#52Ancestors - Week 17 - Document

Documenting your sources and where you have researched is good advice every researcher (of any kind) needs to keep in mind. Keeping some kind of research log to document your work and discoveries is essential.  You need to know where you have been, where you found each piece of information, and just as importantly, know where you failed to find anything.  Knowing where you searched and what search terms you used can help you avoid reworking your research and help develop your methodology. 

If you have good research logs it is much easier when you return to a search several months or even years later as you have a clear understanding of what you have searched for, where you have looked and whether you have any uncorroborated leads to follow up. Without this, you can waste so much valuable time duplicating failed searches.

Documenting your research is also essential if you ever intend to publish a family history.  Many documents we download have some kind of copyright protection.  Often we are allowed to save documents from an archive, database or other resource for personal use only, with permission required if we intent to publish or otherwise reproduce the documents we have found.  This makes knowing where you located each document you intend to publish absolutely essential.

 So remember to always, always document your research.  On day you - or those who come after you in later generations - may be very thankful you kept good research records.

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 : 

• Tree Talk - We asked what you’re hoping to find in the 1950 US census. Here’s how you responded.
• Tales of the Dead - A New Englander shares stories from cemeteries on TikTok.
• The Great Comet of 1950 - It’s the bee’s knees, daddy-O! The 1950 US census has arrived, bringing good genealogical tidings. Here’s what you’ll find in it.
• Nothing But the Truth - Separate truth from fiction in family stories with the tips in these three case studies.
• One tree to rule them all - Online trees are useful, but not an ideal place to store your research. Here’s the case for building one primary, offline “master” family tree that syncs with online trees as necessary.
• Case Closed - Using DNA databases along with traditional genealogical research, investigators are identifying criminals in decades-old cases. Here’s how they do it—and what it means for test takers.
• Viva Italia • A photo hints at an immigrant woman’s homecoming.
• Finding Resources with ArchiveGrid - ArchiveGrid is a free online catalog of 7 million archival materials from more than 1,400 repositories around the world.
• And more.

Transcription Errors

I've noted before that online trees need to be treated with a great deal of caution, as not everyone out there is a meticulous researcher and errors can be made.  It is worthwhile, however, to note that errors can also be made in original records themselves, and even more in transcribed records.

When official records are transcribed, generally there are several checks and safety protocols in place to minimise errors.  This does not mean that errors do not occur, and it is always wise to be alert for any anomalies.  Below is a screenshot of one such error I recently located.

This transcribed record for the baptism of Hannah May leapt out at me when I first located it.  Why??  Check the birth and baptism dates again.

Fairly high on my list of impossible things would be being baptised six weeks before you were born.  Something has been transcribed incorrectly in this record.  Possibly the dates are transposed and Hannah was born in July and baptised in August.  Possibly one of the months was transcribed incorrectly.  With no original image to check, I will need to dig further to find out.

So remember, never take any record you find as absolutely correct.  Human error is always a possibility, and finding corroborating evidence for any fact is a wise move.

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 

• Regional variations in what we call our grandparents
• Rootstech round-up
• Distilling and brewing magazine is a ‘treasure trove’ of historic adverts
• Quaker Women’s Petition 1659 added to FindMyPast
• 5.8M records from JewishGen published at MyHeritage
• Get more from the 1939 Register
• Large-scale redevelopment planned for British Library site at Boston Spa
• 43,000 historical Scottish prison records released by Scottish Indexes
• Scottish house history
• Ten steps to finding John Armstrong
• Another brick in you wall?
• Postcards from the Front
• And more 

 

ANZAC Day

It is April 25^th again, and once more I find myself reflecting on the meaning of ANZAC Day.  While I stand and say the Ode today, I will be remembering not only my father and several uncles who served in WWII, and those of my family who went before them, but all of those men and women who have served, as well as those who serve today.  I will remember especially those who did not come home and all of those who came home forever changed, as well as those who did not see fighting, but served in different ways both at home and abroad.

ANZAC has very much become a part of our national vocabulary.  The people who lived though that campaign were ordinary volunteers, just as Australia’s current veterans were ordinary volunteers.  They put their daily lives on hold to serve and protect us all, most with very little clear idea of just what they were volunteering for.

There are many resources available for those researching their family military history.  The Australian War Memorial has several databases available, including the Roll of Honour, Commemorative Roll, WW1 Embarkation Rolls and Nominal Roll, the Australian Red Cross Wounded and Missing Files, WW2 POWs and Missing Persons, and more.  The National Archives of Australia have the military records of many Australian military personnel from World War 1 and earlier digitised online, and researchers can order copies of many World War 2 dossiers as well.  The Commonwealth War Graves site commemorates the men and women of the Commonwealth forces who died in the First and Second World Wars, ensuring they will never be forgotten.  There are many other websites and resources available as well.

Around the world many towns and suburbs have plaques, cenotaphs and memorials commemorating local men and women who have served and paid the ultimate sacrifice for their country.  How often do we stop as we walk past them in our daily lives and spare a moment to remember these people?

I am forever grateful to all of you who have served and sacrificed on our behalf. It is a solemn undertaking to be ready to put your life on the line for your Country. One that is deserving of our gratitude.

Lest we forget.

National Archives of Australia Digitisation

The National Archives of Australia has over 1 million records documenting the service of Australian men and women during World War II. These include service records for the Army, the Royal Australian Air Force and the Royal Australian Navy.

Over the past 15 years the NAA has digitised more than 200,000 WWII records and made them available to view online through RecordSearch, and in 2019 the Australian Government announced funding of $10 million to help digitise the remaining 850,000 records.

This project was planned to take place over 4 years, with work starting in July 2019.  Since is commenced the NAA has digitised 200,000 additional records, with over 3 million pages made available online.

Large-scale digitisation of the remaining WWII service records began in October 2020.

Army records

Records are being digitised by place of enlistment.

• Citizen Military Forces personnel service records (Series B884) – digitisation began in October 2020
• Second Australian Imperial Force personnel dossiers (Series B883) – digitisation due to begin mid-2022

Air Force records

Records are being digitised alphabetically by surname (Series A9300) and by service number (Series A9301).

• Royal Australian Air Force Non-Commissioned Officers and other ranks personnel files (Series A9301) – digitisation began in July 2019
• Royal Australian Air Force Officers personnel files (Series A9300) – digitisation began July 2021

Batches of records in these series will be temporarily unavailable to the public while they are being digitised. As records are digitised, the digital copies will be added to RecordSearch and made available free of charge.

The table below provides specific updates on the progress of records being digitised. The NAA updates this table regularly as work progresses.

Series	Batch	Progress
B884	Northern Territory     Tasmania     Western Australia	Completed
B884	South Australia     Queensland     New South Wales     Victoria	In progress
B884	Papua New Guinea	Early 2022
A9300	AARONS to PEAD	In progress
A9300	ABBOTT to ZUCKER	In progress
A9301	Service number 1183 to 1495     Service number 14448 to 21142	Completed
A9301	Service number 21889 to 37057     Service number 21090 to 27054     Service number 60141 to 90337	In progress
B883	All states	Mid-2022

So take a look at the National Archives of Australia and see if there is new information available for you about your WW2 Australian ancestors.

#52Ancestors - Week 16 - Negatives

Our theme for Week 16 is Negatives, and I'm going to take a slightly different interpretation of this topic than I originally intended.

Many of us have a collection of old photograph negatives stored away somewhere.  Sometimes they are paired with printed photographs, sometimes the photos have been given away or lost and it is just the negatives left.  Others have been made into slides, for which you may no longer have any kind of viewer available.

While cleaning out the family home after my parents passed away, I found such a treasure.  A shoebox full of old photographs and negatives, and another box full of photographic slides.  What I did not find, however, was any means of viewing the negatives or the slides.  I did have vague memories of seeing the slides projected on a wall using a slide projector as a child, but certainly no such device remained in the old house.

The boxes travelled around with me for a few years, glanced at every now and again. Then, just before Christmas, I discovered an intriguing little device that plugged into my computer that could convert slides or negatives into digital photos!  I ordered it immediately and waited impatiently for it to arrive.

And it has been marvellous!  For the past few months, I have been eagerly converting hundreds of those old negatives into digital photos, many of which I have absolutely no memory of seeing.  Some I can identify, others are a mystery, but I have happily worked my way through those old boxes.  In the process, I have unearthed many treasures.

One container of about 50 slides were from my parents' wedding.  Another was baby photos of my sister and I, a third photos of the sheep station where we were born.  One container was filled with images of the prize winning Merino sheep my father bred.  Treasures indeed.

So have a look around for any old negatives sorted away, and investigate getting them printed or converted into digital images, either by using a similar device or visiting your local camera shop for help.