Sommaire pour Spring 2016 de Traces

Whether it’s a treasured family heirloom, a newly discovered historic artefact, or even a long-forgotten everyday object from an earlier decade in our own lives, tangible, physical items can tell us invaluable stories. Simple facts about an object — such as its design, condition and more — can reveal much about its maker, its user and the society in which they lived, like a physical trace of the generations before us. That’s why the Inside History team was so thrilled to learn that the British Museum’s landmark exhibition A History of the World in 100 Objects has come to the National Museum of Australia. From the ancient artefacts of long-lost civilisations to early computers from the 1990s (now there’s a groundbreaking object!), the exhibition tells two million years of human…

Q As a historian on the Great Irish Famine Commemoration Committee, I’m researching the 4,114 workhouse orphan girls who came to Australia between 1848 and 1850, regardless of whether they arrived in Sydney, Port Phillip or Adelaide. I’ve thought for a long time that it would be great to have someone who knows about clothes and fashion history to look at some of the photographs we have of the workhouse orphan girls, to see if they can date the photos or give a suggestion as to whether they were wearing clothes they made themselves or if they were just borrowed for the photo. For example look at Hannah Rafferty (1831–1900). An orphan girl from County Roscommon, she arrived in Sydney on the Digby on 4 April 1849. In 1851 she…

IT IS as the National Museum of Australia (NMA) says, the story of us. Reflecting power and prestige, conquests and downfall, society and secrets. There are everyday objects that show how our ancestors lived, as well as artefacts that represent the power of civilisation: where we have come from, what we have been through, and how we have been influenced by the world around us — and, in turn, left our mark on the world itself. A History of the World in 100 Objects, an adaptation of a widelyacclaimed 2010 BBC / British Museum radio series of the same name, is an exhibition that uses 100 objects from the British Museum’s collection to explore human history from two million years ago to the present day. Now on at the National…

Anne Sherman “Researching your Welsh family history”, page 38 Pre-1860 passenger lists, household schedules for pre-1911 census returns or a book my husband’s great uncle wrote on his family history. Judging from some letters we found we know he got it all wrong, but I would love to see what he was hinting at in his letters! Rhys Cooper “A man of deeds and words”, page 44 Curators at the Historical Museum of the Palatinate in Germany recently considered opening the world’s oldest known bottle of liquid wine from 350 AD. I think that would be a fascinating (and, though unlikely, potentially delicious) chance to savour a taste of history. Melissa Rimac “Chasing Thunderbolt”, page 58 There’s an episode of Mad Men where Don Draper purchases a sky blue Cadillac…

What inspired you to start researching and writing about the early period of Brisbane’s European settlement, and the story of Dundalli in particular? I had read all the criminal trials from the area as part of my doctoral research years ago. Dundalli stood out because there were so many trials relating to him as well as related prosecutions of Aboriginal men that also mentioned him. I found this period fascinating because it was a time of reform and political activism. Many positive legal reforms were taking place; the exception was the criminal justice system’s treatment of Aboriginal men. The final trigger for me was when a history paper was published asserting that Dundalli was a thief and a criminal; it made me realise that historians hadn’t done a very good…

Scanbot Free; iOS and Android compatible If you spend a lot of time researching in the archives, download Scanbot now and thank us later! This nifty app takes high-quality scans using your device’s camera, saving them automatically as PDFs. It comes with a manual outlining the ins and outs, although it’s fairly intuitive to use — even providing on-screen pointers to help you take the best possible quality scan as you go. You can also add multiple pages to the one PDF file. The free version allows unlimited scans, while priced packages offer additional special features like OCR, search, editing tools, and more. In short, Scanbot is a godsend for researchers. Heredis Free; iOS and Android compatible The Heredis app has been available on iOS for a while but only…

1. Trove newspaper database — an extensive and easy-to-use research tool. Most major Australian newspapers are available, as are many smaller, regional publications. Visit trove.nla.gov.au 2. The Australian War Memorial’s digital collection — this online collection offers a wealth of digitally scanned war diaries, photographs and letters, as well as an awards and medals database. Visit awm.gov.au/search/all 3. National Archives of Australia database — the National Archives of Australia’s digital collection holds service records of every Australian who served during the First World War. These service files allow a researcher to view where and how specific servicemen experienced the war. Visit naa.gov.au/collection/explore/defence/service-records/ 4. The AIF Project database — type the name or service number of an Australian First World War soldier into the search engine and you will be provided…

Circus: The Australian Story by Mark St Leon is out now. For more information, email Mark at markstleon@bigpond.com HIS IS my great aunt, Elsie May St Leon, photographed in a New York studio in 1908, aged 24, in circus riding costume. She was promoted that year as ‘one of America’s most accomplished equestriennes.’ Born Elsie May Jones in Sydney in 1884, she was the second child of Alfred Jones and Vernon Ida (née Cousins). They were the starring equestrians in Australia’s leading circus, professionally known as ‘St Leon’s’, which travelled the eastern colonies and New Zealand. Being born into a circus family, Elsie, her siblings and cousins all began training as circus performers at a young age. In Brisbane in 1892, at the age of seven, Elsie made her first…

ANCESTRY • Australia, Newspaper Vital Notices, 1831–2001 • Queensland Immigration Indexes, 1848–1972 • New South Wales Certificates for Publicans’ Licences, 1830–49; 1853–99 • New South Wales Convict Records, 1810–91 • New South Wales Teacher Applications and School Records, 1850–1960 • New South Wales Tickets of Leave, 1810–69 • Norfolk, England, Church of England Baptisms, Marriages, and Burials, 1535–1812 • Scotland Non-OPR Banns and Marriages Index, 1656–1875 • Scotland Nursing Applications, 1921–1945 • Tasmania Convict Court and Selected Records, 1800–99 • Tasmania Despatches of the Governor’s Office, 1823–55 • Tasmania Insolvency and Petty Sessions, 1829–1902 • UK Chinese Maritime Customs Service Index, 1854–1950 • UK Civil Divorce Records, 1858–1915 • UK Emigrants in Bondage, 1614–1775 • UK & Ireland Nursing Registers, 1898–1968 • UK & Ireland Queen’s Nursing Institute Roll of…

DESPITE THEIR relatively small numbers compared to other immigrants, the Welsh had an important impact on the development of Australia. They brought their own unique culture and language which, despite being linked politically and geographically to England, differed from that of the English. Wales has been a protectorate of England since the 13th century. For this reason, most of the Welsh genealogical records are the same as the English records, whereas those of Scotland and Ireland differ in many ways. Many Welsh genealogical records such as probate records, nonconformist records and tithe maps can be found at the National Library of Wales (llgc.org.uk) based in Aberystwyth. The website also has an online search of Welsh newspapers. Welsh names The 1536 Act of Union stated that all official documentation in Wales…