Sunday 10th November 2013 was the occasion for the family of James and Jane Rundle to come together at Mitcham Primary School hall in Adelaide to celebrate the arrival of their forebears in South Australia 150 years ago.

Never before had so many Rundles (by birth, marriage or descent) gathered in the one place. Almost 140 people attended and they came from around Australia including from Sydney, Canberra, Alice Springs, the Sunshine Coast in Queensland, Victoria, and Western Australia. Many had also travelled quite a distance within South Australia to be there. The interest in family  history and connections that had been of great value to the authors in preparing the family history book was again evident in family member’s desire to meet their relations and find out more about their history.

The event featured posters highlighting key aspects of family history. A memorabilia table included a family Bible dating back to 1792, a photograph of Jane Ellis in a cigarette tin from the 1850s,  as well as photo albums, copies of wills, birth certificates and a current version of the family tree.

The family history book, Farmers: Devon to South Australia – The Story of James and Jane Rundle and their Family was launched by Doreen Rice who had travelled from Ipswich in Queensland to be there. Doreen has a longstanding interest in genealogy and has contributed information on the Rundle family tree in Devon from 1650 to 1850. Her late husband, Norman, was the great great grandson of Elizabeth Rice (nee Rundle), the sister of William Rundle (father of James) . Also launched was a second book, Farmers and Beyond: The John Rundle Family 1914-2013 which provided a written family tree for the descendants of John Rundle, the fifth child of James and Jane.

Peter Rundle welcomed everybody and spoke about the voyage to Australia and settling in the Yankalilla district. John Rundle spoke on Rundle history at Bratton Clovelly in Devon and Kulpara in South Australia. Judith Francis spoke about Charles Lee (Jane’s second husband) and aspects of Lee family history that she has uncovered in her recent research. Marion McEwin drew attention to the website under development as a means of sharing information about the family more widely.

The shared lunch was a sumptuous spread of hearty fare that reminded everyone of their country origins. On the day, people met up with cousins they had not seen for many years, and met for the first time, cousins they never knew they had. Many remembered with fondness earlier family parties and left with firm resolve they would not let so much time pass before taking the opportunity to catch up again.

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