GSV News

When you start researching the lives of ancestors during the Great War you may become embroiled in the complex history of the 'Eastern Question' and the breakup of the Ottoman Empire, which lead to the First World War. 

How did some Australian and New Zealanders come to be serving in support of the Serbian Army before the ANZACS landed at Gallipoli? 

Richard Cooke of Camberwell and Bojan Pajic of Glen Iris, discovered that they both had relatives who may have met in Serbia during World War One; Richard's grandmother, Ethel Gillingham, was an Australian nurse volunteer supporting the Serbian Army in 1915 and Bojan's grandfather and great uncle, who was wounded in 1915, were officers in the Serbian Army.

Australian doctors, nurses, orderlies, drivers and assistants, mainly women, volunteered to serve inBritish units that were sent to Serbia in 1914-15 and to the Salonika (or “Eastern”) Front in 1916-18, to assist the Serbian Army. Australian Army nurses were sent to serve in Salonika in the later part ofthe War. The exact number and identity of all Australian volunteers serving with various organisations in

support of the Serbian Army and people is unknown.

Bojan Pajic has traced over 100 descendants and relatives of Australians and New Zealanders who served in Serbia or alongside the Serbian Army on the Salonika Front and nearby seas in World War One. You can hear about the little-known story of ANZAC soldiers, airmen, medical volunteers and humanitarian workers who participated in the Serbian theatre of war in WW1 when Bojan Pajic will present:

"Our Forgotten Volunteers: 

Australians and New Zealanders with Serbs in World War One"

Thursday 24 October - 12 pm - 1.00 pm at GSV.

Bookings are essential. Go to our website HERE.

Our speaker

Bojan Pajic majored in history at the University of Adelaide and served as an infantry officer in the Citizen's Military Forces/Army Reserve. He has served overseas as an Australian Trade Commissioner. 

As well as author of the book Our Forgotten Volunteers: Australians and New Zealanders with Serbs in World War One (Australian Scholarly Publishing, 2018), he is also the author of Serbian Decorations through History and Serbian Medals Awarded to Australians, (2016).

References

'The World War One Australian Serbian Project', B. Pajic in Ancestor 33:7 Sept 2017, p.15. (GSV Members can view this on our website).

'Exhibition: Serbia in the Great War' at soc.org.au, website of the Serbian Orthodox Church, Australia and New Zealand (accessed 17 Oct 2019).

'Australian women volunteers with the Serbian army in World War One', Srpski Glas[newspaper] 24 Aug 2015 (website accessed 17 Oct 2019).

The GSV congratulates the winner and runner-up of its annual Writing Prize 2019 for a family-history article.

The successful entrants were announced at the AGM on Saturday 5 October.

The winning entry was 'Masters of the Road' by Louise Wilson. 

The runner-up was 'Finding Johanna' by Victoria Spicer. 

Louise Wilson's interesting story is about the role of the author’s ancestors in the initiation of the Royal Mail Service coaches in Great Britain in the 1790s.

'Finding Johanna' by Victoria Spicer revolves around Geelong, and was built on the author’s change of mind about an Irish bounty emigrant step-great-great-grandmother whom shehad once scorned for being intermittently jailed for vagrancy and drunkenness. 

There were a record number of entries including some from GSV regional Member Societies who were invited this year.

Entries were considered by a five-member judging panel. This year an external guest judge, Dr Val Noone OAM, joined Joy Roy FGSV representing the GSV President; and three Ancestor team members, Leonie Loveday, Margaret Vines and Martin Playne. GSV thanks Dr Noone and the other judges for their commitment to this successful competition to foster and demonstrate good family-history writing.

The winner receives a 12-month subscription from Ancestry.com to their Worldwide Membership and an Ancestry.com DNA test kit. Ancestry also generously gave a prize for the runner-up.

The winning entry will be published in the December issue of GSV's Ancestor journal. 

Congratulations to both winners and all entrants.

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This question of whether convicts were sent to the Port Phillip District (later known as Victoria) often invokes a statement that no convicts were transported to the district. Although Port Phillip was not one of the mainstream colonies for traditional convict transportation, there were in fact six distinct groups of convicts connected to the Port Phillip District.

On THURSDAY THIS WEEK 19 September 12 noon to 1.00 pm our guest speaker Susie Zada will definitively answer this question. 

CONVICTS - PORT PHILLIP DISTRICT

Not too late to book! BOOK HERE

This presentation by Susie will highlight detailed sources and records for convicts in each of these six groups: the Sullivan's Bay Settlement 10 October 1803 - 15 May 1804; Western Port Settlement 24 November 1826 - February 1828; the Port Phillip Settlement 1835 - 1849; the Exiles 1844 - 1849; Convicted convicts 1841 - 1849; and the Free Settlers who were former convicts from 1835.

Records can be found in at least twenty-two different resources including the Archives Office of New South Wales (AONSW), The National Archives in the UK (TNA), the Public Records Office Victoria (PROV), and various web sites and publications.

$5 GSV members. $20 non-members. FHC, RHSV and CAV members should contact the GSV for a 25% discount.

Bookings are required and can be made online, by email, in person or by telephone (Mon-Fri 9.00am-4.00pm). Joint members please book in separately if both attending. There will be a wait list available.

19 September 2019, 12:00   to   13:00 pm

Level 6, 85 Queen Street

Melbourne  VIC 3000

Australia

BE QUICK!

Behind what may be the most famous piece of coast in the English world, lies Kent - an ancient English county jutting out in to the sea and around which many of our forebears sailed on their journey to Australia. They may even have commenced their journey being loaded from the Chatham Hulks. Having cleared the Thames estuary hundreds of sailing ships often sheltered in The Downs awaiting favourable winds to take them through the Strait of Dover and westwards into the English Channel. The Kentish coast may have been their last glimpse of England.

On Thursday 17 October 2019- 10:00 am to 12:30 pm - the GSV is privileged to host a seminar that you should not miss if you have any Kentish links.

'Genealogy, History and Geography' plus 'Tracing your Kent Ancestors' 

Presented by David Wright,a Fellow of the Society of Genealogists and a member of the Kent Family History Society for over forty years.

History without geography is meaningless. This talk covers our ancestors' lives in context: how and why they moved and how such behaviour can be traced. It looks at county and other boundaries and the restriction of freedom they allowed.

Genealogically speaking, Kent is an important maritime county, which has played a prime defensive role in English history. It is large and diverse and replete with great houses, castles and other family homes, many with their own archives. It is also a fascinating area of research for historians. This talk is packed with vital information for anyone researching their own family history.

Bookings are required and can be made online, by email, in person or by telephone (Mon-Fri 9.00am-4.00pm). Go to our website for details. https://www.gsv.org.au/ Maximum 35 attendees, and there will be a wait list available.

 

Our presenter

David Wright is a professional genealogist, historian and writer. He has taught at University College, London, and he is a Fellow of the Society of Genealogists.

David's career has covered over three decades of genealogical and historical research, by way of the study of classics and University lecturing, and he has written three books on Kentish records and the guide 'Tracing your Kent Ancestors'. He lectures widely on genealogy and allied subjects and has taught classical and mediaeval Latin and palaeography at the City Literary Instituteand, at both University College, Londonand the School of History at the University of Kent at Canterbury. He has been a member of the Kent Family History Society almost from its inception in the 1970s. In 2009, after nearly forty years’ membership, he was awarded a prestigious fellowship of the Society of Genealogists, and in November 2017 was honoured by being invited to sign the Fellows' Register of the Society of Antiquaries, London.

***

Hello all members (and soon-to-be members),

Even though it has been a bit wintry, we have been quite busy at the GSV. There has been a lot on, marking National Family History Month.

David Down and I recently met with the new president of the Royal Historical Society of Victoria(RHSV), Emeritus Professor Richard Broome and Rosemary Cameron, their executive officer, at the GSV. In addition to showing them over the Centre we had a very productive discussion about the two Societies. Like us they are concerned about the ongoing viability of organisations, such as ours. We look forward to having a closer partnership with the RHSV, exploring possible joint events and cross-promotion early in 2020.

Many of us still have one or more ancestors that appear to have arrived in Victoria by swimming, as there seems to be no trace of them in the usual passenger records. If you need help with 'when and how did they get here’, the new GSV Victoria and Tasmania Discussion Circle is a good place to start. Meeting on the fourth Friday morning each month, they now have their own Facebook group. See 'What’s on at the GSV' pages in Ancestor and our website for details. But note there is no meeting in September, as the Centre will be closed for the AFL Grand Final public holiday.

 

Tuesday evenings are a good time to come into the Centre if you want one-on-one help with your research. There is normal entry into the building until 6 pm when the front doors are closed. If you want to come in later, ring the GSV before 6 pm and we will arrange to open the doors for you. If you work nearby even 2 hours a week researching each week could help fill out that family tree.

 

The Annual General Meeting of the Society will be held on Saturday 5 October 2019, 2.00 - 4.00 pm. We will present the 2018/19 reports on the activities and financial position of the Society, and elect Office Bearers and Councillors for 2019/20. All members are welcome. Nominations for positions close on 30 August at 4 pm. Members can see the Notice of the Meeting and download the Nomination Form in the Members Area of the website.

With the first signs that Spring may be coming, now is the time to check the GSV Events calendar for the coming months and thaw out your family-history endeavours.

We'd love to help you at our Research Centre.

Jenny Redman

President - GSV

First a reminder that you have ONLY 3 WEEKS TO GO TO ENTER THE GSV 2019 WRITING COMPETITION - CLOSING 30 AUGUST - (See details on our website).

And a tip for your research this month...

As part of National Family History Month BDM Vic has reduced the price of uncertified historical certificates to $20 just for this month. Go HERE.

To prompt you to write your stories, in this post we republish a short article by one of our GSV Writers Circle members, Barbara Beaumont. This was originally published in Fifty~Plus News Nov 2013. 

***

You don’t always find what you’re looking for. . .

by Barbara Beaumont

At a seminar on ‘Brick Walls’ in family history research at the Genealogical Society of Victoria (GSV) we were advised to try to go around brick walls rather than confront them head-on. So when I was unable to locate a member of my family, Grace Martin, on the 1891 UK census, I started to look for her siblings, and then for the daughter of her sister Mary Ann, who was on the 1881 census as Elizabeth Martin, age 17, daughter.

Thinking that Elizabeth might have married a few years later, I looked on freebmd (www.freebmd.org.uk) for a marriage and easily found it. On freebmd you can look at the names on the page of the register, which after 1852 generally gives you four names, but does not tell you who married whom. One name immediately jumped out at me – James Hewett. I knew that another member of the family, Ellen Davey, had married a man of this name, but I hadn’t paid the Hewetts a lot of attention previously. Was it the same James Hewett? 

I formed the theory that James had married Elizabeth, that she had died, and that he had then married Ellen. I looked with fresh eyes at the 1911 census for the Hewetts. Eight children were listed, but the census indicated that Ellen had only given birth to six children. So presumably the others were Elizabeth’s? 

On ancestry.co.uk I was able to find James and Elizabeth on the 1891 census, which gave me the names of four other children. So Elizabeth and James had had six children, and James had gone on to have another six with Ellen. Again on ancestry.co.uk I found christening records for several of these children, which not only confirmed the parents as James and Elizabeth Hewett, but gave me the address where they lived at the time of each christening. A death entry for Elizabeth Hewett in St Saviour, Southwark in 1900 seemed likely to be the right one.

A missing link in my chain of research was the 1901 census, which I expected to show James as a widower, with his first six children. I was aware that Hewett was sometimes spelt as Hewitt, so tried a Boolean search using Hew?tt (where ? represents one missing letter). This proved unsuccessful, but by using a search for Hew* (where* represents one or more letters), I found them listed as Hewell and yes, indeed, he was a widower.

I must admit that none of this helped me to find Grace, but it has provided me with an interesting addition to the story of my extended family. 

Barbara Beaumont

***

Barbara went on to find Grace Martin. You could read more about that in her article 'The Mystery Woman' in the latest GSV Ancestor journal 34:6 June 2019. GSV Members can read that issue on the website.

Image credit

Photographer Fred Start Jnr. c.1957. Queen's Building (1841), Southwark, London was an early model housing project for workers. If you have connections to Southwark, London you can see lots of interesting information and images on the website London-SE1 https://www.london-se1.co.uk

There are lots of interesting talks planned for National Family History Month in August. Our first talk on ebooks is fully booked but after that on Thursday 1 August at 1.30 - 2.30pm you can learn about 'National and State Archives in Australia'. Then on Saturday 3 August 10 - 11am we have programmed two talks: 'Introduction to the GSV and our Resources' and at 11.15am 'Starting your Family History'. Lots to start you off and FREE for Family History Month. See more details and booking in our Events listing on our website www.gsv.org.au

For a regional event on Friday 2 August at 1.30pm at the Maryborough Regional Library, Robyn Ansell will be the guest speaker for the launch of the digitised Maryborough and Dunolly Advertiser 1857-1867. It is a free event which will include the opportunity to go online afterwards to try out the paper on Trove. 

The launch of National Family History Month August 2019 is on Friday 2 August.

The launch includes a short presentation by Celia Blake, Regional Manager South & Director Victoria and Tasmania, National Archives of Australia, and Justine Heazlewood, Director and Keeper of Public Records, Public Record Office Victoria.

A keynote address, Doing it for ourselves – transcription projects, will be given by curator and historian Dr Sophie Couchman.

The launch is jointly hosted by the National Archives of Australia and Public Record Office Victoria.

***

I can't see our Genealogical Society of Victoria marching anywhere bearing arms - but we have them! In 1941 a logo with a tree trunk emblazoned on a quaint tilted shield was adopted. In the early 1960s the GSV endorsed four special interest groups, one of which was the Heraldry Group. Then in 1986 the GSV acquired its current coat of arms through official British channels. That there was some tension between budding republicans and monachists had been shown when, at the GSV's Colonial Dinner in 1985, the National Anthem tape was sabotaged by someone reinstating 'God Save the Queen' for the newly adopted 'Advance Australia Fair'. 

Coat of Arms of the GSV

The GSV's coat of arms, or Ensigns Armorial, was designed and granted to The Genealogical Society of Victoria by the Court of the Lord Lyon of Scotland, King of Arms on 1 March 1986. It is described as:

Azure, five mullets [stars], one of eight, two of seven, one of six and one of five points Argent (representing the constellation of the Southern Cross), on a chief Gules, a pale of the Second charged of an oak tree Proper issuing from a mount Vert, and fructed Or, between two acorns slipped of the Last. Above the Shield is placed an Helm, suitable to an incorporation (videlice: a sallet [helmet] Proper lined Gules), with a Mantling Azure doubled Argent, and on a wreath of the Liveries, is set for Crest on a mound of pink heather a male lyre bird close and in display Proper holding in its beak an acorn slipped Or, and in an Escrol over the same this Motto: "GENEALOGI SEMPER VIGILES". 

Public Register of all Arms and Bearings in Scotland, 69th volume, page 20.

The Shield was based on the arms of the State of Victoria with an oak tree added to represent genealogy. The oak tree is a long-lived tree and its fruit, the acorns, represents the seed origin of the tree from which continuing generations of oak trees and acorn seed will spring. The Crest comprises two parts, the Device, which shows the lyrebird, native of Victoria with an acorn in its beak, and the Mount which incorporates the Pink Heath, the floral emblem of Victoria.

The Motto, Genealogi Semper Vigiles, translates from Latin to 'genealogists always watchful'and is a play on the initials of the Society.

Apparently if you fancy having a coat of arms you can just design your own - whilst being careful not to infringe trade marks. 

The Australian Heraldry Society website has an interesting discussion about the authority of granting arms. The Australian PM issued advice in 2018 that: 'There is nothing preventing any person or organisation from commissioning a local artist, graphics studio or heraldry specialist to design and produce a coat of arms or identifying symbol. Those arms would have the same standing and authority in Australia as arms prepared by the College of Arms in England.'

However like an 'Engrish' T-shirt, or when co-opting any language, it will help if you know what various symbols you use could be taken to mean. The Australian Heraldry Society could help (https://www.heraldryaustralia.org/your-arms). 

When you design your avatar take careful note of the powers and attributes you assign. But your game-playing kids will know all about that.

Bill Barlow

***

Ref. 

Amateurs and Experts: a history of The Genealogical Society of Victoria 1941–2001,by Elizabeth Ellen Marks, Penfolk Publishing, Blackburn, 2001.

The Australian Heraldry Society Inc. website (accessed 13 July 2019)

https://www.heraldryaustralia.org/heraldic-authority

Geelong Heritage Centre is handing the public the keys to the Vault – Victoria’s largest regional heritage archive catalogue is now just a quick click away. 

The Geelong Heritage Centre (also known as ‘the Vault’ or ‘Kim barne thaliyu’) Archives catalogue includes over 46,000 records and can now be searched online for the very first time by visiting archives.grlc.vic.gov.au.

From golden gowns and dinner sets, family diariesand football socks, researchers can uncover the rich heritage and unique local treasures that exist within the Vault from the comfort of home.

The Archives are a unique recorded history of Geelong and surrounding areas (stretching from Portarlington to Lorne, Belmont to Lara, Geelong to Meredith and everywhere in between) and include countless memories and stories which live on in the extensive collections of public and private records, newspapers, maps, plans, photographs, and extensive catalogues and indexes.

For those who would like to view a collection item in person, an email or simple ‘contact us’ form allows details of the item to be sent to Geelong Heritage Centre staff, who will retrieve the item from the repository for viewing. 

Specialist staff at the Geelong Heritage Centre can assist visitors to browse the collections, view an item or use the cutting-edge digital technology on offer in the Reading Room, and are on-hand to provide expert research advice. 

Geelong Regional Library Corporation (GRLC) Chair, Councillor Ron Nelson, believes that offering the catalogue online represents a significant opportunity for the community. 

“The collections held at the Geelong Heritage Centre are of huge significance to the local community, and provide an invaluable resource for researchers,” Cr Nelson says. 

“By enabling people to start their research online, we have opened up the Archives – and access to the heritage of the region – to the world. In fact, the first visitor to the website was in New York,” Cr Nelson finished. 

Mark Beasley, Manager of Heritage Services at the GRLC says the online catalogue will save researchers a lot of time, but a visit to the Geelong Heritage Centre can complete the experience. 

“The hunt for something can be a lot of fun and take you on an incredible journey of discovery. Of course, nothing beats being able to view an historical item in person, and a visit to the Geelong Heritage Centre – located in the wonderful Dome building – allows you to do just that.” he said. 

Visit archives.grlc.vic.gov.auto start exploring today.

This week is National Volunteer Week and we would like to recognise, applaud and celebrate the great work our volunteers do at GSV.

There would be no GSV without our Volunteers.

Nearly 180 of our over 3000 members give their time and expertise to run our organisation. When you walk in the door with your first request for assistance - our rostered Volunteer Research Assistants are on hand to help you get started. As you progress and need in-depth help there is someone who knows. Behind the scenes they work on projects to augment and update our Collection and our databases. 

Many work from home (long before they were requested to isolate). And through these last months they have continued. Another team put together our journal Ancestor: writing, editing, commissioning articles, proofreading and even the creative layout is the work of a Volunteer (not naming anyone, but thanks Jay). Others manage our social media and all our Discussion Circles and Groups. Our specialist IT volunteers do a wonderful job maintaining our computers and our digital media, Facebook, Twitter and keep this blog going. How important this is can be seen in these lockdown times, as we can provide many services from home thanks to their efforts. The launch of our online Forum membershelpmembers is another testament to our Vols. But they also work in administration, library maintenance and planning and running all our Events, talks and classes. Even our two paid part-time Library staff generously volunteer in their own time.

And certainly not least, our President and Councillors volunteer to keep our Society flourishing. On behalf of all our members and everyone in the wider world of genealogy we take this time particularly to recognise your work and thank you

Vols, we miss you at the moment. THANK YOU for your contribution!

And here is some cake to celebrate your work!

***

Photo and cake:

Jennifer Pallion jennifer@foodess.com