Midwives and Nurses are a great way to track down female ancestors and family – you might be surprised at how many were involved in one or both of these occupations.  You could find them in various references, certificates, and newspapers throughout the 1800s and 1900s but the gold-mine of information can be found in the Victoria Government Gazetteswhen the official registers were published annually for many years.  This photo is of Midwife and local nurse, Grannie FERRIS – Grannie died before the official registers commenced so she doesn’t appear in them but is typical of a country midwife.  These traditionally female occupations – midwives and nurses – were some of the very few that were open to both single and married women.

Find out how to download and search these files for your society or private use.