Family Memories, Nick Vine Hall Awards & Other News - Genealogy Notes 15-22 Aug 2017

We are now into the third week of National Family History Month in Australia. So far I have done talks in Caloundra, Nambour, Maleny, Beerburrum, Noosaville, North Lakes, Albany Creek, Arana Hills and Strathpine. That's quite a few kilometres around south east Queensland and I have one talk left next week at Caboolture. It is fantastic to see the local libraries providing a great range of talks and speakers during NFHM. My presentations are on the Resources page of my website, scroll down to Presentations.

Mum Dad me and my baby brother
Lone Pine Sanctuary ca 1960

Also as part of NFHM, I was asked to do a guest blog for MyHeritage one of the major sponsors of NFHM2017. My Family Memories post draws on my recent experiences clearing out my mother's home. No doubt more memories will surface as I now work my way through all the boxes stacked in my own back bedroom. Something to look forward to in September after I finish all of my NFHM activities.

Next week I will be heading off to Townsville for the closing event for NFHM. An all day seminar in conjunction with the Family History Association of North Queensland where I am giving two talks along side Louise Coakley a DNA specialist from Cairns. See her Facebook page Using DNA Testing for Genealogy & Family History Research Australia & New Zealand. It should be a great day and I am also staying on for the Society's DNA special interest group meeting on the Sunday. By the time I get home I will well and truly be motivated to try and work out my own DNA results. There seem to be so many matches it is a bit overwhelming.

So far this month I have managed to read two family history related novels. The first was a review copy from the Moreton Region Libraries Book Club and as a member I get offered from time to time review copies. When I selected this one from the list I was attracted to it because it was set in medieval times and I hadn't realised there was a family history element too. Anyway I found Ian Mortimer's The Outcasts of Time a great read and it starts off in 1348 with England in the grip of the Black Death and the hero is given six days to live. Either in his own time or one day every 100 years ending in 1945. He chooses the latter option and it is fascinating and had me thinking about my own family history over 600 years.

Max and I as part of the 200th anniversary commemoration
on Norfolk Island 2007

The second book is Lynette McDermott's Perseverance which is Book Two of the Garth Trilogy. It is an historical novel based on the lives of two First Fleet convict families who are first exiled to Norfolk Island (Book One) and then exiled again to Van Diemen's Land (Tasmania) in Book Two.

This was of interest to me as Max's convict ancestors Samuel Pyers and Sarah Johnson were also sent to Norfolk Island in the First Settlement and then forced to leave and resettle in Tasmania around the Richmond area. So again it was easy to picture our own families living through the same experiences as the Garth family.

Lynette has kindly donated one of her books as a NFHM prize - see the sponsors page to enter the giveaway and remember it closes on 29 August and is only open to Australian residents.

Announced at the launch of NFHM in Sydney were the winners of the annual Nick Vine Hall Awards. Congratulations to the winners.

• Category A winner  Botany Bay Family History Society; The Endeavour No 129 December 2016 editor John Levy
• Second Australian Society of Lacemakers of Calais; Tulle Volume 34 No 4 (November 2016) editor Jim Longmire

• Category B winner Australian Institute of Genealogical Studies; The Genealogist Vol 15 No 4 December 2016  editor Carolann Thomson 
• Second Queensland Family History Society; Queensland Family Historian Volume 37 No 4 November 2016 editor Lyndal Cosgrove 

If you have run out of ideas for NFHM have a look at my 31 NFHM Activities for Researchers which explores some of our sponsors websites and other activities. It's an online event and anyone can participate.

The next week will be hectic as I prepare for Townsville and the closing of NFHM but then it will be spring, not that we have had much of a winter. Still swimming in the pool most days, solar heating is wonderful. I always think I will have lots of time post NFHM but other things always crop up to keep me busy! There are talks coming up for the Professional Historians Association of Queensland and also for the Bribie Island Historical Society and I also said I would tutor again on advanced family history for the local U3A. No I won't be bored!

Until next time, enjoy the last week of NFHM and good luck with the prizes giveaway. 

Genealogy cruising, NFHM talks & other news - Genealogy Notes 1-14 Aug 2017

It is really good to be home and sitting at my desk and watching the birds outside my window while I ponder what to write.

The last two weeks have been very hectic. First I was away on the Unlock the Past military and genealogy cruise to Papua New Guinea which was fantastic. It was really good seeing Rabaul and Milne Bay where we had family members during World War 1 and 2.  There were also port stops at some of the really scenic islands so there was something for everyone. Blog post to follow this week on the genealogy and military talks. I have already booked into the next genealogy cruise to Alaska.

Got home to some domestic issues which needed to be sorted which meant that I had to miss the Researching Abroad Unlock the Past roadshow in Brisbane the day after we got back. Thankfully some genimates were also there and have blogged the event. See Pauleen Cass' blog posts on Day 1 and Day 2. 

For the next three days I gave six talks in six different towns in South East Queensland, which might be some kind of record. It was really good to give talks for both Sunshine Coast Libraries in Caloundra, Nambour, Maleny and Beerwah and Moreton Region Libraries in Albany Creek and North Lakes. All of the Sunshine Coast sessions were fully booked and attendees were enthusiastic about National Family History Month too.

Today I gave another talk on starting family history research - this time at Noosaville Library so I am really getting to see south east Queensland's most iconic tourist spots. And the winter weather has been almost like summer. I really loved the brochure the Noosa Library service did to promote NFHM 2017 with four speakers and some fantastic talks.

All my presentations are on the Resources page of my website, scroll down to Presentations.

I had to miss this year's launch of National Family History Month but thanks to Jill Ball there is a blog post A Long Drive to Chester Hill about how smoothly the event went. Even in my absence people were keen to enter the prize giveaway so I've been busy processing all the entries so far. I also need to do a blog post thanking all of our wonderful sponsors for helping to promote NFHM. 

My 31 Activities for Researchers during NFHM is an online event and there are other online events so remember to look at that category of events as well as your local state.

Coming up at the end of this week is a tour of the Woodford Museum with the local Woodford Historical Society. I always love visiting these places as often so much of what they hold is not digitised, catalogued or online and therefore you really do need to visit and see what resources are held for research.

I keep getting notifications of DNA matches so I am just going to have to set aside some time and really study them to see where the connections are. This will probably have to wait until after NFHM as organising that does take up quite a bit of time. 

Time to start writing up my cruise blog so enjoy the 3rd week of NFHM in Australia and remember to enter the prize giveaway - click on the Terms & Conditions to see how to enter and it's only open to Australian entries. Until next time, have a fantastic week of research.

New books, blog posts, talks and NFHM 2016 update - Genealogy Notes 17-24 Aug 2016

During the week I managed to write up my review of the Auckland Family History Expo and did Week 2 Working Forebears and Week 3 Military Ancestors for the NFHM 2016 blog challenge. I rather like the blogging badge, we can use it again next year! There is still Week 4 to do, my 31 Activities for Researchers in NFHM and my blog and article for The In-Depth Genealogist. My keyboard is in danger of wearing out!

The last two times I have been to the post office there have been parcels waiting for me. First there was Jackie Moss' new book Me & My Family Tree which introduces children to family history. It's been a while since I have read a children's book but I'm looking forward to it. It looks modern, colourful and on a topic dear to my heart. There will be a review post soon. Jackie also sent a few more copies for me to use during National Family History Month.

The other parcel contained Carol Baxter's latest 'how to' guides - a new edition of Writing Interesting Family Histories and a follow on Writing and Publishing Gripping Family Histories. At first glance I'm not sure what the difference between interesting and gripping is, but I will be reviewing both books. No doubt I will be inspired to relook at my own draft family histories and perhaps even publish them. Although after last year's DNA revelation, I'm glad I didn't publish earlier.

So some nice reading to look forward to in September. For the last week of NFHM 2016 I have an all day seminar with five talks at Genealogy Sunshine Coast. It should be a great day, although I might be a little hoarse by the end. I've got some sponsor prizes for a lucky door giveaway so some attendees will be even more happy. My final talk (and it will be my 18th talk) of NFHM is at Noosaville Library where we will also be doing the NFHM prizes giveaway draw. Then the only thing to do will be write up a final report for AFFHO and thank all the sponsors after notifying the lucky winners.

If I am voluntary coordinator of NFHM again next year, I don't think I will be doing 18 talks and travelling to Perth or Auckland, New Zealand all in 31 days. I'm getting too old or I need to be a bit fitter! In 2017 the launch will be in Sydney but I will be missing it regardless, as I have already booked to be on the Unlock the Past Papua New Guinea cruise.

It's Sydney next year because the AFFHO Congress  Bridging the Past & Future is in Sydney in 2018 and this is a chance to help promote Congress during NFHM. Hopefully I will find someone to volunteer to be chair at the launch. I have been thinking about doing some sort of event at the end of NFHM 2017 in a regional area, just for something different. But anyway, that's next year and I still have to finish NFHM 2016.

The post also brought a very nice thank you letter from WAGS (Western Australian Genealogical Society) for my three talks in Perth. Usually it is an email thank you so nice to see a hand signed letter for a change. I have to share some of their kind words because it simply sums up what I had tried to do with my presentations.

Part of the enthusiastic audience at the WAGS seminar

The President wrote "The number in attendance and the enthusiasm of the audience reflects the quality of your presentations. Your first talk, Love Sex and Damn Lies demonstrating the strong link between family history and local and social history, set the scene for your later talks on demolishing brick walls and looking beyond online resources".

A thank you like that makes it all worthwhile.

As I mentioned above this coming week sees six more talks, and trips to Nambour and Noosa, both in South East Queensland but north of Brisbane for overseas readers. Travel time up and down the highway is always problematic but arriving in time is more important than the trip home. So one more busy week then a nice little rest before I head off to the NSW & ACT genealogy conference Cow Pastures and Beyond in Camden.

Enjoy the final week of NFHM 2016, get your entry in for the prizes giveaway before 28 August (see the Sponsors page and how to enter is in the terms and conditions) and happy searching until next time.

NFHM Update & Auckland Expo - Genealogy Notes 8-16 Aug 2016

I'm now back home from attending the Auckland New Zealand Family History Fair and Expo which was fantastic. I gave five talks at the Expo and another one for Auckland Library the day after. All talks are on my website Resources page, scroll down to Presentations. It was great being a keynote presenter alongside Dick Eastman from the US. A full report to follow soon.

Seonaid Lewis, family historian at Auckland Library
welcoming attendees to the afternoon seminar

New Zealand also celebrates National Family History Month in August but there is no single website like we have for events across the country.This morning I added another six events to the Australian NFHM web calendar and entered more people into our prizes giveaway. With less than two weeks to go till the end of National Family History Month, I will be spending quite a bit of time blogging about it and encouraging people to make the most of the last weeks.

But I'm a bit ahead of myself as usual. Before I left, I gave two talks at the Caloundra Library which were well attended. Both talks are on the Resources page of my website, scroll down to Presentations. Each talk was aimed at helping people look at their brick walls differently, and judging from the questions, just about everyone has a brick wall or two.

I had hoped to get Week 2 of the NFHM blogging challenge done before I left but simply ran out of time. So that's on the list for this week along with Week 3. I haven't got to my own 31 Activities for Researchers in NFHM yet but it's on the list - you can do any or all of the activities. The deadline for my regular blog and article for The In-Depth Genealogist is also looming so lots of writing coming up in the next week.

I have a new Android tablet which I took to New Zealand with me. I am slowly getting used to how it works but I keep trying to use it like my IPad. Luckily I was staying with someone from the New Zealand Society of Genealogists computer group and he helped me grasp some of the basics. I managed a few Facebook posts while at the Expo but the free Auckland wifi was a bit taxed over the weekend. Still it is a nice size for my handbag so I think it will be a frequent traveller with me.

There has been no chance to keep up with emails, enewsletters and journals through the mail. So a bit of catching up there too.

I've got two more events to attend for NFHM - a full day seminar with Genealogy Sunshine Coast where I am giving five talks and one talk at Noosaville Library to celebrate the end of NFHM. We will also be drawing the prizes giveaway at  the Library so don't forget to get your entries in. See the Sponsors page of the website for what's on offer and how to enter is in the Terms and Conditions.

The other big news is that I have decided to go to the NSW & ACT Association of Family History Organisations annual conference Cowpastures and Beyond which is in Camden in September. I will need a little mini holiday by then and it will be good to catch up with lots of geneacolleagues.

I hope everyone is enjoying National Family History Month and either attending events or spending more time on their own research. Until next time, happy searching.

National Family History Month 2016 local talks & more - Genealogy Notes 1-7 Aug 2016

Well at the end of the first week of NFHM 2016 I am already a little weary. Events are still being added to the National Family History Month web calendar and entries for the prize giveaway are arriving daily. Remember to read the terms and conditions on the Sponsors page as they include how to enter the giveaway.

Yesterday I attended the Family Discovery day at the Forest Glen Family History Centre which is very new and a great venue to host a day of genealogy talks. There were two streams of talks throughout the day except for my session which made for a huge audience. I think there were about 120 attendees. My talks was Demolishing Brick Walls and this was the same talk I gave in Perth last weekend. You can see it on the Resources page of my website, scroll down to Presentations. I received some great feedback and lots of people went home determined to break down their brick walls.

Forest Glen Family History Centre

 The first session I went to was a demonstration on how to use FamilySearch's family tree program and attaching photos, stories and documents. I always like to see how other people organise their family history, usually experiencing some jealousy. People who have only started in 'computer times' mostly have all their research contained within their program whereas those of us who have been doing it for some decades, it seems to be a mix of paper and computer. I just need to stop doing everything else I do and even then, I'm not sure I'd have enough time.

There was a soup and fruit lunch after my talk but I was caught up with people wanting to ask me questions for the whole of the lunch break. A very nice person brought me a cup of soup and I managed to find a few pieces of orange still on the fruit plate. Why don't people like fruit with skin? I love oranges and they were so sweet. Even while I was having my soup and fruit there were still people asking me questions or talking to me. It's nice to be popular.

Somewhat fortified I caught the end of the How to use Ancestry better which was a video with Christa Cowan explaining various tips. I'm obviously not making the most of Ancestry, especially if I don't find what I'm looking for first up. Note to self - explore the Advanced search in more detail and don't forget to use those wildcards. Ironic really because I mentioned both those things in my Demolishing Brick Walls talk!

One of the lecture areas

The last session I went to was a talk by Mike England on the different calendars and how these could impact on your research if you get back to the 18th century. While I was aware of the different calendars, Mike's examples made me much more conscious of how it could be very different within the UK due to the Protestants and the Catholics having different calendars. I first met Mike in Kingaroy some 30 odd years ago so good to see him again.

That's one of the nice things about attending genealogy events, there is usually someone you know and I met up with quite a few people from the Sunshine Coast, Hervey Bay, Maryborough and Kingaroy. Wonderful to see that people did travel for this event.

There's no rest for the wicked (not that the voluntary national coordinator of NFHM is wicked) but I'm off to give two talks at Caloundra Library this week before flying off to Auckland, New Zealand for their family history expo with Dick Eastman and others on the program. I'm giving six talks over there before heading home. There will be a full report on the expo when I get back so stay tuned.

It's not all talking for NFHM, I have also agreed to take the Alex's NFHM blog challenge which is an online event. Week 1 was on the Census and my contribution was simply called Census Night. I wrote about my discovery in the 1901 Irish census. The Australian History Bloggers now have a Facebook Fan page and you can read more NFHM blogs there and Alex will be bringing all the challenge blogs together at the end.

It's another busy week coming up and then there will be the last two weeks of NFHM which are usually busy too, not just with talks but also managing the prizes giveaway. I hope that people don't leave it all too the end as that just makes it harder for me. The prize draw is after my final NFHM talk at Noosaville library on 31 August and I expect to be seriously exhausted by then. So my treat will be a nice night at one of my favourite spots (Mooloolaba) going to one of my favourite restaurants and simply chilling out with fine food and wine.

Continue to enjoy NFHM 2016 and my 31 Activities for Researchers is there for anyone stuck for ideas. Until next time, happy searching.

Perth Western Australia & the start of National Family History Month 2016 - Genealogy Notes 24 -31 Jul 2016

It's been a huge week. Last minute things for National Family History Month which starts on 1 August and we now have events in every state and territory. Fantastic. Most of Thursday was taken up with travelling - first to Brisbane and the airport then the long flight across Australia to the west coast and Perth. Usually when I fly over the view out the window is of a dry, barren country with lots of salt pans and sand dunes. This time for quite a good part of the way there seemed to be lots of green and even some waterholes and creeks. Must be all that winter rain that Queensland has been getting.

It was lovely being met at Perth airport by Lorraine from Swan Genealogy who kindly boarded me during my stay in the west. This meant I didn't have to worry about how to get to venues, just simply sit in Lorraine's car. I hadn't realised how spread out Perth was but it seems to have a very interconnected freeway system.

L-R Shauna Hicks, Shannon Lovelady and Lorraine Clarke

Friday morning I managed to catch up with two archival colleagues and we had coffee and then lunch while we discussed what is happening in archives and libraries today as well as reminiscing about the good old days. One of my friends suggested we should do it more than once every 10 years - has it really been that long since I had seen them?

The afternoon was dedicated to the launch of NFHM at the Perth Office of the National Archives of Australia. I'm glad Lorraine knew the way as it is a little out of the city. Here it was good to catch up with old work colleagues from my time working for the NAA. I also met up with other launch attendees and one of NFHM's major sponsors Finders Cafe. The Perth Office Director of NAA gave a brief talk on Project Albany and the keynote speaker was Shannon Lovelady talking about the Western Australian Gallipoli and Western Front Dead. Then there was a delicious afternoon tea and time to chat and peruse some of the NAA treasures. My full report is a blog post on my website and you can read it here.

One half of the audience at the WAGS seminar

Saturday was another full on day with the Making History seminar with the Western Australian Genealogical Society at the City of Perth Library. There was a presentation by Finders Cafe and I gave three talks - Love Sex and Damn Lies, Demolishing Brickwalls and It's Not All Online. Copies of my presentations can be seen on the Resources page of my website, scroll down to Presentations.
From the verbal feedback I think everyone had a great day and then it was time to relax.

A pineapple sling

A small group of us went to the historic Treasury building where I enjoyed a lovely cocktail, complete with purple straw and violets. Then it was on to a wonderful Chinese banquet with some of the WAGS committee. I slept very soundly that night.

A mint hot chocolate and truffle

Sunday was a day of rest and although a bit cold and wet we headed out to the Margaret River area where I enjoyed the delights of the Margaret River Chocolate Factory and other foodie places. We had lunch at the historic Guildford Hotel which has been restored since a disastrous fire last year. There was even opportunity to taste some of those wonderful Western Australian wines.



Today I start the long trek home and with luck will be arriving just in time to go to bed. I'm not even sure what is coming up this week but I will regroup tomorrow. I know there are more talks coming up  and I really should blog some of my 31 Activities for NFHM plus a meeting of the Bribie Island Historical Society committee first thing tomorrow so perhaps one day at a time during this busy time might be best.

I hope everyone has a chance to do something during National Family History Month 2016. Until next time, happy researching.

National Family History Month 2016 - Genealogy Notes 17-23 Jul 2016

This last week has all been about National Family History Month 2016. There was an AFFHO Skype meeting during the week where I outlined how arrangements for the launch in Perth are going and some of the events. As of today there are 247 events being held around Australia and online. We would love to have more!

Check the website for events in your state or online - the event tally at the moment is:

• Victoria 97
• Queensland 62
• New South Wales 47
• Tasmania 22
• Western Australia 20
• Australian Capital Territory 5
• Online 4
• South Australia 4 
• Northern Territory 0

When I haven't been uploading events to the website, I have been working on my presentations - to see where I am speaking see the Events page of my website. While it was good to be asked to do 18 presentations, I am a bit weary from working on the talks. Some are repeated at different venues but I also like to make each talk relevant to the area as well so all have to be tweaked. 

I'm also getting excited about participating in New Zealand's National Family History Month. I am one of the speakers at the Auckland Family History Expo along with Dick Eastman from the US and Jan Gow a NZ speaker popular on the Unlock the Past genealogy cruises and other local speakers. The three day program looks good and with multiple sessions, it will be hard to decide which talks to go to. Dick Eastman and myself are also giving another talk at a session at the Auckland Library post Expo so I am hoping to learn lots. 

Jan and myself at the 2012 AFFHO Congress in Adelaide
- photographer Jill Ball aka Geniaus

This coming week will be more of the same with adding events, and getting ready to start the NFHM prize giveaway which starts on 1 August. I will be revealing how to enter the giveaway and once that is done, entries will be accepted until 28 August. The prize draw will take place at Noosaville Library on 31 August. Please read the terms and conditions on the NFHM sponsors page and the giveaway is only open to Australian residents.

We have had amazing weather here and it is more like summer than winter. On these beautiful blue sky days I really want to be out and about, not chained to a laptop working on Powerpoint presentations. But I'm glad to have resisted temptation as I can now sit back and simply enjoy NFHM. If you want to get an early start on NFHM have a look at my 31 Activities for Researchers which is a different suggestion for every day of August. It also features all of the giveaway prize sponsors so you can think about which prizes you might like to win. 

Next Diary will be from Perth and include a brief report on the launch and the Western Australian Genealogical Society's Making History seminar. I will do a full report once I am back home. Until next time, happy searching.

World Indexing, DNA, NFHM & New Publications - Genealogy Notes 1 - 8 Jul 2016

This Diary is a day late due to a research trip to Brisbane and the National Archives of Australia Brisbane office. Again I was amazed to see that there were few other researchers but I have decided that's OK. It simply means that I get the staff's undivided attention and records get delivered quickly.

While waiting for the files, I used the old microfiche electoral rolls for a query. What a pain, a different fiche for every year then finding the right spot on the fiche. How much easier is it now just to type in a person's name. By the time I finished looking, my files were ready to collect.

Vincent Carnegie 1946 

I had already worked out what I wanted to look at - six files located using name searches and the files were all who I thought they would be. One document, an application for a seaman's document of identity, had a photograph of the person I was researching. I only have vague memories of Dad's Uncle Vince and an older photo of him. I had not seen a photo of him as a young man so I was very happy. He was a seaman and the document was part of his application to leave Australia. My digital camera came into use again capturing key documents.

I had also promised a friend a look up in return for an earlier favour. Her document was an Italian passport, complete with photo and of course all in Italian. I took a few photos but have no real clue as to what the pages mean.  I hope she has some experience reading Italian.

It is really amazing the diversity of records within the National Archives of Australia. It was a great visit and I'll have to plan another trip soon.

A trip to the post office was also rewarding with new Unlock the Past publications:

• Neil Smith - Understanding Australian Military Speak
• Noelene Kyle - Researching Your Ancestor's Childhood
• Janet Few - Harnessing the Facebook Generation

So some reading to catch up on. 

The NSW & ACT Association of Family History Societies next conference is in Camden on 9-11 September and the program is now up on their website Cow Pastures and Beyond. I had been thinking of going but it is a long road trip from here and even if I fly, I can only get to Sydney or Canberra and then have to hire a car to get to Camden. If I still lived in Canberra I would definitely be going as Camden is a lovely little town. I hope somebody will be tweeting, blogging or posting on Facebook highlights from the conference.

FamilySearch have a World indexing event for 72 hours from 15 - 17 July and anyone can participate. The more records indexed, the easier it is for us all to find our ancestors and knock down brick walls. They are hoping to get 72,000 team mates and you can do as few or as many batches as you want or have time for. I've joined the team and put a note in my calendar so that I remember on the day.

I was pleased to see that my blog post for The Indepth Genealogist on the State Library of Queensland made That Moment in Time's Friday Fossicking 30 Jun 2016. It is always good to know that people benefit from reading a particular blog post.

Finally my big news is that my brother's DNA results are back from FamilyTree DNA so now to get my head around what the results tell me and to see if we match up with anyone.

National Family History Month is continuing to keep me busy approving events for the website and organising the launch which is now only three weeks away. I have entered my two regular NFHM online events - 31 Activities for Researchers and 31 Activities for Societies. With 18 talks during August I suspect there won't be much time for me to blog my own activities but I hope to do some. For a full list of all the talks and where I am speaking see the Events page of my website.

This coming week will be processing all my new information into my files and database. I also have a new tablet to set up - it is smaller than my I Pad and will be easier to travel around with. And of course NFHM is going to get busier as we are now only three weeks away from one of the most exciting months of our genealogical year. Until next time happy researching.

Last week National Family History Month - Genealogy Notes 7-23 Aug 2015

In between my medical appointments and my National Family History Month talks for Moreton libraries, I have mainly been adding last minute events to the NFHM web calendar and encouraging people to enter the NFHM sponsors prizes giveaway via Facebook and other social media.

Normally I would have been blogging my 31 Activities for genealogists in NFHM but with only one hand that is not going to happen this year. However I do hope people have had a look at the suggested activities and perhaps tried a few.

As an incentive to get genealogy societies to place their events in the web calendar before 30 June, we offered a gift certificate from the National Institute for Genealogical Studies for one free course per society to either use as a raffle/door prize or to reward a volunteer or member. As the month is nearly over I am starting to receive the names of the lucky winners or recipients from the 53 societies who took up the offer.

As well I am getting feedback on successful events, new memberships and it seems that everyone has been enjoying NFHM 2015. Sometimes I pick up information on events or newspaper articles and where possible I have been adding them to NFHM Pinterest. If you know of any other feedback please let me know.

In September I will be doing a full report for AFFHO on how successful it has been this year, despite my one handedness and being out of action at key times. Part of this success is also due to my many social media friends who have also promoted NFHM, genealogy societies, libraries and archives who have hosted events and of course our sponsors have also helped to spread the word.

The sponsors prizes giveaway closes on 27 August and late entries are not accepted. The giveaway takes place on 29 August and I will be placing the lucky winners names on the NFHM website shortly thereafter.

The wonderful display at Arana Hills Library to promote my talk for NFHM - thanks Alexandra Daw 

Hard to believe that NFHM is almost over for another year. I have three more talks for Moreton libraries, one for Sunshine Coast Libraries and a seminar at the Genealogical Society of Queensland. Then I hope to get back to some blogging as at the moment I simply don't have time to type one handed when I am out every day of the week as well.

Make the most of the last week of NFHM and have lots of genealogy finds. Until next time.

National Family History Month and other news - Genealogy Notes 1- 6 Aug 2015

Since last Diary I have been operated on, spent a few days in hospital, come home and started the rehabilitation process on my right arm. Last Friday the 30 staples came out and the wound is healing nicely. But I still can't use the right arm except to do my exercises. On the plus side my left hand is doing better than I ever imagined.

All the outstanding events have been entered on to the National Family History Month web calendar and I have set up the individual sponsors prizes giveaway. For an update on NFHM see my report here.

If you can't get to an event near you, remember that there are some online activities to do at home and there is always my 31 Activities for Individuals. There are some new prize sponsors this year so have a look at the Sponsors page too.

I would like to thank Australian Family Tree Connections for their August 2015 issue which quite clearly lets everyone know that August is National Family History Month. I hope within a few years everyone will automatically associate NFHM with August and add their events to our web calendar.

Over the next two weeks I have 11 talks to give as part of NFHM speaking at Moreton and Sunshine Coast Libraries. My final talk will be at a Genealogical Society of Queensland seminar where we will also be doing the sponsors prizes draw for societies and individuals to wrap up NFHM for another year. It always goes so quick. Details of my talks are on the Events page of my website.

While I haven't done too much the last fortnight, I could not resist checking out all the Staffordshire updates to Findmypast. While the National Burial Index had given me burial dates for some of my ancestors I had not seen the actual registers from Staffordshire which are now digitised and available through Findmypast.

We should always check original documents in case there is more information than what is included in a transcript or index and this piece of advice proved itself yet again. My GGG grandfather Henry Price died in 1840 the year before the 1841 census and I have never been able to get any further back. I still can't, but at least now I know that he was accidentally killed as the burial register states 'died in a coal pit'.

This statement sent me off to look at British Newspapers also in Findmypast (or the British Newspaper Archive) but absolutely no luck in finding a reference to Henry's accident or an inquest into his death. The Coal Mining History Resource Centre seemed to have references to every other death except Henry's and as I don't know which coal pit he died in, I can't search by place, although it would have been close to West Bromwich. More searching required!

I have a stack of reading to do but every time I sit (or lie down) to read I fall asleep, must be something to do with the medication I am on as genealogy type reading never puts me to sleep. If anything it motivates me to get up and do something! There are lots of new titles from Unlock the Past and some from the speakers on the last genealogy cruise to the Baltic. I still have two reviews for Carol Baxter's new books and the Reviews Editor of the Australian Society of Archivists has asked me to review Personal Archiving: Preserving Our Digital Heritage edited by Donald Hawkins.

At the Bribie Island Historical Society AGM I was elected to the committee so I am looking forward to getting involved with the Society's historical projects. Sadly I missed the unveiling of the plaque celebrating local involvement in WW1 (including my GG grandmother's nephew Alexander Thomas Davis) but there was a nice write up in the local Bribie Weekly. I will have to visit once I am up and about again.

I am not sure what will excite me more - being able to type with two hands again or being able to drive. Then again feeding and dressing myself would be good - but each week things are improving and it could always have been worse. All the good wishes via Facebook and emails has also helped to keep me cheery and in touch with everyone.

Enjoy the remaining two weeks of NFHM and I hope you all have some exciting genealogy discoveries. Until next time.

I'm Back (sort of) and National Family History Month 2015 - Genealogy Notes 8-31 Jul 2015

What a difference three weeks make! I have returned from my Unlock the Past genealogy cruise with my right arm in a back slab from fingers to shoulder. My fractured elbow will be operated on on Monday with a few nights in hospital to follow. Using my left hand has been a real learning experience and there will be a delay on cruise and travel blogs as everything is taking longer.

My priority has been getting new events up on the National Family History Month website and so far I have added over 100 events with my left hand. More will be added as they are submitted with time out while I am in hospital. It looks like being a great month.

The NFHM launch was yesterday in Adelaide and sadly I missed it. There will be reports and photos so stay tuned. 

Now finalising my 12 talks in August and luckily I did a lot of preparation before leaving on holidays. I have only had to reschedule one talk which clashes with a post surgery follow up. I'm happy to say that I look better now than just after my accident. My poor face took a bit of a battering on the cobble stones but fortunately nothing serious. Helen Smith's photo shows my determination that the show must go on, but I think in hindsight I was in a bit of denial!

The day after my fall in Germany, photo courtesy Helen Smith

Details of where I am speaking during NFHM are on the Events page of my website. My cruise presentations are on the Resources page, scroll down to Presentations.

My 31 Activities for Individuals and 31 Activities for Societies to do in NFHM are on the Resources page of my website. If you are stuck for ideas on how to make the most of NFHM 2015 in August check out my suggestions.

Remember to follow us on Facebook and Twitter, #NFHM2015.

Time for a little rest - everyone have a great time in NFHM and I will be bringing more news post my surgery. 

Genea cruising and National Family History Month - Genealogy Notes 29 Jun - 7 Jul 2015

There is nothing like impending holidays to focus one's mind and try to do everything before you leave. Of course it is not possible and I am now down to the last few absolutely essential things to do.

This afternoon I fly out for the UK where I will be joining the Unlock the Past genealogy cruise to the Baltic. I think I am packed, the bills are paid, the place is reasonably tidy and Max will be here finishing off the backyard landscaping.

I have handed over my Occupations course for the Australian certificate with the National Institute of Genealogical Studies so I hope they find it all satisfactory. If any amendments are needed it will be after I get back.

State Library of Victoria asked me to do a guest blog post for National Family History Month and I have sent that winging its way to Victoria. Look out for it in early August.

Also completed were my August blog post for The In-Depth Genealogist  again on NFHM (what else) and was pleased to learn that they are now a prize sponsor for individuals.

Great news but please do not enter the giveaway until 1 August or your entry will be invalid. There are messages to that effect against each individual prize in bold capital letters and yet people still enter. I have been notifying people who do enter early but I won't be from now on as I will not be here.

Also completed my August article for Going In-Depth, the digital magazine published by The In-Depth Genealogist and it will be a tight thing to get the September ones done when I get back. I hope inspiration will be with me!

NFHM has kept me busy with events being continually added but note that any events added between today and 28 July will not be visible until I come back and make it so. Probably lots to do when I get back! Everything for the launch is under control and I am now doing 14 talks in August. Might need another holiday in September.

My 31 Activities for Individuals and 31 Activities for Societies to do in NFHM are on the Resources page of my website. If you are stuck for ideas on how to make the most of August check out my suggestions.

This Diary will also be on holiday until the end of July. I am not taking a laptop, otherwise it would not be a holiday. It is only three weeks but lots will be happening with some great speakers and presentations on the cruise not to mention sight seeing in all those wonderful European cities. Stay tuned for some blog catch ups later this month. Until next time, happy genea searching.

New Resources & NFHM 2015 - Genealogy Notes 22-28 Jun 2015

The countdown is now really on for my genealogy cruise to the Baltic with Unlock the Past Cruises. Only 8 days before I fly out and still so much to do. Although being coordinator of National Family History Month is a voluntary position it still requires a lot of 'work' especially at this time of the year. Lots of events have gone up into the web calendar and I have been busy promoting these on the National Family History Month Facebook page.

Many of our sponsors have also included pieces on NFHM in their magazines or newsletters - thanks to Ancestry, Australian Family Tree Connections and Inside History magazine and there may be other pieces that I have not seen yet. My blogging friends have also been spreading the word so August looks like being another great geneafest.

As I only get back a few days before the launch I have tried to organise everything and I am leaving all the instructions and notes with Genealogy SA, the South Australian Genealogy & Heraldry Society,  who will liaise with the National Archives of Australia while I am away if anything comes up. If I don't make it back to Adelaide in time for the launch, at least everything will still go ahead.

So far with all my travels I have never encountered any real issues apart from the odd missed flight due to road traffic delays, cancelled flights and the only luggage issue was when I went to Darwin and my luggage ended up in Tasmania. If my good luck continues to hold, I will be there for the launch.

Each NFHM I put up my 31 activities for individuals to do during August and I have another 31 activities for genealogy and family history societies to do to help them make the most of NFHM this year and in the future. I have put them up a bit earlier due to my absence overseas but people might want to start planning what they want to do during August. Both sets of activities are on the Resources page of my website, at the very top so you can't miss them.

Just about every week we hear about new resources being released but this week I was especially excited to hear that Findmypast has entered into partnership with Public Record Office Victoria  to index and digitise the coastal passenger lists 1852-1924. When I worked there these were on our wish list but the lists were in a fragile condition, unindexed and not even microfilmed.

The other exciting news is that Findmypast and PROV are also doing Courts of Petty Session records for Victoria - regular readers will know that I simply love CPS records as so many of my ancestors are in them for all kinds of crimes from the petty to sometimes more serious.

Here is a snippet from the Findmypast media release.

Sydney, Australia, 25 June 2015, Never before microfilmed or indexed, the collection of Victoria’s Coastal Passenger Lists 1852-1924 will be brought online to Findmypast.com.au later this year. Comprising both original images and transcripts of an estimated 118,000 records, these passenger lists provide a vivid snapshot of immigrants and travellers alike arriving in Victoria’s coastal ports.
 
Family historians using these invaluable records will uncover details of their ancestors’ passage to Australia, as well as biographical information. Covering the 1850s onwards, these records capture the mass immigration into Victoria in the historic gold rush era, which fuelled one of the most dramatic population booms in Australian history.
 
Over one million Victoria Petty Sessions records, dating from 1851 to the 1970s, will also be brought to Findmypast as part of the partnership in an ambitious project expected to span several years. The collection includes approximately 1.7 million original images and transcripts, covering numerous record sets from dozens of central and regional courts throughout Victoria – from Prahran to Port Fairy to Mildura.
 
Capturing details of each case, those involved, and the trial outcome, the Victoria Petty Sessions will help family historians to investigate their ancestors’ criminal history.
 
Director of Public Record Office Victoria Justine Heazlewood says the advantages of this new digitising partnership are two-fold “These informative historical records will become available to online researchers much sooner than would have been possible otherwise, both on our digital catalogue within two years as well as via Findmypast.com.au” 

It really is an exciting time to be doing genealogy as we have never had access to records like this in the past. I can't wait for those records to come online.Now it is cheaper to have a subscription than travel to another state to do research. And more instant, no more waiting for snail mail or time off work to travel. Of course we do need to remember that not everything is online.

The hardest part for me when I see these new releases is that I want to go and look straight away but I know that I should be doing an article or blog post for The In-Depth Genealogist or finishing the course I am writing for the National Institute for Genealogical Studies or updating one of my research guides for Unlock the Past. I have a new edition of What Was the Voyage Really Like? coming out next month - it was the first research guide I wrote so very exciting to see a new edition.

With only 8 days left I am still working out what to fit into the suitcase and currency is a bit of an issue. If I want to buy something on shore with so many different countries, euros are not as standard as I thought especially in Denmark and Sweden, plus I am still reading about the history of the countries we are visiting and some of the places I am hoping to see when on shore.

What will probably happen is that I will end up getting everything done on time, throw things together the night before and set out for a great holiday and have a good time. Travel jitters get me every time!

So no more genealogy releases please to distract me although Trove can continue to send those wonderful emails saying that what I was waiting to see is now ready. I'm just not opening them till I get back as I know I will be off on another tangent and lose more hours in Trove. There is only one more Diary until I leave so wish me luck finishing everything and have another great genealogy week.

Genealogy Notes 20-26 August 2014 - National Family History Month nearly over

It seems to have been a really good National Family History Month so far. I have seen lots of reports on various social media sites with people sharing what they have done and learnt at the various events around the country. Make the most of the last few days of August by reading some of the blogs and follow up on the tips. One that I am going to be looking at this week is from one of my favourite online resources. Trove Tips for Family Historians by Catriona Bryce from the National Library of Australia is a must read and it was great to see that the tips came from a brainstorming session with Liz Pidgeon from Yarra Plenty Libraries.

Liz was one of my geneabuddies when I was living in Victoria and her enthusiasm for family history is fantastic and she is a source of lots of great tips. The beauty of the internet is that I can still keep in touch with Liz (and others) by simply following their blog, or on Twitter, Facebook or wherever. In some ways once we embrace social media it does not really matter where we live.

In the first two days of this week I have done three talks in three libraries and while I am starting to feel a bit all talked out, I still have one more talk to do for National Family History Month. Today I am at the Redcliffe Library and afterwards we will be drawing the sponsors prizes giveaway which closed yesterday. We are all organised and with the help of attendees I will have some good news for the lucky winners tomorrow. Good luck to all those who entered for the various prizes and thanks to Moreton Bay Region Libraries for their fantastic support in NFHM.

There is still time to register for one of the three online genealogy courses offered by the National Institute of Genealogical Studies. You can choose from Google for the Wise Genealogist or Social Media Tools for the Wise Genealogist or Connecting Family: Online and Virtually. To register for your complimentary course send an email to info@genealogicalstudies.com with the following details - your name, mailing address, email address, course name and start month. The courses start the first Monday of each month and you can select which month best suits you eg September, October etc.

I have also managed to complete Nos 16-31 of my 31 Activities for Researchers in National Family History Month. You can read Nos 1-15 here and it has been good to see others also blogging what they have been doing. A couple of examples include Geniaus with her #NFHM2014 Report Card and TravelGenee has been blogging each of the challenges.

There hasn't been much time to do anything else except NFHM related things and I will probably find myself at a loss of what to do next week. Not really because the next Unlock the Past cruise is looming - a 3 night cruise out of Sydney and the genealogy sessions without the distraction of foreign ports. It will be just like a genealogy conference and I am really looking forward to it. It is also a great opportunity to simply have a fantastic long weekend on board a luxury ship with no cooking, no housework and you don't have to make your own bed!

But for now it is time to get ready and head off for Redcliffe. I must add up how many kilometres I have travelled this month around South East Queensland and of course if I add in the trip to Canberra for the launch it will be in the thousands. Enjoy the rest of National Family History Month. Until next time.

Genealogy notes 13-19 August 2014 - More National Family History Month news

Another busy week with one talk for Moreton Bay Region Libraries and a webinar (my first ever webinar presentation) for MyHeritage. I found it a bit strange just sitting in my study talking to my laptop knowing that there were about 120 people out there listening to me. More new technology mastered or at least experienced!

My experimenting with a NFHM board on Pinterest has been working really well (if I can say that) as I did a Google trawl looking for items about NFHM and found some interesting pieces which I was able to pin to the board. Quite a few people are following and some have even pinned my pins on to their own boards.

This week was the deadline for my next article for Irish Lives Remembered and I was sent a proof of an article I wrote for Inside History Magazine which is looking good for the next issue.

I have added a few more events to the NFHM web calendar and continue to add individuals into the sponsors prizes giveaway. There are a fantastic list of prizes to be won by individuals including 10 Ancestry subscriptions, 2 Findmypast subscriptions, 2 MyHeritage subscriptions, 2 AFFHO Congress 2015 registrations, 2 $100 genEbooks vouchers, 3 NSW transcriptions from Joy Murrin, 1 Momento photo book valued at $150, 2 Unlock the Past cruise vouchers at $200 each and $150 research services with yours truly. How to enter is on the home page of NFHM and please read the terms and conditions. The prize giveaway closed in one week - 26 August at 5.00pm. Links to all the sponsors are on the Sponsors page.

Also on offer is a free online genealogy course with the National Institute of Genealogical Studies. There are three courses to choose from and instructions on how to enrol in the course of your choice is on the Sponsors page of NFHM.

There are still lots of events to go in the last two weeks of NFHM so check out your local area and remember to see what is online as there are some interesting offers there too.

My 31 Activities for Researchers and 31 Activities for Societies in NFHM is on my Resources page and I did manage to write up my first 15 activities and you can read it here. The other 16 will hopefully be later this week.

I also managed to take up another 3 Kiva loans with my repayments from previous loans, all part of the Kiva Genealogists for Families project. That is also a good activity to do during NFHM and I must remember that for next year.  You can join me at http://www.kiva.org/invitedto/genealogists/by/shauna1522

Tomorrow I am speaking at the Deception Bay Library on Family History on the Cheap and I have not been to that Library before so probably all new people. Next week I have four talks to finish off NFHM and of course the sponsors prizes giveaway draw on 27 August at Redcliffe. I really like that I can spread some of my major NFHM  activities around - launch in Canberra, talks throughout Moreton Bay Region and the prize draw at Redcliffe. Just as well I don't mind a bit of travel.

For those not familiar with Redcliffe it was Queensland's first European settlement and September 2014 marks the 190th anniversary of settlement in the area. So a nice historical place to end my NFHM! For those reading this overseas, we really are a very young country.

I think that is all I have done the last week but then I am a bit weary! Planning a nice week off post NFHM with a week's holiday at Surfers Paradise. I haven't been there since I was a teenager so it will be interesting and something a bit different, not our usual exotic places.

Keep on enjoying NFHM and happy researching.

Genealogy Notes 6-12 August 2014 National Family History Month is nearly half over already!

Time does fly when you are having fun! I have given 6 of my 11 talks for Moreton Bay Region Libraries already and there have been some great audiences. Lots of people have gone home to try out some of my ideas for Demolishing Brick Walls or doing Family History on the Cheap. As usual I have put the presentations on my website Resources page, scroll down to Presentations.

At the top of the Resources page are my 31 Activities for National Family History Month (for individuals and societies) and it has been good seeing some people do all or only a few of the activities. One person  I know is blogging all of her activities and Fran (aka Travelgenee) has done some interesting posts on her adventures so far this NFHM. It is always surprising how people interpret a challenge and I usually pick up new ideas as well.

Pauleen (aka Cassmob) has done a NFHM 2014 geneameme challenge and again I find it inspiring to read what others are saying in response to the prompts. Read Pauleen's response to her own challenge here. Geniaus (aka Jill) has introduced us to the concept of 'geneacave' where we do our family history at home. Sure beats 'study'! And she has introduced me to the PIP process - read all about it here. Pauleen will be collating all of the responses so why not give it a go or at least read a few of them. My NFHM geneameme response is here.

Surprisingly I am still adding a few events to the NFHM web calendar and of course I am busy with entries for the NFHM sponsors prizes giveaway which closes on 26 August. So far there are no entries from TAS, WA or the NT and only one from SA - what does this mean?

NFHM is mainly promoted online with events around the country so are those places not following us on Facebook or Twitter or Google +? I have even placed notices on the main mailing listservs for all States and Territories just in case people are not into social media. But very little response for the effort of signing up to post the notice in the first place.

Or is it just because people don't want to win the NFHM prizes? It can't be that because I would love to win some of those prizes but because I am the person running the giveaway I can't enter! Sob. I hope people don't leave it till the last day or I will go demented trying to organise everything before the prize draw takes place at Redcliffe Library.

It is Ekka week here so we are planning a visit to Mum and then on to the Ekka which brings back all kinds of memories of going with my parents as a child and taking my own son to the Ekka too. At least now I don't have to contemplate those rides but I will admit to a certain fondness still for the showbags.

Next week I am doing another talk for Moreton Bay Region Libraries and my first ever webinar with MyHeritage. I am a bit spooked at this stage as I have still to master a Google Hangout so now to get myself organised and cool and collected before Monday. Deep breath needed and maybe even more than one.

The other new thing I am trying for NFHM is Pinterest and I am really surprised at how many people have shown interest in the NFHM board that I have done. The only way to learn and get to know about some of these social media sites is to dive in and have a look. You can't break anything or at least I haven't yet!

My 'geneacave' desk looks like a cyclone has hit it so time for a good tidy up before I move on to my next NFHM challenge. Have a great time this August researching your families in NFHM. Until next time.