Tuesday 23 July 2013

Trove Tuesday: Wedding Bells

The following article printed in the Victorian newspaper Alexandra and Yea Standard, Gobur, Thornton and Acheron Express is interesting in that it not only mentions the wedding of my great great uncle, but also lists the gifts received and by whom.

WEDDING BELLS.
MILLER - PAYNE.
A very pretty wedding was celebrated at Merton on the 19th ult., the contracting parties being Frederick George, second surviving son of C. Miller, of Merton, and Jessie May, eldest daughter of E. Payne, Wangaratta. The ceremony took place in the Presbyterian church, which was well filled by the large number of friends and guests, the officiating clergyman being the Rev. Thom, of Mansfield. The bride was attended by Miss Elsie Miller (sister of groom), Miss A. Drought (niece of groom), and Miss Evie Mackrell as bridesmaids, Mr. E. Eddy being best man. The bride, given away by her brother, Mr. W. Payne (Wangaratta), wore a beautiful gown of white silk with lace and ribbon to match, also a wreath and veil, and carried a prayer book bouquet. The bridesmaids were attired in white silk with trimmings to match. After the ceremony the breakfast was partaken of at the residence of the groom's parents (Elsie Cottage), when about 40 guests partook of a sumptuous repast. The usual toasts were proposed and suitably responded to. The happy couple left by afternoon train for Melbourne, en route for Sydney, where the honeymoon is to be spent. The bride's travelling dress was grey voile, with toque hat to match. The previous evening a special gathering was held in Mr. Mackrell's large kitchen, kindly lent for the purpose, a large number of friends dancing until about 2 a.m. They were the recipients of a larger number of beautiful presents, the large area from which they came showing the popularity of the young people and their parents..
The following is a list of the presents received :- -
Bride to groom, gold sleeve links; groom to bride, gold muff chain and rug; parents of bride (Wangaratta), cheque, cutlery, pair jam dishes, and cream jug ; parents of groom, assorted preserves ; Miss E. Miller, tea cosy and bed quilt ; Mr and Mrs Drought, handsome lamp ; Miss M. Payne (Wangaratta), silver butter dish ; Master Payne, silver mustard jar ; Mr W. Payne (Gobur), cheque ; Mrs Auld (Beechworth), kitchen utensils ; Mrs G. Payne, son. (Alexandra) cutlery ; Miss Jessie Payne (Alexandra), photo frames and tea pot; Mrs J. Cooper (Alexandra); afternoon tea set ; Master W. D. Cooper, vases and ornaments ; Mrs John Payne (Alexandra), fancy needlework ; Mrs Creighton (Gobur), pair vases ; Miss H. Creighton (Gobur), jam and cake dishes ; Miss A. Drought, set of d'oyleys and serviette rings ; Mrs A. Andrews (Alexandra), pair crystal biscuit barrels, cake dishes, cushions and d'oyleys ; Mrs Ross (Alexandra), cushion ; Miss G. Andrews (Alexandra), d'oyleys and silver tray ; Miss E. Andrews (Alexandra), fancy needlework and glassware ; Miss L. Bulmer (Alexandra), fancy neddlework ; Mr and Mrs Mackrell afternoon tea set ; Misses Mackrell, set jugs, fancywork, pair knife rests; lemon squeezer ; Mrs Searson, lamp ; Miss P. Payne, side-board. cloth and mats ; Miss J. Mackrell (Yarck), bed linen ; Mr and Mrs. Payne (Johnson's Creek), pair silver-mounted honey jars and pickle jar ; Mr J. Hoare, silver butter dish and knife ; Mr. M. McIvor (Numurkah), cheque, silver mounted shaving set ; Misses McIvor (Numurka), pair silver mounted brushes ; Mr W. Kipping, cheque and glassware ; Miss Danks silver butter knife ; Mr J. Frazer, silver mounted bread fork ; Miss Frazer, hall brushes and stand ; Miss A. Hartley, silver and glass honey jar ; Mr C. Nolan, lamp ; Miss M. Nolan, table centre ; Miss R. Nolan, shadow work ; Mrs. W. Kubiel, d'oyleys ; Mrs T. Bird, biscuit barrel ; Mrs E. Eddy (Seymour), set of carvers ; Rev Raff (Chiltern), silver and crystal jam dishes ; Mr T. Kipping, butter dish ; Miss Short, silver butter knife ; Mrs McKenzie (Beechworth), glassware ; Mrs. Harper, cold water set ; Misses Z. and M. Payne (Gobur), pair ruby glasses and jug ; Miss M. Nolan (Wangaratta), cold water set ; Mrs W. Payne (Gobur), table linen ; Miss McCormack (Wangaratta), glassware.
And other valuable articles too numerous to mention.--Euroa "Gazette."
Source: Family Notices. (1906, November 16). Alexandra and Yea Standard, Gobur, Thornton and Acheron Express (Vic. : 1877 - 1908), p. 2. Retrieved July 22, 2013, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article59588730

Rose Helena Auld nee Miller

My great grandmother, Rose Helena Miller, was the eighth child of Charles Miller and Georgianna Payne. Rose was born 9 June 1884 in Alexandra, Victoria and married William Henry Auld on 26 May 1906 at the Christ Church, Beechworth, Victoria. The marriage certificate for William and Rose gives William's present and usual address as Beechworth and Rose's present and usual address as Merton. The couple were living in Beechworth when their first son, William Henry Auld, was born on 5 January 1907. When their second son John Wallace Auld was born 6 April 1908, they had moved on to Merton.

Under the list of presents received in the article above, Rose is mentioned as "Mrs Auld (Beechworth), kitchen utensils". What the article confirms is that William and Rose Auld were living in Beechworth at the time of the marriage of Frederick and Jessie Miller on 19 September 1906. By identifying the names of other family members listed in the article, the same process can be used in connecting those individuals to the town in which they lived.

Tuesday 16 July 2013

Trove Tuesday: Old books bought and sold

I came across a little gem of a picture drawn and painted by James Muir Auld whilst looking for today's Trove Tuesday post. Found in the Maps on Trove section of Trove, this particular item stood our in that it felt slightly out of context with the other Map related items, and probably would have been more at home indexed under Pictures, photos, objects.

Old books bought and sold

Held in the Mitchell Library, State Library of New South Wales collection, the 1907 watercolour and gouache drawing measures 25 x 20.3 cm and has a window mount and birds-eye maple frame measuring 60.5 x 47.5 cm.

The scene in the drawing depicts a gentleman reading from a book, standing outside Tyrrell's Bookshop located on Castlereagh Street in Sydney. The gentleman has an umbrella under his right arm and his reflection can be seen on the wet pavement.

Old books bought and sold [Tyrrell's Bookshop, Castlereagh Street, Sydney], 1907 / J. Muir Auld
Mitchell Library, State Library of New South Wales [a1528220]

Tuesday 9 July 2013

Trove Tuesday: Obituary of Alexander Auld

Researching some background information on Aulds who fought during World War 1, I came across the following obituary notice for Alexander Auld that was published in The Biz newspaper in August 1941.

Source: OBITUARY. (1941, August 7). The Biz (Fairfield, NSW : 1928 - 1954), p. 2.
Retrieved July 9, 2013, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article76309746

To make it easier to read, I have included a transcript of the above article:

OBITUARY.
MR. A. AULD.
The sudden death of Mr. Alexander Auld, of 8 Canley Road, Fairfieild, occurred last Saturday, August 2. The end was very sudden, death being caused by a tumor on the brain. The late Mr. Auld was in his 46th year.
He is survived by a wife and four children - Robert, Monica, Beverley and Donald.
The funeral took place last Monday, for the Crematorium. Rookwood.
A service was conducted in the Mission Church, Hampton Street, Fairfield, on Sunday evening, the special preacher, Mr. Fay, being assisted by Mrs. Fay and Mrs. Pollard, and eloquent reference was made to the sterling character of the late Mr. Auld.
Deceased, who was an engineer in the Navy in the Great War, was born in Bull's Road. St. John's Park, where his parents, Mr. and Mrs. Auld, have lived, for over fifty years. When they first came to reside at St. John's Park, there was any amount of timber, but very few settlers. The deceased lived in that locality practically all his life, at other periods residing at Canley Vale, and finally at Fairfield. He was employed as a toolmaker for Aladdin Industries for over 18 years. Mr. Auld was a member of Merrylands Branch G.U.O.O.F.

Interestingly, from a researchers point of view, the article gives some valuable pointers for potential research leads. Some of these leads include:

  • Birth record
  • World War 1 service records 
  • Marriage record
  • Electoral Rolls
  • Council rate books
  • GUOOF (Grand United Order of Odd Fellows) archives
  • Death record
  • Cemetery / columbarium record 


As this particular obituary is a new one for my research files, I double checked to see if the obituary was listed on the Obituaries Australia website. As it wasn't, I have now submitted the obituary for listing on the site.

Tuesday 2 July 2013

Trove Tuesday : Patrick Howard Auld MC

Searching through results for today's Trove Tuesday post I decided to explore the subset of illustrated articles. When searching the digitised newspapers on Trove, users have the option of refining their results by newspaper title, category, illustrated, decade and word count. If you select illustrated from the list, further refining options will also be presented and can include photo, illustration, map, cartoon and graph.

Interestingly, depending on the number of results you have, the options may appear doubled - for instance photo and Photo may appear in the list. Now even though we may know they are one and the same, Trove unfortunately cannot tell the difference between the two and will treat them as separate subsets. So a good hint to remember...if you are searching within these subsets, make sure you search in both if they listed.

Lieutenant P. H. Auld - awarded the Military Cross 

So, refining my illustration subset further, I selected Photo and noticed an article on Lieutenant P.H. Auld printed in the South Australian newspaper Chronicle during 1917:

LIEUTENANT P. H. AULD.
The Military Cross has been awarded to Lieutenant Patrick H. Auld, son of Mr. G. Auld, of Adelaide. The young officer is only 23 years of age. Although wounded he led his men forward to reinforce part of the front line, displaying great courage and initiative. He set a splendid example to his men. Lieutenant Auld was employed at the South British Insurance Company prior to enlisting, and he left here as a private in the 4th Field Ambulance in 1914. He has now served in Egypt, Gallipoli, and France. He was a student of St. Peter's College, and played in inter-collegiate football and cricket matches.

Lieutenant P. H. Auld, M.C.

Source: LIEUTENANT P. H. AULD. (1917, January 13). Chronicle (Adelaide, SA : 1895 - 1954), p. 45. Retrieved July 2, 2013, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article87441162

From this article and photograph I decided to research further in order to find out more information about the Military Cross and Patrick Howard Auld in general.

Military Cross (MC)

Instituted on 28 December 1914 by King George V, the Military Cross is a level three gallantry award. The Military Cross is awarded in recognition of gallantry during active operations against the enemy.

George V Military Cross
Source: British Gallantry Medals of the First World War

Patrick Howard Auld

Born in Kent Town, South Australia on 30 May 1894 (SA birth index number - 1894 Book 544 Page 175), to parents William George Auld (known as George Auld) and Ellen Howard nee Clarke, Patrick Howard Auld was the grandson of explorer William Patrick Auld.

P. H. Auld
Source: Australia War Memorial, P07159.021
http://www.awm.gov.au/collection/P07159.021

The WW1 service records for Patrick Auld [see B2455, AULD P H] held at the National Archives of Australia, before Patrick joined the Australia Military Forces on 4 November 1914, he had been working as an Insurance Clerk and was also serving with the 79th Infantry attached to the Citizens Forces. Upon joining the Australian Imperial Force he was attached to the 4th Field Ambulance with the rank of Private. He left Australia on board the HMAT A35 Berrima from Melbourne on 22 December 1914, bound for service in Gallipoli.

According to World War Diaries (AWM4, Sub-class 26/47) from the 4th Australian Field Ambulance held at the Australian War Memorial, the April 1915 [item 26/47/5] and May 1915 [item 26/47/6] diaries list Patrick as being attached to B Section under the command of Major Jermyn, arriving Gallipoli on 27-28 April, just two days after the initial landing at Anzac Cove.

By the end of the August Offensive of the Gallipoli Campaign in 1915, Patrick had been promoted to Lance Corporal. After the evacuation of the peninsula, the 4th Field Ambulance were transferred to Egypt and Patrick was reassigned to the 50th Battalion in Tel el Kebir. On 17 March 1916 he was again promoted, this time to the rank of 2nd Lieutenant. In June the 50th Battalion was moved to Marseilles in France, then onto Mouquet Farm as part of the Battle of the Somme. During the second assault at Mouquet Farm on 3 September 1916, Patrick was wounded but remained on duty. During a battle on 21 October, Lieutenant Patrick Howard Auld, led his men forward on the front line and displayed conspicuous gallantry in action. For his efforts he was awarded the Military Cross which was officially recorded in the London Gazette on 14 November, and reads as follows:

Source: Supplement to the London Gazette, 14 November, 1916. p. 11073
http://www.london-gazette.co.uk/issues/29824/supplements/11073

April 1917 saw the 50th Battalion participating in the advance to the Hindenburg Line during the German retreat. The attack on Noreuil started on the morning of 2 April and it was during this battle that Patrick sustained a gun shot wound to the buttock and had to be evacuated to hospitals back in England.

Eight months later, in early December 1917, Patrick rejoined his unit. By March the following year, the 50th Battalion was again in the thick of the action as the German Army launched a major offensive on the Western Front. On 1 January 1918 Patrick received a field promotion to the rank of Captain. By early April, the 50th Battalion were defending Villers-Bretonneux against the Germans push, but the Germans captured Villers-Bretonneux on 24 April.

Official records [B2455, AULD P H] reported that Patrick Auld was missing in action on 24 April, but he was captured by the Germans on 25 April and ended up in the Officer Prisoner of War Camp in Karlsruhe, Germany. After World War 1 ended on 11 November 1918 Patrick was repatriated to England on 1 December. He returned to Australia on board the SS Port Dennison on 25 March 1919.

Patrick later served in World War 2 during 1942-43 and was discharged as a Major. He passed away at the age of seventy eight in July 1972 at Beulah Park, South Australia.

Further references

Monday 1 July 2013

John Muir by William Dargavel [Carte de visite]

Photo details:

TitleJohn Muir by William Dargavel
Date1876 ±2
CollectionGeorgina Auld nee Muir photo album
Digital IDapc-000007

Photo TypeCarte de visite

Mount Size64 x 106 mm
Mount Thickness0.55 mm
Mount ColourCream
Mount EdgesStraight
Mount CornersRound

Image Size58 x 97 mm
TechnologyAlbumen
Features

Front ImprintSmall purple lettering
Back ImprintMedium sized, ornate text and artwork


Front face
Rear face




Front face:


John Muir by William Dargavel (front face)
[Auld Photograph Collection apc-000007-s1]
Larger version on Flickr

Imprint on the front face is small text and reads "WM DARGAVEL  AYR".

Written on the page in the album where this photograph was placed is the following identification text:
Grandfather Muir (mothers father)
(Georgina's father & J.H.G. Auld's maternal grandfather)
Georgina Muir's parents are John Muir and Elizabeth Millar. John Muir was born 28 July 1800 in Kilmaurs, AYR, SCT - he was christened 3 August 1800. John married Elizabeth when he was eighteen years old on 20 March 1819. Over the twenty four year period of 1820 through to 1844, the couple had twelve children in total - they were:
  • Dalrymple Muir
  • Jean Muir
  • Elizabeth Muir
  • Mary Muir
  • Hugh Muir
  • Agnes Muir
  • Wilhelmina Muir
  • John Muir
  • James Muir
  • Christina Muir
  • Janet Muir
  • Georgina Muir
Based on the dating evidence from the rear imprint (see below), John Muir (Georgina's father) would be approximately seventy six years old in the photograph.

Rear face:

John Muir by William Dargavel (rear face)
[Auld Photograph Collection apc-000007-s2]

Imprint on rear face is medium sized and includes both ornate text and artwork. Inscription of the text reads as:
WM DARGAVEL
PHOTO ARTIST
4 MURRAY PLACE
Newton
AYR
NEGATIVES KEPT COPIES OR ENLARGEMENTS
CAN BE HAD AT ANY TIME
COLORED WORK IN ALL ITS BRANCHES
See William Dargavel, Newton, Ayr [Photographer] for more information on William Dargavel and his photographic studio in Newton, Ayr. As discussed in that post, the documentary evidence based solely on the information provided on the back imprint dates the photo to 1876 ±2 years.