Hi everyone, Thank you all for the encouraging comments. Back to Australia’s pioneers though. Many early Australian families have colourful historic convict characters, and much treasured anecdotes , or adventures from our goldmining frontier. When we view the demonization of the poor in Great Britain 1840-50 by the Poor Law, the public was instructed to consider those seeking charity as dishonest thieves. The poor desperately stormed the poorhouses. We do understand that many tried and convicted to transportation to Van Diemen’s Land and later Botany Bay were indeed starving souls, trying to feed  hungry families.  The need to survive often led to conviction, frequently for minor crimes, such as theft…

Dear Readers, I hope you are all well  this Australia Day. I wish to acknowledge the indigenous past and present and their roles in developing and preserving our wonderful nation.  Their tragedies haunt many. Yet, the following is a brief account of my ancestral history. My great great grandparents, on my father’s side, arrived in Australia around 1850 from England and Ireland. Therefore, I am fourth/fifth generation Australian and have written a fine (draft) family history, based on my family interviews, personal stories and unpublished writing by Uncle Denis and our revered family historian. The Colonial Government sought quality working class women to populate Australia, and thus attracted vast numbers…