Help Required from Australian Members

[Janet]

I have just received an intriguing Parcel Post form of Customs Declaration sent from Armadale Melbourne Victoria Australia. It was sent by a possible relative sometime during or just after the Second World War. The name of the sender is given and the parcel contained tin meat, marmalade, cheese, dripping, chocolate and mixed fruit weight 5lbs 4 ozs valued at 9 shillings and tuppence. The sender has stated that if the parcel is undeliverable to deliver to the Red Cross. The parcel was sent to my mother in England. Is there any way of tracing who was at this address in Melbourne at this time?

Janet

[dicole]

Hi Janet

Yes, you can look up the Electoral Rolls for Victoria and Australia up till 1954, if you have an ancestry sub. You can browse by Electorate, Armadale is in the Federal Electorate of HIGGINS, (and state electorate of Malvern) then its alphabetical by name, or just scour the lines for the address. Mine has expired, or I would look for you. There are also old electoral rolls, by electorate, on microfiche available in certain places.

Ancestry also has some of the Australian/Victorian BMDs online as well, for further information. I googled the address and its still a nice Federation style house - the address is now Hawthorn as suburb, rather than Armadale.

Di

[Janet]

Diane

Thanks for your very helpful reply. You have given me much more information about how to go about this sort of search as I really had no idea. I do have Ancestry Worldwide so I will have a hunt through.

Janet

[naomiatt]

Hi - the address is mentioned 16 x times in the beta newspaper site, including during the 1940's with items for sale such as a grandfather clock and piano..it was also for rent at varying times http://newspapers.nla.gov.au/ If you do advanced search and just put 14 Elgin Avenue, they will come up..you can also find the info in the Trove site http://trove.nla.gov.au/
Likewise, you can also search the person's name in beta and trove.

[Janet]

Naomiatt,

Thank you for this extra information. It looks as though I am going to be busy, but it certainly has paid off for me, putting up a notice on this, as I felt totally at a loss as to where to start until both you and Diane replied.

Janet

[Janet]

Well Thanks to you both for helping me turn up some fascinating unknown Australian Family HIstory I have now discovered that not only did a close relative live at Amadale as a hospital attendant in the war years but I have also been able to identify him through army docs I had already, so it was easy to spot the family in the electoral roll books, even though they had moved from that address to other addresses. I also found his emmigration on FMP in 1920 just after the First W War. From that so far I have also found three death dates in the family up to 1958. I may also have found the next generation, which may help me with finding others, so still much work to do. This was just from one small document found by my brother in his stamp collection! Just shows you what you can uncover with the tiniest bit of information.

Janet

[Mary from Italy]

You may find some WW2 service records here:

http://naa12.naa.gov.au/login.htm

http://www.ww2roll.gov.au/script/veteran.asp?ServiceID

and death notices here:

http://www.ryersonindex.org/

[naomiatt]

If it's not too common a surname, current family might be in the phone book -

http://www.whitepages.com.au/wp/initResSearch.do?subscriberName=&location=

if they're not ex directory. You can search by State..and it also gives variations of the spelling.
Do you feel they stayed in Victoria?

[Janet]

Mary,

Thanks for that. Have found some more possibles though no definites, though I do wonder if Valda Veronica who died Melbourne November 05 could relate to a Valma Veronica found with possible husband living in the same house as my other relative in Armadale in 1954? He was a Great Uncle whose army documents I have, and who emigrated with his wife 1920 to Melbourne where they lived in Armadale during the Second W War and from where the parcel came to England. His wife died 1931 and he appears to be living with some of his children in Armadale in 1954. I have found his death in Melbourne 1958.

Naomiatt

I feel that they did stay in Melbourne, certainly Victoria but that is only my feeling from what I have found so far. Until I found deaths I did not put possible living people on here, but the family I am looking for is that of Frank & Clarice who clearly lived at the above addresses and who are now both dead. Their daughter died age 63.

It would be good to make contact with any family members now living as I have a wealth of knowledge on this family. Will keep digging away.

What would be the best Family History Society to join for Melbourne?

Janet

[kylejustin]

i think you should get the deaths of frank and clarice if you havn't already. they would list any children plus their ages, then you could look for marriages, and go through phonebooks online to see if theyre still alive. or you could put a notice in a newspaper such as the age or the hearald sun, they have sections on people looking for each other.

[Janet]

Kylejustin

Thank you yes, I think that will be my next move to get Frank's Death Certificate. I have some of the children's certs who were born and died in the UK, but there is clearly another one living with Frank in 1954 that I do not know about and he may well have been born in Australia. May Elizabeth who was 63 when she died in 1978 was clearly unmarried so all would seem to rest with this other male I have found.

Janet

[naomiatt]

Hi - Veronica is buried at Springvale Botanical Cemetery - born 30th August 1931 and passed away 9th November 2005.
You can request more info from them http://www.deceasedsearch.com/page-o4922006-en.html

[naomiatt]

Frank was buried 27th August, 1958, also at Springvale, as was Clarice, 30th November, 1931.

http://www.deceasedsearch.com/

[Janet]

Wow Naomiatt,

You really are covering some Family history for me here and all in less thatn 48 hours. Thank you so much. I have also found a Joseph at the same cemetery also in 2005, so am getting very close now. Also born about the time I would have thought him to be born but yes it will be an Australian birth, so I need to check that one out as well. Have been on to a cousin here in England who is also keen to find an outcome so will keep you informed as to eventual outcome but am on holiday in aweek's time so bit pushed for time at present! Thank you so much.

Janet

[naomiatt]

Hi Janet - yes, noticed a few Noble's there. You can e mail the cemetery for further info..when you click on the name and then click again. there's another bit you can click. Might be fortunate and they can tell you who arranged the burials.
If they can't, they also seem to list the funeral directors for some of them. You can look them up in the phone book if you go that way after you hear direct from Springvale - http://www.whitepages.com.au/wp/initResSearch.do
(have a good holiday!)

[Janet]

Thanks Naomiatt. Will try that.

Janet