Looking for Margaret

Australia Day 2021 - the Irish ancestors

I'm reflecting on those ancestors who migrated to Australia and am grateful for their journeys to this land. On checking my research I find that I had not identified when gt-grandmother Margaret Byrne arrived in Australia, but first a recap of what I do know.

From Ireland to South Australia

1840 Andrew O'Leary and his wife Catherine Burke, gt.gt. g-parents with gt-grandmother Honora and 3 other children, arrived in South Australia aboard the "Mary Dugdale" from County Cork. 

1852 Johanna Horgan (born Fitzgerald), gt-gt-grandmother widow with three sons arrived in South Australia aboard the "China". John Horgan, one of those sons and a gt-grandfather, was 19 when he arrived. He married Honora O'Leary. The Horgans came from County Kerry.

1854 Patrick and Mary O’Dea gt-gt-grandparents arrived in S.A. from County Clare with 2 sons and 2 daughters. Their son, gt grandfather John was about 20 when they arrived.

1859 Edward Smyth, another gt.-grandfather from County Westmeath was aboard the "North" when it docked in Port Adelaide on January 28th, 1859. He had followed his younger brother the Rev. John Smyth to South Australia.

1862 Maria Crowley, gt-grandmother from County Tipperary arrived on the "Henry Fernie" in Melbourne and journeyed to South Australia to meet up with her brothers. She married John O'Dea in 1863.

1879 Bridget Kelly, gt-grandmother from Limerick was 17 when she arrived in Adelaide aboard the "Trevelyan." Aboard the same ship was a George Bennett aged 22 but I have yet no evidence to determine if this was the George Bennett she married at Teetulpa in 1887.

On February 6th, 1862 Edward Smyth married Margaret Byrne in St John's near Kapunda. He is listed as 38 years old and she is 27. This puts Margaret's birth date about 1835. European settlers arrived in South Australia in 1836 so she was not born in the colony. On the marriage record she is listed as being a Housekeeper rather than as a spinster which suggests she was working to earn a living rather than living with her family. Her father is listed as Peter but none of the Peter Byrnes who immigrated to South Aust were old enough to be her father.

On further searching through ships' records I identified several Margaret Byrnes. The most likely candidate is the Margaret Byrne who was 17 when she arrived on the "Marshall Bennett" in 1852. On that ship there was a large contingent of single Irish girls. I then searched the Ireland Catholic baptism records for a Margaret Byrne born around 1835 with a father named Peter. There is only one in 1835 and two in 1833.

In St Andrew's Parish, Dublin City there is a Margaret Byrne baptised on 23 February 1835 with parents Peter and Mary Byrne. Could this possibly be gt-grandmother Margaret Byrne? Her death record has her as age 75 in May of 1907 which would give a birth date of 1832/33. So I'm still looking for Margaret, but am thankful to those 12 ancestors who travelled from Ireland to make Australia home.

Where did they come from?

This post first appeared on earlieryears.blogspot.com by CRGalvin