I have to apologise for a previous post in which I stated that this blog had become fortnightly. In hindsight it was rather ambitious of me to think that I’d be able to manage a blog every fortnight, especially when I was ill.

The lesson for genealogists is that you can’t always believe what you read (I try to find the good in everything!). Just because a convict applied for permission to marry doesn’t mean the marriage took place; just because a settler paid a deposit to bring an immigrant out doesn’t mean the immigrant actually arrived; and just because the death certificate says the deceased arrived in the Colony 60 years ago doesn’t necessarily give you an exact year to search.

There is always something new to learn about genealogy. Here are some opportunities in NSW; mostly in Sydney:

Sat 26 August

Maitland Family History Fair - Family history groups and speakers. 6 hours, $3 entry. Maitland City Bowls, Sports & Recreation Club, Arthur Street, Rutherford (off New England Highway). For more information see http://www.rootsweb.com/~ausmfhc/index2.html.

Sat 15 September

The Legacies of War: Australians and their Service in the Commonwealth Forces - Records of Australian Armed Services. 2 hours, $15 ($10 SAG members). Society of Australian Genealogists: Richmond Villa, 120 Kent Street, Sydney. For information and booking go to http://www.sag.org.au.

Sat 15 - Sat 22 September

Researching your place in history - Open House at the Royal Australian Historical Society library - Check the displays on building and architecture, or research your own family. 10am to 3pm daily, free. History House, 133 Macquarie Street, Sydney. See http://www.rahs.org.au/activities.html for more information and other activities.

Thu 20 September

Land records and Primary Applications - an overview by Lindsay Allen of State Records NSW of land records held in the State archives. 2 hours. Liverpool City Library, 170n George Street, Liverpool. For more information and bookings call 02 9821 9432.

Fri 21 September

Tour of State Records NSW Kingswood Repository - highly recommended behind-the-scenes tour of Kingswood, where all the original records are stored. 2 hours, free. Western Sydney Records Centre, 143 O’Connell Street, Kingswood. For further information and bookings go to http://www.records.nsw.gov.au/archives/activities_program_57.asp.

Sat 22 - Sun 23 September

Sailing Through the Centuries - NSW and ACT Association of Family History Societies State Conference - Casino RSM Club, Casino, NSW. 2 days, $95. Information and registrations at http://www.rootsweb.com/~auscdfhg/conference.htm

Sat 6 October

London Ancestors and How to Locate Them - parish records, guilds, newspapers, cemeteries, etc. 5 hours, $50 ($40 SAG members). Society of Australian Genealogists: Richmond Villa, 120 Kent Street, Sydney. For information and booking go to http://www.sag.org.au. See also www.dictionary ofsydney.org.

Sat 13 October

The Dictionary of Sydney - a collaborative project to build an interconnected web of scholarship, stories, images, maps and multimedia about greater Sydney. $22 ($18 SAG members), 2 hours.  Society of Australian Genealogists: Richmond Villa, 120 Kent Street, Sydney. For information and booking go to http://www.sag.org.au.  

Sat 20 October

Putting your family history on the internet - Why do it; what to put in and what to leave out; how to do it.  $22 ($18 SAG members), 2 hours.  Society of Australian Genealogists: Richmond Villa, 120 Kent Street, Sydney. For information and booking go to http://www.sag.org.au.

Thu 25 October

NSW Regiments - specifically the NSW Volunteer Rifles 1854-1885. 2 hours, free. Sydney Records Centre, Globe Street, The Rocks. For further information and bookings go to http://www.records.nsw.gov.au/archives/activities_program_57.asp.

I’ve searched the websites of The Society of Australian Genealogists, State Records NSW, Royal Australian Historical Society and Gould Genealogy for this list, and I added the ones that I found interesting. If you know of any others, especially in Sydney, that I have missed please let me know; I’d be happy to add them.