Each month as I add more pioneer obituaries to the WDF Pioneer Obituary Index, I think to myself I should do a proper tally of the number of obituaries now in the index. I’ve finally done it and there are more than I thought. The total is now 696 obituaries and with another fifteen almost ready to go for the January Passing of the Pioneers post, the number will reach over 700 by the end of the month.
THE PASSING OF THE PIONEERS. (1900, April 21). Camperdown Chronicle (Vic. : 1877 – 1954), p. 3.
For those new to Western District Families, since 2012 I have written a monthly post known as Passing of the Pioneers. Each post lists Western District pioneers in the month they died and with each, there is a link to their respective newspaper obituary sourced from digitised newspapers at the National Library of Australia’s Trove. Each entry has a summary of the pioneer’s life and some have photos and links to further information. I’ve read 711 great pioneering stories over the past five years giving me a better understanding of the Western District’s local, social and family history.
When I started searching for obituaries there was only the Portland Guardian and Horsham Times available but in time the number of Western District newspapers available has grown. With more obituaries, to make it easier for you (and me), I started the Pioneer Obituary Index. Now, pioneers named in the Passing of the Pioneers posts are listed alphabetically with a link to their relevant Passing of the Pioneers post. It’s a work in progress so if you haven’t found your Western District pioneer in the index, if they had an obituary in the paper there’s a good chance you will eventually.
To check the index follow the link – Pioneer Obituary Index. If you would like to read the Passing of the Pioneers posts, you will find them all on the following link, starting with the most recent post – Passing of the Pioneers.
Western District Families 