Hannah Hunter née Arbuckle

My great-great-grandmother Margaret Rowland née Arbuckle had a twin sister Hannah. Both were born in 1815 in Strabane, Co Tyrone. I've been told this by Len Swindley from Australia, who has been to Belfast and Strabane to research, but haven't sighted the source material myself.

Hannah and Margaret both emigrated to Australia in 1841 on the Marquis de Bute which arrived in Port Phillip, Melbourne, on 30 November 1841, aged 26. On the passenger list Hannah is in a family group with her husband George Hunter, 28, a Smith; William, her son 6, and Robert, her son, 4. Twin sister, Margaret Arbuckle is on the same ship as a single woman, though she was married and had a son, Robert Barnhill.

Hannah and George Hunter had at least ten children. A few of them died relatively young, but many lived to marry and have numerous children themselves, so Hannah left an abundance of descendants in Australia.

Hannah died on 21 July 1887 at her residence, Carlisle St, Auburn, Hawthorn Victoria, aged 72 yrs and 6 months. In her death notice in the Argus (23 July 1887) it states that she had been a colonist for 46 years, and was the loved wife of George Hunter. She was buried in the Boroondara Cemetery, (Kew), Victoria.

Hannah was buried in a plot with her youngest son, George, in the Church of England section, C1055. The inscription reads: "In memory of George the beloved youngest son of George and Hannah Hunter who died 10 March 1884 aged 27 years Also Hannah Beloved wife of George Hunter Died 21st July 1887, aged 72 years Also George Hunter Husband of the above Died 21st June 1889, aged 77". I am thankful to JKGE who took several photos of the grave for me and uploaded them to the FindAGrave website. 

Probate was granted on 18 August 1887 to William Hunter and RM Gyton. Hannah's real and personal estate was left to her husband during his life. After his death, fifty pounds was left to her grandson George Albert Hunter, and the rest of the estate was left to her children William Hunter, Thomas Hunter, Margaret Murray, Martha Younger, Isabella Ardagh, Elizabeth Dungan and Annie Gyton, in equal shares. 

I haven't so far attempted to 'flesh out' the life of Hannah Hunter. Perhaps some gems lie on the Trove newspaper website, though women tend not to be reported on in the papers of the time. If you are a descendant with some stories of her life, please feel free to leave a comment on this blog. 

Catherine Rowland- my West Coast great-grandmother

Sometimes when doing your family history, questions come to mind that are 'wonderings' that you are unlikely to find an answer for. One such question for me is: "Why did Catherine travel across the Tasman from Victoria to Greymouth on the West Coast, as a young single woman?"

Catherine Rowland was born on 26 August 1845 to Christopher Rowland and Margaret Arbuckle, in Heidelberg, Victoria, and baptised in St James Church, Melbourne. Two more children were born in East Brighton, Melbourne, including Margaret Jane, the youngest, who also came to New Zealand later. Sadly their mother Margaret died in 1861 of consumption, and was buried in Kyneton, Victoria.  Margaret was only 16 years old at the time (and Margaret Jane only four.)

What happened to Catherine in the intervening years is unclear, but she married James Lalor on 14 September 1871 in the Roman Catholic Chapel, Greymouth. Not much information was collected for marriage documents in NZ at that time and we can only glean a few facts. In her 'intentions to marry' document held at National Archives (NZ) she was said to be a spinster of full age, and although it is not clearly legible, her length of residence appears to be 8 months. This would make it possible that she crossed the Tasman in early 1871, with the caveat that 'length of residence' could have been interpreted as in the district, or in New Zealand.

Grey River Argus, Volume XI, Issue 981. 18 September 1871

 

 

The only other document that we have that gives an indication about when Catherine might have arrived in NZ is her death registration. She lived a good long life in South Beach, Greymouth, until she died aged 83 of sudden myocardial failure on 3 January 1934. She was said to have been in NZ for 62 years, and this would give a time of arrival around 1871-2.

These two dates are consistent, and it seems that she did in fact arrive in New Zealand not many months before her marriage in September 1871. (Shipping records between Melbourne and Greymouth of the time are hard to come by.)

So the questions remain, did she cross alone as such a young woman? Or was she with a friend? Did she know someone in Greymouth, or did she just make the crossing in the hope that a better life existed for her away from Victoria? It is unlikely I will find answers, but it is still a nice thing to wonder about. 

Catherine Rowland (Lalor) with a child (thought to be Eileen Hamilton)

Darfield Visit

 Today it was time for a trip out to Darfield and Charing Cross. First I went to the cemetery by the Catholic Church, where a quartet of headstones are there for my Riordan-Burke family. Mary Burke was the first one buried there, after she died of consumption when only 29 years old. Her mother Ann Philp (Burke) and her Uncle John Burke) died within months of each other in 1895. Patrick Riordan, Mary’s husband, died in 1911. 

Next I visited the Darfield Cenotaph, which carries the name of James Riordan, my great-uncle, who died of wounds received in the Battle of the Somme. 

The last visit for the afternoon was to Charing Cross where the Riordan farm used to be. Patrick raised sheep and grew crops, and it seems like similar uses of the land are still in place. But today there were large irrigators also in use. 

Burke Family Gathering

 Yesterday some of my Burke Family whanau had a gathering in Christchurch- a very enjoyable day. The first item for the morning was at Sydenham Cemetery where we had a blessing for a memorial plaque for Martin Burke- my 2x-great-grandfather. He doesn't seem to have ever had a headstone, and a group of us decided that it might be a good idea to erect one. Fr Simon Eccleton was the priest who came along to perform the blessing, a very special thing. He said he often does blessings for the month's mind at cemeteries, but for someone who died over a 100 years ago was a first for him!

Some of us then headed to Lyttelton and took a short cruise across to Quail Island. I appreciated being on the harbour to mark the day when everyone disembarked from the Mermaid, 160 years ago.

Next stop was at the Gondola, which gave a superb view down to the harbour, and also to parts of the Bridle Path that they had to climb over to reach Christchurch itself.

We finished the evening with a wonderful meal celebration with about 44 cousins. I particularly enjoyed meeting up with a couple of Riordan second cousins who I had never met before, and there was a group of Burtons there whose mother had helped me get started on genealogy many years ago. All round, it was a very special and satisfying day, getting to know a large group of whanau I hadn't met before.

Annie Riordan- Sr Majella

 The youngest child of Patrick Riordan and Mary Burke was Annie Riordan, who was just a baby when her mother Mary died of consumption. Sadly, Annie acquired it from her mother, though she lived to be 19 before she went quickly downhill with it.

Annie was reputedly very musical, and in Papers Past there are numerous references to her when at high school for passing music exams (piano and harp) and for singing in concerts. At high school in 1974 I had the lead female solo in a musical, and afterwards some nuns were telling me how much my voice reminded them of this nun who was my relative. It was only when I began doing genealogy quite some time later that I found out the nun in question was my great-aunt Annie Riordan, and that she had died in 1911. The nuns who told me the story about her singing voice could never have heard it, they must have just heard the tradition amongst the congregation about her voice.

I am presently in Christchurch for a Burke family gathering, and took the opportunity to go to Linwood Cemetery to update my photos of Annie's grave, in the plot ( Block 40, Plot 99C) of the Mission Sisters, RNDM (Sisters of Our Lady of the Missions.) Her name in the convent was Sr Majella. The plot used to have a tall cross on it, atop a base with the sister's names on it. These names were solely their names in religion, and just the date of death was recorded. Now the cross lays flat over the plots, and there are plaques that carry the names and birth and death dates of each nun. Their family names are included along with their religious names.

Here are a few photos from how the plot looks now.

Voyage of the Mermaid

In a week's time, on the 16th February, it will be 160 years since the clipper Mermaid sailed into Lyttelton Harbour. My Burke family were amongst the passengers- Martin Burke who was born in Co Mayo, Ireland; Ann Burke née Philp from Fifeshire in Scotland; and their toddler daughter, Mary Burke, who was born in the Parish of Inchture in Scotland.

My third cousin Maggie Gaffney, a fellow Burke descendant, has been  developing a website about the voyage of the Mermaid out to New Zealand. She's been following the diaries kept by two passengers, and releasing excerpts as the days of the voyage have gone on. On 12 November 1863, the ship was put under tug, and began its voyage down the Thames from London.  By 15 November, all aboard had left Dover, and could see the lights on the coast of France.

Three months later, on 8 February 1864, the ship lay south of Tasmania, and the sailors were well occupied cleaning the ship, including its hull, getting ready for its arrival in New Zealand.

In just a week's time now, the Mermaid will put into Lyttelton Harbour, and a group of descendants are having a Burke Family Gathering to mark the occasion.