Merry Christmas

As the year draws to a close, many of us are getting ready for some traditional family time.  For me, Christmas means that the tree is up - in fact it has been put up several times thanks to the enthusiasm of my cat who sees the Christmas Tree as his own personal climbing gym - and the house is decorated.  The fridge is full, the presents wrapped, cards sent and received.  Work is about to shut down until New Year, a lovely week of leave.

While my family has always had the traditional Christmas tree, wreath and turkey for Christmas lunch, some of our particular traditions were more unique to us - like watching "The Muppet's Christmas Carol" on Christmas Eve.  It is a tradition that we have had since I was a child and we watched it one Christmas on TV.  Much searching by my mother produced a video of the film and even as teenagers the tradition of watching "The Muppet's Christmas Carol" on Christmas Eve prevailed.  It continued as we became adults and spent Christmas with our parents, was tolerated by baffled partners and friends, and after our parents passed was continued by my sister and I.  Eventually while on a cruise I located a DVD copy (in April!) and after explaining the significance to several bemused holiday acquaintances, that night seven adults sat and watched the brilliant Michael Caine, so shiningly evil as Scrooge before he finds the spirit of Christmas, as he seamlessly interacted with his Muppet costars.

Kermit is a perfect as the kindly, patient Bob Cratchit, with Miss Piggy as his feisty wife Emily, Statler and Waldorf are the evil Marleys, cackling gleefully about evicting children from orphanages.  And Gonzo shines as the 'omniscient narrator', a blue furry Charles Dickens with his sidekick Rizzo the Rat who cheerfully states he is here for the food.

We both pretty much know the film by heart.  We've watched it every Christmas Eve since we were young children.  We will happily settle in to recite lines, sing the songs, munch mince pies and thoroughly enjoy our evening. This is our Christmas.

Some Christmas traditions have also changed.  Tinsel does not feature in my decorations any more after the year my tinsel-obsessed cat caused a rather expensive Christmas day visit to the family vet (again - I am so sorry, Debbie).  The same cat has also resulted in the rule that my Christmas Tree is put up undecorated for a week until he has lost interest in it.

So whatever your Christmas traditions I hope everyone out there enjoys the festive season and I look forward to 2024.  Merry Christmas!

Digitization of Wills UK

The UK Ministry of Justice has just released their plan to digitize historic wills.

Their statement reads :

"Genealogists, historians and amateur family archivists will be better able to access historic wills under proposals published today (15 December 2023).

The ambitious digitization programme could see millions of wills dating back more than 150 years moved online and more easily accessible to the public in a bid to improve the current storage system.  

Currently about 110 million physical documents are stored costing taxpayers £4.5 million per year. The consultation is seeking views on keeping hard copies for about 25 years, in recognition of their sentimental value to families, while saving them digitally longer term."

This plan has immediately stirred up a storm of controversy amongst Genealogists.  While it is agreed that digitizing the wills and making them more accessible is a boon to the Genealogical and Historical communities, the idea of destroying the hard copies of wills after 25 years is considerably less popular.

There have been a number of questions regarding the proposal.  How much will it cost to maintain the digital records? Things like the servers, the regular migration to modern formats to ensure they remain accessible etc? Digital is not 'free'.

The consultation will end on 23 February 2024.  So follow the link and have your say about the future of these important historical records.

Really Useful Podcast Series 3

The Family History Federation has now completed Season 3 of its series of Really Useful Podcasts introduced and presented by Joe Saunders.

The series comprises :

Episode 1 : Free Resources

Family history research can quickly become an expensive hobby. However, there is a wealth of free resources that we can use to help with our research while keeping costs down. We discuss some of the different free (online and in-person) resources available in this episode.

Episode 2 : Were your Ancestors Really Married?

Many of us will have questioned at some point in our research whether our ancestors were really married. In this episode our guests discuss how you can tell if people were married or not, share some stories and offer tips, including to use Rebecca Probert’s, Marriage Law for Genealogists.

Episode 3 : Migration Within Britain

People in the past moved about a lot more than we might think. In this episode our guests discuss the historical migration of people within Britain, including the kind of movements you might find in your family tree, what this can tell us and how we can research migrating ancestors.

Episode 4 : Family, Local and Social History

Local and social history are closely linked with family history. They enable us to discover more about our ancestors’ lives, adding detail to core information about life events. Our speakers discuss the value of local and social history and how to incorporate it into our research.

Episode 5 : Getting Started with DNA

In recent years DNA has become increasingly prominent in family history research, offering a method to complement our other sources or fill a gap in their absence. In this episode our guests share their advice on starting out with DNA.

Episode 6 : Proof is Essential

Proof is critical when building our family trees. We must use good methodology to gather evidence to prove our family history. Our guests discuss the importance of proof to family history research and offer some advice.

Family Tree UK Magazine

The latest issue of Family Tree UK magazine is now available free online for Campaspe Library members via our subscription to Libby eMagazines.

Inside this month's issue :

• Scottish Women’s Land Army records now available online - from ScotlandsPeople
• RootsTech 2024 first keynote speaker announced - Lynne M. Jackson, author, and president and founder of the Dred Scott Heritage Foundation.
• Millions of military records • From the Crimean War to the battlefields of World War I on FindMyPast.
• A passion for stories - A new platform for sharing family history stories offers its members the chance to come together to pool ideas and learn from each other
• My family’s graves and how I found them - from Gaynor Haliday.
• Schwedersky – how we discovered an unknown East Prussian ancestry
• A Gingerbread story • Charlotte Soares takes us a on a seasonal look back at the story of ginger and its many uses.
• Living in Georgian splendour - Gill Shaw keeps digging…
• The nature and uses of memoir and storytelling - Emma Jolly concludes her family history series. 
• And more...

Accentuate the Positive Geneameme 2023

I am responding once again to the wonderful Jill Ball with her annual challenge.  I'm looking forward to reading all the responses from my fellow Genealogists out there.

1.  An elusive ancestor I found was – Thomas Farmer, Master Mariner (see post below)

2.  A precious family photo I found was – nothing new this year, but I have managed to put some time into making sure all my old photos are digitized and backed up.

3.  An ancestor's grave I found was – several online, including the previously mentioned Thomas Farmer.

4.  An important record I found was – Every record I find is important!  A significant find was the marriage certificate of my 4xGreat Grandfather John Pummeroy to Sarah Morgan.  Every other document I have gives her maiden name as Morgan, so I had always looked for their marriage under that name.  Subsequent research established that Morgan or Moreman was Sarah’s mother’s maiden name, her father was William Lindsey and she married as Sarah Lindsey, to John Pomroy in her home village of Woodbury in Devon.   One brick wall demolished!

5.  A newly found family member shared - notes on common ancestors.  I keep basic trees on several sites - Ancestry, FamilySearch, My Heritage, etc mainly as 'cousin bait' to make contact with others researching in the same tree so we can share information - and every now and then I strike it lucky.

6.  A geneasurprise I received was - so many genealogical websites, archives and companies who made special efforts to run meetings and conferences online to keep going during the pandemic continue to do so.  I find this so convenient as I can attend events from home that I would otherwise have no hope of accessing.

7.  A new piece of software or website I mastered was – Ancestry’s latest DNA update.

8. A social media tool I enjoyed using for genealogy was – Zoom, Skype and all the platforms that allow me to attend meetings, classes, conferences etc online. 

9. A genealogy conference/seminar/webinar from which I learnt something new was - RootsTech.  Another conference which continues to be held online and free.

10. I am proud of the presentation I gave at/to – all the branches of Campaspe Library.  It was wonderful to start running classes again after two years of the pandemic then having to cancel again in 2022 because of the worst floods on record.

11. I taught a friend how to - use Trove to access historic Australian newspapers and gazettes.

12. A great repository/archive/library I visited was - the National Archives UK - online.  Once again I've downloaded a number of wills and other digital records this year.

13. A new genealogy/history book I enjoyed was – Henry VIII : the Heart and the Crown by historian Alison Weir, following up her series ‘Six Tudor Queens, which focused on each of King Henry VIII's wives, this book tells events from the King’s perspective.

14. An achievement during the year was – keeping my files (fairly) up to date.  I have always struggled to make sure I keep my files in good order, and after spending so much time during the lockdowns getting them organised and up-to-date I am determined not to relapse!

15. Another positive I would like to share is ... The wonderful genealogical community out there.  So many people willing to help each other, suggest solutions to research problems, share their knowledge and expertise, and give back to others.

Thomas Farmer, Master Mariner

 Finding the details of an ancestor's life is always exciting, and lately I have been researching my 3xGreat Grandfather Thomas Farmer.

Thomas Farmer was born in London, baptised 2 September 1781 at St Ann Blackfriars, London, son of Thomas and Mary Farmer.  He died in Sidney Square, London and was buried 28 September 1850 at St Dunstan & All Saints, Tower Hamlets, London.

Baptism records of Thomas Farmer, 1781

 
Thomas and his wife Ann has 3 children that I have currently located.  Thomas, born 7 June 1812, Ann born 13 January 1820 and Margaret born 4 January 1822.

During my research, I discovered Thomas Farmer and wife Ann in the 1841 census, where Thomas is listed as a Master Mariner living in Jubilee Street, Tower Hamlets.  Daughters Ann and Margaret are both still living at home at the time of the census.

1841 census

I also discovered that Thomas was a Mason, listed as a member of the Dundee Arms Lodge in Nightingale Lane, Wapping.

Membership Register of the Dundee Arms Lodge, 1810

Thomas Farmer Junior was also a mariner - clearly sailing was in the family's blood as Thomas Jr followed in his father's footsteps.  Sadly, Thomas Senior would die only a month before his son gained his Master's certificate on 21 November 1850.

Thomas's youngest daughter Margaret is my great great grandmother.  She married Alexander Davis on 21 November 1843, and the couple would have five children born in Kent or London before the couple decided to emigrate to Australia.  Sadly, Margaret, daughter and sister of master mariners, would die at sea on the voyage to Australia on the ship 'President Perkouberen' giving birth two twins, neither of whom survived and were buried at sea with their mother.

Who Do You Think You Are Magazine

The latest issue of Who Do You Think You Are magazine is now available free online for Campaspe Library members via our subscription to Libby eMagazines.

Inside this month's issue: 

• 12 Christmas projects 12 fun ways to build your family tree over the Christmas period
• Christmas quiz Try out these family history brainteasers
• Reader story Mary Jones' seven-year-old relative was arrested for stealing coal
• The history of Christmas dinner What did our ancestors eat at a festive feast?
• Old newspapers How to use newspapers in family history research
• London ancestors Our complete guide to tracing your family history in the capital
• And more
  

 

Ancestry DNA 2-step Verification

For those who have done a DNA test with Ancestry, you may have already noticed that to access your DNA matches you are now required to set up 2 step verification.

To set up this added layer of security, you are first required to choose between having your code sent to a mobile phone or an email address.  Then you input the number or address you wish to choose and confirm using your current Ancestry password.  A code is then sent to you via your chosen method for you to input before you are able to access your DNA matches.

Once you have accessed your DNA matches, you have several ways of sorting them.  At the top level, you can view matches by :

• Parent - view matches on your maternal or paternal line
• Ancestor - choose any ancestor in your Ancestry tree
• Location - zoom in on a world map to see where you matches are dispersed

You can also filter by 

• Unviewed matches - highlighting those DNA matches you have not yet evaluated.  
• Common Ancestors - viewing only matches whose Ancestry tree intersects your own
• Trees - sort by Private Linked Trees, Public Linked Trees or Unlinked Trees
• Shared DNA - sort by Close Matches, Distant Matches or by Custom Centimorgan Range
• Group - create you own custom group such as new matches

So if you have done an Ancestry DNA test and haven't checked back in a while, go set up your 2 step verification and check out the latest updates.

Family Tree US Magazine

The latest issue of Family Tree US magazine is now available free online for Campaspe Library members via our subscription to Libby eMagazines. 

Inside this month's issue :  

• 23andMe Data Breach
• 2024 Virtual Genealogy Conferences
• Living History - Building ancestral homes gives one woman a hands-on family history experience.
• The Year Ahead - 366 genealogy tips will make 2024 your best research year yet.
• FAQs - Go back to the basics with these answers to common genealogy questions.
• What Kind of Cousins Are We?
• Genealogy Mythology
• Types of DNA Tests
• Getting he Picture - Unlock the clues hiding in your family photos.
• Passenger Lists
• Preserving Scrapbooks
• Small Ethnicity Estimates
• Civil War Genealogy
• And more
  

PROV Researcher Resources

Did you know that the Public Records Office of Victoria (PROV) has its own YouTube channel?  They offer a wealth of videos to help you get the most out of their archives.

From an Open House Tour of the Victorian Archives Centre, to deep dive research, stories within the Archives or how to use the PROV website, there is a wealth of presentations free to view to help you with your research.

Learn to get the most from the PROV website with :

• How to create an account and log in
• How to search and filter
• How to order a record or box to view
• How to order copies
• How to order via Direct Entry
• Order dashboard
• Understanding and researching the public record  collection

The Deep Dive Subject Research tutorials include :

• Correspondence records
• Introduction to researching place
• Introduction to crime research
• Crown Grant records
• Pupil Registers
• Rate records
• Divorce records
• Criminal trials

So take a look to the PROV YouTube channel and get the most out of the records on offer.

Victorian Court of Petty Sessions Records

A new record collection available on Ancestry includes images of the original records from the proceedings of Australian Courts of Petty Sessions between 1854 and 1922. 

The court registers in this collection typically have criminal, civil, and licensing cases mixed together, but the busiest courts may have recorded each type of case in separate registers. Entries in the court registers were typically organized chronologically and were handwritten, making some information difficult to read.

Records may include the following information:

• Name
• Court date
• Court city
• Names of children
• Place of residence
• Reason for appearance
• Result of appearance
  

The records were created by officials working for Courts of Petty Sessions in Victoria, Australia. The original documents are primary historical sources, and the information in them may not be available in other records. The original register books are housed at the Public Record Office Victoria in Melbourne.

The powers and jurisdiction of the Courts of Petty Sessions were established by a parliamentary act in 1832. These local courts were conducted by two or more justices hearing cases together and commonly making decisions without the input of a jury. The most common criminal cases heard in Petty Sessions were for theft, drunkenness, and disorderly or dishonest conduct. People also were charged with failure to show up for work or were accused of speaking to their employer in abusive language. Courts of Petty Sessions also handled civil cases and the issuance of licenses. However, in 1886, separate courts were established to process liquor licenses.

From minor criminal charges to cases of child neglect to accusations of drunk and disorderly conduct, this record set has been a gold mine of information about my ancestors.  Not only can these records be used to confirm that my ancestors appeared before a Court of Petty Sessions at a specific time and place, they also confirm where these people lived at the time of their court appearance gives me a location to search for land, church and government records. 

Don't forget that you can search the Ancestry database for free at any branch of Campaspe Libraries using our public access PCs or wifi through our subscription to Ancestry Library Edition.

Trove Maintenance Closure

An announcement has just been made regarding upcoming maintenance for Trove.

The statement by the National Library of Australia is  below :

"Trove will be unavailable from 6pm AEDT Saturday 9 December until 12pm AEDT Sunday 10 December 2023 so the National Library of Australia can undertake planned maintenance. Our enquiry service, Trove Support, will also be unavailable over this time. 

For information about impacts to other online and onsite Library services over this weekend, please see the National Library’s update. 

On 10 December you can check social media to find out when we are back online. 

Trove will also be unavailable over the weekend on 13 and 14 January 2024. Further details about this planned maintenance will be published closer to the time."

Scottish Indexes Conference

 
Are you interested in tracing your Scottish genealogy? The Scottish Indexes Conference is an opportunity to learn new research skills, discover diverse records and see how others have put these into practice. If you want to trace your Scottish family tree, this is the event for you.

This is a free event and is open to all. The conference starts at 7 am UK time and keeps going until 11 pm UK time. Each presentation is shown twice, once between 7 am and 3 pm, then again between 3 pm and 11 pm. You can come and go throughout the day. 

The conference is designed to be interactive and is best watched live, however some presentations from previous conferences are available to watch again. Visit the Past Conferences page to see what you’ve missed so far and catch up with some of the presentations. 

Who Do You Think You Are Magazine

The latest issue of Who Do You Think You Are magazine is now available free online for Campaspe Library members via our subscription to Libby eMagazines.

Inside this month's issue: 

• Break down walls with DNA How to use DNA testing to trace missing ancestors 
• Disaster strikes Tracing your family in times of misfortune and crisis
• Reader story Gethin Matthews found three brothers' letters from the First World War
• Musicians How to find performing ancestors online
• Celebrating Your Projects Kelly Horsley explored her Romany family history
• The Highland Clearances The story of a Scottish tragedy
• And more
  

Family Tree UK Magazine

The latest issue of Family Tree UK magazine is now available free online for Campaspe Library members via our subscription to Libby eMagazines.

Inside this month's issue :  

• Gone! Just like that...
• New regions added to Ancestry DNA ethnicities
• Midlands region family history show: new for 2024
• New archive research centre to open in Lancaster
• 18th-century Map of Kent reproduced for modern-day collectors
• AGRA conference a ‘resounding success’
• Mary Rose Museum welcomes special visitors for anniversary day
• New ‘Wonderlab’ aims to draw on railway heritage to inspire future engineers
• Find My Past : master game-changing tips
• Surname clues
• A lasting mark: intergenerational trauma

National Archives of Australia Military Records

The National Archives of Australia recently announced they had digitised over 1 million World War II military records.

Army records from World War II usually include:

• attestation (enlistment) form, setting out personal details such as age, next of kin and former occupation
• service and casualty form (Form B103), giving details about units and postings, injuries and disciplinary charges
• discharge form, summarising the person's service (not included in all cases)
• head-and-shoulders photograph may be included
• other documents or correspondence sometimes included

The Archives also hold other record sets related to wartime service and defence, many of which have also been digitised and made available free on their website.

These record sets include:

• civilian service
• courts-martial
• merchant navy
• munitions workers
• soldier settlement
• veterans’ cases
• war crimes
• war gratuities
• war graves
• defence administration and policy

These are in addition to the World War I military records which have already been digitised and available on the NAA site.

World War I service records usually include:

• an attestation paper – completed on enlistment, listing next-of-kin, employment, marital status, age, place of birth and a physical description
• a service and casualty form – 'Form B103', showing movements and transfers between units, promotions and details of injuries and treatment
• military correspondence – between the Department of Defence and the soldier's next-of-kin notifying of wounds or death, awards and medals and asking questions on the whereabouts of a service member

So take a look at all these records (and MORE) that are availabe FREE through the National Archives of Australia.

Remembrance Day

Remembrance Day, once known as Armistice Day, is one of our most important commemorative dates. On 11 November 1918, the guns on the Western Front fell silent, and the armistice with Germany to end the fighting on land, in the air and at sea was signed.

Each year on 11 November we pause as a nation at 11am for one minute of silence to honour all those who have suffered and lost their lives during wars, conflicts and peacekeeping operations.

A wonderful resource for hosts of a Remembrance Day service, or those commemorating at home, is available from the Department of Veterans Affairs.  Through their ANZAC Portal, they have a free Remembrance Day Kitbag.  It includes the order of service, music, making a speech, the Ode of Remembrance, a brief history, suggestions for a personal commemoration, guidelines to making a paper poppy, and more.

This year my home town hopes to finally have a normal Remembrance Day service, after being impacted by Covid in 2020 and 2021 followed by a major flood in 2022 which saw a number of army personnel deployed to the area to assist with sandbagging, evacuations and cleanup.

So wherever you are at 11am this 11th of November, take a minute to pause and remember those who have served to protect our freedoms.

Lest We Forget.

Family Histories Podcasts

It has been announced that series 6 of the wonderful series of The Family Histories Podcasts is now complete.  Hosted Andrew Martin, seven more genealogy-obsessed guests will share how they got hooked on researching their family history, tell us the life story of one of their most fascinating relatives, and finally share one of their own current research brick wall.  

Series 6 will feature the following quests;

• James Danter
• Jackie Depelle
• Phyllis Biffle Elmore
• Rick Glanvill
• Sven Grewel
• Clare Kirk
• Teresa Vega

 

For Evermore - Stories of the Fallen

For Evermore - Stories of the Fallen is a new site to honour those from the Commonwealth forces who lost their lives in the world wars.

 
Part of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission, the site allows members of the public to submit stories about those who gave their lives during the world wars, and link the story to the individual's casualty page within the CWGC database.

As you submit your story, you can identify the conflict in which the person lost their life, their role (Army, Navy, Air Force, Merchant Navy, Civilian Casualty), Nationality, and even a theme (Women at War,  Post Office, Art and Literature, and more).  You can add images and even video to enhance your story if you wish.

The site even has a tutorial with an instructional video and step-by-step manual to help you post your story.

You can browse submitted stories by conflict, role, nationality or theme, or you can use the search box to search by name, role, conflict etc.

Famiy Tree US Magazine

The latest issue of Family Tree US magazine is now available free online for Campaspe Library members via our subscription to Libby eMagazines. 

Inside this month's issue :  

• Ancestry.com Updates: Fans, Dogs and DNA
• New Project : 10 Million Names
• DNA and Privacy • GEDmatch breach renews concerns about DNA and law enforcement
• Fine Print • Celebrate and share your ancestors by printing a family tree.
• Types of Family Trees • During the course of your research, you’ve probably encountered a few different styles of family trees.
• Stories Worth Telling • Learn how to adapt family letters, journals and other documents into easy-to-read narratives that relatives will love.
• Stronger Together • These four steps will help you find and meaningfully help genealogy groups in our post-pandemic world.
• Smart Photos • MyHeritage has made headlines for its library of AI-assisted photo tools.
• Season’s readings • New genealogy book releases.
• The Tin Age • Age, photo format, and clothing are just the starting points for identifying a subject.
• Saving Family Papers
• Scandinavian Genealogy
• And more..... 

Wards of the State Records Digitised in Victoria

The Public Record Office of Victoria (PROV) and the Department of Families, Fairness and Housing have recently announced they have made records from 1864-1923 available online for the first time, putting out the following statement.

The records relate to children under care of the state in Victoria, (Wards of the State). Ward records are "a central departmental record detailing each child committed to State ‘care’, why and for how long a child was made a ward of the state and where they were placed during that term". They remain closed for 99 years from their creation, at which point they are opened to the public. These records are the only substantial record that still exists about each child, case records having been destroyed prior to 1973 and the creation of PROV.

For a child who was put in care due to concerns for their welfare or because they had committed an offence, Ward records are singularly important – providing a starting point on their journey to answer questions about their identity and their history, and containing otherwise disparate information about the places they lived and records that may have been created about them. "For many people institutionalised as children, the bureaucratic information in the Ward Register has to ‘stand in’ for the web of information contained in memories, personal and family memorabilia that most of us take for granted."

The records have recently been digitised and include the children’s:

• Ward Number
• Name
• Date of Birth
• Sex
• Native place
• Religion
• Ability to Read or Write
• Date of Commitment
• Commiting Bench
• Date of Admission
• Term
• Cause of Commitment
• Whether Parents are living
• Vaccination details
• Previous history
• Where stationed
• Licensing out details
• Discharge details
• Half yearly report information.

You can find the records at: https://prov.vic.gov.au/archive/VPRS4527

WW2 Medal Recipients Online

The details of thousands of civilians who were recommended for and awarded medals for bravery in the Second World War including George Cross recipients, are now available to search for free online.

The names are taken from the records of the Treasury Committee which decided on the recipients of honours including the George Cross, the George Medal, the OBE and the MBE. The records are now held at The National Archives (TNA) in Kew. 

Adding the complete collection of about 6,500 individuals from 166 files to TNA’s online catalogue Discovery took a team of staff and volunteers two years.

Searching for each name brings up a short description of why the person was commended, what their action was, and what medal they received, if any.

Awards for agents in the Special Operations Executive (SOE), a secret organisation that carried out espionage, sabotage and reconnaissance in occupied Europe during the Second World War, are also included in the newly digitised collection.  

Australian Coastal Passenger Records 1852-1924

A wonderful new set of records has been made available on Ancestry.  The new dataset of Australian Coastal Passenger Records contains images of passenger registers for ships traveling between ports in Victoria, Australia, and ports in other Australian cities.

Records in this collection may include the following information:

• Name
• Age
• Gender
• Marital status
• Occupation
• Family relationship
• Nationality
• Departure port
• Departure date
• Arrival port
• Ship captain's name

Some names may be abbreviated, and children may be listed as "child with" and their parents' surnames. The registers have printed column headings with handwritten entries.

The registers were created by officials working for the government of the state of Victoria.  Laws enacted shortly after the state of Victoria was established in 1851 required ship masters to fill out register forms and submit them to customs officials before departing a port. The lists are formally called "Inward Passenger Lists (Australian Ports)" but are commonly referred to as coastal passenger lists. Beginning in 1924, documentation of interstate maritime passengers was transferred from the states to the Commonwealth.  The original documents are housed by the Public Records Office of Victoria in Melbourne.

These newly digitized records are a valuable record set for many whose ancestors did not migrate straight from A to B.  My Clark family, for example, emigrated from Bristol in England and settled in Melbourne, Victoria.  It took me several years of searching for their immigration records to discover that they actually travelled from Bristol to Launceston, Tasmania, then settled in Port Sorrel, Tasmania for several years.  At least 6 children were born in Port Sorrell or Launceston before the family moved to Victoria and settled in the Melbourne suburb of St Kilda.

This new dataset will hopefully allow me to establish exactly when the family moved from Port Sorrell to St Kilda, finally solving a long standing family mystery.  Time to get searching.

Who Do You Think You Are Magazine

The latest issue of Who Do You Think You Are magazine is now available free online for Campaspe Library members via our subscription to Libby eMagazines.

Inside this month's issue: 

• Research the women in your family tree with Who Do You Think You Are? genealogist Laura Berry 
• Find free parish records online How Online Parish Clerks are opening up records for everyone
• Guilds and freemen Find records online and in the archives
• 17th-century family Trace your roots back to the 1600s
• Research army officers Find more records about your military kin
• Cambridgeshire family history Everything you need to know to research your ancestry in the county

Photos in the News

Over the years I have blogged on numerous occasions of the successes I have had searching in old newspapers for articles about my family.  I recently had another great find.

Locating a photo of an ancestor in the newspapers makes an article even more exciting.  I recently discovered that my great uncle, Alfred Edward Pummeroy, worked for a few years as a jockey, so I headed to the newspapers to see if he was mentioned in racing news.

To my delight, not only did I find several articles about his short (and not terribly successful) racing career, but I also found a photograph of him with a couple of other jockeys.

Alfred is pictured in the centre of the three standing jockeys, and it is the only image I have of him as a young man, which makes this photo from the newspapers even more special.