Some 'Simpson' family history

History Notes

 Our Society has had a request for a photo of Fritz Simpson.  He was descended from the more southern Simpson family – a grandson of Lewis Simpson who was born in Norway in 1836.

Lewis came to Australia on board the “Scotia” in 1856.  Six years later he married Susan Potter, a member of the well-known Barraba family, and they had eight children including a son, Fritz, who sadly died soon after birth.  He is buried in Manilla.  Among the six surviving children was Thomas who married Jane Twoodle in Queensland in 1898.  Thomas and Jane had a family of seven including a Fritz who grew up and married Ettie McGregor.

This Fritz Simpson married and it is a member of his family who would like a photo of him. He was twenty when he died while felling a tree, apparently in the Barraba district.  He was buried in Barraba just before Christmas, 1931.  Hopefully someone can help her with a photo – we can copy it if necessary.

By the time these notes are printed, our Society will have had another visit from the author of the two mining books that members have been reading and checking.  As mentioned last week he has done a great job, and readers are learning a lot more about the mining areas.  Hopefully more on this next week.

Possibly a few Society members read The Land each week and may have noticed on page four a photo of Barraba’s 2025 citizen of the year – Arlene Weekes – standing beside one of the planter pots she has organised and worked on in Barraba’s main street.  This one is just outside the Museum gate and well worth noticing – a job well done and the publicity outside the Museum can always attract attention to the Museum.  If you have missed it there will be a copy on the Society’s noticeboard from Sunday.