Ancestry adds historic Berkshire records

Ancestry has digitised over four million Berkshire parish records in a major books to its online resources.

The website has added four new record sets: 2,055,425 baptism, marriage and burial records spanning 1538-1812 ; 1,470,200 baptism records spanning 1813-1925 ; 546,515 banns and marriage records spanning 1813-1941 ; and 325,233 burial records spanning 1813-1998.

The record sets include digitised copies of the original parish registers from the Royal Berkshire Archives.

These records are now accessible at Campaspe Library free via Ancestry Library Edition.

Week 38 (Sept. 17-23): A Document with Personality - #52Ancestors

I do love wills - they are often documents with so much personality!  They are fascinating documents and (potentially) give so much information about the family of the individual who wrote it as well as about the individual themselves.

I have had great luck with wills in my family history research.  They have provided me with invaluable clues - the surnames of married daughters, which children have survived a parent, details of property held and much more.  Getting the most out of the wills I have found has sent me chasing details of executors and witnesses - often relatives, as such a task was not given to strangers.  Who was each person mentioned, and how did they relate to the originator of the will?

My favourite will is that of my great great grandfather David Mulholland, who died in 1902.  The will itself is quite brief and names his wife and surviving children, and it is definitely a document with personality.

Original handwritten will of David Mulholland

A transcription of the will reads :

This is the last will and testament of me David Mulholland of Eurobin near Kilsythe in the Colony of Victoria Farmer.

I give devise and bequeath unto my wife Eliza Jane my dwelling house and furniture and all the land around the house to the railway fence for her life time and each of the two sons pay her five shillings per week for her life time the sons names are Henry and James.  My son David will receive fifty pounds cash.  James will get the homestead paddock and the paddock known as O’Donnell and also the house and land after Mrs Mulholland’s death.  Mrs Mulholland to do with as she likes with the furniture.  Henry is to have all the land across the Ovens River known as Watonga and all the cattle are to be equally divided between James and Henry.  My daughter Mary (Mrs Pape) one shilling and my daughter Ellen (Mrs Stoddart) one shilling.  My daughter Jane twenty pounds.  My daughter Priscilla (Mrs Clark) ten pounds and the balance of the cash to be divided in equal parts between James and Henry after all my debts are paid. 

Considering that David had over 600 pounds in the bank at the time of his death, the daughters who received a shilling each might feel a little slighted, as might his wife who gets to dwell in the farmhouse for the rest of her life but does not own it, and receives 10 shillings a week from the two sons who farmed the land with her husband but she has no money of her own left to her by him.

Also a source of extremely useful information is the probate record attached to the will, especially the Affidavit of Statement which contains a statement of assets and liabilities - basically a list of what David owned and how much it was worth.  The first page of this list (4 pages long in total) details the three parcels of land he owned - subsequent pages listed crops, livestock, farming implements, carriages, harness and saddlery, furniture, cash on hand and money in the bank.  Any debts owed to David, and any debts he owed others were also listed.  All fascinating information and a great insight into the family.

Page 1 of David Mulholland's Statement of Assets and Liabilities

David Mulholland owned 3 parcels of land that formed his farm, and the Statement of Assets and Liabilities details each, and gives quite a bit of information.  For the first parcel of land, it tells us the following details : All those pieces of freehold land containing 132 acres 3 roods and 1 perch more or less being special allot. 6H, allotments 7A and 7B of section 25 and part of allotment B5, Parish of Barrwedgee County of Bogong fenced partly post and two rail partly rail and wire 40 acres partly cleared remainder used for grazing with 3 room stone house with three weather board rooms and outhouses erected thereon municipal assessment 33 pounts per annum valued at 665 pounds.

Subsequent pages give details of the various livestock David owned, various cattle (some noted as being in poor condition), a very old bull, a pony mare, a pig - so much detail in a document with so much personality.

Who Do You Think You Are Magazine October 2026

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 : 

• NAI microsites remain offline for essential updates 
• Fold3 adds US WW1 records
• Findmypast adds Royal Navy Museums records
• Ancestry adds Isle of Man parish records
• Ripon Workhouse Museum reopens
• The wrong side of the blanket
• Away from home - Adopted, fostered, orphan, nurse child
• This is your life - using photographs to remember past generations
• My parents lived through turbulent times in the Middle East 
• Modern Marriage Records - researching marriages in England and Wales after civil registration
• Irish Research 
• Parish Burial Records 
• Do I have the right Sarah Kaye...

 

Week 37 (Sept. 10-16): A Small Detail I Love - #52Ancestors

One of my favourite family photos is the one below of my father Peter with his siblings and their father, Frank Walter Green.  Dad was one of 10 children and to the best of my knowledge it is the only photo of all 10 siblings together, which makes the scanned image I have even more precious.  

A small detail I love is that one of the brothers has a beer bottle balanced on his head!  That would be Ernest, known to all as Squib, the second eldest of the Green siblings.  

If there are any relatives out there who have another photo of all 10 siblings together, I would love to hear from you and am happy to share copies!

September 11, 25 Years On

It is hard to believe it is 25 years since the September 11 terrorist attacks. I doubt anyone will ever forget the events of the September 11 attacks, where they were and what they were doing when they heard the news:

• At 8:46 a.m., AA 11 slammed into the North Tower of the World Trade Center.
• At 9:03 a.m., UA175 slammed into the South Tower.
• At 9:37 a.m., AA77 crashed into the Pentagon’s west side.
• At 9:59 a.m., the South Tower imploded and fell, raining debris and ash on the city.
• At 10:03 a.m., UA93 crashed into a field in the Pennsylvania countryside.
• And at 10:29 a.m., the North Tower collapsed from the top down. A cloud of ash turned day to night in the narrow streets of lower Manhattan.

In those terrible moments between 8:46 a.m. and 10:29 a.m., nearly 3,000 men, women and children lost their lives.  The youngest was two. The oldest was 85. 

Where I live in Australia, the clock is 14 hours ahead of New York.  So at the time of the first attack, it was 10:46pm my time.  I was already asleep.  Like much of the rest of Australia, I woke up to the news of the attacks. 

My family heard the news on the radio at 7:00am - there had been a terrorist attack in the US and the World Trade Centre in New York had been hit by a hijacked plane.  We rushed to turn on our TV.  As the picture came on, the first thing we saw was a replay of the second plane hitting the south tower.  For several minutes we weren't sure if this was live, or had happened several hours ago.  Then we saw the towers fall.

I was late for work that day.

In the library where I work, we dug out an old TV from our storeroom and set it up out in the public area of the building, keeping the news on all day.  People spoke in more hushed voices than usual.  Everyone was shocked.

25 years later, the world still remembers.

Family Tree US Magazine September/October 2026

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 : 

• The Ellis Island of the West
• Behind the Scenes
• Ancestry.com: New Beta Tools
• Enhanced DNA Features
• Illuminating Family History
• Marshalling the Troops 
• Case Study: Civil War Soldiers
• Scribe and Seek - MyHeritage’s new Scribe AI tool.
• Writing a New Narrative 
• Whose broad stripes and bright stars - a history of US expansion in six landmark events.
• Funeral Home Records
• Retaking a DNA Test
• Finding Patriots through the Daughters of the American Revolution
• Cemetery records at a glance

Week 36 (Sept. 3-9): More Than a Name - #52Ancestors

Every family has their popular names - names that appear generation after generation regardless of fashion, forming a family pattern, becoming more than just a name.  There were also fads among names - copying that of the current Monarch and their family, for example, as well as using a traditional name common amongst ancestors.

Family naming patterns were frequent in many families, although they are by no means a reliable way of predicting the names of children.  Traditionally, the first son would be named for the paternal grandfather, the second son for the maternal grandfather and the third son for the father.  For females, the first daughter would be named for the maternal grandmother, the second daughter for the paternal grandmother and the third daughter for the mother.  Providing, of course, these names were not the same.  

Then, there are the families that seemed to delight in using unusual names for their children, and those who followed popular fads.  Horatio, for example, made a brief surge in popularity after Nelson's victory at Trafalgar.  Similarly, Adolf disappeared from German communities after World War 2.

In the 1700s the top five names for each gender were :
Boys - John, William, Thomas, Richard and James
Girls - Mary, Elizabeth, Ann, Sarah and Jane

In the 1800s the top five names for each gender were :
Boys - John, William, James, George and Charles
Girls - Mary, Anna, Emma, Elizabeth and Margaret

There was also the tendency, unusual as it may seem to us today, of reusing the name of a child who had died.  In the 1700's and 1800's this occurs frequently in my family tree, with the name of a child who has died in infancy being reused for the next child of the same gender born to the family.  

This can make research quite tricky, especially when a popular name has been used by several branches of a family.  In my Irish Mulholland family, for example, four brothers all named their first son James, after their father.  One child died at 2 days old and the name was reused 18 months later.  This meant there were five children named James Mulholland, born within five years and a few miles of each other.  Sorting out which records belong with which child is quite a challenge.

Then two of them married women named Mary.

Week 35 (Aug. 27-Sept. 2): A Spot on the Map - #52Ancestors

A particular 'Spot on the Map' would be the sheep station called 'Para' on which I was born.  My father worked there as a stockman for approximately 20 years, and my mother became station cook after their marriage.

Para Homestead

My sister and I were both born during our parents last years at the station.  Just before we reached school age, our family moved to the small town of Moama, where we lived for the rest of my childhood.

Woolshed, clean and ready for shearing

I have only a few clear memories of our time at the station.  I remember the homestead beside the Darling River, the creaking verandahs and gum trees all around. Trailing my father into the old woolshed, the smell of sheep and wool overpowering.

1971 flood, from the back doors of the homestead

My family was resident at the station during the 1971 flood, an event my mother has described to me, during which the road from the homestead to the highway was cut by floodwater for several weeks, isolating us all.

Both my parents were fond of telling stories about their time on the station, which both looked back on with fondness and nostalgia.

Week 34 (Aug. 20-26): Long-lasting - #52Ancestors

Amongst my family history treasures are copies of some very old photographs.  Photos of my ancestors dating from the early days of photography are rare, and the images are surprisingly long lasting. Below are two of the older photos I have in my collection.  I only have digital copies that I have printed out, but a good digital copy is still very worth having.  

Isobelle Mary Green (nee Argent)

Isabelle Mary Green was born 1 June 1858 and dies 7 March 1936.

Sarah Jane Pike (nee Hart)

Sarah Jane Pike was born 17 August 1856 and died 3 January 1933.

I'm not sure exactly when these photos were taken - unfortunately there is no detail included on the originals or on the digital copies, but they have lasted for at least a century.

Family Tree UK Magazine September 2026

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 : 

• Thousands of Indian First World War soldiers remembered
• Rare copy of the Declaration of Independence found at The National Archives
• Do you have a DNA connection to Ötzi the Iceman?
• Knitted wartime exhibition extended due to popularity
• English Heritage encourage us to send posctards this summer
• Marriages - Looking beyond the official record
• What did your ancestors do in War Weapons Week? 
• A practical guide to DNA Painter
• Part 4 From Home to Horizon 
• Poor Law Settlement disputes
• Recording your research effectively 
• Building confidence in DNA testing

Who Do You Think You Are Magazine September 2026

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 : 

• Irish website adds 190,000 new records to its collection
• New house stories website launches
• Crowd Cymru wins archive volunteering award
• Ancestry adds Wiltshire electoral registers
• TheGenealogist releases early American records
• Clean living -  Alan Crosby explores soap's journey from taxed necessity to fragrant luxury
• Tales of the Unexpected • Family secrets come in all shapes and sizes
• What are the odds? How to use WATO
• How to set up a private tree on Ancestry 
• 6 resources to help you with unexpected results
• Tips and tricks for identifying matches with no trees 
• Researching Irish Canadians 
• My relatives were on board the RMS Lusitania 
• Secret Service Ancestors
• Caribbean Ancestry
• More great websites - Online resources you can't afford to miss

Week 33 (Aug. 13-19): Multiples - #52Ancestors

The prompt 'Multiple' bring to mind the marital history of Thomas May, my 3xGreat Grandfather.  Thomas married a total of 5 times, losing several wives in childbirth.

Thomas May was born 20 September 1762 in West Mersea, Essex and was baptised 16 October 1762 at the church of St Peter and St Paul.  He died on 27 February 1843 in West Mersea and was buried on 7 March 1843.  He outlived all 5 wives.

Wife 1 – Elizabeth Godwin
Born 1763 Thorrington, Essex
Married 27 March 1787 Thorrington, Essex
Died 25 August 1790 West Mersea, Essex
Children – Thomas, Edward

Wife 2 – Sarah Sadler
Born 1775 West Mersea, Essex
Married 1792 West Mersea, Essex
Died 7 January 1799 West Mersea, Essex
Children – Betsey (Elizabeth), Sarah, Hannah, John Tickell

Wife 3 – Henrietta Stevens
Born Unknown
Married 12 May 1801 St Mary, Lambeth, Surrey
Died 2 May 1812 West Mersea
Children – Henry John, Mary

Wife 4 – Susannah Balls Green
Born 7 June 1770 West Bergholt, Essex
Married 10 November 1818 Fordham, Essex
Died 11 February 1828 West Mersea, Essex
Children - Nil

Wife 5 – Mary Ann Pullen
Born 13 October 1791 West Mersea, Essex
Married 9 August 1829 West Mersea, Essex
Died 1838 West Mersea, Essex
Children – Edward, Sophia Mary Ann

It is his 4th wife, Susannah Green (nee Balls), where the relationships become truly convoluted.  Susannah's son Isaac (from her first husband John Green) was married to Thomas's eldest daughter Betsy (Elizabeth).  So Thomas became not only father-in-law but also step-father to Isaac, and his new wife Susannah became mother-in-law and step-mother to Betsy.

Week 32 (Aug. 6-12): Neighbors and Community - #52Ancestors

Wherever they lived, our ancestors were a part of their local community, although finding records of how they interacted with their neighbours can be sparse.  Census records are one resource for finding out about our ancestors' neighbours.

For example, below is the 1851 census for Isaac Green.

Isaac Green is a farmer, age 58, living in Fordham, Essex.  This census record tells me that his household consistes of his wife Betsy 57, son William 17, and servants Maryann Blakeley 45, Harriet Clark 30 and Betsy Woodward 17. 

If you look at the household directly beneath Isaac's in the census, you find Edmund Woodward 59, wife Rebecca Woodward 55 and mother (actually mother-in-law) Rebecca Fairclough 77.  Edmund is a labourer - and yes, he works for Isaac Green.  Isaac's servant Betsy Woodward is Edmund's eldest daughter - shown in the 1841 census - who has gone into service up in the big house.  Following through the census, Betsy Woodward stays on working for Isaac Green for decades, through the 1861, 1871 and 1881 censuses until Isaac's death in 1882.

It would be all too easy to overlook this information and simply concentrate on the main family, noting family members and occupations and overlooking all that lovely extra information about Isaac's ties to his neighborhood.

Week 31 (July 30-Aug. 5): A Day in the Life - #52Ancestors

Newspapers can be an excellent source of finding out more about or ancestors daily lives.  They can provide information about not only the major events, but also about how they spent their leisure hours and the clubs and societies they belonged to. 

Included in my newspaper records, I found several articles relating to musical events and concerts in which various ancestors performed, especially my Argent branch of my family tree.

The article above is from the Essex Standard published Friday 7 January 1876 and has several members of my Argent family preforming.  My Great Great Grandfather John Thompson Argent was Chair or the event and his sister Ada Emily Argent was the pianist.

When my great grandfather James Nicholas Clark passed away in 1924 there were two death notices inserted in the newspaper - one from his family and one from the Masonic Lodge of which he was a member. 

Had it not been for this Masonic notice, I would never have known that James was a Mason.  It is also worth noting the spelling error - the heading of the Masonic notice has CLARG, not CLARK.  The family notice also gives me his occupation - Overseer at Brighton City Council.

Week 30 (July 23-29) Free Space - #52Ancestors

Free space in my family history records generally means I have work to do, a gap to fill, a mystery I have not yet solved.  Often when I am looking through my family history notes I will look for the free spaces and pick one in particular to work on and try to fill.

Perhaps it is a missing baptism or burial record, a gap in census records, an unusually long time between the births of children.  Any free space in an ancestor's timeline deserves investigation.

I find it is a useful exercise to go back through my notes, charts and timelines and look for free space, to see what I have missed or not followed up on as well as I should.  It is all too easy to follow the information I do have on to another generation or another individual, to go down the rabbit hole of a new discovery and not return to an individual whose information is incomplete.

Noting the free space in my family history helps to prompt me to go back, research more thoroughly and fill in the gaps, until hopefully on day all those free spaces are filled. 

Week 29 (July 16-22) A Source I Want to Understand Better - #52Ancestors

One particular type of record I have always had difficulty with are shipping records.  Over the years of my research I have slowly learned about these records, but locating my ancestors in shipping and immigration records has always been problematic.

For a couple of my ancestors, making the assumption that they moved directly from A to B let me astray, in one case for several years.  The family of my great grandfather, James Nicholas Clark, came from Bristol in England.  They left England at about the time James was born and eventually settled in Melbourne, Australia.  It took me several years of fruitless searching for their immigration details before I widened my search to find the family first arrived in Launceston, Tasmania, which is where James was born shortly after they arrived.  The family spent at least 5 years in nearby Port Sorrell before travelling across Bass Strait to settle in Melbourne.

So why is it so difficult to find some of our ancestor's immigration records?

• Consider alternate spelling of their name.  The clerk who recorded their embarkation or arrival was unlikely to ask about spelling and just recorded the name as he heard it.
  
• If the person travelled in steerage/was an unassisted immigrant/was a crew member who jumped ship, the details recorded about them may be scant or non-existent.
• Females, children, servants and steerage passengers were frequently left off the passenger lists altogether.
• Did they migrate in stages?  Not everyone went straight from A to B – some visited other points along the way, sometimes taking years to arrive at their final destination.
• Prior to 1852, ship's masters were not required to record the names of unassisted passengers travelling from Britain to the Australian colonies.
• Port Phillip District of New South Wales was established on 10 April 1837.  Victoria was not proclaimed a separate colony until 1 July 1851.  Check NSW records if your ancestor arrived earlier.
• After 1923 records of people arriving by sea and air are held at the National Archives of Australia.
• Not all records have survived the passage of time and remained legible.

Family Tree UK Magazine August 2026

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 : 

• Professor Turi King Awarded Julian Bickersteth Memorial
• Crowd Cymru wins national award
• One-name website resource recognised
• Preparations underway for Family Tree Live
• Family historians invited to create time capsule
• Findmypast partners with Heritage Open Days to celebrate ‘Everyday Histories’
• ‘Pedigrees of paupers’ - Analyzing class and social mobility in the records
• Advanced approaches - Taking your research to the next level
• Putting your ancestors in their place - Agriculture
• A Legacy of the heart - Your Voice Matters part 2 
• Part 3 rural role models - like mother, like daughter
• Extra, extra! Read all about it!
• Building effective family trees from your DNA matches 
• Digging Deeper into sources - Learn how to get every last clue

Who Do You Think You Are Magazine August 2026

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 : 

• Putting AI to the test
• London Library membership records go online
• British documents added to Memory of the World Register
• First World War soldiers buried after DNA identification
• Historic coal mining plans go online
• TheGenealogist adds British Railways magazines
• Toilet tales - Dealing with bodily functions
• AI: The answers at your fingertips? 
• Full text search at FamilySearch
• 6 free websites
• Lost in Ireland
• My journey began with a pedigree
• The Royal Naval Reserve
• British in India
• More great websites - fantastic sites you can't afford to miss
• Prerogative & Exchequer Courts of York, Probate Records 

Week 28 (July 9-15) Leisure Time - #52Ancestors

A fascinating and often difficult to research aspect of our ancestors' lives is what they did in their leisure time.  How did they relax and unwind?  Did they have hobbies?  Play sports?  Read? Take trips or go on holidays?  For many leisure time would have been rare and therefore precious - so how did they spent that time?

Newspapers have been a great source of information for me about my ancestors' 'play time' and leisure activities.  My Argent ancestors from West Bergholt took part in an amateur concert, reported below in the Essex Standard of Friday 7 January 1876.
 

A similar article reported on a pigeon shooting match in which my great-grandfather Walter Green took part - sadly he lost the match. 

Another newspaper report concerned another great-grandfather, Henry Arthur Pike, who was the umpire for his local quoits club in Bradfield St George.

All fascinating insights into the lives of my ancestors 'Play Time'. 

Family Tree US July-August

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 : 

• Trio of AI Tools from MyHeritage
• Irish Census released
• Roundup: New and Improved Websites
• Red, White and Blues
• Stories MoreThan Skin-Deep
• The 101 Best Genealogy Websites of 2026
• Learn all about the often-misunderstood ethnicity estimates
• 1930 US Census
• Whole-Genome Sequencing
• Publication-Hunting with Newspaper Finder
• Preserving Old Maps
• Finding Ancestors ‘Hiding’ in the Census
• 5 Steps to Find Your Ancestor’s Deed
• Citing Land Records

 

Week 27 (July 2-8) A Record I Read Differently Now - #52Ancestors

A record I read differently now - almost anything dating before about 1752!  Why?  The change from the Julian to the Gregorian calendar. 

Today, 1 January was regarded as New Year's Day and celebrated as such, but from the 12th century until 1751 the legal year in England began on 25 March (Lady Day). So, for example, the Parliamentary record lists the execution of Charles I on 30 January as occurring in 1648 (as the year did not end until 24 March), although later histories adjust the start of the year to 1 January and record the execution as occurring in 1649.

Most Western European countries changed the start of the year to 1 January before they adopted the Gregorian calendar. For example, Scotland changed the start of the Scottish New Year to 1 January in 1600 (making 1599 a rather short year). England, Ireland and the British colonies changed the start of the year to 1 January in 1752 (so 1751 was a short year with only 282 days). Later in 1752 in September the Gregorian calendar was introduced throughout Britain and the British colonies. These two reforms were implemented by the Calendar (New Style) Act 1750.

It is important to keep these dates in mind if you have been fortunate enough to trace you family back past 1752, as the calendar used at the time will skew the year in which events, particularly baptisms, marriages and burials, were recorded if they took place between 1 January and 25 March.

 
Consider the example of the baptism records above.  It records the baptism of Susannah, daughter of John Dixon and Susannah his wife on July 8, 1722.  It also records the baptism of Anna, daughter of John Dixon and Susannah his wife on March 17, 1722.   This is going to look very odd on a modern timeline, if you don't take into account that in the modern calendar, Anna is baptised on March 17, 1723 - approximately 8.5 months after sister Susannah and not 3.5 months before her.

Several of my older records make much more sense now that I read them differently.

Cork Graveyards Database at the Skibbereen Heritage Centre

Earlier this year, Skibbereen Heritage Centre added substantially to its Cork Graveyards Database, bringing the total to 109,385 burial records from over 170 graveyards throughout the county. All are free to search online.

The most recent additions to the long-running digitization project relate to North Cork and include burial records from the following graveyards:

Ballinakill, Ballyhooly, Ballynoe, Boherbue, Bridgetown, Brigown, Britway, Carrigdownane, Castlelyons New Cemetery, Derryvillane, Dromtarriffe New Cemetery, Dunmahon, Gortroe, Kilbrin, Kilcrumper Old Graveyard, Kilcummer, Kildorrery, Kilgrogan, Killabraher, Killathy, Killavullen New Cemetery, Kilphelan, Kilroe, Knawhill, Mourneabbey (The Abbey Cemetery) and St Gobnait’s (Gouldshill, Mallow). Scroll down to see the full list of graveyards included in the database. 

The Cork Graveyards Database is hosted on the Skibbereen Heritage Centre website and includes both searchable burial register records and results from several graveyard surveys. An interactive map shows each graveyard included in the project, most of which are cemeteries owned and managed by Cork County Council. Each cemetery is marked with a cross on the map. By clicking on a cross, users can read a short description of the graveyard and check the date range covered by its burial registers – a helpful step before beginning a search.

Individual burial register records typically include the name of the deceased, address, date of death and date of burial. Some entries also contain additional information such as age at death, occupation, the informant’s name (often a close relative), the registrar’s name and grave location. Where available, original register pages can be viewed and downloaded as PDFs by selecting “View Register”.

Week 26 (June 25-July 1) A Hard Choice - #52Ancestors

A hard choice faced by several of my ancestors was to emigrate from their homelands to the colonies of Australia.  What prompted these families, mostly with young children in tow, to pack up and move halfway around the world?  Two of my immigrant families would settle in one state of Australia, then pack up and move again several years later.  What prompted them to take that leap of faith and travel so far from their homelands, families and friends?  It would have been a huge decision to make.

My immigrant ancestors came from England, Ireland and Germany.  Land in their homelands would have been difficult and costly to acquire, so the prospect of cheap land for farming may have been a big motivator for them.  Many Germans also emigrated for freedom from religious persecution.  Then there are my Irish ancestors, who left Ireland a few years before the potato famine.  Again, I suspect Australia represented the chance for a better life, a chance to own land and improve the family's living conditions.

My great grandfather, James Nicholas Clark, was born in Bristol, England or possibly Launceston, Tasmania around 1856, just as the family emigrated to Australia.  James’s younger sister Annie Amelia Clark was born 31 March 1857 in Port Sorrell, Tasmania, where the family lived for at least 12 years before they traveled across Bass Strait and settled in Victoria.

Carl Friedrich Beseler, known in Australia as Frederick, was born around 1810 in Hanover, Germany.  He was a shoemaker in Germany and a farmer in Australia, arriving in Adelaide on 1 April 1848 on the ship Pauline from Bremen, Germany.  Passengers listed were Frederick Beseler, Shoemaker, Mrs Beseler and 5 children.  The family lived in South Australia for 7 years before travelling overland to Victoria, where they settled near Ercildown.  Several members of the family are buried in Learmonth Cemetery. 

Travel by ship in the mid 1800s from Europe to Australia would have been a long and arduous journey for these families.  Their determination to forge new lives prompted them to travel such distances.  A hard choice indeed.