GSV News

You asked for experts in Victorian school records — and we’ve got them!

School records can provide fascinating glimpses into your ancestors’ childhoods and family lives, and their working lives if they were a teacher—information that may not appear in other records. You may discover where they lived, who their parents were, which schools they attended/taught at, photographs, details of teachers and even notes about incidents or events.

In October, the GSV is offering two opportunities to learn from people who know these records inside out: Kate Sullivan from the Department of Education, followed by Dr Sebastian Gurciullo and Jack Martin from Public Record Office Victoria (PROV).
Both are on Zoom through two of our Discussion Circles:

Exploring the Department of Education’s School Records Website

Thursday 15 October, 1.30pm–3.00pm, Family History Toolbox
Kate Sullivan will give GSV members a hands-on walkthrough of the new School Records website, including the Victorian Government Schools Directory and its history section, which contains previously unavailable information.

Ask Me Anything: Victorian School & Education Records in PROV

Friday 23 October, 10.30am–12 noon, VicTas Discussion Circle
Bring your questions to PROV’s Dr Sebastian Gurciullo and Jack Martin. They’ll cover finding and ordering records, creating accounts, FAQs and more, using PROV’s extensive school and education collections.

These talks are available to all GSV members, and both are free. The Zoom link will be emailed to you when you log in and register on the GSV website: What’s On? > Events. You need to register for both separately.

Two great events, two expert perspectives—and plenty to discover about the school years of your Victorian ancestors.

It’s Seniors Month and you don’t have to be a senior to attend! We have a number of events (all on Zoom) that are open to the public during October.

Tuesday 13 October, 1.30pm-3pm: Introduction to the GSV and its Resources. The what, where and how of the GSV. Free event.

Friday 16 October, 1.30pm-3pm: Researching your Scottish ancestry back to Scotland.  Free for members, $10 for non-members

Tuesday 20 October, 10.30am-12pm: Railways of the British Raj. 
Join our British India Discussion Circle to explore the lives of ancestors who worked on the railways in India in the 18th and 19th centuries. Free event.

Wednesday 21 October, 12.30pm-2pm: Learn how to get the most out of the ScotlandsPeople website. What you can find, how to access it. Free for members, $10 for non-members.

Thursday 29 October, 1pm-4pm: Getting started with Oral History: Every story matters. Practical techniques for interviewing, recording and sharing. Q&A. Free for members, $10 for non-members.

To register: go to the GSV website: What’s On? > Events. Scroll down to the relevant date. Zoom links are emailed after registration. Members please log in to get discount.

We encourage our members to invite a friend. If they decide to join the GSV:

• we will extend your membership by two months
• we will waive the joining fee of the new member

To take advantage of this generous offer, please phone our office on 03 9662 4455 between 10am-4pm, Monday to Friday. Or email gsv@gsv.org.au

We have many more events in October for members only - what a great reason to join.

We hope to see you there.

How can a film maker help us understand the lives of our Welsh ancestors?

Join us on Thursday, October 1, 7:30 pm to 9:00 pm and meet Anthony Hontoir, film maker and founder of Downwood Film Productions. Anthony lives in Porthcawl on the south coast of Wales and has produced local history documentaries on towns such as Maesteg, Bridgend, Porthcawl and Port Talbot.

He has also explored some fascinating and dramatic stories, including “Dangerous Coast” about the S.S. Samtampa and Mumbles lifeboat disaster of 1947 and “The Restoration of Sker House” about the renovation of an Elizabethan manor house near Porthcawl. Anthony’s films provide an opportunity to look beyond our family records and discover some of the places and communities that give context to our ancestors’ lives.

There is more to Anthony’s story. He began his professional career as a freelance journalist, moved into film making and more recently is the author of a series of whodunit novels. Quite a variation! Anthony suggests members might take a look at a sample of his films before the meeting.  You can explore these at https://www.youtube.com/@downwoodfilms/videos

The meeting is free and open to GSV members only. Please register on the GSV website: What’s On > Events page and a Zoom link will be emailed to you.

Did your ancestor serve in WWI or WWII? Perhaps they fought in the Boer War, or served with a British or other overseas regiment?

Military records can reveal fascinating details about an ancestor’s service, but knowing where to look and how to understand what you find is key.

This session will focus mainly on Australian WWI and WWII records, including resources from the Australian War Memorial and National Archives of Australia. We’ll also briefly explore Boer War records and records of Australians who served in overseas regiments.

And you won’t be left to work it all out for yourself! You’ll receive useful handouts listing military resources, along with handy lists of military abbreviations to help you decipher those sometimes-baffling service files.

Whether you’re just starting to investigate a military ancestor or want to take existing research further, this session will give you plenty of places to look — and some practical tools to help make sense of the records.

Join Trena and Jackie to discover what lies beyond the service record.

Details:
Thursday 24 September at 1:30pm-3.00pm, online via Zoom
GSV members: log in to access your discounted rate.
NB: This course is Session 8 of our 9 session Australian Family History Course: Research Strategies and Resources but can be joined as a stand alone session. You do not need to register if you have booked the entire course.

Did your ancestors arrive in Australia during the excitement of the gold rush? Did they strike it rich or struggle? Or did they make their living supplying or supporting the gold miners? Whatever their story, the gold rush years generated a wealth of records that can help you uncover more about their lives.

Fiona Tellesson (Experts in Genealogy) will share the fascinating research journey of her own ancestor who arrived in Australia during the gold era. Through a real case study, she'll demonstrate the strategies and resources that helped her piece together her ancestor's story.
GSV Digital Resources Manager Meg Bate will guide you through the available records—where to find them, how to access them and what to expect to find in them.
The session will cover a wide range of records, including occupations, health, police, education, Electoral Rolls, Parliamentary Papers and Government Gazettes.

Whether your ancestors came to Australia in search of gold or simply lived through this period of rapid growth, these records can reveal far more than names and dates. They can provide valuable clues about everyday life, occupations, movements and the communities in which your ancestors lived.

Thursday 27 August at 1:30pm-4.30pm, online via Zoom
GSV members: log in to access your discounted rate.
NB: This course is Session 7 of our 9 session Australian Family History Course: Research Strategies and Resources but can be joined as a stand alone session. You do not need to register if you have booked the entire course.

What can the first land sales of Melbourne tell us about the city's origins—and the people who seized the opportunity to shape its future?

Join us on Wednesday 26 August at 2pm on Zoom. This talk is for members only and is $10. Please log into the GSV website to register on the What’s ON - Events page. The Zoom link will be emailed to you.

On 1 June 1837, surveyor Robert Hoddle stood on a log and began auctioning the first allotments of land in the newly-surveyed Hoddle Grid, now the heart of Melbourne’s CBD. The purchasers came from a wide variety of backgrounds, but most shared a common ambition: to build wealth in a fast-growing new settlement.
Dr Liz Rushen will take us back to 1837 and introduce us to some of those early purchasers — from former convicts and publicans to merchants and investors whose fortunes were tied to global trade. They acquired land on Wurundjeri country for next to nothing, setting in motion changes that would shape the city for generations. Some went on to amass considerable fortunes; others lost everything. Every allotment reveals Melbourne’s complex origins.
This talk also looks at how these allotments have evolved, including the buildings that once stood, and those that stand today. Melbourne began as an act of confidence and enterprise — and that speculative spirit remains part of the city’s character today. It’s a tale of dreamers, schemers, workers and empire builders: the people who first bought Melbourne's land.

Dr Liz Rushen is a well known Australian historian and author. She has curated an exhibition at the Royal Historical Society, 239 A’Beckett St, Melbourne. If you want to see the exhibition, it is in the RHSV main gallery. Free entry. Open until 11 November, 10am-5pm weekdays.
https://www.historyvictoria.org.au/current-exhibitions/

Have you got a family history story waiting to be told?
You’ve done the research. You’ve jotted down the details. You may even have solved a long-standing family mystery. We are providing the deadline!

It’s time to turn that research into a story - and enter it in the GSV Writing Prize.
There’s still time, but not much! 

Entries close at 4pm on Friday 28 August 2026.
Your entry should:

• be 1,200–2,400 words
• have a family history or genealogy theme
• be your own original work
• not have been previously published
• include appropriate citations to sources

GSV members and members of GSV Member Societies are eligible to enter.
There’s a great prize on offer. Ancestry™ is again generously sponsoring the competition, with a first prize of a 12-month Worldwide Membership subscription and an Ancestry™ DNA kit.

So, dust off that unfinished draft, revisit that Writers Circle project, or finally write that story you’ve been meaning to get around to.

Find the full details, including eligibility and entry conditions, on the GSV website: 
https://www.gsv.org.au/gsv-writing-prize-0

Who in your family has the stories you've always meant to record? What memories could be lost if they're never captured?

Every family has memories that can't be found in certificates, census records or newspapers. They live in the stories people tell – about childhood, migration, work, war, celebrations, hardships and everyday life. Once those voices are gone, those stories can disappear with them.

Members and friends are welcome to join us on Thursday 13 August, 1.00–4.00 pm on Zoom to learn the practical skills to confidently interview and record family members.
Get useful tips as to how to prepare for an interview, ask questions that encourage meaningful conversations, keep interviews on track, and use readily available technology to capture clear recordings. We'll also cover consent, copyright, fact-checking, preserving recordings, and interviewing about sensitive subjects.

You'll see and hear real-life examples, hear inspiring stories from experienced family historians, and have plenty of opportunities to ask questions throughout the afternoon.

If you've ever thought, "I wish I'd asked Mum about that," or "I should record Grandpa's stories someday," this seminar will give you the confidence and practical skills to begin.
Because every story matters.

To register go to the GSV website and register through our What’s On > Events page. Remember to register to get the member rate: members free, non-members $10.

Perhaps they brought a book, a portrait, a piece of jewellery? These precious objects can reveal fascinating stories about the people who carried them - about where they came from, and the lives they hoped to build.

On Saturday 8 August at 1pm on Zoom, Dr Laura Jocic from Deakin University will 
talk about the needlework specimen book that Irish-born Anne Trotter brought with her to Port Phillip when she migrated in 1844. Anne's needlework book, which includes various plain sewing exercises and finely stitched miniature shirts and a dress, provides an insight into the formal schooling provided to young working-class girls in nineteenth century Ireland and the skills they brought with them to Australia. Anne, like many migrants intended to use the book to earn her living in the new country.

Laura’s talk will be followed by questions and discussion. Did one of your own ancestors bring an object that helped them establish a new life, reflected their occupation or preserved a connection with home? We'd love to hear the stories you've uncovered.

Hosted by the Irish Ancestry Discussion Circle, this session is free to all GSV members.
Please log in to the GSV website to register via the What’s On > Events page to receive the Zoom link.

Did your ancestors play sport? Perhaps they were a champion cricketer, a keen footballer, a prize-winning cyclist, or simply a valued member of the local bowls or tennis club. 
Sporting pursuits often left a rich trail of records in newspapers, club histories, photographs and memorabilia. Have you explored this fascinating aspect of your family history? You may discover that sport played an important role in your ancestors' lives and communities.

From local cricket clubs and early footy leagues to forgotten sporting heroes, the list below gives just a little taste of what you can find in the GSV Library (either electronically or in hard copy).
Our wonderful volunteers have indexed thousands of articles from journals from around the world. These indexes can be searched when you visit the GSV Library. Alternatively you can opt for a free (for members) Quick Look up request for someone to search an index. If you can’t get into the city, check your eligibility for our distant member research offer.
https://www.gsv.org.au/research-services

Whatever your family's game was, simply type your sport of interest into our catalogue search (yes, you can search from home) - odds are, we have the perfect article to bring your family history research to life.

Topic Sport
The Commonwealth Games 1930-2002. 
Journal Title: Family history monthly 83 (Aug 2002)

Athletics, politics and society in Thurles and Moycarkey 1838-1876. Tobin, J M  
Journal Title: Tipperary historical journal 2018

A bibliography of sport in Co. Tipperary pt 1-2 (The GAA). Bracken, Patrick  
Journal Title: Tipperary historical journal 2017-2018
 
Dressing to win: how sports clothing has developed over the decades. 
Journal Title: Family tree 28:10 (Jul 2012)

Sports and sporting clubs of Bendigo. 
Journal Title: Golden links 85 (Jan/Feb/Mar 2010)

The historic sporting landscape. 
Journal Title: Local history magazine 82 (Nov/Dec 2000)

Sporting men - old time reminiscences. McLee, Carol  
Journal Title: Cleveland FHS journal 15:7 (Jul 2023)

Topic Athletics
Athletics in the Doncaster area. 
Journal Title: The Doncaster ancestor 15:1 (Spring 2005)

Early athletics in Essendon. 
Journal Title: Essendon historical journal 2 (Spring 2010)

Early East Surrey Olympians. 
Journal Title: East Surrey Family History Society journal 35:3 (Sep 2012)

Victorian athletes. 
Journal Title: Footprints 27/8:3 (Feb 2006)
Library Location: Digital copy @ GSV premises

Was there an athlete in your family?. 
Journal Title: Family tree magazine 14:8 (Jun 1998)

Topic Swimming
Sunshine's first Olympic swimming pool. 
Journal Title: The Sunshine recorder 5:7 (Sep 2008)
 
Swimming history discovered. 
Journal Title: Kith and kin 39 (Dec 1995)

Bagpipes and cross channel swimming. 
Journal Title: Aberdeen & North-East Scotland Family History Society journal 66 (Feb 1998)

Miss Muriel Woodwards: the first woman to swim from Guernsey to Herm. 
Journal Title: La Societe Guernesiaise 24:1 (Summer 2010)