by Rosemary Kopittke | 16 Jul 2019 | Army, Census, Chelsea Pensioners, Vernon family
Conflicting evidence John Samuel Vernon was variously born in England, Ireland and Scotland if the British censuses in which he is recorded are to be believed.[1] It is clearly not possible for all these to be true. Estimates of his birth year based on those same...
by Rosemary Kopittke | 15 Jul 2019 | Harris family, Newspapers
Sarah was a much travelled lass, born in Lidgett Town, Pietermaritzburg in 1853. When her family decided to try their fortunes in Australia, she sailed with them in a small schooner for Sydney, where they arrived in 1855. Teaching was clearly an important focus of the...
by Rosemary Kopittke | 14 Jul 2019 | Beeston family, Migration
At one stage ‘swimming’ was looking like the only way the Beestons made it to Australia! Early in my research I found the marriage of John Francis Beeston to Frances Elizabeth Ford in 1881 at South Brisbane.[i] That was a great surprise to my father who had always...
by Rosemary Kopittke | 14 Jul 2019 | Ainsworth family, Newspapers
There were exactly thirteen bakers in the family – early mornings, hot ovens, and flour dust everywhere![1] Three left their Cheshire village where fine footwear was the family trade and established themselves as bakers in the booming metropolis of Manchester in the...
by Rosemary Kopittke | 14 Jul 2019 | DNA
I have examined documentary and family sources in my research for more than 30 years. Fortunately, I started early enough to interview many relatives of my grandparents generation. They were able to provide fantastic information about the family and their life back...
