There's something about Mary....

[Mez]

Hi all - a newby here from Australia

This tale will tug at your heart strings... Our ancestors left Scotland in 1838 on assisted passage from Farr, Sutherlandshire to Sydney Australia (the Bounty Scheme promoted by Rev J D Lang). On board the ship were the father, mother and 7 children (aged 1 to 23). For some reason, 6 year old Mary was left behind. What happened to her between 1838 and 1865 is still a mystery. The first sighting was her marriage to Duncan (7 years her junior - the girl's not silly...) at Stornoway, Isle of Lewis in 1865. Subsequent census years see her at Wick, Caithness. Duncan was a fisherman and the 1871 census puts him on the Nonpareil anchored at South Ronaldsay. (An aside: i stumbled across an amazing 1821 Census Project for this area by an L Conrad - that's right - 1821!). It appears Mary and Duncan lived (lovingly though sans-children(?)) in Wick until his death in 1906. His death was recorded by the Assistant Inspector of the Poor. One of the last letters to a younger sister in Australia, whom Mary never met, states the sisters were "separated by a cruel wrong". Mary's last letter was 1914 but i can't find her death registered. Family tradition has it she was "abducted from the docks" at the time the migrant ship sailed,but this can't be correct as the passengers were boarded on the 18th and the ship didn't sail until the 22nd. I have discovered many 6, 8 and 10 etc year old "female servants" with her name. Whilst appreciating the socio-economic conditions then were vastly different to now these were highly 'religious' people and I still can't get my head around it. Has anyone else discovered a "lost" family child under similar circumstances? I can't find a lot on the incidence of child 'adoption'. All contributions gratefully received.

Cheers, Mez

[WilmaM]

Perhaps she was left behind with the grandparents, who couldn't bear to see thier whole family go off never to return.

I know of a family in more recent times[ 1930-40]. They decided to move to Scotland and left the oldest girl with granny, she never did come to Scotland to live with her family. I'm not sure of what age she was or where her siblings were born. But we were always aware that our friends' Aunt N. was Irish but their parent's were Scots Irish.

[joette]

As far as I recall there was a limit to the number of children allowed to a family going to Aussie.This might have been at a later time but there was a certain ratio children/parent &also the age of child taken into consideration e.g.no Single Women without the presence of an Adult male & under no circumstances a single woman with an illegitemate child.
In the new Series on BBC2of "Who Do You THink You Are" Jeremy Paxman's ancestors were "repatriated " from the rural East Anglia where they were recieving Parish Relief to the new industrial North of England.A job was found for the Parents & four eldest children who were going to be off work age when the New Factory Act came into being the following year.Their fare to this new Shangri-la(Bolton was compared to Hell by some historians & contemporary writers.) by the Parish.The three youngest a baby,two & four year old were left behind fate unknown but unless some relative took them in then I guess it was the Workhouse!
Perhaps Mary was unwell & unable to travel or suffering from a condition which made travel difficult.As there was contact between the family members then she must have been safe! The more cynical part thinks perhaps she was a"hostage" to ensure their staying put in Oz!

[Tracey]

Hi Mez

Welcome to TS

Yes i had one that dissapeared - a child - after 1901 (i know its later but may be a help). I, like you have letters and after reading them and becoming attached it dawned on me this child wasnt mentioned at all after 1901 and i started to panic and got very upset worrying about her Especially as her aunt was always suggesting the child be placed somewhere to "be trained to be of use "! a 4 year old child !
The short of it is...........she was born illigitimate, her mother had to leave her behind in Scotland while she found work in England. It got to a point where she really couldnt afford to pay for the childs keep and the only solution was for the child to be put in an Orphanage . The mother then emigrated to South Africa but happily the child left the Orphanage in 1911 was taken out to her mother. Even better, i met up with the said childs daughter last summer Since then i have been given more letters written about trying to get her into the orphanage and am glad to say my gt grandfather was opposed to this idea ( she was his neice).
I put out tons of messages to find this child and i got lucky - hope you do to.

Tracey

Coincidently the childs mother was a Mary too

[rdem]

My Irish Dempseys were on the 1851 census at Dalry, Ayrshire.
the parents and seven boys, the two youngest born in Dalry (including my great grandfather) born in Dalry, the rest in Ireland. I found this census report in 1982. Since scotlandspeople became available I have been searching certs for all the brothers.(which sourced them back to Ireland....finally!) On one marriage there was a Terence Dempsey as a best man. I didn't know who this could be and it turned out that he was another brother. On the 1851 census he would have been ten years old. He may have been working outside the home or left in Ireland. He may have been in a bit of bother since he was in the army and had an aka as henry Morgan, (Morgan was his mother's maiden name) I found this on the 1871 census where he was boarding with one of the brothers I am looking forward to the 1851 census coming on scotlandspeople to see if I can find him.

[Mez]

Thank you Wilma, joette and tracey for your responses and ideas for further lines of enquiry – they’ve kept me busy!

Wilma, I’m following your suggestion that Mary was left with relatives - or family friends. Perhaps the ‘missing years’ were spent around Lochinver given her place of marriage.

Joette, I went to the State Library, Sydney and got a copy of the NSW Government Gazette advertising the 1837 Immigration Scheme and conditions for the bounty and can recommend a book by Madgwick (Longmans, 1937) called “Immigration into Eastern Australia 1788-1851” for anyone interested. It appears the Scheme’s preference was to keep families together but your suggestion that she was forced to stay behind because of illness is a good one as I also found an advertisement in a Dundee newspaper (?) inserted by a Dr David Boyter of the Royal Navy who was authorised to offer free passage to certain classes of ‘mechanics’ and their families. Besides the moral character and age conditions, all children had to have been vaccinated and in good health. Dr Boyter had a long connection with the Scheme as he gets a mention in the Elgin Courant paper 2 years later as being on the ‘dock conversing with the captain’ not long before the ship left for Australia. Don’t you love a good coincidence?

Tracey, I’m glad your search worked out well – it’s a long plodding road sometimes.

And finally, rdem, thank you for your interesting story of the Irish Dempseys s …good hunting.

Cheers

Mez (seriously considering a name change to Private Plod )

[joette]

Thanks for that as I have emigrant rellies to Aussie. I am sure I will find it interesting.