Tales from the Grave

Uncovering family history from down under

All Posts

a day ago
1 min

Tales from the Grave enters Genealogy list

It's been 15 months now since I established my newspaper column Tales from the Grave as a website. It's been only 3 months since I starte...

47 views0 comments

Dickens' son a station agent and bushranger catcher

Samantha Elley

Feb 20
4 min

Dickens' son a station agent and bushranger catcher

His name alone carried the weight of British literature.

56 views0 comments

Sheep industry thrives under a woman’s touch

Samantha Elley

Feb 13
4 min

Sheep industry thrives under a woman’s touch

Elizabeth’s expert ability to manage the sheep ensured their competitive place in the British wool market.

122 views0 comments

Police Commissioner has finger on the police force pulse

Samantha Elley

Feb 7
4 min

Police Commissioner has finger on the police force pulse

He nearly died on the job and introduced finger printing as a way of catching criminals.

214 views0 comments

Samantha Elley

Jan 29
3 min

The mystery of the Fraser Island girls

Two young white girls are rescued from an Aboriginal tribe on Fraser Island, three years after their boat is ship-wrecked and all crew is lo

592 views0 comments

Samantha Elley

Jan 23
2 min

Bundaberg brewer died on his honeymoon

Only a few weeks after his marriage Gustav Steindl died.

1,098 views0 comments

Young author brings 'Never Never' to the literary world

Samantha Elley

Jan 11
4 min

Young author brings 'Never Never' to the literary world

Jeannie Taylor stood at only 5 foot (153cm) as an adult, but her strength, energy and determination were her greatest legacies.

339 views1 comment

First Australian soldier to be awarded American Purple Heart

Samantha Elley

Dec 11, 2020
4 min

First Australian soldier to be awarded American Purple Heart

An Australian pilot who flew 201 missions in the Korean War but couldn’t drive a car. He was, however, the first from his country to be aw...

187 views2 comments

Olley surrounded herself in still life art

Samantha Elley

Dec 7, 2020
4 min

Olley surrounded herself in still life art

She worked in a chaotic maze of colour and clutter, creating her beautiful artworks. Her surroundings were not for the minimalists among ...

437 views2 comments

Fridge king establishes Taronga Park Zoo

Samantha Elley

Dec 4, 2020
4 min

Fridge king establishes Taronga Park Zoo

When Edward John Lees Hallstrom had a passion for something, he threw everything at it.

252 views0 comments

Previous tragedy spurs father on to be a hero

Samantha Elley

Nov 30, 2020
3 min

Previous tragedy spurs father on to be a hero

An unbearable tragedy may have been the catalyst for a daring, heroic act by John Christian Erichs, where he would eventually pay the ult...

686 views0 comments

Ipswich hero praised for his bravery in the face of death

Samantha Elley

Nov 11, 2020
3 min

Ipswich hero praised for his bravery in the face of death

When 2nd Lieutenant Samuel John Morgan signed up to fight in the Great War, he would receive his promotion to Captain, but his achievemen...

245 views0 comments

Samantha Elley

Nov 3, 2020
4 min

A shooting night of terror for Emily

It started as a night out of enjoyment for Emily Salisbury and her friend Adeline Steed, along with Adeline's children

520 views0 comments

War orphan smuggled to Australia in a sack

Samantha Elley

Aug 22, 2020
2 min

War orphan smuggled to Australia in a sack

He was only 5 years old when his French soldier father was killed during the Great War. Not too long after that his mother died.

1,730 views0 comments

Samantha Elley

Aug 8, 2020
1 min

More coverage for Tales from the Grave

Tales from the Grave is gaining a wider audience. Find out here where we are going.

222 views0 comments

Samantha Elley

Jul 18, 2020
2 min

Who was the true Man from Snowy River?

Was it a myth or was he a real man? Who truly was the ' stripling on a small and weedy beast'? Was Jack Riley really the Man From Snow River

902 views0 comments

He was the founder behind a 144 year old newspaper

Samantha Elley

Jul 5, 2020
2 min

He was the founder behind a 144 year old newspaper

People complained about this "new-fangled idea of a newspaper" in their town, but William Kelleway went on to establish a newspaper that w...

381 views0 comments

Her high jump record was held for 98 years

Samantha Elley

Jun 20, 2020
3 min

Her high jump record was held for 98 years

Her 'frail' physique belied the amazing ability Esther Stace had when in control over a large horse.

497 views0 comments

After three years he came back from the dead

Samantha Elley

Jun 7, 2020
3 min

After three years he came back from the dead

James Benson could have been forgiven for aligning himself with Job of the Bible, when he lost his family and his freedom.

294 views2 comments

How a collection of old boxes became anthropological gold.

Samantha Elley

May 30, 2020
3 min

How a collection of old boxes became anthropological gold.

They were a treasure buried in dusty boxes, left by a woman who had died, for a real estate agent who didn't know what to do with them.

4,192 views0 comments

{"items":["6037451ccb7fb5002d75b1cd","6029a7aaf40a0c0017518c21","6025c3a4bba845001775e62f","601a012054c2440017235381","5f15226c62fff400176eadc5","5f05a50db3c728001761cd40","5ffc2426d55c64001702f7c1","5fd2ed7cd3d2c400175eabcf","5fceb2f8e34c8b0017c34804","5fc9ee56b315770017174473","5f1ba4fa3264620017ca3b12","5f0d58a302619100178b636c","5f0a4f5577d2330017016ef8","5f40f40c57cc360017954134","5f2e66d59c0567001761c225","5f11a1e1563ede0017ea6b24","5efe7eb5ef964800171587b4","5ea8e3c28c32a00017ff1ce6","5ed8db8ff541d80017ff2232","5ed1086ae865f30017e84814"],"styles":{"galleryType":"Columns","groupSize":1,"showArrows":true,"cubeImages":true,"cubeType":"fill","cubeRatio":1.3333333333333333,"isVertical":true,"gallerySize":30,"collageAmount":0,"collageDensity":0,"groupTypes":"1","oneRow":false,"imageMargin":32,"galleryMargin":0,"scatter":0,"rotatingScatter":"","chooseBestGroup":true,"smartCrop":false,"hasThumbnails":false,"enableScroll":true,"isGrid":true,"isSlider":false,"isColumns":false,"isSlideshow":false,"cropOnlyFill":false,"fixedColumns":1,"enableInfiniteScroll":true,"isRTL":false,"minItemSize":50,"rotatingGroupTypes":"","rotatingCropRatios":"","columnWidths":"","gallerySliderImageRatio":1.7777777777777777,"numberOfImagesPerRow":1,"numberOfImagesPerCol":1,"groupsPerStrip":0,"borderRadius":0,"boxShadow":0,"gridStyle":1,"mobilePanorama":false,"placeGroupsLtr":true,"viewMode":"preview","thumbnailSpacings":4,"galleryThumbnailsAlignment":"bottom","isMasonry":false,"isAutoSlideshow":false,"slideshowLoop":false,"autoSlideshowInterval":4,"bottomInfoHeight":0,"titlePlacement":"SHOW_ON_THE_RIGHT","galleryTextAlign":"center","scrollSnap":false,"itemClick":"nothing","fullscreen":true,"videoPlay":"hover","scrollAnimation":"NO_EFFECT","slideAnimation":"SCROLL","scrollDirection":0,"scrollDuration":400,"overlayAnimation":"FADE_IN","arrowsPosition":0,"arrowsSize":23,"watermarkOpacity":40,"watermarkSize":40,"useWatermark":true,"watermarkDock":{"top":"auto","left":"auto","right":0,"bottom":0,"transform":"translate3d(0,0,0)"},"loadMoreAmount":"all","defaultShowInfoExpand":1,"allowLinkExpand":true,"expandInfoPosition":0,"allowFullscreenExpand":true,"fullscreenLoop":false,"galleryAlignExpand":"left","addToCartBorderWidth":1,"addToCartButtonText":"","slideshowInfoSize":200,"playButtonForAutoSlideShow":false,"allowSlideshowCounter":false,"hoveringBehaviour":"NEVER_SHOW","thumbnailSize":120,"magicLayoutSeed":1,"imageHoverAnimation":"NO_EFFECT","imagePlacementAnimation":"NO_EFFECT","calculateTextBoxWidthMode":"PERCENT","textBoxHeight":0,"textBoxWidth":200,"textBoxWidthPercent":50,"textImageSpace":10,"textBoxBorderRadius":0,"textBoxBorderWidth":0,"loadMoreButtonText":"","loadMoreButtonBorderWidth":1,"loadMoreButtonBorderRadius":0,"imageInfoType":"ATTACHED_BACKGROUND","itemBorderWidth":1,"itemBorderRadius":0,"itemEnableShadow":false,"itemShadowBlur":20,"itemShadowDirection":135,"itemShadowSize":10,"imageLoadingMode":"BLUR","expandAnimation":"NO_EFFECT","imageQuality":90,"usmToggle":false,"usm_a":0,"usm_r":0,"usm_t":0,"videoSound":false,"videoSpeed":"1","videoLoop":true,"jsonStyleParams":"","gallerySizeType":"px","gallerySizePx":940,"allowTitle":true,"allowContextMenu":true,"textsHorizontalPadding":-30,"itemBorderColor":{"value":"#bfbfbf"},"showVideoPlayButton":true,"galleryLayout":2,"targetItemSize":940,"selectedLayout":"2|bottom|1|fill|true|0|true","layoutsVersion":2,"selectedLayoutV2":2,"isSlideshowFont":false,"externalInfoHeight":0,"externalInfoWidth":0.5},"container":{"width":940,"galleryWidth":972,"galleryHeight":0,"scrollBase":0,"height":null}}

2 3

Contact

0413 986 068

Thanks for submitting!