Botany Bay Family History Society in Caringbah South | Community organisation

Botany Bay Family History Society

Locality: Caringbah South

Phone: +61 2 9523 8948

Address: 184 Gannons Rd 2229 Caringbah South, NSW, Australia

Website: http://botanybayfhs.org.au/

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23.01.2022 This week's #throwbackthursday is the story of three orphan sisters who went on to become pioneer European settlers in the Kiama and Gerringong districts - Cece...lia Hindmarsh, Caroline Kendall, and Catherine Chapman. The mother of the girls, Charlotte (nee Robinson), married three times during her short life. Born in England in 1775, Charlotte married Francis Flower at age 16 and had a son, also called Francis, in 1793. Charlotte later travelled to NSW as a governess, arriving in 1807. She married William Rutter, whom she met on the voyage, that same year. William and Charlotte had three daughters, Cecelia Sophia, Caroline Blake and Catherine Newell, born in 1808, 1810 and 1812 respectively (although there is some contention with the dates). In 1812, William Rutter died, and a few years later, in 1817, Charlotte married again, to John O'Meara. However, just five years later, in 1821, Charlotte died at the age of 46, leaving behind her three young daughters, who were sent to live at the Female Orphan School in Parramatta. Cecelia was 13, Caroline 11, and Catherine just 9 years old. Cecelia Sophia Rutter married Michael Hindmarsh in Campbelltown in 1826, whom she met while employed as a housekeeper on the station where Michael was the manager. They lived at 'Alnebank' (although the homestead wasn't built until 1851) on Michael's land that he was granted in 1827, just west of Gerringong. Cecelia and Michael had 14 children over 24 years, including twin daughters who both died in their infancy and were the first to be buried in the private cemetery at 'Alne Bank'. Cecelia died in 1869, aged 62, and is buried in the family's private cemetery. The second sister, Caroline Blake Rutter, was 'apprenticed' by the Orphan School at age 13 as a servant west of Sydney. By the age of 20 she had moved south to live with Cecelia at 'Alne Bank'. It was here that Caroline met Thomas Surfleet Kendall, who owned Barroul Estate (southern Kiama). Thomas had already built 'Happy Villa' on the Barroul Estate, so Caroline had a home to live in straight away. In 1857, Thomas Surfleet Kendall built Barroul House (recently restored as the cafe at Bluehaven Bonaira). Caroline and Thomas had nine children together. Caroline died in 1891, aged 81, and is buried in Kendall's private cemetery. The third sister, Catherine Newell, married twice. Catherine had eight children to her first husband, Robert Cooper. When Robert died in 1848, Thomas Chapman, a family friend of the couple, married the widowed Catherine in 1851. In 1856, Thomas purchased 9 acres of land from his brother-in-law, Thomas Surfleet Kendall, and built Hartwell House in 1857/58 for Catherine. However, Catherine died just two years later, at aged 48, and was buried in Kendall's Cemetery. #throwback #tbt #kiamaremembers #kiamansw #gerringong #localhistory #nswpubliclibraries #kiamalibrary Gerringong Historical Museum

22.01.2022 #FlashbackFriday Official opening of Cronulla Ocean Wharf at Salmon Haul Reserve, Cronulla by Sir Walter Davidson, Governor of New South Wales, 26th January, 1...919. The wharf was located near the entrance to Port Hacking. While it was thought that the ferry service, which was to carry tourists to the area, would encourage visitation, the difficulty for boats reaching the wharf led to the service being abandoned only a few years later. Image courtesy of the Local History Collection, Sutherland Shire Libraries. For more historical images visit: localhistory.sutherlandshire.nsw.gov.au

19.01.2022 Join us online Friday 9 Oct for our next Mini Webinar on Gaol Photographs. The Gaol Photos, c.1870-1930 are an extraordinary collection of images and informatio...n of men, women and children who were incarcerated in the NSW prison system. This webinar takes a look at the digitised photographs and how to find them. Register: http://ow.ly/lSSo50Bs0JX #learninminutes

19.01.2022 Great global news - Ancestry and Findmypast have extended their library edition access availability via public libraries who have subscribed to their library ed...itions until end of March 2021. Previously you had to visit the library in house for access - but since April both companies modified the arrangement so library card holders can access this electronic resource from home and have extended the closing date as needs must. Do hope you all have joined your local library or state library or national library so you can use these sites freely for your research. #genealogy #ancestry #findmypast #LibrariesAreForEveryone See more

18.01.2022 If you are ok with early mornings, on Sunday 6 December there is a free Online Westfalen Connection Session given by the Westfälische Gesellschaft für Genealogi...e und Familienforschung genealogical society. The purpose is to offer a casual opportunity to meet others who are researching in Westphalia and to provide an open forum for questions and discussion about any topics related to research in the region. Their members will give an introduction to doing research in Westphalia and will be available to answer your questions about research methods and resources. Timings: 2:00 a.m. in Perth; 3:30 a.m. in Darwin; 4:00 a.m. in Brisbane; 4:30 a.m. in Adelaide; 5:00 a.m. in Hobart, Melbourne and Sydney. Registration via https://us02web.zoom.us//tZYldeyhrzkjGte04IQyD568u6fWvzoo_ See more

17.01.2022 You've been waiting patiently ... and here it is!! The program for Family History Down Under 2021 is now up, so you can see who is going to be speaking, and on what! Check it out at https://familyhistorydownunder.com./2021/program

17.01.2022 NSW Birth Death and Marriage Index is back and we are ready to transcribed your orders. Any time and day. Go to https://joymurrin.com.au/shop/

16.01.2022 Join us Wed 8pm AEST to time travel to19th century Sydney, where the Benevolent Asylum & similar institutions provided much needed refuge for destitute ex-convi...cts, lying-in hospital facilities for single women, & shelter for families with no other options. Learn more about who needed the help & what records they left behind. Season ticket holders are already signed up but tickets available for other members & open to the public: https://www.sag.org.au/event-3894787 See more

15.01.2022 We have just started loading some newly digitised archives to our catalogue from the early 19th century. These records relate to Aboriginal people and cover the... dates 1832-1835 and 1837-1844. The records are ‘blanket returns’ which are lists of Aboriginal people who received blankets from the colonial authorities. The records are broadly arranged by locality and include both Indigenous and European names for each person as well as their age. These record series are, and always have been, an incredibly valuable source for people tracing family and personal history. http://ow.ly/KRtZ50Cijs9 #NAIDOCweek2020

15.01.2022 As we come to the end of a strange year, join us to explore the strange and unusual tales of Sydney and surrounds. From mysterious murders to colonial ghost sto...ries and phantom animals, find out what has intrigued and shocked Sydney over the years. Wed 2 Dec, at 10.30am Free online event, register here: https://www.sl.nsw.gov.au/events/strange-sydney-1

14.01.2022 Did you know? Scottish death certificates are indexed under a woman’s maiden surname and her married surname. It can sometimes be hard to identify the correct ...certificate on ScotlandsPeople and it is so annoying to waste credits! A top tip is to search the post-1855 death index using a woman’s married surname and her maiden name so that you can get straight to the correct entry and save those credits. On the search page you will see ‘Other surname’ this is an index to any other surname a woman used that is recorded in the death register. This means if your great-great-grandmother was married you can search under her married surname as well as her maiden surname. For example, Agnes Paterson married Francis Bell. When searching for her death we find that Bell and Paterson are common names in the area and so is Agnes. To narrow the search we use the ‘Other surname’ box. It doesn’t matter which way round you do this. You can put a maiden name in the ‘surname’ and married name in the ‘Other surname’ or the opposite; both work. Hope this saves you some credits and helps you find those elusive ancestors!

13.01.2022 We all love a long weekend and next Monday is the Labour Day public holiday - a day celebrating the eight-hour work day. The eight-hour work day was a long tim...e coming - a working day could be up to 16 hours a day and six days a week. Sydney stone masons won the first eight-hour day in the State in 1855 and celebrated with a victory dinner on 1 October. It wasn't until 1916 that it came into affect across all industries. On Monday 4 October 1915, with Australia in the midst of war, Sydney-siders took to the streets in holiday mode. Newspapers described the day as being an "unclouded dome of blue" under which 90 trade and industry unions, about 250,000 people, marched through the streets. This moving image shows some of the crowds watching the processions in George St Sydney. In the background you can see St Andrews Cathedral, the Town Hall and huge crowds watching the eight-hour day procession passing up park street in from of the Queen Victoria building NRS 20499 http://ow.ly/Y43j50BCBZV

12.01.2022 Ancestry Time Australia & New Zealand is for ANYONE with an interest in #genealogy to join. Below is a time zone chart which includes daylight savings. Brought ...to you by Sharn White Fran Kitto Pauleen Cass. Hosted by Jill Ball, Shauna Hicks, Jennifer Jones, Seonaid Theresa Harvey Lewis #ANZAncestryTime Don’t miss this Twitter Chat starting 6 October! See more

12.01.2022 I will be giving a live webinar on Wednesday December 2nd at 7pm UK time / 2pm EST / 1pm CST / 12pm MST. If this time isn't convenient, you can watch the archiv...ed version later. For more information and to register please visit https://familytreewebinars.com/webinar_details.php Also, until Friday December 4th, Legacy has a cyber Monday offer so new members can subscribe to Legacy Family Webinars for an entire year at half price (US$24.95). I first did this almost exactly two years ago and would highly recommend it. More info is at https://legacy.familytreewebinars.com/cyber-monday-c322.php I hope you can tune in to the webinar on Wednesday!

12.01.2022 IMPORTANT SERVICE UPDATE: Services temporarily unavailable. Due to scheduled maintenance our online certificate ordering, birth registration system and online f...amily history services are temporarily unavailable until Thursday 1 October. If you require assistance during this time please contact 13 77 88. We apologise for the inconvenience and appreciate your patience.

11.01.2022 Save Our Courthouse Bega Valley Genealogy Society’s Home The original founding members of the Bega Valley Genealogy Society had a fight on their ha...nds to maintain their new found home, the Old Pambula Court House and Police Station when the NSW Police Service decided to dispose of the historic building in 1992. Now we are having to do it again, history repeats. This year the Society was due to sign another 5 year lease/rent agreement with the Bega Valley Shire Council (BVSC). A rental invoice for July 2020 June 2021 was received and paid 8th July 2020 for $559.63. However another BVSC invoice for a revised rent was received on the 11th August ‘20. The revised rent was a substantial increase totalling $9945 plus GST ($10939). Contact was made to BVSC staff expressing concerns about the amount. We made it clear we could not afford the increase in rent, BVSC after consideration revised the propose rent and decreased it to $4355 plus GST ($4768). This however still stands as an 750% increase on the original rent. The result is it would quickly use up any reserves of finance we have. We would then find it impossible to raise the money to pay this huge increase in rent and would be forced to close down and abandon our significant archives and records including Kameruka, Ayrdale and much more local history. The Old Pambula Court House and Police Station not only provides a home for our genealogy society, it is also of great historic significance. It is used by various school groups, a venue for seminars, meetings etc. and is an important part of Pambula and Bega Valley Communities. The Library facility are often used by the general public to research their family histories, historical events and archives. If we are required to pay this $4768 all our efforts of fundraising and applying for grants would be dedicated solely, trying to pay the BVSC, nothing would be left for the society. In July 2015 the BVGS signed their 1st lease/rent agreement with the BVSC, at the council meeting 20th May 2015 it was stated: The Bega Valley Genealogy Society Incorporated has occupied space within the building via a hire agreement from the Committee and would like to continue to occupy that space as well as manage the facility on behalf of the Reserve Trust. The best option to authorise such occupation is via a Licence Agreement. It is proposed the Licence will be for the purpose of genealogy research and public library, storage of records and materials including historical information and as a meeting venue. Members of the public will continue to be able to use the old courthouse section of the building to hold meetings or events, with hire of such space to be arranged through the Genealogy Society. Crown Lands have confirmed the proposed use of the building by the Genealogy Society is compatible with the Reserve Purpose, being for Public Recreation and Heritage Purposes. It is recommended the Crown Land minimum annual licence fee should apply for the first year of the Licence Agreement, with an annual increase in line with CPI movements for the remainder of the Licence term Rent was $510. A brief summary of the BVGS obtaining the Old Pambula Courthouse and Police Station as our home. The Bega Valley Genealogy Society was first formed in 1987. Finding a new home was hard, after the newly formed Society had been forced to move premises on three occasions as a result of outgrowing each location, finally in 1992 when Peter Rice was President, a licence was granted to the Society for a two year lease of the Old Pambula Court House and Police Station. After the NSW Police Service decided to dispose of the historic building a ‘Save Our Courthouse’ committee was formed comprising Peter Rice, Ray Holtrop, Rob Bruce, Shirley Bazley and John Liston representing community groups, lobbied the BVSC and the relevant officers, state and federal members of parliament and the NSW Police Service who controlled the fate of Old Pambula Court House and Police Station. The support of Federal M.P. Jim SNOW and State MP Russell SMITH was obtained. On the 24th May 1994 the NSW State Cabinet held a meeting in Bega, in the aircraft on the flight to Bega, the Minister for Lands, George Souris and the Premier, John Fahey decided on the future of the Old Pambula Court House and Police Station. Mr Souris made the announcement at Bega during the meeting of ‘State Cabinet to the Far South Coast’. (Some extracts from the Media Release.) He said the decision was made following strong representations from the Member of Bega, Russell Smith and the Bega Council to keep the historic site in public ownership. Under the agreement, the Police Station and Courthouse site will be set aside, by dedication under the Crown Lands Act, for Cultural and Recreational purposes and the Bega Council will be entrusted with the care, control and management of the site. This will ensure that the site remains in the public ownership and that all historical aspects of the site are properly maintained. The Council has indicated that a community trust will be established and that the site is managed in the public interest. The building and grounds were later managed by the Baddeley Reserve Management Committee, thus ensuring the Society’s tenancy. The Bega Valley Genealogy Societies committee would like to thank councillors Sharon Tapscott and Russell Fitzpatrick for their interest and help so far. Thank You. We appeal to all members of the community who are motivated, to write or email a letter to our local councillors, on our behalf. Or send your emails to us [email protected] and we will gladly forward them on for you. Elizabeth McIntyre BVGS President Sources: From Cardboard Box to Courthouse complied by Leslie H. Sullivan Media Release: NSW Minister for Land and Water Conservation Bega Valley Shire Council: Minutes (Meetings) & Invoices. Letter: Pat Raymond.

10.01.2022 On this day, 4th October 1797, the first flock of Spanish Merinos, upon which Australia's wool industry was founded, arrive in Sydney. In the early years of set...tlement, the colony of New South Wales struggled to achieve self-sufficiency. Most early convicts were not skilled in farming and British farming methods, seeds and implements were unsuitable for use in the different climate and soil, and the colony faced near-starvation in its first two years. An industry suited to Australia's harsh conditions needed to be established. On 4 October 1797, the first flock of Spanish merino sheep arrived in Australia. The sheep, offspring of a flock originally owned by Prince William of Orange in the Netherlands, had been bought in South Africa for 4 per head by British officers Henry Waterhouse and William Kent. More than half of the sheep died on the voyage from the Cape of Good Hope to Australia with bad weather nearly doubled the time spent at sea. Captain John Macarthur, an officer in the NSW Corps, offered Waterhouse 15 guineas per head for all the surviving sheep; however, Waterhouse refused the offer and in August he acquired a 140-acre property on the Parramatta River, known as The Vineyard and introduced his new flock to the estate. As his flock increased, Waterhouse distributed a few sheep between Macarthur, the Reverend Samuel Marsden, Lieutenant Kent and Captain Thomas Rowley. When Waterhouse returned to England in 1800, William Cox bought most of the flock from him, including several of the original sheep from the Cape. The remainder went to Macarthur. The Spanish Merino was a hardy sheep which was tolerant of Australia's extreme conditions. Unlike other settlers, both Waterhouse and Macarthur did not try to cross-breed the sheep with other breeds, which only resulted in sheep with coarse wool of lower quality. By 1803, the Macarthur flock numbered over 4000. The Macarthurs had improved the bloodline and strength of the flock by purchasing merinos from flocks in different regions, thus limiting inter-breeding of similar bloodlines. For this reason, John Macarthur is often regarded as the founder of the wool industry in Australia. Pictured: Champion Merino ram, 1905 Sydney Sheep Show. Courtesy: Wikimedia.

08.01.2022 Ready for some rest and relaxation this long weekend? Here’s a handy checklist of things to remember to get you through: Double demerits all weekend Forecas...t is for hot weather stay hydrated (and slip on a hat when outside) Daylight saving starts at 2am on Sunday 4 October when clocks go forward one hour Our Council Administration building will be closed Monday 5 October for the Public Holiday. Any issues can be reported via our website Report It or download the Snap Send Solve app to your device. http://www.sutherlandshire.nsw.gov.au/Home/Report-It Have a safe and fun break!

07.01.2022 Are you tracing your Scottish ancestors? Don’t miss the Scottish Indexes Conference on Sunday 6 December 2020. Once again we have a great lineup of experts and ...it’s going to be a packed day of family history! If this is your first Scottish Indexes Conference let me tell you how our free genealogy extravaganza works. We start at 7 am UK time and we are live for nearly 16 hours! We show each presentation twice and the presenters are live after their presentation so you can ask them questions. We also have two longer Q&A sessions during the conference where our panel will answer your Scottish genealogy questions. How do you register? It’s free, you can register on Zoom or watch the live stream in the Scottish Indexes Facebook group. To find out more and register on Zoom go to our website www.scottishindexes.com Here’s our speaker lineup: ‘The Highlands: Jacobites, Clearances and Emigration’, by Lorna Steele Community Engagement Officer at the Highland Archive Centre. ‘Using Kirk Session Records’, by Emma Maxwell, genealogist at www.scottishindexes.com. ‘Understanding Scottish Inheritance Records’, by Chris Paton, genealogist at www.scotlandsgreateststory.co.uk. 'Using FindMyPast to go Beyond Basic Birth, Marriage & Death Records’, by Myko Clelland, genealogist at FindMyPast. ‘Researching Scottish Ancestors from a Distance’, by B.J. Jamieson, genealogy reference specialist at Maine State Library. ‘Borders Family History Society’, an interview with Elma Fleming. ‘Orkney Family History Society’ by Jackie Harrison. ‘Your Burning DNA Questions’, by Michelle Leonard, genealogist at Genes & Genealogy.

06.01.2022 National Archives U.K.

05.01.2022 So, you want to write or publish your family’s story? Cassie Mercer is not only the brains behind portraitdetective.com.au, but ALSO the former Editor of Inside... History magazine. Join Cassie for this very in-demand session to learn how to turn your family history into a story that everyone will want to read. See more

03.01.2022 Happy #loveyourbookshopday & also a shout out to our fabulous Bookshop Manager Kathy who keeps our shop open to all online & well stocked with new & secondhand works: https://sag.org.au/Shop

02.01.2022 Joy is the perfect name. We have amazing stories of our journey together. Not only what has been but what will come. Our love is eternal. She is my greatest JOY. It is impossible to adequate express appreciation. #givethanks

01.01.2022 Collection close-up: In September 1788 a young woman named Ann Mash (or Ann Marsh) from Devon, England, embroidered the Lord’s Prayer to create this sampler. No...t long after, Ann was convicted for stealing a bushel of wheat, and sentenced to ‘transportation beyond the seas’. In 1789 she travelled to New South Wales on board the Lady Juliana but this sampler did not travel with her. So how did this beautiful and personal piece, painstakingly embroidered by Ann’s hands, end up in Australia? It was once thought that Ann traded the sampler for food with her gaoler in England, but further investigation has revealed that she gave the sampler as a gift to Sarah Hearson, who taught her to read and write, before she was convicted. Sarah’s descendants brought it to Australia in the 1960s. The sampler is now part of the Hyde Park Barracks collection. See more at slm.is/hpbcollection