Issue 14: Jan-Feb 2013 is now available!

Outlaws and legends: the January-February edition (issue 14), our crime special, has arrived!

• Ned Kelly’s secret love? A descendant of the iconic bushranger’s alleged flame puts forward his case
• Discover your family history to trace lawbreaking ancestors with Shauna Hicks’s guide to criminal records
• Delve into 1930s murder mysteries with award-winning crime authors Stephen Orr and Sulari Gentill
• We introduce the early Australian convict indents that have been digitised in colour for the first time
• Was your ancestor a Remittance Man? Helen Leggatt shows you how to find out
• Inside History readers share tips for deciphering tricky handwriting on historical documents
• Plus there's much more, including opportunities to network with other genealogists, giveaways, and book and app reviews!

And much more – in fact, 76 pages of terrific features, practical information on genealogy, chances to network with other family historians, and book and app reviews. On sale now online - click here to buy!

 Issue 14 is available in newsagents nationally - click here to see where. If your local newsagent doesn't stock us though, then they should be able to put a standing order in for you from Gordon & Gotch [G&G] - our title number is 11904 and G&G is on 1300 650 66, if your agent asks.  Once your newsagent sends in your request, we'll make sure that our next Issue 15: Mar-Apr 2013 is sent there for you!

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From Australia’s most iconic bushranger through to First Fleet convicts and 1930s murder mysteries, Issue 14 of Inside History takes a walk through the dark alleyways and shady backstreets of our nation’s past.

Of the many outlaws and legends in Issue 14, Ned Kelly — our cover boy — is one of the most famous, divisive and intriguing. In an exclusive interview, we hear from a descendant of Ned’s alleged secret love, who puts forward his case and reveals his spine-tingling discoveries about the Kelly gang.

Delve into your own family history mysteries with our report of Inside History readers’ best tips for deciphering historical documents: they should help you crack the code. Along with our investigation into the scandals of remittance men, our guide to criminal records by renowned genealogist Shauna Hicks will see you snooping through the archives to uncover your ancestors’ dastardly deeds.

The chilling crime fiction story idea that inspired grisly real life murders in the 1930s West Australian outback is recounted by author Stephen Orr. Meanwhile, author Sulari Gentill discusses the importance of historical research to her crime fiction writing, where fact and fiction are interwoven.

Cracking open the case of the Eureka Stockade, we examine a long-standing myth surrounding the uprising using clues and tipoffs from historical sources. And, of course, what crime edition would be complete without an appearance by our convict forebears? We trace early convicts’ attempts to sneak around the colonial justice system, as revealed through records.

Family history sleuths and armchair detectives alike will appreciate the latest edition of Inside History. This issue will set your mind ticking and pulse racing as you examine some of the most famous, and infamous, cases and characters from Australian history — and perhaps uncover outlaws and legends in your own family history.

Packed as always with in-depth family history research advice, the latest news and events, and features on Australia’s social history and heritage, Inside History is a bi-monthly magazine for people who are passionate about the past. It’s available from newsagents nationally, on iPad via Apple Newsstand, and for Android and desktop computers through Zinio. Or subscribe and have it delivered straight to your door.

For more information please contact:
Cassie Mercer, Inside History magazine
phone: 02 9590 9600 | email: cass[at]insidehistory.com.au

Grave Tales 5 :: From Germany to Bega in 1842

Here is the next instalment in our series of Grave Tales. The 5th in the series sees Ancestry's Brad Argent in Quaama Cemetery, just north of Bega in New South Wales, following Adam Engelman's journey from Germany, to being Australian and marrying "Big Jack" the bushranger's daughter.

Don't forget to read instalments 1-4, the links are at the finish of this tale, and find a sample of what history awaits to be discovered when you go walking.

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Just north of Bega, surrounded by national parks and state forests, rests the small New South Wales community of Quaama. This hamlet was established in the latter half of the 19th century and formerly called ‘Dry River’. I’m unsure when they changed their name to Quaama – or why – but it was originally spelt with an extra ‘a’ on the end. I assume that someone believed that was one ‘a’ too many.

It was a beautiful spring morning when I found myself searching for Quaama’s cemetery. It lies south east of the bucolic village, in a gently sloping field behind the last of the houses. As I parked my car and entered the cemetery I couldn’t escape the feeling that I was interloping – there was a palpable ‘spirit of place’ here.

The cemetery has a few marked burials in what I assumed were family clusters, but the one that caught my eye stood all alone, some considerable distance from the entrance.

Adam Engelman(n) was born in Germany in February 1842, the second son of Heinrich and Agnes Engelmann (nee Dumm). He came to Australia with his parents, his older brother Martin and his younger sisters Agnes, Catherine and Elizabetha in March of 1855. The voyage must have been difficult for the Engelmanns as the infant Elizabetha died on the voyage.

Adam and his family were assisted immigrants brought to Australia by William Macarthur, the youngest son of John and Elizabeth Macarthur. As his father and older brother were both ‘Vine Dressers’ they no doubt went to work on Macarthur’s extensive vineyards in Camden, New South Wales.

At Bega in September of 1864 Adam married Celia Eden Hayden, daughter of the convict and bushranger known as “Big Jack”. Celia and Adam had 15 children, though it wasn’t until 1872 that they moved to Quaama.

Adam was naturalised in early 1876, and his brother Martin followed suit the following year – their father Heinrich having undergone the process just a few years after arriving. It must have troubled Adam – as it must have for all German-born Australians - to see the outbreak of the First World War. How sad that he did not live to see it end, dying only days before the official cessation of hostilities.

Sad, too, that Adam rests alone; an isolated grave in an isolated burial ground. In life he would have been surrounded by family, but now he is deserted – or so it would appear. Many of Adam’s family remained at Quaama – his wife Celia passed away there in 1935 – and perhaps they are buried there too, resting in graves unmarked.

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Read the previous instalments in the series of Grave Tales:
[1]  Story of Strange Butson Hartigan
[2]  The murder of William Hird
[3]  The loss of the 2 Graham girls
[4]  Fatality at Warragul. A youth drowned *

The Coroners Inquest, from the 22 January 1901 West Gippsland Gazette
[*] Fatality at Warragul. A youth drowned. Source: Trove

✻ Brad Argent is content director at Ancestry.com.au. Australia’s leading family history website, Ancestry.com.au contains more than 1 billion records in its Australian and UK collections.