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Areas:
Anywhere in the UK Devon Dorset Somerset West Country Wiltshire
Categories:
Fees £51 - £149 Genealogy General Interest History
Talk Topics:

Helen Baggott

Location: Blandford Forum, Dorset
About The Speaker...

Please contact Helen via email.

Helen has written for regional magazines; national magazines include This England, Discover Your Ancestors, Who Do You Think You Are?, Picture Postcard Monthly, Dorset Life and The Card Scene. Her work has been recognised by national newspapers as a ‘postcard detective’ in I newspaper and an ‘heirloom detective’ in The Mail on Sunday’s You magazine.

Through the power of Zoom she speaks to groups on both sides of the Atlantic and has been a speaker at the Family History Federation ‘s Really Useful Show and THE Genealogy Show.

“I thoroughly enjoyed your talk last evening, both content and delivery. It opened aspects of postcards that I had not thought about and has given me some useful ideas for developing my own family history research. I hope I have the pleasure of hearing you again.”

About Their Talks...

All talks are availably by Zoom and short-notice enquiries are welcomed.
Helen usually offers around 15 talks and the list is updated annually. Please contact her via this site (by email) for the current list which includes the story of a UK Member of Parliament who was born in a log cabin in America and the Victorian legacy – what our ancestors did next. There are several new talks being prepared for 2026 bookings, including one which shares the stories of Ellis Martin (who designed map covers for the Ordnance Survey) and other artists.

Fee:

My fee begins at £50 and is subject to travelling expenses where necessary.
Initial enquiry via email. Calls made by unknown numbers to my mobile will not be answered.

My Contact Details:
Phone:

0797 259 3088

Email:

helenbaggott99@gmail.com

View Talks by Helen Baggott

Travels with my (great-great) aunt

This new talk (available for late 2023 onwards) explores the holidays of our ancestors – climbing pyramids, sliding down glaciers, cruising the Med… Illustrated with postcards sent home from holidays, just how far did our ancestors travel for their holidays?

Posted in the Past

Based on the books Posted in the Past and Posted in the Past Second Delivery, this talk reveals the true stories behind postcards sent in the early years of the 20th century. Using genealogy, Helen has researched the families to reveal their stories. Illustrated by images of some of the postcards, this talk shares some of those stories. A 10-year-old servant working for a laundress in 19th-century Bath, the man who helped keep the doors to Great Ormond Street Hospital open for more than 30 years, a soldier killed in the First World War – all connected by messages sent using the first real social media phenomenon of the 20th century.

The Mayflower Connection

This talk focuses on a group of postcards sent in the UK and in America in the early 1900s that help share the story of The Mayflower. By illustrating the talk with postcards associated with The Mayflower, and sharing the stories of the people who sent and received them, this talk offers more than the re-telling of the voyage and early years in America. Some of the postcards connect to other events of international importance, including the War of Independence and the American Civil War – reinforcing the idea that history has no boundaries. The talk also explains the research – using genealogy – that connects the postcards to American and UK history.

The Empress of Ireland – Canada's Titanic

When the RMS Empress of Ireland sank in 1914, more passengers lost their lives than on Titanic – yet few have heard of the tragedy. I reveal the story of the sinking – and three families from Dorset and Somerset that were affected, and others from further afield. Illustrated by postcards and photographs, this talk remembers a forgotten tragedy.

From Paper Kings to Hardware Barons

This talk tells the story of a family who reach across England (from Somerset to Norfolk) and over the Atlantic to Washington State via Bristol’s Guinea Street.

Hands Across the Sea – True stories of emigration, tragedy and heroes

Beginning with postcards sent more than a hundred years ago, this new talk shares the true stories of determined people who sought new lives abroad – and those that built some of the shipping lines that we recognise today, including a family connected with the bravery of the Kindertransport.

From Bombs to Bournville... and other true stories

This illustrated talk will be available to book for 2023 and includes the story of a family who helped build torpedoes and buildings, of a man from Cornwall whose manufacturing invention transformed processes on both sides of the Atlantic…

With Love from Grace

In the years before the First World War, Grace travelled Europe with a wealthy Italian family. She visited the Count’s homes, stayed in some of the best hotels and regularly sent postcards to the man she would eventually marry.
Those cards, and some that she received from the people she met in Europe, reveal the journeys Grace made – and the fascinating places she visited. From 1909 to 1914, Grace sent her postcards and then returned to England where she married Douglas, a railway clerk. This talk shares some of those postcards and the stories of those she met. It is based on the book, With Love from Grace… which is due for publication late-2023. All the book’s royalties are being donated to Parkinson’s UK and a donation will be also be made from the fees received from this talk.

Lifeboats and Lighthouses – a tour around the coast exploring stories of heroism

Using postcards sent more than a hundred years ago, this talk looks at some of the coastal landmarks that reveal stories written by our ancestors. As well as sharing the stories of who sent and received some of the cards, this talk will also explore the families who called ‘the lighthouse’ their home.

Addressing the Past

Using the chance discovery of a WWI address book, this talk will reveal which addressee lived in Hampton Court, where you could see the Professor and a family whose history casts a dark cloud over our history.

Read more about Helen here.....

 

Helen Baggott Contact Details:
Phone:

0797 259 3088

Email:

helenbaggott99@gmail.com

Send a message to Helen Baggott