Relative Files is a family history podcast that uncovers the remarkable stories hidden within ordinary lives.
In each episode, genealogist and family historian Terry explores the life of a single ancestor or relative, following the documentary trail they left behind through census records, birth certificates, newspapers, military records, photographs and family memories.
From farm labourers and factory workers to soldiers, servants, sailors and emigrants, every person has a story to tell. Some faced hardship, some found adventure, and others quietly witnessed history unfolding around them. Together, these stories reveal not only who our ancestors were, but how their lives continue to shape our own.
Each episode combines engaging storytelling with practical genealogy insights, showing listeners how family history research can uncover extraordinary tales hidden in the most unexpected places.
Episode 4: Thomas Jones Ellison: Four Men, One Name
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Thomas Jones Ellison: Four Men, One Name
"In the name of God Almighty, I, Thomas Jones Ellison, of number six, Bride Court, Fleet Street, Bookbinder..."
A man. A trade. A will. But four men in this family could have written that sentence.
Over more than a century there were four Thomas Ellisons. One was a mariner from Tynemouth, and at least three were London bookbinders. This episode works out which one wrote the will, and what it tells us.
In this episode:
- A family grave in Colchester that has since disappeared
- A bookbinder's shop at Stationers' Corner, in the shadow of St Paul's
- A name pressed into the leather of cheap schoolbooks from the 1820s
- Two matching signatures that settle who stood at the altar in 1839
- A will that shares out family portraits instead of money, and asks a brother to act "in a kind and brotherly way"
A note on the record:
Before 1858, wills in England went through the church courts. For Londoners that usually meant the Prerogative Court of Canterbury. You can search those wills online at The National Archives.
Can you help?
The will left portraits of four generations of the Ellison family. Nobody knows where they are now. If you know anything about them, please get in touch at relativefiles.com (http://relativefiles.com).
Source: John Collins, "Four Bindings and a Will", in For the Love of the Binding (British Library, 2000). Also family research notes.
Next time: Alfred Shea: The Stoker Who Ran.
Music: "A Remarkable Story" by Haim Mazar, licensed through PremiumBeat.
28 Oct 2026
Episode 3: James Eagles: Constable R233
Got something to say to this podcast? Send a voicemail, and you might hear yourself on the next episode! (https://rss.com/podcasts/relativefiles/voicemail)
Orphaned by smallpox at six, James Eagles walked a London beat for twenty-two years under a number on his collar. Then he went home. His wife’s cousin turns out to be a famous face I very nearly wrote off.
Transcript and free forms: www.relativefiles.com/
28 Oct 2026
Episode 2: John Shea: A Word on a Census
Got something to say to this podcast? Send a voicemail, and you might hear yourself on the next episode! (https://rss.com/podcasts/relativefiles/voicemail)
One half-heard word on a census form is all that points to where John Shea came from. His surname changes spelling three times. And the Irish records “all burned in 1922”? Not quite.
Transcript and free forms: www.relativefiles.com/
28 Oct 2026
Episode 1: Sarah Ann Phillips: The Witness
Got something to say to this podcast? Send a voicemail, and you might hear yourself on the next episode! (https://rss.com/podcasts/relativefiles/voicemail)
Two newly-weds sail for New York in 1843. Twelve years later, only one of them is with the baby. In 1884, that baby, grown up, stands in the Old Bailey and names a violent man.
Transcript and free forms: www.relativefiles.com/
Got something to say to this podcast? Send a voicemail, and you might hear yourself on the next episode! (https://rss.com/podcasts/relativefiles/voicemail)
Relative Files is a family history and genealogy podcast uncovering extraordinary stories from ordinary lives. Through ancestry research, historical records, and storytelling, the past comes alive.
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