The September 2016 issue of the Australian MacFarlane’s Lantern (No. 139) is now available to download from the Members Area, along with back issues. If you are interested in becoming a member please see membership information or email the Secretary.
Please feel free to make comments via the website, or by email to the Editor.
July 3 – Brighton, Victoria – Performance of 18th century Scottish music with a botanical theme
Here is a great opportunity to attend a performance of Scottish baroque and traditional music by Evergreen Ensemble. This presentation is titled Airs For The Seasons named after the series of works written in 1747 by Scottish composer, James Oswald, each of which was named after a flower or plant.
The performers are Shane Lestideau (baroque violin and violin d’amore), Jess Foot (baroque oboe and violin), Rosanne Hunt (baroque cello) and Simon Rickard (baroque bassoon). Not only is Simon a renowned bassoonist, he is also a skilled horticulturalist. He will therefore also be providing some commentary during the program about the various botanical specimens represented.
Date: Sunday, July 3, 2016 – 2.15pm
Place:Trinity Uniting Church, 15 Black Street, Brighton, Victoria
Duration: One Hour
Cost: $10 (under 18 free)
For further information please call (03) 9699 8417
You may have sung “Auld Lang Syne” as the clock ticked over into the New Year, or listened to the ode “To a Haggis” during a Burns Night celebration here in Australia, but how much do you actually know about the life of Robert Burns and his other notable works?
If you would like to learn more about the legacy of this 18th-century Scottish poet, take a look at Robert Burns: Poems, Songs and Legacy, which is a free online course run by the University of Glasgow. It begins on 18 July, 2016 and runs over a three-week period requiring only four hours of your time each week. All you need is an interest in Robert Burns – no previous experience or qualifications are necessary.
The June 2016 issue of the Australian MacFarlane’s Lantern (No. 138) is now available to download from the Members Area, along with back issues. Here you will also find a summary of the contents.
For the benefit of others who may be interested in joining, below are some of the highlights in the current issue.
- Our leading story in this issue concerns Lachlan MacFarlane of Oakfield, Mount Barker, South Australia (1806-1892), who came from the Buchanan parish on the eastern shores of Loch Lomond. Lachlan MacFarlane married a daughter of Mr Lubasch of Hahndorf. We would be pleased to hear from descendants of both the MacFarlane and Lubasch families.
- Next, part two of ‘Conflict at Glen Fruin 1603’ is published.
- We also have Billy Scobie, local writer/historian from Dunbartonshire, to thank for sending the article on the Loch Lomond Bell.
- In Root Lines we publish more about the MacFarlane settlers at Broken River, Victoria including family tree information on seven generations from Blair Atholl, Perthshire (c.1722) to Benalla, Victoria (c.1946) in the hope that it might open up new discussion on this MacFarlane family in Australia.
- There is also an article on the sept name ‘Miller’ which, in Scotland, appears to be more commonly spelled ‘Millar’.
Please feel free to make comments via the website, or by email to editor@clanmacfarlane.org.au
Private A.L. McFarlane
Today, 25th April, 2016 ANZAC Day commemorations are taking place around Austraia and overseas. As a society we collect, preserve and share the family history of ‘MacFarlanes’ (various spellings and sept names included) via our newsletter, “MacFarlane’s Lantern”. Stories of war service often feature in articles published, one of which was in Issue No. 131 (September, 2014). This article was in honour of Private Albert Leslie (Les) McFarlane (from Bairnsdale, Victoria) who kept a diary of his experiences on the Gallipoli Peninsula in 1915. The following snippet gives some indication of what Les experienced.
THURSDAY 5TH AUGUST 1915 ANZAC (Assault on Lone Pine)
(Sic) “Spent the day in the trenches With (no) food or tea, just had our water bottles which have to last us 48 hours. Shells are flying about in every direction and a continuous rifle fire is kept. The Turks are entrenched about 15 yd to 450yd? Aeroplanes are continually flying over us and dropping bombs. Stan and I are split up. Went to sleep close to the firing line as supports.”
The soldier Stan, referred to in the above passage, was Les’s mate, Private Edward Stanley Burt. Although both men returned home from the war, Stan passed away in 1919, whereas Les lived until 1973.
If you would like to read the full article please click here Snippets from WWI diary of Pte. A.L. McFarlane as published in MacFarlane’s Lantern No. 131
We are interested in hearing from other families who would like to share their story. Please contact the Secretary for further information: secretary@clanmacfarlane.org.au
The March 2016 issue of the Australian MacFarlane’s Lantern is now available to download in the Members Area, along with back issues. Here you will also find a summary of the contents.
For the benefit of others who may be interested in joining, below is a brief summary.
The current issue opens with the feature article Conflict in Glen Fruin, 1603 – Part One in which Malcolm Lobban tells of turbulent times in ‘The Glen of Sorrow’. King Arthur is the subject of Legendary Tales of Auld Scotia, whilst Gaels in Exile explores the connection between Highlanders and North America. In Eighteenth Century Quango? Malcolm describes the aftermath of the 1715-19 Jacobite Rising.
Clan MacFarlane Australia are proud to announce that we will be sponsoring a Trophy Dance at this premier Australian biennial event to be held on March 26 & 27, 2016. Scottish highland dancers will be coming from all over the world for the chance to compete together in Adelaide to become the Champion of Champions of Australia. Venue: Priceline (Netball SA) Stadium, Railway Terrace, Mile End.
For further information please visit: www.scots-sa.org.au
A fabulous day out is to be had for one and all in Bendigo, Victoria on Saturday, 13 February, 2016. Watch the colourful parade of pipe bands, clans and dancers down historic View Street at 10am and then wander down to shady Rosalind Park where you will find Scottish stalls, clan tents and a fantastic programme of events.
As well as the opportunity to have your face painted Braveheart style, you and your family can join in the Kerbieball World Championship, enjoy a Clydesdale wagon ride, see a demonstration of swordcraft and even have a lesson in Gaelic. There will also be Celtic music and singing and performances by Sing Australia Bendigo Choir and the Emu Creek Bush Band. Pop-up small pipe performances will also appear around Rosalind Park throughout the day.
From 11am the Central Victorian Highland Dancing Classic will take place on the dancers’ stage, the pipe band competition and recitals will be in the Band Arena, and the children’s activities also commence.
The My Scottish Kitchen Challenge for the best Athol Brose and Shortbread will be judged during the luncheon break (around 1pm) in the area adjacent to the Band Arena.
At 4pm get ready for the Grand Finale, which includes The Dashin’ Kilts (the 200 metre Rosalind Park Dash), Judging of the Braveheart Award, best Scottish Dressed patron and performances by the massed pipes and drums, and highland dancers.
In the evening stroll across to the Metropolitan (Cnr. Hargreaves & Bull Streets) for a meal and to listen to Celtic songstress Imogen Brough who will be performing from 6pm-8.30pm.
The Scottish Ancestry Group, a service group of The Genealogical Society of Victoria, Inc., together with the Ballarat & District Genealogical Society, Inc., are holding a seminar “Exploring Your Scottish Ancestry and its influence on the Ballarat Goldfields, details as follows:
15 Aug 2015
Central Highlands Regional Library, Doveton Street, Ballarat, Victoria
PROGRAM:
Scottish Cultural Influence in the Ballarat Goldfields
– Malcolm Horsburgh
ScotlandsPeople: The official website for Church & Civil BMDs, Wills & Testaments, Census and Heraldry
– Joy Roy, FGSV
The Statistical Account of Scotland 1790 and 1845: the Social and Living Conditions of our Ancestors
– Margaret McLaren & Joy Roy
Scottish Convicts: Trials, Transportation and life in the Penal Colony
– Susan McLean
Morning and afternoon tea provided
Cost: $30:00
For further details and bookings please visit:
www.ballaratgenealogy.org.au/