8 Apr 2009

• A new Web page lists family history talks that I will be giving. Venues already confirmed include Biloela, Rockhampton, Yeppoon, Townsville, Cairns and Sydney.

1 Apr 2009

• Queensland certificates now cost $33, but access is easier (deaths after 30yrs, marriages after 75yrs; but still 100yrs for births). Before paying $33, look for certificates in State Archives bundles as explained in the 2008 edition of Tips for Queensland Research.

20 Mar 2009

• A register of immigrants and nominators 1864-1878 has now been indexed. It includes many Irish immigrants, and many names that do not appear in any other immigration index.
  
  
• List of records that have recently become available at Qld State Archives.

12 Sep 2008

• See the new page re illegitimate children whose father is named in an archival source.
  
  
• Names from some Supreme Court insanity files 1885-1901 (different from Public Curator insanity files).
  
  
• Names from some undertakings re fares for travel by rail or ship (mainly interstate but some international).

16 Aug 2008

• Noel and Del Bergman are researching and writing a book on the 1865 voyage of the 'Susanne Godeffroy' from Hamburg to Moreton Bay. They are interested in making contact with descendants of the passengers. A list of the surnames can be found at http://members.optusnet.com.au/nanddbergman/.
  
  
• If you have already listed your ancestors and their siblings at LostCousins, remember that you need to log in occasionally and click 'Search' on your 'My Ancestors' page to find more relatives.
  
  
• The Qld Research Tips Webpage has been updated and expanded. It refers to births, deaths and marriages (civil registration records and alternative sources); immigration records; wills and intestacies; electoral rolls (and how the three series of rolls differ); inquests and 'no inquest' records; Benevolent Asylum records; illegitimate children; and people who 'vanished' (asylums, police records and other sources).
  
  
• Annual Reports of the Asylums for the Insane often give ship of arrival, age, marital status, date of immigration, date admitted to asylum, and remarks such as 'discharged recovered', 'deserted by her parents', 'epileptic', 'emigrated to Sydney', 'mother died in asylum in England', etc. A list of patients/ships currently only covers some patients admitted before 1888.

27 Jul 2008

• Qld State Archives' Web site now includes two post-1900 wills indexes, but note that they cover only the Southern District, and only the ecclesiastical series. Note, too, that in some sections the names are sorted only by surname, not given name. I have asked the Archives whether they can improve on that.
  
  
• The Convict Transportation Registers database is now online.

28 Apr 2008

• Qld Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages on-line historical indexes now include marriages and deaths to 1929 (and births to 1914).

22 Apr 2008

• Brisbane City (Council) Archives are now at 115 Muriel Avenue, Moorooka.

3 Apr 2008

• Central Qld Family History Association have put their 'Member's Interests' on their website. They are also updating the Central Qld Pioneer Index, and there is a form to download for free entry submission.
  
  
• Qld State Archives now have a few microfilm readers that allow you to copy to a USB memory stick instead of printing. The procedure is different from that used at the State Library, so read the instructions carefully.

12 Mar 2008

• Cooktown residents who signed a petition in 1874. The signature in this source may be the only surviving example of your ancestor's handwriting.

10 Feb 2008

• 'The Discovery of the Brisbane River', the first instalment of a history of the Port of Brisbane Corporation, is on Peter Ludlow's website.

13 Dec 2007

• Caloundra Family History Research Inc. has produced a new CD-ROM which contains a Surname Index to Railway Registers held at Qld State Archives. This covers all parts of Qld and the Index contains over 33,000 entries in alphabetical order by surname. Further details www.cirruscomms.com.au/~cfhri/Index.htm or email caloundrafamilyres@hotmail.com.
  
  
• There are some new indexes on the Qld State Archives Web site. NOTE: (1) The immigration indexes do NOT include all records for those time periods. You must also check the card index to immigrants, card index to land orders, indexes to nominated immigrants and their nominators, etc. (2) The indexes to wills are only for wills in the ecclesiastical series. If you don't find an entry there, check indexes to the Public Curator series. (3) For more advice on these topics, see Tips for Qld Research.

27 Aug 2007

• My genealogy 'Updates' e-newsletter is now on the Internet. Click 'Receive email' near the top of that page and ChangeDetection will tell you when the next issue is published. If your address changes you will need to repeat that process.

19 Aug 2007

• Check whether there a 'lost' medal to be returned to your family.

24 Jul 2007

• The Ryerson Index is now at www.ryersonindex.org. It has death notices from many areas including Qld.

18 Apr 2007

• Australian Decorative & Fine Arts Society free enquiry service re Anglican churches at Kangaroo Point (St. Mary), South Brisbane (St. Andrew), Mitchelton (St. Matthew), Toowong (St. Thomas): details available include names of those commemorated and their families, donors, and research by Brisbane River Church Recording Group. Email Marianne Eastgate, marianne.e@swiftdsl.com.au, stating name sought and reason required.
  
  
• ArchivesSearch, Qld State Archives online catalogue, is now at www.archives.qld.gov.au/research/searchdatabase.asp.

Jan 2007

• Mark St. Leon is gradually expanding his Web site about people in circuses and travelling shows.
  
  
• Two useful Web sites for maps and place names are the Qld Department of Natural Resources place names database, and Geoscience Australia.

Dec 2006

• There are at least eighteen Queensland mailing lists hosted by Rootsweb. Family and local history groups should use the AUS-GEN-EVENTS list to inform the genealogical community about your society's publications and special events.

Nov 2006

• The new State Library of Qld has opened at South Bank.

Sep 2006

• From 9 Oct 2006 the National Archives Brisbane Office will be closed on Mondays and Tuesdays to allow staff to digitise records. Opening hours on Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays (and certain Saturdays as scheduled) are unchanged. The list of Brisbane records on the 2006-07 digitisation program will soon be available via www.naa.gov.au.
  
  
• 'Specialist Indexes in Australia: a Genealogist's Guide' - 2006 Supplement is now available.
  
  
• If you ever find that my main email address doesn't work, use my postal address or alternative email address. To reduce spam, please do NOT quote my email address in mailing list or newsgroup messages, and do NOT put it anywhere on the Internet. Instead, refer people to my Web site for current contact details.

Mar 2006

• The Qld Association of Local and Family History Societies (QALFHS) is now called History Queensland Inc.
  
  
• Qld State Archives seminars and other events are listed on their Web site.

Jan 2006

• A person cannot email you if your Internet Service Provider (ISP) won't accept mail from theirs. This sometimes prevents me from replying to enquiries. To avoid this problem, have a second email address with a different ISP, and quote both addresses in your emails and letters. If you have home and work email addresses with the same ISP, get a free second address from somewhere like Hotmail. Please note my alternative email address.

Aug 2005

• A reminder that Qld Health has closed the Burketown Hospital admission register and it is likely that Croydon, Cooktown, Ingham and Muttaburra hospital registers less than 100 yrs old will also be closed. Use them now!

Feb 2005

• Qld Family History Society is moving from Albion to Gaythorne. For more details see www.qfhs.org.au. Postal address is still PO Box 171, Indooroopilly Qld 4068.

Jan 2005

• When you visit Qld State Archives you must leave bags, mobile phones, wallets, folders and computer cases in the lockers provided. About ten sheets of loose paper and a thin notebook (searched on departure) may be taken into the Search Room, and a bag for coins is available on request. Pencils only (no pens). Bring $1 coins for the locker and microfilm copier, and two forms of identification to obtain a free reader's ticket. Orders for original documents and photocopies close at 4pm.

Jan 2004

• I recommend using published papers from genealogy conferences, which provide historical context and give advice on sources, research methods, preserving your records etc. (lots of information that isn't on the Internet).

Sep 2003

• A microfiche index to Presbyterian baptisms 1845-1920, from all over Qld, is available from the Presbyterian Church of Qld, PO Box 1508, Fortitude Valley Qld 4006 ($40 incl. postage). The index gives surname, Christian name, dates of birth and baptism, Church, father's Christian name, mother's Christian name and maiden name.
  
  
• An index to Qld Supreme Court equity cases 1857-1895 (compiled for Qld State Archives by Marianne Eastgate) is now in the Archives search room. The cases include such things as gold miners' disputes; rights of minors, incapacitated persons and lunatics; disputes over wills; liquidation of companies; and a long list of people with money in a bank. The files contain many BDM certificates (including some from overseas), land records, powers of attorney etc.

Dec 2002

• There are now no access restrictions on Supreme Court wills and intestacies held at Qld State Archives. The previous 10-year closure period no longer applies.

Jun 2002

• National Archives of Australia now have a single national reference service address, ref@naa.gov.au.
  
  
• Address of the Chinese-Australian Historical Association is PO Box 4299, Eight Mile Plains Qld 4113.

May 2001

• Any Society or private individual who has published any book, fiche or CD (including privately printed family histories, local histories, indexes etc.) should ensure that they have complied with Legal Deposit Laws. See www.nla.gov.au/services/ldeposit.html.

Other announcements

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