Mary Morrissey Pt 1
Mary Morrissey was born in Killarney Ireland in 1867. Her father Edmond and mother Honora lived, according to family information, ‘five miles from Blarney Castle’. It is not known what her father’s occupation was. The family emigrated to Australia under the ‘assisted immigrants’ scheme and left Plymouth at the end of June 1881 on board the Peterborough arriving in Sydney July 17th.
Mary (13 on arrival ) was the eldest child in a family of ten children whose names and ages were (as listed on arrival in Sydney): Edmund 4, Denis 3, Ellen & Julia (twins)6, John 9, Kate 12, Margaret 1, Micheal 11, Honora (infant) and parents Edmond, 33 and Honora, 38. It is believed that baby Honora was born during the voyage to Australia as her name was not listed on departure from Plymouth but she was listed on arrival as ‘infant’.
The family settled at Wooloomooloo, a dockyard suburb, in Sydney. In 1887/8 Mary met Capt. Augustus James Hamilton Courbarron. The family are not too sure how the couple met but seeing as Mary lived near the shipyards and Augustus was a ship’s captain we assume they met ‘in the area’. In 1889 the couple’s first child, daughter Mildred Gertrude was born at Waverley. According the the family Mary and James set up house in Waverley prior to marriage - very unusual for the time!. This is where Mary lived whilst James was at sea.
In 1891 a second child, James, was born. In 1893 the couple married at St Stephans Uniting Church which, at that time, was located in Phillip Street Sydney. Mary was Catholic and James was Protestant so obviously some understanding was made as their children were eventually baptised as Catholics.
After the birth of James it was not until 1897 until their next child, Mary-Ellen (known as Molly) was born. This is due to the fact that James spent long periods of time away from home at sea; in 1900 their fourth and last child, Frederick, was born at Birrell Street Bondi.
Having to spend long periods of time at home without her husband proved to be a strain on Mary, and at various times in his letters to his Aunt Helen de Veer, James refers to Mary’s bouts of ‘extreme tiredness’ and of her ‘feeling poorly’. Just prior to Molly’s birth the couple employed an Irish maid/servant named Biddy to assist with the house and children. She remained with the couple until Jame’s death.
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