We often hear from conference speakers or speakers who come to our societies that you need to put your ancestors lives in context. To put flesh on their bones. We research documents, read newspaper accounts of the day, look at the advertisements in the papers to see what life was like, read books about the era, read journals of people who were alive at the time. If we are lucky we visit areas they lived in, even though they can be much changed from what they were.
For many years now I have believed that to put my ancestors lives into context for three sets of my grandparents meant that I needed to physically go to Norfolk Island.
Why did I think that?
Why did I think that? Well some background on my ancestors
I am descended from First Fleeters - two female convicts, one seaman, one marine they were involved during the first settlement at Norfolk Island, they were married there and one set of these grandparents gave birth to my next generation grandmother on Norfolk Island.
I am also descended from a soldier who was on Norfolk Island for the second settlement with his wife and family, they also had a daughter on Norfolk Island who would be my next generation grandparent.
So as you can see - I had reason to go!
In 2019 I decided to share this trip with my husband and youngest daughter and organised it for two weeks I did not want to experience it on my own.
The timing - 230th Anniversary of the Sirius shipwreck - I organised for the first week to do the week long tour with Cathy Dunn ( http://www.australianhistoryresearch.info/, ) while my husband and daughter could do their own thing. The three of us organised to do things together on the times I was free during week one. Week Two was planned for us to explore and enjoy.
We left Sydney Airport on March 13th (Covid 19 was not quite a huge deal, this would change within 4 days), as we descended and landed on Norfolk Island I burst into tears - yes this was more of an emotional journey than I had realised - I had finally made it! I also felt like I had arrived home and this feeling was one that got stronger daily and even now on my return to the mainland, my heart is yearning for that dot in the ocean.
We were picked up and taken to our accommodation Seaview- we had a stunning view of Phillip Island from our windows. This was heaven! It became even better when we worked out we were just up the road from Kingston.
Week 1 Began with meet and greet and dinner as tour participants arrived from Brisbane and Sydney, I even had a cousin arrive that I did not know about!
During this week I had walked around Kingston on my own, soaking in the views, walking in their footsteps, imagining life here for the first & second settlements. (Both very different from the other)
I was seeing the view that they would have seen, that is context!
Kingston is a World Heritage Site, contains four museums and a research centre. It is a place that time has stopped enough, for it to not be a stretch for your imagination to put yourself back into their time. Forget the buildings that were built and just see the land, imagine the arrival of the first ship passengers, imagine them watching goods being transported from the Sirius to shore prior to it sinking.
Then skip forward to the second settlement time, imagine people in the buildings, soldiers walking around, good and bad Commandants. I went into the buildings, looked out the windows at the different views, views that they would have seen.
Yes, this putting your ancestors lives in context really did need the trip here, I could not have felt/imagined the space and view and feelings of Kingston had I not stood and walked there.
I am descended from First Fleeters - two female convicts, one seaman, one marine they were involved during the first settlement at Norfolk Island, they were married there and one set of these grandparents gave birth to my next generation grandmother on Norfolk Island.
I am also descended from a soldier who was on Norfolk Island for the second settlement with his wife and family, they also had a daughter on Norfolk Island who would be my next generation grandparent.
So as you can see - I had reason to go!
In 2019 I decided to share this trip with my husband and youngest daughter and organised it for two weeks I did not want to experience it on my own.The timing - 230th Anniversary of the Sirius shipwreck - I organised for the first week to do the week long tour with Cathy Dunn ( http://www.australianhistoryresearch.info/, ) while my husband and daughter could do their own thing. The three of us organised to do things together on the times I was free during week one. Week Two was planned for us to explore and enjoy.
We left Sydney Airport on March 13th (Covid 19 was not quite a huge deal, this would change within 4 days), as we descended and landed on Norfolk Island I burst into tears - yes this was more of an emotional journey than I had realised - I had finally made it! I also felt like I had arrived home and this feeling was one that got stronger daily and even now on my return to the mainland, my heart is yearning for that dot in the ocean.
We were picked up and taken to our accommodation Seaview- we had a stunning view of Phillip Island from our windows. This was heaven! It became even better when we worked out we were just up the road from Kingston.
Week 1 Began with meet and greet and dinner as tour participants arrived from Brisbane and Sydney, I even had a cousin arrive that I did not know about!
Then Monday we had a Cyclone, who could have planned that! We were safe in our accommodation but my mind wandered to what it must have been like for my ancestors to weather a storm like that without a sound building to live in and to be so close to the sea - terrifying.
For the rest of the week, I attended the Sirius Week events culminating in a wonderful luncheon event down in Kingston to mark the 230th Anniversary of it being shipwrecked. This occured within view of where the Sirius lay on the reef!
For the rest of the week, I attended the Sirius Week events culminating in a wonderful luncheon event down in Kingston to mark the 230th Anniversary of it being shipwrecked. This occured within view of where the Sirius lay on the reef!
During this week I had walked around Kingston on my own, soaking in the views, walking in their footsteps, imagining life here for the first & second settlements. (Both very different from the other)
I was seeing the view that they would have seen, that is context!
Kingston is a World Heritage Site, contains four museums and a research centre. It is a place that time has stopped enough, for it to not be a stretch for your imagination to put yourself back into their time. Forget the buildings that were built and just see the land, imagine the arrival of the first ship passengers, imagine them watching goods being transported from the Sirius to shore prior to it sinking.
Yes, this putting your ancestors lives in context really did need the trip here, I could not have felt/imagined the space and view and feelings of Kingston had I not stood and walked there.
Week 2 arrived - time for the family adventure to begin, but still on the hunt for ancestor footsteps.
One of my grandfathers had been given a 60 acre land grant (one of the first) so we headed off to find it, lucky for us the grant paperwork was very specific with geographical landmarks and the map also clearly defined it with the boundary being a stream. We drove around and worked out where we thought it was and then ventured back a couple of days later to explore it properly. I walked on it, photographed it, took video from it. It is not all a flat piece of land it is quite steep in places, but he made his farm work here!
One of my grandfathers had been given a 60 acre land grant (one of the first) so we headed off to find it, lucky for us the grant paperwork was very specific with geographical landmarks and the map also clearly defined it with the boundary being a stream. We drove around and worked out where we thought it was and then ventured back a couple of days later to explore it properly. I walked on it, photographed it, took video from it. It is not all a flat piece of land it is quite steep in places, but he made his farm work here! I hugged a great big Norfolk Island Pine because I knew it would have seen them! I imagined their daughter playing under it when it would've been a deal smaller!
I did not walk the entire 60 acres, but enough of the land to feel connected! To imagine them looking out of their home at the ocean, their daughter running around playing.
While we were on Norfolk Island a ship came in with supplies for the island and offloaded at Cascade Bay, now this is an event!
It takes skill. It involves four boats to offload and forklifts on the boat at sea and at the pier a crane, forklifts and trucks. So the three of us headed up to watch for a while. Whilst watching the boat I put myself in the grandmother's shoes who had been on the Sirius when it offloaded her and her son onto the island...it is not an easy place to come ashore, then it is up a huge hill (would have been very difficult in a long dress) and then realising that they walked to Kingston...we had driven on a road and it took us between 5-10 minutes, not flat road, hilly road and it has been cleared somewhat. How tiring this journey must have been for her and her young child. How daunting on arrival!
Just to view this, to put myself into her shoes and imagine what she must have thought - worth the trip. Definitely enabled me to put her story into context, that just looking at photographs of the area never would have done.
I did not walk the entire 60 acres, but enough of the land to feel connected! To imagine them looking out of their home at the ocean, their daughter running around playing.While we were on Norfolk Island a ship came in with supplies for the island and offloaded at Cascade Bay, now this is an event!
It takes skill. It involves four boats to offload and forklifts on the boat at sea and at the pier a crane, forklifts and trucks. So the three of us headed up to watch for a while. Whilst watching the boat I put myself in the grandmother's shoes who had been on the Sirius when it offloaded her and her son onto the island...it is not an easy place to come ashore, then it is up a huge hill (would have been very difficult in a long dress) and then realising that they walked to Kingston...we had driven on a road and it took us between 5-10 minutes, not flat road, hilly road and it has been cleared somewhat. How tiring this journey must have been for her and her young child. How daunting on arrival!
Just to view this, to put myself into her shoes and imagine what she must have thought - worth the trip. Definitely enabled me to put her story into context, that just looking at photographs of the area never would have done.During the remainder of our time we did a few more walks, drove around a bit more and spent time snorkeling in Emily Bay.
I wondered how they had felt, when they left, were they sad to say goodbye? Excited for the journey ahead and what awaited them in the colony of New South Wales?
As we prepared to leave and head back to NSW we were filled with dread/fear at what we were returning to, since leaving change had happened, the state was in lockdown, people were working from home, schools were encouraging students to work from home. We wanted to stay, Norfolk Island felt safe...did they have similar feelings?
As we prepared to leave and head back to NSW we were filled with dread/fear at what we were returning to, since leaving change had happened, the state was in lockdown, people were working from home, schools were encouraging students to work from home. We wanted to stay, Norfolk Island felt safe...did they have similar feelings?
