Archival Access Victoria

The newsletter is a bit late, but for good reasons - I've been very busy digitising records on THREE separate visits to the PROV last week. Playing catch-up on some leftover requests from the land records sale and getting stuck in to a bunch of passenger list requests we've received recently has had us digitising up a storm. I've also been very busy diving head first into the South Melbourne rate books to reveal some interesting moments in history from the houses on The Block. We've had some great feedback on Twitter from the contestants who are all interested to hear about those who have come before them in the houses in Dorcas Street, South Melbourne.

I received an email during the week inviting Archival Access Victoria to the The Goulburn & Murray Association of Local and Family History Groups (GAMG's) Famly History Day in Yarrawonga on the 3rd of June. Shauna Hicks will be also presenting on the day, something I am looking very forward to! I'll be running through what records are available at the PROV and how they can be used to maybe break through a brick wall or two in your research.

For those wishing to attend – it’s 9:30 AM for a 10:00 AM start at the Yarrawonga Family History Group's Rooms @ Dunlop St, Yarrawonga. $20 entry which includes morning tea, lunch and afternoon tea. If you'd like to attend, please contact Jan Parker (for catering purposes) by the 28th of May by email rekrapj@bigpond.net.au or by phone on 0427 883 264.

On Tuesday I was out in the Kiewa Valley once again chasing some old pupil registers. This time my destination was the Dederang Primary School. They are the proud owner of early pupil register from the Dederang School and also Kancoona, a school a little further up the valley that closed many years ago. A quick session with what I like to call my portable 'digitisation station' and I had high quality copies of these great records. From Dederang I headed to Yackandandah to have a chat with the friendly folk at the Yackandandah Museum (some of you may have seen an article on them in the latest issue of Inside History Magazine). Always a pleasure in Yackandandah, they have such a great collection of records – with something new every time I visit.

All in all a great week!

Cheers

Mark