THE Brook family has donated a book chronicling their family history to the Euroa Historical Society at a handover on Monday afternoon.
Written by Jenny Debney, a Brook family descendent, the book follows the history of the family and their move to Victoria from West Yorkshire in 1844.
This is the second book about the family's unique and storied history, with the first being compiled by Jim and Margaret Brook in 1990.
"We did the first family history over 30 years ago," Margaret Brook said.
"Since then, a lot more has happened and we've found out a lot more about the past.
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"Our daughter Jenny has worked incredibly hard to create this edition."
"The book goes back to the middle 1600s and life in the United Kingdom before Richard Brook came over as a convict," Jim Brook said.
Research for the initial book involved looking through the vast public records in Victoria, writing letters to various organisations in the United Kingdom and visits to parishes overseas.
Since then, numerous technological advances made the information more accessible.
Archives have been digitalised and DNA testing has now made family links clearer.
The book celebrates 177 years since Richard Brook arrived in Van Diemen's Land as a convict, 168 years since the marriage of Richard to Maria Whorwell, and 133 years since the marriage of Richard and Maria's sixth son Herbert to Annetta Kibble in Longwood.
Richard was sent to Van Diemen's Land as a convict due to "wilful and corrupt perjury in a testimony", for which the sentence was seven years transportation.
Jim and Margaret Brook handed over the book to John Campbell and the Euroa Historical Society for display in their museum during the society's meeting earlier this week.
