Wayne has given and/or has scheduled presentations related to natural phenomena and family history in the following topics during the past several years:
Drought and Family History focuses on times of dearth due to major droughts that impacted people and communities, with an emphasis on the last millennium.
Famine and Family History looks at the parameters of famine, how to recognize whether famine conditions existed in areas where our ancestors lived and what the direct impact of famine was on communities and families.
Genealogy and the Little Ice Age presents information about living conditions and natural events that affected people and communities during the last cold climatic period. (presentation is online at Family Tree Videos)
Great Frost & Famine of 1739-41 presents information about an episode of cold weather that impacted and resulted in famine conditions across Europe. (presentation is online at Family Tree Videos)
Impact of the 1783-84 Laki Eruption focuses on physical aspects of the 1783-84 Laki, Iceland eruptions and the deadly consequences to communities across Europe.
Mother Nature’s Impact on Family Migration & Relocation is a look at some of the affects Mother Nature has had on lives and livelihoods, and the decisions taken to relocate and/or migrate – with examples from historical situations and the speaker’s own family. (presentation is online at Legacy Family Tree Webinars)
Natural Phenomena and Their Effects on Our Ancestors offers perspective on how natural events and conditions of the physical environment controlled the lives and livelihoods of people in the past.
Stormy Weather reviews the timing and location of some major storms, and a few minor ones, that may have touched families in the past and influenced decisions about employment and migration.
Surname Origins: Why? When? Why Then? Surname usage dates back only to the late Middle Ages, around the 14th century. Why did it start then? Was it in response to political or societal shifts, coincidentally across almost all of Europe, or was it because of something else? In this presentation, some of the history and reasons for the adoption and use of surnames will be explored. (presentation is online at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qKKQfLSITkE&feature=youtu.be)
The Future is Still in the Past: The Online Parish Clerk program in the United Kingdom presentation includes a number of examples of some of the unique information encountered when searching the registers and other data-sources of some parishes in Devon. Future research and the construction of family trees is still primarily based on information from the past and volunteers like OPCs can and will be sources for much of that data. (presentation is online at Legacy Family Tree Webinars)
The Industrious Revolution presentation will look at what defines the Industrious Revolution, and its timing and impacts on families during the period of the late Little Ice Age between 1650 and 1750.
Using Parish and Other Records to determine what and how certain natural events affected people and communities in the past is a discussion of what types of information are available to show how natural phenomena impacted lives and livelihoods using specific examples of records and areas.