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New Zealand Herald ad 1955

Having a look at the New Zealand City & Area Directories, 1866-1955 this week, I came across this ad for the NZ Herald newspaper from 1955.

With circulation of 156,000 copies daily the ad notes the paper dominates Auckland which in 1955, had a population of 800,000 (it's now just under 1.4 million).

Advertising in the Herald was just 2.14 pence per column inch for every 1000 subscribers!

Directories are a great resource for family historians and are particularly useful for locating people in a place and time. The ads and commercial sections of the directory can also help you learn more about your ancestors' occupation.

Search our NZ City Directories today. 

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Sounds Historical

Ancestry's Brad Argent recently caught up with Jim Sullivan from Radio New Zealand Sounds Historical.

Brad discusses his own family history, tips on getting started with your family tree & genealogy in general.

You can listen to the interview here - click on Sounds Historical Hour Two and Brad's interview starts at 21 minutes in.

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Pets on the 1911 UK Census

Today is National Dog Day!

The Glasspoole family included their dog Spot, their cat Tom and 11 white fowls on their 1911 England Census form.

Do you have a pet you consider part of the family?

Access the 1911 England & Wales Census FREE on Ancestry.com.au until 14 October 2013.

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Emily Wilding Davison Hiding on Census Night

Did you know that British suffragette Emily Wilding Davison hid in a broom cupboard in the Houses of Parliament on Census night so she her place of residence would be "House of Commons"?

She is listed twice on the 1911 England Census - once at home and once with her address as “Found Hiding in Crypt of Westminster Hall Westminster” (shown above)

A  plaque was later set in place in Westminster in 1999 to commemorate the event.

Search the 1911 UK Census FREE on Ancestry until 14 October 2013.

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Welcome to the August edition of the Ancestry.com.au family history podcast.

This month, Ancestry’s Brad Argent has answered the following questions from our Facebook page -

How can I get someone to translate Dutch information?

How can I confirm that I have the right person in an 1840's marriage in NSW without buying certificates?

What are your top tips when searching for common names?

When are Australia's census' available?

I think my family might be Spanish but there's nothing in the records to suggest this. Any ideas?

How can you get old photos dated?

When will you be adding German records?

Why can we not see the actual documents for the Australian BMDs on Ancestry?

Trying to find BMD info in NZ but not having any luck with the Registry's site. Any tips?

Got a question for Brad? Simply post it on our Facebook page or use the Twitter hashtag #AskAncestryAU.

You can also download our podcast free from iTunes.

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Welcome to the July edition of the Ancestry.com.au podcast.

This month, Ancestry’s Brad Argent has answered the following questions from our Facebook page -

David and Erin are trying to trace New Zealand ancestors and want to know if Ancestry has any records. They also want to know where do they go from there?

Barbara and Daphne want to know what you do if you can’t find a birth certificate or any evidence of someone coming into Australia?

Helen is struggling to find ancestors who came to Australia towards the end of the 1800's. Why are immigrants from this period so difficult to trace?

Jessica pointed out that some of the Electoral Rolls aren’t indexed which can make it challenging to find someone as you have to know the subdivisions/districts they were in first. But that's going change, isn't it?

Kathleen can’t find a marriage record in Sydney for the early 1850's. Why?

Kerryn is trying to trace cousins in the UK from early 1900's.  What does she do?

Leanne asks "Is there a way to find some one's birth record if you don't know their parents names?"

Melissa wants to know "What was the likelihood of women in their late 30's or early 40's having children in the 1800's?"

Neve think's there might be Indigenous connections in her family 5 or 6 generations back. Is there a way she can trace this?

Got a question for Brad? Simply post it on our Facebook page or use the Twitter hashtag #AskAncestryAU.

You can also download our podcast free from iTunes.

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Our U.S. School Yearbooks collection is one of the most entertaining on the site. 

There are lots of famous faces in these yearbooks including this dashing young man, who is of course Brad Pitt.

He may now be one of the most famous men in the world, but here he was a 16 year old student at Kickapoo High School, Missouri in 1981.

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Bloomsday

Did you know 16 June is "Bloomsday" - a celebration of Irish writer James Joyce's famous novel Ulysses, set on this day in 1904.

Why did he choose this date for the setting of his story? It was the day of the first date with his future wife Nora Barnacle.

And here they are on the England & Wales, Marriage Index in 1931. Happy Bloomsday!

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Happy Queensland Day!

Today (6th June) marks Queensland Day which celebrates the day QLD became a colony.

We found this wonderful postcard of the state capital Brisbane in our Australia Historical Postcards collection which is free to search.

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Emily Davison in the 1911 England Census

Emily Wilding Davison was born in Blackheath, London on 11 October 1872. She grew up to become a militant activist who fought for women's suffrage in Britain and was jailed 7 times. 

Here she is on the 1911 England Census, boarding with 50 year old Charlotte Batimon. Emily was aged 38, single and lists her occupation as "Political Secretary".

On 4 June 1913, Emily stepped out in front of King George V's horse at the Epsom Derby and sadly died a few days later.

There have been claims that Emily did not intend to commit suicide, that she was trying to disturb the Derby in order to draw attention to her cause. We'll never know.

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Welcome to the June edition of the Ancestry.com.au podcast.

This month, Ancestry's Brad Argent has answered your questions on Outward Passenger Lists, newspaper resources online, polish records, member connect, family trees and Tasmania convict records.

Got a question for Brad? Simply post it on our Facebook page, use the Twitter hashtag #AskAncestryAU or submit via Tumblr.

You can also download our podcast free from iTunes.

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F Scott Fitzgerald spotted in 1920 Census

Great Gatsby author Francis Scott Key Fitzgerald was born on 24 September 1896 in Minnesota.

Here he is on the 1920 U.S. Census, aged 23, living with his parents Mary and Edward, sister Annabelle and servant Margaret.

His occupation in 1920? Author and writer. His first novel, This Side of Paradise was published a short time later in March 1920.

In the same year, Fitzgerald married novelist Zelda Sayre and their daughter Frances was born in October 1921. He went on to write 3 other novels including his most famous, The Great Gatsby.

F Scott Fitzgerald died on 21 December 1940. He is buried with wife Zelda in Maryland, the gravestone inscribed with the final sentence of The Great Gatsby - "So we beat on boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the wind".

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Ancestry's Brad has been working on researching the family history of Brisbane talk back radio host, Gary Clare. Last week Brad spoke with Gary to share his story on 4KQ.

Click on the link above to listen to a recording of the show.

Clip courtesy of 4KQ radio.

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Brad Argent on Nightlife

Ancestry's Brad Argent joined Tony Delroy on ABC's Nightlife last week to talk about Great Gatsby family trees and the NSW Industrial School Registers, 1867-1925. 

Listen to Brad’s interview with Tony Delroy on the ABC Nightlife podcast website here.

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We hope you enjoyed our first family history podcast and thanks to everyone who submitted questions for our April edition.

This month, Ancestry’s Brad has answered your questions on convicts, immigration, Irish ancestry and more. 

Got a question for Brad? Simply post it on our Facebook page, use the Twitter hashtag #AskAncestryAU or submit via Tumblr.

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Thanks to everyone who submitted questions for our new family history podcast. We are pleased to introduce our first recording featuring Brad Argent, Ancestry’s Content Director.

Brad has answered your questions around researching Irish ancestry, immigration records, search tips, Member Connect, Canadian ancestry and more. 

Got a question for Brad? Simply post it on our Facebook page, use the Twitter hashtag #AskAncestryAU or submit via Tumblr.

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150 years of the London Underground

This week marks 150 years of the London Underground. The first underground journey took place between Paddington and Farringdon on the Metropolitan Railway on 9th January 1863.

We found this old postcard of Piccadilly Station in our UK and Ireland Historical Postcards collection which is free to search online.