Counties: Somerset and Essex

As usual, these short county presentations provide some general information about the county including the flag, its history and any flag or county day which is celebrated. Presenters are expected to include a relevant and useful selection of sources (not expected to be exhaustive) available for doing family history research in the county being presented.

Topic: The special focus for this meeting will be on the 2M's - Movement and Migration.

• We will have a short introduction by Linda highlighting some reasons why people moved to different locations in England and why others chose to emigrate from England.
• Then, Dr. Liz Rushen AM, a well known Australian historian, author and independent scholar, will talk about the "push and pull" elements that drove emigration to Australia, bringing them to life with stories of some of the people in her books. Dr. Rushen's works include: John Marshall: Shipowner, Lloyd's reformer and emigration agent; Single & Free: female migration to Australia, 1833-1837; Fair Game: Australia's first immigrant women; and, The Merchant's Women.
• Finally, some of our members will present to us some of the reasons their ancestors moved or migrated. Some of the presentations, among others, include:

- the effects of the Cotton Famine resulting in emigration cotton weavers to Queensland and the scheme that supported this,

- the reduced conditions and opportunities for work for Cornish miners driving emigration, and

- the Ex-Service Free Passage Scheme which drew many ambitious English families to Australia.

This is an online session using the Zoom platform.

Convenors: Diana Pecar, Linda Radulovitch and Annesley Watson

Skill level: All

This session will be recorded for those who are unable to attend live.