Australia is a land of immigrants - something we often forget. One can only imagine what our ancestors where confronted with arriving in a new land after up to 5 months on overcrowded, often unhygenic ships. Many travelled here looking for opportunities that they couldn't find in Britain or Europe, only to be confronted by an inhospitable landscape of the scale which they could never have imagined.

The last of my family to emigrate reached Australias shores in October 1883. With the exception of the Hardies who arrived through Adelaide, the bulk of my family arrived via either Sydney in New South Wales or in Queensland via Moreton Bay or Maryborough. Being 'pioneering' families, they often travelled large distances across a number of generations residing in many different places before settling in one spot.

I have grouped the locations relevant to my family history by state for ease of access: