pigeon house tidings · such as gold records, convict records, justices of the peace, hospital...

Milton-Ulladulla Family History Society Inc

NEWSLETTER June 2016 Issue No 42

Pigeon House Tidings

Aim of Our Society To encourage research and friendship in genealogy.

To promote the study and foster the knowledge of family history in the local community.

Pigeon House Tidings June 2016 No 42 – Milton Ulladulla Family History Society Inc

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Our Journal is published in June and December each year.

Patron: Mrs. Shelley Elizabeth Hancock, BA, DipEd MP

Member for South Coast, New South Wales Speaker of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly

Office Bearers for 2015-16 President . .................John Sparks Vice President ...........Meg Hammond Secretary . .................Cheryl Stokes Librarian . .................Marg Magnusson Treasurer . .................Marilyn Boyd Research Officer ........Graham Ledwidge Activities Officer .......Marg Magnusson Publicity Officer .........John Sparks (Acting) Journal Editor ............Julie Gullan Committee Member. .Marg McIntosh Public Officer .............David Weaver

Write to us:

The Secretary P O Box 619

ULLADULLA NSW 2539

Email: [email protected]

Website: http://www.mufhsi.org Website contact: [email protected]

MEETING DATES

Meetings of the society are held on the second Monday of each month at the Family History Room, Ulladulla Civic Centre, Lower Floor, 81B Princes Highway, Ulladulla. Visitors and new members are very welcome. A small door fee is charged at each meeting to cover catering and other costs. The Society is also open for research and visitor enquiries every Monday and Wednesday between the hours of 10.00 a.m. and 2.00 p.m. and every Saturday between the hours of 9.30 a.m. to 1.30 p.m.

Thanks to Shoalhaven City Council for their assistance

Disclaimer The statements made and views expressed by the contributors in this publication are not necessarily

those of the Editor or the Milton Ulladulla Family History Society Inc.

Cover: Representation of Pigeon House Mountain, South West of Ulladulla, New South Wales. “....saw a remarkable peaked hill which resembles a square dovehouse with a dome on top and for

that reason I named it Pigeon House.” Lieutenant James Cook, April 21, 1770. © Milton Ulladulla Family History Society Inc., 2016

mailto:[email protected]

http://www.mufhsi.org/


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Contents 4 FROM THE PRESIDENT’S DESK 5 The Origin of a Name 6 Event – Teapot Genie Presentation 7 Lost Ancestors – Can you Recognise 9 Articles - Miscellaneous

10 Story - A Famiy’s Journey and New Life in a Distant Colony By Julie Gullan 15 Story - The Mysterious Case of Joseph abt 1800 By John Sparks 19 Story - My Story By Christine Moss 21 A Family Reunion by Marg Magnusson 25 About our Members – Member Profile Marilyn Boyd 26 The Librarian’s Corner Snippets – New Journals 28 Event – Christmas Meeting and Award 30 Book Reviews 33 Events – Tabourie Lake Museum & Picnic Day 34 Event – Kiama Family, Local & Social History Expo 35 Coffee & Chat Social Events 36 Pioneer Directory Order Form

Welcome to new members

We would like to extend a very warm welcome to the most recent additions to our Milton

Ulladulla Family History Society Inc. We look forward to seeing you from time to time at our rooms and hope you will be able to join us on

many of our social events.

Welcome Enid Hillery, Delores Angus, Stanley Izzard, Joan Clark, Tom Turner, Chris Bendle, Sheila Easton, Gina Law, Wendy Stevens and Jennifer Coleman.

Contributors

The following members contributed material to this edition of Pigeon House Tidings. Should you wish to correspond with them, contact details appear against their names.

(14361) Julie Gullan Email: [email protected] (14366) John Sparks Email: [email protected] (5218) Christine Moss Email: [email protected]

(10335) Margaret Magnusson Email: [email protected] (5225) Meg Hammond Email: [email protected]







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From the President’s Desk…… It is hard to believe that we are more than a quarter of the way into 2016. The time has been full and hopefully beneficial to our members, with further pursuits in discovering ancestral roots. We have been pleased with many members and visitors calling into the resource rooms this year, but it still surprises us that there are people, locals especially, who still have no idea we exist, and where we are located, despite advertising and newspaper articles. The Society especially would like to welcome our new members and hope they find lots of information from our resources that have been updated and extended

over the past six months. It has been wonderful too, to have some former members rejoin and others who have called by for a chat and renew acquaintances. It is very pleasing to find more of our members coming to the monthly members meeting on the 2nd Monday of each month, and the stimulating conversations that have ensued over afternoon tea. I am very proud of the work done by the Committee, who have been not only supportive and encouraging in our further development, but also spent much of their time and effort in helping others with family history. Without their contribution the society would not operate. I am most grateful to our Secretary, Cheryl, who has kept things on track and up to date. The Treasurer, Marilyn has kept us with a healthy financial bank balance. But, also we are so very fortunate to have the diligent work Margaret has done with the ever increasing Library stock. We are all thrilled too, with Julie’s splendid presentation of the Society’s magazine. The assistance of the other Committee members, Meg, Margaret and Graham must also be congratulated too, without whom the everyday functioning would be most difficult. It should be pointed out that it is not ALL hard work - we do have a lot of fun along the way as well! We have ventured forth to both Kiama and Nowra Family History Expo, with a table display at each event. It is so important to get our name out into the greater genealogic arena. We have been able to meet up with many friends in other societies on these occasions. We have similar events forthcoming at Camden and Bega later on. Our own events have created much interest from the guest speakers, who have given some great talks and discussions. We appreciate the visit from the “Teapot Genies”, Kaye and Suzanne. Also the performance by the U3A Recorder Ensemble at the end of year party meeting was enthusiastically received. The Coffee and Chat meetings have brought members together at various venues, most months, and we incorporated a picnic day with a Lake Tabourie museum visit as well. Finally, wishing our members good health, mindful of some who are recovering from illnesses; we hope to see you all at some time “over a cuppa” at our rooms in the Civic Centre, or on the “Coffee and Chat” days, or may I suggest even better….. at our AGM . Best wishes John Sparks, President


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THE ORIGIN OF A NAME We all know that surnames, or family names, did not exist in biblical times, but it comes as something of a surprise to most of us when we learn that for a thousand years after the birth of Christ, surnames were still almost unheard of. When William the Conqueror established himself in England, even the nobles did not have surnames; in fact, family names were not common among the nobility until the thirteenth century, and were not generally adopted by the lower classes until the sixteenth century. The first to use surnames in England were the great land-owners, the noblemen, who took as their surnames the names of their estates. Thus a man named Richard might own an estate called Cotgrove, and in order to distinguish him from a neighbour also named Richard, his friends referred to him as Richard de Cotgrove (“de” being French for “of”. Calling him thus answered the question, “Where was he from?”. The eldest son usually inherited the estate, and in a sense he also inherited his father’s family name. Eventually the preposition was dropped, and a true family name developed, which, unlike an estate, could be inherited by all the children. These were called “place names”. Only a small number of the inhabitants of England, however, owned land, and as it became desirable, for one reason or another, to have a surname, some source, other than the name of property, was necessary for the great majority of Englishmen. For many, a name was supplied by asking, “What does he do?” This is the origin of the thousand of so-called “occupational names”, such as Smith, Farmer, Cartwright, Arrowsmith, Shoemaker and Sherman (one who shears woollen cloth). Another question which might be asked was, “Who is his father?” If the answer was Richard, he would be called Richard’s son, which is the origin of the name Richardson. In other cases, the “son” would become part of the name, but the possessive “s” would remain, and the result was Richards. A fourth source of surnames was the answer to the question, “What does he look like?” or “What is his most prominent peculiarity?” Thus originated such names as Short, Long, Big(g), and Small. In assigning nicknames to people today, we often use the same device and produce such names as Shorty, Tiny, Red, and Gabby. Nicknames are derived, however, from many sources other than physical characteristics, and writers on the origin of surnames are careful to point out that in dealing with a surname which has derived from a nickname, we can never know for sure just why the nicknames was applied in the first place. Do you know anyone who is called…..Appleby, Abbott, Forrester, Harper, Wren, Butterworth, and Greenwood? Did you know that surnames can go extinct just like species do? Think about it: do you know anyone these days named Chaucer? One historical reason for surnames becoming extinct was World War I. Often, men who were friends and neighbours served together; when there were mass casualties, a village or town might lose a whole generation of their men. Because names at that time were often specific to an area, a name could be almost completely eliminated. There are less drastic reasons for a surname’s disappearance as well. Sometimes, a name is changed over time, or a male line may simply die out. Since 1901, about 200,000 names have disappeared altogether from England and Wales, according to a study conducted by Ancestry.co.uk.


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Teapot Genie Presentation

By Suzanne Voytas and Kaye Vernon

It was a dull, overcast February summer’s

morning. A good day to spend inside and listen

to talks by the Teapot Genies.

There were four very interesting topics.

Kaye spoke about “Digging for Gold and

Finding Gems Using Unusual Records from

State Records NSW”. This talk was on the

background information to different records

such as Gold Records, Convict Records,

Justices of the Peace, Hospital Records, Police,

Prisons, Orphanage Records and more.

Kaye’s second topic was “The Plight of Children in the 19th and early 20th Century”. This talk

related to what Kaye had found while doing extensive research of original documents from State

Records NSW during the indexing process. It shows both sides of the children’s lives, what was

happening in the orphanages and also what was happening in the children’s own homes. It also covers

stories found in other records including gaol records, court records etc. The indexes comprise over

550,000 names, which are now searchable by a Key.

Suzanne spoke on “From Famine to Feast – Hints

for Irish Research” Once Irish research was a

famine but today it is a feast. So many unbelievable

records are now within everyone’s reach. However

to understand many aspects of these records Suzanne

gave us a brief understanding of the history of

Ireland. This was a very useful subject for all those

researching Irish Ancestors and also interesting to

those who do not have Irish in their family.

Her second talk was “It Is Not All On The Internet”. She explained with the rapid advancement in

technology it has provided almost instant access to many resources. This has led to the belief that

everything is on the net and if it is not there, then the records do not exist. Suzanne explained there

was only about 16% of all records out there on the internet and research should still include other

resources.

During the lunch break, all who attended sat around

and chatted on all we had heard to date. At the

conclusion of all talks we enjoyed afternoon tea as

well as looking at information records bought in by

Suzanne and Kaye.

It was a great day and all gained some extra

knowledge and encouragement to continue working

hard on their own family research.


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Lost Ancestors - Can you Recognise these Photos

Hester Langfield, nee Goddard

She is Meg Hammond’s great great grandmother. Hester was born in 1793 in Aldbourne, Wiltshire, England, and married John Langfield in 1811 in Ramsbury, Wiltshire. They had 11 children, 6 of whom pre-deceased Hester. Hester's husband John died in 1844, age 54, in Ramsbury. 4 years later, in 1848, Hester married John Greenaway in Ramsbury and he died there on 22nd September 1855. Hester died on 14th February 1858 in Ramsbury at age 65. The photo on the right is stamped on the back "Alder, Cheltenham and Scarborough" and notes from the internet state that he was a photographer in Cheltenham from 1854 - 1856. (The family visited Cheltenham regularly).Hester would have been 61 to 63 at the time of Alder's photo. Could these 2 photos be of Hester taken either just before or just after she was widowed for the second time? Meg Hammond’s great grandfather Edwin Langfield. Edwin was born in 1834, the second last child of John and Hester Langfield. The photo on the left was presumably taken at the same time as those of Hester and Mary Maria. Edwin would have been 20 - 22 at the time. The photo on the right has been identified as the original was on a glass plate taken at Cheltenham in 1861 at the time of his marriage at age 27 to Lucy Beckingsale of Cheltenham. Could both photos be of Edwin as they bear a striking similarity?


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Mary Maria Langfield, nee Greenaway. Mary Maria was born in 1823 in Stratton St. Margaret, Wiltshire to John and Priscilla Greenaway. Mary Maria married Thomas Langfield in 1847, Thomas being the 4th child of John and Hester Langfield, thus Mary Maria became the daughter-in-law of Hester.The next year, in 1848, Mary Maria was a witness at the wedding of her own father John Greenaway to Hester Langfield and therefore becoming Hester's step-daughter as well! Mary Maria's husband Thomas died age 39 in 1859 and Mary Maria continued living with the Langfield/Greenaway family after Thomas's death. Thus with her strong family links to the Langfields could this photo be of Mary Maria, aged in her early thirties? This photo is the only possible one Meg Hammond has of her.

Anyone out there who may recognise these ladies.

This girl on the left maybe a Moss from the Lismore area born circa 1915. The ladies on the right and below are a complete mystery. I found these among my father’s photos so could be from either side of my parents


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If Only!!!


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A Family’s Journey and New Life in a Distant Colony By Julie Gullan

A few months ago I was invited by my grand-daughter to participate at her schools Grade 6 classes

to pass on information on immigration of our family ancestors arriving into Australia in the early years of settlement.

My focus for our family was on original letters written by Alexander Anderson, my grand-daughters 4 x great grandfather who arrived in Sydney on Tuesday 10th October 1854. He had originally left

Scotland in the latter part of 1851 heading to New York USA.

I have transcribed an original letter from Alexander Anderson dated Sept

14 1851 as it was written:

"James Anderson your Father writs a letter to you as he loves you and

hopes in god this will find you a good boy and to love your Mother and

Sister and Brother and god wil love you for doing so..and your father

sends a penny for you to bie Candy, and i trust in you being a Cliver boy,

and lern to no a fue questions and send me word if you can say them.

now dear Son who made you, god mad me. is god very great and very

good yes. god is very great and very good. Where does god dwell, god

dwells everywhere, is god in heavon. god is in heaven and on earth too.

did you ever see god, i never saw god and cannot see him, Does god see

you, god always sees me, and every thing that i do and everything that i

think

i am your loveing father Alexr Anderson"

Alexander Anderson was an honest, hard-working ambitious person who wanted to make a better

life for himself and his family. His religious beliefs were very strong, as seen in most of his letters he

sent back home. He was prepared to sacrifice his own comfort zone to travel to a far off land hopeful

of making his fortune. This would then set up his family with a more comfortable and safe lifestyle. He was not a gambling man, but on hearing so much about America, the land of fortune he thought

it was the path he needed to take. He believed he would only be separated for a short time from his

family and all would work to their benefit.

The 1848 discovery of gold in California not only drew hundreds of thousands of people out West, it also shifted the balance of economic attention of the United States. During the 1850s, the greatest influx of immigrants in American history, approximately 2.6 million, came to the United States. By 1850, the Irish made up over half the populations of Boston and New York City. Throughout this critical growth period in America, immigrants were helping to form the United States into one of the most ethnically and racially diverse societies in the history of the world.


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During the 1800s, most European immigrants entered the United States through New York. Ships would discharge their passengers, and the immigrants would immediately have to fend for themselves in a foreign land. It did not take long for thieves and con-men to take advantage of the newcomers. Some of the immigrants brought infectious diseases with them to the States. Alexander was in Marin City around the time when San Quentin State Prison opened in July 1852 with 68 inmates. It is California's oldest prison.

One of Alexander Anderson’s early letters was from Marin City, dated January 16 1854. In this 23 page letter he writes he has been there much longer than first thought - page 3 “without the lest conception

of thinking that so many years was

to role past without me seeing you

all again”

On pages 4 and 5 Alexander is reflecting what he has left behind in Scotland compared to what he has in

San Francisco –

…..”Children running after the

butterflies and pooling a possie of

flowers which was beautifying

nature all around us. The beauty of

these reflections is as vivid and fresh

upon my mind as it had just been

yesterday but alas when I compare

the past with the present, what a

contrast, time has wrought between

the two. In place of the Sweet Smile

of you and my Children there is

nothing but the gnawing of an

uncivilised world all around me. You

cannot form

the least idea of the abuses which is

going ahead at all times. It would

merely arrest your feelings for me to

state the half of the hardship which I have underwent since I parted with you. I can scarcely credit

it when I look over my

catalogue to see the different positions which I have been placed in which is ruinous and trying, to

any constitution that ever was made. However I am happy and thankful to God that he has still

born me through every trial and preserved my health and provided for all my temporal wants

according to the different position of life which I have placed myself in which I rejoice to think and

feel thankful that I am not so as I see others around me. I cannot regret for coming to California when I consider all things”……


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He also wrote he had tried his luck at the gold diggings with no success but found work which

generally paid good wages. This included labouring and stone cutting. He talks about leaving the

country and hoping his health stays with him.

Alexander arrived into San Francisco in March 1854 and by this time had made the brave and

adventurous decision he would not stay in America, he would travel onto Australia. Alexander C

Anderson arrived in Sydney from San Francisco on 19th October 1854 aboard the barque “HT

Bartlett”.

When nearing his new homeland he wrote letters back to his wife and 3 children describing his first glimpses of this wonderful country, Australia and the city of Sydney, encouraging them to prepare to

also make this journey from Scotland to Australia. Alexander first left Scotland around 1850, thinking

he would make his fortune in America and may even settle there with his family joining him soon

after arriving. Thankfully this was not to be and so he sailed to Australia. When he arrived to the

land down under he had a very positive attitude.

“Sydney Bay

October 8 1854

My dear Wife and Children

I am still afloat upon the water for 48 hours. I landed here on Saturday afternoon and this is

Sunday afternoon. we will get ashore on Monday afternoon as the time will be up at 4 oclock - I

cannot state to you the truth of things as yet as what is going on in the City, as I have not had the

privelige of being their, but I have seen a News paper which came aboard of our Ship and it gives

very favourible acounts of tread (sic-trade) going a head but the proof of the puding is in the eating

of it. the papers states that masons wages is from 25 to 30 shillings per day. but I shall no (sic-

know) the trouth of it in a nother day. My dear I hope and trust that all things will turn out well

with me in this Country. by the apperence of it I love it and I think that you will do the same. which

I hope in god that he will bless all my efforts. that I may feel happy in this quarter of the world and

be soon blest with your company and my dear Children far (sic-for) to enjoy the comfort along with

me in this beautiful country by all apperence which I have got of it. we Sailed along the North Side

far mare (sic-for more) than two hundred miles and the Scenery was rugged and very mountainous

upon the banks of the Ocean. but still it a sumed in my eyes a fertile and a beautiful Country. So I

hope in the course of a twelve month from this time that you and the children will join me. I

cannot think of living any longer without your Society for time heer (sic-here) me on through the


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remander of my pilgrimige (sic-pilgrimage) journey in this life. my dear I hope that you have

keaped (sic-kept) up a ga---x post since you received my last letter hearing the news of my

departure from California to Australia. I hope that its dune (far) for to better us all. I will send you

a nother letter with the next mail. I believe it leves (sic-leaves) here every month and it leves

England twice a month. So I hope that you will have a letter here here long before this reach your

Sweet heand (sic-hand). I hope that you received the £33- which I sent from California. if you have

not been seeing your friends you can go and (Stope) Stop with them (far) for two or three months

(far) for to enjoy yourself. I will Send you same (sic-some) money very soon. give my love to all my

friends as I hope they are all well. things are all in full blawsom (sic-blossom) here just now. this is

the commencement of Summer. you must excuse this anat (sic-note) at present. you will get more

news in my next. I will send you a letter with every mail. So I remain your loving and affectionate

husband and father. a kiss for each of you. AA”

Letter Pacific Ocean dated

September 23 1854 reads to Jane, John James Anderson as follows:

“Address your letters to

Sydney

Alexander C Anderson

Stone Cutter Sydney

Australia

This is a peace of taaping

(sic-taping) which the

natives made in

Tongataboo (note by Julie

Gullan: this is an island of

Tonga)

Tuesday 10 I have landed

this morning in the City and I

have taken a look through several of the streets. They (sic-Their) are a good deal of mason work

going in every quarter of the lawn. but they are very Stingy of taking on hands just now. I supose

the reason is they are far (sic-for) breaking down the wages from 27 shillings to one pound per

day. I have not got a job as yet is but I have had no time to look round much and I must close this

letter for to get it away with the first mail. for it has to go to Melburn that is 8 hundred miles

from here. the mail ships is being their just now. I pay £1-5 for being board. I think that I love this

City very well. Must stop and runn to the post office. good day with a kiss I am still your lover

Alexr Anderson”

Alexander’s wife, Christina Anderson then aged 32 years and her 3 children – James, 9 years, John, 10 years and Jane 13 years arrived in Sydney from Plymouth on 27th February 1858 aboard the ship

"Stebonheath”

They wasted no time in increasing their family. Christina Mary Margaret was born on 15th December

1858 in Sydney. Agnes Alice was born in 1861 at Patrick Plains and Georgina Alexandria was born 11th December 1862 in Singleton.

The family moved to the Singleton area in NSW soon after Christina was born.


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Alexander teamed up with another builder

Christopher Trier.

They built many Catholic Churches. The last one

before they dissolved their partnership on 1st

March 1860 was the St Patrick’s Roman Catholic Church in Singleton.

St Patrick’s Church

In 1864 the family were living at Luddeham NSW with Christina’s brother Thomas Henderson and his

family for some time.

Alexander passed away on 23rd June 1864 just after his 50th

birthday and is buried at St Stephen's Anglican Church at

Penrith. He died of Phthisis, now known as Tuberculosis. Lung

disease was common for stone masons as they were breathing in the dust created from cutting the stone.

Our direct descendants, Christina Anderson (Alexander’s wife) along with their daughter Georgina & her husband Charles Tucker and three of their children Ruby Tucker, Charles Tucker and Pearl Agnus Bower are all in the one plot at Rookwood Presbyterian Cemetery Sydney.

Snippets passed down through the last couple of generations are told that Alexander helped lay the foundation stones of St Mary's Cathedral in College Street Sydney. Based on my investigations, he

may have worked on this building when a new façade and bell tower on College Street were added

between 1851 and 1857.


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THE MYSTERIOUS CASE OF JOSEPH abt. 1800 By John Sparks

When and where was he born? Who were his parents? His childhood and siblings? Where did he die? Where is he buried? This has been my quandary for the past twelve or so years!! What do we know of Joseph, then? Well, he was supposed to have been involved during the Wars during the early years, 1800s......according to an account from a letter written to a family member by his grandmother in the late 1890s. . ..I have this letter where he states that "I fancy Joseph was a fine dashing naval officer- he died when his two children, a boy and a girl, were quite young" [I have found a "Joseph" enlisted in the Military 1796, and a discharge from the army in 1805] …..but this does not contain very much information. His profession was a surgeon. He worked in Liverpool, England. [There is a "Joseph" who had chambers in the Sir Thomas' Buildings, Liverpool, No.8…..]

"Joseph", it is recorded in the grandmother's letter, married a MARY KILSHAW of Liverpool.... supposedly "the Beauty of Liverpool", but this marriage was not accepted by Joseph's family, so there are no other family relatives mentioned on the marriage document. [There is a marriage registered in Liverpool, England at St. John's Anglican Church, Old Haymarket, England on 6th July,1807....FHL Film No.1656197, ref. id. It3,p35]

Marriages at St John in the City of Liverpool Marriages recorded in the Register for 1805


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There is a Marriage Bond for this union to take place.....see end of article. It states he was 2l years or more, so it is the 1780s approximately we are considering for a possible birth for Joseph. Then, a child was born to this same couple two years later in 1809. This child, a boy, is christened with the fascinating name of Henry Palafox Gerona Sparks….in St John’s Church, Old Haymarket. (It appears that a General Palafox’s forces were involved with fierce fighting in the Peninsular Wars (1807-1814) against Napoleonic armies in Zaragossa and Gerona, Portugal and Spain.

The family ancestor also mentions a second child born to Mary and Joseph…a girl. And there turns out to be evidence of a baby girl was born to them in 1811, bearing the name of Mary….again baptised at St. John’s Church, Old Haymarket, Liverpool. Further, Joseph (it is mentioned by my ancestor) dies when the children were quite young. Now, there is a “Joseph”, a surgeon of Liverpool, England, having left his estate in a probate court order during the latter part of the year 1812 to his spouse, Mary, ”September” as seen in this document


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However where and exactly when his death occurred does not seem to be evident at this stage. And Where he is buried?......a mystery. It is evident, though, that Mary inherited an amount of money, 300 pounds in fact, a considerable sum in those days. [Reading the notes on St. John’s Church, it appears that burials within the grounds ceased on 11th June 1865. The last Sunday service took place there on 27th March 1898…..the church was demolished. At the end of 1888 Liverpool Corporation was empowered to lay out the churchyard as the public gardens to be known as St. John’s Gardens.

Samuel Peet wrote, ‘For more than a century this unsightly structure has been allowed to disfigure the landscape…..as an example of ecclesiastical art the church of St. John has not a single redeeming feature…’ But then Mary seems to have disappeared. DID she remarry? What happened to the two children?

Well, we know from the letter writing ancestor that the boy was taken into care by his maternal grandfather, Henry Kilshaw, who “was devoted to the lad that he couldn’t bear him out of sight, not even for schooling”. [This boy, Henry P. G. colourful life’s journey has been documented already (Pigeon House Magazine, Dec, 2015) As for the little girl; It has been noted that a few years later, 1815, a “Mary” aged 4 years died in a poor house in London….St Luke’s Chelsea according to Ancestry. Could this be her? Another interesting fact about this "Joseph" is that some of the documents bear a middle Christian name of "Ware", Wear/Weare. These spellings occur in various indexes of my research. So, I think I need the assistance or the resources of "'Sherlock Holmes". I have had help from English Ancestor Society UK, who have researched and provided many of the documents listed.


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My Story by Christine Ellen Moss

I first began researching my family in the year 1999. I had very little information to start with, only a photo started my quest in finding out more about my Dad’s family. Dad came to Australia from England in 1912 with his parents. When the 1911 Census came onto Ancestry it was my delight to find the first and only time my Dad appeared on the English Census. Since my late teenage years I was already in contact with my grandfathers’ brother’s family in Birkenhead, England & it was easy to get help with recording information from them. However when I was told information

back in those early days of knowing the family, I was not that interested in getting further details of what was being said to me. A bitter lesson I had to taste as my interest grew with wanting to know my ancestors and what they did and who they were in those days gone by. My Uncle Harry as I called him had a wealth of stories and how I would love to sit beside him now and listen to what he can tell me to put into my family tree. I had in my possession two photos in which I could identify my grandfather and his brother. The two girls had me puzzled and was able to have one identified but the 2nd one is still a mystery. I thought this photo was all of my grandfather’s family and it was going to be easy to put my tree together. I became a member of SAGS, in Sydney where I began looking through the card system. After I had been researching for a while, I found this newspaper clipping inside of my Grandmother’s bible and to my surprise it was my great Grandmother’s funeral in Leominster, England. Here it mentioned all who attended the funeral,

The Family at the Gypsy Wagon

Edith Ellen Moss


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and it was baffling because all 5 of the girls mentioned had married names, this had to be sorted out. I only knew one of them, what had I got myself into. SAGS were able to help me obtain the information I needed to kick me on my way. My Uncle Harry who was my Grandfather’s brother’s son told me that we had Romany Gypsies in the family and we also had a horse trainer. I have found no evidence of Romany, however they owned a Gypsy Wagon at Morton near Birkenhead and went there for weekends. How did they get this Romany Gypsy Caravan and I am still trying to find this horse trainer. For years I have been trying to trace the youngest sister called Edith. I found her on the 1911 census, but that was as far as I could go with her, I had hit a brick wall. Late last year I was searching before Registration on Ancestry when Edith’s name came up. My body felt like pins and needles and her granddaughter was starting a family tree. I contacted her through Ancestry, we are now in touch. I am gradually getting photos of what she looks like. What a difference it makes when you can put a face to a name that you are researching. My visit to the Latter Day Saints last week thinking that I would be able to order a microfiche to try and go back further than my great grandfather. I came out of the building doing cartwheels, well, not exactly, but I was in the 7th heaven. Bill from the Latter Day was able to take me back another generation. New Things are coming all the time on Ancestry and Find my Past and if you have the patience to sit and search through all those records and find the one who really belongs to you, what a most rewarding feeling goes through you. Some people think Graves are morbid, but to a family Historian they are gold, especially when they can help you with your researching. 9th May, 2016


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A Family Reunion By Margaret Magnusson

The following was submitted by Margaret

Magnusson. Marg was the organiser for a

Family Reunion in Nelligen for the Hickox

Family which was held in May this year. Their

family is traced back from Charles Hickox who

was born in England in 1814 and was

transported to Australia in 1834 for 7 years.

This is a brief extract of his life along with a

poem.

The family reunion was such a wonderful

weekend for this gathering. The weather could

not have been better and the attendance was

fantastic. There were people from as far as South Australia, Queensland and Victoria. Some stayed at

the Caravan Park at Nelligen where the Reunion was held.

There were many displays and lots of catching up and stories exchanged. Saturday was well attended with approximately 200 people attending and on Sunday there was another extra 60 people who joined in. It was such a success that it was unanimously decided another gathering will be held in 2018.


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The following poem was written by Vicki Heycox


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ABOUT OUR MEMBERS Marilyn Boyd

Marilyn started researching her family history around 1986 when her brother began researching their father’s tree. This spurred Marilyn to start their mother’s side. She would finish work at 1.30pm and rush to the Ulladulla Library and wade through the microfiche until it was time to collect her son after school. Between her brother and Marilyn they unearthed information on the arrival of their Great Great Great Grandfather Archibald McDonald along with his wife and their 7 children arriving in 1837 on the “William Nicol” travelling into Port Jackson. The McDonald’s departed the Isle of Skye in Scotland on the same ship as Geoffrey Robertson’s ancestors. (Robertson is a high profile Australian Lawyer who has hosted an Australian television series of programmes called Geoffrey Robertson's Hypotheticals.) They decided to leave Scotland as they heard about

the “John Dunmore Lang Immigration Scheme”. This was around the time of famines in Scotland and Archibald’s family were suffering from starvation. Once the McDonald’s landed in Sydney they headed south and settled where Canberra stands today. He worked for the Campbell’s who owned most of the land around this area. Archibald was able to purchase property from Campbell who was selling off some of his land. This land was across the Murrumbidgee River. He built his home and the family settled into a country lifestyle. Some of the surnames Marilyn is researching are Dinning, Donnelly, Burnett, Flood, Sutton, Foster, Reid and Taylor Marilyn has found her Irish great grandmother to be the most interesting to research. She has been collecting information on this tree for a long time. The Great Grandmother left Ireland with her sister when she was 18 years of age. Their mother was now deceased. So when Marilyn found she was married and had 12 children she thought this was wonderful because all her children had survived childhood which was amazing for that era. They were born between 1873 and 1890. Marilyn was surprised she enjoys the history side of researching as she disliked history when at school. She has learned so much about Australian history since beginning her family tree. I asked her if she had done any special traveling relating to her family history research? If so when, where to and what did you find? Marilyn replied that she had travelled to Kiama Family History Society and that day Ray Thorburn had been rostered on. Marilyn came home with so much interesting information and lots of photocopying on both sides of her parents tree. She said she didn’t have to travel far because when she looked up her Nanna’s tree she found that her eldest brother and eldest sister were born here in Ulladulla Harbour. Marilyn thought she would like to travel to Ireland one day. She originally thought she was about 25% Irish but now believe she is really about 60% Irish.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Australian_television_series


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THE LIBRARIAN’S CORNER

From Marg Magnusson There is a lot of information on the Internet BUT don't forget that before the Internet there were Books, CD’s Microfiche and Journals and we have a great range of all of these. If you are trying to date a picture we have a book for that and if you want to know about Convicts we have books on where and how they lived. If you want to find out about your family that maybe lived Locally and moved away we have books and CD’s on local families and the district. We had a man come into our room a little while back who was trying to find out about a certain lady. He knew she came out on the “Lady Julian”. We were lucky enough to have a book which had been donated to us on the Lady Julian called “The Floating Brothel”. It is about the voyage and people that came out on the ship. We had a look and there was his lady however his spelling of the surname was different to the one in the book. He was very happy at his find, a part of his brick wall crumbled. We have been able to help many visitors who have come into our room for Local Family History with our many Books and CD’s. Cathy Dunn has donate CD’s of the Local Newspaper “The Times” which are currently being catalogued and also Newspapers from the Times Newspaper Office being catalogued and going on our shelves very soon. So come along in and browse. You might be surprised at what you find.

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SNIPPETS ….NEW JOURNALS - April 2016

The Ancestral Searcher, Canberra March 2016 How a DNA test solved a Mystery…..George James Cole and his descendants. Dictionary of Irish Biography….a means of filling in the gaps of famous Irish people. Where’d you find that? We are lucky to have such a richness of sources available. Have you ever given thought to the records you search & noted from what source it came? Important to document. Continuing 100 Anzacs. The Endeavour, Botany Bay Family History Soc. March 2016 Preserving your research, and your Genealogical Will. Some good thoughts and ideas expressed in this interesting article The tragic life of Mary Jane Ruddy. A Scottish lass who first immigrated to New Zealand, married an English man and moved to Victoria to find gold. Tragedy struck and upon the death of her husband, she moved back to NZ and married George William Polson. The family returned to Australia and settled in Kiama. A good read! Kith & Kin. Cape Banks Family History Soc. March 2016 Henry Augustus and Harriet Castle. Early settlers whose graves were moved from the Devonshire Sandhills Cemetery to Botany in 1901 to make way for Central Railway Station.


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Timelines…..Richard Whittaker 1831-1905, Henry Lewis Ormrod/Osmond 1872-1936, and Edward Blanchfield 1792-1861 Anne Gardiner nee Clarke….memories of a sister to the bushranger Clarke brothers of Braidwood. A book review The Clarke Gang, also featured in the club magazine. Dumfries and Galloway Family History Soc. March 2016 The photograph that changed History. An old 1907 calendar, the website & ancestors more & plenty! A glimpse of Victorian Gatehouse. The estate records, the work done by tradesman etc & the names of those involved. Marjorie Bruce, born 1296…her story and the powerful Norman family of De Brus. Old Mortality. Balmaclellan must be one of the least known villages in Scotland. Old Mortality inspired the title of Sir Walter Scott’s novel. Ancestor, The Victorian Genealogical Society March 2016 Emily Grace Chappel: WW1 Nurse. An insight on the conditions aboard a hospital ship. Almost without a Trace… The Shinnick family in early Victoria The Life of Donald McAlpin 1889-1916 Harold McDonald. His work with the Melbourne Harbour Trust and preserving the history of the Williamstown Dockyards. Finding Paddy Mullane…story of chance meetings and relationships. Tamworth Family Historian March 2016 Death of Lyall Green, local Tamworth historian…..newspaper extract A Mexican Connection. The Holden brothers’ descendants from either side of the globe unite. Who was who on the Liverpool Plains – 1841 Three property owners and their families……William Sparke. John Stark. George Hobler “William and Maria”….a History of the Newman Family. Ances-Tree Journal of the Burwood & Dist. Family History March 2016 Research….Catholic Cemeteries & Crematoria. Some tips to help you search. Irish Roman Catholic Parish Registers….online records Government-assisted German Immigrants (vinedresser families) of NSW 1849-1856…. Information on the German immigrants (the ships and passengers names) to Eastern Australia. Ormsby Irwin, Irish Convict…..a story well worth the read!! Quite intriguing Moruya & District Historical Society. March 2016 Discovery of Gold. Alexander Waddell and Henry Hicken, gold prospectors on the Moruya-Deuna River. The Clarke Gang’s Raid on Nerrigundah. These bushrangers swooped on Nerrigundah, a thriving gold mining settlement inland from Bodalla…this is a terrific story and quite a local legend….do read! Women and Children of Nerrigundah….Alfred Simpson, William Gabriel, and Ellen Callaghan….and the women Julia Lawler/Manning/Callaghan, a young Chinese woman Fa Lan, and Mary Ann Jarvis/Groves/Spence….very interesting stories. The Cedar Log. The Richmond-Tweed FH Soc. March 2016 The Rider. A story of two brothers, bike riders in 102….”remarkably uncommon lunatics!” Margaret Smith. Margaret ran a men’s boarding house in the early 1900s in Liverpool, Sydney. Look what I have discovered! Quite a remarkable story uncovering aspects of family connections.. The Battle of Central Station. A little known story that began as a dispute over working conditions. The South Australian Genealogist Feb.2016 A reluctant Hero – Lance-Corporal John Carroll VC Was an Ancestor of mine at Waterloo? A tale of how a family endeavoured to trace their ancestor, James Norris, a 19th century British soldier.


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William and Charlotte Gray. …and the chance discovery of an old framed photo in an antique shop. Not Even a Memory….Forgetting extended families in the Australian colonies. Three stories about The Bussenschutt family, The Hollister Family, and The Ryder Family. Origins..Buckinghamshire FH Society March 2016 Reviews of interesting talks given to the society:- Buckinghamshire Workhouses. Frost Fairs in the City of London. Obituaries for Family Historians WW 1 Memorabilia The Object that has most influenced your research. The Issue also contains further stories of interest….Lillian Channer of Tylers Green – a shocking accident. And Delap Family of Lillingston Lovell.

Christmas 2015 Meeting & Roma Robbins Award

We all had a fun time, a good laugh and

the entertainment was superb. The food

was fantastic and the chatter just topped

off the afternoon.

Marg recited, with real

professionalism, a comical

Poem on Genealogy & Christmas.

John’s U3A group

played a variety

of songs and was enjoyed by all

Marilyn and Marg enjoying

laying out the cakes


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Our Committee posed

for a group picture

and then the Awards

presentation.

Roma Robbins Award

For our newer members Roma Robbins was a highly esteemed president of our group. After her death it was decided to start this award in order to honour her memory.

Pigeon House Tidings Newsletter is published twice annually. Last year issues 40 and 41 had some twelve stories printed (and we are now in colour for our Email versions). Our thanks go to

Julie for her excellent work as Editor for a very well presented Newsletter.

Derrilin Marshall was our judge for the 2015 year award. She is the local Heritage Librarian for

Shoalhaven City Council in Nowra. Derrilin expressed her pleasure for this opportunity and stated that it was not an easy choice.

Derrilin made her decision based on:

Readability – did it hold her attention

The degree of difficulty – what resources were used to search for records

The Illustrations

The way social history was included to expand the view of the family’s life.

Derrilin’s choice for the best 2015 story was John Sparks for “Bound for South Australia”.

This was in the December 2015 issue. Congratulations John

John Sparks receiving his award, presented by Meg Hammond


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BOOK REVIEWS Our Vice-President, Meg Hammond, gave an interesting

book review on “Voices of Tocal” by Brian Walsh. Tocal is an

Aboriginal name signifying “plenty”, referring to birds, animals, fish

and plants.

The town of Tocal is located in the lower Hunter Valley, NSW. The

book is about convict life on a rural estate. During the years 1822 to

1840 a total of 150 convict men and boys were assigned to work on a

rural estate in this town.

Brian Walsh spent many years in research for this book. A copy is in

our Library, Ref. 880/101/08.

A brief overview

James Webber was the 3rd European settler

in the Lower Hunter Valley when he

brought 4 convicts and six tons of supplies

in March 1822.

One of the first tasks was to build accommodation - over the next ten years

these included the men’s huts, Webber’s homestead, barns, a dairy, store,

granary, stables, sheep sheds, tobacco sheds and pressing houses.

Another major task was clearing the land of cedar trees, and dense rainforest

using muscle power and an axe – only later a plough. In six years they had

cleared 160 acres. As so often in this book Brian Walsh has unearthed an 1820 description of the work

involved.

Tocal’s convicts grew, harvested and processed several crops, including maize, wheat, barley and

tobacco. By 1828, using only a sickle, they were cultivating 120 of those 160 acres that they had

cleared.

James Webber was a pioneer in tobacco growing – he had 40,000 pounds in weight to sell in 1830. He

was also a pioneer in viticulture and wine making, an area that demanded hard work and skill from the

convicts.

Tocal also ran large numbers of merino sheep, along with beef and dairy cattle and pigs. By

1828 Tocal’s 1700 sheep were tended by nine convict shepherds, a job made difficult by the lack of

fencing. By 1830 they had built 13kms of fencing, all timber, no wire.

Many of the convicts were trained at Tocal by other convicts with a trade such as shoemaking,

blacksmith and brick making which would help them earn a living when freed. At its height there were

150 convicts at Tocal.

The convicts lived in crude timber huts, 4-8 men per hut. Wooden slab wall, bark or thatch roof – and

yet another contemporary account is in the book.

The convicts recreation included gambling using cards or dice, drinking, cock-fighting, prize fights,

cricket matches and horse races.

Brian Walsh was determined to pursue the more rewarding task of listening for the voices of the

convicts, trying to understand how they felt and what their lives were really like as they served their

sentences.

He states that by suspending judgment on them and imagining their life, we can finally begin to set

them free from stereotypes and the convict stain.


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Meg has also given another interesting book review on this following book:

The Secret River by Kate Grenville Book Ref No: 200/299/11

William Thornhill was born in 1777 to a very poor family near the River Thames in London and grew up always feeling cold and hungry and was an orphan by the time he was 14. He took on a 7 year apprenticeship as a Thames Waterman and started courting his neighbour Sal, whose family was one notch above William’s because Sal’s father was in a good position working on the river. William finished his apprenticeship just before he turned 22 and on the same day he and Sal were married. Soon after the first baby came along they were living in poverty, their bed a pile of rags on a bare floor up in the attic without any water or heat in their room. When William saw an opportunity to steal some very good quality wood

he was tempted and was caught, for which he was sentenced to be hung. Sal did everything possible with letters and petitions to reduce the penalty and succeeded when Lord Hawkesbury reduced it to 7 years transportation and in an unusual twist made Sal his overseer so that they would travel to Australia on the same boat. They sailed on the Alexander in 1806, a voyage of 9 months. While tied up at port in Cape Town Sal gave birth to their second child and William was allowed to see Sal and the baby for only a few minutes – the only time they were allowed to see each other in that 9 month voyage. Their first home in Australia was a very simple bark hut overlooking Sydney Cove, where William worked for a boss on a trading ship working between Sydney and the Hawkesbury River and Sal ran a liquor store from their bark hut. It took William 5 years to receive his pardon, after which he and his family were able to take possession of 100 acres on a flat on the river by dint of erecting a bark hut and planting a corn crop on the land, this was so early in the life of Australia you didn’t buy the land. Then followed a mixture of interactions with the aborigines, some almost friendly and others not so but things took a turn for the worst when the aborigines stripped the corn crop just as it was ripe, closely followed by them burning the whole of their neighbours property, slitting the dogs throats and spearing the neighbours to death. Our couple, William and Sal were a very happy and loving couple and Kate describes really well how William loved the river, bush and cliffs so much they felt like a part of his soul, while Sal longed more and more to go home to London. That neighbours death climaxed in a very violent confrontation between the rivers farming settlers and the aborigines, but I will let you finish reading the story! Although the book is fiction Kate based the characters of William on an early ancestor of hers and she became a winner of the Commonwealth Writers Prize. Her descriptions of human thoughts and feeling, how the aborigines lived their lives, aspects of the river and the bush are truly outstanding.


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THE FAMILY TREE GUIDEBOOK TO EUROPE Your essential guide to trace your genealogy in Europe ISBN: 9 781440 333477 The Guide, put together by Allison Dolan and the editors of Family Tree Magazine, is a comprehensive survey of most European Countries including Ireland, England & Wales, Scotland and the Scandinavian kingdoms of Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden, each with its own separate chapter. It further explores the Germanic, Benelux (Netherlands/ Belgium/Luxembourg), Poland and the Eastern European regions. Then, the chapters 10-13, Russia and the Baltic, Italy, Greece, Spain & Portugal are considered before a separate chapter is given over to your European Jewish Ancestors. Throughout the Introduction, the author suggests that the

reader exhausts their home-based sources first, considering "that immigrants often travelled together, and put down roots among relatives and friends, forming cluster communities. Always check to get the Immigrant's name right eg. William Smith would be Wilhelm Schmidt in German, for example. It is most helpful that you have some knowledge of history and to some extent the geography of the region your ancestor may have lived. You may need to hire a professional if you are unable to journey to that country yourself for research, but of course it is more exciting to go there and see for yourself.....(a list of helpful tips are suggested). Now, each countries' chapter gives a "brush up on the background"...a general map and a Time Line of significant events are provided before a list of Resources follow. This details the contact postal addresses, as well as email addresses for organisations and archives. A catalogue of relative books, periodicals and websites. Remember, a modem map might not show great grandpa's village, so it would be necessary to discover a source of historical atlases of the area. Tap into government records....the censuses, the military records, civil registrations, and also church records. Be conscious of the period of the governing body of the time as sometimes the history of the entire area is complex, due to successive waves of invasions, partitions, sporadic anarchy and internal turmoil. In the later part of the book an APPENDICES gives a list of Online Translators and their web-site, mentioning possible costs, languages, features and tips. Finally, there is a mention with suggestions on Passenger Arrival Records, Ancestry.com's immigration collection, and a helpful Genealogy Glossary of common family history-related terms in English, Dutch, French, German and Spanish. A MOST USEFUL RESOURCE!!!


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Tabourie Lake Museum and Picnic Day On a bright Sunny Thursday morning in February many of our members set off from Ulladulla and drove down to the Museum at Tabourie Lake. Pam opened the doors for our group to explore. We stepped back into the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It was amazing to see this collection of over 12,000 artefacts. It is the life's work of Jack Nicholson, adventurer, anthropologist and collector. The museum included a wide range of items such as rocks, minerals, shells, fossils, snakes, bottles, Aboriginal artefacts, tools, machinery and historical items.

We spent over an hour in the museum wondering and chatting about all we were seeing.

We had perfect weather for a picnic. So after leaving the museum we headed back to Burrill Lake.

There were lots of laughs and stories and of course plenty of food. It was another fun day enjoyed by all.


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Kiama Family, Local & Social History Expo – Saturday 16th April 2016

Our Group took the opportunity to have a table at the Kiama Day. The day proved well worth while with just under 1000 people attending. With our car pool organized we headed north. John, Meg and Marilyn were the first to arrive to set up. We had various items for sale and had a very successful day.

Our next group with Cheryl, Marg Mag and Marg Mac and Julie arrived as back up to man the table. This worked well so all could attend the talks of their choice.

A few of our members also enjoyed the day and it was excellent to see such a great turn out.

Thank you to all our assistants


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Coffee and Chat Social Events

We have had a few of these outings throughout this year. They are proving to be a fun way to spend a couple of hours over a coffee or tea catching up with our fellow family history researchers.

It is great to have our members enjoying these social moments

and wonderful to see Joanne back with us too. Our coffee

morning for April was at Annabels in Milton and was well enjoyed by all.

John was, I think for the 1st time, the last to arrive. A photo had

to be snapped to remember this moment.


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ORDER FORM AND TAX INVOICE

PIONEER REGISTER-PRE 1920

Please use this form if you wish to order the Pioneer Register

Cost per book…… $10 plus $14 postage & handling Postage packs are able to take up to 3 copies for the $14.00

The price includes GST where appropriate.

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………………………………………………………………………….

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Please make payment by Cheque or Money Order

Send completed form and payment to:

Pioneer Register Milton Ulladulla Family History Society Inc. PO Box 619 Ulladulla NSW 2539 Australia

For further details please contact: Secretary: Cheryl Stokes - Email: [email protected]

Office Use Receipt Number: ………………………… Book(s) Sent: ………………………………. Signature: ……………………………………

pigeon house tidings · such as gold records, convict records, justices of the peace, hospital...

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