Our GSV Writers Circle met this week by Zoom.

In theory all this isolation has been useful for writers - no distractions, except grandchildren, concerns for overseas friends and family, home-schooling,and a worrying news cycle.

Tina Hocking reports below on the Writers' successful Zoom and Penny Mercer reflects on what the GSV has given her over the years.

***

With a members' submissions session scheduled, two pieces of writing were emailed to the group in advance to allow time for pre-reading and review before the main discussion.

Although attendance at GSV based meetings is usually around 20, we have 88 email members, so some organisation was needed. Twenty participants, including the host and the two submitters, seemed a manageable number, allowing time for everyone to have a turn speaking and for each submitter to respond to questions arising. 

Meeting etiquette - phones off and other distractions minimised - had already been covered, and participants were asked to enter the waiting area 10 minutes beforehand so the meeting could start on time. Places were allocated, via email response, a couple of days earlier on a 'first in first served' basis.  Members unable to attend the virtual meeting still had the option of participating by email.

Most present had attended a Zoom meeting before and knew what to expect, but some encountered problems entering the meeting, or with audio/visual access, so we were a  little late starting. Most of these issues were later ironed out by GSV's technical help, Rod. One participant later reported that although we could not see or hear her, she had missed none of the proceedings. 

The meeting progressed in an orderly fashion with Rod switching between speaker and gallery view as required. Host, Louise, ensured that every attendee had an opportunity to speak and that both submitters had time to answer questions. There were minor delays moving between speakers, and the repetition of comments ate into the allocated time, but a tighter schedule and more succinct responses in future meetings should minimise this. 

Having attendees email their reviews after the meeting enabled everyone to focus on the discussion rather than trying to take notes.

All present declared the afternoon a success and voted to continue getting together via Zoom for as long as the GSV remains closed. Our thanks go to Louise Wilson and Rod Van Cooten for getting us up and running.

Tina Hocking- GSV Writers Circle

***

Penny reflects on the GSV

'I think it was about 1984 when I first joined the GSV. I was instantly hooked. Back then microfiche was high tech and I was amazed at the interesting resources they had in their library. I devoured Ancestor magazine as soon as it arrived.

A few years later I volunteered to help out in the library and made lots of friends. I learned heaps of stuff at the regular talks held at the GSV, taking a tram in my lunch hour from my work to attend these events.

Some of you might remember me working on the front desk at the GSV for a while, back when it was at Curtin House in Swanston Street. In those days the hot new resource was the IGI database. GSV handled bookings to access it at SLV.

Then in March 2004 the GSV supported me in the creation of what might be the longest running family history writing group in Australia. Today our group will have its first test run using Zoom, provided to us by the GSV with support from other volunteers. 

The coronavirus is hurting the GSV just as it's hurting other parts of our economy. Like the rest of us, the GSV is adapting, but new ways of doing things need resources.

I don't know how to measure the value that I've got out of the GSV over all this time, but I've had a go and made a donation. I hope lots of people support the GSV during this difficult time.

If you want to help, there's a link here to donate: DONATE HERE'

***

GSV opens its Fundraiser Campaign

'Help us Keep Making History'

This month we launch a call for donations, to help us cover our operating costs in this tough time.

We have had to cancel our events and classes and close our Library, but at the same time have moved many services online for our members.

To keep you up-to-date and bring you interesting things from the world of genealogy we have:

• podcasts,
• databases access from home,
• an online forum for members to help each other,
• this blog and Facebook site, as well as our
• Quick Lookup service for members 

We launched a digital flipbook edition of our journal this month, and now we are also doing Zoom sessions with our groups and circles.

You can read more about our situation in the June issue of Ancestor that has just come out (members can access this on our website).

But we need your help.

You can assist us to reach a target of $10,000 by the end October by donating via our website or click on DONATE HERE.

The last four months have shown us how much we need to support each other and how our arts and community organisations make our society richer and more resilient.

Help us to help you.

Just as so much of our family history resource material is now online, so the GSV has been using these 'distancing' times to develop its online delivery of services.

We can be thankful that our new ways of working will spare us from "THE INHALATORIUM" - which was used to give 'Kodak' employees protection against the influenza epidemic in 1919, as this newspaper article described (Australasian, 15 February 1919):    

THE "INHALATORIUM" IN USE.

The Kodak Company has opened an inhalatorium as a means of protection of its employees against the influenza epidemic. The chamber at present in use will accommodate 20 persons at a time. It consists of a raised structure 16ft. long, 2ft. wide at the bottom, and 2ft. from the apex of the gable to the base, which is left open. In each sloping side of the roof there are 10 oval holes, about 6in. by 4in., under 30lb. pressure, carrying sulphate of zinc in solution, is then released into the box from sprays in a pipe running along the base, and the people receiving treatment breathe it in. It disinfects their throats and air passages. This treatment is administered twice a day for about four minutes at a time.

"A MODEL INHALATORIUM IN MELBOURNE." The Australasian (Melbourne, Vic. : 1864 - 1946) 15 February 1919: 50. Web. 31 May 2020 <http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article140218675&gt;.

Though our library remains closed for the time being, we are bringing our services to you. Access to databases, podcasts and webinars are available for members from home. Our journal for June has been delivered for the first time as a flipbook via our website. Members are starting to use the membershelpmembers forum to ask others for advice about their research and now various groups are meeting using Zoom. 

Scottish Assistance Day 'in the library' was very successfully delivered at a distance by John Blackwood. John reported that:

The whole thing went extremely well. Normally, I would have up to about three people come into the library for Scottish Assistance day, but there has been the odd time when no-one came in. I reckoned I could do it online, so we advertised it for 30-minute time slots for the day. It was booked out within a day. So, I opened a second day, and that too was booked out straight away. In total, I assisted 12 people variously using Zoom, Facetime, and Skype. Everybody said they got something out of it. Most of them rarely, if ever, come into the library; one lady lives in Canberra. Most of them wanted it to happen more often, including a request that we do it for Discussion Circles. 

The London Discussion Circle last week 'met' on Zoom and the Writers Circle is plunging online this coming week to discuss recent writing by two of its members. Writers can be big talkers too (but there is a mute button!)

This way of working could help reduce our office rental costs in future! Though I am sure small groups of us may still meet for a coffee without mute buttons!

Tomorrow we launch our APPEAL FOR DONATIONS.

We need your help.

DONATE HERE PEASE.

***

Image: Museum Victoria Courtesy of Kodak Australasia (unknown photopgraper) . MM 140271

The March edition of the GSV's award-winning quarterly journal Ancestor is now out.

Members will receive it in hard copy by mail or can read it as a flipbook or a PDF in the Members Area of our website, thus saving paper and running costs for the GSV.

Back copies are also available via the website - helping you with your home de-cluttering!

' In the March 2021 we open with the runner-up from last year’s Writing Competition, Susan Wight’s article about her Webster forebears who made soda water in a number of locations in Victoria and southern New South Wales. Also included is one of the short-listed articles from 2020 and one from 2019. Bernard Metcalfe tells of the hard but eventful life of Jane Hughes and her family on the gold diggings of central Victoria in the 1850s to 1880s. Claire Dunlop invites us to consider how the life of her ancestor worked out after a most disadvantageous start.

We also feature the first two articles in a series on female publicans. Leonie Elliss writes about her widowed ancestor Mary Delany who successfully ran both a hotel and a drapery store in the former mining town of Gordon. Margaret Vines speculates on what prompted the widowed Johanna O’Donnell to take on the licence of the North Fitzroy Arms hotel.

Have you ever wondered whether to use the word baptism or christening? In our back page feature, Robert Gribben, explains the origin of the terms and how any perceived differences may have arisen.

Phillip Crane’s ‘DNA News and Notes’ explains how he needed to use conventional genealogical research techniques married to his autosomal DNA results to make sense of the true relationship to one of his ancestors.

Senior New Zealand genealogist, Bruce Ralston has generously prepared this issue’s ‘How to’ article on researching your New Zealand genealogy. It is a very comprehensive article and is sure to be referred to frequently. We particularly thank Bruce for this important contribution.

Submissions for Members Queries have been diminishing over recent times, so we have decided to discontinue this page. We advise members to use the forum membershelpmembersto get help with their queries.

Finally, be sure to read the President’s report about our new home. This is an exciting new development and we are looking forward to being able to visit, but please check the website for Covid-19 restrictions.'

- Barbara Beaumont, Ancestor Editorial Team

Entries are now invited for the

2021 GSV Writing Prize.

Closes 4 pm 27 August 2021.

You too may be published in future Ancestor journals.

Purpose of the Prize

• to encourage the writing of family history 
• to provide an opportunity for recognition and publication
• to publish the winner as an example of quality family history writing

You can see details about the Prize on the website under 'ANCESTOR' here https://dev.gsv.org.au/gsv-writing-prize

The Prize was first awarded in 2013. Past winners are:

2013    Kath McKay: Finding Shakespeare in family research

2014    Anne Cavanagh: Elizabeth and the Doctor elope: the story of Elizabeth Ware

2015    Marilyn Fordred: Every photo tells a story     

2016    Emma Hegarty: Finding Mary Jane

2017    Helen Pearce: Thomas Owen: the skeleton in the family’s closet

2018    Helen Pearce: Daniel Elphinstone: his son’s secret exposed

2019    Louise Wilson: Masters of the Road

2020   Brian Reid: 'Tom were the naughty lad'.

The Judges's report on the 2020 Prize is available on the website to help you think about your entry this year.

There is plenty of time between now and August. But it is important not to leave your writing to the last minute, as it will benefit from having time to review and reflect on it, before your final rewrite.

Happy reading ... and writing!

Don't forget there is no family history without the writing part.

Great news!

The GSV Centre has now moved to

Level 1, 10 Queen Street, Melbourne

and we are delighted with our new home.

As you can see we are still finishing the unpacking, but the library is ready for members to come in again on Tuesday next week (March 2). An email explaining our safe reopening procedures is being sent to all members.

Because of Covid requirements for physical distancing you will need to book before coming in. The workplaces are more spread out than usual but six computers are ready for you to resume your research using all our commercial databases plus our own digital collections. Those LDS films which you have not been able to access during Covid are waiting for you come in and browse.

Finding new premises then moving has not been easy especially with Covid restrictions but everything has gone smoothly, thanks entirely to the months of planning and effort by our Councillors and other volunteers. They have been fantastic.

The GSV has downsized in floorspace but become efficient in the process. Our task over the next few months is to develop our media hub for simultaneous in centre and at home Zoom presentations.

In the meantime it will be great to have in-person communication with members again, so do come in when you can, have a coffee in the shop downstairs and check out our new home.

So please ring or email to confirm your visit, so we are Covid safe.

Jenny Redman

President

Cemeteries are fascinating archives of history and remembrance.

The Brighton General Cemetery is one such place with many interesting stories associated with its 165 years of existence, including those of 'Squizzy' and Tommy Bent.

The Brighton Cemetorians help bring these stories to life.  

On Sunday 14 March at 2.00 pm

they will be conducting their first walk -

Off to the Races - Owners, Trainers & Jockeys

- where you will hear about some of the pioneers connected to the racing industry. 'Meet' the man behind the name of the Herbert Power Stakes that is held at the Caulfield Racecourse. Hear about the often not so easy lives of the various jockeys, owners and trainers.

The walk will begin near the cemetery office. Cost will be $15 for non members $10 for members.

Ring Lois Cowmeadow on 9558 4248 to book. Numbers will be limited.

The Brighton Cemetorians Inc. is a not-for-profit community group formed in 2005 with the aim of raising awareness of the Brighton General Cemetery.  The aim of the group is to work with and assist the Southern Metropolitan Cemeteries Trust and management to:

· Raise public awareness of the Brighton General Cemetery as a historical place of local, state and national importance

· Actively research and preserve the history of the Brighton General Cemetery

· Collate stories of persons interred at the Brighton General Cemetery

· Facilitate the restoration of significant monuments through close links with interested organisations, descendants and other stakeholders

They undertake tours of the Cemetery, research requests for people wanting to locate a grave and produce a journal called The Cemetorianwhich is indexed on their website.

You can find out more about the Brighton Cemetorians and the Cemetery stories on their website - https://www.brightoncemetorians.org.au  

And you can become a member and join in their endeavours.

***

Photo:

Brighton General Cemetery and

Firing Party - the Historical Re-enactment Society of Australia at the William Robertson plaque unveiling - 1st April 2007. Who was William Robertson?2007

Breaking news!

The very popular GSV Discussion Circle - SWERD (South West England Research) - is expanding its area of interest to include Bristol and the landlocked county of Wiltshire. Bristol is a populous city and ceremonial county. 

'The local nickname for Wiltshire natives is apparently Moonrakers. This originated from a story of smugglers who managed to foil the local Excise men by hiding their alcohol, possibly French brandy in barrels or kegs, in a village pond. When confronted by the excise men they raked the surface to conceal the submerged contraband with ripples, and claimed that they were trying to rake in a large round cheese visible in the pond, really a reflection of the full moon. The officials took them for simple yokels or mad and left them alone, allowing them to continue with their illegal activities.' (source: Wikipedia)

So anyone with links to Bristolians and Moonrakers will find this Discussion Group, which meets next on Feb 12 very welcoming.

***

Ref. Wikipedia contributors. "Wiltshire." Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, 11 Jan. 2021. Web. 2 Feb. 2021.)

Image: Cherhill White Horse, Cherhill, Wiltshire, England (Sw8 at the English language Wikipedia, C-C-A - SA 3.0 licence)

GSV Events in February 2021

Now that the kids are back in school - actually in school this year - we grandparents (and others) are free to catch up with our events.

You will have recently read that the Society is moving its Centre during February. During this period our events will continue via Zoom. We have a packed and varied program of events, which are open to all GSV Members.

All are listed on our website.

Writing Course 

As previously advised Margaret Vines is conducting her very popular writing course in 1.5 hours sessions over three days – 1, 8 and 15 February. Bookings are limited so investigate the event page and book before it is too late. If you miss out this time, join the Writers Group for encouragement and assistance.

Classes

The classes conducted by our librarians Linley Hooper and Meg Bate cover digital topics of interest to family historian. Assistance with your Scottish research is also available.

Circles 

The various Discussion Circles such as the Writers, DNA Study Group, Counties of Northern England, South West England Research, London Research, British India and the Victoria/Tasmania Circles will all be conducted during the month. These events are open to all Members.

SWERD meet on Feb 12 and have now enlarged this group to include Bristol and Wiltshire.

The Good Oil 

The next session will be held on 19 February. Come along with an item of family ephemera and share the story behind the item. This is an open group where we share our experiences and seek assistance to further our family history research. Everyone is welcome.

Special Interest Groups:

The Irish Ancestry Group will meet on 13 February. This group is open to all members and especially those with an interest in Irish family history research.

The International Settlers Group for those researching non-British ancestors will be held on 20 February. Four of the members of this group will talk about their ‘Most Interesting Ancestor’.

Introducing our GSV Member Societies

This is a new series of monthly events where our Member Societies across Victoria are provided with an opportunity to talk about their resources and expertise. On the 25^thof this month The Lilydale and District Historical Society will introduce themselves and outline their resources many of which are not available elsewhere.

Talks – We have a program of five talks this month:

· 4 February – Carl Villis from the National Gallery of Victoria will talk about journey of discovery that led to the reattribution of the NGV’s 16^thcentury portrait of Lucrezia Borgia.

· 9 February – Alan Rhodes will talk about DNA Auto Clusters – learn how to group your matches into clusters likely to share common ancestors.

· 11 February – Louise Wilson will discuss researching people would arrived in NSW well before 1850 and how to find the resources to support that research.

· 18 February – Steven Haby of the Prahran Mechanics Institute will explore the development and impact of the railways in Melbourne and Victoria across the 19^thand 20^thcenturies.

· 23 February – Alan Rhodes with introduce the website Gedmatch. 

All events may be booked through the GSV Members section of our website. Upon registration you will receive and email containing the zoom meeting details.

Join in, enjoy and discover something new.

Our lockdown year reminded me how lucky we are to have Trove and digitised newspapers online. For those of us who fiddled with microfilm readers and squinted at black screens over the years, more searchable Trove can't come soon enough.

There are more than 10,000 years worth of out-of-copyright microfilmed Victorian newspapers at State Library Victoria yet to be digitised to Trove. These almost extinct local newspapers regularly reported domestic details that provide gems which enliven our family stories and which may prove to be our only link to past lives. 

***

In 2017 a campaign was mounted to digitise to Trove 35 years of five microfilmed, out-of-copyright newspapers of the Knox and Dandenong Ranges area. Through the efforts of the Dandenong Ranges Historical Council, an umbrella group of four historical societies, a heritage trust and a local action group, all five local newspapers were successfully digitised on Trove. 

Following this success, a campaign headed 'More Trove for Vic' (see WEBSITE) has been launched to encourage the Victorian Government to provide more funding so that more Victorian newspapers can be digitised and made searchable on Trove. 'More Trove for Vic' has put up an e-petition on the Victorian Parliament website and is encouraging historically-minded people to support it.

Based on the State Library Victoria's summary of holdings of microfilmed newspapers there are more than 10,000 years worth of out-of-copyright microfilmed newspapers from 71 Victorian municipalities yet to be digitised to Trove - 26 of these municipalities have more than 85% of their microfilmed newspapers yet to be digitised to Trove.

'More Trove for Vic' calculates that at the rate achieved in 2018-19 it would take nearly 180 years to digitise just the microfilmed newspapers of the more than 870 newspapers published in 216 towns and communities in 71 municipalities across Victoria.  But if the Victorian Government commits to funding a dedicated mass-digitisation of Victoria's historical newspapers then this could be completed in 3 years. The microfilmed newspapers could be digitised for as little as 80c per Victorian per year for three years and this would benefit 71 municipalities. 


You can view and sign the petition here: follow the prompts at https://www.parliament.vic.gov.au/council/petitions/electronic-petitions/view-e-petitions/details/12/299

You must be a resident of Victoria to sign. You can read more information about how petitions to Parliament work on the Parliament's website.

The CLOSING DATE for this petition is 30 May 2021. After that it may be tabled by a Member of the Legislative Council and will then be referred to the relevant Minister.

Obviously the more signatures the better!

***

Campaign logo designed by Laura Renfrew, 2020.

Did the circumstances of 2020 focus you on your family history research?

Or maybe, instead you turned to cooking and walking just to get out. 

Certainly this pandemic and the recent storming of the US Capitol building makes this family historian think more about the pandemics of the past and the volatile political uprisings that our family members may have lived through in their day. The 1918-20 Spanish flu killed about 20-50 M of the then 1.8 billion world population. So far COVID is approaching about 2 m deaths of 7.8 billion world population. 

Whether learning about the past will be enough to save us from a repetition (Churchill, Santayana, etc.) remains to be seen. But 'knowing more' about such past events helps us cope better - and hopefully helps our survival. [Ed.]

***

Why do we study family history? This question was asked on this blog on 3 Sept 2018: 'What makes a family historian tick?' A new book sets out some answers.

Many GSV members responded to this question by participating in a survey of the motives and characteristics of family historians that was conducted by social researchers at the University of Melbourne and Swinburne University. 

The outcomes of that study have been incorporated in a new book, now available: The Psychology of Family History: Exploring our Genealogyby Susan Moore, Doreen Rosenthal and Rebecca Robinson (Routledge, 2020).

The book presents their findings regarding:

• Family history: Passion and popularity 
• Spiritual and religious underpinnings of genealogy 
• Identity: Who do I think I am? 
• Biological realities: Who am I genetically? 
• Beyond the self: Altruistic and intergenerational motives 
• Family history as therapy   
• The genealogical detective: Cognitive motives for family history research 
• Health: What are my inherited health risks? 
• Ethical dilemmas:  What should I do now? 

It concludes with consideration of the future challenges for family historians.

You can find out more about the book at: https://www.routledge.com/The-Psychology-of-Family-History-Exploring-Our-Genealogy/Moore-Rosenthal-Robinson/p/book/9781003011576

Maybe we can bring you a review in a future post. 

Best Wishes to all of us for this New Year of 2021

- and check out our GSV Events in January-March (see the last post and the website).