My Bucket List Geneameme

January 30th, 2012

I always like to try any challenge thrown out by Geniaus especially her Geneamemes and this Bucket List Geneameme is no exception. The only difference this time is that I have found it incredibly difficult. Why?

I’ve had a personal bucket list for years and slowly ticking off various things I want to do, places I want to go and so on. Some of those have been genealogy oriented (indeed most of my life has been defined by chasing my ancestors) but I have never really sat down and asked the types of questions in this geneameme challenge.

So it has taken me longer than other challenges because I want to do it all and choosing is really hard. Here’s my final list. I’m looking forward to reading what others have got on their lists. Thanks Geniaus for another great challenge.

The Bucket List GeneaMeme
The list should be annotated in the following manner:
Things you would like to do or find: Bold Type
Things you haven’t done or found and don’t care to: plain type

You are encouraged to add extra comments after each item
  1. The genealogy conference I would most like to attend is… what a tough one for a self confessed conference junkie but if I have to narrow it down it would be between Who Do You Think You Are in London in February or Rootstech in Salt Lake City in the USA – next year I intend to get to one of them, not sure which one yet!
  2. The genealogy speaker I would most like to hear and see is… another tough one as there are so many overseas speakers that I would love to hear in person, but possibly Thomas MacEntee wins this as I have heard him in a webinar and think he probably does a great in person talk (note I am not devaluing Australian or New Zealand speakers but I have been privileged to hear a great many speakers over the last 34 years)
  3. The geneablogger I would most like to meet in person is… three tough ones in a row – one of the really nice things about social media is that it has introduced me to so many great geneabloggers whose blogs I enjoy reading and learning from – picking from a great field (bit like the Melbourne Cup) I choose Dear Myrtle (on an Australia basis I was thrilled to meet Twigs of Yore at a Canberra genealogy expo and similarly Geniaus at Sydney events, plus many others)
  4. The genealogy writer I would most like to have dinner with is… this is very much like the one before but I will plead out as I don’t like dinner conversations as I find it very hard to hear unless it is one on one or no more than four at the table. I was privileged to have a one on one dinner with Dan Lynch during his 2010 trip and it was surprising how wide ranging the discussion was and how much other things we had in common. One dinner is probably not enough!
  5. The genealogy lecture I would most like to present is…. As someone who has probably given thousands of talks over the years to societies and conferences, both in a work and volunteer capacity, I’m not sure what to say here but to give a talk overseas (not New Zealand, already ticked off several times over). That would be a totally different kind of audience with different expectations and needs – I can feel the butterflies already!
  6. I would like to go on a genealogy cruise that visits…. As a veteran of two genealogy cruises in the Australia/Pacific area, I am now looking at some of the overseas ones, either UK or US/Canada as I have ancestors in both areas.
  7. The photo I would most like to find is… Another tough one as there are so many candidates for this one – but making a choice I would go for my Cornish great great grandparents James Henry Trevaskis and Elizabeth Rosewarne. I’m assuming they would be in the photo together but I would also take one of either of them on their own!
  8. The repository in a foreign land I would most like to visit is… Not sure that I classify the UK as foreign so I will go for Norway National and Regional Archives. Although a lot of Norwegian genealogy records have been digitised and are free online!
  9. The place of worship I would most like to visit is… Having been to most places in Australia it would have to be overseas so I will go for the church at Pitton & Farley in Wiltshire where my ancestors were associated with the church for hundreds of years.
  10. The cemetery I would most like to visit is …… Again I have been to most in Australia although my great grandfather Thomas Price’s grave in remote Hightville is still a must do (have recently made contact with someone who will take me out there if I can get myself up to the Cloncurry area of Queensland). Another must do is the cemetery in Harmony, Minnesota in the USA as this is the area where my Norwegian ancestors moved to after they left Norway in 1850.
  11. The ancestral town or village I would most like to visit is…… Another tough one and I’m torn between the various parishes in Cornwall and counties Armagh, Cavan and Wicklow in Ireland. I’ve only ever been to London so seeing more of the UK and Ireland is definitely on the list and will be driven by my genealogy roots.
  12. The brick wall I most want to smash is… What happened to James Henry Trevaskis? He disappears from Copperfield in Queensland and five years later his wife Elizabeth remarries. I’ve blogged about it so I live in hope that he will turn up someday!
  13. The piece of software I most want to buy is…. I’m not a techo person but I do like to try and keep up with what computers can do for genealogy. The idea of my own genealogy website interests me and I do admire Geniaus’s website and use of Next Generation software. Just not sure when I will take the plunge.
  14. The tech toy I want to purchase next is ….. I’m still tossing up whether I need a tablet or not – expect I do but it might mean even more time online and my recent five week trip to places with no internet made me realise there is life away from the computer!
  15. The expensive book I would most like to buy is… I’ve bought quite a few in my time and I’m now in the position of what do I do with them all? We’re moving and I can’t really take everything with me so no more book buying for me. It’s libraries or e-books!
  16. The library I would most like to visit is….. Wow, fancy asking a former librarian that question but I will say the British Library. I didn’t get there on my visit to London as I spent too much time in the British Museum looking at their fantastic exhibits (despite the fact that numerous school groups seemed to have picked the same day to visit).
  17. The genealogy related book I would most like to write is…. Regular readers of my blogs will know that I continue to procrastinate in finalising my various family history drafts. I will do it – someday!
  18. The genealogy blog I would most like to start would be about…. I have two already so I wouldn’t start a third – My Diary of an Australian Genealogist was started to replace my paper diaries so that I could look back and see what I had been doing over the year/s.
  19. The journal article I would most like to write would be about… I have written hundreds of articles and conference papers over the years but in more recent times I have taken to writing about my own ancestors and telling their stories before it is too late.
  20. The ancestor I most want to meet in the afterlife is…. The toughest question of them all but I will have to go with Helen Carnegie, later Ferguson, still later Chick – it took me a long time to find her and there’s still more to find out.


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Surname Saturday Meme: Names, Places and Most Wanted Faces

November 17th, 2011

As a regular reader of Geniaus‘ blogs, I often find myself (lately) doing memes. Sometimes they are created by Geniaus and sometimes she has picked up memes from fellow bloggers. This is one of the latter, and it is a really useful way to advertise the primary surnames we are researching. I have already had considerable success with relatives finding me via my own blogs, so this meme instantly appealed to me.

On his Destination Austin Family Blog Thomas MacEntee has revived Craig Manson of GeneaBlogie’s meme from 2009. Thomas says “Why so? Well this meme actually helps the genealogy blogger create “surname bait” for other researchers to find out on Google and other search engines.”

I’m a bit behind in responding to the challenge as it is a busy (or busier) time for me at present but that won’t detract from the results I am hoping for, which may be next week, next year or even in a few years time. As Geniaus said, it has also made me reflect on my direct ancestors again as it is a while since I revisited some of those lines (having started in 1977) and more recently I have been doing my partner’s families. Plus there are so many more resources available now I really should revisit all family lines.

The instructions for this meme are very simple (although they are US centric) but simply adjust them slightly to include Country, state or county or whatever is relevant for your ancestors.

How The Meme Works

To participate, do the following at your own blog and post a link in the comments of Thomas’ post:

1. List your surnames in alphabetical order as follows:

[SURNAME]: State/Province (county/subdivision), date range
as in:

AUSTIN surname: New York (Jefferson County, Lewis County, St. Lawrence County), 1830-present; Rhode Island (Kent County, Washington County), 1638-1830

2. At the end, list your Most Wanted Ancestor with details!

Shauna’s Names, Places and Most Wanted Faces

Following are the surnames of my Great-Great Grandparents

CARNEGIE surname: Scotland (Angus, Montrose) 1786-1875; Australia (New South Wales, Grafton, Queensland, Brisbane, Toorbul) 1875-present

FAGAN surname: Ireland (Wicklow, Rathdrum, Glasnarget) 1861-present

FINN surname: Ireland (Wicklow, Rathdrum, Avoca) 1841-1882; Australia (Queensland, Brisbane) 1882-present

GUNDERSON surname: Norway (Telemark County, Seljord) 1688-1873; Australia (Queensland, Brisbane) 1873-present

HALVORSDATTER surname: Norway (Telemark County, Seljord) 1811-present

JEFFERS surname: Ireland (Armagh, Portadown) 1844-present

JOHNSTON surname: Ireland (Cavan, Bailieborough, Knockbride) 1803-1861; Australia (Queensland, Brisbane, Mackay) 1861-present

JUDGE surname: England (Northamptonshire, Croughton, Brackley) 1799-present

POLLARD surname: England (Northamptonshire, Croughton, Brackley) 1799-present

PRICE surname: England (Staffordshire, Wednesbury, West Bromwich) 1789-1878; Australia (New South Wales, Queensland, Charters Towers, Brisbane) 1878-present

ROSEWARNE surname: England (Cornwall, St Hilary Breage) 1582-present

SILK surname: England (Staffordshire, Wednesbury) 1740-present

SWEATMAN surname: England (Oxfordshire, Deddington) 1798-present

TITT surname: England (Wiltshire, Wylie, Bishopstrow) 1549-present

TREVASKIS surname: England (Cornwall, St Hilary, Ludgvan) 1698-1861; Australia (South Australia, Moonta, Queensland, Copperfield, Charters Towers) 1861-present

WHITE surname: England (Wiltshire, Pitton & Farley) 1640-1883; Australia (Queensland, Charters Towers, Brisbane) 1883-present

Most Wanted Ancestor: I’ve just recently found mine – Elizabeth JUDGE who was really a POLLARD (story here) but I’m happy to have any additional information on any of the above!


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52 weeks to better genealogy – my WorldCat.org challenge

February 28th, 2010

Amazing how quick the weeks go by when you are enrolled in the 52 weeks to better genealogy challenge. I love doing the challenges, but I am not so good on writing up the results. Challenge 4 was exploring a library’s inter library loan (ILL) policy and how you can use ILL’s for genealogy research. As a librarian I was aware of this and have used it on many occasions in the past. However I looked through some new references on one of my convicts and there is a book I haven’t read so I will be getting my local library to get it in for me.

Challenge 5 was to explore WorldCat.org which I was aware of but don’t use nearly enough. As the challenge said, WorldCat is a massive network of library content that anyone can search for free. Not every library participates but it is still useful for locating which libraries may have a particular book you are after. Then you may be able to request the item on inter library loan depending on where you live and who holds the item. The challenge was to explore WorldCat and see how relevant it is to your own research.

I am researching a Trevaskis family from St Hilary, Cornwall who migrated to Australia in the 1860s so I simply entered the surname Trevaskis into WorldCat. There were 202 results in 42 seconds which is pretty quick. Obviously it picks up any books written by authors with the surname Trevaskis but I was surprised to see Item No 7 by Bessie Trevaskis – A Bush Girl: The Story about Life in the Otway Ranges Between 1897 and 1912 published by the Apollo Bay & District Historical Society in 2001. I know some of the Trevaskis family settled in the Ballarat area of Victoria and I don’t think this is a connection but it is worth checking out further.

Item 12 was Trevaskis – Directory of a Surname by published by AE Trevaskis and RJ Trevaskis in 1973 and I purchased a copy of this book in 1977 when I first started researching my family history. When I entered Australia into WorldCat it told me that there are 4 libraries in Australia that hold it – the National Library in Canberra and the State Libraries of New South Wales, South Australia and Victoria. So if I didn’t have my own copy, I could go along to the SLV and see it. Interestingly I used to work at the State Library of Queensland and I know they had a copy of it but they may not contribute to WorldCat or they have lost their copy. I made a note to explore this further but found the answer at item 16 – SLQ has a copy that was published only in the USA.

I didn’t want to go through all 202 entries so in the Refine Your Search option it said there were 4 in the Biography category so I selected that option, one of which was the Bessie Trevaskis story mentioned above. Other ways to refine the search include Topics, Language, Year, Audience, Content, Format and Author. The family histories were under the topic History and Auxiliary Sciences.

Another surname I am currently interested in is Cree so I tried that and had 27,739 hits which was too many so I added Devon (where the family are from). This returned 9 hits and a reference to the Cree Family History Society which I then Googled. This turned up not only the Cree FHS but a one name study and various other Cree links so lots to explore online now without even having to go to a library.

Because three times proves it, I then searched for Rosewarne, another one of my Cornish families from St Hilary (it helps if the surnames are unusual). There were only 558 results and Item 10 was Romance of the Rosewarnes: An Ancient and Modern History of the Rosewarne Family of  Kadina, South Australia. I purchased this book in 1979 when it was first published. It is held in six Australian libraries – the National Library of Australia, the National Museum library in Canberra, State Library of South Australia, Adelaide University, State Library of NSW and University of Melbourne. So you can see the diversity of libraries that are linked to WorldCat.

There were 17 entries for Rosewarne after refining the search to History topic and most of these were family history related with reference to Canada, Cornwall and Australia. Another short list of books to follow up when I have time!

These three examples show the value of using WorldCat to help identify published books on families that you might be researching. It can also be used to find places and other topics. I searched for Brackley Northamptonshire and turned up 123 hits but all the books were held in the UK. There were 31 Internet references which were mostly photos. When searching for a place you also get references to maps which can be useful.

In short WorldCat is a wonderful place to lose a few hours but the chances are that you will also find some interesting items to assist with your family history research. If you haven’t tried WorldCat you are missing out!


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