Long family history recognised in Murchison

Descendant Amanda Mortensen said the Crawford family had so far managed to trace their roots back to 18th century Ireland.

‘‘Andrew and Elizabeth had 10 children, one of whom was my grandfather, Jack Crawford, who settled near Goulburn Weir, where I was born,’’ Ms Mortensen said.

Ms Mortensen said in the late 19th century, three young men emigrated from Ireland to Victoria. John Crawford of Tullintain Co. Donegal was already in Murchison East when his brother Andrew and their first cousin came to Australia.

In 1869, land near Murchison was selected for the brothers, John and Andrew Crawford, who went on to marry sisters Sarah and Rebecca Shanks.

She said John’s wife Sarah wrote a diary during her journey to Australia on the ship Tudor, which was a fascinating account made available to family members at Sunday’s reunion at The Murchison Community Centre.

Ms Mortensen said the Crawford family had maintained strong links to the area and to each other, through regular family reunions and events.

‘‘My family lived in Murchison for a time, and my brother and I went to Murchison Primary School,’’ Ms Mortensen said.

She said family members at the reunion were able to view a large collection of family memorabilia, including photographs, family albums, family trees and artefacts such as a family Bible dating back to the 1870s, family memoirs and a collection of photographs from the original Irish farms in Tullintain.

Family members also visited Murchison Historical Society and Murchison Cemetery to find family references, attended a Uniting Church Service, and visited the family home — the old bank opposite the historical society — in River St, which is for sale.

Ms Mortensen said 20 first cousins attended, along with their families and descendants.

She said the event was masterminded by cousins Doug Johnson of Queensland, and Joan Coombs of Seymour, with many helping hands.

Family members travelled from far and wide, including Darwin and England.