Family Recipe Friday - Mum's Golden Syrup Dumplings

Steaming, light fluffy golden balls, covered with a thick golden caramely sauce!!!!  With a dollop of cream or ice cream!!  YUM   Golden Syrup Dumplings have been a family favourite through many generations of Australian families.  This simple economic recipe provided a tasty dessert for many families.  I have found copies of the recipe Australian newspapers dating back as far as the late 1890’s. 

Golden Syrup which is a by-product of sugar has been a favourite in the Australian Kitchen for many years. With a little research on Trove, I found recipes dating back to the end of the 1800's.  In a previous Friday Recipe blog, I wrote about Anzac Biscuits, and the importance of golden syrup for this recipe.  Again, the sticky sweetness of Golden syrup is the vital ingredient of our golden syrup dumplings.

Launceston Examiner 13 November 1893

Golden Syrup Dumplings were a favourite winter dessert in our household when I was young, and I in turn made it for my children.  This is recipe is from my mother’s book, and she informs me that it the same recipe that her mother used.  It may not be the best for your waist line but every now and then, on a cold winter night, it is sure to be a hit with whoever you serve it to.

 Here is Mum's Golden Syrup Dumpling Recipe.  I am sure it will continue to be passed on through the generations of my family.

Tombstone Tuesday - 2013 Trans Tasman ANZAC Day Blog Challenge - Alexander Joseph McDonald

Memorial Cross  for members of 1st Field Company Australian Engineers - Gallipoli

This month I am planning to post a number of blogs about the members of our family who have participated in military conflicts as part of the 2013 Trans Tasman ANZAC Day Blog Challenge.

This photo is of a memorial cross for the non Commissioned Officers and men of the 1st Field Company Australian Engineers who were killed or wounded in action on the Gallipoli Peninsula.  This memorial was erected in the cemetery in which the men were buried by their company.  One of the names on this list was my great grandmother (Annie McDonald)'s brother  Corporal Alexander Joseph McDonald, who died of wounds he received on 25 April 1915.  Yes! ANZAC day.  His story is a special one which I will post next Monday.

As a sign of respect to the other soldiers listed on this memorial I think I should list their names as well. They are:  (the number in front of their name is their service number).

239 Cpl Hugh Colquhoun, died of wounds on 19 June 1915, aged 31 years; 122 Second Cpl John Joseph Gough, killed in action on 9 July 1915, aged 26 years; 54 Sapper (Spr) Henry Harnam Fairnham, killed in action 26 May 1915, aged 31 years; 55 Spr Walter Freebairn, killed in action on 25 April 1915, aged 24 years; 60 Spr Cecil William Robert Howlett, killed in action 2 May 1915, aged 21 years; 246 Spr William Moore, killed in action on 25 April 1915, aged 28 years; 70 Spr Cleveland Edmund Page, killed in action on 25 April 1915, aged 23 years; 74 Spr James Randall Pantlin, killed in action on 5 May 1915, aged 24 years; 191 Spr Fred Reynolds, killed in action on 25 April 1915, aged 21 years; 112 Spr Francis Leslie Wells, killed in action on 12 July 1915, aged 22 years; 15 Second Cpl George Harrington Bird, died of wounds at sea on 9 August 1915, aged 19 years; 212 Spr Charles Carrington Fowle, wounded at Shrapnel Gully and died in Egypt on 13 July 1915, aged 29 years; 344 Spr Edward Moore Carter, wounded at Gallipoli on 12 July 1915, and died on 23 July 1915, aged 19 years (see image of Spr Carter's grave in Malta at P00545.040.)*
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* Australian War Memorial, http://www.awm.gov.au/collection/C03164/, viewed 9/4/13

Sharing Memories - Aunty Tilly (Matilda Holman, nee Taylor 1900-2001)

Aunty Tilly

Please join me for another post in my Sharing Memories series.  Thank you to  Olive Tree Genealogy’s Blog’s for providing me with the idea and motivation to write a little about my family history as I remember it. 

 Aunty Tilly as we all fondly remember her was the subject of my last blog on The Other Half of My family,  Born on the 14 November 1900, Matilda Holman(nee Taylor) lived for over a century and being an ardent royalist one of the proudest moments was when she received a telegram from Queen Elizabeth on her 100^th Birthday.

I did not meet my husband’s great Aunty Tilly until the late 1970’s. However, she soon became one of my muses and inspirations for delving into our family history.  Her fascination with family history, and tendency to collect “all things past” inspired me to explore my husband’s family history as well as my own.  Aunty Tilly was only too happy to share her stories and because of my obvious interest entrusted me with many family photos, letters and stories.  Her stories about her family and relatives in England sparked my interest into her Great Grandmother Elizabeth Taylor (nee Rushworth) on whom I have written a number of blogs.  Today I would like to write down a few of my memories of Aunty Tilly, as part of my “Sharing Memories” series.

Aunty Tilly was very determined and many would say somewhat stubborn, but she always seemed to be able to organise (or sometimes demand) people to get things how she wanted.  Perhaps this was part of her survival strategy, as she outlived all her siblings, husband and children.  Whenever a male relative of the family visited Aunty Tilly, at her home in Cowra,  they were welcomed with open arms and lots of charm, and then a list of chores and small maintenance jobs that she had been saving up for them.  It was common knowledge if Aunty Tilly was cooking a Sunday Roast (which she liked to do), all the chores would need to be completed before lunch.  

One of the first memories of Aunty Tilly that springs to mind was in 1980.  I liked to dabble, in different craft

Aunty Tilly and Joan at our wedding 10.5.1980

work, one of which was making cards and pictures from pressed flowers which I sold to friends and at local markets.  Aunty Tilly admiring my handiwork invited me over for the Cowra for the local “Quota” Craft Show.  I was at this time about 6 months pregnant with my first son, so I packed up all wares into our family car and set off for a weekend with Aunty Tilly and her daughter Joan.  (Joan was her single daughter who lived with Aunty Tilly until she passed away about 10 years later).

As soon as I arrived Joan and Aunty Tilly took great delight in my arrival, fussing and organising me. Joan and I headed down to the craft show to set up my stall, with hot thermos’s of sweet black tea and another thermos full of Cauliflower in a rich cheese sauce for our lunch.  That makes me smile!  Who would think of making up a lunch of Cauliflower and cheese sauce!! (only Aunty Tilly). Mind you it was pretty yummy.  I really don’t remember if I sold anything off my stall, but I had a wonderful afternoon with all their friends fussing over me and rubbing their hands over my rather prominent baby bump. 

A great story, but the classic moment was after breakfast the next day!! We had just finished our breakfast at the small table on the back porch of Aunty Tilly’s house.  Joan had packed up the dishes and said, “It is a great day, let me show you the garden”, Aunty Tilly rose to her full 5 foot nothing, grabbed my arm, and gave Joan a meaningful stare!!  “You had her yesterday, It is my turn today!”

Who were we to argue! Joan sat down meekly and picked up the paper, and Aunty Tilly guided my bulky form out the back door to introduce me to all her canaries, who were singing away in the cages just near the door.  By the time we had checked out the orchids, and reached the famous, sprawling mulberry tree at the back of her yard, Joan had meekly snuck up and joined into the conversation and the rest of the tour.   They had a wonderful and supportive relationship for many years, but I think Aunty Tilly was always the boss and had the final say.

I have many more Aunty Tilly stories, which I think I will keep for another post. 

Military Monday - 2013 Trans Tasman ANZAC Day Blog Challenge

Some members of my family tree who have been to war

Taking advantage of  the Easter Break and a little R and R time, I have been catching up with some blog reading and came across the blog by Auckland Libraries' Kintalk Whānau Kōrero: family history blog, which challenges bloggers to share their family military stories, on the 2013 Trans Tasman ANZAC Day Blog Challenge.  

 The aim of the challenge is to share stories of family members who served in military conflitct, their experiences and how their story has shaped your family history.  The challenge is designed to coincide with the upcoming ANZAC day celebration on the 25th April, however your story could be on family members who served in other wars other than WW1 or WW2.



What a Great opportunity to share some of our family's military tales!!


The Kintalk Blog points out that it is very easy to participate, just follow these steps: 

• write a story about an Australian or New Zealander serviceman or woman's family and the impact the war had on their family history
• Post a comment with the URL to your blog on the comments section of the
  2013 Trans Tasman ANZAC Day Blog Challenge  page, or if  don't have a blog and would still like to participate you can send your story to kintalk@aucklandcouncil.govt.nz
• Publish your post by Anzac Day, 25 April 2013. 

Kintalk Blog will post a summary of all the postings on their blog after Anzac Day.

Follow Friday - An accumulation of my weekly research - 9

This week I managed to post my next Alphabet challenge.  G is for Gravestone.  I have to admit that it is taking me a longer to wend my way through the Family History Through the Alphabet Challenge  than I first imagined. The great upside of this project is the discovery of new resources, genealogy sites and blogs as I research each topic. When I started the post G for Gravestones, I thought would be quick and straight forward, but no!! I was amazed at the number of sights/blogs that either provide the history of gravestones through the ages, the different types of gravestones or grave markers, the sad and whimsical stories associated with particular gravestones, the historical events related to particular cemeteries, photos and inscriptions from cemeteries,  war cemeteries and their history and the meanings of the markings and symbols on gravestones to mention a few.

St Michael's, Alnwick

I really have to thank the Family History Through the Alphabet Challenge for providing me with the motivation to explore new and interesting topics. This brings me to the point of today's blog, to share with you some of the sites and blogs I have discovered associated with gravestones, headstones and cemeteries.  I am sure this is just a drop in the ocean so would welcome input from anyone who knows of further interesting sites on this subject.

Australian Cemeteries:

 Australian Cemeteries; http://www.australiancemeteries.com/

Australian Cemeteries Index: http://austcemindex.com/ 

Wikipedia List of Australian Cemeteries: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_cemeteries_in_Australia

ozburials: http://www.ozburials.com/

Carol's Headstone Photos: http://carolsheadstonephotographs.blogspot.com.au/

South Australian Cemeteries: http://www.familyhistorysa.info/births-marriages-deaths/cemeteries/burials.html 

Cora Web: Cemetery Records Australia: http://www.coraweb.com.au/cemetaus.htm

  

Other Cemetery Sites

Interment.net Cemeteries on line: http://www.interment.net/

Gravestone Photographic Resource: http://www.gravestonephotos.com/public/about.php

Headstone Genealogy: http://www.headstonesgenealogy.com/

International Jewish Cemetery Project; http://www.iajgsjewishcemeteryproject.org/

War Graves

War Graves Photographic Project: http://twgpp.org/

World War 1 & World War 2 Cemeteries Overseas:     http://www.dva.gov.au/commems_oawg/OAWG/remembering_war_dead/WWI_WWII/Pages/cemeteries%20overseas.aspx

American Cemeteries Around the World: http://www.appreciationflag.com/cemeteries.html 

The Canadian Headstone Project: http://canadianheadstones.com/links.htm

World War 1 Cemeteries: http://www.ww1cemeteries.com/

Other Sites
History from Headstones: http://www.gravestonephotos.com/public/about.php
How to do a Headstone Rubbing: http://www.ancestryprinting.com/headstone.html
Tips for Photographing Gravestones: http://www.genealogy.com/64_gravestones.html
Exploring Cemeteries: http://anthropology.si.edu/outreach/Teaching_Activities/edcemetr.html
Gravestone Symbolism: http://www.graveaddiction.com/symbol.html
History of Headstones: https://mysendoff.com/2012/07/a-history-of-headstones/
The Association for Grave Studies: http://www.gravestonestudies.org/faq.htm
Historic Graves: http://historicgraves.com/

Blogs
Carol's Headstone Photos: http://carolsheadstonephotographs.blogspot.com.au/
Mad about Genealogy: Gravestone Photos: http://www.madaboutgenealogy.com/grave-stone-photos-2/
A Grave Interest: http://agraveinterest.blogspot.com.au/
Buried in History: http://buried-history.livejournal.com/
Cemeteries of Dancing Rabbit Creek:  http://cemeteriesofdancingrabbitcreek.blogspot.com.au/
Grave Encounters: http://graveencounters.blogspot.com.au/
Headstones and Family History: http://headstonesandhistory.blogspot.com.au/
Sleeping Gardens: http://sleepinggardens.blogspot.com.au/

Friday's Family History Through the Alphabet Challenge - G is for Gravestone

Picture this!!  Warm summer day, husband armed with camera, wife wending her way through the overgrown graves of the country cemetery of Braidwood in the Southern Highlands of New South Wales.  “Oh we should get a picture of this one” she calls, as her husbands, wipes the sweat from his brow, brushes away the flies and snaps another picture of an old crumbling headstone.  Yes my husband laments as he tells this story to sympathetic friends.  The trials of being married to someone who is constantly on the look out places to research the family tree even if it means tramping through long grass and avoiding the insects, spiders and snakes who have made the local cemetery their home.

This story leads me to my next post for the  on Friday's Family History through the Alphabet Challenge , for the Family History Through the Alphabet Challenge.  G is for Gravestone!!  I guess there are many families who have someone who likes to wander amongst gravestones searching for information on passed relatives.  In pre-internet days I found searching cemeteries a most valuable resource and much to my children’s dismay would plan a family excursion or holiday around the possibility of being able to check out the local cemetery for further clues.  

The gravestone, or headstone, or tombstone is a grave maker.  It can be made of stone, marble or in the cases of those without sufficient funds it could just be a small wooden cross. The gravestone not only marks where our ancestors were buried, it is a memorial to past family members and it's inscriptions can provide information on the deceased name, date of birth and death, names of family members who mourn them and possibly a small quote that will give some indication of their personality, or standing in the community.  Often a number of family members a buried in the same grave or in close proximity to each other, thus providing information of family links and relationships.

While researching information on gravestones I came a cross a quote that describes the importance of graveyards as a place for research, "Graveyards are outdoor museums and the most accessible source for studying the local community and its history.".

If you are just starting to research your family, a visit to the local cemetery is a great way to begin your search.  The local cemetery, or cemetery of the town that your family came from is one of the most accessible sources of information on local history and our heritage. The inscriptions on the gravestones contain information of generations of families, with details of their relationships, friends, neighbours, tragedies, religion, occupations and memberships of different societies. The size, and more elaborate gravestones may also indicate the status or wealth of a family member.

To finish this blog on "G is for Gravestone" I would like to share with you two of my favorite gravestone pictures.  The first was taken on the day (mentioned above) that my husband and I traipsed through the Braidwood Cemetery and found the grave of my Great-Great Grandfather Lynn Shepherd II and the second one is taken thirty years ago, when I visited the cemetery in Nelligen with my parents and took a photo my father standing behind the gravestone of his father and my grandfather Malcolm Michael Shepherd. 

Gravestone of Lynn Shepherd (1829-1903) Braidwood Cemetery

Malcolm Michael Shepherd (1892-1932)

Wordless Wednesday - Sharing Memories - School of the Air

Recently, I was looking through some more of my father's old slides and found two photos that bring to life the story I wrote early this year, Sharing Memories - Early School Days in the Bush - School of the Air. 

The first picture is of all the children lined up in front of the school bus in their school sports uniform., just before they all climbed on the bus and headed off for the Annual School of the Air Picnic.  

The second picture is of all the parents and children socialising outside the hall at the Annual School of the Air Christmas Party.  I love all the ladies dressed up in their best with their hats.  These two events were the highlights of the year for the parents and students of School of the Air, many would travel between 200-100 kms to attend these events.  

School of the Air, Broken Hill - Children line up ready to go to Annual School Picnic, about 1959

School of the Air Christmas Party - Broken Hill circa 1960