Week 35 (Aug. 26-Sept. 1): All Mixed Up

Many of us will come across times when your family tree becomes All Mixed Up, a complex web of intertwining relationships.  Mine has several instances when the mix of names and relationships produces a tangled tree indeed, and impacts on my research as well.

In my Irish ancestry, along the Mulholland line, I find myself All Mixed Up due to names.  As was a common custom at the time, all four surviving sons of my ancestor James Mulholland named their first son James after their paternal grandfather.  As the family all lived close, this results in me having 4 men names James Mulholland, all born within a few miles of each other and within a five year timeframe.  And two of them married women named Mary!  Trying to work out which James Mulholland each record I find is sometimes just imposssible!

A complex Step relationship I have is that of Thomas May, my 3xGreat Grandfather.  Thomas married a total of 5 times, losing his several in childbirth.  It is with his 4th wife, Susannah Balls Green, the relationships become truly 'all mixed up'.  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 was mother-in-law and step-mother to Betsy.

Then there is the relationship of my Aunt, Mavis Pummeroy, and Great Aunt Thelma Clark.  Mavis, born in 1924, married Ernest Horton on the 15^th of September 1947.  Her Aunt Thelma, born in 1914, had married Clarence Horton, Ernest’s brother, on the 6^th of April 1935.  Thus these two women were not only aunt and niece, but also sisters-in-law.  

 'All Mixed Up' indeed!

The Rats of Tobruk

The Rats of Tobruk Association announced earlier this month that Thomas Pritchard, Australia's last "Rat of Tobruk", has died aged 102. 

"Tommy was a stalwart member of our association and a most humble veteran, having served with the 2/5th field ambulance throughout the Middle East and the South West Pacific," the association wrote in a post.

 

The Siege of Tobruk started on 10 April 1941 when the German and Italian forces under the command of Lieutenant General Erwin Rommel surrounded the Tobruk garrison which was being defended by British Commonwealth forces including more than 14,000 Australians, under the command of Major General Leslie Morshead.

Heavy fighting continued for 242 days.  It was an epic battle and despite heavy casualties, the Tobruk garrison was held.  Finally on 7 December 1941, Rommel was forced to abandon the siege.  It was one of the longest sieges in British military history and gave rise to the legend of the 'Rats of Tobruk'.

The Rats of Tobruk Association holds an Honour Roll which lists the Australian Rats of Tobruk.  The Roll was created by Owen Carlton, who dedicated many hours to examining service records and other documents to create the list.  I was honoured to find my great uncle David James Clark listed on the roll.

Week 34 (Aug. 19-25): Members of the Club

Last week #52Ancestors focused on a Favorite Discovery, and my focus for the post was articles I had found in the newspapers.  Another newspaper discovery I have made was that several ancestors were Masons, including my great grandfather and great great grandfather on my mother's maternal line.  These were unexpected discoveries that I found when looking for death notices for both men. 

When my great great grandfather John Clark passed away on June 11th 1894, his family placed a notice in The Age inviting friends to attend his funeral.

Directly below this first notice was another, inserted by the Brighton Union Lodge, inviting members to also attend John's funeral.  Until I found this notice I had no idea he was a Mason.

When his son, my great grandfather James Nicholas Clark died in 1924, similar notices were placed.  Which is how I discovered James was also a Mason.

The above notices were published in The Age, Friday 8 February 1924, page 16.  Like his father, James was also a member of the Brighton Union Lodge, and the Lodge placed a funeral notice alongside that of his family.  Note that in the Lodge notice has his surname listed a Clarg - spelling errors can never be discounted.

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 :  

• What were their lives actually like?
• Found under the floorboards: 17th century schoolgirls’ treasures
• New archive: Discover 900 years of Durham history at The Story
• How to trace a house history
• A new era in Victorian education
• The ever-advancing world of Y & MTDNA & how it can help you
• A history of Pauper burial grounds
• Getting started with a One-Place Study
• It's a Fake! - the curious case of a forged marriage certificate
• Testing out the new Ancestry Match Page
• The Victoria County History
• Families in British India Society celebrates 25th Anniversary
• Passing on the joy...

 

Week 33 (Aug. 12-18): Favorite Discovery

Over the years of my genealogical research I have made many fascinating discoveries, it is hard to choose just one as my favourite.  Many of the most fascinating discoveries I have made, however, come from searching old newspapers, and these are certainly my favourite resource.

One of the saddest stories I have found in my family history is that of Eliza Pummeroy (nee Beseler).  Eliza was born in 1871 in Learmonth, Victoria to Edward Beseler and Emma (nee Flower).  Eliza married Alfred Pummeroy in1895 in St Kilda, where Alfred worked as a plasterer.  They had four children before Alfred suddenly became ill with pneumonia and died on 6 Feb 1901, leaving Eliza with 4 young children and in a desperate situation.

The family lived in rented housing and had little by way of savings.  With four children to look after, the eldest 4 years old and deaf and mute, the youngest (my grandfather William) only 2 months old, Eliza was unable to do much by way of paid work.  She took in washing to make a little money, and was given 3 shillings a week by the local Ladies Benevolent Society.  It wasn't enough.

After struggling for a month after her husband's sudden death, Eliza took the step of applying to the local court for help, risking having her children removed from her custody and placed in an orphanage, something she was adamant she did not want.  The judges hearing the case awarded her 10 shillings from the poor box and committed the children to the department, with the recommendation they be handed back to their mother.

This appeal was reported in several newspapers.  Two reported the case with a fair amount of detail, including the fact that the children all appeared clean and well cared for, while a third much briefer article gave a somewhat different impression, especially with the heading 'Neglected Children'.

Prahran Telegraph, Sat 9 March 1901, p3.

The Argus, Sat 9 March 1901, p15.

The Herald, Fri 8 March 1901, p5.

Week 32 (Aug. 5-11): Free Space

When is free space a negative?  When it occurs on a ancestor's timeline or appears in your family history research.  That's when I hate free space.

We all have those gaps in our research, when we have progressed as far as we can and are searching for those elusive facts that will allow us to progress further. 

A notable free space in my tree starts with my great great grandparents David Mulholland and Eliza (McCrae), the first of my Irish ancestors to arrive in Australia.

David Mulholland died in Eurobin, Victoria, Australia on 10 April 1902 at the age of approximately 70.  He left behind wife Eliza Jane (McCrae) - although I have never found a marriage record for the couple - and 7 surviving children.  Death notices describe David as being 71 years of age and a colonist of 42 years, putting his birth at around 1831 and his arrival in Australia around 1860.  David's death certificate states his parents names as David Mulholland and Margaret (McGee)

Eliza - or Elizabeth, survived her husband for 23 years, dying 28 October 1925 in Eurobin.  Her obituary, published in the Albury Banner and Wodonga Express on 6 November 1925, describes Eliza as having "reached the advanced age of 85 years, 63 years of which were spent at Eurobin" and states that she was born in County Belfast, Ireland.  This puts her birth at around 1840 and her arrival in Australia around 1862.  Eliza's death certificate - under the name Eliza Mulholland - gives her parents names as James McCrae and Mary.

I have, thus far, found no records for either family in Ireland.  Neither have I found a marriage record for David and Eliza in Australia or Ireland.  I will keep looking, however, in the hopes of filling in this 'free space' in my family tree.

Family Histories Podcast Bonus Episode

Season 7 of the Family Histories Podcast has ended with a bonus episode 'The Tower'.

Episode Credits include

• Andrew Martin – Host and Producer
• Morag Peers – Guest
• George Orchard – King Edward V
• George Mills – Richard, Duke of York

Watch the episode here, and check out the rest of the series if you haven't watched them already.