Ahnentafel numbers, I am curious ......

I went back and checked - weren't we celebrating his 70th in 2020?

 

Yes, and anyone in their seventies is in their 8th decade, not their 7th.

 

I have never claimed to have great mathematics skills. In fact sometimes they seriously fail me.

 

It sounds better anyway to talk about someone being in their seventies - saying they are in their 8th decade makes them sound so much older.

 

I am also in my 60s but one of my grandparents is in the 1881 census - my paternal grandfather who was born in 1878. He was 41 when my dad was born, and my dad was in his mid 30s when I arrived. It must be fairly common for such generational gaps to appear.

My paternal grandmother was born in May 1881, so just missed the 1881 census, and my maternal grandparents were both born in 1897. So all my grandparents are in the 1901 census.

 

I am a couple of years younger than Peter.
My maternal grandparents were born in 1884 and 1886, my paternal grandparents were born in 1884 and 1890.
So they were all on the 1891 census. My father was born in 1910, so he was on the 1911 census.

 

My grandparents were born in 1852, 1854, 1855 and 1856 and all are in the 1881 census as married couples.

 

Definitely, since I will be 80 this year, saying I will be in my 9th decade is just too much. My grandparents (born in 1886 and 1887) had 8 children (two childless), and 19 grandchildren, the eldest will be 80 next Thursday and I am next. They are both on the 1891 and 1901 U.K. census', both still single but by 1911 they were both in Canada but separately, still single, although Grandma was married and widowed while still in England, between 1901 and 1911.

 

Oh help - I am half way through my 9th decade and could easily be Jorghes' grandmother!

 

I am not a lover of pedantry at the best of times, and especially when I cannot but agree with those making pedantic observations. In the argument of why a 70 year old becoming a Septuagenarian ("SEPT "=7) should be entering his/her Octogenarian ("OCT"=8) DECADE makes little sense; even though factually true. At one time I would not have accepted it myself, and I know from debates (often developing as arguments) with family and friends, it is one of the most difficult things for people to get their head around.

My wife helped me at one such time by saying it was like a baby reaching its first birthday; it was now entering its second year of life (though still being recorded as 1 something or other). This led to the understanding that someone reaching his/her 10th birthday was now entering a second decade. That just about got the message across but not everyone was convinced and some still regarded me as a pedantic smart Alec. This was of course unfair but sadly the lot we have to bear when correcting others.

 

Pedantry might also be described as attention to detail - an essential attribute in some jobs, and also surely for family historians?

 

My father was born in 1904, both his parents were born in 1884. My maternal grandfather was born in May 1881, just too late for the 1881 census, and my grandmother in 1883. My highest Ahnentafel number is 120

 

An example of a 'slipped' generation is my first cousin once removed who, like Peter, celebrated his 70th birthday last year, so only slightly older than me (and almost 30 years younger than my mother, his first cousin). His father was born in 1906, the youngest of 8 children (my grandfather was one of his older brothers) and his grandfather was born in 1862.

 

I have my 4 grandparents first appearing, rather neatly, in 1881/91/1901/11. And as for ahnentafel numbers I have 3 in the 200s just making it into the 1841 census. All odd numbers too (female) not surprisingly. When I typed them into this message they didn't seem quite right! A task for this evening, double checking the numbers.

 

All double checked and correct! The 3 ahnentafel numbers are 237,241 & 243, my 5 x great grandmothers. The oldest was baptised in 1766.

 

On my father's side of the family I'm still struggling with one great grandfather's name change. On my mother's side I can't be certain that I've identified the Irish roots of my six great grandparents born in Ireland and all migrating to London by the 1840's. However I'm continuing to identify more recent distant cousins which in some cases is quite sad because I never knew hardly any of them in the 1940's to 1960's when I was still living in the UK.

 

I'm a newbie at this LC m'larky, but so far as I can tell my lowest number is 2 (my Father born in 1909) and my highest are 336/337 - he was a flour miller in Devon born 1771. Yep I'm an oldie but still working - at least part-time that is!