Ellen Dwyer of Glamorganshire

[Revolution]

Hi

My third great grandmother died in Queensland, Australia

She was born in 1861/1862 in Merthyr Twyfil, Glamorganshire, Wales, United Kingdom

In 1880 on 26 Jan at age 18 in Aramac, Queensland, Australia she married Michael McMahon.

Ellen used different surnames for reasons unknown. Her Marriage Certificate and the Birth Certificates of her children shows that she was Ellen Dwyer the daughter of John Dwyer a farmer and Catherine Fean and being born in Thomastown Wales. Her Death Certificate shows that her as Ellen Dalton the daughter of John Dalton, Furnace worker and Catherine Finn born at Merthyr Tydfil Glamorgan Wales. A possible explanation could be that John Dalton was her biological father and he may have died and her mother then married John Dwyer. Ellen then used the surname of her step-father, Dwyer

After having two children she died on 4 Feb 1884 in Syntax Street, Ipswich, Queensland, Australia about age 22.

On the England and Wales census we have

Name:    Ellen Dwyer
Date of Registration:    Apr-May-Jun 1862
Registration district:    Merthyr Tydfil
Inferred County:    Glamorgan
Volume:    11a
Page:    31

On the 1871 census we have:

Name:    Ellen Dwyer
Age:    9
Estimated birth year:    abt 1862
Relation:    Daughter
Mother's name:    Ellen Dwyer
Gender:    Female
Where born:    Merthyr, Glamorganshire, Wales
Civil Parish:    Merthyr Tydfil
Ecclesiastical parish:    Merthyr
Town:    Merthyr Tydfil
County/Island:    Glamorgan
Country:    Wales
Registration district:    Merthyr Tydfil
Sub-registration district:    Lower Merthyr Tydfil
ED, institution, or vessel:    27
Household schedule number:    111
Piece:    5395
Folio:    90
Page Number:    26
Household Members:    
Name    Age
Ellen Dwyer    46
Ann Dwyer    25
Michael Dwyer    16
Ellen Dwyer    9

Can anyone point me in the right direction to see if we can find the parents of Ellen, what her real name was and whether the two references above are for the right person?

In Australia she couldnt write and only marked documents with an x.

Many thanks

[Deirdre784]

That 1871 census shows Ellen as the daughter of Ellen, not Catherine.... 

[Revolution]

I wanted to have something concrete to rule it out. She may have used two variants of the Catherine as her mothers name and Ellen is entirely different but had to post it to show everything Ive come across.

[Cas (stallc)]

What a puzzle....there must be some light somewhere.  There is a Thomastown in MerthyrTydfil.
http://www.alangeorge.co.uk/old_merthyr.htm

Cannot find your girl to match (any) parents Dwyer/Dyer/Dalton within her age given on your records.

There are 3 births for Ellen Dwyer/Dyer from 1860 - 1870 in area, know some would make her too young, but DOB is sometimes out.  One with mother Catherine, Father is Rich.  Cannot make any connection to your info thou. Think the parents maybe have an Irish connection

Have you tried to obtain her passenger info, if she crossed with anyone. Very young or expensive to be travelling alone maybe.  Who gave the info on her death cert?

Cas

[Ladyhawk]

On the England and Wales census we have

Ellen Dwyer Apr-May-Jun 1862 Merthyr Tydfil Volume:    11a Page:    31

On the 1871 census we have:

Ellen Dwyer    46
Ann Dwyer    25
Michael Dwyer    16
Ellen Dwyer    9 Merthyr Tydfil

Looking at the earlier censuses Ellen Snr. was married to a John Dwyer he too born in Ireland so possibly they married there then came to Wales

1851 Merthyr Tydfil
John Dwyer 30 Ireland
Ellen 25 Ireland
Mary 5 Merthyr Tydfil
John 4 Merthyr
Ann 1 Merthyr

1861 Merthyr Tydfil
John Dwyer 40 Ireland lab. in iron works
Ellen 35 Ireland
Mary Ann 16 Merthyr
John 14 Merthyr puddler
Ann 11 Merthyr
Michael 6 Merthyr

one of the children's b/c would give you the maiden name of their mother Ellen
Michael Dwyer Jun 1856 Merthyr Tydfil Vol 11a page 540

[Cas (stallc)]

Only poss marriage I can find as children born Merthyr and late for first child Mary, maybe they did marry in Ireland.

Marriages Sep 1854   
DOYLE    Ellen     Merthyr T.    11a   471
Doyle    Ellin    Merthyr T.    11a   471    
Dwyre    John         Merthyr T    11a   471   
DWYSE    John         Merthyr T.    11a   471   

It still does not make her Catherine Finn/Fean thou

[Revolution]

Hi

We think this is her:

Name:    Ellen Dwyer
Age:    18
Birth Year:    abt 1861
Ship Name:    Devon
Port of Departure:    London, England
Port of Arrival:    Brisbane
Arrival Date:    5 Feb 1879

More about the ship can be found here

http://trove.nla.gov.au/ndp/del/article/897255

[Ladyhawk]

We think this is her:

Ellen Dwyer Age: 18 born c 1861
Ship Name:    Devon
Port of Departure:    London, England
Port of Arrival:    Brisbane Arrival Date:    5 Feb 1879

Mmm... she is a puzzle - so Ellen didn't travel with any family

From http://www.rootschat.com/links/014v8/
Index to Registers of Immigrant Ships' Arrivals 1848-1912
there are also these entries
DALTON Ellen age 16 Ship Ironside arrival 21 May 1878
DWYER Ellen age 17 ship Carnatic   arrival 5 Feb 1879 also a Johanna age 21
DWYER Ellen age 17 Ship Zamora   arrival 26 Apr 1877

there's also this birth entry on FreeBMD in Merthyr Tydfil but a little earlier
Ellen DWYER Sep 1860 Merthyr Tydfil

From Queensland Marriages, Births etc…..
http://www.rootschat.com/links/014vd/

Marriage 1880   Michael McMahon   Ellen   Dwyer   ·   
Birth      1880   Maria Agnes McMahon    father Michael mother Ellen Dwyer
Birth      1882   Michael Beaconsfield McMahon f Michael   mother Ellen Dwyer   
Death    1884   Ellen   McMahon father   John Dalton mother Catherine Finn

No birth entry on FreeBMD for an  Ellen DALTON in Merthyr Tydfil that I can see
only these entries

Ellen DALTON
Jun 1861 Chorley (Lancashire)

Ellen Kate DALTON
Dec 1861 Wandsworth (London)

Ellen DALTON
Dec 1861 Radford (Nottinghamshire)

I also can’t see a marriage on FreeBMD for a
John DALTON to Catherine Finn/Faen/Dwyer
or
John DWYER to Catherine Finn/Faen 


There’s a picture of
Ellen Dwyer b1862 d1884 immediate family members including Michael & Micheal Beaconsfield, John
unfortunately can't view it on Mundia and you need a subscription to ancestry to look at further details

These are the only two Ellen Dwyer I can find on 1871 census
One with parents John & Catherine, the other with mother Catherine

Ellen born c1856 living in Yorkshire parents John & Catherine
https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/KZG5-8CV

Ellen born c1866 Glamorgan living Merthyr Tydfil
https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/V51P-K8K
Catherine’s mother Margaret McCARTHY is with them – so I think she can be
ruled out

[Revolution]

Hi Ladyhawk

Thank you for the info. Yes that is our Ellen on Mundia/Ancestry. We were lucky to get a photo of a photo of her recently. Perhaps she lost her parents early in her life or perhaps being illiterate has resulted in the odd changing info.

Re the ship lists - We think she could have been a nanny or a domestic servant with a family but we will never know because the list is in alphabetic order not with travelling companions.

I think that the government of the day encouraged young girls to the colony.  There was a couple of other Ellen Dwyers.  One was 17yoa arr Brisbane on 26/4/1877 on the Zomora but she was married. Another on Star Queen arr 29/9/1875 she was the daughter in a family.  The parents of this family were nothing like what Ellen claimed hers were. There was another one on the Ironside 21/5/1878.  There is one other possibility on the Carnatic arr same date as Devon 5/2/1879 at Rockhampton.  There were also a John Dwyer 18 yoa and a Johanna Dwyer 21.

I have her marriage and death certificates