Memories of moon landing

It is almost 40 years since Neil Armstrong set foot on the moon. Have you recorded your memories of this famous event in your own life story?

Visit NASA's Apollo 11's landing site and other links to the Apollo mission

The Florida Today newspaper has created a website to remind the local community about their own local history at their backdoor and to ask them to record their memories. Visit Moon Landing Memories

The BBC Archive have some great interviews and film clips on the moon landings

What are your memories?

Barnardos Research Service

Children's charity Barnardos has recently launched a research service offering people the chance to access records of the thousands of children cared for by the organisation since the early 1870s. This may include child migrants to Australia. For more information visit Barnardo's Family History Service

For immigration to Australia in the 20th century look at the Making Australia Home service at the National Archives of Australia

New Genealogy titles

New titles of interest to family history researchers into the collection include

Scottish Genealogy by Bruce Durie
Back cover - "Scottish genealogy is assumed to be far easier to research online than that of other parts of the British Isles, mainly because so many of the key resources are readily available. Yet Dr. Durie compellingly argues that you can go much further, describing records and resources that will help you unearth the rich social history surrounding your ancestral background" - Nick Barratt

Britannia's Children: emigration from England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland since 1600 by Eric Richards

Tracing your Royal Marine ancestors: a guide for family historians by Richard Brooks & Matthew Little

Tracing your Air Force Ancestors by Phil Tomaselli

The official guide to Ancestry.com by George G. Morgan

In Search of your German Roots: a complete guide to tracing your ancsestors in the Germanic areas of Europe by Angus Baxter

The surnames of Ireland by Edward MacLysaght

Succeeding in Family History: helpful hints and time-saving tips by John Titford

Convict Lives : women at Cascades Female Factory

1,001 life story questions by Bob Mitchell

More newspapers available

Increasing content is being quietly added to the Australian Newspapers beta website from the National Library of Australia. The main newspaper currently available for research in Victoria is "The Argus". Dates now available include:
1848 - 1884
1915 - 1933
1945

If you have not visited recently this is well worth another visit, but give yourself some time as this site is surely addictive.

Mapping Your Anzacs

Have you researched the Anzacs in your family? Would you like to share their story? Mapping Your Anzacs is a new way to search for World War Service records. You can also browse an Australian map and countries from all over the world and explore the more than 15,000 places where people were either born or enlisted.

Join us at Diamond Valley library next Wednesday June 24, 2009 as part of the Family History Fest program and get tips to research your Australian military ancestor and how you can add to the scrapbook on the Mapping Your Anzacs website.

The Australian War Memorial are also asking people to share thier stories of love and war in preparation for an upcoming exhibition. Do you have relatives who met and fell in love in wartime? Visit the Flickr group.

Upcoming conference for genealogists

The Victorian GUM Inc. turns 25 in 2009 and will hold a "25th Anniversary Conference" to celebrate this milestone. The conference will be held in the town of Cowes on picturesque Phillip Island and will be held over the weekend of 24-26 July 2009 to coincide with the first meeting of VicGUM® 25 years ago on 24 July 1984.
Details including registration details can be found here.

GUM are a group with a particular focus of using a computer with your family history. If you are considering buying a computer and have an interest in local and family history, or wish to enhance your knowledge of using computers for your local and family history - this conference is for you.

Letters of a nation

Australia Post celebrates 200 years in 2009. Since 1788, the letters of our nation have carried the thoughts, feelings and aspirations of Australia and Australians. The Letters of a Nation project is extracting these letters from desks, cupboards and files all over the country and bringing them together in an interactive timeline and archive. So, if you have an interesting, moving or historically significant letter, submit it and share it with the nation.