Congratulations to all involved in organising this fantastic day at the Ballarat North Community Centre.  The team from the Ballarat and District Genealogical Society Inc managed the day, guest speakers, morning & afternoon tea well with the event booked out well ahead of time.  Those of us lucky to go along, not only to support Mary Darcy and Phillip Moore, came away with great stories, good links to follow up and great ideas for future events.

The Guest Speakers started with Dr Samantha Fabry, Diocesan Archivist.  Samantha elaborated on who had gone before her as well as sharing some stories from the Catholic Diocesan Archives.  With the move to The Diocese of Ballarat will turn 150 on March 30, 2024. The following link relates to the Diocesan Historical Commission, some of you may have visited the exhibition Samantha coordinated on "Faith at War and the Priests who served" - https://www.ballarat.catholic.org.au/services-agencies-2/stewardship/diocesan-historical-commission/  

Dr Kevin Molloy, SLV, presented "Irish Collection at the State Library of Victoria.  State Library Victoria (slv.vic.gov.au)

After lunch Mary Darcy and Phillip Moore presented "Eureka Historical Trail".  Their presentation included a PowerPoint with images of five sites, information of their historical significance, who the main characters were and what impact is still resonate.

Gavan Keating reported on his journey as an independent researcher "Settling in Ballarat: A Case Study".  Of particular note, Gavan referenced full names for both male and female members and a little of each of their stories.  He distributed a "Reference List" listing websites used during his research.

Carol Armstrong elaborated on the Ballarat & District Genealogical Society, Researching the Irish, Resources & Records in the BDGS Collection.  Membership is very reasonable for the wealth of information held.  We encourage you to check out their website: https://www.ballaratgenealogy.org.au/ 

The final guest speaker was Rebecca Landy, Library & Resources Manager, GSV - Irish Resources at GSV.  Again, Rebecca was a great guest speaker with a wealth of information and we encourage you to check out their website.  The Joining fee is very reasonable for the member benefits, particularly if you are embarking on your own genealogical journey.  https://www.gsv.org.au/

Once again, congratulation to the B&DGS team for a great day.  We look forward to working with you on future events.