Norfolk Island

Speak Norfolk Today: Alice Buffett, Norfolk Islander and Don Laycock, linguist. Book NI 427.BUF.
Something a bit different for you this time.  How many of you know that Norfolk Island has a language all its own?  I was very interested to find this book which discusses how to write the language.   To read from the ‘blurb’, the language as described in this book has a unique history.  It is derived from the language spoken by the mutineers of the Bounty and their Tahitian wives and families who settled in Pitcairn Island in 1790, and it was brought to Norfolk Island by Pitcairn Islanders in 1856.   The language has since been spoken by descendants of the ‘Pitcairners’ in both the Pitcairn and Norfolk forms.   This book is the first time anyone has put pen to paper or finger to the keyboard to provide readers with an accurate way of writing the language with a description of basic grammar and common phrases.    Reading through some of the phrases with the English translation beside them, there is a tendency to verbalize the words out loud.   Have fun with this book, and maybe when you visit this beautiful Island to find your ancestors you can practice some of the words on the local people.

Convicts and commandants of Norfolk Island, 1788-1855. Margaret Hazzard. Book 994.82HAZ.
This author has written many books on Norfolk Island.  This booklet is an historical look at the creation of the penal colony on Norfolk Island using convicts from the First Fleet arrival in 1788.   Six convicts from the ship Lady Penrhyn chosen by the ship’s surgeon as being of ‘reasonable character’, remained on board ship after all the rest had disembarked, becoming the nucleus of the group selected by Lieutenant Phillip Gridley King to settle the colony of Norfolk Island.  Governor General Phillip appointed Lieutenant King the first Commandant of Norfolk Island giving him permission to choose his small party.   Most of the convicts were chosen for their trades, the oldest convict being 72 years old and the youngest 17 years old.  On 15th February, this small party of 23, consisting of eight free men, nine male convicts, and six females set sail on the HMS Supply from Port Jackson for Norfolk Island.  Richard Widdicombe, a farmer and journeyman, the oldest aged 72, was convicted of stealing “one wooden winch and other goods value £4/4/-“in Devon and transported for seven years.  His experience with building made him a very important member of the group.   This book has many little biographies of the people involved in the making of the penal colony and is a rattling good read.   Clearly written pages on A4 paper make it an easy read, there is no index of names but it doesn’t seem to matter.  Some black and white photos grace some of the pages and this book is well worth a look.

South Australians 1836-1885. Book One A – L. Book Two M-Z.  SA920.09423 BIO.
This gem is a biographical index of South Australian 1836 – 1885.  The biographical material has been submitted by more than 1600 contributors and sources are included.
Material is listed in alphabetical order; with all family information including family name, parents, dates of birth and death, arrival date in South Australia, spouse details and any children of the marriage.   Some of the contributors have written extra notes to compliment the basic family information.
The thirst for knowledge of ancestors could be quenched with browsing through these two books.

In a similar vein, another series of books caught my eye. 
The Biographical Index of South Australian 1836-1885. Book 920.09423 BIO.
There are four volumes in this series, A-E, F-K, L-R- & S-Z.
The South Australian Genealogy and Heraldry Society Inc. put forward the idea in 1980 to collect the biographical detail of all people who lived in South Australia in the first 50 years of colonization, and to therefore provide a permanent record for future historians and biographers and thus creating a valuable resource.
It is easy to find names as they are written in bold letters, listing birth information, parents, including mother’s maiden name in many cases, date of arrival in SA, children, occupation, and religion.  Some marriages and death dates are also included, it was a boon for me finding these books as I was able to find our family and verify when they arrived in SA and the boat they came on.
I hope you too manage to break down a brick wall or two with these volumes.

Shipping Arrivals and Departures South Australia 1627-1850. R.T.Sexton. Book SA 387.2SEX.
Amongst the many books on shipping to South Australia, this book caught my eye and is well worth a look.   An interesting book, it’s chapters are headed by the year as the title and lists in alphabetical order the ships name, type of ship, i.e. barque, brigantine, sloop etc.,  arrival and departure dates,  other ports of call, and Captain’s name.
The first few pages of this book show maps of the South Australian coastline with the names of all the towns and bays of the time.  Extensive indexes and appendixes appear at the back of the book noting names of Government organizations or officials mentioned in the book and include a chronological listing of all the ships names and year of arrival in South Australia.  This is a good place to glean information of the ship your ancestors travelled on to reach Australia, if the name of the vessel is known.

Another book worthy of note is the Alphabetical list of ships arriving at Port Adelaide: 1836-1900. Book 387.20994231 PEA.
This typewritten index on foolscap lists all the ships names and year of arrival into Port Adelaide.  It is purely a large list but it would be a stepping stone onto other resources once your ship has been identified.