This is about the lives and family history of four great grandparents who lived in Ross Island, Townsville, from the late 1800s onwards. The four are:
Abraham Wilson
Emily Jane Coleman
Joseph Raynor
Mary Jane Smyth
My posts are a combination of my geneological research progress, family recollections, and the historical times within which my ancestors lived. The posts are not in chronological order. I’m currently working on how to set out the family history in chronological order (I’ll let you know once I’ve done it).
Photographs:
All the photos on this website are copies of copies. If you recognise the photo, and you have the original, can you please copy (high resolution) and forward to me – so that all family members can share the photo.
And if you have any other photos that you think are of interest – to both my family history research, and to Ross Island History – please consider scanning and forwarding those also.
Why the blog site name ‘Mudpicker Family’
Mud pickers was the nickname given to people living on Ross Island, which was later divided into two suburbs – South Townsville and Railway Estate. Ross Island is no longer an island as such (due to parts of Ross River/Creek being filled in to establish a ‘land bridge’), however the “Mudpickers” name has remained, though is not a widely used term now. The name was given due to the Ross Islanders not having shoes (too poor) and stepping onto the banks of Ross creek mud would seep in between their toes, which they would have to pick out to clean their feet. The school children across Ross creek would make fun of the Ross Islanders, calling them ‘mud pickers’.
I first came across the term during my early family history research, and coming across the South Townsville State School 100 year history book, ‘Ross Island MUD-pickers 1884-1984’.
I’ve included Ross Island history in my family research.
Mudpicker Family 