Today is ANZAC Day Down Under and we remember the sacrifice of lives in service of their country. We also remember that these deaths left behind tragedy and sorrow among their families and communities around our own country. Memorials play a part of possibly every town in Australia as few families would ever be able … More X is for crosses and memorials
Join me on my Cemetery Searching expedition for the 2023 A to Z Blog Challenge. I’ll be re-visiting some cemeteries and preparing for a wish list of others. Some family members will be mentioned but I also have an interest in German family graves as well as those of people born in Co Clare Ireland. … More O is for Ouyen and the Pentlands
Join me on my Cemetery Searching expedition for the 2023 A to Z Blog Challenge. I’ll be re-visiting some cemeteries and preparing for a wish list of others. Some family members will be mentioned but I also have an interest in German family graves as well as those of people born in Co Clare Ireland. … More L is for Lutwyche, Laen North and London
Join me on my Cemetery Searching expedition for the 2023 A to Z Blog Challenge. I’ll be re-visiting some cemeteries and preparing for a wish list of others. Some family members will be mentioned but I also have an interest in German family graves as well as those of people born in Co Clare Ireland. … More F is for Fleurbaix and Field of Mars
You may be wondering why I’ve misplaced my alphabet but there is method is my “mistake” as today Down Under we commemorate Anzac Day. It has become traditional over the years to write a commemorative blog post for both Anzac Day and Remembrance Day. You can find mine by using the search box. While you … More War – Anzac Day
I wrote this to commemorate Remembrance Day 2020 in Australia, a day when we reflect on the service and sacrifices of those who went to war. Somehow I forgot to post it at the time so I’ve decided to just go ahead and submit it now. Rather than write a new post I thought I’d … More Remembering the Prisoners of War
It has become a tradition for Australian and New Zealand bloggers to write a post each year to commemorate Anzac Day and honour all the men and women who served during our two countries’ wars. Over the years I’ve written about family members or other servicemen. This year I thought I’d continue my theme of … More Fill the Billy for the boys: Anzac Day 2021
Australia became an independent nation in 1901, albeit part of the British Empire. Although we were involved in the Boer War, it wasn’t until 1915 at Gallipoli that our forces en masse were tested in battle to such a scale. At the start of World War I, the Empire’s call to arms was answered swiftly … More The Pentland brothers from Western Victoria
Brisbane in the late 1930s was a sleepy town more reminiscent of a country town than the capital of the state of Queensland in the land Down Under. That would change in 1939 when Australia entered World War II and men and munitions were despatched forth for embarkation to the European front. Japan entered the … More Sepia Saturday: Wartime in Brisbane
One of the major influences in my life for which I’m very grateful has been the presence of many acquaintances and friends who’ve immigrated to Australia. As a child, my Catholic primary school saw an influx of Europeans in the years after World War II. This mix of Czechs, Yugoslavs, Poles, Maltese and others became … More Xenophobia and War
Family history across the seas 