History Snoop

People have been eaten alive by ants.  Stories on this topic in old Australian newspapers make for gruesome reading. They make you feel grateful for the advances in communications, medicine, repellents and first aid. However, these…

It took four trials by jury to convict Louisa COLLINS of the murder of her second husband, Michael, by arsenic poisoning in 1888. Thirty-six men failed to find enough evidence to convict Louisa in three trials, but the Crown persisted. A…

My GG Grandmother, Elizabeth CHANDLER was a pioneer of the Healesville district and a well known and respected member of the community. She was one of 43 women in Healesville who signed the Women's Suffrage Petition in 1891. Her kindly…

There was no rest for this beautiful Polish-born Jewish woman in Nazi-occupied territory from the early 1930s to the end of the Second World War.

The story of Garrett COTTER (1801-1886) - County Cork to New South Wales, Australia. In 1822, nineteen-year-old COTTER was given a life sentence of transportation to NSW. His crime was participating in 'Whiteboy' action to bring about…

The Women's Suffrage Petition signed by 30,000 women from Victoria inspired the fight for equal voting rights throughout Australia. This is a short story of the campaign with a focus on the women of Healesville who signed the petition,…

The O'Leary Castle of Inchigeelagh is the last remaining O'Leary Castle. Built in the 16th Century it stands beside the picturesque River Lee in a remote part of County Cork.

The Merriang Hotel vanished as did the township of Merriang. I am looking for an old photograph of the hotel when it was run by my GG Grandfather John CHANDLER between 1858 and 1865.

Richard Basil Moore (1887-1951) aka 'Deadshot Dick', the colourful character from Melbourne's bayside suburbs in the early 1900s remains invisible to his family. All photographs of him have either been destroyed or disappeared.