Convict Heritage

[Asherbella]

I was researching my family tree & turns out I have a great-great-great-uncle, Thomas Edwin Bell who was transported to the colony of New South Wales for 'lewd conduct unbecoming of an English gentleman'. In other words, sodomy (ie gay sex). I obtained a copy of his signature through accessing court file transcripts (expensive, but worth it) from the UK & his penmanship resembles mine. Freaky!

He was convicted as a criminal for being gay, later married a chick named Sarah & had 5 kids, settled in Cooma, NSW, bought a pub & was quite a successful publican.

Any gay criminals in your family tree?

:)

[poolboy jackson]

I bet your great-great-great-uncle isn't as pretty as my great-uncle-in-law!
(as per my Sunday post)

[Asherbella]

He looked like Jack Nicholson, the American actor; but quite portly with a mole above his lip. Yes, yours is prettier. Bum. lol

[Asherbella]

I have never heard of the name 'Edwin' before. Edwin? Eck! lol I'll google search it's meaning....

[Asherbella]

Edwin



Meaning:


Prosperous friend.

Origin: Old English

Alternatives: Edwyn, Ed, Eddie.

Nicknames: Ed, Eddie, Eddy.

[gnosis]

I think one on my grandfather's side was (Thomas Cooke, I think the name was). He was pretty much a petty criminal, once he was sent out here he managed to own a few bars and stuff and ended up buying the land in Surry Hills around about where I'm living now.

Unfortunately, he didn't pass on the land through the family, so I still have to pay rent. :(

[Asherbella]

My great-great-great uncle's middle name means: prosperous friend.
Cool.

[Asherbella]

I think one on my grandfather's side was (Thomas Cooke, I think the name was). He was pretty much a petty criminal, once he was sent out here he managed to own a few bars and stuff and ended up buying the land in Surry Hills around about where I'm living now.

Unfortunately, he didn't pass on the land through the family, so I still have to pay rent. :(
That is SO cool. Living in the same neighbourhood today as your forefathers did at least a century ago. :)

[poolboy jackson]

Some might see living in the same neighbourhood as your forefathers' as stagnance.

[Asherbella]

Some might see living in the same neighbourhood as your forefathers' as stagnance.
No,honouring your dynastic inheritance & respecting ancestor ties to the community! lol;)

[gnosis]

Some might see living in the same neighbourhood as your forefathers' as stagnance.

Hahaha, considering before then I was pretty sure most of my heritage was dutch/german, it's a slightly more tangible connection to my history. ;)

[Asherbella]

Hahaha, considering before then I was pretty sure most of my heritage was dutch/german, it's a slightly more tangible connection to my history. ;)
You may want to look up Dirk der Gramberg or Hans Hartog as a possible descendant or Manfred Junge, did Thomas Cooke emigrate from London?...both were on the same fleet as my great-great-great uncle, Thomas. When you pay a flat fee to trace your family tree you get lots of information....:p

[poolboy jackson]

I have some geneaological experience.

The most important things to do are
1. Search from what you know towards what you don't.
2. Keep notes and make a chart
3. Start at the State Library
4. Only pay money to American sites if you are desperate.

[barabin]

My grandfather migrated from Greece after the war so I am sure he liked it up the bum.

[poolboy jackson]

I have met three Greeks who BOASTED they ate nettles back home as a vegetable and that their house had an earth floor.

[barabin]

It wouldn't surprise me .. The Greek side of my family are all weirdos.

[Asherbella]

My grandfather migrated from Greece after the war so I am sure he liked it up the bum.
Be proud of your Greek heritage.
Goats.
Fetta cheese.
Democracy.
The world can not function without people power & dairy products!
LOL :p

[barabin]

For instance, my grandfather hates my mum because she was white yet he married an Australian when he moved here ... errrr, knob

[poolboy jackson]

I have to go to bed but if I had more energy I would quibble that Democracy as we have it in NSW Is NOT 'people power'.

[Asherbella]

For instance, my grandfather hates my mum because she was white yet he married an Australian when he moved here ... errrr, knob
Rent the Aussie movie 'Head On' starring Alex Dimitriades.
Superb.
The best Aussie movie ever made!
Make your grandfather watch it!
:)

[barabin]

I already own it and my grandfather is dead.

[Asherbella]

Oh, sorry. In that case, watch the movie by yourself & bury a note of the movies' critique in front of his tombstone....he'll get the message...lol

[barabin]

LOL.

My parents split when I was a year old so I never really had much to do with Dad's side.

It never really phased me so I'll save the energy.

[Asherbella]

Oh, now I feel like shit (scatta muri in Greek) lol....never mind, barrabin, keep well & live in the moment...

[Asherbella]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CqOmDVXdyA4

[barabin]

Aw, don't feel bad !!

You have definitely not brought up any raw emotions.

xx

[Asherbella]

Good. Because 'Head On' inspires me, it doesn't make me sad! lol

[Flaneur]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CqOmDVXdyA4
This film proved to me that not all Australian cinema is shit.

Also - Alex Dimitriades was pretty hot in that film.

[ammonite]

good for you ash!

i've always wanted to research my family.

there just never seems to be enough time. :(

[Asherbella]

Dad's side is very British. Upstart stiff upper lip kinda stuff.
Never knew there was a 'deviant' in the family...lol

[rudeboy86]

I had the luxury of growing up in what was and in some ways still is, a very Greek area in Melbourne....Windsor.

The woman next door who I knew for my entire childhood and early teens was a Greek Cypriot. Used to hang out at her place, drink coffee and she would make Koulourakia and despair about her grand-daughter "she no speaka Greek anymore..." I miss her...

If you walk through the side streets in Windsor you will see heaps of old Greek women in black (widows) with golden crosses on their necks, old Greek men in the fishermen caps, sitting in their coffeehouse, smoking (outside), playing cards and backgammon and bitching at eachother in Greek.

I always found the old Greek guys to be quite entertaining to watch as they argued and gossiped, kinda like my grandmother's friends when I was a kid, but they would bitch in Yiddish and Polish.

[poolboy jackson]

So does that mean your grandmother is/was Polish?

[TheOldie]

Go right back to the Third Fleet. He stole 10/- but he married . Still there were some who never married but no stories and no-one alive anymore :( to ask not that those things were spoken off.

Have street/small island ! all named after him.

[poolboy jackson]

I am a newbie compared to you Oldie, I go back 1 and half centuries.

[TheOldie]

I am a newbie compared to you Oldie, I go back 1 and half centuries.

being old or young makes no difference with heritage :(

Just one day I decided to look and basically had to do no research. Even the Library has books on the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th fleets with all the names etc and easy to search.

Great Ocean Rd has lots of things to do with the relative with names on various things.

The other side of my family though very hard to find.

[ammonite]

i'm only a third generation australian as far as i know.

irish, german, polish and english.

protestant and catholic which is why i hate myself probably LOL.

[rudeboy86]

So does that mean your grandmother is/was Polish?

My Father's side is from Poland and they came out to Melbourne in 1949-50. They came out here as a family of three as my aunt was born in Paris in 1948 and my other aunt died in Uzbekistan in a refugee camp on the Afghan border during the war when she was about 6 months old. My Dad was born here.

My Mother's side is from Germany and they came out here just before WWII started, they kinda had a bit of a heads up as to get out of that place. They got to Sydney first but my grandmother moved down to Melbourne so a lot of that side of the extended family lives up there.

So there you go...