Category Archives: ship

Three different passenger lists, so who died on the Fiery Star journey of 1865?

GSQ Blog Posted on by

By Stephanie Ryan. In April 1865 a dramatic, unforgettable sea tragedy occurred which haunted many for years. The Fiery Star, formerly the Comet, which brought immigrants to Queensland in 1863 and 1864, was making a return journey to England when disaster struck. Its wool cargo spontaneously combusted; the fire was devouring the ship as it approached the Chatham Islands near New Zealand. The highly respected Captain W H Yule decided to abandon ship taking seventy-two people: the cabin passengers and … Continue reading

Researching a Merchant Seaman.

GSQ Blog Posted on by

Finding a “mariner” in your family tree, might sometimes lead you to discover that he was in fact a merchant seaman.  Other terms you might see are merchant mariner, officer in the merchant navy, merchant navy seaman, master mariner, etc.  These are more often than not, some of the hardest ancestors to research, due to the fact that very few records exist.  In fact, after 1858 you will not find anything until the First World War began in 1914, because … Continue reading

The Kate and her companions who brought immigrants into Brisbane.

GSQ Blog Posted on by

Stephanie Ryan State Library of Queensland A researcher was intrigued to learn that her ancestors, who arrived by the Susanne Godeffroy and Melmerby in 1865, Wansfell in 1866 and Royal Dane in 1869, all made the trip from Moreton Bay to Brisbane in the Kate. What was the Kate? What was the journey from the bay to Brisbane like? The Kate, a 150-ton iron, paddle-wheel steamer especially designed for Brisbane’s bay and river trade, was built in 1864 at Newcastle-on-Tyne … Continue reading

Treasures in the Trove – September 2015

GSQ Blog Posted on by

Assume – as genealogists, we are told not to, but to prove all our assertions by rigorous application of solid genealogical methodology.  Assumptions – we are told not to make them, but to back up our claims and cite our sources.  What, however, could possibly happen if we did, in fact, challenge some of our most basic genealogical assumptions?  For instance, what actually constitutes a family tree chart?  What content, layout, format should be included, or not, for a document … Continue reading