The story of the research

I started researching the family tree 20 years ago. Although this site is for both the paternal and maternal lines, I was prompted by my interest in my maternal grandfather's story, to start the research.

We knew nothing about his background, his family, his roots. He knew nothing either, other than he as called John Rivolta and that his earliest memory was in a London children’s home.

The first big breakthrough was finding a birth certificate for a Jack Rivolta in Richmond, London from October 1908. No father named, but the mother was Ruby Rivolta.

Yes it was Jack not John, and he believed he was born in 1910, but it was the only lead there was. I still couldn’t be sure at this point, if this Rivolta family were our ancestors.

Further research found he had half siblings, and the second big breakthrough was stumbling on someone online who was also researching her geneaology, and was related to Ruby’s brother.

I made contact, and she was happy to help my own research, and agreed to take a DNA test with me.

The great news for me, and my family, was there was a match, a match that even correctly assumed that the connection between the 2 of us were second cousins once removed (sharing the same great, great grandparents).

All this time I was also researching the Jones side, so what we have now is the story both Pearl and Pryce’s ancestry, so far.

Craig Jones. Bath, December 2020.