Lilian's Tree

 We left Wagga Wagga and headed to Tocumwal, part of the this trip was from 2023, as we went through Lockart. Saw the Big Kangaroo and Big Emu that were in a paddock. Nearly ran over a red-bellied black snake. Why it had to cross the road, I don't know.  Into Jerilderie for morning tea, beside the lake, beautiful spot. Arrived in Tocumwl in time for lunch so sat by the Murray River to eat our lunch and listened to the corellas squawking. The Murray River. Corellas. The Big Murray Cod. A thunderstorm woke us and while they need the rain, driving from Tocumwal to Nagambie in it wasn't pleasant!  Minor flooding in Shepparton but we missed the hail storm.  We arrived in Nagambie in time for morning tea and were told that they were expecting 80mm of rain that day, (they only got 26mm). Nagambie is the birth place of the racehorse Black Caviar. There were decorated Christmas trees beside the lake, that local families had done.  Situated on a lake it is a very pretty t...

 We have book-ended the year with a trip to Victoria, like we started the year of travel. This was only a short trip, distance wise 1,946kms and 14 days. Into Yass for our first night before heading west to Temora. The town of Temora features in the book I'm writing and I needed to check-out some places and things to make sure I had them correct. It is a lovely town and friendly people. Lake Centenary, Temora. On our way to Temora we had morning tea in Boorowa and saw their painted sheep. Wagga Wagga was our next stop and we arrived with a heatwave, both days we over 40 degrees. We did things early in the day and then rested and went out again later. Our first stop was the zoo, it is free. I got to feed and pat an emu and pat several wallabies. The birds were beautiful, with albino peacocks, and Australian native birds.  Yes, it is holding my hand. The next morning we went to the Botanical Gardens. I was disappointed as the blurb, on the website and what was there were two dif...

 Well I made it to my 100 books for the Goodreads Challenge,  autually 101 books, with six books for this month and one more to finish. My book for the month was Shakespeare, The Man who Pays the Rent by Judi Dench . This was an interesting read as Judi talks about the Shakespearean rolls she has played in her long acting career. It would be a good read as a companion to studying the plays for the HSC or VCE. I mentioned that I was also going to read a Christmas themed book, I read two. The Christmas Kindness Project by Lily Malone . St in Chalk Hill we have Rosie, a high-flying property manager, returning to the family real estate firm. She is nominated to represent the firm in the Christmas Kindness Project. Add some romance, when she wasn't expecting it and you have a feel good Christmas story. Promise Me This Christmas by C J Carmichael, is book four in her Bramble House Series. Amy and Chet Hardwick are the owners of Bramble House B&B, but mysterious things are happe...

 Every year Jill Ball reminds us to Accentuate the Positive, usually genealogy related, this year Jill has given us a series of prompts to use. Here are my responses. Remember to Accentuate the Positive   2025 Prompts 1.  I treasured, spending time with our family this year, all 10 of us together for our wedding anniversary. 2.  I shared photos and stories with the newly found family. 3.  I travelled; this year we travelled. Started the year with a trip to Victoria and ended the year with a trip to Victoria. In between, seven nights on the Murray Princess, a seven-day outback safari, we got as far as Cameron Corner. Time at Nelson Bay and the Hunter Valley. Other short stays as well. Very few months when we were home for the whole month. 4.  I learnt how to use WeAre.xyz and have put my One-Place Study onto it. 5.  I changed from using Adobe for pdf files and started using I LOVE PDF. Still learning it but I was sick of paying for Adobe. ...

 November was a very slow reading month for me and I only read five books and am still only halfway through the November author.  Talk to the Heart is book #3 in the Rose Hill series. Adeline Walsh decides to leave her home in Rose Hill and  join a convent in Smalltown, Victoria, (not real places). She discovers that the plans God has for her might not be the live of a Sister in a religious order. My November book was Kind of, Sort of, Maybe, but probably not by Imbi Neeme. I'm about halfway through the book and really don't know if I will finish it, (I've read the other five in between starting it and the end of the month.)  I'm curious to know how it ends but... My next two books are set in the fictional town of Wirralong. They are books #2 and #2 of the Outback Christmas series. Book 2 One Starry Christmas Night by Barbara Hanny. Old school friends, Jaxon and Bea, have returned to Wirralong, unbeknown to each other, to help out their grandmothers. They rekindle th...

 15 years ago I started my blogging journey, wow! I'm not a weekly blogger, sometimes I don't even blog in a month and sometimes it's almost daily. My post number 870, including this one. So what have I blogged about;  Well I've done four A-Z Blogging challenges, these are every April and not just for genealogists. Once I did mine in June, because April was to busy for me. While I like doing them I do get 'blogged out' by the end. I've written about going to RootsTech and THE Genealogy Show, state conferences and the 2018 Congress, here in Sydney. There has been Trove Tuesdays, when you find an article that is of interest to you and write a post about it. Some do a challenge 52 Ancestors in 52 weeks, I did 12 Ancestors in 12 months.  In 2019 I did 12 genealogy books in 12 months. There were dozens of posts during the Covid-19 lockdowns, including several on Accentuating the Positive. Every December, Jill Ball invites us to  Accentuate the Positive   (you can...

My October reading was relaxing, with several new authors read and some old favourites, with new stories and a total of seven books read. As usual I read an author with their surname starting with O. This was Richard Osman. I had started We Solve Murders , several months ago and couldn't get into it, so put it aside. A friend had read it and said to persevere with it as it got better. It did and I really enjoyed it. The main male lead is a retired policeman, Steve Wheeler but when his daughter-in-law, Amy asks for his help, he reluctantly agrees to help her. They   travel to some interesting places and end up back in England, and solve the case. His next book in the Thursday Murder Club Series was The Imposs!ble Fortune.   The same group of sleuths are back, with Joyce busy planning a wedding, Elizabeth still grieving and Ron with some family problems and Ibrahim still proving therapy. Throw in a wedding guest being kidnapped, a villain wanting the secret code and yo...

  A true and confusing story about one person and their two names, with other people also having that name, but using another. Confused? Read on. (Disclaimer, all persons are deceased.) Where to start this story, the end, the beginning or random? No matter where I start, you will be confused by the end. Forty years ago, I started researching my family history, especially my dad’s side. I discovered all sorts of interesting facts, dates, and people over the years and this added colour to the family tree. Dad had been married, before he married my mum and with is first wife had three children, Mavis, Leslie, and Patricia. I never got to meet them, nor they me. I did meet Patricia’s husband and some of her children, (I’ve now meet all on them.) Mavis I was able to trace and was in contact with her daughter, June, for several years before she passed and during that time, she gave me information and photos about Mavis and a photo of Leslie. Leslie was the mystery, I couldn’t...

 Having been to the NSW & ACT Family History Conference, several weeks ago, I've been researching names, people and ships. The name, CHASMAR. I've found that is isn't a Hugenot surname, nor is it a Norman one. It is an Early English one, so that is good to know. The people, John Eyde MANNING. Charlotte Chasmar was assigned to his house, Ultimo House, in 1839 on her arrival from Kent. Well by 1841 she had had her first child, with Henry Vaughan, so what happened to her position? From reading through the newspapers, John Eyde Manning became insolvent, not long after she started working for the family. John went back to England in a bit of a disgrace, Charlotte and Henry got together and here I am! The ship, the   Cornwall ,   while I knew the size of the ship, I really wanted to know why 327 people from Kent came out at that time. A search for the ship lead me to a blog on WeAre.xyz and contact with a lady called Heather. She had family come on that ship, too and w...

The year is flying by and I'm still reading heaps. Another eight books this month and two that I didn't finish, more about them later. Well September starts with S, and I had to find an author with the surname starting with S. Enter Trish Stringer and Something in the Wine.   St in the Margaret River wine region of Western Australia it is a delightful read. Keely Mitchell is holidaying in Perth when a medical emergency has her contacting a person she met on the plane to Perth. What follows is a story about family, wine and love.  I then found The Ravenmaster, my life with the Ravens at the Tower of London   by Christopher Skaife. Chris looks after the ravens in the Tower of London. He explains the birds, the history of why they are there and some of the things that happen, surrounding the birds. A wonderful read about a special part of history. Fiona McArthur released her new book, The Lightening Ridge Ladies.  Set in the New South Wales town of Lightening Ridge...

 In my last post  Rabbit Holes, (or Wombat Holes)  I mentioned that I was ordering several transcripts, with the hope of answering questions.  While I was away, at the State Conference, the transcripts arrived, via email. I hadn't taken my laptop, so I just looked at them on the iPad. The three death ones were sad.  Little Peter Barry Galbraith, only 2 died from heart disease, the heartache that his parents must have gone through. William Cameron Galbraith, (my Grandpop's brother) died of stomach cancer. Both his parents are listed on the certificate but not as deceased, which they both were. Eugene Elizabeth Galbraith, nee Martin, (wife of William, mother of Peter) died of  lung cancer. I also ordered William and Jean's marriage certificate. It has William's mother deceased, when it should have been his father.  The mystery is why did Jean change her name to Eugene?  Looking at the births of the first four children, Jean, Geoffrey, Willian and Al...

 With no early morning wake-ups, I still woke around 6.00am. I finished my packing, read and  did my usual things in the iPad. I decided to go for a small walk, before breakfast, near my hotel. Towradgi Creek. Towradgi is derived from the Dharawal word Kowradgi, meaning "guardian of the sacred stones." Back at the club in time for the 9.00am start, the atmosphere was still upbeat, with many conversations taking place, before our M.C., Chris called us to order.  Betty O'Neill was up first with Unlock Your Family's Story: A Writing Workshop. To quote Betty, Everyone has a family story worth telling-what's yours? She talked of using building blocks for stories, like developed characters, using the senses, detailed scenes were just some of them. A writing exercise, for us to get us thinking about our ancestors. I managed about 3/4 of a page and think I will expand it further.    Jeffrey Madsen, gives wonderful talks about using maps and how much they can tell you. H...

 1.30AM, WHOOP, WHOOP, WHOOP, THEN EVACUATE NOW, EVACUATE NOW! Is NOT how one wishes to be woken from a deep sleep. Down three flights of stairs and joined everyone out the front, admiring the variety of 'evening wear.'  It wasn't that cold and it wasn't raining, so not to bad to be outside at that time.  (it seems it could have been one of two things, someone smoking in their room or going out the fire door, either way the $1600 fine, from the Fire Brigade would hurt.) Day Two dawned bright and sunny and this was the main day. Six scheduled talks followed, by the Conference Dinner.  After a welcome from the Lord Mayor of Wollongong, Tania Brown and the Association President, Gail Hanger, the John Vincent Crowe Address was delivered by Dr Richard Reid, Patron of the Illawarra Family History Group Inc. Dr Reid's address was title Fairy Meadow So Far Away: Tales of Lost Illawarra, continuing with the conference theme, They Came from Where? He spoke of his arrival in t...

 Having woken on Thursday morning to more heavy rain, I was not looking forward to my drive, down, either Bulli Pass or Mount Ousley, to Fairy Meadow. By noon the rain had stopped and the sun was trying to shine, by 2.00pm we had blue sky and when I picked up two friends, I opted for the most scenic route, down the escarpment; Lawrence Hargrave Drive and the spectacular  Sea Cliff Bridge.   For more information about the wonderful feat of engineering, see this link;  Sea Cliff Bridge   Friday dawned with blue sky and we adjourned to the Fraternity Club for the first day of the conference, hosted by Illawarra Family History Group Inc.  This was their open day and I was thrilled to see so many non-conference attendees, (those of us with lanyards) there.  The Society had organised four speakers, for the day along with an array of exhibitors. It was wonderful to see so many friends and receive hugs.  The theme for the conference was They Came Fro...

 I have been busy with my One-Place Study, that my own family tree has been neglected. This past Saturday saw me do a Tree Check on my Ancestry tree. I found a strange name and had no idea where she came from, time to dig deeper and find out. The name I had was Lola Jean Galbraith and I had her as a daughter of William Cameron Galbraith and his wife Jean (or Eugene). William and Jean have a daughter Jean Kathleen but here is where it got interesting. Facts I had 1) William was the son of Arthur Galbraith and Mary Ann Grant. Born 17 March 1890.                       2) Little brother to Arthur Alfred Victor Galbraith, born 1885                       3) Married in 1913, Jean Elizabeth Martin.                    4) Had five children, Jean 1913, William 1916, Alfred 1918, Geoffrey 1923 and Peter c1935. In my ...

 I have read seven books this month with a new author, Hira Arikawa being my featured author. I didn't have any books by an author, with the surname starting in A, so I asked a good friend, Wendy and she made the suggestion.  The book she suggested was The Travelling Cat Tails,  by Hira Arikawa. Set in Japan, it tells the story of Satoru and his cat Nana. Satoru takes Nana to visit several friends, with the hope that they will take Nana for him. The story is told from Nana's point of view and you learn about Satoru at different stages of his life, through this journey. Beautifully written but have your tissues ready. 84, Charing Cross Road, by Helene Hanff, was mentioned by a friend, Kerry Farmer and I found my copy and read it. It is a series of letters between Helene and a bookshop at 84, Charing Cross Road. A delightful read. Two more of Jane Bettany's were also read, Murder at Maple Grange and Murder on Bluebell Hill.  Featuring Violet Brewster as the amateur sle...

 The Society of Australian Genealogists ran a five week course on WeAre.xyz, starting in July. I was wary of a new genealogy platform BUT I'm converted. I've been doing my One-Place Study on the cemetery at Mummell for several years and hadn't found the right platform for what I wanted to do, i.e. list and write about the people buried there. This program has given me the opportunity to do just that and I have spent weeks collecting facts and information on the people and entering it into the relevant sections. It has also allowed me to connect people to each other, through creating family trees. I've enjoyed it so much that I've started another study, this one on the Kootingal-Moonbie General Cemetery, but it will take a bit longer to do. This link is to the WeAre.xyz site. you do need an account but it's up to you if you want a paid one.   WeAre.xyz This is the link to the Mummell Cemetery site.   Mummell Cemetery

 In July I started a five week course on the genealogy platform, WeAre.xyz. It is a website that you can create your own family site on or do a One-Place Study. (OPS) I played with the family tree side of it but decided to move my Mummell Cemetery One-Place Study to the site. (more in another post) We also did a six night Outback Safari, going as for as Cameron Corner, where South Australia, Queensland and New South Wales meet. It was by 4WD Landcruiser and was wonderful. We went to places that I wouldn't drive to, because of the roads or the distance. Had a wonderful time, exploring our state. Macquarie Marshes Cameron Corner Mungo National Park Back home and we had to get the red dust out of everything! I have been doing heaps of research into the people on my OPS, did a class on Excel and one on Artificial Intelligence, interesting. August has been, wet, wet, wet, and now it's windy!  I did a talk for the Hawkesbury Family History Group on 13 August on the City of Sydney Ar...

 Since I did the April A-Z Blogging Challenge my blogging mojo has been missing. I've done my book posts but nothing else. May saw Paul and I do a cruise on the Murray River onboard the P S Murray Princess. It was so relaxing, gliding along the river, looking at the bird life and the stunning scenery. Did some shore excursions and wandered around Mannum and Swan Reach. We had time in Adelaide both before and after the trip and caught up with friends. Big Bend Our boat. June was cold and wet, so we stayed close to home and I read, knitted and worked on the family tree.  

 Well the Sydney weather has been cold, wet and windy, just right for curling up with a book. As you know I try and read a book, whose author's surname starts with the letter of the month. Well have three months start with J stretched my author list.  January I did Penelope Janu. June was Rachel Johns, could I read more of their books for July. No, I told myself that would be cheating. This is where it's good to have friends that read and  Deb  recommended a book by Catherine Jinks, Traced. Set in both 2020 and 2015, you soon become gripped by the story. 2020, Jen, a Covid contact tracer, makes a call and the woman on the other end panics. Her partner doesn't like her having visitors or going out, he has her phone and calls several time a day to make sure she is home, how can she explain this. Jen tries to reassure her that something can be done and asks the partners name. Jen  immediately flashes back to 2015, when the same person did the same thing to Jen's fa...