Family History Month

We are rapidly approaching August, which is National Family History Month in Australia, and I am gearing up at the library for a series of Family History talks and 1 to 1 help sessions.

During the month I will be visiting each of our library branches to run sessions, focusing on Ancestry Library Edition, which is available free through our library service, and hints and tips for your family history research.

I will also be running a number of 1 to 1 help sessions, where people can book a time to sit with me and I will try to help with their research brick walls.  I love these sessions as they always raise some intriguing stories, and while I can't guarantee success it is always a thrill to locate a missing fact that helps someone further their research.

There are many other events taking place during August around the country, and quite a few are listed on the AFFHO (Australasian Federation of Family History Organisations) website.

So take a look around at what is happening during August for Family History Month.

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.

Family History Month

August is National Family History Month in Australia and Campaspe Library is offering a range of classes and sessions at our library branches throughout the month.

Bookings are essential for all sessions and are now open via our website.  Drop in to your local Campaspe Library branch to pick up a brochure to see what is on offer.

We are also holding a Family and Local History panel 2 August as part of Library and Information Week and National Family History Month.

So book your place to come along.

Family History Week

Don't forget to book in for our Family History at Your Library sessions during Library Week.  You can find out more about what the library has to offer you - access to Ancestry Library Edition, online magazines, our Genealogy Blog and Twitter, classes and class notes, and more.

Family History in Lockdown

Well here we are again, back in lockdown.  As a Victorian, this is my sixth, and it is time to get back into organising my family history files, checking that all my research is properly recorded and filed.  The time definitely goes faster when I have a project to immerse myself in.

I expect we are all guilty of occasionally letting filing and updating get a little behind, and I have certainly got some catching up to do.  My printed family sheets, that I use when researching, are covered in scribbled notes and references to new documents I have found.  My 'new' folder of documents that I need to check are properly referenced on my family group sheets and filed in their appropriate folders is starting to bulge.  My backup files could do with updating too.  I really have a fair bit of work to do.

There has been a number of special opportunities made available to Family Historians around the world during lockdowns.  Ancestry has allowed many libraries subscribing to Ancestry Library Edition, normally only accessed on site, to be accessed from home by members.  For Campaspe Library members, go to the library homepage and click on Genealogy in the page menu, then click on Databases.  There you will find the link for Ancestry Library Edition from Home.  Follow the prompts to type in your library card number and PIN, and enjoy free access to the worldwide database from home.

Another great resource to access right now are the digital records available through the National Archives UK.  While their Reading Room access is limited due to restrictions, they have been offering all their digital records you would normally pay to obtain for free.  Registered users are able to order and download up to 10 items at a time, to a maximum of 100 items every 30 days.  And yes, registration is free as well.

If that isn't enough to keep me occupied, I still have several videos to watch from the truly excellent 'Family History Down Under' conference held earlier this year.  So many knowledgeable speakers, so much learning to do.  Then there are the many events listed for Family History Month Australasia 2021, which is held throughout August.  While I expect a number of events will be cancelled or postponed because of the current situation around the country, many were already planned to be held online and hopefully will still go ahead.

So to everyone out there who is locked down at home right now, take some time to revisit your family history, make sure all your research is up to date and backed up, and take advantage of the various free learning and researching opportunities out there.  I've only touched on a few.  There are more out there - so go find them!

Upcoming Genealogy Classes

As part of Seniors Month in October Campaspe Regional Library will be offering a number of free genealogy classes around the Shire, and bookings are now open.

Echuca Library
Ancestry Library Edition   Friday 11 October 1.00pm
Public Records Office of Victoria   Friday 11 October 2.00pm
FamilySearch   Friday 18 October 1.00pm
Genealogy Hints and Tips   Friday 18 October 2.00pm
Genealogy and DNA   Sunday 27 October 2.30pm
National Archives of Australia   Monday 28 October 10.00am
Trove and the National Library of Australia   Monday 28 October 11.00am

Kyabram Library
Trove and the National Library of Australia   Wednesday 23 October 9.30am
Ancestry Library Edition   Wednesday 23 October 11.00am
Genealogy and DNA   Wednesday 23 October 2.00pm

Rochester Library
FamilySearch   Monday 21 October 9.30am
Ancestry Library Edition   Monday 21 October 11.00am
Genealogy and DNA   Monday 21 October 2.00pm

Rushworth Library
Genealogy and DNA   Friday 25 October 9.30am
Ancestry Library Edition  Friday 25 October 11.00am
Researching ANZACs   Friday 25 October 2.00pm

Tongala Library
Genealogy and DNA   Monday 14 October 9.30am
Ancestry Library Edition   Monday 14 October 11.00am
Researching Irish Ancestors   Monday 14 October 2.00pm

Bookings are available online via the library homepage or you can call the library on 54812400.

Unlock the Past Seminars

Those wonderful people at Unlock the Past are presenting more seminars around Australia, with the Melbourne 2 day session coming up soon.

Seminars will be held in :

• Melbourne 19th-20th April
• Canberra 23rd April
• Sydney 26th-27th April
• Adelaide 18th-19th May
• Perth 8th-9th June
• Brisbane 19th-20th October

I've booked my ticket for Melbourne and am looking forward to taking lots of notes, chatting with fellow genealogists and buying a few new books to read.  The program for Melbourne is below and looks great.

Thursday 19 April 2018

9.00am	registration and exhibition
9.25am	welcome and seminar introduction
9.30am	Locating your ancestor’s place of origin in Germany - E. Kopittke
10.20am	Online newspapers: what happened in the “dash” - R. Kopittke
11.10am	break and exhibition
11.40am	Midwives and nurses: and researching female ancestors - S. Zada
12.30pm	lunch break and exhibition
1.40pm	Understanding the system: a brief overview of the history of the German region - E. Kopittke
2.30pm	Convict ancestors - S. Zada
3.20pm	break and exhibition
4.00pm	Researching in German church and civil records - E. Kopittke
4.50pm	close

Friday 20 April 2018

9.00am	registration and exhibition
9.25am	welcome and seminar introduction
9.30am	Understanding your World War One ‘Digger’ - N. Smith
10.20am	Beyond just indexes: why we should check source records - R. Kopittke
11.10am	break and exhibition
11.40am	topic and speaker TBA
12.20pm	prize draw
12.30pm	lunch break and exhibition
1.40pm	Researching your Freemason ancestor - R. Hamilton
2.30pm	Tracing your World War Two Australian military ancestors - N. Smith
3.20pm	break and exhibition
3.40pm	ScotlandsPeople: the place to launch your Scottish research - R. Kopittke
4.30pm	close

Family History Month Wrap-up

Family History Month is just about over, and what a huge month it has been.  Browsing around on the FHM homepage and looking at the number of events, talks, tours, webinars and activities, the month has clearly been a success around the country. Just looking at all the range of topics offered is mind-boggling.

Campaspe Regional Library has offered a number of Family History talks during the month at all our library branches, as well as one-on-one sessions at Echuca, Kyabram and Rochester.  All classes have been well attended and the one-on-one sessions booked out, even after I opened up more days at Echuca to meet the demand. 

If you were meaning to come to any of the Famiy History Month talks at Campaspe Library but didn't make it, the slideshow presentation for each talk is available in pdf on the Library's website under Genealogy Classes.  Check them out to see what is available - they cover :

•  Ancestry

•  Convicts

•  Familysearch

•  German History and Research

•  Introduction to Online Research

•  Irish History and Research

•  Military Records Online

•  National Archives of Australia

•  Organising your Research

•  Public Records Office of Victoria

•  Trove and the National Library

•  Workhouses

Finally, a big thank-you to everyone who attended any of the events.  Your enthusiasm, eagerness to learn, questions and positive feedback has made our Famiy History Month a success.