Entries for the Croker Prize for Biography in 2020 Theme: My Most Elusive Ancestor 2001 Elizabeth Donaldson by John Stanhope 2002 Alice: Tracing the Thread by Robert Wills 2003 Grandma was an Alien by Laurel Fisher 2004 The Unknown Soldier by Bob Wright 2005 Finding the Real Thomas Walsh by Rowan Morrison 2006 A Twist in the Tale by Coral Wynter 2007 The Riddle of the Sarahs by Clem Ditton 2008 A Master of Elusion: Thomas Gray by Jennifer Oswald-Sealy 2009 Down the Rabbit Hole by Sue Bulbrook 2010 James Connolly: A Self-Made Man by Barbara Reen 2011 The Tailor from Printing Office Street by Judith Neville 2012 Are the Clues in the Tattoos? by Marianne Young 2013 A Ninety Year Mystery Solved by Patricia Braden 2014 My Most Elusive Ancestor by Marilyn Long 2015 Just Plain Alice by Julie Webb 2016 Who Were You and Where Did You Go? by Diana Pecar 2017 My Most Elusive Ancestor by Douglas Claus 2018 Francis Cottrell – Artist by Peter Sinclair 2019 The 20 Year Search for James William Humphres by Genny Kang 2020 Mary, Mary Quite Contrary by Vanessa Bland 2021 May Day by John Callaghan 2022 Elusive Annie - Who was Annie Taylor? by Colin Kilduff 2023 The Sad Tale of Lieutenant Philip Connor by Bill Dudley – Winner 2020 2024 Hiding in Plain Sight by Fiona Lane 2025 "Edie" Exposed by Margaret Dalkin 2026 The Professor of Natural Philosophy by Natalie Lonsdale 2027 Elusive Eliza – Opening Pandora’s Box by Leonie Worrall 2028 Orphan Girl in Mourning Dress by Marianne Larkin 2029 Showdown at the Blue Bell Inn by Jim Flemming 2030 An Acadian Downunder by Elizabeth Crock 2031 The Elusive William Stockand by Gordon Hughes 2032 The Elusive Mr Jones by Holly Fitzgerald 2033 But Names Will Never Hurt You by Ray Parkins CROKER PRIZE FOR BIOGRAPHY 2020 2001 Elizabeth Donaldson by John Stanhope Submitted by John Stanhope Croker Prize for Biography 2020 - Society of Australian Genealogists ELIZABETH DONALDSON My elusive ancestor was my father's maternal grandmother. Mysteries about Elizabeth Donaldson were (1) what happened to her after the birth of her seventh child? (2) what happened to her sixth and seventh children? (3) when and where did she die? My current knowledge of her was completed only recently by searching for her husband on Ancestry at SAG. She was born on 12 January 1847 at Wappan Station near Mansfield, Victoriai. She was the sixth of seven children of Scots David Donaldson and Elizabeth Anderson. She was baptised by Free Presbyterian rites on 5 April 1847. Her siblings were Christina 1836-1898, Alexander 1838-1889, David born and died in infancy in Scotland, Joan/Johanna born 1841 at sea, Robert born 1844 at Mount Battery Station, died in 1930, and Janet 1850-1928. She married Otto Emil Ringk (1833-1909) on 17 April 1865ii. As she was under age, she had her parents’ consent. Her residence and the place of marriage was ‘Wattle Grove’, probably on or near her father’s farm near Merton. Then she lived Otto's farm at Glen Creek. They had seven children (1) Mary Amelia, born 1866iii on 22 February 1884 at Hay NSWiv, died 1 November 1943 at Marrickville (2) Charles David, born 1867v, married Annie Hallett in Bathurst NSW on 31 May 1902vi, took up farming near Blayneyvii where he died on 24 July 1926viii, (3) David Emil, born 1870ix, died unmarried on 2 October 1907 in Hay NSWx, (4) Elizabeth Janet/Jennet, born 1872xi, married John Peter Johnston on 11 August 1890 in Hay NSWxii. After his death on 11 June 1907xiii she married Richard Edward Thorne at Darlington Point on 8 February 1911xiv. She died on 5 September 1924 at Darlington Point,xv. (5) Emily Christina, born 18 August 1874xvi, married George Grant Stanhope on 18 July 1894 at Narrandera, divorce absolute on 20 April 1815, married Arthur David Ashcroft on 6 September 1920 at Wesley Chapel, Sydney, died on 14 August 1867 at Newcastle NSW. Until recently nothing was known of her from 1880 till Otto and the Narrandera police stated in his naturalisation papers in 1900 that he was a widower. With access to Ancestry at SAG, I recently entered his name hoping to get his baptism details from Lieberose, Prussia. What came up were confirmation of the births of the missing children and their surname change. They were (6) Alexander Henry, born 1877 in Victoria, raised with the surname O'Connell by Matthew O'Connell (7) Jessie Agnes, born 21 July 1880 in Victoria, raised with the surname O'Connell by Matthew O’Connell. Some time between 1880 and 1884 she left her husband and cohabited with Matthew O'Connell. They had two sons born in Lismore (1) Daniel John O'Connell born in 1884(2) James O'Connell born in 1887. Her death is not indexed in any state under ‘Ringk’, ‘Donaldson’, 'O'Connell' or any likely variant, including coroner's cases. Mr Joe Sartain (grandson of her brother Alexander) had never heard of her, although he knew about all her adult siblings and their families when I interviewed him in April 1993 in Submitted by John Stanhope Croker Prize for Biography 2020 - Society of Australian Genealogists Mansfield. But I found in a journal at SAG a comment which led me to a significant articlexvii by Mrs Muriel Smith. She is a great granddaughter of Elizabeth's sister Christina. She sent me copies of photographs of Elizabeth and Otto. Elizabeth was alive in 1887 and deceased by 22 October 1900. A grave in the name 'Mrs Ringk' is in the Methodist (formerly Wesleyan) section of Narrandera Cemetery. A municipal official told me that this meant she was the first person buried in the plot. Narrandera had a Wesleyan congregation from 1879xviii. The church was formally constituted in 1884xix, but no records survive from before 1889. The Wesleyan graveyard was commenced before the appointment in September 1889 of Rev John James Boyd, the first resident minister and record keeperxx. Family graves are A26 (Dorothy Stanhope 1899-1900 my aunt) and A28 ('Mrs Ringk' and Otto Emil Ringk 1833-1909). Memorials of Dorothy and Otto of appeared in local newspapers, but not Elizabeth. Elizabeth was probably buried during 1887-1889. Why was she not in Lismore? Perhaps she wanted to meet her married daughters all living in the Riverina. Otto may have arranged for her burial, as he lived near Narrandera. Emily never discussed her mother with her children, including my father who was aged seven when Otto died. REFERENCES i Victoria Birth 1847.8153. ii Victoria Marriage 1865.1978. iii Victoria Birth 1866.3202. iv NSW Marriage 1884.3742. v Victoria Birth 1867.22880. vi NSW Marriage 1902.3505. vii The Canowindra Star 24 March 1922 page 8. viii Tombstone inscriptions observed by JMS in relevant cemeteries; also Riverina Cemetery Index in SAG collection. ix Victoria Birth 1870.3422. x NSW Death 1907.13933; also The Riverine Grazier death and bereavement notices, 4 October 1907, p.2. xi Victoria Birth 1872.10084. xii NSW Marriage 1890.4082. xiii NSW Death 1907.5124. xiv NSW Marriage 1911.1727. xv NSW Death 1924.14778. xvi Victoria Birth 1874.23873. xvii Smith, Muriel. The Donaldson Family in Dunfermline and Australia. Fife Family History Society Journal vol 24 page 13. xviii Wade, Raymond E. The Methodists of Wagga Wagga and district. WW Parish Council, Uniting Church in Australia, WW, 1980 pp.34, 61. xix Clancy EG. A guide to Methodist records in NSW (1815-1977) p.311. xx Wright D & Clancy EG. The Methodists: a history of Methodism in NSW. Allen & Unwin, St Leonards NSW, 1993, p.47. Submitted by John Stanhope Croker Prize for Biography 2020 - Society of Australian Genealogists CROKER PRIZE FOR BIOGRAPHY 2020 2002 Alice: Tracing the Thread by Robert Wills Submitted by Robert Wills Croker Prize for Biography 2020 - Society of Australian Genealogists Alice: Tracing the Thread I have a convict ancestor, William Henry Lovett. Forget about him – another story – and focus on his wife, my 2x great grandmother. At marriage (7/12/1857, Singleton, NSW), and the births of two sons, she is Alice Sarah Gall. As the informant for their registration, for son Henry (16/11/1858) she is 20 from Brandon, Suffolk; for son William (5/4/1861) she 21 from Norfolk. The immigration lists for the “Fitzjames”, arrived Sydney 1/4/1857, record: “Single Woman, Alice Gall, 18, House Servant, from Norwich, Norfolk; C of E; Reads & Writes.” Perhaps. For her sons’ registrations she made “her X mark.” The diary of the Matron for the Single Women on the “Fitzjames” has eyebrow raising detail (“I am grieved to say theft, lying and slander prevail most shockingly”) but only says of Alice Gall: “Reads and Writes imperfectly.” Some two years after husband William’s death (11/11/1861) widow Alice Sarah Lovett, 24, married Daniel Thomas Smith in Newcastle (he’s a butcher, she’s a servant, and both at the same address). Her parents are Richard Farrow and Maria Gall and she is from Thetford, Norfolk. Four children follow: for Edward (1864) she is “Alice Sarah, formerly Farrer from Norfolk”; for Samuel (1867) she is “Sarah, formerly Gore from Essex.” Daniel Smith is the informant for these two. For the next two children, she is the informant: for Mary Ann (1871) she is “Sarah Ann, formerly Farrow, from Norfolk”; for Florence (1874) she is “Sarah Ann, formerly Harrow, from Norfolk”. The story so far ... my great great grandmother is Alice Sarah Gall, Alice Gall, Sarah Gall; she is Alice Sarah Farrow, Sarah Ann Farrow.