Where your journey begins...
What will you discover?

July 6, 2026

Household Appliances of a Bygone Age

Next Monday 13th July at 2-30pm, there will be an afternoon meeting live at St Michael’s Centre, Stoke Gifford, BS34 8PD. Our guest speaker, Paul Hulbert from the Museum of Electricity, will be taking a nostalgic look at the latest electrical mod cons that our parents and grandparents might have used during the 1930s and beyond, including cookers with square hobs and matching square saucepans.
June 16, 2026

Title Deeds – Legal Documents of Land Ownership & Inheritance

Next Monday 22nd June, there will be a Bath Group meeting (via Zoom) when our speaker for the evening, Drew Westerman, will give an overview of the commonly found title deeds in public archives. Their history, meaning and significance for historical research will be discussed with examples from the collections held at the Bath Record Office.
June 10, 2026

Seeking MARTIN men with roots in the Bristol/Bath Area

Are you a “MARTIN man” with deep roots in the Bristol/Bath area? If so, would you like to participate in a YDNA surname study with the goal of understanding when the Martins arrived in England from the Low Countries? To discover more about the project or participate, contact the volunteer administrators at: kennethwwilliams@gmail.com .
June 9, 2026

AGM followed by “A Little Kingdom – Lundy”

Next Monday, 15th June, the Society will be holding its Annual General Meeting followed by a talk from Andre Coutanche entitled “A Little Kingdom – Lundy”. The meeting will be “live” at St Michaels Centre, Stoke Gifford, BS34 8PD commencing 30 minutes earlier than usual at 7pm. To discover more, join us for this important event in the Society’s calendar.

Family history for Bath, Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire

Founded in 1975, we are a well established Family History Society focussing our activities on Bath, Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire (the former county of Avon 1974 to 1996) and its constituent predecessor and successor counties. We are also frequently referred to by our initials - BAFHS. The hub of our activities is our Research Room where enthusiastic volunteers give their time for the benefit of the Society.

What we do:

  • Encourage the public study of family history with reference to the historic county of Avon and its successor counties.
  • Publish a quarterly Members' Magazine (available in digital or paper format).
  • Transcribe and publish source material of interest to family historians.
  • Hold regular in-person and online meetings with a programme of illustrated talks and lectures.
  • Operate a Research Room where advice and resources are freely available.
  • Operate this website which is dedicated to family history.
  • Organise outings to places of interest.

Members:

Members are at the heart of our Society. By becoming a member, you will be joining a like-minded group of people who support our work. There is also the opportunity to become actively involved with a wide range of activities - you'd be surprised what it takes to run a modern family history society. It is quick and convenient to join online.