“Wouldn’t it be great if I could just swipe a card like I do at work? And even better, if it was the same card?”, I thought to myself as I walked through the gate/door to the back of my apartment block tonight.
I was carrying a bag, I’d been wearing a suit for close to twelve hours, and I was feeling a little bit tired.
My day at work was both full and interesting, with lots of interesting conversations, and some real progress on a couple of projects I’ve been working on.
And then tonight it was Swedish class which was also, both interesting and joyful.
But by the end of it all, I was so tired I even passed on my usual night at the pub with mates after class.
One of my favourite personal interests is family history. My earliest memory of this interest goes back to high school when we all had to do a “family tree”. Ever since then I’ve been fascinated. Although my interest is ongoing, I go through periods of great breakthroughs, and periods where nothing happens.
I made a brief reappearance on ABC radio today, talking about the significance/role of genealogy in my blogs.
If you heard the segment, here are the ancestors I’m interested in chasing up more information about.
GGGGG-Grandparents
Love and Hoare land at Parish of Manangle
John Love and Martha: There is considerable debate amongst researchers about the early life of John Love and his wife Martha. The essence of the debate concerns Martha and her name prior to marrying John Love. There are several theories, all of which are canvassed in the comments below. We know, however, that John Love was a member of the newly formed NSW Corps, whose role was to supervise convicts. Although the records are somewhat sketchy, I think we can also accept he and Martha came to Australia on the Third Fleet. There is debate, however, about whether or not their daughter, Elizabeth Love came with them, or whether or not she was born here. The ship on which they came, the “Matilda” departed from Portsmouth on March 27, 1791, arriving in Sydney on August 1.
James Rixon and Amelia Goodwin: Although the exact details of his birth have yet to be confirmed, it’s believed James Rixon was born in Derbyshire, England in about 1770, At the time of his conviction and sentencing, he was living in Ilkeston, a small market town in the Erewash Valley, Derbyshire. Aged 22, he was “Charged on the oath of William Reed on Suspicion of privately stealing out of his Box in the House of William Webster, of Ilkeston, on Monday the 24th of October last, the Sum of Nine Guineas”. The sentence “To be hang’d” was commuted to Life imprisonment. His partner, Amelia Goodwin was also born in 1770 and her first marriage was to John Goodwin. When convicted she was 29 years old and living at Greenwich, England. She was charged with the theft from her employer of a large number of clothing and household items. According to the court record the value of the goods was 39-shillings. Amelia Goodwin was tried at Maidstone, Kent, found guilty of the offence on July 15, 1799 and sentenced to 7 years transportation.
James O'Brien visits Wexford in September 1999
John Hoare and Elizabeth Love: John Hoare who was transported to Australian in 1801 came originally from County Wexford, although the exact details of his birthdate and place remain unconfirmed (see notes). Wexford is a town of about 10,000 people these days on the South Coast of Ireland. Much of the history of the area, including the county’s role in Irish independence is celebrated and preserved. Researcher, Graham Lewis believes he enlisted in the Royal Navy at the Port of London on September 7, 1795. Initially he was on HMS Royal William, and soon afterwards HMS Impregnable. He moved to the HMS Defiance in 1796. On board the HMS Defiance Hoare was one of a number of people found guilty of their involvement in a naval mutiny on board the ship in 1798. A few years after arriving in Australia, he married Elizabeth, the daughter of John and Martha Love.
Allan McLean and Janet McFarlane: Allan McLean was born on the Isle of Coll, Scotland in 1782. His father, John McLean was a boat-builder and carpenter, while his mother, Isabella McDougall presumably worked at home.On May 23, 1816 at Scarinish, the main village on the Isle of Tiree (just off Coll) Allan married Janet McFarlane, a waitress living in the village. They left from Tobermory on the Isle of Mull on September 27, 1837 and travelling on the “Brilliant”, they arrived in Sydney on January 20, 1838. Soon after arriving in Australia, Allan and Janet settled at Broulee, near Moruya, on the NSW South Coast.
Thomas Triggell and Henrietta Spencer: Thomas Triggell was born November 8, 1812 in the small village of Bramshaw, near Fordingbridge in Hampshire, England. Thomas Triggell and Henrietta Spencer were married by banns (in the church, as opposed to national registratoin) at St Lawrence Church, Downton, Wiltshire, on October 7 1832. Both signed with a mark and witnesses to the marriage were Charles Sleave (Sleane?) and William Pope. They came to Australia in 1834 on board the Ship “James” with their daughter, Ellen (although she is named “Ann” on the Shipping Records. They left from London on June 29, and travelled via the Cape of Good Hope to Port Jackson, Australia, arriving here on November 17, 1834. They eventually settled on the Monaro.
Robert Higgins and Ann Owen: Robert Higgins, who was from Nottinghamshire, was sent to Australia after taking part in The Walcheren expedition (July 30 – December 10, 1809), a very large British military operation during the Napoleonic Wars. Higgins was court martialled on September 6, 1809. He came to Australia on the Admiral Gambier II in 1811. He married convict Ann Owen on November 19, 1814 at St. John’s Parramatta. Ann, who was probably born in 1791 had come to Australia on the Wanstead, along with her illegitimate daughter, Elizabeth. Judging by the record of her trial at The Old Bailey, and having an illegitimate daughter, it appears Ann would have been desperately poor before her arrival in Australia. Upon a conditional pardon, Robert became a Constable. In 1828, Robert and Ann separated. The reason, according to evidence given at the coronial inquest into his death, was that Ann had an extramarital affair. Robert Higgins died from asthma on June 11, 1828 at Burragorang. Ann died on July 23, 1832, and is buried beside her daughter Elizabeth Scott at Sutton Forest.
GGG-Grandparents
William Rixon and Ann Hoare: William and Ann had a large family and farmed in the Campbelltown district, now part of Greater Sydney.
James Laing and Isabella McLean: James Laing was a convict. He and Isabella lived in the Moruya and Towamba districts of Southern NSW.
Robert Higgins and Ellen Triggell: Robert Higgins who was the son of Robert Higgins and Ann Owens was born 1824 in Bargo NSW. He married English immigrant (came to Australia with her parents in 1834), Ellen Triggell at Cooma and lived at Towamba, near Eden NSW.
James Dennis and Elizabeth Guymer: James Dennis and Elizabeth Guymer were married on April 29, 1818 in the parish of East Dereham. Elizabeth who was born March 4, 1798 (and baptised one year later). was the daughter of William Guymer and Elizabeth Allison. Their daughter, Mary Ann came to Australia in 1854. Elizabeth died in the Mitford District in 1857 (Q3 1857 4b 200}.
GG-Grandparents
James O’Brien and Mary Smith: James and Mary were from the Slane district of Ireland. They came to Australia in 1864, settling in the Bega Valley.
James Wright Goward and Mary Ann Denny: James and Mary Ann were from the Norfolk District of England. They settled on the Kameruka Estate, near Candelo, via Bega, NSW.
Maurice Lynch and Mary Moynihan: Maurice Lynch and his wife, Mary Moynihan, lived in Listowel, a town near the Southwest coast of Ireland in County Kerry.
Donald Laing and Sarah Higgins: Donald Laing was probably one of Australia’s longest serving mailmen, completing 61 years of continuous mail contracting service, most of it carried out on horseback.
William Elliott and Mary Fitzgerald: At this stage, I have almost no information about William Elliott and Mary J Fitzgerald. I do, however, think there’s a fair amount of evidence they were the parents of Catherine Elliott who married John Dunn at Cooma on May 26, 1873. If this can be confirmed, they’re my g-g-grandparents. As I cannot find a marriage record for them yet, it’s likely they either didn’t marry or came to Australia as a married couple. I’m sure the latter is true!!
G-Grandparents
Mary Ann Goward was the daughter of James and Mary Ann. She married Peter O'Brien and lived in the Bega and Candelo districts of NSW.
John Noonan and Hannah Lynch: Hannah Lynch was an assisted immigrant who came to Australia where she married John Noonan. They lived and worked mostly in the Bega District.
William Rixon and Ellen Laing: Now this is a fascinating story. William and Ellen were first cousins who had at least three children together. William also had another family with whom he lived in Bairnsdale in Victoria. Easily the most interesting (and complex) story I’ve been researching.
Grand-Parents
James O’Brien and Lena Noonan: James and Lena mostly worked as dairy farmers in the Bega and Lismore districts. Their decision to move to Lismore was the reason why I grew up there.
Charles Dunn and Bertha Rixon: After serving in the First World War, Charles married Bertha. In the 1930s, they moved from Bombala to Lismore.
Parents
Albert O’Brien and Bertha Dunn: Mum and dad. For many years dad worked at the Lismore Base Hospital, while mum mostly worked at home.
It’s Sunday afternoon and I’ve just gotten out of bed. I went to bed quite late last night and although I half-watched “The Insiders” on ABC-TV this morning, I only really woke up a short while ago.
I’ve just put a load of washing on and so I thought I’d take a moment or two to update my diary before heading off for drinks this afternoon.
I spent Tuesday night, as per usual, watching “The Bill” and then surfing the net. I chatted for a while with Patrick and did some family history research. I came across a website set up by one of the grand-daughters of the couple I grew up next to, the Bown Family. We used to live next to (other side of the shed) to Eric Bown as a child, along with mum, dad and my grandmother. As a child I used to help feed their chooks. My uncle still lives in the house in Casino Street. I wrote a note to her saying “hello” and mentioning that I’m also reasonably sure I came across a reference to Eric in a couple of book about Lynch’s Creek in the State Library “Dairy farming at Lynch’s Creek” and “Lynch’s Creek : one hundred years of settlement 1890 to 1990”.
Much the same on Wednesday night. I’ve been trying to work on a makeover for my website again… boring eh? Anyway, I recently registered http://www.jamesobrien.id.au which I think is quite a respectable and long-term address to have and one which I obtained as a result of a free offer. I am quite enjoying the free offer and am thinking seriously about subscribing so I wrote to the company just asking if they could clarify one aspect of the offer. The documentation mentions that on fully subscribing for $99 p.a. I would receive an increase in photo storage space from 20mb up to 100mb. I’m not sure, however, if that means my space http://www.jamesobrien.id.au would have the capacity to host up to 100mb of any types of files, or would that only be 100mb of photographs WITHIN ThePhotoGallery? So I wrote to them, asking, and if what I hope is correct is true I will probably transfer all my websites over into one mega site.
After that I watched television for a while. SBS screened a fabulous Swedish film called “Lust och fägring stor” (All Things Fair) about a young boy who falls in love (for a while) with his dysfunctional school teacher. The young boy is played by Johan Widerberg, who I thought was excellent in the role.
Sue and I also discussed for a while planning for our School Reunion, Sue mentioning that Graeme Smith had written back to her, along with details for Anne Nelson. At the moment, we’re planning to have a get together on the Saturday evening/night of November 15, meeting here because there are lots of food and pub options within walking distance and because people can sleep over. I’ve promised to polish off my copy of “Muriels Wedding” for long play performance during the night. So the plan is that we’ll meet here at 6pm – we can organise some dinner (take away or restaurant) – and then do some cyber stalking to find people or to plan stuff. It should be good fun.
On Friday night, Damo and I met up at the Trinity Hotel for dinner, drinks and photo sharing. We had a good time chatting, although I was a little tired. Damo told me heaps of stories about his trip and was mostly happy with the photographs which I picked out. Nino walked past with his parents and waved hello.
Last night, of course, was spent at home watching “The Bill”.
An unplanned trip to Lismore, particularly when dealing with difficult family matters (family funeral planniing), can leave little time for personal planning. So if you should ever find yourself in Lismore with nothing planned, here are some fun things to do.
Head to the Lismore Workers Club for their Saturday meat raffles, kicking off every week from 1:00 pm. It’s a hugely popular event, drawing a crowd of maybe 200 people sitting around the main area. While I wasn’t lucky this time, I vividly recall winning enough meat trays here right before the 2022 Lismore flood to fully stock my sister’s freezer—a gesture that, sadly, didn’t survive the disaster along with everything else.
Take a moment to visit the Lismore River Mural. It’s a powerful tribute to the community’s resilience following the devastating 2022 flood. The artwork captures the scale of the disaster, which impacted far wider than just Lismore. It also highlights the legendary ‘Tinny Army’—the spontaneous, courageous local volunteers who used their small aluminium boats (tinnies) to rescue thousands of people from rising waters. On a lighter note, while trying to get a closer look at the mural recently, I briefly lost control of my mobility scooter—a minor wobble compared to the chaos the town endured, but certainly an unexpected adventure!
For a quick, satisfying Saturday lunch, I highly recommend Hing’s Chinese and Vietnamese Restaurant. I managed to slip in and grab an order, specifically the mixed entrée, just before their afternoon closing time of 2:00 pm. They are a staple of the local food scene, and a reminder that even after the floods, Lismore’s vibrant small businesses are still serving up quality food. Be sure to check their exact hours, but if you’re in the centre of town near lunchtime, it’s worth a visit!To engage with the region’s deep cultural heritage, visit the Lismore Regional Gallery. Right now, they are hosting an incredible exhibition dedicated to local Bundjalung women’s weaving. This is a wonderful opportunity to see contemporary Indigenous art, learn about the traditional practices of the local community, and appreciate the intricate artistry involved. The gallery is a fantastic, calming space in the heart of the city—a perfect place to find quiet reflection and connection to the Northern Rivers area.I wrapped up my day with a great meal at a nearby Indian restaurant before heading to the Metropole Hotel for the iconic local event, LOVEMORE. LOVEMORE is a brilliant, inclusive LGBTQIA+ night presented by the “Where Love Lives” initiative, dedicated to celebrating diversity and unity in the Northern Rivers. The atmosphere is always electric, pumped up by house and disco beats. On this particular night, the entertainment was capped off with a spectacular performance by local drag artist, Rubella, who brought the house down! While the dance floor was absolutely packed with people grooving to the music, I didn’t quite get my own mobility scooter out for a spin, though I got pretty close to joining in! It’s a wonderful place to experience Lismore’s big heart and vibrant community spirit.
Good weather for the summer holidays As there was a 200kr entry at Patricia last night, I decided against a Sunday night on the boat. That’s good drinking money in my view. A bit like NYE or Mardi Gras in Sydney. Surely it wasn’t like that for World Youth Day? And besides, I’ve already been to Patricia and thought it was great fun, but hardly worth $40 entry. I’ll return after the Europride price-hike, I’m sure.
Instead, I went for a quick drink at Torget. Also there, I noticed instantly how the mood of the place has changed with the commencement of Europride. Chatting to locals, you can see in their eyes that I’m no longer the interesting man from Australia who is spending a lot of time in Sweden and has bothered to learn some of the language. Instead, you can see they think I’m just another bloody tourist here for Europride. At least I’m not an American. The locals don’t seem to like Americans, from what I’ve gathered.
So after a couple of drinks I came home and hit the sack and woke this morning feeling fully rested.
Today also has been a day of resting up. I had one of these days in Narvik a couple of weeks ago, where I decided to do absolutely nothing, to keep my mind and body rested. The next few days are gonna be busy, indeed.
I’ve also needed to take some time out to think about what happens next. The first part of the trip was always going to be in Sweden, and the last part was always going to be in France. I kept the middle piece deliberately open so I could respond to how I feel. To do something spontaenous. So I wandered around today looking at tourist brochures, checking out flight and ferry details etc.
And then I came home for an afternoon nap. During the nap I had quite a vivid dream where I was at a tourist office and was asking the bloke behind the counter for advice. In the dream at least he told me I should catch the ferry to Tallin in Estonia. “Are you sure about the ferry?”, I asked him. He replied simply, “I’m Norwegian. We love the water. You must catch the ferry”.
Dreams, of course, are mostly a reinforcement of your own inner thoughts anyway, so I’m taking this as a sign that my heart says, forget Finland (already been there), and that I should head off to Eastern Europe instead. I’ll do some more planning and research when I have time over the next few days.
On the one-hand, I could just stay here in Stockholm where I am happy and comfortable. But there’s a voice inside me saying “take a risk”.
Like a roller in the ocean, life is motion
Move on
Like a wind that’s always blowing, life is flowing
Move on
Like the sunrise in the morning, life is dawning
Move on
How I treasure every minute
Being part of it, being in it
With the urge to move on
It was only after chatting with my neighbours and was halfway down the street that I discovered chocolate stains on my shirt, prompting a return home to change.
I was on my way to meet a friend who I haven’t seen for several months. I went to Lismore, and she went to Alice Springs. She’s been back for a couple of weeks, but this is the first time we’ve had a chance to see each other.
Our catch-up plan was to see the movie, Araatika: Rise Up!, directed by a friend of ours, Larissa Behrendt, at the postponed Sydney Film Festival, and then have a late afternoon chat over a bottle of wine and nibbles.
“I’m a little peckish”, I said to my friend as we arrived at the cinema. That’s when I suggested grabbing a choc-top and soon realised they have a new wrapper for the choc-tops at the cinema on George Street, and presumably all other Event Cinemas too. The see-through wrapper has been replaced by a more “traditional” style of ice-cream wrapper.
As I fumbled in the dark with the wrapper, the ice cream fell out, covering the top of my pants and the bottom of my shirt in chocolate-covered salty caramel ice cream. “I’ve discovered a new use for face-masks. You can use the inside of them to clean up chocolate from your pants”, I joked.
The film we saw is about the development of Australian rugby league’s “answer” to New Zealand’s “haka”.
First Nations filmmaker Larissa Behrendt (After the Apology) follows a group of NRL stars as they create a pre-game performance to meet the famous haka. For over a decade, NRL players including Dean Widders, Preston Campbell, Timana Tahu and George Rose have been leading the movement for a First Nations Australian equivalent to the haka. Widders faced discrimination throughout his career and for him the ceremony is a way of celebrating Indigenous Australia’s contribution to the game. In 2012, dancer and choreographer Sean Choolburra came on board to help. Working with NRL players, he came up with a series of movements that reflected cultural symbols. The goal was to perform the symbolic dance at the 2020 New Zealand-Australia Test but COVID-19 halted their plans. Behrendt’s rousing documentary, also featuring the Bangarra Dance Company, Stan Grant, Adam Goodes, Michael O’Loughlin and many more, traces the game’s troubled relationship to its Indigenous stars, to its previous failed attempts at a pre-game ceremony and to a triumphant performance on-stage at Sydney Festival.
In the on-stage introduction to the film, Larissa confessed she was “not really a sporty girl”. She is, however, deeply interested in the arts. But you don’t have to like rugby league to like the film, as it combines so many interesting stories.
Chatting with Larissa afterwards, my “critique” of the film rolled off my tongue. “I loved the relationship between Dean and his dad, I loved the piece where the players come literally nose to nose, and I loved the combination of footy and arts”, I told her. Throughout the film, there’s also the narrative of the growing pride in identity of many Aboriginal people.
As the film was co-funded by NITV, I’m sure it will eventually get a TV screening.
After a great afternoon catch-up, it was time to come home and wash THREE pieces of clothing!
It was an unusual Wednesday night, in the sense that both Graeme and I had other plans, so we didn’t meet, as usual, at the pub.
Graeme had a work farewell to attend.
And I had a work-related function to attend at the Cruise Bar.
Cruise Bar is such a great venue by the way. Although it seems the Opera Bar is more popular, I’ve always enjoyed Cruise Bar more because a) I think the views are better b) it’s less crowded c) it’s easier and faster to get a drink. As great as it is to sit outdoors and enjoy the Harbour Bridge view you get from Opera Bar, my personal preference is for the Opera House view you get from Cruise Bar.
Anyway, the event I was attending was the announcement of the People’s Choice Winner for the Smart Light Festival.
Smart Light Festival - inside Cruise Bar
A couple of weeks ago I attempted to have a look around the festival with Sue when she was visiting, though unfortunately the heavy rain prevented this trip.
As I wandered down to have a look at the lights I was genuinely surprised at how many people were out on a cold Wednesday night enjoying the activity. I’m unaware of how many would have been tourists, and how many would have been locals, but I guess it doesn’t matter that much, when you get to see so many people enjoying themselves.
The “People’s Choice Winner” was an obvious one, I thought. Located out the front of Customs House, it was the one with the most people milling around taking photographs. It’s the one people obviously enjoyed most because of scale, colour, whatever.
Overall, a nice way to spend the night sipping on a chardy, enjoying an amazing conversation with a woman who I’ve heard of for many years, but had never met before, even though she knows several people I do. “I remember you from Countdown”, I told her, which brought a smile to her face.
