Introduction

Greetings to you all, this time from Dunsborough, about 100 miles south of Perth in Western Australia!

As I write (on 30th March) Kate and I are coming near to the end of our round the world trip that has taken us to California, the Cook Islands and New Zealand before attending the DGS Gathering in Orange, and then on across Australia. On 1st April we fly from Perth to Singapore for a three night stay, and we are due back in Reigate on 5th April. Last month “Daltons in History” included news of the earlier part of our travels. This month you will find my diary of the Orange Gathering below, and for next month I am preparing some more travel notes on the latter stages of the trip.

The weekend in Orange was a fantastic success, not only in Orange but also for those of you who were able to watch the Saturday morning proceedings live on our website. DGS Australian Secretary, Maureen Collins and her magnificent team in Australia are to be congratulated on organising this event – full details will be found below and in the "Past Gatherings" section of the website. Before that here are the usual updates to keep you fully informed about all our various DGS activities.

DGS Appointments

At the Orange Gathering, I announced that Millicent Craig has now completed her handover of the role of DGS American Secretary to Karen Preston, and, with Millicent’s retirement, Karen is now the Society’s North American Secretary. As you will know Karen has been Assistant American Secretary since October last year and she has now fully taken up the reins. DGS members in the United States and Canada should from now on be in contact with Karen on all DGS related matters.

The DGS committee has decided to create the new post of DGS Vice President, and I am delighted to announce that Millicent Craig has accepted the Society’s invitation to become its Vice President with immediate effect. This appointment recognises the enormous contribution that Millicent has made to the Society over the past fifteen years and more, by fulfilling the role of American Secretary, by creating the original DGS website and starting “Daltons in History”, by starting the Dalton Data Bank, and by being the instigator of the Dalton International DNA Project. We all have so much to be grateful to Millicent for and we very much hope that she will continue to take an active part in the future direction of the DGS in the years to come. The announcement of Millicent’s appointment was met with great acclamation by all those present at the Orange Gathering.

Future DGS Events

Later in 2009 – on Saturday 22nd/Sunday 23rd August – we will hold the DGS Annual General Meeting in England. It will be a weekend event, with the AGM itself taking place in Oswaldtwistle, Lancashire on the Saturday morning and a visit to Queen Street Mill in nearby Burnley in the afternoon. There will be a dinner on the Saturday evening and the opportunity to visit Thurnham Hall on the Sunday and have lunch. For those travelling from further afield, and we hope there will be many of you, accommodation has been arranged at the Swallow Hotel, Samlesbury. Full details are published in the “Forthcoming Gatherings” section of this website and they have been distributed with Volume 49 of the DGS Journal (December 2008). Thanks go to John Dalton, Editor of the DGS Journal, for making the arrangements for this weekend. Please return your registration forms to John as soon as you can.

2010 marks the 40th Anniversary of the founding of the Dalton Genealogical Society and we will hold a special Gathering and Annual General Meeting in Surrey, England over the weekend of Fri/Sat/Sun 30th/31st July/1st August. Arrangements have been made for the main events on the Saturday to take place at the Surrey National Golf Club, Chaldon, Surrey. These will include our conference during the day and a splendid celebratory dinner in the evening. The conference programme will include guest speakers and our AGM, and there will also be entertainment in the evening. The theme of the weekend will be Daltons in Surrey and we will arrange a programme of activities and visits for the Friday and the Sunday. Accommodation will be available locally. The Surrey National Golf Club is beautifully situated and has a modern clubhouse with excellent conference and dining facilities. Further information may be found at www.surreynational.co.uk.

More detailed planning for this 40th Anniversary celebration is now under way and further details will be announced here in “Daltons in History” in due course. In the meantime, please reserve the dates in your diary now. We hope that many members and their families will join us for this very special weekend, and that overseas members will use it as an opportunity to visit other parts of the UK as well.

For 2011 and beyond we have a number of suggestions already. We are planning that the Annual Gathering for 2011 should take place in the United States and a further announcement will be made about this in the next few weeks. If you have any particular thoughts about where you might like to meet, or a particular Dalton theme you think we should incorporate, we would really like to hear from you with your ideas.

The Dalton International DNA Project (DIDP)

As has already been reported our consultant, Chris Pomery, has completed the draft of Issue 3 of the Dalton International DNA Project Progress Report. This includes all the new participants who have joined the project over the past few months, and whose results have now been made available by Family Tree DNA. There were 99 participants included in Issue 2 of the report published a year ago. Issue 3 has 128 sets of markers recorded and analysed. This represents an impressive expansion of the project in just a year. Additionally, many participants have extended their number of markers and this adds considerably to the value of the database as a whole to our Dalton family history researches.

The report is a landmark document and extends to 53 pages. As part of the Orange conference, I gave a presentation which previewed its contents. As soon as I return to my desk in Reigate, I will be able to complete the detailed checking, editing and finalising of the document prior to its distribution to all participants. The distribution by email will take place just as soon as the report is ready.

The number of separately identifiable genetic families has increased from 10 to 13. The number of singletons has increased by just three, from 18 to 21. This reflects the high success rate that we are achieving, with nearly all new project participants finding matches with existing project members.

Now with 128 Y-DNA project participants, DIDP is one of the largest and most respected projects of its type internationally, but we still need to expand it further, particularly with individuals who have documented ancestral lines that take them back to known English or Irish Dalton origins. The strength of the database as a family history research tool lies in its size, and its continued growth is of paramount importance to us all.

Further information about material from Issue 3 of the report will be published in the “Dalton DNA Project” section of the website shortly. In the meantime, please do contact me by email if you would like to join the project, or if you have any questions which you wish to raise. During the past two months we have received an encouraging number of enquiries and there are already new participants in the pipeline with results now awaited from Family Tree DNA.

The DGS Journal

Back issues of the DGS Journal continue to be available. On this website you can access the DGS Journal Index from the homepage. Here you will find a full synopsis of the contents of the Journal of the Dalton Genealogical Society commencing with Volume 1 published back in 1970 through to Volume 41 published in December 2004. Lists of contents are available for Volumes 42 to 49 and the full synopses will be available in due course. Copies of all back numbers are available for purchase and these can be obtained from DGS member, Mrs Pat Robinson (address: Mallards, 3 High Street, The Green, Barrington, Cambridge CB2 5QX, UK email: gandprobinson@waitrose.com.) Details of prices, including postage and packing, will be found with the index.

Conclusion

Enjoy this month’s issue of “Daltons in History”, your regular monthly update on everything that is happening in the world of Dalton family history. We will be back again at the beginning of May, no doubt with further news from the Orange Gathering, and I will be writing again from home which will be a novelty after being itinerant for the past two months!

Thank you for your attention and best wishes to you all.

Yours very sincerely

Michael Neale Dalton
Chairman and Honorary Life President of the Dalton Genealogical Society

THE DALTON GENEALOGICAL SOCIETY
1/11 Moruben Road, Mosman, Sydney NSW 2088
Australia
Phone 02 9960 1171: Email : mmcollins@ozemail.com.au

21 March 2009

Dear Members and Friends who attended the meeting,

Re: Dalton Genealogical Society Gathering 13-15 March 2009 - Orange, New South Wales

Thank you all for coming to the Gathering of DGS members and friends last week-end and making it such a memorable occasion.

I have to confess to being slightly overwhelmed at the enthusiastic response displayed and all the wonderful help Helen Smith and I have been given in making it a success. I won’t list all the help but nothing of this size can ever take place without a great deal of support and it says much for the natural tendency of Australians as a whole, and of course Australian Dalton Genealogical Society members in particular, to help out. Helen deserves a personal thank you from me and on behalf of the DGS as it might not have happened without her encouragement and input.

To the main speakers: Robert Bruce, Michael Dalton and David Preston an extra thank you and praise also to all those who said a few words about their own families on Saturday morning at Duntryleague. There were those who organised; those who quietly helped in the background and incidentally my flatmate and my neighbours and friends who kept me sane, sorted out computer problems, etc. and checked and double-checked everything I was struggling to complete in time.

How could we forget the delicious afternoon tea in Virginia Higgins’ tin shed at Millthorpe with the much needed rain beating down; the very modern little house invisible from the road and the view of the gum trees and the fields?

And how about that visit to Scott Gilbank’s house “Mena” in Orange that he has so beautifully restored in a sympathetic way that took us back in memory to the time when part of the Dalton family owned the house.

Kangaroobie” – oh my goodness what a magnificent place with its beautiful grounds and brought to life by recollections of living there by John B Dalton and his sister Trish Fox.

Saturday dinner at Heritage House and Frank Daniel, the bush poet, whose highly entertaining presence was kindly sponsored and arranged for by Wendy Fleming in the area of A.B. “Banjo” Patterson’s birth. Talent will out and what a treat to have Rosemary Fogarty playing her guitar to accompany Mary Ann Gamutan and myself singing; Lunch at Sister’s Rock Restaurant, Borrodell Vineyard in the magnificent setting in Canobolas National Park, and the barbecue at Duntryleague Golf Club House on Sunday evening with several men in their barbecuing element but especially Gavan Smith and John B Dalton.

Nor should we forget Kate Dalton coaxing us all to buy raffle tickets and raising $356.00 for the Red Cross Victorian Bush Fire Appeal, which I understand from them will go towards supporting the victims in many ways.

I would also like to thank Jilly Warren, who started the DGS in Australia 21 years ago, for organising and in no small measure providing some of the gifts to speakers and helpers.

If I have omitted anyone from the list of thank yous, please forgive me and I just hope that all those who came from far and wide enjoyed it all as much as I did. Now it’s over to the rest of you to contribute your own recollections. Don’t forget that Dairne Irwin is hoping for contributions to the "Daltons in History" section of the DGS website www.daltongensoc.com and John Dalton, Editor of the DGS Journal is also waiting in anticipation – well, when he and Sheila finally get back to Lancashire after all their travels.

Kindest regards,

Maureen Collins
DGS Secretary
Australia/New Zealand

Michael Dalton gives his personal account of the Dalton Genealogical Society’s Annual Gathering for 2009 held in Orange, New South Wales, Australia from Friday 13th to Sunday 15th March 2009. The City of Orange was founded in 1846 and gold was discovered there in 1851. Orange has many sites of historical interest and the Dalton family is prominently included. The meeting was held at Duntryleague House, a grand residence built by James Dalton the younger in 1876.

Thursday 12th March

Kate and I arrived in Orange in the late afternoon, having travelled on the scenic route from the Hunter Valley by way of Colo Heights, Kurrajong, Mount Tomah in the Blue Mountains, Lithgow and Bathurst. We soon found the Central Caleula Motor Inn, settled into our room and met up with other members of the “advance party” – Helen & Gavan Smith, John & Sheila Dalton and Karen & David Preston. Helen & Gavan arranged for us all to have dinner together at an Italian restaurant in Orange and we enjoyed the opportunity to catch up with each other and exchange details of our respective travels. Kate and I had met Maureen in Sydney on the previous Monday evening and we had agreed to meet with Maureen on Friday morning at about 10.00 am to go to Duntryleague House and check all the arrangements for Saturday. I asked David, who had brought all the equipment with him for the live video broadcast to the DGS website, to join us.

Friday 13th March

Friday morning turned out to be wet – Kate and I had experienced wet weather on every Friday while we had been away so this came as no surprise! Maureen joined us at the Motor Inn, having stayed overnight in Orange with friends and, after checking a few other things, we went off to Duntryleague to find that the manager would not be available until 12 noon. In the meantime David and I tried to connect up to the promised wireless internet service. No joy but it was Friday the 13th! We looked around Duntryleague and found the very impressive stained glass window of the Dalton coat of arms on the staircase. Interestingly the arms are the English Dalton ones with the semee of cross-crosslets, rather than the fleur de lies normally found on Irish Dalton arms.

Keith the manager duly arrived and when he switched the router on and gave us the password everything worked perfectly for video streaming and the internet. David and I were now as happy as sandpipers and we returned to the Motor Inn confident that all was in order.

Some delegates had already checked in and registered and I was able to take the opportunity to meet new faces. Soon it was time to depart for afternoon tea at Millthorpe hosted by Virginia Higgins. Kate and I took David and Karen in our car and, despite the excellent directions, we managed to travel by a very circuitous route and arrive at Millthorpe last – I blame the navigator! Virginia has a charming second home in Millthorpe affectionately known as “the shed”. True part of it is an old farm shed, but there is also some very well appointed living accommodation. It’s just as well “the shed” was there because, during the course of the afternoon, the heavens opened and it provided much needed shelter. Although the rain was welcomed by the locals (water is in short supply in New South Wales), it in no way dampened the enthusiasm of all present to meet their fellow delegates, many of whom had travelled direct to Millthorpe en route to Orange. In all about 30 of us had gathered and we were treated to a most sumptuous tea, courtesy of Virginia and her family.

In the evening, many of us enjoyed dinner at the Union Bank Restaurant, in nearby Sale Street, Orange. This provided another informal opportunity to meet delegates and also to sample wines from the local vineyards.

Saturday 14th March

An early breakfast this morning, as it had been agreed that David, Karen and I would arrive at Duntryleague by 8.30 am for final setting up and connection of the all important digital projector, kindly loaned by a friend of Robert Bruce, one of our speakers. Everything was up and running in good time and delegates started arriving around 9.30 am.

At 10.00 am I opened the proceedings with a welcome to all our delegates (some 60 of them) and a brief illustrated explanation of how it had taken Kate and I six weeks to travel to Orange. I was also able to demonstrate that our DGS conference was indeed being broadcast live on the internet, by switching on to the DGS website so that all could see the live picture for themselves. This was certainly a first for the DGS, and I suspect probably for any family history society. It was with great pride that I was able to greet our wider audience of DGS members in England, Ireland, America and Australia unable physically to join us in Orange, but nevertheless able to be part of our gathering conference thanks to the wonders of modern technology. A big thank you to Martin Fitzgerald back in England and David Preston present in Orange for making it all possible.

My next task was to announce that Millicent Craig has now completed her handover of the role of DGS American Secretary to Karen Preston, and, with Millicent’s retirement, Karen is now the Society’s North American Secretary. I then announced the committee’s unanimous decision to create the post of DGS Vice President, and the appointment of Millicent to this post in recognition of all she has done for the DGS over so many years. This was met with great acclamation by all present. I then handed over to Maureen who had the formidable task of introducing all the delegates. This she did with great skill, inviting each family group to say a few words of introduction.

After the coffee break I introduced the next session, an update on the Dalton International DNA Project (DIDP) and the Dalton Data Bank (DDB), two of the DGS’s most important projects. I was able to give a preview of the content of Issue 3 of the DIDP Progress Report and invite Wendy Fleming and Karen Preston, as the coordinators of genetic families “B” and “D” respectively, to say a little more about these two groups, which were so well represented amongst the delegates. Then David Preston gave a comprehensive report on how he has transformed the DDB and his plans for a new Mark 2 version. The slides for both these presentations will be found in the Past Gatherings section of the DGS website, together with edited videos of the presentations themselves, which are due to be uploaded onto the site soon.

We then turned to the Dalton family who settled in Orange back in the 1840’s and Maureen invited our guest speaker, Robert Bruce, to take the platform. Robert, himself a descendant of the Daltons of Orange, was well qualified to tell the story of this remarkable family, as he had been closely involved with the family gathering back in 1988 and the production of the book published at that time, for which he assembled or took all of the photographs. The story starts with the arrival of James Dalton transported as a convict from Ireland to Sydney in 1835 and tells how, after seven years he received his certificate of freedom and was able to set up his own trading business at Summerhill. From these small beginnings the family grew and prospered, becoming leading lights in the establishment of the City of Orange. Thirty years later the mansion, Duntryleague was built as the family home, named after the place from where the family originated in Co Limerick, Ireland. Again there will be an edited video of Robert’s presentation uploaded onto the DGS website soon.

The conference concluded with a vote of thanks to the speakers from Gerry Dalton, a member of the Australian sub-committee of the DGS. Following announcements about forthcoming DGS events later in 2009 and in 2010, it was time for the buffet lunch. I spent a large part of my lunchtime being interviewed, filmed and photographed by the local press and TV station, and then looking after payments of balances from delegates for the various events and activities over the weekend.

I just about had time to eat a sandwich before setting out for the afternoon guided walk around Orange, led by Ross Maroney, a member of the Orange and District Historical Society. The walk concentrated on places of historic interest in the town, with particular reference to buildings associated with the Daltons of Orange. These included several Dalton homes, the most noteworthy of which was “Mena” House, now beautifully restored by the present owner, Scott Gilbank. Scott kindly invited a party of some 30 of us to see the inside of his home and its lovely garden. We also saw St Joseph’s Roman Catholic Church which contains many stained glass memorial windows to members of the Dalton family, and the fountain and bandstand in Cook Park, both gifts from the Daltons to the City of Orange.

Then it was back to our hotel and a little free time before the pre-dinner reception at Heritage House, adjoining Central Caleula Motor Lodge, with a welcome glass of wine and an opportunity to meet more of the delegates. At 7.30 pm 60 people sat down for the Annual Dalton Genealogical Society Dinner at Heritage House. Kate and I enjoyed the company of the Fogarty family at our table and an excellent meal. After dinner we were entertained by Frank Daniel, the bush poet, and by songs from Maureen and Mary Ann Gamutan, accompanied by Rosemary Fogarty on the guitar. Then there was the charity raffle, ably organised by Kate, which raised A$356 (£180) for the Red Cross Victorian Bush Fire Appeal. So concluded a long but very exciting and successful day.

Sunday 15th March

I was able to take breakfast at a more leisurely pace this morning and still be ready for the 10.00 am departure for the visit to “Kangaroobie”, former home of delegates, John Dalton and Trish Fox. John and Trish both reminisced about their childhood days at this beautiful country home, about ten miles west of Orange. The house and gardens have been restored to their former glory in recent years by new owners and we were most fortunate to be allowed to make this visit. Along with Duntryleague and Mena House, Kangaroobie is another fine example of how successful the Daltons of Orange were in their local community. We lingered in the bright and warm sunshine listening to John and Trish, as they remembered past times at this place.

All too soon it was time to continue on to lunch at the Sister’s Rock Restaurant, Borrodell on the Mount Vineyard. Borrodell is in the picturesque Towac Valley, adjacent to Lake Canobolas and nestling in the lea of Mount Canobolas and the National Park. The restaurant provided a wonderful setting for a very enjoyable meal, after which some of us drove to the top of Mount Canobolas, from where there is a superb view of the surrounding countryside.

We returned to Orange and readied ourselves for the evening barbecue being held at the Duntryleague Golf Club House. John Dalton and Gavan Smith shouldered the burden of cooking for about 40 people and everyone enjoyed the informal and relaxed atmosphere in the club house. The evening closed with presentations and thank you’s to all those who had worked so hard to make the weekend the success it undoubtedly had been.

Monday 16th March

Time to bid farewell to everyone staying at the Central Caleula. And some paperwork for Maureen and I to complete, ensuring that the payments collected from delegates, and made to the various providers for our activities and events, were all properly accounted for. We certainly missed you Mel, in your capacity as the DGS Treasurer!

With the paperwork complete and the packing done, Kate and I departed from Orange for Canberra, the next stop on our three week journey home. As I write we have only one week left before the end of our round the world journey – but that is another chapter and it will have to wait for another time!

Reflecting on the weekend, a number of things stand out in my mind. First, it was one of the largest gatherings the DGS has ever held with over 60 delegates in total for most of the weekend. Second, the timely bringing together of the Daltons of Orange and other members of DIDP genetic family “D”, as a result of the match of John Bruce Dalton, added another surprise and unexpected dimension to the weekend. Thirdly, the pleasure of being together that was apparent among the many Daltons of Orange present. Fourthly, the beauty of Orange itself as a location, and for most of the time we were blessed with good weather. All of these and more – each delegate will have their own memories – contributed to the success of the weekend. Above all though, we must not forget the enormous amount of work undertaken by Maureen and Helen and the Australian DGS team to make it all happen. Planning started two years ago and I know that all delegates will join me in expressing our thanks to them for a truly memorable time.

Thanks to Rosey Serisier for her reminiscences of the Orange Gathering:

"Just a note to say that I went to the recent Dalton Family Gathering in Orange last weekend with my mother (Rosemary Serisier nee Dalton) and my sister (Annette Serisier). We all thoroughly enjoyed it, and we couldn't have enjoyed it any more than we did if we tried. It was wonderful catching up with our family, meeting other people that we had never met before, and hearing so many different stories.

Thank you for organising such a wonderful event. My mother, sister and I have beautiful memories from that weekend to cherish forever.

Kind regards

Rosey (Serisier)"

Editors Note: Let's hope that this will be the first of many. Can Australia do better than the delegates who attended Birr last year?

Another set of notes from Tom and Gerry, our intrepid wanderers

This past month has been full of opportunities to continue research on my Dalton family and all those opportunities required some travel. Last month I mentioned the property “The Curragh” near Trunkey Creek in NSW. Tom and I made two trips to the cemetery at Trunkey in the past few weeks. On our first trip there, we were surprised to see a crew mowing the historic cemetery. We discovered they were low security prisoners from Bathurst gaol and they mowed and cleared at several of the historic cemeteries in the area. Tom and I had gone to the cemetery at Trunkey trying to find a clue as to where the last resting place was of Anne Mary Farrelly nee Dalton. Our research had shown there was no headstone to indicate her grave but had hoped for some clues from other graves. Unfortunately, we did not find any substantial clues. Our second trip to Trunkey cemetery was to show the old cemetery to John and Sheila Dalton from England.

Still looking for information about Anne Mary Farrelly and her husband Charles, we went to the library at Blayney, where I joined the Blayney Shire Local and Family History Group (BSLFHG). They are currently putting together a Pioneer register and we will ensure Anne (nee Dalton) and Charles Farrelly and descendants will have an entry in the register. While at the library, which is where the BSLFHG hold their records, we scrolled through the reels of film containing the remnants of the local district newspapers. Alas no information on Anne and Charles but we did find a snippet regarding a land selection taken up by Charles’ brother Patrick Farrelly.

A future excursion will be to Bathurst to go to the State Mapping Authority and try to obtain an historical map that shows “The Curragh” c 1880 as well as spending time at the Bathurst library and family history society. We started the list of things to look up and what we’d like to achieve on that visit.

On 13th March Tom and I went to an afternoon tea at Fairview, the property of Virginia Higgins at historic Millthorpe which is about 30 minutes drive from where we are currently staying. This afternoon tea was the first function of the Dalton Genealogical Society Annual Gathering. We will keep this month’s travel and research short so we can give our memories and impressions of the Orange Gathering.

DGS Annual Gathering at Orange New South Wales

On Friday 13th March Tom and I renewed acquaintances that we made at the Worcester Gathering in 2007 and met new friends at an Aussie afternoon tea at “Fairview”, Millthorpe. Virginia Higgins very generously invited us all to her property for an afternoon tea. The farmers and residents of the local area would have been delighted at the marvelous rainfall we received during the afternoon. We thanked the English DGS members for bringing rain to the Orange area. The rainfall that afternoon was around 22mm.

L-R: Margaret Bourke from Orange, Kit Nugent from Broken Hill, Gerry Dalton and Pat Barlow from Brisbane

Afternoon tea at “Fairview” was a wonderful opportunity to meet Kit Nugent and her daughter Margaret and chat once again with Pat. We all descend from the convict Mathew Dalton from Dublin, Ireland.

My brother Chris arrived from Moss Vale on Friday afternoon and we opted to have a quiet dinner together as we had about an hour drive to Orange on Saturday morning.

The conference on Saturday was full of interesting information about the DGS and exciting developments with the Dalton DNA project. Some of these developments were of particular interest to us and gave us great excitement when we heard that DIDP have found a 12 out of 12 match with our DNA and that has enabled Chris and I to become part of a genetic family rather than being singletons.

At morning tea break at Duntryleague
L – R: Chris Dalton and Tom Wood

The descendants of the Daltons of Orange gave an interesting and informative talk on their very prominent family and the rich history of their Dalton family. The morning program was varied, interesting and enjoyable and the time passed very quickly. Duntryleague, one of the former homes of the Dalton’s of Orange, was an extremely appropriate location to hold the conference. Even though a guesthouse and golf course today, Duntryleague remains mostly as it was when the Daltons occupied the property. The prominence of the original home at Duntryleague and the marvelous surrounding grounds gave us a window into the past lives of the Daltons of Orange.

Conference room at Duntryleague:
Left to Right: Gerry Dalton, Maureen Collins, Tom Wood and behind Ralph and Jilly Warren

The guided walk on Saturday afternoon led a large group around some historic homes that had belonged to the Dalton’s of Orange plus a visit to the Catholic Church, with beautiful stained glass windows, many of which were dedicated to the Dalton family. Cook Park has a Dalton fountain that was flowing and we stopped and reflected on the significance and impact of the Dalton family in this area. Scott Gilbank generously allowed our group to see inside his beautiful home, "Mena" – another property that had belonged to the Dalton family. Tom and I felt so privileged to be able to go inside this beautifully maintained home.

At the conference dinner on the Saturday night, my brother Chris socialised with new friends and enjoyed himself at a nearby table. Tom and I sat with Kit Nugent and Kit’s daughter Margaret Bourke and Kit’s sister Pat Barlow. David Bruce was also at our table. David is a member of the Dalton’s of Orange family. Kit and Pat are my second cousins, once removed. Their mother was Cecilia Rose Philp nee Dalton from Mt Isa, Queensland. We all enjoyed the meal, local wine, speeches, entertainment, and most of all the good company of fellow Daltons.

The Sunday morning visit to Kangaroobie let us appreciate the enormity of the Daltons of Orange previous land holdings and we again felt privileged to be able to have a small insight into their lifestyle and way of life back then. The grounds of Kangaroobie were immaculate as I am sure they would have been when the Dalton family lived there. The morning passed so quickly at Kangaroobie, and then before we knew it lunch was waiting for us at Sisters Rock Winery. After a delightful lunch and the obligatory wine tasting, hic… hic… we were on our way back to Orange for the final official event of the 2009 gathering. Duntryleague Golf Club clubhouse was the venue for a great Aussie BBQ and then it was time to say cheerio and farewell to all our Dalton friends, relatives, mates and cobbers.

The DGS Gatherings give such a feeling of belonging to the huge Dalton family and gives the opportunity to foster friendships with Dalton’s from not only Australia but around the world.

This was the second Gathering we have attended and we are now looking at the possibility of attending the 2011 gathering in Salt Lake City, USA. The warmth and friendship that we find at DGS Gatherings unites us all in one big Dalton family.

Another snippett from Tom and Gerry

Dalton name appearing in “Who’s Who Live”

He was a former Australian tennis champion and now coach of champions, Tony Roche’s full name is Anthony Dalton Roche.

Can any readers tell us where Tony Roche’s middle name “Dalton” came from?

The extract below has been copied from Who’s Who Live:

ROCHE (Tony) Anthony Dalton
AO 2001, MBE 1981

Occupation: Tennis Professional

Career: Coach of Lleyton Hewitt since 2007, Roger Federer (winner Men's Singles Championship: Aust. Open 2007, 2006, Wimbledon 2006 and 2005) 2004-07, Coach Aust. Davis Cup Tennis Team 1994-2000, Coach winning Davis Cup Team 1999, former Coach Ivan Lendl; winner Aust. Open Doubles 1976, 1971, 1967 and 1965, US Singles Final 1970 and 1969, Wimbledon Doubles Finals (w. John Newcombe) 1974, 1970, 1969, 1968 and 1965, runner-up Wimbledon 1968, Memb. Aust. Davis Cup Team 1974-78 and 1964-67

Birth Details: May 17, 1945, Tarcutta NSW

Awards: Recipient Centenary Medal 2003, inducted into Aust. Tennis Hall of Fame 1998, Internat. Hall of Fame 1986

Marriage/Partnership: m. 1972 Sue

Children: 2 d

Address: c/o Tennis Australia, Private Bag 6060 Richmond South Vic 3121

Attended by Mel and Dairne Irwin

The 2009 AGM of the Clans of Ireland was held on Wednesday 18th March, 2009 in the Seminar Room of the National Library of Ireland, Kildare Street, Dublin. The magnificent building, designed in a classical style by Thomas Deane, an Irish architect, was opened in 1890.

After we registered we had the chance to speak to some of the delegates, who had all travelled from different parts of Ireland.

The meeting was officially opened by The Lord Mayor of Dublin, Councillor Eibhlin Byrne, who spoke about her love of history and how the understanding of heritage and inheritance affects the values of the family. She continued by wishing well all who were gathered and emphasised how delighted she was to be present. This was followed by a presentation of a painting and a book, to the Lord Mayor, by the Chief of the O’Byrne Clan.

Unfortunately the Lord Mayor had to leave, for a further engagement, before the start of the first lecture by Karel Kiely, the Secretary of the Irish Family History Foundation.

She spoke about the Irish Roots On Line site www.irish-roots.ie describing how a wide group of people came together to input local records on to a computer system. We were surprised to hear that originally the resource was not intended for public access. Records, which were all sourced locally, were made available under individual legal agreements, which specified how the data could be issued. Karel also said that some parishes have still not given permission for their records to be used. The site was launched in November 2007.

Researchers can search for themselves or staff welcomed contact and were willing to give help if it was needed. The site is self financing with all money being put back into the project. In the future the site may become accessed by membership only, with a yearly subscription, resulting in the ability to do more advanced research. Karel emphasised that if any researcher had any queries it was always worth contacting the centre.

The second lecture was given by Dr Lorcan J. O’Flannery, of the Flannery Clan, who presented An Irish Clan Y-DNA Project Case Study. As project administrator he outlined the expectations and challenges of organising a DNA project through a powerpoint demonstration. He attempted to explain the emerging science of Genetic Genealogy and how it can be used as a powerful tool to dispel myths and confirm legends. He reminded us that of the 134 registered Irish Clans only 28 of the Clans had Y-DNA projects, of which the Dalton project is one. He explained the problems of organisation, sample size, mutation rates and participants expectations which caused challenges for the administrator.

The evening continued with the formal part of the proceedings – The Annual General Meeting of Clans of Ireland. The Chairman, Gerry Maloney, spoke about the importance of the Clans of Ireland to Irish Heritage and Culture and that Clan Heritage is the most important aspect of the heritage of the nation. The number of registered clans is more than 40.

As time was getting short - the lights went off at 9.00 pm - the meeting was quickly closed and a number of us crossed the road to the Buswell’s Hotel where we enjoyed a hot buffet together and were able to talk together more informally.

In response to your "anything" Dalton search, I have found this Celtic cross from Walker Metalsmiths on the Internet. I have asked for any information they might give me on the origin of the design but so far haven't received a response. I have ordered the cross.

Barbara Dalton Jones
Member of DGS from Texas

Kildalton Cross


From Dairne Irwin

Did you know that Dalton Castle is a 14th Century tower, built to assert the authority of the Abbot of Furness Abbey. The tower is in the Market Place in Dalton-in-Furness, Cumbria, England. It is a National Trust property opened on behalf of the Trust by the Friends of Dalton Castle. It contains a local history exhibition.

Dalton Castle, Dalton-in-Furness, Cumbria

The month of March was filled with the Gathering in Orange -- getting ready to travel to Australia, getting ready for the presentations, and the wonderful Gathering itself! It was wonderful to meet so many Australian members and to see friends that were made at the Gathering in Birr last summer.

Visiting Orange

The town of Orange is about 3 hours west of Sydney, in a beautiful pastoral part of Australia. David and I had an overnight to get adjusted to the time change and then took a commuter flight into Orange, arriving a day early, on March 12th. We were delighted to find that Michael & Kate, Helen & Gavin Smith and John and Sheila Dalton had also arrived, and we had a pleasant dinner followed by a walk about Orange.

On our walks, we found a war memorial in a lovely city park in the center of town. Here are some photos of the World War I & World War II monuments to the fallen of Orange, which includes some Dalton names:

1914 1918 World War 1 Memorial

1939 1945 World War II Memorial

Friday was taken up with making the final arrangements for the live internet video link, and with setting up cameras, and testing out the system and the live web links. A huge Thank you! to Martin Fitzgerald, who patiently sat by his computer in the UK until the wee hours of the morning to help verify that the remote link was, in fact, working successfully!

There was a terrific turnout of DGS members on Saturday morning. The program of presentations was interesting and informative. The Gathering in Orange marked a DGS first; the Saturday presentations were all live broadcast live over the internet. Over 60 people world-wide were "tuned-in" to view the sessions live, from Duntryleague in Orange. If you were watching these live broadcasts, I'd love to get your feedback. We also videotaped the sessions. The edited version of the presentations will be available on the DGS web site at Easter-time.

Our aim was to include members who were unable to travel to Orange, and to our distant members feel a sense of being included in the event. Plans are already in the works to offer a similar broadcast from the 2010 Gathering in Surrey.

There is a slide show of the events in Orange up on the DGS site, on the home page. You can also view a recap of the weekend's events on the DGS web site, by going to the Past Gatherings section.

Dalton Data Bank Mark II

On Saturday morning, David Preston made a presentation of the next generation of the Dalton Data Bank, DDB Mark II. This new revision of he DDB will eventually turn the entire Data Bank into a fully searchable database. This will allow members to search using multiple search criteria -- instead of searching for all instances of James Dalton, you will be able to search for all James Daltons who were born between 1860 and 1870 in County Limerick, Ireland. Or for all marriages of a John Dalton where the bride's name was Mary.

A preliminary version of this new capability is now available at the DDB Mark II test site http://www.daltondatabank.org/ireland

The test site currently includes only the data for births/baptisms, marriages and deaths for the Republic of Ireland. To add the rest of the information that is currently in the DDB, the data must be transcribed into a format that the database software can import. This involves transcribing the current info into an Excel spreadsheet. We are looking for members who would be willing to help with this transcription process. The more volunteers we have, the quicker that the conversion will be complete!

Please send an email to dpreston@golden-hills.com if you wish to participate in migrating the data to the new format DDB. Instructions and a sample form will be sent to those who want to help.

Please watch for more photos of the Gathering in Orange in the next Daltons in History, and please visit the Photo-Video Gallery at the DGS site, and the "Pictures" section of the Dalton Forum.

With warm regards,
Karen Dalton Preston
Secretary for North America

Thank you to all who have contributed to the April 2009 issue of “Daltons in History”. Mel and I hope you are all keeping well.

We were glad to see that everyone enjoyed the Gathering in Orange. Please let us have your comments so that we can include them in next month's "Daltons in History". We will be contacting members who attended shortly for their personal reminiscences.

Please continue to send to me any ideas for future articles and also keep looking for any information to include in the Dalton Strays section.

Contributions for the May issue need to be with me no later than 25th April 2009. (e-mail: dairneirwin@ntlworld.com).

Before I finish I must include this from Colin Gray in New Zealand:

Hi,

I must comment on how much I enjoyed reading through your "DALTON's in History" Web-Site, - - keep it going. Gerry DALTON's Great Great Grandmother Mary DALTON -nee SEERY -nee GRAY, Born: November 19th 1839 @ "Cotton Valley" Middle Creek, Pejar, NSW. is my Great Aunt Mary DALTON. Mary DALTON -nee SEERY -nee GRAY was a sister to my Grandfather Peter GRAY, Born: Sept 18th 1836 @ Cotton Valley.

With kind regards from Colin GRAY.