Central Coast Regional Seminar – Media Release

Black and white photograph of Woy Woy from Blackwall Hill

Land Records, Convict Crimes and Convicts Transported from Ireland: A Treasure Trove of Research Possibilities

Black and white photograph of Woy Woy from Blackwall Hill

Woy Woy From Blackwall Hill, undated Valentine postcard [RAHS Foster Press Clippings Collection]

Date: Saturday 4th March 2023

Time: 10 am to 4 pm

Venue: Gosford City Lions Hall, 3/8 Russell Drysdale St, East Gosford NSW 2250

The Royal Australian Historical Society (RAHS) is staging one of its popular regional seminars in conjunction with the Central Coast Family History Society. This one-day, face-to-face seminar will appeal to anyone who wants to learn more about convicts and their crimes, Irish convicts transported to Australia, and how to use land records.

Approximately twelve percent of all convicts transported to Australia were Irish. RAHS Senior Vice-President Christine Yeats will show you the hidden resources you can use to learn more about convicts transported from Ireland to Australia. With so many resources available online, Christine says, ‘it has never been easier to discover something new about your Irish convict ancestors and their life experiences.’

‘Local history requires specific research into a place, and the best way to do that is to look into the records of who owned the land.’ Adjunct Associate Professor Carol Liston AO is a historian who specialises in the history of early New South Wales. In her presentation, Professor Liston will show you how to use land records from the Historical Land Records Viewer, Primary Applications and the Court of Claims to learn about the past.

In a recent RAHS History magazine, Dr Kathrine Reynolds said, ‘[m]any Australians are descended from convicts transported from Britain and in recent years it has been possible and enjoyable to discover one’s convict ancestors. However, as the crimes were committed in Britain and tried in British courts, much data exists in British record offices that provide a more fulsome story’. This seminar will also feature a talk that will show you how to research the crimes of convict women using English court records.

For more information and bookings, go to the RAHS website:

https://www.rahs.org.au/event/central-coast-regional-seminar-2023/