What’s in a name? In my quest to track down ancestors, I have always concentrated on using the last name as a searching term. I never thought the first name would be useful. However, because first names are often passed down through generation after generation, I have discovered that they may provide a clue to finding missing ancestors, particularly if you have come to a dead end. For years I have struggled to find any records of my Bell ancestors … Continue reading
As I pressed the button for the lift, I thought of how often my mother would have stood there waiting for the lift to take her up to Floor 4. I was standing in the foyer of what had been the old AMP Building, now MacArthur Chambers, on the corner of Queen and Edward Streets in Brisbane which had been used as the headquarters of the Allied Forces in the south-west Pacific during World War Two. This building was chosen … Continue reading
I have written before that one of the unexpected rewards of contributing stories to GSQ Blogs is that it has helped me solve a number of genealogical mysteries. For example, it helped me solve the mystery of the identity of my great-great uncle Francis Needham’s wife in India when a distant relative contacted me after seeing my post and, not only told me that she was an Assamese lady called Mary, but also provided me with a photo. However, I … Continue reading
I was sorting through papers after my aunt, Lyn Young, died when suddenly a mysterious package fell out. It was a tiny, homemade book measuring only 6cm by 4.5cm tied with green string with the word ‘Pope’ on the spine. Since then, I have spent some time discovering who owned this tiny piece, why did they make it and why did my aunt have it? Sadly, as often happens she is not here to ask anymore, and no other members … Continue reading
Lulie Ubania Medosa Bell was the exotic name given to a little baby born in Brisbane in the 1860s! Where did her name come from as her parents, Joshua and Margaret Bell, had Scottish and Irish heritage? Why did they choose these names when their other children had quite usual names for the time? After undertaking a very basic search of the derivation of her names, I found the following origins and meanings: Lulie is English and has mostly been … Continue reading
