Lilian's Tree

FREDERICK JOHN VAUGHAN Congratulations, Frederick, you are the first child of Henry and Charlotte to be born, (1860), AFTER they have married (at last). You are their ninth child and fifth son. You, too like several of your siblings, seem to have lead an uneventful life. You marry on 2 nd March 1887 to a Flora Wimhurst (Wymhurst) and in 1889 become you become parents to a daughter, Irene Chasmar Vaughan. Thank you for giving Irene the middle name of Chasmar, it makes tracing her much easier, well sort of. I look for other children and find none. I search for your or Floras’ deaths, nothing. Here I go again, this family is making my research very interesting.   I do find a second marriage in 1915, to Elizabeth J Purves. Did Flora die or did you divorce? A NSW Archives search for a divorce, leads to a dead end. So I again look for Flora’s death, nothing. TROVE is my next search and I look for a Frederick Vaughan. Do you know how many Frederericks there are? I start narr

                      CATHERINE CHARLOTTE VAUGHAN. Catherine Charlotte, you are Henry and Charlotte’s eight child and third living daughter.   Born 1856, some sources say 22 May, but as I don’t have any documents about you, I can’t be sure. Sorry but you aren’t my direct line and I’d rather save my money for other documents. Catherine, I thought that it would have been easy to find you married but who would have guessed that three Catherine Vaughans would marry between 1874 and 1878! The two others are causing confusion on Ancestry, with you being ‘given’ James Hoy as your husband, up on the Macleay River or one Thomas Willis, in Goulburn. Then having you die as Catherine Hoy, in Kempsey and being buried in Rookwood! And not showing who you married! Annoying as these trees are being copied and not checked.   One lady, Kerry Johnson, seems to have all the correct details. Wonderful! From her tree, I double and triple check what I have also found and concur that I have found t

Two interesting pieces, about a robbery at my local station, in 1936. One has more details than the other. Inverell Times (NSW  1899 - 1954), Friday 6 March 1936, page 1_files Sydney Morning Herald (NSW  1842 - 1954), Friday 6 March 1936, page 11_files

Under overcast skies I walked to the station to catch the 8.21am train to the city. As I got to the top of the ramp, the sun was trying to break-through. My destination was Richmond Villa, home to the Society of Australian Genealogists. The topic that Michelle Patient was presenting, was Breaking Down Brick walls. No, not construction one but the ones we discover , when tracing our ancestors. Michelle's presentation  was full of interesting, helpful ways to try and breakdown our wall. One useful hint was to do a timeline . Something I had thought about but hadn't followed though with. Michelle advised us not to have to narrow a focus but to look at the bigger picture as to what was happening, in the timeframe of our brick wall. If you ever have the chance to hear Michelle present this talk, go and absorb it. While I have been researching, for over 30 years, I learnt new things. A day well spent. Now to apply what I've learnt.

                                                      John Albert Vaughan. John, John, John, like your siblings you are a mystery, one I don't think I can solve. John, I can find your birth in 1854, the seventh child and fourth son of Henry and Charlotte, 235/1854, V1854253 40) and after this nothing. Searching the NSW BDM's, for a death, of John Vaughan, gives  me plenty but none with your parents.  The Ryerson Index is next and again plenty but none stand out. TROVE is next on my list and there are plenty here too! You are starting to annoy me, Great-Uncle John. Back to the BDM's, looking for a marriage. This one, 1899 John Vaughan to Minnie A Whiteway, looks(ed) promising and then I worked out that you would have been 55 years old. Possible but it didn't ring true. ( I followed them, not you and ruled it out.) Looked at the Rookwood CD, for a burial, better luck here as there isn't that many. I eliminate the ones in the Catholic section and then start

Last week I had several hours to fill in, while Paul was in RPA, having a big test done. He is fine. BUT what was I going to do? Lucky for me my mother's side were from Newtown, Camperdown and Erskineville and Holy Trinity, Erskineville and St Stephen's, Newtown where their churches. Armed with the details I knew of the two burials, at St Stephen's I went grave searching. It is such a beautiful place to walk around and just look at the different adornments of the graves, read headstones of small children and ache for their parent's loss and try and find the grave you want.  I knew that the chances of finding Henry and Charlotte Vaughan's graves was remote, after all part of the cemetery was turned into a park, but it was worth the time. After about an hour and no luck I got talking to the gardener and he asked if I had been onto the church website and looked to see if the grave was in the area left. NO, I didn't know that there was a website and theref

                                       Damage at Cronulla. Searching TROVE, for a family death notice I came across this small piece about a storm at Cronulla, in 1930. It seems that this is a frequent occurrence, given the bad storm, in June 2016. Sydney Morning Herald (NSW : 1842 - 1954), Tuesday 3 June 1930, page 12

                                                      George Wellington VAUGHAN. George, like the song from CSI, I ask "Who are you?" You are the sixth child and third son of Henry and Charlotte, born 18 June 1852 and baptised 15 August 1852*, at St Philips Church, Sydney. I wonder if your middle name, Wellington, is in honour of the 1st Duke of Wellington, the hero of the Battle of Waterloo. He died in 1852, so this seems likely. Then George you disappear, vanish! No death. No marriage. Nothing in any newspaper. Nothing, very frustrating. BUT searching the New South Wales (NSW), Birth, Death and Marriage records, I find this; Ref No  1876/1213* Groom VAUGHAN, Edward Wellington Bride STANSALL, Esther Maria. Place Sydney. Could this be you? Certificate ordered and I wait. While waiting I look for any possible children, your death, anything that might be helpful. The transcript arrives and bingo, it is you but you are called Edward. Why?  You and Esther marry o

Last Thursday, 30 June, I was at Rookwood Cemetery, hunting ancestors graves, as one does. Trying to find a marker, I came across this; The grave is large and very over grown. Back home and I knew I had to find out what happened, so I searched TROVE and the article, below is very detailed. Amazingly one man survived the accident.  'Australasian (Melbourne, Vic: 1864-1946), Saturday 24 March 1900, page 41.'

I have several hours to fill in and I'm about to go and take photos of a very old church, St Stephen's, Newtown. My grandparents were married there, 106 years ago. My great-great grandparents are buried there. I won't be able to find their graves as 3/4 of the cemetery was turned into a park. I'm going to do a blog series on the churches my ancestors attended, so watch this space! The cemetery awaits, Bye, Lilian

Louisa Vaughan. Louisa, Louisa, Louisa, you prove to be as elusive as your big brother, Henry Edward. Why? I don’t have your birth certificate but I do know that you are the fifth child and second living daughter of Henry and Charlotte, born in 1850. You are included as one of the three females, living, on Henry’s death certificate but not mentioned, at all on your mothers. Why? What I have about you has been gleaned from the marriage certificates of Isabella in 1866 and William in 1867, where you stand as a witness, for both. Then you seem to disappear. I searched for your marriage, in both New South Wales and Victoria, nothing. Searched for your death, in both New South Wales and Victoria, nothing. I spent time searching through TROVE and found three death notices that lead me to discover more about you. “Sydney Morning Herald, Monday 23 January 1922, page 7.” Funerals. "ROGERS. The Relatives and Friends of Mr and Mrs ARCHIBALD CRUM and FAMILY are kindly i