Celebrating the Society for One-Place Studies’ 10th Anniversary

Did you know that this is the 10th Anniversary of the founding of the Society for One-Place Studies? “All About That Place” is a unique free challenge event celebrating this milestone. It is a joint venture between ourselves, The Society of Genealogists, Genealogy Stories and The British Association for Local History.

Are you already doing a one-place study and would like to immerse yourself in the wonderful world of one-place studies? Have you ever thought of starting a one-place study but weren’t sure where to start? Would you like to discover more about the places your ancestors lived in? If the answer to any of those questions is yes, this event is for you!

This event will last for 10 days (Friday 22 September to Sunday 1 October) to ensure that everyone has a couple of weekends to catch up. There will be a range of speakers (all of whom have kindly donated their time to help us celebrate!) delivering over 100 bite-sized talks; a new 10-15 minute talk will be released roughly every hour between 7am and 9pm UK time. The brief nature of each talk is designed to give you plenty of inspiration and information about a wide range of topics but in a manageable way. I suppose you could think of it as being a bit like a RootsTech for one-place studies!

The talks are pre-recorded and will be posted in the event’s Facebook group and on YouTube so they will be available for you to watch at a time to suit you over the duration of the event; some may be available for longer. As well as the talks, there will be an optional workbook to complete which will guide you through the various aspects of one-place studies. Participants will also be in with a chance of winning various prizes such as 1-year membership to the Society of Genealogists, the Curious Descendants Club, the Society for One-Place Studies, BALH, Name & Place, a discount on The Genealogist’s Diamond subscription, and 4 Historic Towns maps.

If you’re already a one-placer, I don’t need to tell you about the joys of one-place studies and local history. You’ll know that studying a place and its people gives you a unique insight that you’re unlikely to find in any book or website. You’ll get to know the people your ancestors knew, who lived in your street, or who lived in your place. You’ll see those personal connections leaping out of documents and you’ll be able to piece them together like a jigsaw. You’ll discover who they bought their food from, who looked after them when they were ill, where they worked and where they went to school. The camaraderie and support of the one-place studies community is amazing and its passion for the subject is infectious! If you haven’t already started a one-place study, I guarantee that by the end of this event, you’ll be sorely tempted!

Why not start joining in the conversation on social media? The Society for One-Place Studies currently has a presence on Facebook, Twitter/X, Instagram, Mastodon, T2 and BlueSky. On those platforms where hashtags work, we’re using #AllAboutThatPlace and #OnePlace for the event and of course our usual #OnePlaceStudies and #OnePlaceStudy.

You can find out more about All About That Place and sign up for updates here: https://www.subscribepage.com/allaboutthatplace

Join the All About That Place Facebook group here:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/allaboutthatplace

Articles for Destinations with a theme of ‘10’

The next issue of our fabulous journal ’Destinations’ has the number 10 as its theme, in honour of our anniversary. From our editor, Karen Bailey:
The deadline is 31st August. This issue is a special one as it’s the Society’s 10th anniversary! So we’d especially invite any articles to do with the number 10 – even if it’s quite tangentially related! Did something happen in your Place in 1810, 1910, etc? Was there someone who did something famously 10 times? Do you have an interesting story from a house at number 10 in a street in your Place? Do you have any famous 10-year-old mysteries? If you’ve been running your One-Place Study for 10 years, what advice would you give your past-self? Or if you haven’t, what are your 10-year goals or your Study?

If you would like to contribute an article to the next issue, if you’ve got any articles written, half-written, or if you have just an idea of something to write then please get in touch!

If you have any photos from your Place then please also get in touch as we’re looking for cover stars for future issues too!