Family History Mysteries

Mary Kearney was a publican in Deniliquin NSW. She tragically died in a fire at her establishment, the Commercial Hotel, in Deniliquin on the 14th February 1884.

Jockey Jack was a woman named May McDonald. In her early years she toured with circuses and buckjumping shows and then worked on properties. Jockey Jack got her nickname while working atGreg Greg station on the Upper Murray. The son of the station was Jack, and the family dubbed May as Jockey Jack because she rode as well as the other men, including Jack! Acknowledgment to Marion Taylor of the Albury history group for the work she has done that was the basis of my episode.

On the afternoon of Tuesday 18 Sept 1883, Mr James Denham Pinnock, manager of the Ballarat branch of the Commercial Banking Company, prepared a gold shipment for transfer to the main office in Melbourne. The shipment contained 16 bars of gold (weighting over 120 pounds) and 670 pounds of mutilated notes which were sent to be destroyed.The shipment went with Pinnock rail then by carriage to the head office in Collins St. It was 11pm so Alfred Corbett, a caretaker and messenger at head office secured the strong box in a lower bank vault until the morning. At 10.20 the next morning Pinnock went to the safe and it was discovered pins had been inserted and bent into the keyhole. A locksmith was called, and when the safe was opened, it was empty!

Constance Ada Elizabeth Usher and her sister Beatrice Cottier Usher were quite well known in musical and theatre circles in Australia in the early 1900s.Their parents, Alfred and Elizabeth Usher raised their children in a middle-class household in the eastern suburbs of Sydney, steeped in artistic pursuits. Alfred and Elizabeth’s  involvement in local music scenes—her father as a member of the Royal Sydney Liedertafel choral society and her mother as a performer—provided early immersion in musical environments, including family gatherings and community events that fostered a creative atmosphere.

Patrick John Daly, a showman, who was born at Barnawartha Victoria, had a string of horse stealing charges in the early 1900s in several states of Australia. He went by the professional names of P.H Montogomery, W.G Kemp and Professor Kemp.

Patrick John Daly, a showman, who was born at Barnawartha Victoria, had a string of horse stealing charges in the early 1900s in several states of Australia. He went by the professional names of P.H Montogomery, W.G Kemp and Professor Kemp.

Mrs Thompson, a mother of five daughters and a son, accusedher newly acquired son-in-law of having married her 15 year old daughter without her consent. The Melbourne Herald reported on the same day the mother informed the police that it was “a serious charge.”Who was her daughter and who was the newly acquiredson-in-law and how did this occur without consent?

George Selth Coppin was a comedian, impresario and entrepreneur, and was a driving force in early Australian theatre.

George Selth Coppin was a comedian, impresario andentrepreneur, and was a driving force in early Australian theatre. 

In Jan 1901 at Grenfell NSW, William Woodfall, the accountant at the Union Bank, disappeared. The bank found a discrepency of 4100 pounds.

I was chatting to a member of my local historical societyand he mentioned how in the research of his books in local pubs in our area (Deniliquin NSW),that one publican was a circus owner! It immediately captured my attention andI had to know more!Henry Burton was born in Horncastle, Lincolnshire, England,in Mar 1825. After training as ringmaster with the circus of James Cook, which toured Scotland and the Border counties, he arrived with his wife on 23 December 1849 at Adelaide in the Constant.

Amy Stone was born Amanda Porter in 1840 in Massachusetts, USA. She married, Henry F. Stone, known as Harry, on the 16 Sept 1857 in Boston, Massachusetts, USA. Harry was her personal manager and she used the stage name Miss Amy Stone.She toured Australia twice and her second tour was widely reported in the papers of the day in 1875.

Frederick Richardson had four marriages, six children, a fling with a fifteen-year-old that led to  a seventh child, two divorces, one bigamy prosecution, a charge for wife desertion, and another charge for child maintenance!Thank you to Mélanie Méthot who allowed me to use her blogas a basis to this episode.https://www.thebigamyproject.com/

The eldest of 15 children, William Eric Hamilton was born inDecember 1907 in Emmaville NSW. His father was a tin miner until 1928 when the family moved to Surry Hills. He was the only child who seemed to have trouble with thelaw. Thank you to Mélanie Méthot who allowed me to useher blog as a basis to this episode.https://www.thebigamyproject.com/

Daniel Doran had a string of small offences in SA and NSW, but his biggest offence was bigamy – several times!!

The title of this episode indicates this story is about royalty – it couldn’t be further from the truth!Lilian Grace Dorothy Gibson was born in 1886 in India to James and Julia Gibson. Lilian used a number of aliases: Charlotte Gibson, Grace Gibson Herbert, Charlotte Grace Tyrer, Lilian Grace Tyrer and The Heiress!

In 1926, Emily Claughton left an estate worth nearly 130,000 pounds to charities and churches. Who was Emily Claughton, how did she come to be sowealthy and why did she not leave anything to her family members?

Between 1879 and 1882, His Royal Highnesses Prince Albert Victor and Prince George (the future King George V), sons of the Prince of Wales (later King Edward 7th), served as a midshipman on-board HMS Bacchante, an ironcladscrew-propelled corvette of the Royal Navy. The princes’ tutor, John Neale Dalton, accompanied them as tutor and chaplain for the duration of the journey. During their time time on HMS Bacchante, the ship toured many territories of the British Empire, including colonies in the Caribbean, South Africa and Australia. They also visited South America, the Mediterranean, Egypt and East Asia.

*Warning - this episode contains reference to deceased Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders*Billy Jonas was a buckjumper and roughrider with Martini’s Buckjumping Show in the early 1900s.

Anne Hanson got in touch as she not only uncovered mysteries in her family research but wrote a fantastic book on her discoveries! It is a gripping journey into forgotten history, identity, and the power of family. This true story will resonate with anyone who has ever wondered what mysteries might lie within their own family tree.“Buried Secrets is as suspenseful as a detective novel." ~ Akron Beacon Journal“It’s hard to put this book down, to be honest, because it is well written and full of surprises.”~ Genealogists’ MagazineYou can purchase Anne's book https://annehanson.com/ or listen to it as an audiobook https://www.amazon.com.au/dp/B0BF2XBBTN?ref_=mr_referred_us_au_auYou can get early access to this episode by subscribing for only $5.00 per month!Click on the following link: ⁠⁠https://podcasters.spotify.com/.../familyhistor.../subscribe

In 1944 in court, Karl Adolph Ernst Schultz’s criminal history was summed up by describing 35 previous convictions. Karl had six aliases by this time, including surnames such as Rafferty and Sinclair. He had almost as many weddings as he had aliases, “marrying” a total of five times, committing bigamy three times! Thank you to Mélanie Méthot who allowed me to use her blog as a basis to this episode.https://www.thebigamyproject.com/

Tommy Freeman was an Echuca based paddle steamer captain and as a youth was coined the Echuca Blondin! He was a born adventurer, a hard taskmaster and an impatient man – he was said to have served the worst meals on all the paddle steamers on the Murray and his enemies called him ‘Tear Arse Tommy’!

Joseph Hawdon and Charles Bonney were pioneers and overlanders who took cattle from Albury NSW to Adelaide in 1838. This venture helped to fill in the map and would be the impetus for a succession of other parties making the long journey, and for pioneering alternative routes.

Joseph Hawdon and Charles Bonney were pioneers and overlanders who took cattle from Albury NSW to Adelaide in 1838. This venture helped to fill in the map and would be the impetus for a succession of other parties making the long journey, and for pioneering alternative routes.

Andrew Stenhouse owned a grand home called 'Willyama' in St Kilda Victoria. He owned a successful sawmill in Broken Hill NSW prior to purchasing this property. Legend had it that Andrew hid 2,000 gold sovereigns in this home.

In the 1850s Christopher Bagot was considered one of the most successful squatters in the Riverina region of NSW.

George S Melville, nicknamed ‘Frenchy’, was born in about 1815 in Scotland. He was a convict who was involved in the famous McIvor Diggings gold escort robbery in July 1853.

The Murray Downs Homestead is a heritage-listed homestead at Moulamein Road, Murray Downs, NSW, just over the bridge from Swan Hill on the Murray River.In 1848 the Murray Downs Station was a vast expanse of land. Bell and Wilson applied to lease this from Crown Land. It was originally 150,000 acres.The Officer brothers purchased the property in 1862.

American Charles Sherwood Stratton, a small statured man, achieved international fame as a member of PT Barnum’s touring sideshow troupe and named himself Tom Thumb – he appeared in Melbourne in 1870 which encouragedAustralian versions.This episode covers the stories of two Australian 'Tom Thumbs'.*Warning – there will be terminology used in this episodethat does not reflect modern acceptable terms*

Born Thomas Henry Augustine Penney, Cecil Pierpont was one of a number of aliases he used in Australia. Others included Cecil Rowe, Professor Gordon Rowe and Cecil de Vere, Gordon Vane Tempest Simpson, Gordon Tempest, Gordon Burge, Gordon de Burgh, Cecil Royal Aubrey, Cecil Devine, John Soames, Sydney Bruce Burge. He was also married a number of times, including to several women at the same time.

Born Thomas Henry Augustine Penney, Cecil Pierpont was one of a number of aliases he used in Australia. Others included Cecil Rowe, Professor Gordon Rowe and Cecil de Vere, Gordon Vane Tempest Simpson, Gordon Tempest, Gordon Burge, Gordon de Burgh, Cecil Royal Aubrey, Cecil Devine, John Soames, Sydney Bruce Burge. He was also married a number of times, including to several women at the same time.

Percival George Whittall Percy was born into an English merchant family, educated in England, multilingual and employed by the large Far East trading company, Jardine, Matheson & Co. He came to Australia in 1879. He started off well but by 1895 was charged with imposition.

In a 1923 newspaper article, it outlined how William Mowbray under the title of Dr William De Vale, had slept with a number of his patients even though he was a married man with children.

Ethel Benn was an extraordinarily athletic thief who never learned from her mistakes.

Ethel Benn was an extraordinarily athletic thief who never learned from her mistakes.

Esther Eggers was born Esther Ann Reardon in Sydney in 1896. She first features in public documents as a 15 year old and was still committing misdemeanors in her late forties.

John Wagner was born in Canada in 1827. He emigrated in 1852 via California to Melbourne. During his travels, he recognized the difficulty of transport over long distances and in Australia developed a line of quality coaches and travel routes. He became a partner with Cyrus Hewitt of Hewitt & Co. and later joined A.W. Robertson to form Robertson & Wagner to purchase coach lines in Victoria, Australia.John was also a partner in Cobb & Co., another coach line service, and held an interest in the Mt. Morgan Gold Mining Company which made him very wealthy.

Charles Thomas Scoringi Jnr was born in 1891 in New Zealand. He was in trouble with the law as a young boy, and committed crimes both in NZ and Australia. Interestingly, in all but one case, targeted Chinese to steal from.

In 1894, Albert and Vincent De Luca aged only 12 and 10 were charged under the Industrialised Schools Act in Sydney of leaving their home. Joseph De Luca, their father, wasthe complainant. What became of them?

May Eileen Wood was dubbed in the press as the ‘Notorious Woman Housebreaker’.She was born in Busselton WA in 1895 to John Wood and Ellen Thurkle.

Born into the Lindeman wine family, in Burwood NSW in 1892, Enid Maud Lindeman had an upbringing befitting a young lady, but she longed to escape colonial life. She was married four times. Enid's first husband was a shipping magnate, her second a general, her third a viscount, her fourth an earl.

In the early hours of Sunday 3 Nov 1913 Mrs Kate Fox wassavagely attacked in her home on the farm ‘Osborne Farm’ near Berrigan NSW.Her brother Alexander and niece Hilda were also set upon. *Warning there is graphic information contained in this episode*

Thomas Henry Hardinge was born in Hampstead Middlesex England in 1854. He married Kate Wild on Dec 15th 1881in Adelaide when he was 45 and Kate Wild nee Milnes. He was a hydraulics engineer and a commission agent. Kate divorced Thomas - Mrs Clara Parker was named as a co-respondent.

Joseph Dignum and George Comerford are considered the first bushrangers in the Port Phillip area (later known as Victoria), which was still part of New South Wales in the 1830s.

This is the first time that a person who has a jail record is linked to my family!Violet May Wiseman, born Violet May East, married Albert Wiseman in 1917. Albert was the son of Elizabeth Ann Maw, my great great grandfathers sister.

Muriel Goldsmith stated on her jail records that she was born in Tasmania on the 29 Dec 1890, however I cannot verify this.The trouble is that she went under so many aliases it is difficult to work out her true birth name and validate where and when she was actually born!

Audrey Ailsa Pointing and Glenore Joan Pointing were born in Sydney, NSW to Arthur Pointing and Elsie Vida Agnes Davis.Arthur Pointing owned several butcher’s shops in Sydneywhich had a reputation for high quality and modern cleanliness. Both sisters performed on the stage in England, Glenore under her stage name, Glen Alyn. Audrey became Lady Doverdale.

Eric Matthew Homer was born on 22 Dec 1907 at Rockdale, Sydney, New South Wales. He was the son of Ernest Homer and Florence Pritchard.He was a bigamist three times and married at least six times and used several aliases.

James Warwick Browne was born on 18 Nov 1864 at 'Kirgunyah" Station, near Yackandandah, Victoria to Wallace Browne and Emma Kilminster. He became a wealthy grazier and a processor and exporter of the giant maiden hair ferns that grew prolifically around the Woy Woy district. He exported to the botanical industry to Germany, France, Belgium, Switzerland and the USA. He built a commodious timber residence at the foot of Blackwall Mountain and named it "Patonga".

On 2 February 1907 Australian Winnafreda Yuillmarried Lionel Arthur Henry Seymour Dawson-Damer, the 6th Earl of Portarlington at Trinity Church, Chelsea, London. Upon the death of his father in 1900, Lionel became not only the Earl of Portarlington (Ireland Peerage), but also the 7th Lord Dawson and the 7th Viscount Carlow. Lionel served as one of the King's train-bearers at the Coronation of Edward VII and Alexandra at Westminster Abbey on 9 August 1902.