This article was originally published in The Ballarat Courier Monday 9 June 2014.
By Kim Quinlan
The role regional women played in keeping the home fires burning during World War I will be told through a special project by the Ballarat and District Genealogical Society.
The Ballarat group, which recently received federal funding, is researching for an online publication of a database that focuses on the stories of the people who kept the district going while their loved ones went off to war.
The project aims to tell the stories and, in particular the important role of women from the Ballarat region, who played a key part in the local war effort.
A $4500 grant from the Anzac Centenary Local Grants Program will support the project.
Ballarat Genealogical Society research co-ordinator Jennifer Burrell said the project, called The Home Front, would look at Ballarat as a microcosm for the rest of Australia during World War I.
"Many Ballarat women during that time had sons or husbands or brothers fighting in the war. This meant these women had to step into roles they normally wouldn't do, like working in factories just to keep those home fires burning," Ms Burrell said.
While research for the massive project is expected to take some time, the society is already cross-referencing names with those who planted trees along Ballarat's Avenue of Honour, as well as cemetery records and researchers have also been given access to the payroll of workers at the Ballarat Woollen Mill, which made garments for those fighting overseas. Information is also being used from the 1891 Suffragette Petition, which included the names of more than 800 Ballarat women.
"We will also be looking at information from such organisations as the Red Cross. It will be a very difficult task to find these invisible women," Ms Burrell said.
Members of the Ballarat community are also encouraged to provide information or photographs of their mothers, grandmothers and great grandmothers to be used in the project.
In announcing the funding last week, Ballarat MP Catherine King said the Anzac Centenary Local Grants Program supported projects which commemorated the service and sacrifice of Australian servicemen and women during World War I.
"What is often forgotten when we reflect on our nation's military history, is people who were affected by the war back at home ... the families and the children of our service personnel," Ms King said.
"This (Ballarat) project aims to tell their stories. These roles included fundraising for the provision of comforts for troops, assisting volunteer organisations such as the Red Cross with the supplies to assist wounded, imprisoned or the missing, enlistment activities and work in the local mills and factories to produce clothing and printed materials."
Anyone with information is asked to send it to
The Society has purchased an additional banner to advertise our presence at various events such as meetings and family history days. This incorporates images from our re-designed website and makes us look really interesting. We hope you will agree.
For the first time in Ballarat, and indeed anywhere outside of Melbourne, this huge roll of paper and linen went on display to the public. It can be viewed at MADE for several months until January 2015, courtesy of the Keeper of Public Records of Victoria. As guest of honour the Hon. Heidi Victoria MP, Minister of the Arts and Women’s Affairs, spoke about the connection between the struggle for democratic rights at Eureka and the campaign a generation later to secure the right of women to vote in elections. The petition was signed by about 30,000 women of Victoria in just six weeks.
Ballarat & District Genealogical Society was represented by Joan Hunt, one of the original transcribers of the petition, Jennifer Burrell and Carmel Reynen. The Society was mentioned favourably in all speeches by dignitaries for its work in researching the women of Ballarat who placed their signatures and addresses on the paper in 1891. By using street directories of the time, indexes to births, deaths and marriages, and cemetery records we are endeavouring to place these women in the context of their families. Any knowledge of these women which can be shared would be most welcome. Please email
THE BALLARAT COURIER will be coming to Trove thanks to Ballarat & District Genealogical Society and a contribution from Ballarat City Council. With a community grant announced last December and funds from the Society this digitisation project is already in progress. It will begin as a follow on from the Ballarat Star which is online from its beginning in 1855 to January 1870.
The first Ballarat Courier film we have chosen to be digitised begins in December 1869 so there will a slight overlap. We do believe that we will reach the mid-1870s before the money runs out. This is a cooperative venture between the State Library of Victoria who provide the microfilms and the National Library of Australia who undertake the digitisation. We are extremely pleased to have initiated this second digitisation project for another early Ballarat newspaper.
Hopefully by June 2015 there will be information about availability. UPDATE- as of June 2018 The Ballarat Courier is now digitised and online at Trove for the years 1869-1882. This is an ongoing partnership between Ballarat & District Genealogical Society and the National Library of Australia,
Ballarat & District Genealogical Society is very pleased to announce the availability of new indexes to the Ballarat Courier. The date range now spans 65 years with a break only for 1956-59. This section is currently being compiled and will most likely be ready early in 2016.
Countless entries have been transcribed from the BALLARAT COURIER by one very dedicated volunteer, Marilyn Miller, whose tireless work is very much to the benefit of our members. These indexes are only available on the computers in the Australiana Research Room of the Ballarat Library and on the research laptops. For people unable to visit the library enquiries may be made to
The Courier indexes are much more than just BDMs because also noted are other announcements such as Anniversaries, Birthdays, Engagements and Remembrances.
Abbreviations used -
anniv: Anniversary
b: Birth
b'day: Birthday
Bro:Fr:Mons:Mother:Rev:Rt.Rev:Sr: Religious titles
bro: Brother
C: Courier
d: Death
eng: Engagement
Jnr: Junior - Snr: Senior
m: Marriage
sb: Stillbirth
sis: Sister
th'you: Thankyou
It is advised to also check newspapers either side of the Courier date shown
Disclaimer: Every care has been taken when transcribing this information but there is no guarantee that this information is error free.