Seated at the Cemetery

On the last day of our recent holiday we had about 8 hours to explore Broome. We grabbed a little rental car and off we went.

Our Hot Wheels

Mr Geniaus encouraged me the visit some local cemeteries. I really didn't need any encouragement and we managed to visit three.

The first cemetery we visited was the Chinese cemetery which as well as having historic graves is still used today for current burials. We found a well-maintained, tidy cemetery with splashes of colour provided by those graves decorated with artificial flowers and other ornaments. 

I noticed something here that I haven't noticed in any other cemetery I have visited. There are seats placed at the foot of several of the graves, due to their placement I presume they are installed by the families of the deceased. I thought this was a wonderful idea for those I wish to visit, say a little prayer,  contemplate on past memories with their loved ones or have a chat with their ancestors. 

I wonder if they are placed on common property or if the families of the deceased resting in those graves pay a fee to place them there. Sadly in many of our crowded cemeteries it would not be possible to allow such fixtures to be added. 

While at the cemetery I took photos of several headstones which I am currently uploading to FindaGrave. I regret not taking more as when I checked on FG this morning there were only six memorials recorded and photographed. I have since more than doubled that number plus added some extra photos to the Cemetery page.

Do you often stray into cemeteries when on holiday?

18th May - A Birthday Remembered

When I looked at my calendar this morning I thought of my grandmother, Mary Tierney, who was born on this day 135 years ago. Mary was known to me as Nana Curry as she had taken my grandfather's name when they married in 1918.

Rather than reinventing the wheel I am reposting an excerpt from a post written in 2013. The full post can be read here http://geniaus.blogspot.com/2013/10/the-book-of-me-week-7-paternal.html

Mary Tierney 1887-1987

Mary Tierney was born in the town of Dungog to John D'Arcy Tierney, a carpenter, builder and sometime undertaker, and his Irish wife, Mary Kealy. Nana had two sisters, Jane and Eliza, and a brother, Patrick.

Nana was a gentle lady with snowy white hair that she wore in a bun and she seemed terribly old to me when she was about the age I am now. She was a devout Catholic who was proud of her Irish heritage, I remember kneeling beside her bed and reciting my prayers with her when I went to stay with her. We would always include this prayer:

There are four corners on my bed,
There are four angels at my head.
Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John,
Bless the bed I lay upon.

Nana loved feeding me egg flips that she believed to be very healthy, these drinks were made from milk, a raw egg and vanilla essence and after a shake and stir of the ingredients nutmeg was sprinkled on top. I remember them as quite sweet and delicious. Nana used often give me sweets to take home, they were always the same caramels. I sometimes wished for a bit of variety.

Nana, who lived to the ripe old age of 89 spent the last few years of her life in a nursing home. She had an enormous impact on my life.

Nana and I on my wedding day 1970

Dead Man's Penny

I knew about the Dead Man's Penny  which was issued after the First World War to the next-of-kin of all British Empire service personnel who were killed as a result of the war.

I had never sighted one until we visited a museum in a country town today.

This image shows two of these medallions in the Museum collection one of which had been encased in a wooden frame. I was surprised to see how large they are.

Lest We Forget

Facebook Memories

Most days I look at my Facebook memories and share a few as posts on my personal blog. I date these posts retrospectively on the day they happened. This is my way of leaving a record of my antics for those descendants in the future who may want to know about my life.

I thought that this memory which popped up today was more appropriate for this genealogy focused blog.

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21 April 2016

My geneassistant is hard at work in the geneacave.