Old Family Photograph

The Trove Tuesday blog post from Backtracking here prompted me to post this old family photograph from our collection which has caused family arguments concerning the identity and gender of the subject. Most of the family are convinced that it is my Grandmother Cluna Donnelly nee O'Connor, however one of my cousins is certain that it is our Grandfather Mervyn Donnelly as he claims that Nan told him that is who it is and said that Mervyn's mother Bridget Donnelly nee Lambert dressed him for the photograph this way as a joke. His story has been discounted by most of the family due to Mervyn having extremely dark hair from birth. It is worth mentioning that Bridget Lambert also had an illegitimate daughter Josephine Lambert who died as an infant (a fact not widely known within the family until recently), so the photograph may well be of Josephine and the story Bridget's way of keeping a photograph of her on display without questions being asked and judgements made.

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The Kendall Children.

I started this post a while ago and was going to finally finish and post it yesterday however our four grandchildren came over and I got sidetracked. Our grandchildren range in age now from six down to one; they are so full of life (each of them lights up a room when they enter it) and we feel extremely blessed to have them in our lives. After spending the afternoon researching this post, their arrival made this tragedy even more poignant for me and so I appreciated their company even more than usual and hugged them a bit tighter too! This morning I woke up to a cold, wet and windy Wagga day and the thought of three little girls out in August weather like this, in light weight dresses with no shoes or jumpers impacted on me even more. Those poor babies! One of the girls was found still clasping her doll that she had carried with her over the whole tragic journey. When my husband and I were looking around the Wagga Wagga Monumental Cemetery some time ago we came a...

Sunday's Obituary: William Henry Bell

William Henry Bell the son of William Bell and his wife Eleanor (nee Sneed) was born in 1840. My connection to him is that he is my 3rd Great Grand Uncle. In 1862 he married Catherine Campbell at Berrima. William died on the 3rd April 1914 at Wingello, New South Wales and was buried at Marulan General Cemetery. Source: Obituary. (1914, April 11). The Scrutineer and Berrima District Press (NSW : 1892 - 1948), p. 2. Retrieved November 9, 2013, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article133369164 Transcript: Obituary. The death occurred suddenly on Friday, 3rd instant, of an old and highly respected resident of the district, Mr. William Bell, of Wingello, at the age of 73. Deceased was born at Pomeroy, near Goulburn, and was a sawmill proprietor, living at Wattle Farm, Wingello. He had been complaining of feeling unwell, and previously had medical attention. Death was due to heart failure He leaves a wife and large family. The la...

Thursday’s Titbit: From Liverpool to Quebec

In a recent post I was finally able to reveal my husbands Martin family connection with Canada (see here ), My husbands great grandfather William Martin, his first wife Mary (nee Adams) and their children James, Alexander and Margaret departed Liverpool, England and arrived in Quebec, Canada on the ship Brooklyn on the first of October 1879. Canada, Incoming Passenger Lists, 1865 - 1935 Name Birth Year Arrival Date Arrival Port Departure Port Vessel Maggie Martin 1 Oct 1879 Quebec, Quebec, Canada Liverpool, England Brooklyn Mrs Martin abt 1855 1 Oct 1879 Quebec, Quebec, Canada Liverpool, England Brooklyn James Martin abt 1877 1 Oct 1879 Quebec, Quebec, Canada Liverpool, England Brooklyn Alex Martin abt 1878 1 Oct 1879 Quebec, Quebec, Canada Liverpool, England Brooklyn Wm Martin abt 1855 1 Oct 1879 Quebec, Quebec, Canada Liverpool, England Brooklyn Source: Passenger listings for Martin. Canada, Incoming Passenger Lists, 1865 - 1935. Retrieved from Ancestry.com Af...

Tracing Family Branches

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