“The Forensic Genealogist” – I’m a Fan...

I’ve never been one to follow the latest trend. Instead I tend to come to the party late … if at all. So it is with the latest additions to my book collection. I do love a good read. A good novel to tune out with, and I have a number of authors that I have read all their books cover to cover. And now I have a new name to that list, and that is Nathan Dylan Goodwin. I know many of you have heard of him already, and are longtime dedicated fans … like I said, I don’t follow the crowd, but I usually get there eventually. Anyway for the benefit of of the odd person who doesn’t know of him, Nathan writes fiction books with Morton Farrier as the lead character who is a forensic genealogist – yes, truly! Cool, eh? He’s written 8 books in “The Forensic Genealogist” series to date, and I’m currently partway through them, but with some long plane flights coming up, I expect to get through another one or two. I’m not going to tell you anything about the books, except that if you love a good read, lots of suspense, along with action, and genealogy – you’ll get it all (at least in those I’ve read so far). And you’ll get taken into Morton’s world of life as a researcher and see how he susses out his cases, visiting many archives and other places along the way. The titles in this series (to date are): Hiding the Past The Lost Ancestor The Orange Lilies The America Ground The Spyglass File The Missing Man The Wicked Trade & The Suffragette’s Secret The Sterling Affair Nathan even has a prequel to the...

Australia’s Biggest Ever Gold Robbery...

1862. 8 Bushrangers. 77kg of Gold! The incredible true story of Australia’s Biggest Steal. Did that get your attention? It sure got mine. ‘Australian Heist‘ is the title of a brand new book written by James Phelps, who is quoted as being Australia’s #1 bestselling true-crime writer. I’ll admit it’s not a name I was familiar with, but I sure am now!! Written as well as any good fiction book, it really is a non-stop-page-turner, with fascinating characters, and twists all the way through. And yet this is Australian history. It really happened. And it happened in what was our ancestors era. This isn’t an official book review, and I’m not going to spoil the book for you, but I will give you the speil … On 15 June 1862, a gang of bushrangers held up a gold escort at Eugowra, just east of Forbes in new South Wales. They escaped with a pile of cash and 77 kilograms of gold, worth about $10 million today. It remains the largest gold robbery in Australian history. In this riveting re-creation of the events, James Phelps finally tells the full story of how Frank Gardiner, Ben Hall, John O’Meally, Johnny Gilbert, Henry Manns, Alexander Fordyce, John Bow and Dan Charters planned and executed the robbery – and what happened to all that gold. And the map! ‘Australian Heist’ is a thrilling, fast-paced and thoroughly modern take on one of the most extraordinary episodes in the nation’s history. Anyway here’s all the relevant book details for you: Title: Australian Heist Author: James Phelps Format: hardcover Pages: 368 pages Published: 2018 ISBN: 9781460756232 Publisher: HarperCollins Australia Buy the printed book Buy the ebook To give you full disclosure. Yes, I do work in...

Love Australian History? Get “Traces”...

If you love Australian history and/or genealogy, let me introduce you to “Traces“. Traces is a brand spanking new Australian genealogy and history magazine. It is exciting to have a new magazine available, because we’ve seen far too many disappear over the past few years, which no doubt is a sign of the times. Anyway call me old fashioned, but I’m a physical paper magazine lover, and I still get excited when a new issue arrives in the mail. As for what it’s about, the magazine states that … “Traces magazine is for anyone interested in this country’s history, from ancient Indigenous heritage to European settlement, local history, artefacts and family genealogy. Launched in December 2017, Traces is the only quarterly printed magazine dedicated to providing its readers with insight into the latest historical research, news, events and heritage projects taking place around Australia. The expert voices of historians, researchers, heritage professionals, genealogists and journalists uncover the fascinating characters and stories of our past.” Anyway Issue 1 (or Volume 1 as they actually call it) of Traces magazine is an awesome read. As with most of the genie mags I get, I’ve read it from cover to cover. Basically you’ll find 64 pages of interesting, well-written articles. Some of the topics covered in Issue 1 are … – Getting started on your family tree – the wrecking of the ‘Batavia’ – Indigenous convicts – the Brennan & Geraghty’s Store Museum which really is ‘a store that time forgot’ – discover the history of Silverton, New South Wales – Caring for your precious textiles – learn how to date old photos through fashion – read all about ‘the masher’ – info on the Historic Houses Association of Australia – discover...

Transfer Camera Photos to Your Device By Wifi. EyeFi It!...

This is a post that is nothing to do with genealogy or family history. Nothing to with local history. Not even history related. Instead it’s of those those “hey, let me tell you about the cool thing I’ve found” posts, that I wanted to write about. A few of you may have heard of the Mobi EyeFi card, but I bet most haven’t. I first heard of the EyeFi Cards a few years ago, and got into using it for my Flip-Pal Mobile Scanner. Now I have the newer version and I use it in my camera. And by camera, I mean proper one, not my smartphone. I thought the Eye-Fi cards were better known that I found when I went to buy my new one. While I’m sure of the bigger name camera stores have them, there isn’t any near me anymore as they do seem to be a dying breed. So I tried a number of electrical stores, but none of those had even heard of it. So I ended purchasing one from eBay instead. But look around and you’ll find them. The idea of the EyeFi card, is that firstly they are like any SD card. They slot into your camera or scanner and store your photos or scans. But here’s the BUT … they also link in with your computer or other device and transfer those images wirelessly without you having to manually take the card out, slot it in, load them up and copy them off. I shouldn’t complain about having to do that, but apparently I am getting lazy, so I love the idea of the Eye-Fi cards. While my camera is an ‘auto-everything-point-and-shoot’ one, it takes better pictures than my phone, so...

Anecdotes, BDMs, Obits and Adverts – What Are These Records?...

I have come across an incredible source of information relevant to my research. One that includes local town news choc full of anecdotes relating to the locals, mentions of births, deaths, marriages and obituaries, and a heap of adverts from the local area. So just what are these records? Church Journals! Really? You bet. Let me give you some examples. Here is a page from the “Local News” section (also called “Editorial Notes”, “Miscellaneous” or “Church News” in various editions) … So you’ll see from this one page of Local News we learn of several people’s  health troubles, several people moving, the introduction of some of the new equipment in the district, election chances, local meetings, a new business venture, a prize a local business won, and a bunch more. And that’s just a page from ONE journal! You’ll also find some marriage and death notices (sorry no births afterall. But how do you write BDMs without births? DMs just doesn’t make sense) … And of course the obituaries which are just awesome! As well as anniversaries … And other newsworthy events, like town sports news and this brave deed! There’s also general history on the church, town and pioneers … And if all that wasn’t fabulous enough, then there’s the adverts. Many from local businesses – others from Adelaide. Here’s just a few examples of them. So you see, there is potentially so much you can find in Church Journals. And while my family were heavily involved in the church scene, many other researchers would say their family wasn’t, so wouldn’t think to look in Church Journals. So I hope this has opened your eyes to the possibilities of what could be out there. If you are fortunate...

Australia’s Biggest Ever Bank Robbery!...

So just when did Australia’s biggest bank robbery occur? Where did it happen? How did it happen? Who was involved? And what was the outcome and ramifications of the robbery? Can you answer any of these questions? I know I sure couldn’t. But you’ll find answers to all of these and many more in Carol Baxter’s book “Breaking the Bank“. I have recently finished reading this book, and like her other titles, it is a true page turner. As with her other titles, this is none-fiction true story is written in the style of a novel. She makes you ‘feel’ the happenings through her words, and she educates you on an amazing part of Australia’s history while doing so. I’m not going to answer the questions above … so this probably isn’t considered a “book review” as such, so I’m not sure if it qualifies for the “Australian Womens Writers Challenge“, however it is a book written by a female Australian author … so it still may. Instead of answering the questions above, I’m going to suggest you either buy or borrow a copy of the book, and read it for yourself. And while I know it is incredibly clichè to say that you won’t be disappointed, but I do truly believe that. Enjoy!! Book Details Title: Breaking the Bank: An Extraordinary Colonial Robbery Author: Carol Baxter ISBN: 9781741754490 Year: 2008 Available from: Carol’s website, and Allen & Unwin’s...

Book Review: Black Widow, Australia’s First Female Serial Killer...

On rare occasions I have done the odd book review, and as I’ve just finished reading Carol Baxter’s “Black Widow: The True Story of Australia’s First Female Serial Killer” (… and wow what a read!), here’s one more for you. Written in Carol’s usual style of “true crime” written as if it was a novel, it is rivetting and most certainly a page turner. The story follows Louisa Collins, mother of seven. Was she really a husband killer? Inquests, trials, hung juries, it’s all here in this book, and it is all TRUE history! If you live crime or thriller novels, and history this is a must for you. Readers are taken into Sydney as it was 1888, and Carol sets the scene beautifully, with little tidbits adding in detail. With details from newspapers, autopsies, trials and so on … the words written are the words the people actually said! You can’t get better than that for a true crime thriller.                         To read more about this title, or to order it,  head on over to Carol’s website www.carolbaxter.com I’m not a prolific reader, of books anyway (blogs and magazines, yes! which doesn’t leave so much time for books). But earlier this year I decided that I wanted to take part in the Australian Women Writers Challenge for 2015, which means reading books written by Australian women authors (fiction or non-fiction) and reviewing it. Sadly it is now September and this is my first one – still, one is better than none. For more about the Challenge, click...

Reality is Stranger than Fiction...

I don’t often do book reviews, but I wanted to share something about this one with you. Having just finished reading Carol Baxter’s book “The Peculiar Case of the Electric Constable: A True Tale of Passion, Poison and Pursuit” it leaves me without a doubt that reality most certainly can be far stranger than fiction. A Sydneysider, Carol Baxter is an internationally acclaimed author who has made her mark in the literary world with her unique genre – one I’m not even sure of the title of – but it is  true history written like a novel. Based on what I’ve read I would she’s mastered it. Carol doesn’t write a novel adding in some historical references as some do, but rather the entire story she tells is based on history. As historians we are used to reading documents with names, dates and places, and other tidbits. But to be able to takes those details and transform them into a story is nothing short of skill. And for that I truly admire Carol. In Carol’s own words … “Like Dr Who, I hunt ordinary individuals who unwittingly had such an extraordinary impact on their world that the consequences changed the course of history, then I tell their true stories as true-crime thrillers.” I read this book for two reasons. Firstly I had heard that it was a really good read, and secondly I wanted to see how she manages to write history as gripping as fiction and was hoping to pick up some tips on that. I’m not going to go into the story at all, instead I’ll just let  you read the back cover spiel (as below), but let me tell you there are so many twists that...

Want to Read a REAL Thriller? Then Read this Shipboard Diary …...

The year is 1838, and James Bell a young man from Scotland has said goodbye to his family and the love of his life, and has made his way to Southampton to embark on the voyage of a lifetime. He was one of more than 90 passengers who boarded the “Planter” ship on 23 November 1838, all eager to reach their new homeland South Australia in a few short months. Little did they know what was in store. And if it wasn’t for James Bell writing in his diary, we wouldn’t have known what would have happened on the one of the most adventurous, tragic, exciting, and exhausting voyages ever. Sound intriguing? It is … Titled “A Journey To Australia: A Journal by James Bell“, the book is the diary of a guy who migrated to South Australia in 1839, and in my opinion it’s is just as exciting as any thriller book I’ve read. I would go as far to say that it is one of the most AMAZING books I’ve ever read in my life. In fact I wrote about this title a little while ago when I actually discovered that Mr Lonetester’s 3x great grandparents were on this voyage. Anyway I’ve now finished this book, and what can I say, but WOW!!! It is truly phenomenal, and yet this is no work of fiction. James Bell was one of the passengers on the voyage of the “Planter”, and fortunately for us he was well-educated, and decided to record his voyage. The voyage was long (six-months-long), and tumultuous in every way possible, and James recorded what turned out the be a voyage from hell. He wrote about the condition, the drunken parties, the captain’s “incompetence”, the women...

Genealogy Serendipity … It Happens!...

The dictionary defines serendipity as “the faculty of making fortunate discoveries by accident”, therefore I would think that genealogy serendipity could be defined as “finding genealogical information by accident” … right? I have read of this happening to others, and through their words could even feel their excitement. Even the happy dancing bit! But seriously this is one of those “it’ll-never-ever-ever-happen-to-me-in-a-million-years” things, which I was cool with, and life goes on. But apparently today was out to prove me wrong. So let me take you through my serendipity moment. One of the many tasks my job entails is typing up all the new titles on to our work  website (www.gould.com.au). This is cool, because it means I get to see every new product that gets added on which helps we with advising customer who have queries etc. Today I was working my way though a pile of new titles that one of my supplier had sent me. They actually send me titles they think would be something we’d like. Some make it online. Some don’t. Anyway one that I came across was a book titled  “A Voyage to Australia: Private Journal of James Bell”. Shipboard diaries aren’t the world best sellers, so I hummed and haared about whether to add this one or not. But it looked interesting so I added it on. The book is the diary written by James Bell and records life onboard the ‘Plantar’ ship which left London in November 1838 and arrived in South Australia in May 1839. The reason for the almost six-month journey partly due to the captain’s incompetence, together with other misadventures such which included much of the crew being lost, as were some passengers and most of the livestock. A...