Have you ever wondered how you may go about finding cousins? Some of whom you may not even know exist. Throughout our lives, we usually hang around with our cousins. These are most likely first cousins but some may be our second cousins. There is a solution so let’s get started…
Cousins.
I cannot remember how I came across the following website. The website has been around now for over 20 years! I have been a member since April 2021. Before we dive into the website we should become familiar with our cousins.
What is meant by a cousin? The Cambridge Dictionary states a cousin is: “a child of a person’s aunt or uncle, or, more generally, a distant (= not close) relation:”
Reference: https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/cousin
Website.
The website is called “Lost Cousins”. The web address is https://www.lostcousins.com. The site is free to search and free to join. You will need to register and enter the required details.
You can also add “My Interests” which relates to the countries where known relatives lived in the 19th century. You can add that you have taken a DNA test. Please note the site does not use DNA.
Before you register be sure to check out the User Agreement and the Privacy Policy. When registering you can use my personal referral link which is: https://lostcousins.com/?ref=LC1773265
Newsletter.
Even before registering you can view the latest newsletter. I will not go into much detail about the newsletters as they are interesting to read and contain some useful hints and tips. So, please go have a look.
Menu.
I have already mentioned the newsletter and about joining. These are shown on the first screen once you enter the site before logging in. I would suggest looking at the menu with the heading: Information. In this area there are some extremely useful details: Read This First, Help & Advice, Census Links, FAQs etc.
Oh yes, and this is where you will find the Privacy Policy and User Agreement.
I also suggest you read “About Us”. In this section scroll down to: “Who is behind Lost Cousins?” Here you are introduced to Peter who came up with the Lost Cousins concept back over 20 years ago.
Registered.
Once you have registered the menu changes slightly. See the screenshot on the left.
I will not be explaining the My Lost Cousins menu so register and explore.
Census.
How does LostCousins work?
You enter details of your found relatives (i.e. ancestors) in the various UK censuses taken. The best census to work on is 1881. I do not fully understand how it all works. It goes along the lines of what you have entered, matches with what other researchers have entered and the links are made. It seems very straightforward. I hope I have this process correct. If this is incorrect, please let me know.
Prizes.
You will note that there is a My Prizes area. Each year, “LostCousins” has a competition. It is usually held over the December/January period. Basically the Christmas/New Year time period. The last competition was held from 8 December 2023 through to 31 January 2024.
There are a variety of prizes given. In this area when the competition is running there is a list of prizes that you can win. You enter that you are interested and rate between 1 and 10 – 1 being the least interested and of course 10 most interested.
You will be advised when the competition commences and what you need to do to enter. Prize winners are notified, usually via email. You must keep your contact details up to date.
Takeaways.
So what do you get out of joining ”Lost Cousins”. You will find “lost” cousins who share the same ancestor as you. Once contact is made you can share what you have found. There is an easy process to go through to link up with relatives. All connections are made via census records.
I found the site extremely useful so I decided to have a paid subscription. Currently, the cost of this subscription is £10 a year. You really have nothing to lose. In fact, you have a lot to gain. My personal link, again, is: https://lostcousins.com/?ref=LC1773265
Explore & Discover.
Acknowledgements: The first and last pics are from Pexel. All other pics are taken from the LostCousins website.
Ancestor Family 