Journal of the Richmond-Tweed Family History …...Journal of the Richmond-Tweed Family History Society Inc. Ballina NSW Australia Cedar Lo g The top deck of the Pilot’s Cottage

Journal of the Richmond-Tweed Family History Society Inc.Ballina NSW Australia

Cedar Log

The top deck of the Pilot’s Cottage - in transit!On its way from Ballina to Bangalow.

Back in its early days, this was home to the Richmond -Tweed Family History Society and

housed its research collections.

ISSN 0817-0185 • Free to Members • Issue No. 123 • MARCH 2015

THE

2 THE CEDAR LOG, March 2015 www.rtfhs.org.au www.rtfhs.org.au March 2015, THE CEDAR LOG 3

EditorialPresident’s Message by Robyn Hilan

For the second time I find myself President of our Society and it brings to mind the James Bond movie Never Say Never Again. Whilst challenges are expected, doubtless they will be less dramatic than those experienced by 007! No President can survive without a good Committee and we have an excellent team already working hard on plans to make the meetings for 2015 both interesting and informative. There is a change in the editorial approach to our Journal due to the retirement of our previous Editor Frank Harvey and the difficulty in finding a one-person Editor. Arrangements for our May Seminar with Guest Speaker Helen Smith are well under way with Don Howell at the organising helm. There are other ideas ‘in the melting pot’ which we hope will come to fruition. Our aim is to inspire and challenge you to research – whether by starting on a different line, breaking down an old brick wall, learning to use a new research programme, or bringing order into chaos by writing up your work, whatever: ‘have a go!’The Cedar Log has had a number of Editors over the years; each bringing their unique skill and approach to its pages. Recently we established an editorial team. Carol Donaghey will be responsible for accessing and editing the articles whilst Jackie Chalmers has taken over the actual production of the journal. In addition to proof reading, Dawn Lotty will assist with production as required. In the early stages Carol Brown and I have been involved but our participation is no longer necessary. Please support and encourage the team which is embarking on a new and somewhat daunting experience.In an age where DIY seems to apply to almost everything, including Genealogy, something which I already knew was reinforced in my personal life – the value of belonging to a Group. Being the youngest of the youngest of the youngest child through three generations, when my mother (aged 98) passed away in the week before Christmas I found myself somewhat short of relatives to share the grief. Most of my (few) cousins are in their 80s and do not live in the area. The support from members of our Society was wonderful and brought home to me yet again the fact that we are not just a ‘community of researchers’ but a ‘family of friends’. As family historians the information we can now access through home computing is an enormous benefit, but if we participate in a Society such as ours it is balanced by the face-to-face interaction.I recently looked out my back window to the rooftop of the units behind my house and there in the middle of a line of birds was a ‘frilly’ lizard with his neck stretched up toward the sun. Maybe this year will be the time you find one of your missing ancestors where you least expect to!

ContentsEditorial President’s Message 1 • Death of a Soldier 2 •

Dealings with Queen Victoria 4 • Where the !*!* is Angledool 8 • Conflicting Fortunes of a Family 9 • Our Men at Gallipoli 14 •

Diary of a War 16 • A Love Story 18 • Sikh Indians in Ballina-Teven Area 21 • All in the Family 22 •

Wedding Anniversary Celebrations 24 • In the Loop 25 •FRONT COVER PHOTOGRAPH:

Original RTFHS room on top of Pilot’s Cottage c1985THIS PAGE PHOTOGRAPH:

Sergeant Richard Harold Clay, 53rd Battery, 5th Division, Australian Field Artillery 1915

Richmond-Tweed Family History Society Inc.(Incorporated in New South Wales)

The Richmond-Tweed Family History Society Inc. was established in 1983 to serve the family history needs of researchers with a special interest in Northern New South Wales,

Australia, in the area bounded by the Richmond and Tweed Rivers, often referred to as the Northern Rivers area of New South Wales

Patrons: Hon. Don Page MP, Mr Martyn CH Killion BA

Honorary Fellowships: Mrs Marie Hart; Mrs Audrey Chappell; Mrs Nola Rodey;Mrs Suzanne Warmerdam; Miss Esme Smith; Mrs Jean Cummins; Frank Harvey

President: Ms Robyn Hilan – 02 6686 2592 (email: [email protected])

Vice-President: Mrs Leonie Oliver – 02 6686 3389

Secretary: Mrs Kerrie Alexander – 02 6628 1663 (email: [email protected])

Treasurer: Mrs Bonnie Bennett – 02 6681 5242

Curator and Publicity Officer: Mr Allan Ridgewell – 02 6686 5534

Public Officer and Membership Secretary: Mrs Nola Rodey – 02 6686 3257

Committee Members:Ms Carol Brown – 02 6687 8443; Ms Jackie Chalmers – 02 6625 1898;

Mrs Gwen Clark – 02 6628 7797; Mr Don Howell – 02 6687 4279; Mr Allan Ridgewell – 02 6686 5534; Mrs Nola Rodey – 02 6686 3257

Journal Editor: Mrs Carol Donaghey 02 6618 9458 (email: [email protected]) Assistant to Editor/Production: Ms Jackie Chalmers 02 6625 1898

Assistant to Editor: Mrs Dawn Lotty 02 6687 2442

Research Officer: Mrs Jenny Craddock – 02 6686 4764

Address: 6 Regatta Avenue, Ballina NSW Australia

Correspondence: PO Box 817, Ballina NSW Australia 2478

Website: www.rtfhs.org.auSubscriptions: $35 Individual/$45 Joint membership—1 January to 31 December


Death of a SoldierWinner 2014 Writing Competition: Esme Smith

Bert did not come home from the war. He and his brother Les had tried for many months to get permission from their parents to enlist. Eventually this was given and both enlisted during September, 1915. A significant event in their lives was a recruitment drive at Coraki to encourage young men to engage in military service. This appears to have been the catalyst which led them to sign up. The Coraki Recruiting Committee had organised a meeting in the local School of Arts, but was influenced to change the venue for the meeting to the band rotunda in the local park in the hope of having a wider audience. Local dignitaries spoke passionately about young men enlisting for service to their country and as a result twelve recruits ‘mounted the platform’ offering themselves for service. The group included Bert and Les. The next few weeks were busy ones for the enlisting young men. Various functions were held to say farewell, to offer good wishes and to receive gifts from members of the community. At one such function Bert’s gift was a safety razor, while Les was given a wallet. Bert and Les had both experienced something of army life because they had served as members of the local senior cadets – Bert as Sergeant. Of this training Les stated that, ‘He had had five years’ drill, and found it did him more good physically than hanging round the streets. Personally he would like to see compulsory service introduced’. This too echoed the feelings of members of this Enlistment Committee for at one of their meetings they carried a motion ‘that this Association recommend to the Government the desirableness of immediately bringing about universal training for men between the ages of 18 and 60’. This seemed an extreme measure to ensure that fighting men, particularly 60 year olds, were made available in the war effort. However, at this time, things were not going well for the forces engaged in the war.During March 1916, after a short period of training, Bert and Les returned home prior to embarkation. They sailed on the Star of Victoria on 31 March, 1916, as members of 16/9th Battalion, arriving at Port Said on 5 May 1916 prior to embarking for Marseille, France where they arrived on 28 June 1916.

Now as part of the 49th Battalion, the men found themselves in combat with the Prussian Guard. Sergeant Harvey Gale of that Battalion graphically described a battle which occurred on 13 August 1916,

I have just come through a most thrilling experience one I shall never forget... Suddenly, at 4.53 o’clock on Sunday morning last the order came to charge. We went over the parapet – the whole brigade, save one battalion. A and B companies of each battalion took the first trenches, and C and D companies crossed over and advanced to the second line, and took it. Some 3000 of us were in this memorable charge, and for the first 10 minutes the scene baffles description. The Germans showed plenty of fight. They met us with bombs, and tried all manner of tricks, but our bombs and bayonets were too good for them…

In his lengthy account of this battle Sergeant Gale wrote of the carnage experienced – of the corpses lying around, prisoners taken, the time in the trenches, the friendships ending in death etc. He finished his letter by saying that

At least three Coraki lads were in that wonderful charge – Ptes. Bert Pursey, L. and B. Smith – but I do not know how they got on.

By the end of this encounter Gale was injured, lying unconscious in the trench until dug out by a party from the Battalion. Four mates, fighting beside him in the trench, were killed. This letter written during his convalescence in England told of his amazement at having survived the ordeal. It was during another battle on 5 April 1917 that Bert was wounded in action. He received gunshot wounds to the tibia and fibula of his right leg resulting in his transfer to the 2nd Southern General Hospital, England. The hospital, Bishop’s Knoll, Bristol, was formerly the home of Robert Edwin Bush who made it available to care for injured Australian soldiers. Bush had spent about thirty years in Australia where he had amassed a great fortune. This allowed him to return to England and at the outbreak of war he converted his home into a hospital paying for its upkeep. He made the place as happy as possible providing outings, concerts, pastime activities which were all part of life there.

Continued on page 15


Dealings With Queen Victoria

by Shirley McAnelly In a Newspaper Article in The Times dated March 4 1844, it reads as follows:

We have reason to believe that Her Majesty contemplates, during the coming season, a prolonged residence in the Isle of Wight. Negotiations have, we are informed, been for some time in progress to secure for Her Majesty’s use an appropriate residence upon the coast, so situate that it might afford the means of rapid communication by railway with the metropolis, and at the same time possess those facilities for yachting and aquatic amusements in which Brighton is so eminently deficient. Within the last few days, we believe, Osborne House, near Cowes, the seat of Lady Isabella Blachford, has been selected for the Royal accommodation; and should it be found sufficiently commodious, it will probably taken at first only for a limited period, but with the right to purchase at a fixed price at the expiration of the term. It is hinted that in this case a bill will be brought forward in Parliament, to enable the Crown to dispose of that costly but unsightly fabric, the Brighton Pavilion.

My favourite ancestor is the Rt Honourable Lady Isabella Fitzroy born on 11 August 1786 at St George, Hanover Square, London, England. She is the daughter of Lord Augustus Henry Fitzroy, 3rd Duke of Grafton. Lady Isabella married Barrington Pope Blachford Esquire of Osborne, in the Parish of Whippingham, Bachelor, at Westminster, London on 11 August 1812.There were two children to this marriage, a daughter, Isabella Elizabeth Blachford, baptised at Whippingham, Hampshire, England on 7 December 1813 and a son, Fitzroy Pope Blachford, born 18 September 1814, baptised 17 November 1814 also at Whippingham.

Unfortunately, Barrington Pope Blachford, (Lady Isabella Fitzroy’s husband), Member of Parliament for Newtown, Isle of Wight, Lord Commissioner of the Admiralty and founding member of the Royal Yacht Squadron, died from consumption in his house in Curzon Street, Mayfair, on Tuesday, 14 May 1816. He was the son of Robert Pope Blachford who married Winifred, daughter of Sir Fitzwilliam Barrington, Baronet of Swainston in the Parish of Calbourne.Lady Isabella Blachford was left with two young children and the estate of Osborne House which had in 1705 come into the hands of the Blachford Family through Elizabeth Mann, the sole heiress to the Estates. Elizabeth Mann married Robert Blachford of Sandhill Manor near Fordingbridge in Hampshire on 26 March 1672 at St Edmund’s Parish Church, Salisbury, Wiltshire. Major Robert Blachford, their son and heir, succeeded to Osborne and Merstone Manors. From 1774 to 1781 Robert Pope Blachford, the father of Barrington Pope Blachford, extended and adapted an existing Tudor house into a three storey Georgian mansion with a walled kitchen garden and a brick stable block, the substantial stone foundations of which relate to an earlier building.Osborne, which probably got its name from Osterbourne where oysters were once found, had been occupied since at least 1280 when one, Hugh de Chekenhull held the land. In the 17th century the owner was Eustace Mann, a royalist, who left behind an interesting legacy. The story was that when the Parliamentary army threatened to invade during the civil war, he buried a fortune in the grounds of Osborne but once the threat was over, he was unable to find it again. The area is still known as Money Coppice. The house itself was an imposing building of mainly 18th century design.Osborne House was left by Barrington Pope Blachford on his death in 1816 to his son and heir Fitzroy Pope Blachford but unfortunately he died on 10 April 1840.Source The Gentleman’s Magazine, Volume 13, 1840 Obituary

April 10. At Osborne House, near Ryde, aged 26, Fitzroy Blachford, esq. Nephew of the Duke of Grafton; being the son and heir of the late Barrington Pope Blachford, esq. who died in 1816, and Lady Isabella FitzRoy. He was matriculated a Commoner of Brasenose College, Oxford, in 1832; proceeded B.A. 1836, and M.A. 1839.


Fitzroy Blachford died in a tragic accident at sea on the Solent Strait between the Isle of Wight and the Mainland of England. His death was registered in Kensington & Chelsea where his mother Lady Isabella Blachford lived at the time.Osborne House was left by Fitzroy Blachford to his sister and heiress, Isabella Elizabeth Blachford upon which an annuity was to be secured for his mother, Lady Isabella Blachford; the residue to be administered for his sister.In the Court Gazette of 3 May 1845 page 1129 it is published as follows:

OSBORNE HOUSE – The celebrated mansion, as, it is generally known, was purchased by the Queen last year, but subject to a proviso that, if her Majesty should change her mind, she should be liberated from the bargain by the payment of £1,000. This event actually occurred and in December last the Queen gave notice that she would relinquish her purchase, in consequence of which Lady Isabella Blachford sought for a new purchaser, and availed herself of the ingenuity, rhetoric, and experience of the celebrated Mr. George Robins, to impress its value upon the public mind. An order, however, was received from Windsor less than a month ago, for the disposal of the property to be suspended, if the conveyance was not made, as the Queen had finally determined upon making the purchase.

Osborne House, Isle of Wight

From Google Books – Naked Beneath the Ermine by Angus Thomson:

By March 1845 Queen Victoria could announce ‘Osborne is mine.’

Lady Isabella Blachford, who had finally sold it, had tried to hold out for her full price. Royalty believed then, and still does, that doing business with them is an honour for which people should reasonably expect to be substantially out of pocket. Lady Blachford did not share this view. Prince Albert told Victoria, ‘She must be the most difficult and single-minded woman in Britain. My Private Secretary has been driven almost witless by the greedy woman.’

Lady Isabella had asked for and was promised £31,500.00 for the house and 350 acres of land. On 21 March 1845 she was paid £26,000.00 and told to be grateful, but she was luckier than her neighbours. By the beginning of 1848 Victoria had bought up 2,000 acres, whether the owners wanted to sell or not.

Lady Isabella Blachford, widowed and with an unmarried daughter, her estates deep in debt, was in no position to oppose Queen Victoria when she decided to buy the estates as a home and retreat from the glare of public life for herself and her growing family. The Queen dropped her offer to £26,000.00, less furniture and fittings. This was grudgingly accepted. It would appear that the furniture and fittings remained with the house. Lady Isabella Blachford and her unmarried daughter Isabella Elizabeth Blachford both died at Hampton Court in Grace and Favour apartments granted by Queen Victoria.The Right Honourable Isabella Blachford commonly called Lady Isabella Blachford died at 33 Charles Street, Berkley Square on 11 December 1866. The Effects of her estate were under £18,000.00.The Blachford family is fortunate to have a painting of the original three storeyed Georgian Mansion which Queen Victoria had demolished and in its place built another house in an Italian Renaissance Palazzo style as we know it today. It is interesting that Queen Victoria kept the house name ‘Osborne House’. The property had been known as ‘Osborne House’ for many centuries whilst in the names of the Blachford and Mann Families.

Continued on Page 10


Osborne is situated at the northern point of the lozenge-formed Isle of Wight, in the immediate neighbourhood of East and West Cowes, about 12 miles from Southampton, across the Solent, and about eight miles from Portsmouth.

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Where the !*!* isAngledool?

by Jackie Chalmers

The December 2014 Edition of the Cedar Log contains an article by Yvonne Hammond telling the story of the Commercial Hotel that her late husband’s grandparents, Joseph and Elizabeth Hammond, built at Angledool, northern New South Wales.At the time I read this article, the word ‘Angledool’ leapt off the page at me! For it was the birthplace of my Grandfather – Windsor Charles Dodd .Born on the 10th February, 1882, and like his father before him, Windsor Charles grew up to be a Stockman. He fought in both World Wars and when at home, he worked as a Station Manager at various properties around the Walgett, Moree and Goondiwindi areas.As indicated in the photo below, Angledool is located between the Shires of Walgett and Brewarrina. Not the busy little township it used to be, but the location of a few old buildings and minimal population.And now we know where Angledool is!

Boundary signs at (New) Angledool (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Angledool.jpg)

Conflicting Fortunes of a Family

by Dawn LottyMy mother’s family has all the characters: arsonists, thieves, gold miners, rebels, bigamists and adventurers – and then there’s our shared maternal ancestor Thomas Henry Small, my great, great, great grandfather.It is so easy to like Henry, as he was called, for he is a joy to research, so easy to find, he was a big fish in a little puddle and a man who tried to make sure history did not repeat itself.Henry was born in 1799, the eldest son of John and Sarah Small, farmers in Kilndown, Kent, England, on land that had been in the family for many generations.The ‘closure laws’ made it difficult for the farm to provide for John and Sarah’s family of ten so Henry at 18 took up work as a butcher at nearby Gouldhurst. There is some evidence that Henry fell out with his family about this time.Henry later married 16 year old Harriet Manser in 1822.In 1828 the Kilndown Common was enclosed and the Smalls found themselves in a legal argument with the Anglican Church over a portion of its land. The case went to court and the Anglican Church won, based on insufficient documented evidence that the family did indeed own the land.Meanwhile in NSW, Governor Darling had given a grant of 1663 acres at Brownlow Hill, just a few miles out of the town of Camden, to his Colonial Secretary, Alexander Macleay. In 1835 in Kent, when John Small died – his second eldest son Thomas placed the running of the farm in the hands of a manager while other members of the family worked in mines and factories. At this time the colony of NSW commenced advertising in England for free settlers to occupy the vast countryside opening up around Sydney and Henry and Harriet, who now had ten children, decided that this was where their future lay and sailed for Sydney on board the ‘China’ in 1841.After time in the Sydney quarantine station where their youngest child


died, they found lodgings in Pitt Street south and Henry worked as a butcher. Their eldest son Jesse (my great, great, grandfather) at 15 found work hauling goods from Sydney to the outlying settlements. Henry and Jesse, ever on the look out for suitable farming land, decided on the Camden valley area and the family moved there.Colonial Secretary, Alexander Macleay, meanwhile built a home for his family in what is now referred to as the eastern suburbs of Sydney and no expense was spared. The home was called Elizabeth Bay House and stands today – thanks to the National Trust – and is indeed a stunning building. Unfortunately, Alexander Macleay soon found himself in debt and decided to part with 1000 acres of his land at Brownlow Hill. How he and Henry came to an arrangement where Henry leased this land initially is not clear. Henry had done his homework… not sheep in competition with the MacArthur’s where his son James now worked, or crops subject to drought or disease, but dairy cattle.Alan Atkinson in his Book of Camden wrote:

Henry Small took up the lease on Brownlow Hill bringing with him a wife and family. His farm was one of the biggest estates and he stocked it with dairy cattle. In 1855 he was called a substantial farmer with an extensive dairy while all of his children lived and worked on the farm with their respective partners.

By 1859 Henry had added an extra 1022 acres in pockets scattered across the valley which was owned or worked by his sons and daughters. Ever mindful of what had happened in Kent all 13 children were treated equally. All received the same education, all received the same share of the farm but only as long as they helped farm the land. And what of his family in Kent…The following summary of events was obtained from the Centre of Kentish Studies in the UK and states in part:

On the 23rd December 1873, a grievance that had smouldered in Kilndown for many years burst into flames in a sensational manner. It concerns the land on which the church had been built over 40 years previously and it must be remembered that the consecration by the Archbishop had been delayed some four months because of a legal difficulty well known by the men who took such positive and challenging action on that December day.

It was four o’clock in the afternoon just after old Mary Parrot of Chingley had been buried that the sexton Mr Brown saw four men driving staples into the stone work on either side of the church door. They had stretched a chain across and secured it with a padlock. Realising that this was a situation he could not deal with Brown hastened down the hill past the Globe and Rainbow to notify the vicar. The Revd. Harrison quickly mounted his horse and hurried to redeem his church from the hands of the spoilators. He was confronted by Thomas Small sen, Thomas Small jn, George Small and Hugh O’Neil, a solicitor, who said he had documents proving that the ground on which the church was built belonged to the Smalls. Harrison would have none of this and forcibly ejected the men from the church yard into the road. Perhaps this is what they wanted for the next chapter in this intriguing story took place at the Magistrates Court in the Vestry hall at Cranbrook three weeks later. The Smalls were charged with having unlawfully committed damage. The facts were not disputed on either side and O’Neil handed in some papers which he said would convince their Worships that the church, churchyard and all surrounding buildings belonged to the Smalls. He had attended merely to see that the possession was taken of the inheritance in a legal manner. The Magistrates perused the papers and were quite unable to see in them anything which established grounds of ownership.All four were found guilty and fined 40 shillings plus the payment for the repairs estimated to be 20 shillings.

It is my opinion that a very enterprising solicitor, Joseph Willett, must have offered his services to the Smalls at this stage saying that ‘a lawyer’ had informed him that success turned on the eldest son making a claim in person as the rightful heir.A letter was dispatched from England to Henry by Mr Willett saying that:

there is about 40 cottages and two public houses, a very pretty church with school attached, all built on ‘your ground’ which is worth from 150 000 to 200 000 pounds

and addsI’ve been told by a lawyer that it would be a very easy matter for you to get it.


The letter goes on in a very condescending manner saying that he can understand if all this is unclear to a layman, referring Henry to a solicitor in Marrickville NSW.There appears to be no indication on how the family would pay its legal fees.I am led to believe a meeting was arranged with the solicitor from Marrickville, but at Camden, with Henry, Harriet and their solicitor present. I think at this stage the gentleman from Marrickville realised he was dealing with a highly respected and cluey business couple and not some gullible farmers who would be swayed by a promise of riches. Henry wrote politely to his brother Thomas saying that he would not be coming to England as he had an obligation not only to his family but to the many workers he employed and the businesses that relied on his dairy.A letter arrived nearly a year later from his brother Thomas addressed ‘my dearest brother’ saying that there were two farms that the family had hoped to purchase from the proceeds of the successful court case worth ‘20 000 and 15 000 pounds’ each which ‘can be got with you coming home’ and ends ‘your affectionate brother’. A year later Thomas died but another brother, Frederick, now took up the cause.The Centre of Kentish Studies adds to its article saying that:

the family fell out amongst themselves during this time so bitterly that one branch of the family changed their name to Smale and the wife of Thomas Small, so incensed with the raging bitter family strife, consigned all the family documents to the flames.

The saga in Kent only strengthened Henry’s position that the farms should be passed on to the farmers in the family, irrespective of gender, not just divided between everyone.Henry would have enjoyed reading two articles published in the later part of last century, both showing this practice had been universally adopted for the smaller farms over many generations and to know that almost all of his original land houses the southern section of the University of Sydney Farms, an agricultural research facility and campus that stands at the end of Smalls Road.While not wanting them to sound too good to be true, I always find it amazing how Henry, who died in 1885 and Harriett in 1887, managed to raise a very close family while providing security and financial assistance to their children and grandchildren without any sign of favouritism or petty squabbles – helping them and their partners in starting farms in Goulburn, Young, Cooks River NSW and Ipswich Queensland. They also helped them to pursue all sorts of other business interests, or follies in the case of gold prospecting.So perhaps their family would be their proudest achievement. It is staggering to realise that at current count Henry and Harriett apparently have over 21,000 descendants scattered across NSW and Queensland. I am grateful that many of them are active family historians. Now there is a family reunion worth going to…

The Death of a SoldierContinued from page 5Bert’s leg became septic and he was transferred from Bishop’s Knoll, on 5 July 1917 to the Australian Auxiliary Hospital, Harefield. It was here that he died on 18 July 1917 from chloroform asphyxia and cardiac failure while undergoing an operation. He is one of 114 military personnel who are buried in the churchyard at St. Mary the Virgin, Harefield.It is recorded that his ‘body was borne to the graveside by ward companions’. Bert’s uncle Tom Smith of the George and Dragon Hotel, Marlow, Bucks., attended ‘and expressed his gratification at the funeral arrangements’. The sorrow of family and friends at Coraki and Oakland was personal but they received some comfort by the expressions of sympathy expressed to them. At a Council meeting Coraki Mayor ‘moved that a letter of sympathy be forwarded to the parents from the Council.’ Another moving tribute was the memorial service held at Bert’s church – Oakland Baptist Church. Pastor J. Hunter led the service. It is recorded that Bert’s many friends and relatives attended the service in the little church which was crowded to the doors, and many, unfortunately had to remain without. Pastor Hunter took as his main text John 15:13, ‘Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends’. The tone of the service – from the bible readings, the hymns chosen and the words spoken – told of the esteem in which Bert was held. After his death his fiancée, Coralie Marriott, wrote to Mr. R. Bush, Superintendent, Bishop Knoll Hospital asking about the ‘kind of grave’ he was given. Mr. Bush replied,

I think you may rest assured that this matter was arranged satisfactorily by the Australian military authorities. I know that they take steps to mark the last resting place of every Australian who dies in this country with a stout oaken cross, with the man’s name and regiment on in paint and varnished...

In that same letter Bush wrote,He came in most shockingly wounded in the leg, but he slowly improved until he was, to our regret, transferred to the other hospital. He gained the admiration and esteem of everybody connected with my hospital on account of his manly character, and the great fortitude and bravery he showed so uncomplainingly in spite of the terrible pain...

Bert was the seventh child of Ernest John and Sarah Ann (Bostock) Smith of Oakland, Coraki. He and Leslie were both born in that tiny community. Les continued in the 49th Battalion until his demobilisation on 12 June 1919.

Editor’s note: References were included with this article but have been omitted due to space constraints.


Our MenAt GallipoliContributed by Our Members

William Henry Page Reg No 258, No 4 Company,

1st Divisional Train Great Uncle of Carol Brown

Charles Craig 17th Battalion

First cousin once removed of Kerrie Alexander

Donald (standing) and Leonard Buchanan

15th Battalion First cousins twice removed

of Avalon Hall

Lance Corporal Hector Small

Australian Light Horse Great Uncle of Dawn Lotty Corporal Sidney Aubrey

Killed in action Gallipoli 1915 Great Uncle of Robert Lotty

Corporal Joseph Stratford 9th Battalion A.I.F.

First Cousin twice removed of Brian Batterham

Sergeant Richard Harold Clay 53rd Battery, 5th Division Australian Field Artillery

Great Uncle of Patricia Lovegrove


Diary of a WarTimeline of important events

during the First World War

This special column calls to mind details of the events of the First World War, particularly in this year of the centenary of ANZAC, a milestone of great significance to all Australians.

This Quarter’s World War 1 Diary: 191511 April: British troops in Mesopotamia (covering modern day Middle Eastern countries) fended off a large attack by the Turks against Basra. 22 April: Poison gas was used for the first time on the Western Front as the German 4th Army attacked French positions around Ypres in northern Belgium. The Germans released chlorine gas from over 5,000 cylinders forming poisonous green clouds that drifted toward two French African divisions. Lacking any protection, the French quickly retreated. Casualties in the Second Battle of Ypres totalled 58,000 Allies and 38,000 Germans. 25 April: Allied troops landed on the Gallipoli Peninsula in an attempt to unblock the Dardanelles Straits near Constantinople (present day Istanbul, Turkey) in an effort to reopen access to Russia through the Black Sea. The landing came after a failed attempt by British and French warships to force their way through the narrow Straits. The 70,000 landing troops include 15,000 Australians and New Zealanders. The peninsula was heavily defended by Turkish troops, supplied and trained by Germans. Within two weeks, a stalemate developed as the Allies failed to gain any of their objectives and the Turks began a series of costly attacks attempting to drive out the Allies. 1 May: German U-Boats sank their first American merchant ship, the tanker Gulflight, in the Mediterranean Sea near Sicily.7 May: A German U-Boat torpedoed the British passenger liner Lusitania off the Irish coast. It sank in 18 minutes, drowning 1,201 persons, including 128 Americans. President Woodrow Wilson subsequently sent four diplomatic protests to Germany. 9 May: Following six days of artillery bombardment by over a thousand French guns, the French 10th Army attacked German defence lines in the Artois, advancing toward Vimy Ridge. The French achieved their initial

objective, but failed to capitalise on the narrow breach they created in the German lines. The next day, Germans counter-attacked and pushed the French back.9 May: Complementing the French offensive at Vimy, British and Indian troops launched their second attack against the Germans around Neuve Chapelle in the Artois. However, without sufficient artillery support to weaken the German frontline defences, the advancing soldiers were decimated by German machine-gun fire. The attack was called off the next day with 11,000 casualties.15 May: British and Indian troops launched another attack against Germans in the Artois. The attack was preceded by a 60-hour artillery bombardment. But the troops advanced only 1,000 yards while suffering 16,000 casualties.23 May: Italy entered the war on the side of the Allies by declaring war on Austria-Hungary. The Italians then launched offensives along the 400-mile common border between Austria and Italy. The better equipped Austrians took advantage of the mountainous terrain to establish strong defensive positions along the border. The Italians then focussed their attacks on the mountain passes at Trentino and the valley of the Isonzo River. 31 May: The first aerial bombing of London occurred as German Zeppelins killed 28 persons.12 June: After pausing to regroup, Austro-German troops resumed their offensive in Galicia on the Eastern Front. Within five days, they broke through the Russian lines and pushed the Russian 3rd and 8th Armies further eastward. Russian casualties soon surpassed 400,000.16 June: The French 10th Army launched its second attempt to seize Vimy Ridge from the Germans in the Artois. This time the troops encountered an intensive artillery bombardment from the improved defences of the German 6th Army. The French achieved their initial objective, but then succumbed to a German counter-attack, just as they did in the first attempt at Vimy. The French called off the Vimy offensive with 100,000 casualties. The Germans suffered 60,000 casualties.

23 June: The First Battle of Isonzo began as Italian troops attacked Austrian defences. Initial gains by the Italians were soon repulsed by the Austrians with heavy casualties for both sides. Three additional battles were fought through the end of 1915 with similar results, totalling 230,000 casualties for the Italians and 165,000 casualties for the Austrians.


A Love Storyby Carol Donaghey

This is a story of two of my favourite people – my grandfather, Jack Cronin, born in 1889, and Ivy St Vincent born in 1891.I grew up calling Ivy – Auntie Ivy – although she was no direct relation. However, she became my substitute grandmother and in my mind is more my ancestor than some of the blood relatives.I don’t know how or where they met but in his late twenties Jack proposed to Ivy. She refused him because she considered he was too ‘loud’.Jack resembled a young James Cagney, the American actor. His street corner boxing bouts attracted crowds on Friday nights and he played football with a very early South Sydney team, training at an oval at Waterloo, near Sydney. Jack wore striped blazers and boater hats and was quite flirtatious and popular with the ladies. He was also an above average dancer.Young Ivy was very pretty with long, flowing, dark wavy hair and sparkling blue eyes. She was also determined to have her own way and after refusing Jack’s proposal went on to marry his best friend, Thomas Jones.In 1919 Jack, probably on the rebound, married Florence Evans. They had three children, their eldest child my mother, Pearl. Ivy and Thomas also had three children but Thomas wasn’t suited to married life. He deserted Ivy a number of times and when he was home he physically abused her. When he left her for the last time he filed for divorce. I obtained the divorce papers thinking perhaps Jack may have been named as co-respondent but no, the grounds were Ivy’s desertion!

Rather strange when Thomas was the one who kept leaving. Ivy didn’t contest the case and the divorce was finalised in April 1945, five months before I was born.

Thirteen years earlier, in January 1932, Jack arrived home one afternoon and found Florence in a compromising situation with another man. Their divorce was declared absolute two years later.

Jack struggled to raise his children on his own because he worked as a taxi driver so Ivy and Thomas initially took the three Cronin children to live with their family. It didn’t work out. It was a small home with six children and my mother, seven years old, traumatised and distressed, wet the bed every night. Her brothers were naughty and undisciplined and finally Thomas told Jack they had to go.Jack placed them in orphanages for three years, taking them out every weekend, often to visit their Auntie Ivy and family.Jack and Ivy remained strong friends throughout their traumatic lives and after the divorces they saw a lot more of each other. Their respective children grew up as close as cousins and events in both families always included both Jack and Ivy.In 1945 Jack’s 21 year old daughter, Pearl, was engaged to be married when she discovered she was expecting a baby – me. The wedding plans fell apart and Pearl was distraught. Jack was furious and insisted she would have to leave. Ivy told him ‘If you

Jack Cronin and Ivy Jones

throw her out I’ll take her in.’ A battle of wills followed and Jack gave in.I never knew my grandmother who had gone out of my mother’s life when she was seven. I often asked my Pop why he didn’t marry Auntie Ivy so she could be my real grandmother. When I was ten he told me he had asked her many times but she always refused. I was thrilled that I knew this secret and started taking note of how often he visited her.Every Sunday afternoon Jack dressed up in his best clothes, splashed his face with rosewater and glycerine, and slicked his hair back with Californian Poppy hair oil. He was off to Marrickville to visit Auntie Ivy! It was the highlight of his week and mine too as he sometimes took me with him.Auntie Ivy gave me fizzy drink and iced VoVo biscuits. She made delicious apple pies, date tarts and pumpkin pies. She and Pop just sat at the kitchen table and talked but it was obvious they enjoyed each other’s company.


They both loved dancing and six nights a week Jack picked her up in his car and they went to the Trocadero in George Street, Sydney, Marrickville Town Hall and other town halls following the old time dance bands.A couple of times I went with them and thoroughly enjoyed watching them float across the floor, dipping and swaying to the music.Auntie Ivy was an integral part of our family life and my brothers and I looked on her as our grandmother.The nightly dancing continued until our family moved from the city to Greenacre, near Bankstown. There we hoped for a visit from Auntie Ivy whenever her son, Harry, could bring her.Jack maintained his weekly Sunday visits to Marrickville until 1962 when he stopped driving and signed his car over to me.Harry had been saving for years to build a house for his mother. In the late 1960s he finished a large two story house at Bonnet Bay in the Sutherland Shire but by the time it was completed Ivy was 79 and very frail. She had developed a serious liver condition and eventually needed full time care in a nursing home.In 1970 Jack had the beginnings of dementia but in his clearer moments he loved nothing better than to talk about the past and his dancing days with Ivy.Jack died of heart failure on 8 March 1971. He was a fortnight away from his 82nd birthday.My mother and I visited Auntie Ivy in the nursing home two weeks after his funeral. Ivy hadn’t uttered a word for months and was in a semi-comatose state most of the time. That day when Mum and I walked to the end of the bed Ivy’s eyes snapped open. She looked at us and said ‘How’s Jack?’Intuitively it seems she knew something had happened. Ivy died on 4 March 1973, two years after Jack and six weeks after my mother who was only 48 when she passed. Three people whose lives were intertwined.Call me a romantic but I am totally convinced that Jack and Ivy loved each other deeply. Their love lasted over 60 years.After Jack’s death my mother gave me a box with his few treasures – his black bow tie he wore to dancing; his cufflinks, and a rose gold, heart shaped locket. Inside the locket are two photos – one of his mother and one of Ivy as a young woman with her long, dark hair cascading down. What more proof do I need!

Sikh Indians in Ballina-Teven Area

by Margaret and Rosemary Playford

Recently we were given a bundle of brochures to take to the Alstonville Plateau Historical Society for safe-keeping. Amongst them was the booklet published in 1982 to mark the Lennox Head Public School Centenary. An article on page 44 caught our eye – Hindus of North Creek. In the early days of settlement on the Northern Rivers, all the new settlers coming from sub-continent India were known collectively as Hindus, even though they were all Sikhs and the men all wore wonderful turbans – a great fascination for small children.

Margaret and I recalled the various members of the Singh family that our family knew at Byron Bay. Old Ram Singh was the leader of the Sikhs, a dear old man who lived a very long life (he was 106 years old at the time of the Lennox Head School centenary in 1982). At one time old Ram Singh lived on the Hayter’s property at Coopers Shoot, on land he rented from them. He used a horse and cart to sell fruit and vegetables in and around Byron Bay. We grew up in Byron Bay in the 1930s and early 1940s and clearly remember this dear old man with the kind face coming to the house with his produce.

Later, Ram Singh lived with his third wife in a ‘Hindu’ settlement at Teven Creek where the Hindus had small market gardens. Ram sold his wares in Ballina, Tintenbar, Fernleigh and Pearces Creek from his canvas topped dray.

If anyone is interested in finding out more about the Sikhs, contact the Alstonville Plateau Historical Society at Crawford House Museum, 10 Wardell Road, Alstonville, as they hold other files and photos in the Resources Centre.

Ram Singh


All in the FamilyNews From Within the Society

by Marie Hart

Welcome to the first issue of The Cedar Log produced by our new editorial team – Jackie Chalmers, Carol Donaghey and Dawn Lotty, who say they will be on a steep learning curve as they follow twelve splendid issues edited by Frank Harvey, who can now take a well earned break.Our Christmas meeting, with the now famous annual quiz devised this year by Carol Brown, created lots of laughs and considerable cheating! Several members also entertained us with their childhood Christmas memories and the annual $100 raffle was won by lucky Jenny Maley. After Alf Clark again led us in joyfully singing We Wish You a Merry Christmas, we tucked into a traditional afternoon tea which included many of Anna Wutte’s rich and delicious Austrian delicacies.On 23 December many members expressed their deepest sympathy for our President Robyn by attending the funeral of her adored mother Iris, who died on 18 December. We were also saddened to hear of the death on December 5 of Molly Gilmore, Esme Smith’s much loved sister. In late December we learned that former member Kevin Goulding had died and our thoughts were with Kevin’s wife, Dawn, and then with Margaret Fryer, whose husband Greg died on 4 January 2015.Happier news was the birth in November of Kerrie Alexander’s granddaughter Isabella and also the 60th wedding anniversary of Alex and Myra Arrighi. Judy Riley and Meryl Broadley enjoyed the discovery of a common ancestor in Yorkshire and Leigh Wilson recently had a great holiday in South America. Patricia and Graham Lovegrove, appeared on the cover of Genie Allergy’s December issue in celebration of their continuous 25 year membership of the Coffs Harbour FHS as well as ours.Joan Fraser was seen singing with The Silversmiths at the Remembrance Day service in St Mary’s Anglican Church in Ballina, while Audrey Doman regularly calls the Bingo numbers at St Andrew’s Nursing Home. A former member, Jean Ison, held a delightful garden party at her home in Norton Street to aid Syrian refugees and among various displays was a book of photographs depicting another earlier member, Betty Diggens, with her exquisite collection of dolls which she collects,

mends and dresses. Our members are active in so many other community organisations.Lady Teviot was the eloquent speaker at our all day Seminar on 22 November when she kept us entertained while imparting so much useful information, including the astonishing fact that in Norwich, Norfolk there were 660 parishes! Frank Harvey was the organiser, members provided lunch and Leonie Oliver and Carol Brown made endless cups of tea and also washed the dishes! The next Seminar will be on 16 May with another well known genealogist Helen Smith, so be sure to note the date. Robyn Hilan and Leonie Oliver have delivered their excellent talk on Wills at the Casino and District FHG.While seeking some information for Frank in our five Society Scrap Books in the MHL, I came across a photo of the removal of the former Pilot’s Cottage where we occupied a miniscule room at the top of a very steep staircase when we began many moons ago, and there it is sitting comfortably on the tray of a small truck – see front cover! We’ve certainly come a long way since those early beginnings.

New Membership from Membership Secretary, Nola Rodey

We are pleased to welcome the following new members who have joined our Society within the past few weeks:

951 Jill Hunter Unit 20/136 Cherry Street, Ballina NSW 2478, Ph: 0413 072 724

952 Sharon Cooke & Mark Manion PO Box 7024, East Ballina NSW 2478 Ph: 0404 187 588

Margaret and Rosemary Playford Christmas Luncheon 2014


In the LoopFrom the Media…

by Marie Hart

A new book on Mullumbimby NSW history has been published and is the fourth of a series by Peter Tsicalas titled Mullumbimby: Growth & Grief 1948-1968 (www.mullumbimbymuseum.org.au) and Susan Tsicalas of the Brunswick Valley Historical Society received a Heritage Grant ‘to create a documentary film on the counter culture revolution movement on Mullumbimby and its surrounding valleys. This will explore the impact that the influx of hippies in the early 1970s had on the area’ (RAHS History, December 2014).In the Hawkesbury FHG’s September 2014 issue of The Hawkesbury Crier was an invitation to any researcher with an enquiry about a Hawkesbury family or a local history question to freely contact the Local Studies Librarian, Michelle Nichols, Deerubbin Centre, 300 George Street, Windsor 2756 or email [email protected]. Rosemary Abbey, President of the South Gippsland Genealogical Society wondered in her Christmas message if you have discovered all your ancestors yet. She has calculated that over five hundred years we may be descended from 2,097,152 individuals. You may like to check her sums!If you’ve found ancestors who sailed on a voyage to Australia on The Champion of the Seas (the largest sailing vessel to have entered Port Phillip Heads), signed copies of Rod Fraser’s book are available (page 15, Ancestor, December 2014). There is much good reading, whatever your interests, in The South Australian Genealogist for November 2014 and wise words from Dale Johns, President of the SA Society who stated that ‘for those members who formed this Society some forty years ago, the current environment could never have been envisaged. For those starting today, the next forty years will be just as interesting, as long as we embrace the changes’.Irish descendants should see the advertisement in Irish Roots No 92 for the Official Certificate of Irish Heritage from the Government of Ireland, or go to www.heritagecertificate.ie. Congratulations to Glamorganshire FHS and West Surrey FHS which have celebrated 40th Anniversaries.

Wedding Anniversary Celebrations

by Carol Donaghey

Congratulations Myra and Alex Arrighi who celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary on 27 November last year.

Myra and Alex are long term members of the Society (Myra is member No 27). Myra has served the Society well in voluntary roles helping with research room duty, seminars, teas, raffles and trading table and as a Committee Member and as Special Projects Officer. Alex fulfilled a welcome role as Hon Auditor for seven years.

Both of these busy people were also accomplished athletes, competing in Olympic trials – Alex for Helsinki in 1952 and Myra for Melbourne in 1956.

Together they have travelled widely to find present day descendants of their families and to visit those places where the families originated.

Photo by permission of Advocate Newspaper

Many good wishes to them both from their friends at the Society.

A reminder to all members that membership fees are now due $35 single and $45 joint. Unfortunately no further journals will be sent to members who remain unfinancial so if you have overlooked your renewal

due to the holidays please make prompt payment so you can continue to read all the news from the Society.


Berkshire FHS has had to cease exchanging journals with our Society. In the December Dorset FHS journal a member was asked how he was introduced to the Society and the opening words in his reply were ‘I was never interested in my family tree until there was no one left to ask’. I’m sure many of us could say the same thing, so you could perhaps use that example in telling interested friends about our Society and the help available should they join us. A Chinese proverb suggests that the best time to plant a tree was twenty years ago and I think that applies similarly to family trees.If your surname happens to be Morgan, Kidd, Teach, Rackham, Bonny or Read, you could be the descendant of a real-life pirate. In Coast Magazine of November 2007 it was reported that English Heritage has delved into Britain’s swashbuckling past and discovered the background of many a buccaneer. Now that would really put some zing into your history!

Journal Gleanings

AustralianOrigins Queensland Railway Station Names The Gazette, Nov 14Lucy OSBURN & Nightingale Nurses in Sydney Footsteps, Nov 14A Taste of the British Raj Progenitor, Sept 141894 & 1897 Women’s Suffrage Petitions Online Qld Family Historian, Nov 14Northern Ireland BDM Records Online Time Line, Nov 14Report 30th Conference NSW & ACT FHSs Ances-tree, Nov 14Naming Conventions of Sri Lanka Family Ties, Dec 14British Merchant Seamen Medals Family Ties, Dec 14 To England in an Instant (Google maps) The Crossing Place, Dec 14Discovering My Ukrainian Ancestry South Aust Genealogist, Nov 14 Do You Have a New Zealand Connection? South Aust Genealogist, Nov 14Ancestry App Launches with New Features Illawarra Branches, Dec 14NSW Teachers’ War Service goes Digital Kith & Kin, Dec 14DNA Tests in Genealogy (4 articles) Ancestor, Dec 14A-Z for Tracing Missing Ancestors (excellent guide) The Ancestral Searcher, Dec 14

OverseasTinplate Workers of South Wales WDYTYA, Aug 14Medical Ancestors WDYTYA, Aug 14School Registers Go Online Roots and Branches, Dec 14Adoptions Can Now Be Traced The Midland Ancestor, Dec14 Royal Air Force Memorial in Berkshire The Midland Ancestor, Dec14Life of a Deaf Child in Late 19C Oxfordshire Fam Hist, Dec 14 MELLINGS Shropshire England & Sydney Australia Shropshire FHS, Dec 14Hints & Tips to Your Shetland Ancestry Coontin Kin Yule, 14Crew of SS Rubislaw 1914 Aberdeen & NE Scot, Nov 14

eJournalsThe following journals are now received as eJournals and may be read in the Marie Hart Library on the alpha computer. If they are from the area you are researching you may well find information that will not appear elsewhere, so do check them out.AustralianBerrima District Historical & FHS Cairns & District FHS Central Coast FHS Descendants of Convicts Group Dubbo & District FHS Echuca/Moama FHG FHS of Rockingham Districts Goondiwindi & District FHS Inverell District FHG Inverell Genealogical & Historical Society Ipswich Genealogical Society Kiama Family History Resource Group Leeton Family & Local History Society Maitland & District Genealogical Society Manning Wallamba FHS Maryborough FHS

Port Stephens FHS Raymond Terrace & District Historical Society Wyong FHG Young & District FHGOverseasBrant County Branch Ontario Genealogical Society Bedfordshire FHS Bristol & Avon FHS Chesterfield & District FHS FHSociety of Cheshire Felixstowe FHS Hillingdon FHS Ormskirk & District FHS Suffolk FHS


Recent accessions into the Marie Hart LibraryAllan Ridgewell

Profile of the Anglican Parish of Epping – St Alban’s & St Aidan’s (I–243) First Light on Limestone Plains: Errol Lea-Scarlett &Tim Robinson (E–12) ‘Cop This’ Policemen of the Shoalhaven 1852–1977: Lee Mills for The Shoalhaven Historical Society Inc (N–21) 100 The Nowra Lockup 1901-2001: Robyn Florance for The Shoalhaven Historical Society Inc (N–22) Yalwal Gold: David Glasson (HNSW–284) Old Sydney Burial Ground: Compiled by Isobel Manning (C–99y) Convict Life in Australia: Publisher Paul Hamlyn (K–64) 70 Years The Alectown School 70th Anniversary Committee (Hnsw–285) St Carthages Cathedral: Lismore Diocese Chancery (Rz–16) A Community at War: Compiled by Ballina Shire Council (Wz–4y) 1875–1975 Centenary of Education at Tucki Tucki: Tucki Tucki P & C Association (Sz–150) Australia’s Fighting Sons of the Empire: wholly set up by Babylon & Co Ltd Sydney (Waust–50LY)

Computer Corner – March 2015Carol Brown

www.discoveringanzacs.naa.gov.auDiscovering Anzacs. The National Archives of Australia and New Zealand Archives have joined forces to create a new website called Discovering Anzacs. The objective is to create a profile of every Anzac who enlisted in WW1, complete with their service record. People can also contribute their own personal family stories and photographs as well as help transcribe war diaries. Free site.www.spirits-of-gallipoli.com If you have a family member killed at Gallipoli, check the site Spirits of Gallipoli. This project is about the 7,249 men of AIF who are either buried or commemorated at Gallipoli. Every soldier is listed with date of death, headstone photo, next of kin and any other available information. There are also family trees for 1465 soldiers. Free site.www.aif.adfa.edu.auAustralian Anzacs in the Great War. This official AIF projects lists all Australians enlisted in WW1. Listed are enlistment details, next of kin, medal details, burial details for those who died, citations and much more. Free site.

Research Facilities: The Marie Hart Library is located at 6 Regatta Avenue (behind Ballina Library). Our research library is open on the first Saturday of the month from 10.00 am to 12 noon; Monday, Wednesday & other Saturdays from 10.00 am to 4.00 pm; closed on all public holidays. The society is able to do small research searches for a fee of $10.00 per hour.Correspondence, Enquiries & Research Requests: Richmond-Tweed Family History Society Inc., PO Box 817, Ballina NSW Australia 2478. Please include research fees where applicable and a 22 x 11 cm SAE for reply, if required. Family History Records: The society holds numerous records for Local Schools Admission Registers, Cemetery Records, Burial Records and Honour and Memorial Rolls for many locations in the Northern Rivers area of NSW. These are available for research in the Marie Hart Library during regular opening hours. Please direct any enquiry you may have about these resources to: Richmond-Tweed FHS Inc., PO Box 817, Ballina NSW 2478Computer Availability: A wireless-connected laptop computer is currently available for the use of members in the Marie Hart Library at Ballina. Members who require assistance in using computers for genealogical research purposes may contact Carol Brown on 02 6687 8443.

Journal of the Richmond-Tweed Family History Society Inc.Published March, June, September & December

The society does not accept responsibility for opinions and statements published by individual contributors. Original material in this journal may be reproduced, with acknowledgement, by other

societies or groups concerned with the study of family history or with written permission from the society.All contributions should be sent to: The Cedar Log, PO Box 817, Ballina NSW 2478

Email: [email protected] society invites the comment, correspondence and further contributions

from members and other readers of this journal

Cedar Log

The editors would be pleased to accept articles for inclusion in the Cedar Log journal. Ideally they should be sent by email to the editor but typed hard copy is also welcome. The format preferred is Times New Roman font; 12 point; single spacing.

Please add your contact details as the editors may need to discuss with you any editing, abridgement or deferral to a future date of any material submitted for publication.

It is your responsibility to ensure that your article does not infringe copyright. Items remain the copyright of the Richmond-Tweed Family History Society and the author.

Your input is important and makes for interesting and diverse reading for our mem-bers as well as to the other readers of our journal throughout Australia and overseas. We would love to hear about how you broke down those brick walls or any interesting information you have found out about an ancestor, so get those fingers typing!!

32 THE CEDAR LOG, March 2015 www.rtfhs.org.au

Society meetings are held at 2.00 pm on the first Saturday of each month (except January) at the Players Theatre, 24 Swift Street, Ballina – unless otherwise advised

DATES TO REMEMBER

Saturday 7 March 2015: Subject: ‘Not Just Trove’. Coordinated by Leonie Oliver.

Tuesday 7 April 2015: The RTFHS Writers’ Group meets on the first TUESDAY of each month – at 1.00 pm – at the Marie Hart Library. Phone Group Leader Joan Fraser (6686 9664) for further details.

EASTER WEEKEND: Friday-Monday 3–6 April 2015 – Members Meeting deferred until:

Saturday 11 April 2015: Subject: ‘Discovering your Anzac Ancestors and AWM Archives’. Guest speaker: Robbie Braithwaite.

Saturday 2 May 2015: Subject: ‘Wardell – Murder Central’, Guest speaker: Kevin Oliveri.

Saturday 16 May 2015: SEMINAR: Helen Smith. Topics include: Australia: They Went to Australia and Now Can’t Be Found; How DNA can be used to solve Genealogical Puzzles; Nobblers, Cracksmen, Coiners and More: researching criminals in England; and Searching the Internet Effectively.Saturday 6 June 2015: Queen’s Birthday Weekend Subject: ‘Old Maids and Bachelor Boys’. Coordinated by Robyn Hilan.

Saturday 11 July 2015: Subject: ‘The Oddity of Expressions used in Old Newspapers’. Guest Speaker: Elaine Fragar.

Saturday 1 August: RTFHS AGM , followed by a presentation on Find My Past from RTFHS member Don Howell.

MEMBERSHIP

Membership fees are now due for the year 1 January 2015 to 31 December 2015. $35 Individual/$45 Joint Membership. No further journals will be sent to non-financial members after this March edition.

SOCIETy EVEnTS

Documents

Journal of the Richmond-Tweed Family History …...Journal of the Richmond-Tweed Family History Society Inc. Ballina NSW Australia Cedar Lo g The top deck of the Pilot’s Cottage