MORE than 1000 people attended the Shoalhaven Family Local and Cultural History Fair at the Nowra School of Arts on Friday and Saturday.
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President of the Shoalhaven Family History Society and fair organiser Joy Vost was thrilled by its success.
“It was amazing – the best we’ve ever had,” she said.
“People came from all over the place – Liverpool, Botany Bay, Canberra, Lennox Head.”
Mrs Vost put the attendance figure down to the high standing the fair has developed over the past 10 years among family and local historians.
“We are getting a really good reputation with our really good speakers and special displays,” she said.
“We are becoming one of the top fairs in the state.””
This year’s fair had guests from the Convict Connection from Queensland, Jeanette Pelosi from the NSW State Records Office and Ben Mercer from Ancestry.com.
Historian Judith Dunn kept visitors enthralled with stories of the crimes of the early women convicts; Kim Phillips spoke about the Spirits of Gallipoli project and Tara Bourne about finding family members with the aid of social media and other online resources.
Mrs Vost, who organised the festival with her husband and fellow family historian Wayne, said there had been an increase in interest about family history.
“People are looking for stability,” she said.
“Because the world is so upside down and topsy-turvy people want to look back and see what happened in a simpler time.
“Families were closer then – the way things are today families are drifting apart.”
• Photos from the Shoalhaven Family Local and Cultural History Fair appear on page 8. More will be published in Wednesday’s Register.