There is sad news to report today. British genealogy expert Dr. Christopher Watts has passed away. Chris was a former chair of the Society of Genealogists, former employee of The National Archives and later was a volunteer with The National Archives' Friends organization.
I was fortunate enough to meet Chris in London several times. I found he was not only an expert genealogist, but also a fine gentleman and an excellent conversationalist. In June, he spoke at the Ontario Genealogical Conference in Kingston, Ontario. He supplied his bio that was published in the conference syllabus. Sadly, it also now serves as his obituary:
Christopher T. Watts, PhD, FSG, is a highly experienced genealogist and a Fellow of the Society of Genealogists. He has over 40 years' research experience - initially as an amateur, working on his own family; then following early retirement, as a professional; and finally part-time as an employee at The National Archives of the UK (TNA). He is now fully retired but still works as a volunteer cataloguer for the Friends of TNA. He has written several books in association with his brother: My Ancestor was in the British Army; Tracing Births, Deaths and Marriages at Sea; and Records of Merchant Shipping and Seamen - and contributed to the Reader's Digest Exploring your Family's Past and TNA's Tracing Your Ancestors in the Public Record Office. Chris is a regular speaker, both in the UK and overseas. He has spoken at conferences and under- taken tours in Canada (British Columbia, Alberta and Ontario), Australia, New Zealand and the US. He has just returned from speaking at the Australasian Federation of Family History Organisation's Congress in Adelaide.
