I haven't done any research into my family history but thinking about it and there is one person in particular I want to find out more about and that is my maternal great-grandfather. His surname was Eagland but I don't know what his first name was. All I know about him is that he played county cricket for Yorkshire and I would imagine it was around the 1910s/1920s. I've tried googling and I've looked at the YCCC site but no joy.
I've had a quick look on www.ancestry.co.uk at the 1901 census but there are a lot of Eaglands! You really need to know more. If you don't know his first name or when he was born or anything else then you need to trace him back. One way you could do this is to buy the birth certificate of one of his children, which would at least give you his full name. Armed with this information plus the name of his wife (which would also be on their childs birth certificate) you could then order their wedding certificate which would give you his age at the marriage. You are then well on the way to discovering more about him.
I've had a look at the "Who's Who of Cricketers" which claims to be "a complete who's who of all cricketers who have played first-class cricket in England, with full career records" and was published in 1984.
Sadly, nobody with the surname Eagland appears in it.
Thank you so much everybody. I shall try all those suggestions and see where I get.
Dot - it was definitely Yorkshire he played for - when my grandmother died she left his (her father's) Yorkshire CCC players cap (very worn) to my brother.
have you tried dearching with the variation of the name eagleand. Back in the 1900 names where sometimes spelt wrong or differently. I am currently tracing ancestors and having a problem finding some of my family due to mis-spelling.