Anzac Day is just a week away and this year's Anzac Day is the centenary anniversary of when it was first observed in New Zealand.
Every year, we at Central Auckland Research Centre, issue a blog challenge in honour of Anzac Day and the people that served and their families.
The first blog challenge was issued in 2011, and has become an annual event. During the last five years, the challenge has broadened out to include any wars that Australians and New Zealanders were involved in.
Anzac Day has grown to include remembrance of all who served in any conflict, and when we stand together at the services we remember all who served. As nations with a large percentage of immigrants, we also remember all nations.
Family history is an international interest, so this year, this blog challenge can also be broadened out to include tributes to those of other nationalities.
The deadline for this blog challenge is Monday, 2 May; and we ask you to write about a person or a family that you have researched that were involved in war.
When you have published your blog, please include the name(s) and link in our comments section at the bottom of this post by Monday, May 2, and your entry will be collated with all the others and posted on a follow-up Kintalk blog on Monday, May 9. If you don't have a blog, perhaps you could email it to kintalk@aucklandcouncil.govt.nz instead, and I will post it on the Kintalk blog for you.
Reviews and blog honour roll of previous blog challenges can be seen here:
2011 Trans-Tasman Anzac Day Blog Challenge
2012 Trans-Tasman Anzac Day Blog Challenge
2013 Trans-Tasman Anzac Day Blog Challenge
2014 Trans-Tasman Anzac Day Blog Challenge
2015 Trans-Tasman Anzac Day Blog Challenge - unfortunately the review for this year appears to be missing, but you can check out the links that other bloggers left in the comments of the original challenge blog and also here.
To help you get started on some research:
Access great online resources:
The virtual exhibition consists of "albums" containing photos/images and documents. Virtual albums entitled "Gallipoli", "Lest We Forget", "New Zealand Maori Battalion", "Peace", "Postcards" and "Returned Services Association". Also has a portal for searching content nationwide from organizations such as libraries, archives, museums and galleries, including Auckland Libraries. Courtesy DigitalNZ.
Manuscripts Online
For diaries, letters, postcards and albums
And Papers Past and Trove for newspapers of the time.
For other sites, look at:
Within the library catalogue: Auckland Libraries, search using World War, 1914-1918 or World War, 1939-1945 to find suitable resources which include articles as well as books and other resources.
Also try searching our library catalogue, using call number: 2 NZL MIL and 2 AUS MIL for more.
For other sites, look at:
- the Auckland War Memorial Museum;
- the Australian War Memorial site
- Archives New Zealand Archway - Discover World War One
- Discovering Anzacs - the joint initiative between the National Archives of Australia and Archives New Zealand
- the National Archives of Australia or look further by
- using the resources listed on Cora Num’s website.
- National Archives of Australia Facebook page about their Shellshocked Exhibition and some of the personal stories that they have collected might also be of interest.
Have a look at Auckland War Memorial Museum's Armoury Resources page, and search and see what's new in the revamped Cenotaph database.
Hopefully this will inspire you and provide you with some assistance in writing your blog!
The centenary of the First World War - 2014-2018
The Ministry of Culture and Heritage has developed projects to assist with commemorations, WW100 is providing a portal for New Zealanders who want to be involved in the commemorations, and NZ History Online provides a place for our school children to go to for homework and study assistance.
You may remember reading about the launch in 2012 of New Zealand's WW100 on our sister blog Heritage et AL .
It’s worth considering how else you might want to contribute to commemorating, and ensuring that your stories are collected.
Each country will have its own WW100 commemorations, so if your ancestor was involved serving for another country, see what you can find out about that that country is doing.
Have a look at Britain Remembers, and the Imperial War Memorial Museum's Lives of the First World War . Have a look at the Prisoners of the First World War website.
FindMyPastAU and Inside History magazine have a joint initiative to create an ANZAC Memory Bank and invite people to contribute.
Happy blogging
Seonaid
