5 unusually named Australian occupations

Posted by Web Operations on August 28, 2020 in Australia

When the First Fleet landed in 1788, the convicts were skilled in more than 80 different trades and occupations. Some of these trades were useful in starting a colony from the ground up, others not so much. Some occupations stayed in existence, but many are no longer in use. Here are 5 of the more Read More

8 reasons to join a family history society

Posted by Web Operations on May 6, 2019 in Tips and Hints

There are lots of family history societies around Australia and New Zealand and they play a key role in genealogy research. Membership fees are typically very reasonable, so here are some great reasons why it’s worth joining up. 1. They can help you get started. If you’re new to family history, joining a family history Read More

Anzac Day | Remembering the Anzacs

Posted by Web Operations on April 1, 2019 in Member Stories

Anzac Day goes beyond the anniversary of the landing on Gallipoli in 1915. It’s the day on which we remember all Australians and New Zealanders who served and died in war and on operational service past and present. To commemorate Anzac Day on April 25th, we wanted to acknowledge the brave men and women in Read More

Alice Anderson: The most amazing woman I’ve never met

Posted by Web Operations on March 7, 2019 in Australia

When Alice Anderson was found dead in her garage in 1926 it made headlines around Australia. Why? Was it because she was the nation’s first female mechanic – an astute businesswoman who trained and gave female mechanics an opportunity to work in the male-dominated industry? Or was it because her death was a mystery – Read More

Preserving the bad fruit in our family trees

Posted by Web Operations on February 18, 2019 in Australia

For many Australians, stumbling across a convict in your family tree is a joyous occasion; after all, convicts put their blood, sweat and the occasional tear into building this country. However, we often gloss over the fact that many of these convicts were habitual or opportunistic criminals who found their way down under through a Read More

A death less ordinary

Posted by Web Operations on February 6, 2019 in Famous Faces

I have a confession to make. My interest in Australian history has never really extended to European male explorers. Yes, they performed amazing feats to understand the world in which we live but so did many others – Rose de Freycinet, for example – who are nowhere near as lorded. But I have always had Read More

Launch of new DNA regions in Ireland

Posted by Web Operations on January 11, 2019 in AncestryDNA

When we launched Ancestry’s detailed genetic regions in March last year, we knew it was a major step in the journey for us to empower customer journeys of self-discovery. Back then, we were proud to have the granularity in our database to be able to detect 13 distinct genetic regions in Ireland, helping tell the Read More

10 family history goals for the new year

Posted by Web Operations on December 31, 2018 in Tips and Hints

Want 2019 to be the year you make further headway with your family tree? Here are 10 ways to make it happen. I’m not suggesting you aim for all of these resolutions – keep it realistic and focus on one or two that work for you. 1. Book a trip There’s nothing like standing in Read More