The Kinship of Strangers

Members of the popular UK-based RootsChat genealogy forum have found a new way to fuel their addiction for genealogy. When their own family trails reach a roadblock, they take some time out to research a stranger.

The RootsChat monthly challenge presents a randomly selected individual from the 1881 UK census, and the participants are tasked with finding out as much as possible about the mystery person within the next four weeks. The challenge results in hundreds of postings, including numerous facts and, sometimes, even photographs.

Censuswhacking is another fun game played by the RootsChat members. They search for a first name, surname or occupation that appears only once in a given census (in the transcribed index). The results are often hilarious - names like Spud Murphey and Sherwood Forest, plus an occupation listed as "living on condensed milk."

Read the full article by Rob Liddle on this new interesting pastime at BBC, or check out RootsChat.com for yourself. It's a great site!