Genearosity - Not Just for Now

This morning I have been throwing a few ideas around and putting them into a Powerpoint for today's Hangout with the SAG - a weekly online get together and chatfest for Members of the Society of Genealogists.

The Hangout reminder on social media

As the host I chose the topic of "Genearosity - Kindness and Consideration in the Genealogy Community." I am hoping that those present will relate stories of when they have been the recipients of kind acts but, in case those online are shy, I have up my sleeve a few slides telling of times when I have experienced genearosity. 

What struck me as I recalled those moments was that this blog was a useful point of reference. Here are links from my blog to some of the events I may mention today.

Cousins Baited  https://geniaus.blogspot.com/2018/10/cousins-baited.html

Giggle and Scrape  https://geniaus.blogspot.com/2016/12/giggle-and-scrape.html

Royal Treatment  https://geniaus.blogspot.com/2019/06/royal-treatment.html  

Surprises in Haddington  https://geniaus.blogspot.com/2023/08/visiting-ann.html

Visiting Ann https://geniaus.blogspot.com/2023/08/visiting-ann.html

I haven't been blogging much lately as I am trying to get both my biological and DNA trees in order. Today's exercise has awakened me to the value of my past posts as a Gifts for the Future. Perhaps I need to do a bit more blogging!

I will remind the attendees today that Genearosity is not just something for the Past and Present. By preserving resources, stories and trees we are performing Genearosity for the Future. 

My last slide for this afternoon

If a job's worth doing...

 ... you know the answer!

Moons ago I chatted with a fellow descendant about my 2xGreat-grandfather, Patrick Curry, and his lack of a baptismal record. I said that a task on my to do list was to go through all the digitised images of early St Mary's Cathedral Baptisms to see if I could find one for Patrick that had missed being indexed. The cousin said it had been done and there was no record for Patrick in the indexes.

As a green (and much younger) genealogist I believed this person. I thought it funny that there was no record for Patrick as his siblings had all been baptised but left it at that.

A while ago it hit me that I should really check the films for myself; they are only available in a few locations one of which is at the library of The Society of Australian Genealogists. These registers were filmed as part of the Joint Copying Project (JCP) between the Society of Australian Genealogists, National Library of Australia and the Mitchell Library.

I recently had a chance to visit Sydney so I booked into the library for a research session. The lovely librarian, Lorraine, got me set up at a reader with the correct film:

Church register of St Mary's Cathedral, Sydney and St John's, Campbelltown Roman Catholic. [microform] :)

and off I went. My winding arm and eyes got plenty of exercise as I wound through the pages checking each baptism record from 1832 (when the first child of the marriage was baptised) onwards. 

Winding and looking at SAG

After about 45 minutes I found the record at the top of a page.

I knew it was my Patrick from the date and mother's name.

I was so excited that I didn't realise, until I got home and took a good look at the record that Patrick's surname wasn't listed on the register. He was recorded as "Patrick of Patrick ? by his wife Ellen Moore". 

A visit to the NSW Birth Index and a few searches returned this record:

It was interesting to note that the baptism was not a family affair as it appears that Ellen was not accompanied to the baptism by Patrick Curry Senior. I am wondering if the sponsors John Leary and Elizabeth Lucas were known to Ellen or just some random people who happened to be nearby at the time.

Fellow genealogists will appreciate how excited I was to find this one simple record that adds more detail to an ancestor's story. 

If it's worth doing - do it yourself.

Rescheduled

I was disappointed a few weeks ago when we lost our phone line and internet connection. I discovered this just a day before I was to present a webinar for The Society of Australian Genealogists on Online Books for Genealogy. Telstra managed to fix our issue in just under three weeks but that was too late for the webinar.

Online Books for Genealogy is topical for any time but is even more appropriate now that many of us are on self isolation. I'm thrilled that the webinar has been rescheduled as a lot of  time and energy went into its preparation. I hope to see may fellow members of SAG online for the webinar on April 9th. You can book on the Society website.

An Academic Family?

2019 is a year of travel for Mr GeniAus and me. As we trot around the globe I try to keep up with Geneanews and most days manage to share some Geneagems on my Facebook Page.

I somehow missed the release of the video about The Society Of Australian Genealogists  that I am sharing below. The intended audience of the video was retirees or seniors so those (except for Heather Garnsey) who featured in the video were closer to 80 than 18.

I'm a retiree who volunteers on The Education Committee at SAG and each year present a few talks, webinars and workshops on their Education program.

The Society, however, is not just for seniors. I think that I am the oldest person on the Education Committee! Many of the people who attend my talks are below retirement age and the person at the helm of the Society, our President, Melissa Hulbert, is young enough to be my daughter.

The narrator in the video described the Society Members as an Academic Family,  that sounds a bit offputting and pretentious to me. We members are not all academics we are a diverse community of passionate people and lifelong learners who are keen to discover our roots and share our ancestors' stories.

Trove Tuesday - Society of Australian Genealogists

I have spent quite a deal of time on Trove over the past few days as I prepare a workshop on Trove for The Society of Australian Genealogists. During my Trove visit my attention wandered a few times and I found myself searching for articles on the Society. Reading these has given me a bit more knowledge of the organisation's history.

These items were found in Government Gazettes and Newspapers.

1932 'SOCIETY OF GENEALOGISTS.', The Sydney Morning Herald (NSW : 1842 - 1954), 30 August, p. 8. , viewed 11 Mar 2019, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article16915901

Add caption1932 'A NEW ONE.', Daily Examiner (Grafton, NSW : 1915 - 1954), 3 October, p. 2. , viewed 11 Mar 2019, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article192136094

1949 'Move To Save Bronte House', The Sydney Morning Herald (NSW : 1842 - 1954), 29 August, p. 2. , viewed 11 Mar 2019, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article18126364

1954 'OLD INSCRIPTIONS SAVED', The Sydney Morning Herald (NSW : 1842 - 1954), 6 December, p. 7. , viewed 11 Mar 2019, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article18453734

1983 'EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS (STAMP DUTIES EXEMPTION) ACT, 1961', Government Gazette of the State of New South Wales (Sydney, NSW : 1901 - 2001), 11 November, p. 5090. , viewed 11 Mar 2019, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article231426893

I'm no artist but I can paint

One of my favourite DNA tools is DNA Painter which allows me to create pretty diagrams as I map my chromosomes.

I came away from the second day of SAG's Lost in DNA weekend with more ideas on how to use this nifty application. But that was not all, my notebook from Sunday's sessions is full of DNA gunnas (things I plan to do).

The day was opened by Heather Garnsey, the Society's Executive Officer. In opening the day Heather shared "Sophie's Story" which Heather said demonstrated that "Family History research was a lot easier before DNA".  Heather also did a marvellous job as MC on this second day. At the other end of the day Melissa Hulbert, SAG Vice-President, thanked all involved in the event and closed proceedings.

Some of the topics on this second day were more advanced than those given on Saturday and I noted down a few things to follow up and a few tasks to undertake:

• I resolved to store the downloaded DNA downloads I have permission to control in a  organised manner and in a secure place.
• I will explore "Family Projects" on FTDNA
• I will subscribe to and explore Tier 1 utilities in Gedmatch this week
• I have a sub with DNA Gedcom but haven't looked at Jworks - something else to explore
• I learnt about Inferred Segments and painting them into DNAPainter 
• I had already tried the Leeds method that was mentioned (It's not for me) but many hadn't heard of it
• I now understand what Timber is - and it's not woody
• Years ago before autosomal testing wasn't widely available I did a MTDNA test with FTDNA and after autosomal became available and I tested put the MTDNA results aside. After hearing Kerry Farmer's talk I am revisiting my MTDNA matches 
• Veronica Williams showed how she used Genome Mate Pro with Evernote. One day I will bite the bullet and spend time with Genome Mate Pro. Perhaps SAG will offer a one day GMP Handson course for dummies like me.
• It was interesting to see how Danielle Lautrec used Excel. She keeps more detail in her spreadsheets than I do, I use Google Drive ot keep track of my matches and have similar fields to Danielle but I don't store all chromosome data in my spreadsheets.
• A highlight for me was meeting up with genimates and geneaheroes like DNA superstar Louise Coakley. Unfortunately I was so busy that I only took a few happy snaps.

Louise Coakley and GeniAus

Smiling faces

Genimates

My brain was severely overworked during the two days of Lost in DNA. I hope that SAG run more sessions on DNA topics in the future.

Not many photos

SAG President Martyn Killion opens proceedings

When I go to a geneaevent and I don't have much time for taking photos or sharing stuff on social media it means I am not bored and may actually be learning something. Today, at the Society of Australian Genealogists "Lost in DNA Weekend", was such an occasion.

Martyn Killion, SAG President and MC extraordinaire, opened the event and reminded us that "The family history world has expanded and exploded with DNA." The parade of presenters was excellent and kept us awake all day.

There were a few highlights to my day, Listed in no particular order.

• Meeting in person Louise Coakley, founder of the Using DNA for Genealogy - Australia & NZ Facebook Group.
• Discovering that Mr GeniAus and my daughter have DNA matches to a SAG VIP.
• Catching up with so many genimates, no names mentioned lest I miss someone.
• A feeling of pride as a SAG Education Committee Member on such an excellent event.
• Learning a few things eg How did I not know about the MedBetter Chrome Extension ? (Now installed).
• Realising that I am not the only person who lives and breathes spreadsheets.
• Understanding that I know a lot more about DNA than I thought I did.
• Getting some fellow members of the Virtual Genealogy Association to join the Australia - NSW Chapter on Facebook.
• Learning about the WATO tool that  I had previously ignored.
• Hearing about an Australian Geneablog not in my RSS feed (it is now).
• Listening to the Irish brogue and humour of Maurice Gleeson who presented in absentia via the wonders of technology.
• The venue was comfortable and easy for an old girl to access. The airconditioning was a boon on a warm Sydney day and the morning tea was yummy.
• Dinner at a pub under the Harbour Bridge with 20 something genies rounded off a spectacular day.

I wonder what they have in store for us tomorrow?

The lovely Louise Coakley up front, ready to open the event

Lost in DNA

Who will be joining me at this SAG event in Sydney, Lost in DNA in Sydney on 3 and 4 November?

The lineup of presenters for the event is pretty impressive. On the list are:  Diahan Southard, Louise Coakley, Maurice Gleeson, Danielle Lautrec, Heather Garnsey, Kerry Farmer, Martyn Killion, Mel Hulbert, Michelle Patient, Veronica Williams and members of the SAG DNA Research Group. 

I just went to the SAG web page to register and found that there are only 36 of the 135 places at this event left. If you, like me, need some help sorting out your DNA then it would be advisable to book now.

I know that I will be less lost after attending this event.

A Sense of Community

My past two days have been so busy and so rewarding.

I spent my days connecting with genimates at they took advantage of the #Congress_2018 pre-registration offered by The Society of  Australian Genealogists. The registration event took place right next door to to the home of the Society, Richmond Villa in the historic Glover Cottages.  Society President, Martyn Killion, had organised beautiful weather and Executive Officer, Heather Garnsey, organised some catering. While fellow volunteers from the Society dispensed conference badges and bags my role was a social one. I was on hand to offer a cuppa and cake and to chat with those who had tramped along Kent Street to the Cottages.

Several folk who had other things on their agendas popped in, grabbed their registration paraphernalia and took off but most lingered for the chat, cuppa and cake. Some even stayed for a few hours because the atmosphere in the courtyard was so convivial. The sense of community was evident as people who came along as strangers made new friends. I could see my aim of this Congress being a friendly affair being fulfilled. It made this old genie's heart sing.

I loved being on hand to reconnect with genimates some of whom I hadn't seen for a few months or years and to meet in person so many of my online mates from our Congress Facebook Group. A personal highlight was meeting for the first time a 3rd cousin I had connected with via DNA.

Meeting my third cousin for the first time

Of course I had my phone on hand to take some happy snaps to capture the atmosphere.

President Martyn holding court

Executive Officer, Heather, busy listening

Volunteer Coordinator, Tiphanee

Brenda and Charlie B.

101 Reasons to Attend #congress_2018 - SAG

The Society of Australian Genealogists or SAG is hosting our conference. If you stay an extra couple of days in Sydney around Congress time you should pay a visit to the Society's sites.

In this video the Society Archivist, Ralph Hawkins, talks about manuscripts and images at the Society.

101 Reasons to attend #congress_2018 - The Legal Genealogist

Of all the genealogy speakers I have heard here and overseas there is just a handful whom I hold in the very highest regard.

One of those who is relatively new on the speaking circuit (I first heard her keynote at Rootstech 2014) is my genimate Judy G Russell aka The Legal Genealogist. I have since met Judy in person several times and have found her to be a warrm, generous and knowledgeable soul who is a great storyteller.

I was privileged to interview Judy with my genimate Sharn White at Rootstech 2016. You can view the interview below.



In 2016 Judy made a trip downunder as a presenter with Unlock the Past, she made several new genimates and (I think) was besotted by our country, its natural beauty and wildlife. Judy generously shared this photo taken with a new Aussie pal in 2016.

Judy G Russell and Friend - Cudlee Creek 2016

I was privileged to hear Judy speak (and have dinner with she and some genimates) when she was in Sydney on that 2016 tour and she was inspirational. I can't wait to hear her again at Congress.

You need no other reason to attend Congress than to hear Judy G Russell present.

101 Reasons to Attend #congress_2018

When I was in at SAG the other day I was chatting with a couple of the bods there and they indicated  (probably because they know I am a loudmouth) that I could assist in promoting the 15th Australasian Congress on Genealogy and Heraldry, www.congress2018.org.au, at the International Convention Centre (ICC) in Darling Harbour, Sydney next year.

I jump at any opportunity to promote genealogy downunder and my beautiful city of Sydney so I will use my blog and other social media to share my enthusiasm for Congress. I have only attended the last two Congresses in Adelaide and Canberra (real work previously got in the way) and have found them to be energizing and enriching education events. Since Thursday I have been ruminating on how I can spread the word and decided on a series of blog posts which I will share on social media (it would be helpful if you could share them too and use the hashtag #Congress_2018). I decided on 101 Reasons to Attend #congress_2018  as the header for this topic. I don't know if I'll manage 101 but  I'll give it a shot.

Over the past few years we have witnessed the rise and rise of Facebook as a communication channel for Genealogy so I  have set up a (Unofficial) Facebook Group for Genimates at #Congress_2018. The main purpose of this page will be to connect and communicate with genies who may be interested in attending or hearing about Congress. It will be a place where we can share Congress related news and ask and answer those questions no-one else has yet asked.

If you can suggest a reason to attend Congress please send me a few lines of text (and maybe a pic or two) and I will turn it into a guest post in this series.

Ethics, etiquette and all that stuff

I've had my head down during the past week preparing  a talk I am giving at The Society of Australian Genealogists on Thursday next week in Sydney.

It looks like it's going to be an intimate gathering as only 8 people have registered so far for the event. There is usually quite a healthy rollup when I give a presentation so I am quite surprised.

I was hoping that more people would be interested in this topic. Perhaps Sydney genies are all polite, kindly, thoughtful, law abiding folk who do not need some crazy lady telling them how to Do the Right Thing. Perhaps they are a bunch of researchers who are so busy hunting down ancestors that they do not think of the consequences of their actions. Maybe their geneabudgets are exhausted and they can't afford another event.

If you want to discuss how to deal with secrets that you encounter around Adoption, Crime, DNA Discoveries, Illegitimacy or Sex or if you need to make sure you are being a well-mannered and responsible genie this event may just be of assistance to you.

In everything we do in life it is important to reflect on and evaluate our actions. This talk will give you an opportunity to reflect on your practices in the geneaworld.

SAG members and guests can book for this session via this link:  https://www.sag.org.au/learn/current-events/full-list-of-events/icalrepeat.detail/2017/05/18/269/-/do-the-right-thing-etiquette-and-ethics-for-the-family-historian.html.

  

Back on Board

Those of you who are my Facebook friends will know that I was back on board a cruise ship for a few weeks this month and so my geneablogging suffered.

Mr GeniAus enjoyed our sojourn at sea where we journeyed from Auckland up to Singapore with about a dozen stops along the way, some old, some new. As lifelong learners we appreciate the opportunities cruising gives us to visit new lands and learn about people and places via the Smithsonian lecture program provided on board.

Our dear little ship, Seven Seas Navigator, in Akaroa, New Zealand

I got back into the swing of genealogy yesterday when I presented my Geneagoogling: effective Google searching talk at The Society of Australian Genealogists to a lively and responsive group. There were some familiar faces in the audience as well as folk who were new to me. It was pleasing to meet a couple of young genies at the session.

One of these genies, Nyree, mentioned that she has a blog. Of course I took a look at it on the way home and was impressed by its professional appearance. Do take a look at One Girl's Family History : an outlet for an obsession and leave a comment for Nyree. We need to encourage new, young geneabloggers.

I was chuffed when one familiar face chatted with me. It was Susan whom I had met through Wyong Family History Group. Susan is also a user of my favourite program Family Historian but it was something that Susan said that made me go all coy.

As a sometime genealogy presenter I often wonder if I have had any effect on the people who are in my audiences. Do they come along, listen, think that was interesting but then go about their business without taking on board any of things I have mentioned. Susan indicated that I had inspired her to put her information on the internet and that she had crested three websites following a workshop day I had presented at Wyong a couple of years ago.

Susan has used Weebly to post her family history data and stories on the internet. Take a look at her three sites:  Crust Family from Queensland, Glennan Family from Cooma and Andrews and Jones Families. I was absolutely chuffed to discover that someone had heeded my advice and created this wonderful trio of resources. I was even more thrilled when I read this in the about me page of one of Susan's sites " After attending a workshop on "Family History in the Modern Era", and being inspired by the presenter, Jill Ball, I decided to put my research on the internet. . It's a great way to share my family history research with family members and hopefully, the many photographs I've collected over the past 40 years will not be lost."

While I was at sea I received an invitation to present a program to the Forster Family History Advisory Group at The Great Lakes Library. I look forward to meeting the genies up on the north coast in November.

GAGs - GeniAus' Gems - 20 January 2017

The early bird catches the worm! It's 5:00pm on Thursday afternoon and I am selecting my GAGs list a bit early because I have an important date tomorrow at The Society of Australian Genealogists and I won't be around to write a post.

I am hoping that by next week I will have some new geneabloggers to introduce to you as my gig tomorrow is presenting a Handson Blogging for Genealogy workshop at the Society. With 14 attendees the workshop is fully subscribed, teaching a small group who have demonstrated a commitment by signing up and paying to attend should be a pleasurable experience. I imagine it will be less of a challenge than in my working years when I tried to teach computing skills to high school students in a lab of 24 computers.

And here are a few of the posts I enjoyed up until 4:00pm on 19/1/2017.

1. For those of you still in holiday reading mode  some suggestions from Sutherland Library.
http://blog.sutherlandlibrary.com/2017/01/criminally-good-reads-january.html

2. And as we're on a bookish theme here's a review from Shauna.
http://www.shaunahicks.com.au/writing-up-the-family-history-with-carol-baxter/

3. I was/am a Beatles fan. I cna see this weeks list being overrun with reviews.
https://residentjudge.wordpress.com/2017/01/14/looking-through-you-rare-and-unseen-photographs-from-the-beatles-book-archive-by-leslie-brice/

4. Katrina tries her hand at creative writing.
https://pastlinks.blogspot.com.au/2017/01/kilbahahere-and-there.html

5. I'm not fond of poetry but a good old Bush Ballad draws e in. Thanks Moya.
http://www.outbackfamilyhistoryblog.com/2017/01/18/bulletin-hotel-henry-lawson/

6. Images of summer.
http://littlewanderingwren.blogspot.com.au/2017/01/summer-is-here.html

7. Lynda writes of a geneajourney.
https://mccollierheritage.wordpress.com/2017/01/17/mcknights-gregg-dunlopsdelap-from-raphoe-co-donegal/

8. I can so relate with this crime shared by Anne.
http://ayfamilyhistory.blogspot.com.au/2017/01/trove-tuesday-discreditable-conduct-in.html

9 Alona's been a busy girl.
http://www.lonetester.com/2017/01/update-facebook-for-australian-history-and-genealogy-2/

10. A fitting name for this townhouse. We need to apply similar creativity when naming our blogs.
http://ontheconvicttrail.blogspot.com.au/2017/01/bellkirk-hobart.html

11. A facelift for Maggie's ancestors.
http://blog.iwikiwi.com/2017/01/17/george-elizabeth-tunnecliff-all-spruced-up-tombstone-tuesday/

12. Genealogist Chris doesn't blog much abut genealogy but her travelogues are fantastic. this is just one post.
http://coolgarra-trips.blogspot.com.au/2016/12/snowy-river-drive-to-jindabyne-day-38.html

102 Audience Members.....

.... and I couldn't see one of them.

I started to write this post many moons ago and it has languised in my drafts folder. Rather than delete it I am posting it as a record for myself which you are welcome to read.

Thanks to The Society of Australian Genealogists (SAG) for giving me an opportunity to present as part of  a panel session in their first online "Lost in" conference.

While I have been in the audience for several webinars I have never taken on the role of the presenter. I'll use a favourite method, PMI, to evaluate my experience.

Plus
I was thrilled to be taking part in this first SAG online conference.
I was able to present from home.
The interface caused no problems.
My connection held.
I learnt a few tips.
I was able to reach a new audience in distant locations.
My performance must have been ok as I have received subsequent invitations to present for SAG.

Minus
I could not see the audience and felt very alone while presenting.
I missed the interaction one has with a live audience.
I had to talk too fast.
One of my co-presenters went way over her allocated time and ate into our discussion time.

Interesting
I managed to keep to time.
It was good to see the unique ways co-presenters used Excel and Powerpoint.
Although it was an online event there was practically no discussion on social media channels.

SAG at Hawkesbury

I had a pleasant time at the Society of Australian Genealogists event in the Hawkesbury last Saturday.

Michelle Nichols

When I arrived early at Windsor Library Danielle Lautrec, Education Officer from SAG, was in attendance and ready with her clipboard to welcome attendees. When the Library opened at 9am we all trooped in to be welcomed by Michelle Nichols, Hawkesbury Local Studies Librarian and font of local knowledge. Our group of a dozen plus (I didn't count) settled into one of the library's comfortable meeting rooms.

Danielle introduced herself and asked us to share our Hawkesbury connections. I think only one attendee didn't have Hawkesbury connections. After this round table Michelle entertained us with her  talk on early history of the Hawkesbury which gave us lots of information to add colour to names and dates in our family trees. Although I had heard this talk before I still learnt lots as Michelle tailors her talks to each audience she addresses.

Following the history Michelle discussed the resources in the local studies collection at Windsor. It is a well-stocked collection with many genealogy resources for people researching in New South Wales and beyond. After this intro we adjourned to the local history area to do some personal research. The local history section at Windsor is in a bright and comfortable corner of the library and is a pleasant environment in which to work.

The Local Studies Area at Hawkesbury Library, Windsor

At 12:30pm some of the group adjourned to the historic Macquarie Arms Hotel for sustenance and a chat. After we had refuelled Danielle took us on a visit to the adjacent Hawkesbury Regional Museum. Both the Hawkesbury Library and Museum are housed in spacious, modern buildings. The Council is to be commended on its support of local heritage and history.

This was a fab format for a SAG event. Thanks to Danielle for looking after the group and Michelle for the presentations and guidance.

I hope SAG organises more regional visits in the future. I would love to do a similar visit to Camden where my Curry ancestors were early inhabitants.

Calling Genealogy Presenters - Come visit Sydney in 2018

I've been reading on Facebook that many of my genimates will be heading to Sydney in March 2018 for the next Australasian Congress on Genealogy and Heraldry. We would love to hear presenters who haven't yet made the journey downunder. If you have been considering making the trek to the southern hemisphere March 2018 would be a perfect time.The following message from The Society of Australian Genealogists provides details.

"You may already be aware that the Society of Australian Genealogists is hosting the next Australasian Congress on Genealogy and Heraldry in 2018. The Congress will be held at the International Convention Centre, Darling Harbour in Sydney, NSW Australia, from Friday 9 March 2018 to Monday 12 March 2018. The theme is Bridging The Past and Future.

We are working hard to make this a great event for local historical and family history societies, including reducing the cost of exhibiting and running a stream of presentations targeting issues relevant to the management of societies. You may also wish to consider submitting a proposal to give a lecture or workshop. The Call for Speakers closes on 31 October 2016 and we’d love to hear from you.

Further information and a link to the submission form can be obtained at www.congress2018.org.au and enquiries may be directed toinfo@Congress2018.org.au "

Eyes on Ireland

It's been a long time since I've sat down and systematically revisited my Irish ancestors. As I have a trip to Ireland planned I thought it time to become reacquainted.

I found that much of my old research is unsourced or that I have sources listed in the notes field of my software ( a result of using an unsophisticated genealogy software program years ago). So as I go through the records I am doing them over.

So what have I done? I identified my earliest ancestors and wrote their names on a piece of paper then starting at the top of the list I started researching on the free digitised  Catholic Parish Registers at The National Library of Ireland. It wasn't long before I struck gold, I identified, using the FAN principle or Cluster Genealogy, the Regiment in which my 3xGreat-Grandfather, John D'Arcy served. I knew he was a Lieutenant in the army but for over 25 years had been unable to identify his regiment. I'm indebted to the priest who recorded this information on a baptismal record of an ancestor's sibling. It found it hard sticking to one resource as my discoveries threw up tangents I wanted to pursue.

This early success fired me up. I spent seven hours on that first day going through the registers. I found baptisms for a few more family members and a marriage in 1839 for Dennis Tierney and Eliza Darcy,  I had this recorded (unsourced) as 1834. It had always bothered me how Dennis and Eliza had avoided having children in the first five years of their marriage! I was surprised to learn that Eliza's name was recorded as Elizabeth on her baptismal, now I can tell my daughter that she is named for her 2x Great-Grandmother. I scribbled on my piece of paper details of the registers I had consulted. Discovering a new sibling, Michael, for Eliza/Elizabeth has given me a whole new line to chase down.

On waking with a clear head and a mighty resolve the next morning I realised that my scrap of paper just wasn't going to work. I opened up Google Drive and created yet another geneasheet. Down the left side are names and details of the ancestors and across the top columns are listed the resources I may consult during my hunt - this has morphed into a very wide spreadsheet. As I have trouble researching down a straight and narrow path this document allows me to Zigzag and follow whims and be organised at the same time.

I remembered that there was a more efficient way to search the Registers so I took out a one month subscription to Roots Ireland. As well as offering Registers searches this resource allows me to search other indexes.

Resources at Roots Ireland

Using this resource found a record I had missed when scrolling through the microfilmed Parish Registers late at night. It was 18GBP well spent.

State Library of New South Wales

As I was meeting genimate, Lilian, at The State Library yesterday I decided to use my time chasing up the Irish. I searched the library catalogue for my Irish surnames and also the towns in which the ancestors settled. I ordered around twenty promising resources which I perused in the hope of finding snippets of information on the ancestors. I found a few more family members (remember those FANS) in cemetery registers, one line in a printed genealogy but not much more. One of the resources I found will be of great assistance with my CurryAus study but that's a story for another day. I love visiting the State Library and have resolved to do so again before I travel.

Lilian and I settle in for a day of research

I need to repeat this exercise with the catalogues of The Society of Australian Genealogists. I have a busy few weeks ahead of me. Before I set off the catalogue of the National Library of Ireland will get the same treatment.

While I was jumping all over the place I found a few mentions of the Irish ancestors in Ancestry Member Trees  (much of which appears to be copied from my website) and one of these actually sourced a book, a printed genealogy. Trove tells me that there is a copy of this in the Newcastle Region Library so I'm planning a trip up there to see if it will verify the information in that Ancestry tree.

Discovering via a hint on another Ancestry Tree that my ancestor Bridget Ryan wasn't a swimmer after all was another high spot for me. I had a newspaper reference that said Bridget had travelled to New South Wales in 1847 with her brother, Michael Harrington Ryan. I have now verified that she actually travelled to Victoria on British Empire in 1849 with her sister, Anne.

Hopefully, with the support of my new geneasheet, I'll be able to give my Irish ancestors a good doing over.

Cemetery Collections of the SAG

What I now like about the webinars from the Society of Australian Genealogists is that, if one can't listen to the webinar live, one has an option to go back and listen to a recording at a later date.

When this Society first offered webinars one had to listen to them live and I missed a couple that I had paid for because something else came up at the scheduled time. The most recent webinar that I signed up for was Cemetery Collections of the SAG with Heather Garnsey, Executive Officer, speaking about the cemetery records and information that the society has available for members. I had intended listening to this live but when an opportunity to have dinner with some fellow genealogists and Judy G Russell in Sydney came up I ditched the webinar. Soon after the webinar I received an email with a link indicating that I would be able to watch or listen to the program at my leisure in the next few weeks.

I've had an informative and pleasant time this morning listening to Heather give her presentation which reminded me of the treasures that the Society of Australian Genealogists has for us in its collection. Although I have been a member for a number of years I rarely visit the Society in the city but having listened to Heather I realise that it's time for a visit.

I haven't thought much about what the collection might hold for me but I was surprised to learn that there were maps, indexes, photographs, memorial cards, memorial booklets, stonemasons records', funeral directors' records and other cemetery ephemera in the collection.

The value of this collection is that it is an historical collection containing records produced in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It includes contemporary records for cemeteries that no longer exist like the Old Sydney Burial Ground and Camperdown Cemetery.

On my CurryAus surname study task list now is a task to search for Curry in the catalogues at the society. A browse of the cemetery records in the Society's library is another job for me.

As I am now able to watch the Society's webinars at a time that suits me I will enrol in several more.  The provision of webinars has certainly added value to the subscription I pay to the Society each year. It was also pleasing to hear Heather say that even more online offerings will be coming from the Society for members in the future.

I have been known to grumble about the fees charged by the Society but realise that these, coupled with the work of an army of volunteers, provide me with access to a very valuable collection.