More excitement.  Kerryn from the blog AncestorChasing has nominated Western District Families for the Illuminating Blogger Award.

She wrote on her blog:

Merron finds and shares some great genealogy resources and information on her Western District Families, one of which I have a slight connection to.   

That’s very flattering.  Thank you, Kerryn for your continuing support.

In just over a year, I have obtained so much more from writing Western District Families than I expected at the outset.  It all started with my need to get all my research out of my head.  I had to tell someone and no one around me was terribly interested.  Not only have I met that need, I have made contact with so many people.  Some are related and would never have found me otherwise.  Others have had family on the Duke of Richmond, a ship two lots of my ggg grandparents travelled aboard to Portland.  Then there others like Kerryn who have a link to my family through marriage or otherwise.

One condition of the award nomination is that I need to nominate at least five other blogs.  I have selected six illuminating blogs that I regularly read:

My Genealogy Adventure – Tanya Honey’s blog is one I enjoy very much.  Her posts are well researched and well written.  Not only that, she is supportive of her fellow bloggers.  I have received many comments from Tanya on both my blog and social media.  Like myself, she juggles family, work, study, blogging and researching her family.

Twigs of Yore – I have followed Shelly Crawford’s Twigs of Yore blog for some time now.  Shelly is also balancing raising small children and blogging and she does a great job.  She has also given me a great idea to fill in the school holidays with my son.  Going together to the local cemetery with the Billion Graves app and photographing headstones has been high on my list of things to do this holidays, but given the miserable weather, we may have to wait until spring.

Finding Family – I recently came across this blog from Jess of Perth, Western Australia.  It is great to see someone so young (I sound like a grandma) so interested in history.  Her posts are full of detail and are well written.  Also, there are lots of photos and like me, she loves Trove.

Strong Foundations  – This another blog I have recently discovered and really enjoyed.  Sharon, a fellow Victorian, has the best photos on her blog. She also uses maps and newspapers articles to illustrate her posts which I like.  I particularly enjoyed her post H is for…Horses.

FamilyHistory4u – Sharn White’s FamilyHistory4U is another wonderful blog.  The research and detail that goes into each post is fantastic.  Recently Sharn shared her journey to the U.S. which included a trip to the Ellis Island Immigration Museum for some research.  This was an excellent insight into what to expect and if ever get to New York, I will follow her tips to research members of my Riddiford family who made their way to the U.S.

Our Great Southern Land – Jayne is another Victorian and I love her passion which comes across in her posts.  It’s not only her passion for history but her family, various causes and social issues and of course Dunolly, a central Victorian town to which Jayne dedicates a whole blog to.  But is Our Great Southern Land, which she writes in her own distinct style, that I find most illuminating.  I now even have a recipe for dog cakes (cakes for the dog not of the dog).  I also follow Jayne on Twitter and she provides many insightful links and she is not afraid to stand up for what she believes.

Another condition of the nomination is that I give a random fact about myself.  In 1991, I attended my first, and only, Melbourne Cup to watch London Bridge run in the big race.  Dad was a co-owner and Bart Cummings was the trainer.  London Bridge ran an honourable 9th and despite it raining all day and not being able to see or hear the race because of the crowd, it was still one of the biggest thrills of my life.

If you have been nominated this is what you need to do:

1. The nominee should visit the award site (http://foodstoriesblog.com/illuminating-blogger-award/) and leave a comment indicating that they have been nominated and by whom. (This step is so important because it’s the only way that we can create a blogroll of award winners).
2. The Nominee should thank the person that nominated them by posting & including a link to their blog.
3. The Nominee should include a courtesy link back to the official award site (http://foodstoriesblog.com/illuminating-blogger-award/) in their blog post.
4. Share one random thing about yourself in your blog post.
5. Select at least five other bloggers that you enjoy reading their illuminating, informative posts and nominate them for the award. Many people indicate that they wish they could nominate more so please feel free to nominate all your favorites.
6. Notify your nominees by leaving a comment on their blog, including a link to the award site (http://foodstoriesblog.com/illuminating-blogger-award/).

I didn’t think I would be back so soon with another post for the Gould Genealogy Alphabet Challenge but I was suddenly inspired.

You see, it’s elementary, my dear Watson, I is for investigation.

SHERLOCK HOLMES AND “WATSON”. (1930, May 4). Sunday Times (Perth, WA : 1902 – 1954), p. 8. Retrieved July 5, 2012, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article58381914

Without it where would we, as researchers, be?  It is the very act of investigation that makes us researchers.

We search for clues, follow leads and uncover facts.  The thrill of the chase brings us back for more.

Who hasn’t felt a bit like Sherlock Holmes before?  As one clue leads to another, suddenly a profile of a person or a story that has been hidden reveals itself before our eyes.  Elementary!

Often we find ourselves digging around in the time of Holmes, but of course, the occasional Inspector Clouseau moment occurs. Sometimes the juggling of various resources or social media pages would be better suited to the likes of Inspector Gadget.

However,  it is the discoveries that lead us to do the researcher happy dance that leave us feeling like the divine Miss Phryne Fisher (**Insert Magnum P.I. if you are not of the female persuasion)

Genealogist Bill West has changed the title of his Great American Genealogy Poetry & Song Challenge to the Great Genealogy Poetry Challenge, giving those us from other countries to take part.  Thanks to Jill Ball for bringing this Challenge to my attention.

These are the guidelines I followed:

1. Find a poem by a local poet, famous or obscure, from the region one of your ancestors lived in. It can be about a historical event, a legend, a person, or even about a place (like a river)or a local animal. It can even be a poem you or one of your ancestors have written!  Or if you prefer, post the lyrics of a song or a link to a video of someone performing the song.

2. Post the poem or song to your blog (remembering to cite the source where you found it.)

3.Tell us how the subject of the poem or song relates to your ancestor’s home or life.

When I think of poetry and the Western District the name that comes to my mind is that of Adam Lindsay Gordon, poet, policeman, steeplechase jockey and daredevil.  However, many of Gordon’s poems could easily have been set in England.  The most obvious poem with a Western District theme is “The Fields of Coleraine“, which describes steeplechasing at the Coleraine racecourse, however, it doesn’t really give a feel for life in the area at the time.

I then came across a C.J. Dennis’ poem “When the Sun’s behind the Hill” from his book Blackblock Ballads and Later Verses, published 1918 when Dennis was living in Victoria.  The poem is about a  farming family and as many of my ancestors were farmers, right across Victoria, I thought it was appropriate.  While it is not as light and humorous as some of C.J. Dennis’ works, it is a lovely poem that describes the winding down of both the farm and the farmer at the end of a day.  It also reminds us a farmer’s day begins with the rising sun and ends “when the sun’s behind the hill…”