Notes
Note N661
Index
=============
NSW BDM - Death Cert
Registration Number Last Name Given Name(s) Father's Given Name(s) Mother's Given Name(s) District
V1850305 36A/1850 GALLARD MATTHEW
=============
Notes
Note N662
Index
==========
Susannahs maiden name ?? some other researchers seem to have her as Habens or Habbins eg Elizabeth Hall, from IGI I have seen her gravestone in Southborough St Peters churchyard
Lynne Gallard Howard - 2008-03-19, Genes Reunited Member
==========
Notes
Note N663
Index
==========
From Rich Horton's Genes Reunited 2009-11-09
Ann Rhodlas
First name: Ann Known as:
Middle name: Occupation:
Surname: Rhodlas Date of birth:
Year of birth: c1627 Date of baptism:
Gender: Female Year of death: 1699
Date of death: --/7/1699 Source of data: IGI
Place of birth: n/k
Place of baptism:
Place of death: Tur Langton
Notes: Ann was buried 26/7/1699 @ Tur Langton..
Spouse name: Henry Berridge
Place of marriage: Church Langton
Date of marriage: 1653
Divorced: No
==========
Notes
Note N664
Index
==========
UK, Extracted Probate Records, 1269-1975 about Berridge, Henry [2014-03-26]
Name: Berridge, Henry
Dates: 1702
Place: Tur Langton, Leicestershire, England
Book: Calendar of Wills Proved and of Administrations Granted in the Commissary Court of the Peculiar and Exempt Jurisdiction of Groby, 1580-1800. (Will)
Collection: Leicestershire and Rutland: - Index to the Wills and Administrations proved and granted in the Archdeaconry Court of Leicester 1660-1750, and in the peculiars of St. Margaret, Leicester, and Rothley and the Rutland Peculiars of Caldecott, Ketton and Tixover
Volume: Index to Wills and Eldministrations Proved and Granted in The Elrchdeaconry Court of Leicester 1660-1750
Chapter: 1686.
Text: 1702 Berridge, Henry, Tur Langton Adm. 36
==========
Notes
Note N665
Index
Aghabog is a parish, in the union of Cootehill, barony of Dartry, in the county of Monaghan, and province of Ulster. This locality is 1 mile east by south-east from Newbliss, on the road from Clones to Ballybay. Aghabog contained in 1846, 7530 inhabitants and covers 11,543 1/2 statute acres, 222 1/2 acres are covered with water, 16 to 20 acres are woodland and about 245 acres are bog, the rest is arable and pasture land.
The inhabitants are nearly all involved in the manufacture of linen. Within the limits of the parish are five lakes of which the largest is located near Leysborough demesne. The living is a rectory and vicarage, in the diocese of Clogher. The church is a plain ediface built in 1775. There is a glebe - house, with a glebe of 40 acres. In the Roman Catholic divisions this parish forms part of the union of Killeevan; the chapel is a neat modern building, situated on the townland of Lathnamard. At Drumkeen is a Presbyterian meeting house.
From FamilySearch [2015-07-15]
https://familysearch.org/learn/wiki/en/Aghabog_Civil_Parish,_County_Mo naghan_Genealogy
Notes
Note N666
Index
He married firstly Mary McGrath ... with William John MCKEY as issue. He then married Ann Taylor.
Notes
Note N667
Index
Sgt. Edward Mackie / Mackey / McKey served in the 63rd Regiment stationed in Van Diemen's Land (specifically Macquarie Harbour) 1832.
Notes
Note N668
Index
(1) Macquarie Harbour, Van Diemen's (Tasmania), Australia,
(2) Madras, India
(3) and Burma
Notes
Note N670
Index
from National Archives, London - Edward Mackay-WO12 7272.jpg
Embarked for England month of October (Oct1 to Oct 31) - died at Sea 2 February 1840
=============================================
Edward Mackey - from Peter Lawton in UK (his trip to Kew) - 1 Jul 2009
Edward Mackey
LDS information:
Father John Mackey
Married 11 July 1790 Castleblaney, Co. Monahan
Mother Jane Graham
Born 14th March 1761, Clones Co. Monaghan
Father Christopher Graham
LDS site references (Ancestral Files)
Edward Mackey: AFN: BN12-03
John Mackey: AFN: P46J-N8
Jane Mackey: AFN: P46J-PF
Anne Taylor: AFN: BN12-18
Born 1800 County Monaghan
Married Ann Taylor 1826 Glen, Monaghan
1836/1840 Lost at Sea
Info from Muster Rolls of the 63rd Regiment of Foot for 1819 - 24 and 1831:
Recruited to the 63rd Regiment of Foot: 8th September 1819 (name spelt McKee)
1820 - 1822 Private (appears on the roll but no comments added)
1823 - promoted to Corporal on 18th June
1823 - on Furlough
1824 - in hospital
1824 - on command (not sure what this refers to) [A term used for a soldier on detachment or on duty away from his regiment. from www.royalprovincial.com/etc/gloss/gloss.htm]
By 1831 promoted to sergeant and in Western Australia
Edward Mackey - part 2 - 22 Jul 2009
From Muster Rolls WO 12/7268 - WO/12 7271
Edward Mackey 63rd Regiment of Foot - regimental number 143
1836
April - June Fort St. George, Madras
July - September Fort St. George, Madras August on Guard
October - December Fort St. George, Madras 1-4 Nov in hospital
1837
January - March Fort St. George, Madras13-20 January in hospital then on Guard
April - June Fort St. George, Madras June on Guard
July - September Fort St. George, Madras September on Guard
October - December Arnee, India 22 November - back to Private (no reason, no record of a regimental courtmarshal and no record of being under arrest - one of three Sergeants sent back to Private)
1838
January - March Arnee (Jan) (on higher than normal pay due to 14+ years service for rest of career)
Poonamallee (Feb - Mar)
April - June At sea (May)
Moulmein (June)
July - August Moulmein
October - December Moulmein 5 - 10 December in hospital
1839
January - March Moulmein (Jan)
Mergui (Feb & Mar)
April - June Mergui
July - September Moulmein 6 - 11 & 27-31 July in hospital
1 - 2 August in hospital
Embarked for Madras (Sept)
October - December Embarked for Madras (Oct - Nov)
Poonamallee (Dec)
1840
January - MarchPoonamallee (Jan)
Embarked for England (Feb - Mar)
I started looking from 1836 to find when he was lost at sea (more of which later).
During this period he served in both Burma and India and in November 1837 he was reduced from Sergeant to Private There is no reason for this in the muster roll, no regimental court marshal, no period of confinement in jail, no explanation at all. (when my bloke was reduced from corporal there were listings of court marshal and time under arrest). It looks like three sergeants were reduced back to private at the same time, I'll try to see if the others were under arrest next time.
So, Private Mackey continued to move around Burma and India until February 1840, when he embarked for England..... and that's as far as I got
Sorry to leave it at the 'see next week's exciting episode' stage but it was the last muster roll I had booked out. I'm presuming the next one will have the death listed. The really annoying thing is that the next muster roll was one I had out earlier, as it is the first one in which John Cassidy appears (enlisted 27 March 1840), but I didn't know I'd be looking for a Private Mackay in it. Really strange though that the same roll has Edward's last entry and John's first.
As far as the place names go Mergui is in Burma, located in the extreme south of the country on the coast of an island on the Andaman Sea. Moulmein is the main trading center and seaport in south-eastern Burma.
Poonamallee is a town in Thiruvallur district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. All had substantial British army barracks in the period.
I can't find any reference to Arnee (the entry in the muster roll is indistinct, but should be in India [2013-02-28 - Arni is about 40kms SW of Madras/Chennai])
I'll find out about his pre-1836 career and what happened in 1840 next time (may be a while though).
=============================================
Individual Record FamilySearch? Ancestral File v4.19
Edward MACKEY (AFN: 1090-DWL) Pedigree
Sex: M
Birth: 1816
Ireland
Death: 1861/1871
Parents:
Marriage(s):
Spouse: Mary MCGRATH (AFN: 1090-DXS) Family
Marriage:
----------
FamilySearch? International Genealogical Index v5.0 British Isles
Family Group Record
Husband
Edward Mackey
Birth:
Christening:
Marriage:
Death:
Burial:
Wife Ann Taylor Mackey
Birth:
Christening:
Marriage:
Death:
Burial:
Children
1. Mary Jane Mackey Smith
Birth: 01 MAY 1826 , Monaghan, Ireland
Christening:
Death: 05 NOV 1889
Burial:
2. Sarah
Birth: About 1830 Of Frozepore,East, , , India
Christening:
Death:
Burial:
3. Elizabeth
Birth: About 1832 Of Frozepore,East, , , India
Christening:
Death:
Burial:
=============================================
Indexes to Regiments serving in India (2009-05-01)
http://www.ans.com.au/~rampais/genelogy/india/indexes/index.htm
=============================================
http://www.forces-war-records.co.uk/history/unit.asp?unitID=4586 (2012-03-08)
63rd Regiment
Dates: 1758 - 1783
Later to be Retitled to 63rd West Suffolk Regiment in 1783.
In 1804 a 2nd Battalion was formed but in 1814 was disbanded.
The 63rs West Suffolk Regiment was Restyled into 1st Manchester Regiment in 1881, and in 1900 both the 3rd and 4th Line Battalions were formed but later (1900) disbanded.
1942 saw the Battalion captured in Singapore and the 6th (TA) Battalion was reconstituted as 1st Battalion.
in 1948 the 1st and 2nd Battalions amalgamated to form 1st Battalion the Manchester Regiment(LXIII/XCVI).
==========
1758.....63rd (West Suffolk) Regiment of Foot http://freepages.history.rootsweb.com/~garter1/63rdfoot.htm 1st / 63rd Foot (West Suffolk) Regiment 1829 - 1833 The Regiment Known as (nickname)................................................... " The Blood Suckers" Facings............................................................... ............. DEEP GREEN Braided Lace.................................................................. Silver Service in Australia ....................................................... Tasmania & Sydney . Commanding Officer.......................................................Lieut. Colonel J. Logan
==========
The following from Ken Larbalestier [crossbows2@msn.com.au] via http://freepages.history.rootsweb.com/~garter1/63rdfoot.htm
63rd Regiment of Foot (The West Suffolk Regiment) 1827- 1835 In May of 1828 the 63rd Regiment of Foot was ordered to proceed to NSW, by detachments, as guards on board convict ships. The Headquarters of the Regiment arrived in Sydney on 18th February 1830 and after landing the convicts, sailed for Van Diemen's Land where the remainder of the Regiment was located, landing there on 22nd March. Major James Fairtlough commanded the Regiment on arrival in NSW but Lieutenant Colonel Joseph Logan arrived in November 1830 and assumed command of the Regiment at Hobart Town.
On 19th December 1830 the commanding officer issued a Garrison Order announcing his warm approbation of the soldier like appearance of the 63rd Regiment at their half yearly inspection. He also expressed great satisfaction of their "great accuracy and celerity, their musketry, healthy appearance of the men and cleanliness of the Barracks".
The Regiment received orders to proceed to Madras. On receiving these orders, Headquarters and five companies embarked from Hobart Town in February 1833 and the two remaining companies in March.
Prior to the departure of Captain Erskine's company ,a complimentary address was presented to Captain Erskine by the principal inhabitants of the settlement for the conduct of the detachment during their service there. It set out that, but for their assistance, the colonists would have been much exposed to attacks from aborigines. The company joined the Regiment at Madras on 26th May 1833.
==========
Individual Record FamilySearch? Ancestral File v4.19
Search Results Edward MACKEY (AFN: 1090-DWL) Pedigree
Sex: M Family
Event(s): Birth: 1816 Ireland
Death: 1861/1871
Parents: Marriage(s):
Spouse: Mary MCGRATH (AFN: 1090-DXS)
Family Marriage: ----------
FamilySearch? International Genealogical Index v5.0
British Isles Family Group Record Search Results | Download
Husband Edward Mackey
Pedigree Birth:
Christening:
Marriage:
Death: Burial:
Wife Ann Taylor Mackey
Pedigree
Birth:
Christening:
Marriage:
Death:
Burial:
Children
1. Mary Jane Mackey Smith
Pedigree
Birth: 01 MAY 1826 , Monaghan, Ireland
Christening:
Death: 05 NOV 1889
Burial:
2. Sarah
Pedigree
Birth: About 1830 Of Frozepore,East, , , India
Christening:
Death:
Burial:
3. Elizabeth
Pedigree
Birth: About 1832 Of Frozepore,East, , , India
Christening:
Death:
Burial:
==========
The only trace found to date (30/1/2007) is reference in the Regiment information on Ken Larbelester's pages: http://freepages.history.rootsweb.com/~garter1/m63rd.htm
The Soldiers listed below a represent the soldiers who were in Australia on Garrison Duty. Some may have settled, some may have not. When it has been confirmed they settled in Australia they will receive their own page. If it is confirmed the men settled in Australia, they will not appear on this page,they will appear on the surname page. If they are listed on this page, then this is all we know of them .
Back To Surnames of the 63rd Regiment's Soldiers who stayed * MACKEY Edward ", .
==========
From: GUIDE TO CANADIAN SOURCES RELATED TO SOUTHERN REVOLUTIONARY WAR NATIONAL PARKS by Donald E. Graves, Ensign Heritage Consulting, PO Box 282, Carleton Place, Ontario, Canada, K7C 3P4 in conjunction with REEP INC., PO Box 2524, Leesburg, VA, 20177
63rd Regiment of Foot (Siege of Charleston) History 1758: Raised as the 63rd Regiment of Foot 1782: The 63rd (West Suffolk) Regiment of Foot 1881: The Manchester Regiment 1958: The King's Regiment (Manchester and Liverpool) 1969: The King's Regiment Current Title: The King's Regiment Revolutionary War Service Disembarked at Boston in 1775 and fought in the northern theater until 1780 when it moved south to Charleston. Fought throughout the southern campaign of 1780-1781, in part as mounted infantry, but was not part of Cornwallis's army. Embarked from Charleston for Jamaica in the spring of 1782.
Address of Museum Museum of the Manchesters Ashtown Town Hall Market Place, Ashton-under-Lyme United Kingdom, OL6 6DL Note that this museum covers the history of the 63rd, later Manchester Regiment, until 1958 when it amalgamated with the Liverpool Regiment to form The King's Regiment.
Published Histories James Slack, The History of the late 63rd (West Suffolk) Regiment. (London: The Army and Navy Co-Operative Society, 1886). A.C. Wylly, History of The Manchester Regiment (late the 63rd and 96th Foot). (London: 2 volumes, Forster Groom & Co, 1923-1925).
==========
One Great Family.com Entry (via SLC FHL) Sergeant Edwad Mackie (OGFN 540521659) Death - 63rd Regiment Mother Mary (OGFN 540521662)
==========
(From Wikipedia entry: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/63rd_Foot - copied 2008-02-26)
The Garrison years In 1820, the 63rd were deployed to Ireland, a deployment that would last until 1824. In 1826, the 63rd was involved in an expedition to Portugal due to fears of impending insurrection in the country, landing in the country in 1827. The rebel cause largely subsided, thanks largely in part due to the expedition made by the British. In 1829, the 63rd began providing escorts for convict ships traveling to New South Wales and Van Diemen's Land (now Tasmania). The rest of the regiment became garrison troops in the latter colony. A detachment of the regiment was present at the foundation ceremony of Perth in 1829, and had arrived in Western Australia that same year, on the warship HMS Sulphur. The officer commanding the detachment of the 63rd at the ceremony Captain Frederick Chidley Irwin, would later have two stints as administrator of Western Australia. In 1830 the battalion was involved in internal security duties in Van Diemen's Land, in order to prevent further incidents by the native Aborigines there. Such duties later expanded to the rest of Australia. The regiment left Australia in 1833 and in 1834 was based in India. In 1838, the 63rd deployed to Burma, a deployment that proved uneventful, the returning to India in 1842. They returned to Britain in 1847.
==========
http://soer.justice.tas.gov.au/2003/casestudy/10/index.php
Macquarie Harbour Penal Station Index of case studies
Introduction Macquarie harbour case study location map
Macquarie Harbour penal station was a site of secondary punishment established in 1822 on Tasmania's west coast. It was one of a number of coercive regimes set up in south-east Australia according to the recommendations of the Bigge report of 1819. The station was abandoned in November 1833 and the remaining convict population transferred to the new penal station at Port Arthur on the Tasman Peninsula. During the 11 years of Macquarie Harbour's operation approximately 1,150 male and 30 female prisoners served time there. They were employed in a variety of tasks ranging from ganged labour in irons to highly skilled tasks managed through a reward system. Their main activities focussed on the exploitation of local timber resources, especially Huon pine. Over 120 vessels, ranging from dinghies to three masted barques, were constructed. Other prisoners were employed in boat crews, as blacksmiths, carpenters watchmen, constables and overseers. The small number of female prisoners worked as hospital orderlies, laundresses, and servants to officers.
After the publication of Marcus Clarke's For the Term of His Natural Life in 1884, Macquarie Harbour attained widespread notoriety as one of the worst sites of punishment in the British Empire. This attitude continues to affect popular perceptions so that Macquarie Harbour is widely seen as a place where the hardened sweepings of the convict colonies of eastern Australia were subjected to a regime of terrifying violence. Yet recent assessments of Macquarie Harbour challenge many of these assumptions. For instance, in many cases the crimes were relatively minor, ranging from theft, absconding from their place of employment, insubordination, mutinous conduct on the voyage to Australia or, in some cases, as 'volunteers' to work in the boat crews or shipyards. In addition, analysis of punishment records reveal that, while levels of punishment were extreme in the early years of the settlement, they diminished over time. After January 1829, the regime was benign compared to other locations. One possible reason for this is that, as the station developed its industrial functions, the balance of work shifted from the employment of ganged labour in land clearance and reclamation, to more skilled tasks managed by reward instead of the use of force.
Macquarie Harbour Penal Station is a site of considerable significance with its landscape little affected by subsequent development. Although many of the remaining structures were partially demolished to obtain building materials in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, archaeological deposits appear to have been largely undisturbed. The Department of Parks, Tourism, Heritage and Arts (DPTHA) have recorded over 100 features associated with the former penal station, many of which are located within the World Heritage Area. Much of the original paperwork survives in Australian and British archives. Several journals, diaries and narratives written by officials, convicts, and visitors to the settlement have also been preserved. As well as being one of the best documented penal stations, at least 20 nineteenth century images of the settlement are held in various Australian public collections.
The site makes a major contribution to our understanding of society and culture. Convict ancestry has become a source of pride making transportation an important element in Tasmanian (and the wider Australian) identity. Even so the penal station's terrible reputation has coloured Tasmanian perceptions of the wilderness as a hostile environment (e.g. A Terrible Beauty: History of the Gordon River Country 1985 by Richard Flanagan). The site is an early, well-documented example of the modern bureaucratic state in action which demonstrates, by its remote location, the global reach of British capitalism. Its selection, accessible only by sea, and with numerous islands, emphasises British competence and confidence as seafarers, an essential component of imperial power. The cultural landscape, along with the built, manufactured, pictorial, and written heritage of the penal station make an important contribution, not only to an understanding of Tasmania's convict past, but to the processes of colonisation in Australia.
Location
Although the main settlement at Macquarie Harbour penal station was located on Sarah Island (sometimes referred to as Headquarters Island or Settlement Island) the station itself encompassed a wide area (see Tas Maps: Cape Sorell 7913 and Franklin 8013). Other significant sites (with grid references) include:
Pilot's Station Kelly 3432 525 245 Phillips Island Cape Sorell 7913 72 117 Grummet Island/ Small Island Cape Sorell 7913 73 062 Farm Cove Cape Sorell 758 095 Hallidays Island Cape Sorell 7913 724 041 Soldiers Island Philips 3631 762 104 Pine was cut from Kellys, Brisbane, and Wrights Basins as well as from Birches Inlet and the Gordon-below-Franklin River. Places named after people who were at the penal station indicate the extent of its reach. Hells Gates Cape Sorell 7913 525 251 Liberty Point Cape Sorell 7913 612 17 Lucas Creek Cape Sorell 7913 625 111(named after the settlement pilot James Lucas) Schofield Creek Cape Sorell 7913 63 105 (Revd William Schofield Wesleyan missionary) Butler Creek Cape Sorell 7813 659 087 (Commandant Butler) Baylee Creek Cape Sorell 7913 686 074 (Commandant Baylee) Richardsons Bay Cape Sorell 7913 698 069 (probably named after the place at which Constable Richardson was murdered) Briggs Creek Cape Sorell 7913 699 042 (Commandant Briggs) Cuthbertson Creek Cape Sorell 7913 728 989 (Commandant Cuthbertson) Commandant Creek Cape Sorell 7913 732 976 Kinghorn Creek Cape Sorell 7913 (master of the brig Waterloo) Butler Rivulet Spence River In an effort to assess cultural heritage protection priorities for Macquarie Harbour Penal Station a strategic and systematic process was applied. The first stage of the process involves 'mapping' significant themes in Tasmania's history and identifying and assessing the condition and pressure of surviving expressions of these themes (heritage categories).
Strategic and systematic process for the integrated identification and assessment of cultural heritage protection priorities
The condition of each heritage category is scored based on category specific criteria. To assess pressure, a score for both threat and rarity is given as an indication of the necessity for management action. Further information is available in the Cultural Heritage Chapter.
Condition
Cultural landscape
The cultural landscape is a result of the interaction between the inhabitants of the penal colony and the unfamiliar environment in which they were placed. It is invested, not only with the meanings they gave it, but those of subsequent generations. Unlike the prior occupants and owners of the land-the Aboriginal people, whose meanings and economic usage of the land were determined by it-the colonists tried to impose an economy and system of values derived from Britain, linked to the development of capitalism and industrialisation. Essentially they sought to exploit the resources rather than work with them. As a result the landscape underwent more rapid changes than at any other time in its history. Some of these: building, farming, land reclamation, quarrying, and mining, are still evident, others less so. In particular, although timber was cut for boat building, and to clear land for farming, most of the area is now covered with regrowth. The introduction of new species and the economic exploitation of existing plants, animals, and habitats also had a considerable impact on local flora and fauna. There are still European roses and hawthorn growing in the area.
The tangible evidence of cultural practice, the loss of Huon pine, the creation of farm land, and the existence of sub-strata footing with some ruins gives the site a score of between 28% and 32%. Since it is in a World Heritage Area and managed by the DPTHA the score belongs at the higher end of the range: Score: 31 to 32%. Places and features
Sarah Island, small, tree covered, and located at the southern end of Macquarie Harbour, was the most drastically altered by the convict presence. As the administrative centre, it was heavily built, with over 100 features extant. Farm Cove, a wind sheltered peninsula, consisted of 80-100 acres of land cleared for farming, principally growing potatoes and rearing pigs. The other farm site was Philip Island, about one kilometre west of the mouth of the Braddon River, on the north-east shore of the harbour. Apart from the farm (1826-33), there was little intervention. Macquarie Harbour was the first place in Tasmania (and only the second in Australia) to be mined for coal. However, the mining at Coal Head-an exposed cliff face of 50 metres with seams of ignite-shows little evidence of workings. These were probably limited to picking up coal from the beach.
These places indicate the types of economic activities carried out at Macquarie Harbour. Essentially it was designed for production, with farming supposed to provide the nutritional requirements of the convict work force. Potatoes were chosen (as in other parts of the Empire, most notoriously Ireland) as an easily grown crop which freed workers from subsistence agriculture for economically productive activities. Sarah Island provides built evidence (in microcosm) of British principles of administration, that of a centre controlling a periphery.
There are about 100 features which have survived from Macquarie Harbour's convict past. They indicate the resourcefulness, and technological ability of the nineteenth century British and how it was used in an unfamiliar environment. They provide spatial evidence of the social hierarchy of the site, one that was essentially British, but adapted to a new environment and circumstances.
Many of the features are remnants of buildings, the government (or commandant's) house, outhouses such as kitchens, the military barracks, gaol, bakehouse, with intact oven, houses, two commissariat stores, sheds, huts, penitentiary, and hospital as well as the shoemaker, nail maker, blacksmith, and carpenter shops. There are ruins of other structures such as wells, wind breaks, fences, cisterns, and paths. There is much evidence of the site's core activities, shipbuilding and sea faring. The shoreline at the southern end of the island was turned into an almost continuous line of dock and wharf facilities. Wharves, slipways, jetties, and two boat basins are all associated with reclaimed land, made up of Huon pine logs and rock infill. The wharves were built to stabilise the reclaimed land, while the boat basins were enclosed by the wharf system. Jetties were made out of reclaimed spits. The construction is an example of significant engineering skills in difficult conditions. It indicates the labour intensive nature of the convict system. In addition, structural evidence remains of other economic activity, some of it associated with boat building. There are sawpits, a possible exploratory mine shaft (which could be a well), quarries, and stockpiles of sandstone blocks or Huon pine.
The abandonment and subsequent lack of interest in the site for many years contributed to its deterioration. In addition, officials arranged for useful building materials like mantles, doors, and window frames to be removed when they left. The entire cottage of the chaplain, Reverend Schofield, was dismantled, probably to be recycled as military quarters at Port Arthur. However, the remote location and difficulty of access to the site meant that, apart from a few miners and tourists, it was undisturbed. Although the site's relative lack of economic importance means that it is not threatened by development, disuse has led to disrepair.
The condition of the remains ranges from sub-soil or rubble, to structures of varying condition such as chimneys, fireplaces, footings, cuttings, walls, post holes, and a brick floor. Government house, the master ship builder's house, the probable commissariat's house, the shipwright's shed, the old penitentiary and hospital are in the worst condition, with only sub-soil remains surviving. Some above soil structures are left of the commandant's kitchen, the chaplain's outhouse, the commandant's and superintendent's quarters, the nail maker's shop, the blacksmith's shop, and a gardener's cottage. The oven in the bakehouse is complete. Since it is horizontal, the reclaimed land, with its system of wharves and jetties, has not collapsed, and so is the best preserved structure on the site. One small dock is complete.
==========
Email from Cheryl Mongan [camelm@ozemail.com.au] 2008-06-03
Hi Megan,
Today I came across your listing on the Tasmania Convict message board and hope that we might be able to assist each other.
I have an interest in your three greats grandfather as well but more particularly in his daughter Elizabeth born at Macquarie Harbour c1831 and whom I suspect you are descended from.
You are probably aware of the reputation of the Macquarie Harbour penal settlement variously known as Sarah Island, Settlement Island and Headquarters Island. I visited the island just 10 days ago and it must have been an extremely unpleasant place to have been stationed - very small and exposed to the elements as well as the unsavoury conditions that accompanied a crowded penal establishment in the most isolated place imaginable. It would have been an awful place for women and children. There were only 13 convict women on the island during its 11 year existence and usually military detachments were restricted to taking only something like 4 wives. For over a decade I have been researching, writing and lecturing on various aspects of the immigration and social conditions of the 4,114 Irish female orphans who migrated to Australian between 1848 and 1850 as the result of the Great Famine.
Yesterday I was intrigued to find the shipping entry on the orphan ship "John Knox" which arrived in Sydney on 29 April 1850 for Elizabeth McKay, born at Macquarie Harbour, Van Diemen's Land, aged 19 years, daughter of Edward and Ann (both dead), C of E, and stated to have 'an aunt, a cousin, Ann Gilroy, living in Sydney'. Up until Elizabeth's departure from Ireland she had been living in an Irish workhouse, very obviously without the support of parents and relatives who could care for her.
Given the extreme unlikelihood that she was the daughter of convicts I concluded that her father was an Irish soldier in a detachment of the 63rd Regiment which was stationed at Macquarie Harbour at the time of her birth - this brought me to your listing.
It was common practice for Irish men to enlist in the British Army particularly in the winter months when work and food was scarce. It seems that the 63rd was deployed to Ireland from 1820 to 1824 and this is possibly the time that Edward enlisted. His pay - the princely sum of a shilling (10 cents) a day From 1829 the regiment sent detachments as escorts on convict ships to NSW and Tasmania. They also establised a garrison in Tasmania in July 1829. A detachment (64 officers and men, 22 women and 19 children) was sent to the Swan River settlement in Western Australia in 1829. The regiment left Australia in 1833-34 for the Madras Presidency, India; served temporarily at Moulmein, Burma in 1838 and returned to Madras in 1842. The regiment served at Poonamalee, Bellary and Secunderabad until it returned to Britain in 1847.
Taking a long shot I searched the Familysearch (Morman) website and found the death at sea (between 1836 and 1840) of Edward Mackey/MacKey born 1800, Monaghan, Ireland, parents John Mackey (b c1750 Monaghan, d 1820) and Jane Mackey - maiden name not given (b c1755 Monaghan, d c1820). Edward's wife is given as Ann Taylor (b1800 Glen, Monaghan, date of death not given) she was the daughter of Francis Taylor (b c1780, Monaghan d c1820) and Mary Taylor - maiden name not given (b c1755 Monaghan d c1820).
Interestingly around 40 girls on the "John Knox" came from the Carrickmacross and Clones workhouses both of which are in Co Monaghan Clones being the closest to the county town of Monaghan.
My guess is that Edward was lost at sea during the 63rd's India/Burma period of service. A possibility is that Ann remarried - Army wives were never widowed for long as they were in very much sought after by the deceased's fellow soldiers, and started a new life. Or she may have gone back to Monaghan - according to the above both Edward and her parents were deceased in c1820 but if Elizabeth's statement that she had an aunt and cousin in Sydney is accurate, Ann may well have had at least one sister. Either way Elizabeth ended up in a union workhouse and according to her shipping information Ann was dead when she embarked in December 1849. If Ann died in Ireland during the famine period 1845-1850 there may very well be no record of her death.
My day job is military history but the British regiments are not my area of expertise. I will check with my colleagues regarding sources for the 63rd.
It really would be appreciated if you could let me know if any of the above ties in with what you know of your family.
Sincerely,
Cheryl Mongan Yass NSW PS If the above are Elizabeth's family you may have some interesting USA connections. The people who contributed the entries to the Morman indexes were
Judd WARNER 264 West 2350 South Bountiful, Utah 84010
JOSEPH OWEN EVANS 2061 EAST 4800 SOUTH SALT LAKE CITY UT USA 84117
JULIA ANN PACE C/O 320 E 5TH AVE #4 SLC UT (Salt Lake City Utah??)
CYNTHIA E. SOWER 821 - 39TH PLACE BELLINGHAM WA USA 98226
==========