Information about the Society
The Sole Society is a family history society with approximately 250 members and a very wide circle of friends and contacts. The Society is researching SOLE, SAUL, SEWELL, SOLLEY and similar names. Most of our early research has been UK based but we are keen to extend our records worldwide.
Membership gives you all the benefits listed below.
On this page we set out The Benefits we Offer, How we Operate and some information on the Origins of our Names
Three journals a year. Our award winning Journal, Soul Search, is a tremendous resource full of research information and interesting articles. Click HERE for more information.
Access to a very large number of family charts through our Surname Co-ordinators.
A free CD-ROM (for members only) containing a vast amount of information about our names and family trees. It includes census information, GRO records, IGI data, Wills and a wealth of other information. Also included is a searchable database of the hundreds of articles and reports that have been published in our Journal.
Expert advice from our surname co-ordinator's on where to look for further information.
Two members Gatherings each year in varying locations in the UK, with interesting speakers and chance to discuss your research in person.
If you wish to contribute to our journal, Soul Search, you will benefit from a world wide audience as all articles are subsequently added to our web site which is well indexed by the major search engines.
An excellent Discussion Forum which is well indexed by Google so you can contact others interested in the same names
The Society revolves around a small committee that includes surname co-ordinators. These co-ordinators have research responsibility for specific surnames and geographic areas. Their job is to collect, index and chart the information that we get from members and other genealogical sources. In the case of Sewell, the co-ordinator has several members reporting to her with responsibility for specific geographic regions of the UK. Each co-ordinator publishes a progress report in our journal Soul Search and all of these research reports can be read online. This in itself is a valuable resource, with well over 10 years of research reports that can be searched in seconds.
Our Research Co-ordinators also help members to make the most of the Society's resources and act as a point of contact. Click here for Contact details.
All is the work is undertaken on a voluntary basis, and we are indebted to those who have contributed to our work over the years
Many articles have been written in our Journal over the years about the origins of our names. Some of the key articles are listed below. Additional articles can be found using the Search facility - type in your surname and the word 'origin' and use 'Find ALL Words'.
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Distribution of the SAUL Surname and Variants in England in 1851 |
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The All Souls Collage, SOLE - SAUL - SALE - SELL |
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The All Souls Collage: SEWELL-SOWELL |
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The All Souls Collage: SOLLEY - SAWLEY |
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The Road Back - Origins of the Saul Name |
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Fact and Fiction in Family History |
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The Domesday Book and the early Sewells |
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Sewell Origins: Cumberland and Westmorland |
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A Sewell Topography |
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Searching Medieval Records for Sources of Names |
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