Callaghan family history · ancestors connected to the McLaughlin family. John Gray and Bridget...
Transcript of Callaghan family history · ancestors connected to the McLaughlin family. John Gray and Bridget...
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1 McLaughlan Family Story Compiled by : John Malone
McLaughlan Family History
Scotland and the Hebrides Islands
The ancestral home of the Scottish McLaughlan Family
originates in the Hebrides Islands and the west coast of
Scotland.
The name is derived from the personal name Lachlann.
The Gaelic form of the name is Mac Lachlainn, denoting
the son of Lachlann.
[Gaelic or Scot Gaelic is the Celtic language native to Scotland, which today is only spoken by very small percentage of the population]
{The ancient Celts were various population groups living in several parts of Europe north of the Mediterranean region from the Late Bronze Age onwards. Given the name Celt by ancient writers, these tribes often migrated and so eventually occupied territories from Portugal to Turkey. Although diverse tribes, the ancient Celts spoke the same language. Celtic languages are still spoken today in parts of the British Isles such as Ireland, Scotland, Wales, Cornwall and Brittany in France}
The name McLaughlan has many spelling variations such as:
McLoughlan MacLachlan Lachlan McLaughlin McLagan MacLauchlin McGlothin McLochlain McLauchlane
In various documents presented in the following article there will appear many of these variations, often depending on the interpretation and spelling by officials recording the various documents
and the literacy level of the informant.
It was not uncommon to see a father and son spell their name differently as will be the case in the following family story.
http://www.ancient.eu/Celts/http://www.ancient.eu/europe/http://www.ancient.eu/celt/http://www.ancient.eu/turkey/http://www.ancient.eu/celtic/
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2 McLaughlan Family Story Compiled by : John Malone
Parents:
Thomas McLaughlin (Soldier)
Sarah Moran
Thomas McLaughlan and Sarah Moran
The pathway to the McLaughlan family story within Australia has been quite an elusive one.
Working backwards from the 1910 death certificate of Thomas James McLaughlin, a labourer /
butcher from Young NSW, information indicated he was born at Maitland NSW, c1840.
Also, according to further death certificate information, Thomas James McLaughlin was the son of
Thomas McLaughlin, a soldier and Sarah Moran.
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3 McLaughlan Family Story Compiled by : John Malone
Until recently, a number of years of research failed to produce any verification of the above death
certificate information.
A few years ago, the uncovering of the baptismal certificate of Thomas McLoughlan (son) was a
hugely important breakthrough.
The baptismal certificate of Thomas McLoughlan, basically backed up the information contained in
the death certificate of Thomas James McLaughlin.
Father Thomas Mother Sarah Born at Maitland Father a soldier Date of birth – c1841 (death certificate) compared to 1843 (baptismal certificate)
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4 McLaughlan Family Story Compiled by : John Malone
The death certificate of Thomas McLoughlan (father of Thomas James McLaughlin) had remained
quite elusive for a number of years with no clear pathway evident in Birth, Death and Marriage
records, unless I was to spend considerable resources trying to source all the possible matching death
certificates in NSW for a “Thomas McLaughlin” (various spellings).
NSW Birth, Death and Marriage Indexes indicated that between 1800 and 1900 there were 10 possible
matches of deaths for Thomas McLaughlin. Each death was potentially the person I was seeking.
The death of Thomas McLaughlin in 1864 (registered at Maitland) obviously looked quite promising.
Years ago I had acquired a baptismal certificate for a:
Thomas Fred McLaughlan
Father Thomas McLaughlan
Mother Ann McLaughlan
Occupation – Cooper (barrel maker)
Abode – Bolwarra (near Maitland)
Parish of East Maitland
Enquiries to the Maitland Historical Society basically led
to a dead end regarding the particular Thomas
McLaughlan I was looking for.
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5 McLaughlan Family Story Compiled by : John Malone
Ship “Wilson” 7 January 1842
For quite some time it has been known that the ship "Wilson" brought to Australia two important
ancestors connected to the McLaughlin family.
John Gray and Bridget Scally
It was their daughter Catherine Gray who married Thomas James McLaughlin at St Mary’s Catholic
Church, Young on 10 January 1872.
A recent discovery noted another passenger on the ship "Wilson", arriving on 7 January 1842 was a
Thomas McLaughlan, a carpenter aged 24 years.
Was this the connection leading to the eventual marriage of his son Thomas James McLaughlin to
Catherine the daughter of fellow passengers John Gray and Bridget Scally?
The “Sydney Gazette” dated Saturday 8 January 1842, makes
mention of the arrival of the ship “Wilson”
The Wilson, from Greenock with 200 bounty emigrants, came into
Sydney yesterday morning.
Two adults and one child died during the passage. She put into
the Cape of Good Hope for refreshments, from whence she sailed
on the 17th November.
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6 McLaughlan Family Story Compiled by : John Malone
Shipping Indent – Thomas McLachlan
Shipping records give the following information regarding Thomas McLachlan.
Thomas was:
Unmarried
A shipwright (carpenter on application)
Chose the Church of Scotland as his religion
24 years of age
Able to both read and write
His native place was Caputh, Perthshire Scotland
His father Charles McLachlan, a labourer, was still alive
His mother Christie McGregor was deceased
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7 McLaughlan Family Story Compiled by : John Malone
Upon arrival, a further document lists Thomas McLaughlan - Carpenter - 24 years - working daily
work on board the "Margaret" in the harbour (Sydney).
Thomas McLaughlan - Soldier – To Maitland
It appears that soon after arrival, Thomas McLaughlan was seconded to assist as a soldier in the
development of the Hunter Region north of Sydney and appears to have been based at Maitland.
Convict Development of the Hunter Valley
Lt John Shortland visited the Hunter River in 1798 while pursuing escaped convicts. He saw the coal seams
at the mouth of "a very fine coal river which I named after Governor Hunter". In 1804 34 convicts involved
in an uprising at Castle Hill were banished to Newcastle where a permanent penal settlement was established
for convicts who had committed a colonial crime. Convicts were put to work mining coal, timber-getting,
and making lime. By 1819 there were 850 convicts working in Newcastle.
Gangs of convicts based in Newcastle were sent up the Hunter River to cut timber near where the towns of
Morpeth and Maitland were later established. A couple of overseers and a gang of about 30 convicts were
expected to fell between 100 and 150 large trees each month, form them into rafts, and float them back
down the river to the lumber yard. Red cedar and rosewood were the most prized timbers.
Governor Macquarie believed in rewarding good behaviour, so he allowed a few trusted convicts to establish
farms near Wallis Plains (now Maitland), the head of navigation of the river. Some emancipated settlers also
began to move in, and by 1820 over 20 farms had been established. A small military detachment was based
at Maitland to protect these farmers.
In 1822 the penal settlement was moved from Newcastle to Port Macquarie and the Hunter Valley was
opened up for settlement. Other enterprises developed, with convict labour being assigned to private
companies and individuals rather than working directly for the government. The Australian Agricultural
Company relied on convict labour to develop its coal mines close to the settlement at Newcastle.
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8 McLaughlan Family Story Compiled by : John Malone
In the upper Hunter Valley large land grants were available to the many free settlers who were arriving from
England. Armed with sufficient capital to develop substantial farming enterprises, they relied on the ongoing
transportation of convicts to provide labour to run their estates. [sourced from the Internet]
The timeline schedule for Thomas McLaughlan was
exceedingly tight:
Arrived via ship “Wilson” 7 January 1842
Relationship with Sarah Moran
Become a soldier and move to Maitland
Birth of a son Thomas – 6 June 1843
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9 McLaughlan Family Story Compiled by : John Malone
Sarah Moran - Background
Tracing Sarah Moran has been exceedingly difficult and after thirty years of research her death certificate
has not, as yet, been uncovered.
To fit into the correct timeline it appears that Sarah Moran arrived at Port Phillip (Melburne) via the ship
“Agostina” in 1841.
Agostina The ship Agostina arrived at port Phillip on 17 December 1841. The ship was a barque of 333 tons, under
the command of Captain William Perry, master. “Agostina” sailed from London on 4 August 1841 and then
to Cork, Ireland on 2 September 1841before reaching Port Phillip some 2 ½ months later.
Barque Total Staff Other Died Born Couples With
chn Hus Wives Sons Daus Chn Bounty Families
Un
mal
Un
fem
Agostina 112 5 3 0 1 7 6 13 13 5 6 11 104 39 29 38
Paid own fare Passenger Mr Moody, two not approved for Bounty
Among the list of unmarried females onboard the “Agostina” was Bounty Immigrant, Sarah Moran.
Name Age Occupation Religion Reads/Writes Native Place Bounty
Sarah
Moran
20 years Dairy
Woman
Roman
Catholic
Reads County
Tipperary
£19
The timeline schedule for Sarah Moran was also exceedingly tight:
Arrived via ship “Agostina” 17 December 1841
Make way to Sydney presumably via ship
Relationship with Thomas McLaughlan
Move to Maitland with soldier husband/partner Thomas McLaughlan
Birth of a son Thomas – 6 June 1843
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10 McLaughlan Family Story Compiled by : John Malone
Death of Thomas McLaughlan
The Australian and New Zealand Find-A-Grave Index shows the death of a Thomas McLaughlan on
2 August 1843.
Name: Thomas McLaughlan
Death Date: 2 Aug 1843
Cemetery: St Patrick's Cemetery
Burial or Cremation Place: Parramatta, City of Parramatta Council, NSW, Australia
Further delving into their website shows further details:
Note: 23y, Military Barracks, 99th Regt
St Patrick’s Cemetery, Parramatta
It appears that Thomas McLaughlan died at the Military Barracks at Parramatta and he was a
member of the 99th Regiment.
His age is listed as 23 years of age which differs slightly to his arrival age of 24 years in January 1842.
It appears as though Thomas McLaughlan was to only survive for just over a 1 ½ years in his new
found land of Australia, his son Thomas James McLaughlin just 2 months old when he was to lose his
life. His wife Sarah would obviously have been distraught and devastated.
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11 McLaughlan Family Story Compiled by : John Malone
Sarah McLaughlan - Remarriage
Birth and Death of Child: Mary Ann Halkett
On 29 April 1852, Sarah Halkett (nee Moran later McLaughlan) gave birth to a daughter Mary Ann
Halkett.
The birth was registered in the District of Hobart which may have encompassed a large area such as
Port Arthur as the father Patrick Halkett was listed as a “Private in the 99th Regiment”.
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12 McLaughlan Family Story Compiled by : John Malone
Births in the District of Hobart - 1852
When Born Name Sex Father Mother Rank/Profession Informant /
Residence
29 April
1852
Mary Ann Female Patrick
Halkett
Sarah
Halkett
formerly
Moran
Private 99th
Regiment
Patrick
Halkett
Military
Barracks
A later document lists Mary Halkett as deceased on 1 September 1952 just 4 months after her birth.
Unknown Fate of Sarah (nee Moran) and Patrick Halkett
At this stage the fate of Patrick Halkett and Sarah (nee Moran) remains unknown.
There is a listing for a soldier of the 99th Regiment named Patrick Halkett dying in 1849
and being buried on the Isle of the Dead at Port Arthur, Tasmania .
This can’t be the Patrick Halkett we are seeking as he was the father of a child Mary Ann
Halkett in 1852.
Soldiers and Family who died and nothing more at present is known
HALKETT Patrick . d. 1849 Private 99th Regiment of Foot aged 29 years Buried
Isle of the Dead Port Arthur Tasmania
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13 McLaughlan Family Story Compiled by : John Malone
Family of Thomas McLaughlin and Sarah Moran
Thomas James McLaughlin married Catherine Gray at Young on 10 January 1872.
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14 McLaughlan Family Story Compiled by : John Malone
Catherine McLaughlin died at Young on 28 September 1909 aged 59 years.
Thomas James McLaughlin died at Young on 6 July 1910 aged 68 years