Item MM 111108 Digital Photograph - Family Gathering of over 100 People, at Annual Picnic, Heidelberg, 1949

Description of Content

Group portrait of a family gathering of over one hundred people. This group photograph was taken at the Newnham 'clan gathering', in Heidelberg, in December 1949. There were more than 100 Newnham family members. The photograph and an article were published in the Australasian Post, December 15, 1949. According to the family, 'Fred and William Newnham immigrated to Melbourne in 1849, from Wivelsfield, England. They arrived on the 'Harpley' after a journey of 122 days. They were sponsored by the Baptist Church, Brighton, England. Both men went on to have 14 children each.' The photograph depicts descendants of these brothers, who met at an annual picnic in Heidelberg Park in 1949. The descendants started meeting annually in 1937, and still do. The most recent gathering at the time the image was collected by Museum Victoria, was in March 2006.