Winter for decluttering, road trip to ancestral places & other news: my genealogy months April and May 2026

Well the year is almost half over and not turning out quite how I expected.Our family history trip to England and Scotland in June went belly up when Qatar cancelled our flights. A full refund but still disappointing and only about two thirds back on our travel insurance due to cancellation fees and non recognition of the impact of war on travels. 

Miegunyah, Bowen Hills

So some unexpected free time to catch up on things neglected by my single focus on my PhD now called Women of Bad Character: insights into the lives of incarcerated women in colonial Queensland. 

Books 

I'm still enjoying my way through Tea Cooper's books which throw insights into early colonial New South Wales. A nice break from my academic readings.

Plus the last  week or so  I  have been blitzing all the genie society journals  I haven't read this  year. When I see  the  notice that the June journal is out, I realise I haven't even read March yet. 

So many good tips and news of interesting record releases by the various companies. Torn between delving into my family history or continuing my PhD journey.

Conferences 

I'm excited to be heading to Port Macquarie, New South Wales in September  for  the annual NSW & ACT conference. The theme is The Paper Trail & Beyond: Family History in the Digital Age. My session is on Finding your way on digital trails in the archives. We will  be driving down and back so another road trip for my little car and a few pit stops on the way. 

Child's bedroom

AFFHO Congress, Wellington New Zealand 11-14 February 20207 theme Across the Tasman: Natural Allies and Strong Connections. This one is for the calendar if you feel like a trip to New Zealand  next year. I try to attend most AFFHO congresses so I have put  this one into my calendar.  We might even combine it with a short holiday on the North Island as it is a few years since we have been there.

Decluttering

Cold weather is always a good time to clean out cuboards, wardrobes and even the freezer. What usually is a quick drop off of donations to the local op shops often turns into a mini shopping spree bringing home more books or interesting finds.

New Resources

I am a member of Genealogy SA and excited that they have just  added another 1.2 million records to their online database including a totally new record set. When you can't easily get to a research centre, it pays to be a member of the local society especially when they have lots to search online. 

The shipping departures index is from 1836 to 1940. 

• Shipping Passenger Departures from SA – brand new dataset! 
• Newspaper Births – massive update!  
• BDM Registrations: Deaths & Marriages 
• Newspaper Personals – Ian Shillabeer Collection
• All Other Records: Nurses & Magazines 
• South Australian Church records: Baptisms, Marriages, Burials & Other
• School Admissions 
• Certificates – Australia and Overseas

Dining room Miegunyah

PhD update

As a patron of History Queensland, I gave a talk on Finding women: tips and tricks at the AGM in May. It was to be in person but with the fuel crisis at the time it was decided to make it a Zoom meeting instead to save those  travelling from regional areas. 

My presentation on how I am  trying to identify the women in my PhD case studies is freely available if you want to have a look. https://us02web.zoom.us/rec/share/1-YNpNYWEhfMgsVIZ-_GHoh7SHLOYgikvmF8v40r7F6ls7zyt77UfYxEMyM3OuY9.oi0bR0D3rDyLi4s-

Talks

I have seriously cut back on giving talks this year due to more travel and also the  need to start writing  my thesis. No more talks until Spring.

Visits

Went on a tour of Miegunyah House Museum with the Professional Historians Association Queensland last weekend and the Museum has some amazing collections. It is the home of the Queensland Women's History Association and run by volunteers. A guided tour of the house is definitely a highlight although the fresh scones, jam and cream was a very close second.

No air  fryer back then!

What's Coming Up? or is that Walking in Ancestral Footsteps?

We can't get to England and Scotland now but we can get out to Thargomindah and Eulo where my GG Grandmother Ellen Ferguson lived in the 1890s. She was an opal miner and her husband a jeweller in Eulo. 

Also having  a look around Charleville and Cunnamulla while we are out that way.

Happy searching and safe travels this winter. Take care until next time, Shauna 

Talks, Webinars, Books, PhD update & other news: my genealogy months February and March 2026

Where did February and March go? I know February is the shortest month but it just whizzed past me and then Easter slipped past in a haze of chocolate and hot cross buns. April is also fast running away from me but I have been head down in the PhD. Totally absorbing, at least the research is.

AFFHO

My voluntary position as convenor of the Nick Vine Hall awards has now kicked in  for 2026 and I have collated and  sent off the entries to our three judges. I'm much happier being the convenor as judging is difficult with so many great family history journals produced by AFFHO member societies. The winners are announced in Family History Month in August. 

Books & PhD

I'm reading mostly academic texts and articles for my PhD on incarcerated  women in colonial Queensland. Not a lot of previous research has been done but I need to know more about the police, courts and prison system.

Boggo Road women's laundry ca 1903 via 
State Library of Queensland

Academic writing is more complex with its rigour on citations and terminology as I discovered by submitting an article on  my vagrant women for Circa, the journal of the Professional Historians Association. Thankfully two very kind peer reviewers and the editors gave me great advice and helped my polish it up into a publishable article. It was published just at Easter and if you want to read my article, along with other interesting history articles, visit the PHA website and click the Circa link. It's free.

So many new things to learn with the PhD. For example, at an earlier meeting with the tutors they suggested a biometrical analysis  of my women looking at their teeth and tattoos. What a  rabbit hole,  although more like a sink hole but fascinating and gave me a different perspective from just the offences.

I now have a database of about 1700 women, with just over 200 women's stories written and  over 200,000 words in my first draft which obviously is not yet finished and will need to be severely edited down to the required 100,000  words. Not to mention amended, and added to as I discover more. Every book and article seems to suggest new directions. Focus is now my middle name.

Speaking of books, my Australian Genealogy Online is still bringing in a nice little royalty payment from Gould Genealogy & History. Doing a new edition last year was worth while.

Conferences

RootsTech has been and gone and the good news is that the recordings are still there to watch.  I only did one prerecorded talk on cemeteries and burial records in Australia. But there are lots of other sessions I would like to watch if I ever get those  spare  minutes.

My plans for attending the NSW & ACT conference in Port  Macquarie in  September have firmed up. So looking forward to a road trip down the Pacific Highway to one of my favourite places.  Not to mention  catching up with friends. In the good news department, my talk on digital pathways in the archives is on the program. Now to save up to pay for petrol to drive there and back, with a few stops along the way. May as well make it a holiday too.

New Resources

I'm loving the new Queensland papers in Trove although it does mean I have to do another search on all my incarcerated women in case of any updates. 

The five part series on AI from Fiona Brooker and Andrew Redfern for Legacy Family Tree Webinars almost made me want to quit the PhD so that I can explore family history more with AI. So much to learn and such a fast paced technology.

Talks

My two workshops at Noosaville received really good feedback. Genealogy apps and blogging was of interest to a full house with lots of questions. I do prefer sessions in person as you can relate with the audience much easier. 

I have started Genie Chats again with my Bribie friends and also ran a five week Genie Chats with Caloundra Family History Research on English genealogy. These are great opportunities  to keep me up to date with new resources and for finding new bits of information on  my own families. Otherwise I probably wouldn't find time to do any of my own family history. 

I had a trip in person to Caloundra for my case study on writing and editing a family history. My hope was to finish the Cornish Connections draft by the end of Easter and get that uploaded into NED (National E Deposit) so it will be accessible online and free to use. Didn't happen due to my spending so much time on my PhD stats. At least it is still on the 'to do list'.

I don't have too many talks lined up this year as the focus is the PhD but there are a few, mostly on Zoom which saves on travel time. History Queensland have asked me to speak at their AGM in May and it is being held at the Bribie RSL which is nice and handy. I'm going to talk about how  I locate and identify my women with all their aliases and variant spellings of names. Tips and tricks for finding women lost in the prison system but also applicable to everywhere else.

What's coming up?

We are booked to go to England and Scotland in June to visit family history locations. Only downside is we are on Qatar airlines through the Middle East so a bit of a wait and see at the moment. I haven't booked accommodation yet, in case our flights are cancelled but things are so unpredictable at the moment.

Until next time, happy searching and enjoy our autumn weather. My Easter orchid is blooming again after it did an early bloom in January. When the flowers finished I split the plant into two and repotted it. Rewarded with more blooms in each pot and I just love the colours. 

Regards, Shauna

DNA sorting, family history writing & other news: my genealogy fortnight 15 - 31 Jan 2026

 A big fortnight for learning new things. Trying out AI and Chat GPT, SubStack and solving website issues are just some of my technolical learnings this past fortnight.

AFFHO

I have agreed to convene the Nick Vine Hall awards again and my three judges from last year have all agreed to stay on for 2026 which is wonderful. Updating the flyer and information sheet is easier when there is not too much to change. Journal entries from member societies will come in during February and March and then the judges have three months to read and score the journals. I get a month to collate the scores and all is ready to be announced at the beginning of Family History Month in August.

Amazing how quick the year goes when you outline a timeline like that.

Books

My review of the Hop-Picker Murders by Nathan Dylan Goodwin is now up on my blog page of my website. As always, I love his books and can't wait for the next one.

Conferences

RootsTech 2026 is just a month away so start looking at what you might want to attend live or watch later. I am giving one session on Australian cemetery and burial records. It is recorded and will be available in the library to watch anytime. I'm also part of the virtual media team.

The NSW & ACT conference is in person in 2026 and will be hosted by Port Macquarie & District Family History Society. Check out the conference website. We nearly settled in Port Macquarie so it will be on our travel plans this year.

New Resources

Legacy Family Tree Webinars has a whole series on AI and DNA and I really need a few rainy weekends to catch up with my viewing schedule. And it is only January. 

Talks

My first talk/webinar for 2026 was for Legacy Family Tree Webinars on Sorting my DNA matches with MyHeritage's theory of family relativity which went well. It was the first time I have done a case study as a talk so it was about my methodology and what I found by looking at my mother's DNA matches. You can watch it here for free.

Next is a talk in early February for the Bribie Family History Association on Mining the archives so that is in person. I am looking forward to seeing people again at the meeting and having lunch after.

The following week is up to Noosaville for two workshops on using apps for family history and blogging our stories so that we will be fun. 

Travel plans

This is the year I explore my Mother's origins in central England (Northamptonshire, Staffordshire), before heading up to Scotland to check out Dad's maternal Scottish ancestry north of Edinburgh. Plus a stopover in York, must see the Jorvik Viking Centre!

James Carnegie (my great grandfather), his mother was from Montrose, Scotland

Writing Family History

As many of you will know, I have written draft family histories for both Mum and Dad's side of the family on different family lines. I haven't published yet because I keep adding things, changing how I cite sources, or simply tinkering. Biting the bullet I had decided to get Chat GPT to help me edit my Cornish Connections draft. 

Edit only, not rewrite and it has been interesting to see little inconsistencies in style, dates and it has even picked up when I failed to cite a source. For example, I use 'on board' and sometimes 'aboard' a ship. 

Front cover of latest draft

I think 2026 is the year these long standing drafts will get finished. 

What's Coming Up?

February sees the start of my PhD meetings again with my tutors. I have made good progress over the holidays but those monthly meetings will keep me focussed. 

I have also resolved to get out and about more and have joined the Bribie RSL fishing club. My first fishing competition is coming up next week using only a hand line. The last time I did that was probably with my father decades ago. It will be followed by a BBQ. Just hoping this heatwave is over by then.

Until next fortnight, happy searching.

Shauna

New year, new records, new genealogy focus, resources & other news: my genealogy fortnight 1-14 January 2026

 

Happy New Year. My wish is that 2026 does not go as fast as 2025. More time out to enjoy the things I like - reading, researching and relaxing. My 3Rs!

Apps

As some of you may know, I have been exploring SubStack as a way of recording my family stories or my genealogy thoughts or whatever. Still getting the hang of it, but there are some very interesting people to follow on SubStack. Lots of genealogy motivation. And it may even benefit your research. For example good friend Alex Daw (Family Tree Frog) is on SubStack and wrote a post on one of her ancestors. He was the brother in law of one of the incarcerated women in colonial Queensland in my PhD case studies. How amazing and as I always say, it is a small world. Find me here.

Irish famine memorial Dublin 2025

Blogs

Jill Ball's Accentuate the Positive geneameme for 2025 has had us bloggers putting fingers to keyboards over the last couple of weeks. I always like reading about what other researchers have been doing and their success stories.

Read my contribution here. 

Books

Updated Library Thing and deleted all the books I have donated to societies or given away. Added the new ones from the last few months. 

Not sure that downsizing is working too well - still have close to 700 books and that's not counting fiction.

Have just finished reading Nathan Dylan Goodwin's latest book The Hop-Picker Murders. It is the 11th book in his series on genetic genealogist Morton Farrier. 

I will do a short review but I always find it hard to write about a book without giving away plot details. So more thought needed.

Resources

A new year means that more records have come into the public domain in national and state archives and of course, birth death and marriage indexes. So take some time to look up what's new or find those entries you have been waiting for.

For example this link will show you all new records under Section 9 for the Public Record Office Victoria. A lot of the records have come out of 75 year closed access including children's courts, asylums, divorce and so on. There is also the story of Jean Lee, the last woman hanged in Australia in 1951.

Watched a webinar on using the Virtual Treasury of Ireland via the Association of Professional Genealogists. Not  the easiest to search, no wildcards or Boolean but keyword followed by filters got me to census statistics for Ballygannon and Glasnarget townlands in County Wicklow. These give population figures and number of households from 1841 to 1881 for the two townlands my Finn and Fagan families emigrated from in 1882. Great background context and also learnt that the railway was completed in 1861.

Talks

Mum's ethnicity via MyHeritage

My first talk for 2026 is coming up on 28 January for Legacy Family Tree Webinars. I will be looking at using MyHeritage's theories of relativity to sort DNA matches or not! 

It was an interesting experiment and useful for sorting out some of Mum's DNA matches. My paper research reveals she was pure English but her ethnicity shows more than England. 

Register here for free and find out what I discover. 

Webinars

Spent some time selecting my webinar registrations from  the fantastic program organised by Legacy Family Tree Webinars. 

I seem to have selected a lot of topics with initials eg DNA and AI!

What's coming up

Mustn't forget that I am still doing my Ph D thesis on incarcerated women in colonial Queensland. I have done a lot of the research into the individual women and now into more serious writing and literature reviews and statistics. It is a lot of work but I am also learning some new skills in research, writing and technology. Definitely not bored.

Looking forward to when societies return from the Christmas/New Year break. Attending meetings in person or visiting society libraries and catching up with friends is all part of the family history world.

Wishing everyone a fantastic genealogy year in 2026. Until next time, Shauna

Watching webinars, experimenting with AI & other genealogy news: my genealogy weeks December 2025

Our shipboard friends

Another year is coming to an end and now that we have the Christmas tree up and a few presents scattered under it, I am taking the time to watch a few genealogy webinars and read a few books. 

For something different we went on a cruise to the South Pacific and had Christmas lunch at sea. Now home again, safe and well, to finish off this post and think about the coming year. 

Saying goodbye to our shipboard mates was hard.

Blogs

Because I stayed focused this year (following Thomas MacEntee's Do Over program) I achieved a lot with my family history. Tidying up files and citations, correcting inconsistencies, making new discoveries and getting ever closer to publishing those family history drafts that have been hanging around for decades.

That was a long way of saying that I will be participating in Jill Ball's Accentuate the Positive geneameme for 2025. With her prompts it is a chance to reflect on our family history achievements for the year. I have made a start and given myself the deadline of New Year's Eve. Stay tuned. It's been an amazing research year.

Books/Genealogy magazines

Trying to prioritise which books  I want to get read over the Christmas/New Year break. Also mindful that I need to finalise my literature review for my Ph D thesis on incarcerated women in colonial Queensland. Most of those are a bit heavy for bedtime reading so I definitely need to have a few fiction books on hand 

Currently reading Grantlee Kieza's book on Mrs Kelly (aka Ellen Kelly, mother of Ned). Did you know she had twelve children? Nine with her first husband and another three with her second husband. The Irish didn't have an easy time in country Victoria.

I also don't mind flicking through genealogy magazines at night although sometimes the temptation to get up out of bed to look at something is strong. To avoid that I keep a pen and notebook beside the bed and write down what to follow up in the morning. The trick is to make sure I am not too cryptic or I won't remember the next day.

Photographs

Just this month a second cousin on my Dad's father's side of the family sent me a photo of Dad's father as a young man. As I have never seen a photo of him I was thrilled but on opening up the image, all I could think of was 'that's where Dad got his ears from'. It's not the sharpest image, but still lets me see who he was. Can't wait to show my brother when we get together after Christmas. 

Resources

I think the only way I am going to keep up with new resources is to set calendar dates with myself to go in and search the what's new section on various websites at least once or twice a year. Even Trove this year has turned up new references to my families with new papers digitised. I had a major breakthrough with one of my incarcerated women because someone had changed an entry in FindAGrave. If I hadn't been rechecking everything I would never have discovered it. Research can be very fluid. 

Visited the old penal settlement
on Noumea

 Talks

 My first talk for 2026 is in January and it is a case study of   using MyHeritage's Theories of Family Relativity to sort my   Mum's DNA matches. Not something I have looked at closely   before but in preparing my slides I am discovering some   interesting matches. Or at least working out which family line the   matches might belong to. Register here for free. 

 My 2026 talks are on the Events page of my website and I am   still adding some as details are finalised. 

 Just noticed that my security certificate is not working despite the   fact that I paid it back in October. Hopefully my supplier can   solve the issue quickly. 

Webinars

Legacy Family Tree Webinars have announced their 2026 program of topics and speakers. Membership makes a great Christmas/New Year present and is definitely good value or you can try and watch the webinar live or within a week to see it for free. 

I have two talks in 2026 - one in January (see above) and the other in September on researching in Western Australia. 

What's Coming Up

Reflection on what I have managed to achieve with my family research this year and what I would like to continue tidying up in 2026. Not to mention learning some new skills especially around the use of AI for genealogy.

I hope that everyone has had an enjoyable time with family and friends in December and wishing you all a safe and happy New Year in 2026. 

Chinese ancestry, more travels and other news - my genealogy weeks 1-30 Nov 2025

 Well November went by in the blink of an eye. It took us longer to get over the dreaded virus than we thought so Yeppoon was more of a rest and relax holiday. 

Still had a good time but returned to Bribie Island just as it was hit with the 'nuclear' storm that left most of the Island without power for days. There must have been dozens and dozens of trees down all over the Island, roads blocked and power lines down. Even telecommunications went down. A week later we still have gangs of workers going around cutting up fallen trees and cutting down dangerous trees or branches. 

Traffic has been a nightmare not helped by those who came to sightsee. Fortunately we had no damage to the house but our potting shed was blown over, some fence palings went along with some bamboo panels around the BBQ area. Others were not so fortunate and lost roofs. Without power for days, most people lost the contents of their fridges and freezers. 

Books

So excited to be given a  review ecopy of Nathan Dylan Goodwin's new book The Hop Pickers Murders which is number 11 in the Morton series. Just in time for a good Christmas read. Although usually I finish Nathan's books within a day or so of starting as I can't put them down. The paper back is not out until next year. 

Conferences

Attended the Dragon Tails conference in Brisbane and stayed over three nights in George Street. Brisbane has changed a lot since I last visited the city centre. 

The conference was good and I learnt about more Chinese sources to try when researching my incarcerated women in colonial Queensland. Even met a descendant of one of the women I am interested in. 

That was the third conference this year where I spoke about different aspects of my PhD thesis. It has really helped focus my thoughts on what I want to say.

Museums

While in Brisbane took the opportunity to visit the MacArthur  Museum. It is where Douglas MacArthur ran his war office during WW2. His office and desk are recreated and the original war boardroom desk is still there. Also surprised  to see in one of the display cases a photo which included Max's mother who was in the WAAF during WW2. 

New Resources

Watched after the event, Andrew Redfern's talk on AI for genealogists hosted by Genealogical Society of Queensland. This is such a fast moving area and Andrew always amazes me with what he gets AI to do. In the coming weeks, the quiet time of Christmas when you don't have family living near by, I hope to try some of the suggestions on my own research and draft family history stories.

Talks

No more talks this year, thank goodness. It was busier than I anticipated with all three conference proposals accepted.

I have agreed to do some talks already in 2026. These are listed up on the Events page of my website.

What's coming up?

Christmas tree King George Square Brisbane

The December and January period are set aside for more writing of biographical sketches of my incarcerated women.

 Plus I am hoping to use AI to tidy up my draft family histories so that I can complete them, or at least the first edition of each. They will be uploaded into Trove through NED and free to access. That is one way to ensure that my research is not lost if I meet the proverbial bus.

Try to find a little time for family history research especially if you are visiting relatives. Have a wonderful and safe Christmas with family and friends. Although I am hoping to do another post before Christmas

Until next time, Shauna

History in Darwin and Broome & other news: My genealogy weeks 6 - 31 October 2025

Darwin conference

 Another month gone and now only two months left in 2025. I'm not alone in thinking this year has gone quickly. There has been lots of travel and conferences/talks for me. Keeping busy seems to be the key. No time for boredom.

Books

Discovering lots of interesting books and articles for my Ph D that are also relevant to my family history research. Local history of an area also plays a big part in understanding what was going on in the local community too. 

Only bought two new books at the Historians conference, although there was a lot of temptation.This was only $5 in the second hand section.

Conferences

I had already planned to go to the Dragon Tails conference in Brisbane in late November, but now I have to go as my session proposal was accepted. Looking at the relations between some of my incarcerated women and Chinese men in colonial Queensland. This will be my third talk this year connected to my PhD topic.

My session on vagrant women in colonial Queensland went well at the Darwin Professional Historians Conference. Lots of relevant questions and comments. I submitted an expanded version for peer review for the professional journal Circa. 

After Darwin we headed off to Broome in Western Australia to tick off another one of my must visit bucket list places. Sadly we picked up some dreaded virus and brought it home with us which is why this is a bit late. But we had fun while we were there.

Chinatown in Broome

New Resources

Ancestry has been busy with new DNA ethnicity reports and thanks to a new DNA match I have narrowed down my search for the unknown biological father of my great grandmother on my father's side. It's great when the pieces start to fit together and you see similar family names on the matches trees.

Plus there are new Australian collections. Too many to retype so forgive the snippets but there are some interesting series to follow up.

Talks

How exciting - my talk on post office directories in MyHeritage made the 2nd runner up list. See the top 10 for Legacy Family Tree Webinars here.

The last session of Genie Chats for 2025 is next week. We have focussed on Thomas MacEntee's Genealogy Do Over book all year. I am surprised at how much I have achieved by simply planning the monthly sessions and using my own examples to inspire others in the group. 

For example, a long neglected task was tidying up my location references to make them consistent. Should it be Brisbane, or Brisbane, Queensland or Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. I went with the latter as my research is global and not everyone will know where I am from if I just say Brisbane. After all, it could be Brisbane, California, USA.

What's coming up

Another trip believe it or not. This time to Yeppoon where we will have two weeks exploring the Capricorn Coast and doing some fishing, weather permitting. Taking the laptop so I also hope to be doing some thesis writing and reading for the literature review. 

Until next time happy searching. Shauna

Conferences, webinars and DNA finds: My genealogy weeks 1-15 October 2025

Spring is sprung and the hippeastrums are out. Only wish they bloomed more often. Lots of colour in the garden.

It has been incredibly dry here in recent months and the local wildlife is also feeling the lack of water and lush green grass in the surrounding national park. 

The kangaroos and wallabies are coming into residential areas especially where people water their lawns. Caught this rather large visitor the other afternoon at the neighbour's place. 

Books

All my book club suggestions have arrived at the library and now madly reading 'in my spare time'. One of the books has 18 reserves so no chance of an extension on that one. 

Also doing a deaccession of my family history books and looking to give them a new home. On our next trip to the Capricorn Coast I will be taking up a big donation to the Central Queensland Family History Association. 

They were really helpful with unique sources on some of my incarcerated women for my PhD thesis. Some are a bit dated but the information and context is still relevant. And yet the bookshelves don't have any noticeable gaps despite dozens of books in the box!

Conferences

This week I am off to Darwin for the Professional Historians Conference and my session on homeless women in colonial Queensland. I love Darwin so much history and then I will be off to Broome to cross off another bucket list destination. Another place with so much history.

This must have been my year for conferences as I have just been selected as a speaker at the Dragon Tails Conference in Brisbane in November. Another Ph D related session on some of my incarcertated women who partnered with Chinese men. It will be my fourth conference this year, genealogy in March in Brisbane, PhD related history in Townsville in June, the Darwin conference in October and the Chinese one in Brisbane next month. Great opportunities to catch up with friends and colleagues while travelling.

DNA update

My next DNA challenge is to identify my two unknown great great grandfathers on my father's side. I have finally identified two common families (Blakeley and Hardman) in my unknown matches for the one in Brisbane which links to my Brennan family. This gives me six potential suspects so now I need to narrow down to just one family if possible. 

At least it is not a total unknown as my Toorbul great great grandfather remains. But then someone might test and all will become clear. Hope is eternal as they say.

New Resources 

FamilySearch continues to add amazing record numbers to its collection eg over 21 million new records from seven countries as per their October newsletter. Countries include Italy, the Phillipines, American Samoa, Brazil, Haiti, Ukraine and the USA. They have also expanded their FindAGrave index with nearly four million records in the world collection.This made me think that I usually only use FindAGrave for Australia when in fact I should be using it for other countries especially in the UK and Ireland. Another thing on the 'to do' list.

Findmypast added a substantial collection of Suffolk coronial inquest records and more Middlesex baptisms from 1657-1841 which I will be searching for the very generic Walker family! More records for London included the Greater London Burial Index 1530-1812 and Archdeaconry Court of London willis index 1570-1582.

Talks

James Carnegie and Mary Finn

In addition to conference sessions, I still do genealogy talks and the annual seminar day at the Genealogical Society of Queensland was a great day. My session on prison and convict records was well received. 

A few days later I did a live webinar for Legacy Family Tree Webinars onpost office directories in MyHeritage. That session is free and you can watch it by clicking the link. I use Australia, New Zealand, England and Ireland directories as examples.

What's Coming Up

Another birthday, Christmas and 2026. Time does fly when you are having fun. 

I am booked to attend the Founding Families Connect Group for the old Caboolture Shire in November. My Carnegie family was one of the founders so I am looking forward to finally getting to one of their meetings.

Until next time, stay safe and keep researching. 

Shauna

Books, Webinars, New Resources & Other News: my genealogy weeks 16 -30 Sep 2025

 Everything seems to be speeding up or I'm trying to do more. Even the Bribie Family History Association Book Club is challenging me. See more below.

Blogs

The next instalment of my travel postings for the GSQ blog was published. Read more here and the earlier one on my trip to Ireland here.

Books

I have always been a big reader, even in primary school with all the Enid Blyton books. Totally enjoying being part of the BFHA book club and reading books I don't normally choose. 

At the last meeting six new titles were suggested so I put in a request at my local library, as they were at other Moreton libraries. Within a week I had four of the titles which of course now have to be read over the four week loan period. 

Family Baggage is about sorting a parent's belongings after they've passed. We can all relate to that.

Hoping that The Psychology of Family History will explain why I am so obsessed with researching.

New Resources

One thing I learnt from the North Ireland DNA school was that DNA Painter has a whole lot of new tools since I last had a look. Now that Dad's paternal side is definite, I want to try and follow up some strange ethnicities in my mother's family. The paper trail does not lead there. Are there more skeletons in my family? Surely not.

Ancestry regions and Mum's Germanic Europe and Welsh percentages.
Similar results in FTDNA and MyHeritage.

Have been loving the use of AI full text searching in FamilySearch. This is going to break a few brick walls for people I think. Also noted that Ancestry is trialling a similar feature for transcribing original documents. It's a fast moving field and I have booked into the GSQ's event with Andrew Redfern in November.

I also did the GSQ's webinar on We Are XYZ and there are huge possibilites for that. Technology is brilliant but sometimes I wish it didn't move so fast. 

The other day I experimented with using the microphone in Word to write a story on one my my incarcerated women (PhD thesis) instead of keying it. Wow, so good for my arthritic thumbs. 

Talks

Next week there is the GSQ annual seminar and I am first speaker with an introduction to convicts and criminals, all in 45 minutes! Luckily the records are similar. One of my favourite topics and the idea behind my PhD thesis.

Wonder which one is my GG grandmother Brisbane Women's Prison ca 1902

The following week is a webinar for Legacy Family Tree Webinars on using post office directories in MyHeritage. 

On the first Friday in November I am the guest speaker at the Bribie Island Family History Association meeting. Topic is Mining the Archives. Also planning one of my Go Fishing sessions as I have been told some members have missed them this year.

Excited to be doing a 20 minute pre recorded video for RootsTech 2026 on burial and cemetery records in Australia next March. Registration is already open and free unless you are going to Salt Lake City in person. I'd like to but I am already planning to go to England and Scotland next year. 

My Carnegie GGG grandparents grave in the historic Toorbul Cemetery.

What's Coming Up

Finally I am going to be home for a meeting of the Founding Families of Caboolture Shire. This group are descendents of original families which includes my Carnegie, Davis and Bishop connections. Looking forward to meeting others in the group.

I'm off to Darwin for the Professional Historians Conference where I am giving a session on females vagrants (homeless women) in colonial Queensland. After that off to Broome to cross off another bucket list place I have always wanted to visit.

Until next time, stay safe and well and keep on researching. Shauna

Family History month, talks, conferences and other news: My genealogy weeks Aug to 15 Sep 2025

Last month was another travel month with three weeks in Bali. Lots of great food, and good books to read. But time to get serious again with my studies and family history.

Blogs

Managed another guest blog for the Genealogical Society of Queensland. This one continued on with my walking in ancestral footsteps only this time in North Queensland. Read the blog here.

Books

Mostly read books and articles relating to my Ph D thesis in Bali while I lazed around the pool.

Conferences

AFFHO's Family History Month was a great success and the opening and closing presentations are online so don't miss Andrew Redfern, Jane Smith and Anne Young's inspiring talks.

Virtual conferences are so good. No travel and no having to pay for accommodation. But you do miss the personal interaction.

In the first two weeks of September I attended the North of Ireland Family History Society summer school on DNA. The sessions are recorded and you have a month to watch them. So far have watched four and they have been brilliant as a refresher and as something new. Finding time to watch is the hard part. 

On a really positive note, I won a mitochondrial full test DNA kit from Family Tree DNA which more than covered the cost of the summer school. However I did the full test back in 2021 but I can have a credit for another product but I have decided to donate the value in autosomal kits for the Islandmagee DNA project (where Dad's paternal family was from).

St John's Church Islandmagee Antrim May 2025

Also attended the Scottish Indexes conference with another great line up of speakers on various aspects of Scottish research.

Finally I virtually attended the NSW & ACT annual conference which was held down in the Illawarra. Some familiar faces in the audience and some of the speakers were really excellent on AI and DNA in particular. Again there is time to watch the sessions again over the coming month.

RootsTech 2026 - yes fast approaching on 5-7 March next year. Registration opens on 24 September 2025. Not long to go and in person and online.

Family History 

Not much new research done as I am still editing the final draft of my family history on my Carnegie/Stratton line. The draft has been written over the last 20 years and I haven't included some sources so I have to go back and identify them. Plus my style of doing endnotes has changed so I have had to decide on a final style sheet and then make all the amendment. Getting there slowly as the date on the front cover indicates!

I want to finish it before the next gathering of Founding Families, the descendants of original families of the Caboolture Shire meet in October. That is organised by the Caboolture Family History Research Group which I keep saying I should join and check out their resources. 

New resources

Where to start? There is so much happening everywhere. What has really blown me away is that FamilySearch now has full text searching (with AI) as a menu item under records. I particularly like looking at probate records as you get everyone mentioned in the will, not just the deceased. How incredible is that for finding lost people in our family trees.

Talks

In August I gave a talk at the Auckland, New Zealand Family History Expo (virtual) on mining the archives. Talking about some of my tips and tricks on making the most of your searches in online catalogues in Australia, New Zealand, England, Scotland, Ireland and Northern Ireland. Also had a few slides for finding European archives.

What's coming up?

Home through September so I hope to catch up with quite a few things on my to do list. I have two genealogy talks in October and a presentation at the Professional Historians Association conference in Darwin at the end of October. That should be good and I am taking the opportunity to come home via Broome, a place I have always wanted to visit.

Hard to believe that Christmas and the New Year are heading towards us at the speed of light. Enjoy your research time before that silly season arrives. Until next time Shauna

Still travelling, still talking and other news: My genealogy month July 2025

 Another month has gone past and I have been travelling again. Loved the dinosaurs out near Winton. Very hard to keep up with my usual family history commitments. Not to mention my PhD research.

Australian Age of Dinosaurs 

Blogs

I did manage to write up my guest blog post for the Genealogical Society of Queensland. Walking in Ancestral Footsteps outlines my trip to Ireland in May and lessons learned. Read the post here.

I have just finished writing the next post for August which is Still Travelling in Ancestral Footsteps. This time outlining my trip to Townsville in North Queensland then out to Charters Towers before going down to Winton and back through Longreach and Barcaldine to Rockhampton.

New Resources

One of the things I have noticed researching my prison ladies is that there are more Trove articles coming up for Charters Towers than I have previously seen. A good reminder to check for new titles added. Visit the coming soon to Trove page for details of new additions 

https://trove.nla.gov.au/announcement/2024/03/22/coming-soon-trove 

While I was travelling Ancestry released its new DNA clusters feature which I haven't had the opportunity yet to fully explore. You need Pro and over 65cM for it to work but this might help me identify the remaining two unidentified ancestors on my father's side. I have four clusters and only one is paternal and that relates to Dad's biological father. I think I need more, bigger matches but that comes back to people I am related to taking DNA tests.

Talks

CQFHA premises Jul 2025

While in Rockhampton I gave two talks to the Central Queensland Family History Association which was a great afternoon and a lovely audience. I also managed to do some research on my Rockhampton prison ladies in their library using some of their exclusive local history resources. Still to process all that into my biographical files on each woman. 

Got back in time to do another Genie Chats based on Thomas MacEntee's do over program. Hard to believe we have already completed Steps 1-7. The year will soon be over but already I can see substantial progress on some of my do over tasks.  

Also spoke on immigration records at the Pine Rivers Heritage Museum. They serve the most delicious morning teas. It was timed to complement their latest exhibition on immigrants to the Pine Rivers area. 

August is Family History Month and I am giving a live Zoom presentation at the Auckland Family History Expo on Mining the archives in New Zealand, Australia and the UK. Plus I will be announcing the winners of the Nick Vine Hall awards at the opening ceremony on 1 August. 

Television

The lending library, Comet Jul 2025

Since getting home, I have been catching up with the latest Australian series of Who Do You Think You Are on SBS. I hadn't heard of all the celebrities. But there have been some really interesting stories and it shows how ethnically diverse Australia is. Yes some of us are plain UK but lots of us also trace back to Europe and Asia. Still available on SBS on Demand so don't miss out on some fascinating family stories.

What's Coming Up?

Did I mention there is another trip coming up? I had another conference program talk accepted on my PhD thesis so I will be off to the Professional Historian's Conference in Darwin in October. After that I'm popping over to Broome to tick off one of my Australian bucket list items. But I have to be back in time for the November Bribie Family History Association meeting as I am the guest speaker with a talk on using archives more effectively.

Until next time, keep on researching.

Ancestral footsteps, new resources and other news: my genealogy months of May and June 2025

Yes it has been two months but I have travelled thousands of kilometres and had some amazing adventures. These days I only travel with my smart phone which is not easy to write blog posts on. However if you are a Facebook follower than I regularly post photos of my daily doings.

Books

Still trying not to buy books but on my recent trip to Islandmagee in Northern Ireland I couldn't help myself. This is where Dad's family is from and the two books are good histories of  the area with some interesting historical post cards as illustrations in one of the books. A bit weighty for my luggage but fortunately I packed light to start with.

Genealogy Travels

On my annual visit to my family in Sweden, I had a stopover in Doha for a few days.

The spice market was amazing as were the camels just down the road from my hotel. Not something you see every day.

After my two weeks in Sweden, I decided to have a quick week in Ireland to tick off two bucket list items. The first was to visit the Roman Catholic Church in Rathdrum, Wicklow where my great great grandparents John Finn and Sarah Fegan married. The second was to visit my great great grandparents Stewart Heddles and Agnes Templeton's grave in Islandmagee in Antrim in Northern Ireland. You can read more of my Irish adventures in my guest blog for the Genealogical Society of Queensland which will be published next week. 

A hectic week but I am really glad that I made the effort and saw the countryside where my ancestors lived and decided to leave. Everywhere was green with lots of spring flowers along the road side and rail tracks. But not a lot of work opportunities apart from farming in Rathdrum or fishing in Islandmagee. Whatever there reasons, I'm glad they picked Australia to emigrate to.

St John's Islandmagee, Antrim, Northern Ireland where my GGG grandparents Stewart Heddles and Agnes Templeton are buried.

New Resources

I have had no chance to explore some of the new record releases or webinars. I haven't even kept up with genealogy society journals or genealogy magazines through the local library.

The best way to find out what is new is to subscribe to the free newslettes which usually provide a montly update. 

PhD Incarcerated women in colonial Queensland

Slowly plugging away with the biographies of my 1750 women who were incarcerated in Queensland gaols between 1850 and 1900. So many interesting stories and it is going to be hard to decide who goes into the thesis. I keep telling myself you have to write a 100,000 thesis not just do the research, which of course is the fun place.

Talks

A busy time with a talk on my North Queensland incarcerated women at the Australian Historical Association conference in Townsville. 

Two talks at the Central Queensland Family History Association premises. It has been a few years since I have spoken at their library and I am looking forward to catching up with everyone again.

After my travels I have a talk on immigration records for Moreton City Libraries at the Pine Rivers Heritage Museum. A great place to visit especially if you have any ancestors in that area.

What's Coming Up?

More travel as I leave on Friday for North Queensland and the Australian Historical Association conference in Townsville. On the way up we have stops in Rockhampton and Bowen. Yes I want photos of the Big Bull and the Big Mango. But I am going to meet a second cousin in Bowen who has also been researching the Price family history. 

My involvement in the AHA conference is three fold - one I am a speaker on women incarcerated in North Queensland gaols, two I am chairing an interesting session on Chinese migration issues and thirdly I will just be sitting back and listening to some fascinating presentations. There are multple streams which means you need to mak a decision as to which one to go to.

After the conference we are doing a trip out to Winton via Charters Towers and Hughenden. Checking out the Dinosaur Trail as well as other historica places. Coming back via Barcaldine to Rockhampton where I will be researching some of my Central Queensland women at the Central Queensland Family History Associatin library. Lots of my names appear in their online index so I'm hoping to discover some treasures.

Then home via Tannum Sands where we are catching up with friends. 

Hopefully there will be another Diary post about mid July. Have fun researching until then, Shauna