Launch of new history book of Gracehill

A new history of Gracehill has been written to mark the inscription of Gracehill as a UNESCO world heritage site.

The book was launched at the Old School in Gracehill on Friday 12th September by Bishop Sarah Groves and Mrs Jackie Neill, archivist at Gracehill Moravian Church.

The book gives the story of Gracehill from the preaching of John Cennick in the 1740’s through to the present day.

It tells of the trades that were followed in the village, the rules that governed the community in its early years, how things changed in the village with the changing social and political environment around it and much more.

The story of how the book was written is just as intriguing. Rob Christie, the author, and his wife Shan are Australian and live Victoria.

He is a historian and published author, having researched and published work on the Australian Gippsland Goldfields. Rob first visited Gracehill in 2012.

He was researching his family history and had discovered that his ancestor Robert Christie had left Gracehill in 1852 and Rob was keen to visit the village and learn more. In the course of this he met Anderson Weir, the Gracehill Burial Ground Steward, Jackie Neill and Roberta Thompson, the archivists and Sarah Groves the minister. Rob was thrilled with the information he gained about his family and about the Moravian Church and Settlement. Each year he came back to Gracehill and completed a project to have all the gravestones in God’s Acre photographed and researched.

This monumental work was printed and a copy is held in the archives. He then offered to write a new history of Gracehill. Following two weeks of intensive work in the archives in Gracehill, Rob continued his work in Australia and corresponded backwards and forwards by email with Jackie Neill who assisted with research and proof reading.

The resulting book is written in an easy style and generously illustrated with pictures and can be obtained from members of the Church for £10.