Smyth

by

Isabella Shiels – how she earned a living in Townsville

I’ve been wondering how Isabella earned a living when John died.  It turns out she worked as a Laundress.

I found the information on the QLD State Archives website (I searched under Images) and was looking at old photos when I came across the Townsville Orphanage Register files – which are scanned in as images.  isabella admitted two of her daughters, Annabella and Eliza, to the Orphanage in 16 Oct1886 (following her earlier admission of daughters Margaret and Annabella 6 Aug 1884 – 16 Apr 1886).  On the admission form, Isabella’s occupation is listed as ‘Laundress’.  So that’s it then – that is how she made a living -obviously not enough to support 5 daughters.

by

Smyth Children – Schooling

There is a group of dedicated people who are transcribing all Queensland School Registers – showing historical records of Schools and the list of children who attended the school, including the year of attendance.   I believe the registers will show school attendance records up until the 1940s  (not sure if they are going to record details beyond the 1940s).  It is a work in progress – they haven’t completed all schools, and when I looked at the School register  databases early last year, it appeared none of the Townsville School registers had been done.  Some work has now been done, and there are now some Townsville schools on the database.

Townsville West State School celebrated its centenary in 1987.  In a book produced by the school, included in the class of 1887 were the following names:

Smith, Maggie

Smith, Martha

The school register database is divided into 5 parts – I found Maggie and Martha in Part 5 of the database.  I also did a name search using the surname ‘Smyth’ but it didn’t turn up anything.

The School database can be accessed through the local library, if the library has family history research facilities, if not either both the State Library and QLD Archives have the database available.

Hopefully the transcribers get South Townsville and Railway Estate Schools done this year, as this is where the Colemans (I think) and the Raynors attended school.

At the time Maggie and Martha were attending school, Annabella and Eliza were in Townsville Orphanage.  Annabella discharged from the Orphanage 11 May 1893, and Eliza was discharged 7 Aug 1894.  They must have had it pretty tough.

by

William Smyth (b. 1856) – possible brother of John Smyth?

Last year I came across a birth certificate in the family records, and I initially thought it had been included in error.  The birth certificate was for a Mary Smyth, but it was clearly not Mary Jane Smyth (daughter of John Smyth and Isabella Shiels), as the date, parents and place of birth were different.  Then last week, the penny dropped – this was the birth certificate of a relative of Mary Jane.   It appears the father, William, might be John Smyth’s brother, and was living in Townsville.  If that is the case  then Isabella and her daughters might have had  family support after all when John died.

 

The birth certificate details are:

Child:  Mary Smyth b,  7 Feb 1887

Father:  Wiliiam  Smyth

Age 31 years

Birthplace:  Athy Kildare Ireland

Occupation:  Labourer

Birthplace:  Athy Kildare  Ireland

Mother:  Bridget Welsh

Age:  29 years

Birthplace:  Acies Queens County Ireland

Children living (of William and Bridget):

– William (1 year old)

Children deceased:

– 1 X Female

Witness to the birth:   Nurse – Mrs McDeregal

 

I suspect when Isabella sent her older daughters to the Townsville Orphanage, she might have placed her younger daughters with William Smyth and family (who probably couldn’t look after all 5 daughters).

I’ll investigate further when I get some time.

by

Where were family members during Cyclone Sigma 26-27 January 1896?

Cyclone Sigma was severe, with 18 people in Townsville losing their lives.  Most of these drowned when the Ross River broke its banks, with parts of Town having a flood depth of 2m.

George and Jane Coleman, and their children, including Emily Jane (then aged 14 years), were living in North Queensland at the time Cyclone Sigma struck Townsville.  The family were either still living at Wyandotte Station (near Cardwell), but more likely had already moved to their home in Fifth Ave, South Townsville.  (To confirm,  I probably need to check where their children were born – Emily was born at Wyandotte, but many of her younger siblings were born in Townsville, its simply a matter of finding out which sibling was first born in Townsville to best work out when the Colemans moved there).

Abraham Wilson was still living in Rockhampton so was unaffected by Cyclone Sigma.

Joseph Raynor, as yet unmarried, could have been in Townsville, but this seems unlikely.

Isabella Smyth (nee Shiels), and her daughters, including Mary Jane Smyth (then aged 11 years) were living in Townsville somewhere, possibly in the City area, or at Stewart’s Creek (something I’m currently researching).

I’ve come across an old article in a scanned Newspaper on National Library of Australia, which describes Cyclone Sigma in detail, which I’ll include in a post soon.

by

March 1946 – Townsville Floods

At the time of the 1946 floods in Townsville, Mary Jane Raynor and some of her children, were living in McIlwraith St (which was flooded).  Abraham and Emily were living in their home on the corner of Ninth Ave and Doorey St, Railway Estate.  Their children were grown up and all had left home (except perhaps their daughter?), all children were living nearby in either Railway Estate or South Townsville.

Abraham and Emily’s home was flooded.  Lillian (daughter) described what happened:

“In 1946, flood waters flowed through the windows, over her mother’s sewing machine and the stove.  Cracks between the sheets of tin were filled with silt.  They had stretcher beds, mattresses, dining table, and chairs stacked high.  Her father had put his painter’s planks underneath the roof where there was no ceiling and piled things on top.

Lillian worked long hours removing crockery from the mud. “Lots of it was broken,” she remembered.”

 

 

 

 

by

Smyth Family – Emigration to Australia

John and Isabella Smyth (or Smith), and family, arrived in Townsville 7 November 1882, via an assisted passenger immigration program. The Vessel was Stirlingshire, and it departed Glasgow, Scotland 10 August 1882.

The Smith (or Smyth) family listing in the Passenger list was:

Smith, John – 33 years
Smith, Isabella – 33 years
Smith, Martha – 6 years
Smith Margt (short for Margaret) – 3 years

Smith Annabella – 1 year
Smith, Eliza, Inf.

Mary Jane Smith, future wife of Joseph Raynor, was not yet born.

Review of the passenger list extract states:   ‘Mr Robinson, Townsville, milkman’ – possibly he sponsored the emigration?

Another issue I just noticed – I’ve been wondering how Isabella fared when John died just over a year after arrival in Townsville.  On the passenger list is a family of Simpsons – might be a coincidence – but could the family be related ie. the father (who is listed age 29) -is possibly the brother of Isabella.  I will check this out as a possibility.

by

John & Isabella Smyth (nee Shields) – Children

 

 Martha Graham Smith

b.   5 Aug 1875, in Strabane, Tyrone, Ireland

m.  10 Apr 1895, Hugh Alexander (Hughie Shanks)  (QLD Archives B95/001992)

d.   12 Jan 1949   (QLD Archives 1949/000931)

Margaret Smith

b.   11 June 1878, in Knockmoyle, Tyrone, Ireland

m.  30 Oct 1901, John (Jack) Story (QLD Archives 01/002379)

d.  8 Aug 1956 (QLD Archives 1956/B015092)

Isabella Smith (known as Annabella  or Annie) 

b.  1881  (birth place unknown)

m.  5 Jun 1912, Thomas Erskine  (QLD Archives 12/003660)

d.   23 Dec 1937

Eliza Smith

b.  1882  (birth place unknown)

m.  never married

d.   12 Apr 1922

Mary Jane Smith

b.  10 April 1884 (Knapp St, Townsville)

m.  4 Mar 05  Joseph Raynor (St James Cathedral Townsville)

d.   27 Dec 1956 (Townsville)

There were also 2 deceased children – 1 Male, 1 Female

by

Geneology research so far

I discovered family history can be researched through my local city library – they give access to various geneology databases if you are a member of the library – and I’m a member.  So I went a couple of weeks ago and did some searching, and here’s what I found:

Isabella Shields:

1.  Her actual name is Isabella Shiels or Bella Shiels.

2.  Another couple of her descendents have been researching family history (they appear to be descendents of Mary Jane’s sisters).  The other family researchers have created their own family trees on a well known family database, and like me, have hidden living descendent information on the tree.  The parts that were public show that Isabella Shield’s mother was Matilda Simpson, but there is no information on the father (so no new information).  Isabella Shiels year of birth is estimated to be 1849. Given there is no information on Isabella’s father (that I’ve located so far) , she might have been illegitimate.

John Smyth:

1.  Smyth appears to be the correct spelling, not Smith. 2.  He is estimated to have been born in 1846, and in Edinburgh, Midlothian, Scotland.  (not Glasgow Scotland as I was originally told by my family).

Marriage of John Smyth and Isabella Shiels:

This is recorded in the Ireland Civil Registration of Marriages Index – date of registration – 1874 (this aligns with the marriage date of December 1873).

Rosa Cefaly:

I came across a database on Marriages in Palermo, Sicily (I searched for Marriages in Messina Sicily, and the Palermo database appeared – Palermo is a district near Messina on Sicily): Only one marriage listed that could possibly be Rosa Cefaly: Spouse:  Fr Lo Riunzo Marriage:  17 September 1863 Father:  Giovanni Cefulo Mother:  Rosa Arculeo Marriage place:  Citta, Palermo. However, I know that the database probably does not have every marriage that took place on Sicily, so I can’t be sure.

by

Family History – the story so far

Joseph Raynor:

Born:   2 November 1866 – Messina Sicily (no birth certificate to verify this)

Parents:  Joseph Raynor (Master Mariner), Rosa Cefaly  (no verification of parents names or Joseph’s name)

Arrived in Australia:  – circa 1897 (family oral history)

Naturalisation:  – 11 Jan 1899 – Supreme Court Townsville (register entry found only – no oath of allegiance – he would have signed –  exists)

Enrolled to vote:  24 Jan 1899 (not yet verified)

Insolvency:   17 June 1899

Married:  4 March 1905 – Mary Jane Smyth

Employment:   SS Bobby Towns (based in Townsville), Waterside Worker (member of Waterside Workers Federation)

Will written:   24 July 1923

Homes:  Initially lived on Palmer St South Townsville, prior to moving to McIlwraith St (1915-16) and later purchased a home 9 March 1927  (date listed in his Estate File held at Queensland Archives).  Possibly rented the same home he later purchased.

Age pension:  On the pension at the time of his death.

Died:   14 February 1937

————————————

Mary Jane Raynor (nee Smyth)

Born:   10 April 1884, Knapp St, Townsville

Parents:  

John Smyth (born Edinburgh Scotland? circa 1846-47) died 14 December 1883

Isabella Smyth nee Shiels  born Strabane, Tyrone, Ireland circa 1847-50) died 12 April 1909

Family Tree:  Limited search conducted so far – no ancestors yet verified.

Arrived in Australia:  – Parents and older siblings arrived 1882 – SS Stirlingshire, disembarked at Townsville.

Married:  4 March 1905 – Joseph Raynor

Homes:     Appears to have grown up in Wills St, Townsville, prior to moving to South Townsville with Joseph

Died:   27 December 1956

———————————————————

Abraham Wilson

Born:   27 June 1876, Portadown, Armagh, Ireland

Parents:  

Christopher Wilson:  Occupation Weaver, later Shipbuilder, born 1831, died circa late 1880s in Belfast in a Shipyard accident.

Catherine Wilson (nee McFall):  Born circa 1835, died 5 November 1922, at Dunwich Asylum in Queensland.

Family Tree search so far:

Most of Abraham siblings names are known, however there is one female unknown (deceased at the time of Catherine’s death) – the sibling was probably born before 1864, as this is the year Ireland Births commenced being registered (prior to this it is Parish Church records).  Parents of Christopher & Catherine not yet located, but surnames are known.

Christopher & Catherine married 14 March 1853 at Moyntaghs, Armagh Ireland.

Catherine’s father’s name was John McFall, and her mother (Mary Sturger) married a Thomas Bunting (after Catherine was born), and Catherine assumed the surname of Bunting.  Catherine had a half-sister, Ann Eliza, who also later married a Wilson – a Robert Wilson (not apparently related to Christopher Wilson)

Arrived in Australia:  – December 1891, SS Roma, disembarked Rockhampton.  Mother Catherine and Brother Robert also onboard.  Older brother  Thomas Andrew emigrated earlier, arriving Townsville on SS Dacca.

Married:  9 December 1908 – Emily Jane Coleman (Townsville)

Employment:   Painter, Signwriter – initially employed by a German resident in Rockhampton, then later the Ross River Meatworks. Other later employment in Townsville.

 

Homes:  Rockhampton, Oonoonaba (Fairfield), Ninth Avenue Railway Estate

—————————————