LINE. This blog has been created for my family. By "my family" I mean all those who are related to the Bayliss family either by blood, marriage or even relationship. There are, of course, other Bayliss families not related to us but this blog has at its heart a very specific family who had their origins in Gloucestershire. I am connected to that family because my mother was a Bayliss and it was her curiosity that started my research back in the early 1990's. So, what are you likely to see on this blog? Well, as it is a blog, I want it to be as entertaining as possible rather that a dry listing of facts (that is for Ancestry.com). I will, hopefully, be posting entries on our ancestors and relatives, on the places where they lived, and the historical times they lived through. I have an extensive collection of photographs of people and places which I will, of course, be sharing.

I'd like to ask anybody who reads this blog to give me some feedback. I'd really like this to be a two way thing. It sometimes unearths new information and, to be honest, it gives me encouragement. There will be two ways of providing feedback - either through the comment button (you will need a Google account for this) or via the e-mail address which appears on this page - alternatively, ring me. Now scroll down to read the latest entries.....and, of course, via Facebook.

Monday, 4 June 2012

TREASURE FOUND

One of the real joys of researching our family story is the discovery of rare photographs. For many years I searched for a picture of the mysterious "Uncle Dick" my grand mother's second husband. Just as I was beginning to think I'd never find one, cousin Alvin found that he'd had one all the time. I particularly wanted to find a picture of the Highgate Empire, the first cinema I ever visited. I happened to mention this to a friend who helps run the White Bus film club in Southend and he came up with one within days so I was able to share it with you in my article on Holloway Road in our companion blog DOWN THESE STREETS.  Again it was Alvin who discovered on the internet some wonderful pictures taken from the top of The Archway Tower in the sixties which showed such streets as Annesly Road and Anatola Road, which were so important to our family story. Cousin Bern in New Zealand posted a very rare picture of my grandmother (his great grandmother) on the internet.  My recent visit to Upper Holloway uncovered a wonderful picture of the Archway area taken from the air in 1934! which will be appearing on DOWN THESE STREETS very soon.  I continually find photographs in my own collection which, although familiar to me, take on new significance as my research reveals more of our history.  Over the past few years many of you have been kind enough to share photos with me - Alvin, Sue, Sandra, Carol, Bern and Peggy.

The reason I am writing about this now is that today I received from cousin Alva some very rare pictures. They arrive just in time so that I will be able to share them with you when I write my article about Alva and Alvin's dad, Arthur, in a couple of weeks. Alvin has already shared with me some wonderful photos but what was missing were any pictures of Morton's Fish Shop which Arthur managed for many years. Now, thanks to Alva, we have not only a picture of the shop but four other pictures showing Arthur in the shop with the fish and  members of his staff!   Well done Alva!

Who knows what other gems will turn up in the future.
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