Here and there in National Family History Month

Aware that it's National Family History Month and that I am actually in Australia I threw myself into #familyhistory activities last week. Surprisingly I am not giving any talks this month so I've had a bit of time to play. Mr GeniAus does wonder what I am doing in my geneacave all day!

Piling system

From time to time I tear myself away from the more palatable geneactivities to do a little bit of tidying, scanning and think about filing. I'm very good at digital filing but a failure at physical filing. I have reorganised my cupboards but my piling system is still evident.

I continued to microblog via my GeniAus Facebook page and The Hornsby Shire FHG page. I contributed to many conversations on Facebook which I fine myself using more and more since the demise of Google+.
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Although I haven't written on this blog I have been blogging here  https://curryaus.wordpress.com/2019/08/07/avoiding-the-keyboard/ and here  https://hornsbysfhg.wordpress.com/2019/08/08/geneagala-day/ and  here https://ballau.blogspot.com/2019/08/inspection.html.

Monday was spent experimenting with data gathering and importing into my CurryAus project see blog post above).

On Tuesday I took myself to the monthly meeting of the Newcastle Family History Society, it's only the second time I have been to one of their meetings since joining. I'll try to do better. Sitting among the small audience of members who all knew each other I once again realised how lonely it can be as the newbie in a Group. It was disappointing to see such a small attendance at a meeting of a group with such a large membership. I wasn't sure that I would enjoy the talk by Marie Hughes who talked about her family and their business, Hughes Pottery which operated in the Merewether area for over 100 years. As a newcomer to the Newcastle Region I found the talk fascinating the story of the family business was interwoven with the family's genealogy. 

Hughes Pottery at Newcastle Family History Society

Two webinars were on my program for Wednesday. Firstly I watched Fiona Brooker's webinar on New Zealand  at Legacy Family Tree Webinars. I left this early to tune into the Newspapers webinar from the National Library of Australia which you can now view on their website or Youtube. I'm sorry that I didn't stick with Fiona's webinar as there was more for me to learn there than at the newspapers session which was a basic presentation aimed at new users and beginners.

On Thursday I made a rash decision to register for The Society of Australian Genealogists' Wikitree Challenge that was scheduled for the next day, Friday. This event organised by Veronica Williams and Danielle Lautrec aimed to improve Australian content, share our research, and promote the Society's collections all in one day. 

I failed on promoting the Society's resources but managed to share second place in the Challenge. I went way beyond the finishing time of 3pm so that I could complete my personal goals. My 16 Great-grandparents and many of their descendants now have sourced entries on the Wikitree. You can visit me here on Wikitree. 

My mother always taught me that if had a commitment one shouldn't back out if something else came along so on Saturday I missed the dedication of a new plaque on my descendant Elizabeth Phipps' grave at Richmond. Thanks to cousin Lynn Griffiths who organised the event to coincide with the 150th anniversary of Elizabeth's death.

Meanwhile I spent the day at Hornsby Library chairing the annual Geneagala day we at Hornsby Shire Family History Group host in conjunction with the library with special guest Emily Hanna from NSW State Archives and Records. It was a splendid day. You can see some photos and a report here in a Facebook post.

Genies at Gemeagala Day at Hornsby

While August has been a quiet month for talks presented by me September is busy so I have fired up Powerpoint and worked on my webinar and in person presentations. I spend way too much time preparing for these gigs; I am a serial reviser.

I spent quite a deal of time on my DNA Matches. I have used DNA Painter to map both my and Mr GeniAus' chromosomes. In the hope of finding new cousins to map I have repeatedly visited  Family Tree DNA, Gedmatch and MyHeritage but haven't had much joy. My greatest disappointment at the moment is the lack of matches to paint. If you only have your DNA at Ancestry and want to make more connections PLEASE upload to each of these sites. I have been able to keep up with new strong matches at Ancestry as they seem to be trickling in.

Mr GeniAus is smiling because I won a free pass for him  to attend #RootstechLondon. To win the prize I had to submit an interesting word that I had come across in my family history research. My winning word was Progonoplexia (I have a bad case - how about you?)

What did your week look like?

A long drive to Chester Hill

I was thrilled to be invited to the launch of National Family History Month at Chester Hill in Sydney yesterday afternoon. The eloquent Martyn Killion who was MC opened the event.

Bryan Scales, Sydney Office, National Archives of Australia gave a short presentation on 20th Century Immigration to Australia: records held by the National Archives of Australia. Bryan went over some familiar series of documents but also told us of a new series that had been digitised. It is :

Series number	A1197
Title	Incoming passenger cards
Accumulation dates	01 Jan 1965 - 31 Dec 1972

Bryan asked if anyone in the audience had been overseas and returned to Australia between 1965 and 1972, my hand shot up. Bryan suggested I take a look at the records (which are organised in six month sets with cards within each set arranged alphabetically by surname) to see if I could find my record....and I did. Because they aren't indexed by name it takes a bit of effort to find the records but it's really quite easy.

When I returned from my honeymoon 1970

This snip only shows the top half of the card, the bottom section also contains my intended address. This is pure Geneagold. Imagine how many Australian Currys I will be able to find for my surname study there. 

The Keynote address by Dr Perry McIntyre was "Family History 30 years after Australian’s Bicentennial: who is looking now? In this thought provoking presentation Perry discussed the changes in the Australian population over the past thirty years and during her talk threw out challenges to family historians, archives and repositories and genealogy groups. She encouraged all to make their information and records accessible and appropriate to Australia's changing population.

Dr Perry McIntyre and Martyn Killion

Martyn Killion  also presented this year's Nick Vine Hall Awards for the best genealogy/family history society journals or newsletters in 2016 (not sure if I can name the winners yet). 

Our gracious hosts were the staff members of The National Archives of Australia who served us a delicious afternoon tea.

While chatting with those in attendance I met two genies from The Lacemakers of Calais Group who live on my road and who had also made the trek to Chester Hill. It's a small world! I also said g'day to people from The Society of Australian Genealogists and the Bankstown, Botany Bay, Ku-ring-gai and Nepean family history groups.

Thanks to my genimate and National Family History Month Coordinator, Shauna Hicks, for my invitation to the event. I'm pleased I made that long drive.

National Family History Month Winnner

I was a winner in National Family History Month. Thanks to Ancestry.com and the NFHM Coordinator, Shauna Hicks for organising such a comprehensive list of prizes.

#NFHM16

As an Australian genie I look forward to August each year because that's when we celebrate National Family History Month.

I try to make sure that I am not off travelling overseas so that I can take part in as many activities as I can. I am joining in the Blogging Challenge organised by geneablogger Alex Daw. I haven't scheduled a Google Hangout for NFHM but I may still do so.

At my Local Family History Group at Hornsby we are having two events a Geneagala Day and a visit from Heather Garnsey, Executive Officer at The Society of Australian Genealogists, on our regular meeting day. All are welcome at these events.

I'm hoping to travel out to Hawkesbury Family History Group to hear Heather speak on another topic and I intend attending some of the activities hosted by The Society of Australian Genealogists including a free webinar (for members and non-members), Ten Tips for Starting Family History, with Heather Garnsey.

I will be delivering just two talks during the month, I will be speaking on 21st Century Genealogy as part of Hornsby's Geneagala Day and I will be presenting a webinar, Facebook - a network for family historians, for The Society of Australian Genealogists.

It is disappointing to note that there are only 47 events listed for New South Wales, fewer than for  Queensland and Victoria. A notable omission is The State Library of New South Wales who do have several events listed on their website, why can't they join the party and add to the master list? If your society, group or library is celebrating NFHM it's not too late to add events to the calendar.

How will you be celebrating National Family History Month?

Some leads coming my way?

Back in National Family History Month I was the winner of not one but two prizes in the Prize Draw. I am most grateful to all of the sponsors for their support of this event.

One of my prizes was 5 Birth, Death or Marriage Images  from The Queensland Registry of Births, Deaths & Marriages. I was rather excited to win this as a few ancestors escaped to the Sunshine State and I don't know much about them. This prize is worth more than the $100 value to me.

I decided to order Death records as I thought I would get the most value from them. After a lot of deliberation and index searching I selected five people, three from my side of the family and three from Mr GeniAus' family. I have asked for records for a great-aunt and two first cousins once removed. On Mr Geniaus' side I've requested a first cousin once removed and a first cousin 3 times removed. I find the Queensland interface for searching more user friendly than the NSW one so my selection process was a pleasant activity.

Images ordered

I am hoping that I have spent my prize wisely and that the results lead me to find some new cousins.

My prize email from the The Queensland Registry of Births, Deaths & Marriages says that I will have my images within four weeks - I can't wait.

I love youse all

After one of his career triumphs Australian World Champion Boxer Jeff Fenech uttered the immortal words "I love youse all".

I am borrowing Jeff's phrase and sending it out to all those genimates who supported me in my crazy Sunday GeneaGala Day of Google Hangouts on Air. I had the most awesome time and thank all of you for being there with me.

There is not way I would have made the Finish Line without the support of my genimates DearMYRTLE and Cousin Russ who are Hangout on Air experts. Thank you for staying with me and providing moral and technical support during the wee hours (in your timezone). Your generosity knows no bounds. How can I ever thank you?

I don't know how many took part in the Hangouts but I was most grateful that I wasn't left alone on air at any time. Thanks to those who added to the conversations by posting comments in the chat areas of the events. What I found confirming was that I could see that right through the twelve hours we had people watching us on Youtube. Each and every one of you made a contribution to the day,

We all did our bit to support National Family History Month downunder.

If you wish to see the Hangouts you can view them via the GeniAus Community on Google+ (you need to join) or on my Youtube Channel.

GAGs - GeniAus' Gems - 28 August 2015

I'm fearful of looking in my GAGs folder on Evernote because I know that I have saved so many posts to consider for this week's GeniAus' Gems post. While Mr GeniAus is watching the football I'll review, select and prepare my post for publishing tomorrow.

My selections are:

1. I learnt about a Welsh resource from Karen Ball in the US.
http://ballbureau.blogspot.com.au/2015/08/welsh-newspapers-online-my-new-happy.html

2. Sue suggests how we should ask questions
http://worldwidegenealogy.blogspot.com.au/2015/08/with-little-help-from-friends-and.html

3.  An Aussie post from The National Archives in the UK
http://blog.nationalarchives.gov.uk/blog/first-world-wars-forgotten-women-anzac-girl/

4. Carmel writes about National Family History Month (read right to the end of her post)
http://librarycurrants.blogspot.com.au/2015/08/the-road-rises-up.html

5. Because I learnt about Sister Kenny when I was at school I was pleased to see this post
http://northqueenslandhistory.blogspot.com.au/2015/08/sister-kenny-honoured-in-townsville.html

6. Pauleen wrote a guest post that I only just found
http://one-place-studies.org/a-one-place-study-serendipity-or-strategy/

7. I can't imagine how this mother felt
http://blogs.slq.qld.gov.au/ww1/2015/08/27/five-loyal-sons/

8. A touching verse from Chris
http://thebackfenceofgenealogy-crissouli.blogspot.com.au/2015/08/just-one-more-time.html

9. Merron sparks a youngster's interest in family history
http://westerndistrictfamilies.com/2015/08/10/james-and-the-bushranger/

10. A youngster in Queensland is hooked
http://gsqld.blogspot.com.au/2015/08/treasures-in-trove-august-2015.html

11. Kudos to these volunteers
http://statelibrarynsw-familyhistory.tumblr.com/post/127510695927/biographical-database-of-australia-bda

12. A group in Western Australia is quietly working on a new project
http://www.outbackfamilyhistoryblog.com/2015/08/26/the-men-of-the-lake-view-and-star-project/

And because I can make it a baker's dozen here's a report on the Genealogy Clinic held at my FHG last week for National Family History Month.
https://hornsbysfhg.wordpress.com/2015/08/24/genealogy-clinic-2/

Genimates weigh in to support GeneaGala

On Monday morning I was feeling very, very nervous about the GeneaGala series of Hangouts I am hosting on Sunday for National Family History Month. Now I am just very nervous!

Thank you to my Genimates who have rallied behind me and have been spreading the word about the Hangouts. I was overjoyed when Hangout guru DearMYRTLE  from Salt Lake City publicised the events on her blog and committed to chatting with me online. I'm not going to name my Aussie mates who have shared their enthusiasm for the event online lest I leave someone out, just let it be said that I appreciate your support.

A a spreadsheet junkie I have prepared a runsheet/timetable for the event. While many folk have indicated that they will or may join the Hangouts I am hoping that they will commit to being online during a particular timeslot to talk about themselves, get on thier soapbox about a geneatopic or share details of a favourite resource.

Into my spreadsheet I have been entering names and topics for discussion throughout the day. So far Pauleen Cass, Alex Daw, Les Tobin, Brenda Wheeler, Jenny Joyce, Heather Clarey, Mary Roddy, Jennie Fairs and Hilary Gadsby have put their hands up to talk (at a particular timeslot) on topics ranging from WW1 to Beginning US Research to Blogging Family History to UK Gazettes.

Please don't be shy. If there is a topic you would like to discuss then please contact me by email jillballau@gmail.com and we will negotiate a time to focus on your topic.  If all else fails I will just pluck some topics out of the air and hope there is someone online to chat with me. I would prefer to be organised!

The hangouts will be available for all to watch live or later via my Youtube channel or live on Google+ but places on the live panel will not be available to the general public.  I will only issue invitations to join the online live discussion to those who have responded via the links below that they will or may join me online. This will enable me to restrict the hangouts to those in the geneacommunity.

I will follow chat comments made during the Hangouts from within the GeniAus Community on Google+ .If you wish to have your comments monitored you will need to be a member of the community so please apply to join up now.

GeneaGala Hangout on Air - Session 1 - Google+

Sydney, Australia     30th August 09:00 - 12 :00

London, UK             30th August 12:01 - 03:00

New York                 29th August 19:00 - 22:00

Los Angeles             29th August 16:00 - 19:00

GeneaGala Hangout on Air - Session 2 - Google+

Sydney, Australia     30th August 12:00 - 15:00

London, UK              30th August 03:00 - 06:00

New York                 29th August 22:00 - 01:00

Los Angeles             29th August 19:00 - 22:00

GeneaGala Hangout on Air - Session 3 - Google+

Sydney, Australia     30th August 15:00 - 18:00

London, UK              30th August 03:00 - 06:0

New York                 30th August 01:00 - 04:00

Los Angeles             29th August 22:00 - 01:00

GeneaGala Hangout on Air - Final Session - Google+

Sydney, Australia     30th August 18:00 - 21:00

London, UK             30th August 09:00 - 12:00 

New York                30th August 04:00 - 07:00

Los Angeles            30th August 01:00 - 04:0

Chasing my Tail

Since arriving home from our eight week holiday last week I have been flat chat getting our house back in order, catching up with all our descendants and my one ancestor and organising a few events for National Family History Month.

I still have a long list of things to do so, if I haven't responded to your emails please that is on my 'to do" list. I won't take offence if you send me a gentle reminder. I read many of your blog posts while on the hop but apologise for the lack of comments. Thanks for keeping me informed on all the geneanews from Australia.

After the weekend I will be chasing up all the folk who have committed to joining me in the Geneagala Hangouts for National Family History Month.

In the meantime I am basking in the glow of a successful meeting of our FHG today with guest speaker Michelle Nichols. You can read my report here: https://hornsbysfhg.wordpress.com/2015/08/19/michelle-nichols-at-hornsby-shire-fhg/

With Michelle Nichols (Oops - My mother told me it was rude to point)

The next task on my agenda is finalising arrangements for our National Family History Month "Genealogy Clinic" and talk on "Beginning Family History" on Saturday.  You can read about that here: https://hornsbysfhg.wordpress.com/2015/08/16/genealogy-clinic/. Feel free to pop in during the day.

GeneaGala - Dates and Times

My genimate DearMYRTLE asked me for the local time in another city eg New York of the sessions for the hangouts I am hosting on 30th August (Sydney Time) for National Family History Month.

I've had a look at http://www.timeanddate.com/ and have drawn up this list of times for a few world cities (I accept no responsibilities for miscalculations). Hopefully this should enable intending viewers and panelists to plan their participation. (Please sign up using the Hangout links below)

The hangouts will not start right on the hour as advertised on Google+ except for Session 1- I will aim to start the 3 later ones by five minutes past the hour (technology willing).

GeneaGala Hangout on Air - Session 1 - Google+

Sydney, Australia     30th August 09:00 - 12 :00

London, UK             30th August 12:01 - 03:00

New York                 29th August 19:00 - 22:00

Los Angeles             29th August 16:00 - 19:00

GeneaGala Hangout on Air - Session 2 - Google+

Sydney, Australia     30th August 12:00 - 15:00

London, UK              30th August 03:00 - 06:00

New York                 29th August 22:00 - 01:00

Los Angeles             29th August 19:00 - 22:00

GeneaGala Hangout on Air - Session 3 - Google+

Sydney, Australia     30th August 15:00 - 18:00

London, UK              30th August 03:00 - 06:0

New York                 30th August 01:00 - 04:00

Los Angeles             29th August 22:00 - 01:00

GeneaGala Hangout on Air - Final Session - Google+

Sydney, Australia     30th August 18:00 - 21:00

London, UK             30th August 09:00 - 12:00 

New York                30th August 04:00 - 07:00

Los Angeles            30th August 01:00 - 04:00

Brave-Crazy-Foolish-Fun-Mad...

... are among the words you have used when commenting on my latest crazy idea, The NFHM GeneaGala Hangout on Air.

What has made me feel so much better about this endeavour are the other words you used: Assist, Count me in, Help, Mark me down, Plug me in, Support. Thanks to my genimates from Australia, England, New Zealand, Spain, The United States and Wales who have pledged support; this promises to be a mammoth event.

Anne asked if I was having Themes for the Hangouts. As we will have people from many timezones joining it would be difficult to schedule themes over a 12 hour timetable. At the moment I have divided each of the 4x3 hour sessions into one hour blocks. In the first hour we will Socialise;  I will ask panelists to talk about themselves and their interests and efforts in genealogy. In the second hour  I hope that guests will hop onto their soapboxes to Spruik ie to promote something or discuss a burning issue. In the third hour we'll do what genies do best we'll Share tips and resources. So our themes for the day will be Socialise, Spruik and Share. Of course I reserve the right to ignore this and just let the conversation flow.

It's not too long before I go tripping off overseas again so I want to tie some of you down to definite times. I will go through the Yes responses to each of the four scheduled Hangouts and ask these respondents to commit to a specific time to be online and to think of a topic (or I may suggest some) to discuss. I will leave the Maybes alone for the time being but hope that, if your situation changes you will change your response to a Yes.  I will need a mix of Presenters (ie spruikers and sharers) and Panelists (people willing to comment, ask questions during the hangout and chat while I take necessary breaks).

The links to sign up for the Hangouts are:
GeneaGala Hangout on Air - Session 1

GeneaGala Hangout on Air - Session 2

GeneaGala Hangout on Air - Session 3

GeneaGala Hangout on Air - Session 4

Fools rush in....

So I've scheduled an all day GeneaGala Hangout on Air during National Family History Month on August 30 here in Australia. It sounded like a good idea but now it's listed on the NFHM website I'm wondering how I will pull it off.

You are all invited to take centre stage on the panel and share a favourite resource or software application, promote your society, share your geneatriumphs or ask a question of those on line. Those who are super shy might consider joining the panel as observers and others may decide to watch from within the GeniAus Community or via Youtube.

At the moment I am planning 4 x 3 hour Hangouts running one after the other from 9:00 am to 9:00pm Sydney time (that's 11pm UTC 29 August to 11am UTC 30 August). That should enable my friends in the US and UK to join in at some stage. I won't be trying to match DearMYRTLE's effort with the 24 hour geneasleepover last year.

I will set up a shared spreadsheet in Google Docs where I'll put up a program for the day. I will ask my genimates to take a look and nominate a time when they will take the stage. I will be contacting some of you by email, the GeniAus Community on Google+ or some other means in an effort to twist your arms! 

While I am sure that I could talk non-stop for 12 hours, this event will be a flop if it is a solo performance by GeniAus. 

Please save the date and plan to join in.

Best Hangout Ever

I realised a dream tonight. I had more people for the GeniAus Hangout on Air to mark the end of National Family History Month then the ten spaces on the panel.

Having so many panelists contributing to the conversation during the broadcast makes the hangout such a wonderful experience for the Hangout host. Thank you to the twelve peole who joined me to talk about their experiences in National Family Month especially Shauna Hicks, voluntary national co-ordinator for the event.  I had an incredible 60 minutes thanks to the collaboration of these generous genies.

If you missed the Hangout you can watch it right here or catch it later here.

#NFHM2014 - Party time at your house today

It's party time at your house at 5:00pm this afternoon (Sydney time). Yes, if you care to join in, you can celebrate what has been a fantastic National Family History Month.

I'm hoping for a full panel in the GeniAus Hangout on Air this afternoon. If you can tell us about a #NFHM2014 event you've attended, hosted or presented, your success with Shauna's 31 activities for researchers or societies, blog posts you may have written or new blogs you have started or brickwalls that have come tumbling down please join the live panel and share your stories.

Around 4:45pm I will send out links to join the panel to those who have responded "Yes" to my prior invitation to the Hangout. Those people who have messaged me and indicated they will be on the panel will get an even earlier link sent to them from 4:30pm. Watch the notifications bell in the top right hand corner of your Chrome browser or your email for these. We need to check your settings, video and sound before we go live.

If want to watch and comment on the dicussion you will need to be a member of the GeniAus Community on Google+, I will be around to approve more memberships between now and Hangout time.  I will be turning comments off on Youtube (if I cn work out how) so that we keep the conversation all in the one place within our community.

If you prefer to watch quietly from the sidelines you can watch the video on Youtube here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UxYLcvkZja4. 

Questions??? I'll be back online after I have a spot of lunch.

See you at the party, please feel free to dress for the occasion and have your favourite refreshment handy.

My Irish Eyes were Smiling

Guess who I heard speak on Wednesday?

HINT - she was the star turn at the Hawkesbury Family History Group meeting for National Family History Month.

1. She has a wicked, dry sense of humour.
2. She knows her topic inside out.
3. She is a non-boring academic type.
4. She is obsessed with her topic.
5. Perhaps she should have been named Colleen.
6. She is the Chair of the Great Irish Famine Commemoration Committee (GIFCC) which is actively seeking information about Earl Grey’s Irish Workhouse Immigrant women. 

I have heard Dr Perry McIntyre speak on a number of occasions and was privileged to hear her again on Wednesday morning. Perry's topic was "Single female emigration in the 1830s & 1840s". As examples to illustrate her presentation Perry cited Irish examples. Now that was right up my alley as I have a couple of troublesome Irish girls in my tree including my Great-great-grandmother Bridget (Did she swim?) Ryan.

Perry's opening slide

Perry explained the options, criteria and processes for single Irish girls who wanted to come to the colonies and illustrated her talk with images of contemporary newspaper ads, paintings and photos. She then explained what happened to the girls from when they came off the boats until they got hitched. The stories and photos she shared of several Earl Grey girls were interesting.  I wish I could find a picture of my girl, Mary Cregan/Cligan/Creigan/Gregson. 

As Chair of the Great Irish Famine Commemoration Committee (GIFCC) Perry is actively seeking information about Earl Grey’s Irish Workhouse Immigrant women; as requested I will be emailing Perry with the scant information I have on Mary Cregan/Cligan/Creigan/Gregson, another of my Great-Great-Grandmothers.

Perry suggested the Atlas of the Great Irish Famine as a useful resource for background information on the famine. She neglected to say that one needs to be a weightlifter to lift this weighty tome!

My revelation for the day came when I asked Perry about how I could access a resource in PRONI that refers to my girl Mary. Apparently our friends at Familysearch have filmed the records and I could order it in to a local centre but I will wait until I go to Salt Lake City for Rootstech in Febraury. It will be something to look forward to.

Should you wish to hear Perry speak on a similar topic she will be talking at The Quarantine Station at North Head later this month. Details here.

Thanks to Jonathan for the happy snap. Perry (left) and me

My super morning was topped off when I had a cup of coffee and nice chat with Jonathan Auld and Michelle Nichols in a nearby cafe. Thanks to Michelle for organising another great talk at Hawkesbury and to Michelle and Jonathan who, knowing about my fetish for geneabling, brought me back a badge from the London "Who do you think you are live" event they attended.

Hanging Out in National Family History Month

The first #NFHM2014 event I attended was an online one hosted by myself. It was wonderful to have four Australian and two British family historians join me for a Google Hangout on Air.

As I am presently semi-housebound I realised what a boon online events are for those who are isolated by distance, disability or for some other reason. My stay at home is only temporary as I should be able to drive about next week (I hope) but many others around Australia don't have that luxury.

Here is what newbie panelist Travelgenee had to say about the hangout: http://travelgenee.com/family-history-month-challenge-16/

I won't prattle on about the event instead I will just post the video for you to view.

Sharing the Love #NFHM2014

There is an amazing menu of events for National Family History Month over on their website. These events are taking place all over Australia and in cyberspace as well.

#NFHM2014

I imagine that several thousands of Australian enthusiasts will attend one or more of these events and some will even report on them on social media or other websites. I would love to hear what they are attending, delivering or learning but there are several places on the web where reports are being posted. I follow Twitter, Facebook, Google+ and over 200 Australian genealogy and history blogs but know that I am missing out on lots of news.

#NFHM2014

Voluntary co-ordinator of the event Shauna Hicks recently tweeted the hashtag for National Family History Month. If we all include the hashtag #NFHM2014 when reporting on events then search engines may index the posts.

#NFHM2014

I am not a huge fan of Twitter but I think, it certain situations it is an excellent vehicle for aggregating news. If those of us with Twitter accounts write a short tweet with any #NHFM2014 news we find  then others can access Twitter, do a search by the hashtag and get a results list containing relevant posts.

#NFHM2014

At the moment, if I do such a search on Twitter, presently many of tweets containing the hashtag  #NFHM2014 come from one Twitter user - me. How about turning that around? 

#NFHM2014

If you or your society has a blog or website you could attach a  #NHFM2014 label or tag to your post or article.

Let's share the love for National Family History Month by using the hashtag.

Join our next GeniAus Hangout on Air - What a Month that was - #NFHM2014 

Details https://plus.google.com/u/0/events/c250rpao6g1a99j1taoruss8teg

_________________________________________________________________________________

Postscript: The power of hashtags

It is only about two minutes since I published this post. look what happened when I did a search for the hashtag.

Hanging my head in shame

I am proud to say that nearly 50 years ago I started my career working in public libraries in New South Wales and since then I have had an ongoing love affair with those institutions and the great work they do.

On the eve of National Family History Month (NFHM) I am feeling rather sad. Having just checked the calendar for NSW events in National Family History Month I am disappointed that most public library services in my state (and some big metropolitan ones at that) are not recognising NFHM by hosting events during the month.

Knowing that local libraries are cash strapped I offered to do talks for two library services in my area one of which I have spoken at several times and another that I have not. I sent a formal offer to the second library on 21st February and received a reply three months later on May 15 that they would like to take up my offer. I replied on the same day with several dates and in July 2 got this reply:

"Unfortunately we were unsuccessful in getting this planned at our branch and through for approval for our August What’s on promotional material. As such  we won’t be going ahead with this for August.

I am open to future suggestions for sessions and would still love to have you speak at our libraries . Please feel free to contact me with further ideas"

My next communication from this library was to ask me if I would be available to speak in October. We have set a date, they have asked for a bio for promotion so it looks as though that might go ahead. I sent a less formal offer to the other library early in July and have yet to receive a response!!

Surely there is some time that the seminar roms are free in these libraries and that a staff member can be relieved for and hour or two to meet and greet and oversee the proceedings. As for promotion a poster in the library, use of the Councils' social media tools (they have them) and a listing on the NFHM calendar would get the message out.

There are five large library services within a half  hour's drive of my home: Hawkesbury, Hornsby, Ku-ring-gai, The Hills and Willoughby. On checking the NFHM calendar I note that only one of these, Hawkesbury, is hosting any events for National Family History Month. You can see their What's On Brochure here. I am looking forward to hearing at windsor Library "SINGLE FEMALE EMIGRATION 1830s - 1840s" on Wednesday 13 August 10-11.45am – with Dr Perry McIntyre.

What of other public libraries?  Two Eastern suburbs libraries that I worked at, Randwick and Waverley, do not have any events. I am most disappointed that public libraries are not supporting our special month.

As far as I can see Bega Valley, Campsie, Lithgow,Merrylands, Monaro, Penrith and Queanbeyan are the only public library services hosting events. Hats off to these groups for supporting events. I am wondering how much support there is for NFHM from public libraries in other states. Perhaps those libraries that have historical societies or family history groups in their regions are relying on them. I feel that public libraries should be running events to showcase their collections and services that complement those of local societies

Our State Library of NSW is flying the flag with a fantastic program of events that should amuse those within cooee of Sydney. Together with the beaut program of events from societies and Familysearch centres there are many events to entertain and educate family historians. I know that I will be very busy furthering my learning this month.

Shauna Hicks does an amazing job promoting and organizing National Family History Month. Let's get behind her and ask our local public libraries what they have planned for NFHM. 

Tweet your Thanks and Praise

Before I removed the feed of National Family History Month tweets with the #NFHM13 hashtag from this blog I copied and saved them into a document. It will be interesting to compare this 2013 list with what may be posted in 2014.

Twitter is the tool that is commonly used to message from events, Twitter is a tool used by those we want to attract to join our family history groups and societies, ie younger people. If we want to broadcast and share our enthusiasm for #NFHM or other events with youngsters we must use the media they use.

Scanning the Tweets posted during National Family History Month I noted that only a couple of institutions and commercial organisations or their members tweeted about the events they hosted or attended. Twitter provides an easy mechanism for thanking and praising those who organise events on our behalf.

I estimate that a few thousand people attended #NFHM13 events and that many of them enjoyed and learnt something from those events. Did those who attended send a thank you note or a message of praise to the organisers of the events? Did they blog about the events?  Did they put a thankyou message on the National Family History Month Facebook Page? I wonder how many thankyous Shauna Hicks who devoted so much time and energy to the event received.

My mother always impressed upon me the importance of saying thankyou. I find that Twitter enables me to tell not just the organiser of or presenter at an event about the great work they have done but it allows me to broadcast my praise.

Twitter is too busy a place for me to spend time every day but it has its uses. When I attend a great event it is a tremendous tool for sharing my enthusiasm, thanks and praise with the world. And, as I can't be everywhere, it is also my window to other events.

My Big Day Out

There were three genealogy related events in my day yesterday and I traversed quite a bit of the northern part of Sydney to attend them.

https://maps.google.com/

My day started with a 9:15 departure from my home in Galston (E on map) to Hawkesbury Library (B on map) for 10:00am, then I drove for about 50 mins to my next destination, Ku-ring-gai Historical Society (C on map) after spending a few hours there I set out for Hornsby Library (D on map) where I arrived at 6:00pm. I finally reached home around 8:00pm. Google maps estimate that I drove around 98 km. and it was worth every centimeter.

So how did I amuse myself?

Siobhan and her book

At Hawkesbury Library  I attended the monthly meeting of the Hawkesbury Family History Group. The guest speaker was Dr Siobhan Lavelle whose talk was about the 1813 crossing of the Blue Mountains. The content of the talk was different from what I expected but was fascinating; I had expected to hear a straight history of the crossing by Blaxland, Wentworth, and Lawson but Siobhan put a different slant on her talk. She discussed the various celebrations that have been held to mark anniversaries of the crossing and demonstrated, with references to books, newspaper articles, pictures and other resources, the influences that society and members of the explorers' families at various periods had on shaping those celebrations. I was most impressed by Siobhan's presentation; she was a lucid and entertaining speaker with a dry and irreverent sense of humour.

I purchased and look forward to reading a copy of Siobhan's book, 1813 a tale that grew in the telling, that is available from the Royal Australian Historical Society and bookshops in the Blue Mountains.

After chatting with a few fellow group members and Michelle Nichols, the local studies librarian, I popped into my Bambino and headed for Ku-ring-gai Historical Society where I spent a pleasant few hours scanning historical photographs and adding them to the Society database. I also managed to have a chinwag with members of the Preservation Group who were beavering away at various tasks.

Because at talks I habitually sit behind tall gentlemen who block my view of slides on the screens I like to arrive early to snag  a seat near the front of lecture rooms. I arrived 30 minutes early for the talk at Hornsby Library and was able to catch up with Peter Booth, Kim and his wife from Ku-ring-gai Historical Society and Neil Chippendale the local studies librarian. Guest speaker at the Hornsby talk was one of my favourite speakers, Dr Carol Liston, whose topic was "The Links between Local and Family History". Carol was in fine form and gave a great talk.

What I found interesting in Carol's talk was that she covered some of the same themes that Joshua Taylor had addressed in his talk last Saturday particularly the importance of Place in family history research.

Thanks to  Michelle and Neil, two of my local history heroes, for organising these great Family History Month events.