RJ1611

@rfj1611.bsky.social

432 Followers 323 Following

Genealogist & family historian, studying with the IHGS | 17th century & British/English Civil Wars researcher | Biographer of ECW painter William Dobson | currently cataloguing 1640s British portraits | Loves Jack Russells, tea and peanut butter

From the London PCC will of Thomas Hayne, 1645. "Item I give and bequeath all my other books whatsoever not above mentioned and bequeathed to the Chaier and Aldermen and Corporation of Lester to bee kept and defended[?] forever in a publique library there already made or to bee made hereafter. Item I give for and towards the carryinge of my said bookes to this said library fower pounds. "
An almost illegible and faded baptism entry from a 1642 London parish register.
Screenshot from a UK garden birds identifier site. It shows an image of a small bird with a white and light brown back, a white head with a black band circling it, and a red band around its eyes. It is identified as a blackbird.
"One Yellow Eye" by Leigh Radford. The image is of a thick paperback book, standing at an angle on a white background. The book is yellow and the title and author name are in red. In the middle of the cover is a wide open black and white eye with long lashes, looking at the viewer through a circular frame.
Screenshot from art website 1st Dibs, describing a portrait of a 17th century lady. "Portrait of a Lady, Frances Bard (1646-1702) Mistress of Prince Rupert von de Pfalz, Duke of Cumberland (1619-1882).
The spine of a large, 19th century dark blue hardback copy of "The Calendar of the Committee for Compounding, &c. Domestic, 1643-1660 Part III." The lettering is in gold.
Close up of a small black digital thermometer sitting on a bird feed tray in a garden. The temperature showing is 44 degrees celsius.
Screenshot of an Ancestry page fail. It should be loading an 18th century will, instead it just loads a blank white page.
Front cover of The Doors of Eden by Adrian Tchaikovsky. A rear silhouette of a human in the distance stands in a barren landscape, framed by tall stone-like pillars, and a huge moon illuminated in the sky ahead.
A large black stag beetle sitting on a wooden log. His head and pincers are raised.
A BBC news article with the headline: "Brazil woman dies afer rope-jumping instructors fail to attach cord." There is an image of a long pillared stone bridge, with the caption "The "Skeleton Bridge" where people rope-jump from in Ponte de Esqueleto, Brazil."
Excerpt from the will of Richard Holman, Surrey, 1653. (Prob 11 / Piece 230, source: Ancestry) "___unto Jane my most loveinge and wellbeloved wife: for my said wife which is next and above all things in the world dearest unto mee. I should be unthankeful to God if I should not acknowledge her to be the greatest of all his temporall blessings to mee. And I should bee unworthy of soe greate a blessinge if I did not thinke her worthy of all I have donne shall doe or cann doe for her which as for her sake I wish it were more soe I desire her for my sake to accept __ that which proceedeth from an husband that both hartily loves her and really valueth her merritt..."
An entry from the 1921 UK census (Wigan) for what looks like 'Bibe Jones, Head.'
The front cover of the hardback book "Living Planet - The Web of Life on Earth" by David Attenborough. The cover is a dark muddy green with a yellowy green leaf being held by a red ant on a thin tree branch.
Two knights on horseback are holding red lances. One man is on a black horse with a long red saddle cloth and the knight's insiginia of a white shield with three stars above and a red heart below. The other is on a black horse with red and yellow diagonal stripes. Both men were tabards matching their horse's emblems. They stand together but facing away from us on grass, with tall green trees ahead and blue sky above.
A small green toy frog wearing a red backpack, sitting on a cream coloured sun lounger on the deck of a cruise ship. He is looking at a white Kobo ereader in front of him, open to a page of text. Around him are polished wooden deck planks, rigging, railings & a beautiful blue sky with a few clouds.
A white swan with an orange beak paddles sedately along through a patch of blue green ocean, a few ripples circle it. The view fades to white in the distance (the sun was going down) so all you see is the swam framed by ocean.
A small harbour cove near a town on a hillside with white houses and teracotta roof tiles. Small boats and sailing boats are moored on the left, on a calm blue sea. In the distance behind the hills continue back, covered with treee and the odd house. The sky is stripes of blue and white.
Cutting from the Birmingham Daily Times, Wednesday March 14th 1888. "WARWICKSHIRE ASSIZES - FIRST COURT.- Before Baron HUDDLESTON. PENAL SERVITUDE WELL EARNED. Jane Henny (65), labourer, was found guilty of having committed a criminal offence upon Nellie Preece, four years of age, at Nuneaton, on December 31st Inst. Mr. Fitzgerald prosecuted. Henny being undefended. - The details of the case were of the most disgusting nature. Prisoner made the child drunk and afterwards outraged her. - In sentencing the prisoner his lordship dwelt upon the enormity of the offence, more especially having regard to his age. The sentence was on of ten years' penal servitude."
A screenshot from the Nintendo game Animal Crossing, showing a girl with purple hair in a bun, wearing a greenish long sleeved shirt, standing with her back to us in a garishly decorated living room, while the owner, a turquoise cow named Naomi, wearing a pink wide brimmed summer hat and a green cardigan, says "Would you say that my home reflects who I am as a cow?"
A self portrait of 17th century painter William Dobson. It is a head and shoulders portrait against a plain dark background, wearing a black doublet with a white high collar. He has curly black or dark brown hair and a moustache. He looks directly at the viewer. It has a square gold frame.
A sleeping female springer spaniel with a black face, with a white strip between her eyes and across her freckled nose. She lies on a green blanket in a red leather armchair. She is resting her head on a yellow toy duck.
Two young acorn sprouts in a dark blue plastic flower pot, currently indoors while they grow strong enough to plant out. The pot stands against a white wall. The plants are about 5 inches tall and already have mini oak leaves on display.
Clipping from the Bradford Daily Argus newspaper, Bradford, Yorkshire, 26 December 1908. It reads: "Two American acronauts fell, in a burst balloon, from the clouds, 2900 feet high, into a lady's boudoir. They were not hurt."
A black and white head and shoulders photo of a young white woman with dark shoulder length curls around her rounded face, smiling slightly at the camera against a dark background. She wears what looks like a kind of peasant blouse with flowery pattern on the chest and neck. She was a teenager here, just before Allied bombing and firestorms destroyed her hometown and her house one night and she became an internally displaced refugee in Germany.
A pink wafer biscuit lies at the bottom of a white mug on a granite kitchen slab.
A self portrait by William Dobson (1611-1646). Head and shoulders, turned slightly to his right but head turned to the viewer. He wears a black tunic with a short white collar tied at the throat. He has a moustache and small beard, curly brown hair at just above shoulder length, brown eyes and full lips. The background is a plain dark brown.
Screen shot of a man a woman in what looks like a hotel room, from a BBC News Online article. The headline reads "Honeymoon couple's hotel shook by missile strike."
An AI generated picture from Rightmove showing three grey stone new-build houses, with black slate roofing, set in a spacious plot each with nice driveways and ranch-style fencing to the front.
A white springer spaniel with a black face and ears stands with her front paws inside a half ripped up cardboard box on a living room carpet. She is staring unimpressed at the camera.
A small oval white sign with a red dotted border and the words "Please NO COLD CALLING Thank you". It is on a brick wall next to a gold coloured bell-push.
A screen clipping from the parish register of Henley on Thames, St Mary, 1558-1734, dated January 1642. "This day buried six souldiers, whereof four were slaine with the discharging of a canon, as they marched up Duck Street to assault the town." [Duck Street is probably what is now Duke Street].
A mostly-white female spaniel with brown ears lies draped over the back of a red leather sofa, next to a window looking onto a garden scene. Her fluffy tail hangs down and she is looking lazily at the camera. It is her favourite birdwatching spot.
A blond girl in a red coat, blue boots a pink headband stands on a rock near a small white boat. aot has a red flag and a lifering in the bow. A green frog like character in a yellow hat sits in the boat with his back to us. Behind the girl is an island covered in snow, cliffs and peach trees. She is raging and saying "MORE F*ING SNOW???"
A white springer spaniel with black ears, black over her eyes, a white streak down the middle and a white nose with freckles. She lies facing the camera, lazily draped on the back of a high leather armchair, one front leg hanging down the side. To the left you can see a wood parquet floor with pieces missing.
A sepia postcard photo of a soldier in early 20th century British military uniform. He is standing in front of a photographic studio background screen. He has long service stripes on his left sleeve, and his cap lies on a tall narrow square table on spindly legs. The cap badge is Kings Royal Rifles Regiment. His right hand rest on the table near it. He is an older man, in his late 40s or 50s. He holds a swagger stick in his left hand and has shiny black boots.
Advert from Ancestry.co.uk announcing "Ancestry Preserve is coming soon! Safeguard your most treasured memories - professionally digitized and securely returned. Simply send us your photos and documents, and receive high-quality digital files alongside your originals - ready to be shared for generations."
Clipping from the Lancashire Evening Post 8th July 1913. "MAN'S CURIOUS DEATH. The curious circumstances of the death of Robert Anglesea (49), labourer, of Cross-street Wigan, was investigated by the coroner at Ince [Wigan] yesterday. Anglesea was taken out of the canal in an unconscious state. Artificial respiration was resorted to, and he regained consciousness and walked home. Later he collapsed, and died four hours after the immersion. It was stated that the doctor was of the opinion that a considerable amount of water had been left in the man, and that it had gradually suffocated him. A verdict of "Accidental death through falling in the canal" was returned.
Email from our mail order dog food provider, inviting us to order a special Valentine's Day dinner for our dog, in a 'limited edition pink box' so she can enjoy a 'luxurious feast worthy of Michelin-star restaurants.'
Screenshot from a bank page showing an investment graph with an almost vertical dip yesterday, before rising today, coinciding with the buffoon felon opening his trap at Davos.
From the Parish register of St Botolph Aldgate, London in 1617: "On Sunday the XXIXth day of this moneth, there was a Collection in our Church for one William Spalding of Yarmouth in the Isle of Wight, who by piracie and other losses at sea lost one thousand poundes, there was gathered for him. Also there was collected the same day for one Marie Cooke widow, of St Martins parish in the feildes, whose late husband had taken from him by Turkish pirates the value of six hundred poundes, since which her sonne was taken prisoner by the Turkes and caried to Argier, where he is detained in slaverie...."
A screenshot of an Ancestry page split between the individual's summary details at the bottom, in the middle of a sparse white page, and the associated now moved to the image at the top.
Two paper tickets for Nettlebed Folk Club's Spiers and Boden gig in February 2026.
View over a very foggy street. The houses in the distance are shrouded and hard to make out, under a grey white sky through which the sun is visible as an equally fuzzy big round, golden disc peeking through the fog.
A white Jack Russell with light brown markings over his ears and the top of his face, lies facing the camera on a blue dog blanket. He has big black shining eyes and his tongue is out. He looks excited for play and has a yellow tennis ball between his front paws.
A photo from an upstairs window, looking down on an English street. There is a narrow strip of garden below, framed by two long hedges. Parallel to the right side hedge is the main road, that heads off into the distance, and right angles to the left hedge is another road. The streets are shiny from melted snow, with a few remnants of snow clinging to the pavements and rooftops. The lower sky is a narrow strip of blue with a few stripes of weak sun, while above it is a blanket of grey, with the sun itself poking through the gloom as a big yellow disc.
A paperback copy of "In the Shadow of St Paul's Cathedral" with several pages falling out.
The front cover of the book "In The Shadow of St Pauls Cathedral: The Churchyard that Shaped London" by Margaret Wiles. The title is large, in white font, over an image of old London at the bottom and a clouded sky above. A little bit of blue sky can be seen to the upper left.
A white Springer Spaniel with a black face and ears and a white snout freckled with brown spots, lies sleeping on the back of a dark red leather armchair. Behind her is a decorated, lit Christmas tree and a blue stripey Christmas gift bag tied with a white ribbon. Next to the chair is a small round wooden table with a glass coaster and an orange glasses case.
A screenshot of the book "Organize your Genealogy" by Drew Smith.
A newspaper clipping from the Staffordshire Sentinel on 7th March 1922. "A dwarf named William Paiswich, aged 21, of Forest Hill, who performed as a comedian, was blown off a lorry by a gust of wind and killed while unloading scenery at Walsall theatre on Sunday night."
A clipping from the Manchester Evening News, Tuesday December 12th 1899. "TOO READY WITH HIS KNIFE. Mr. Justice Kennedy had before him for sentence at Liverpool Assizes, to-day, a collier named Joseph Jones, 30, of Ince-in-Makerfield [Wigan], who had been found guilty of wounding another man named William Henry Cobbe. The evidence showed that after a family row at Ince on the 6th of October Jones stabbed Cobbe in the breast with a knife. His Lordship strongly deprecating such rash use of the knife, sentenced the prisoner to four months hard labour."
A decorated table-top artificial Christmas tree, with lights, berries and snow covered fir cones. It stands on a small, cream and red striped hand woven cloth, on a light coloured wooden table top. A white staircase is to the left, and white shelf behind, in an archway leading to the kitchen. On the table, around the tree, are a small blue book, a small rectangular gift wrapped in pink tissue paper, and reindeer and skiing figure ornaments. Behind are four tall, thin plastic fir trees. smaller than the tree, standing in a line on a fake snow covered log.
Excerpt from a Guardian Online news article about a drunk raccoon. "In Toronto, Canada, raccoons have become so numerous that a popular t-shit boasting "Toronto v Everybody" has now been widely supplanted by one that now reads "Raccoons v Toronto".
A picture of William Prince of Wales meeting Paddington Bear on a visit to the promotion of the new Paddington play. The caption reads "The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge meet Paddington Bear".
A young black and white female Springer Spaniel sits on the back of a red leather sofa, posing for the camera. Most of her is white and spotty but her ears are black, and the black also covers her eyes, leaving a thin white stripe between and down to her spotty nose. She wears a red collar with metal dog tag.