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 D is for Dutton Park, Dalby, Dunwich and Dungog
Amidst the celebration of St Patrick’s Day, I’ve been reflecting how big a deal this was when I was a child, thanks in part to the religious divide. We would wear green ribbons to school (like the modern charity-fundraisers), little shamrock buttons, and have St Patrick’s Day concerts with all the old Irish songs. On … More Proud of my Irish roots
I featured this photo on my blog nearly three years ago but since the mystery continues to elude me, I thought I’d include it under this week’s Sepia Saturday topic of moustaches. There’s certainly a plethora of all styles of moustaches and whiskers in this photo. The history behind the photo is that it was found backing … More Sepia Saturday 205: Moustaches and mysteries
I am participating in the A to Z 2012 blog challenge throughout April. My theme is a genealogical travelogue or a travel genealogue (I’m not sure which). These “J” stories come with a genealogue warning. J is for Jondaryan (Queensland, Australia) Head west from Toowoomba en route to Dalby and you will come to Jondaryan, … More Jogging into Jondaryan, Jimbour and Jimboomba
This week’s questions are gifts in themselves. I have two sites that I routinely sing the praises of, one international and one for regional Australia, and one that I think deserves to be better known. Clare County Library is my all time favourite resource for free family history and Clare history, aided and abetted by … More 52 weeks of Abundant Genealogy: Week 3: Celebrate the generosity of free websites
I’m not a great one for lists and New Year’s resolutions so I didn’t formalise what I wanted to do at the start of 2011. This may have been a mistake because there have been times when I felt I’ve swirled along without a clear direction whereas I’m usually fairly good at being task-oriented when … More 2011: the Genie year in review: SLOBR
Today is the centenary of International Women’s Day and an appropriate day to honour our female ancestors. I have chosen to highlight the lives of my great-great-grandmother Ellen (Murphy) Gavin and great-grandmother Julia (Gavin) Kunkel as well as an unrelated friend. Their lives were so much harder, and stoic, than ours and I thank … More International Women’s Day – Ellen Gavin, Julia Kunkel and Johanna Gavan
This photo definitely includes my grandfather, Denis Kunkel (second left, second back row) and was found as a backing board behind another picture. I have a theory it is be an extended family photo because of some of the poses and family resemblances-some look very like my father. Or it could be some local society -but … More Wordless Wednesday (not quite) -Brickwall photo
I am delighted and honoured to receive the Ancestor Approved Award from Kim at Footsteps of the Past at http://footstepspast.blogspot.com/. It was a real treat to receive this in an emotional week as I watched from afar as my home town, and others with links to my family’s heritage, were flooded, lives lost, homes demolished … More Ancestor Approved Award
During the holidays I was reading this book by Jan Walker, published by UQ Press back in 1988. It’s been on my “to do” list for some time & I finally got down to reading it. The book was easy to read but also very informative and insightful, adding new information to previous readings I’d … More Book reading: Jondaryan Station: the relationship between pastoral capital and pastoral labour 1840-1890
Family history across the seas 