Aug 292016
 

I am currently in Chicago 90% of the way to the Federation of Genealogical Societies conference in Springfield, Illinois.

This is my second FGS conference and I am looking forward to meeting up again with many of my genealogical online friends and also learning from them. There are many  names familiar to Australians among the presenters including Audrey Collins, Chris Paton, Paul Milner, Judy Russell, Thomas MacEntee and so many others among the 72 presenters who will be informing us during these few days.

This is also the Federations 40th birthday year.

I am giving three presentations:

1 September  5pm: Lost in Australia
2 September 11am: My Job is Killing me!
3 September 8am: In The Workhouse

And also on 3rd I am the luncheon speaker for the International Society for British Genealogy and Family History speaking on Lenses of Time: Battle of Bossenden Woods.

Springfield is also where Abraham Lincoln lived before becoming President he is buried in Oak Ridge Cemetery in Springfield. 

Aug 022016
 

Last year after the Unlock the Past Baltic cruise and conference I hired a car and drove across from Southampton to go ancestor chasing in some churchyards in Kent before flying home. Having a GPS is a necessity especially on your own to find some of the churches.

I came across this headstone in Hinxhill, Kent.

A lot of sadness for this family but a wonderful memorial stone.


George was one of 68 people killed in the terrible fires that hit Victoria in 1939 after two years of very dry conditions followed by the highest recorded temperature. A disaster waiting to happen and it did. 

The Australasian 21 January 1939
The headstone also mentions Robert, their sixth son. Robert comes to Australia aged eighteen as an agricultural worker. He enlists on the 1 December 1939 in Melbourne and is sadly killed in Libya 3 January 1941 and this is reported in the Argus 23 January 1941.
BRUNDRETT, ROBERT. Lance Corporal, VX85959
2/5th Australian Infantry Battalion, Australian Imperial Force.
Killed in action at Gartha, Libya on 3 January 1941. Aged 33.
Born Ebbw Vale, Monmouthshire, Wales 27 October 1907.
Argus 23 January 1941