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Hi..I was wondering whether anyone could help me with the following: My g-g-grandmother was Catherine Agnes O'leary, born in Melbourne, Australia 1845. Siblings Mary Ann O'Leary (1847), William Jeremiah (1849) and John Thomas (1851). Their parents were William O'Leary and Johanna Berry and I believe they were from Ireland but am unable so far to confirm this or discover if/when they came to Australia. I believe it may have been around the early 1840s. Thankyou for any help or suggestions! Jan.

Do you know if William and Johanna married in Australia, or were already married when they arrived?
Have you found their deaths, and know approximate birth dates?
Thanks

Hi 'Patchem',

Thankyou for your reply to the above. I don't really have any information on William and Johanna at all, despite searching everywhere. I haven't been able to find a marriage in Australia for them nor death details. Their four children were born in Melbourne. William and Johanna's surnames are spelt differently here and there on the birth certificates, e.g. 'Leary', 'Beary' etc. Sorry I don't have much to go on! Thankyou...Jan

Hi Jan

There was also another daughter, named Ellen, born 1843 in Melbourne, christened in same place (St Francis RC) (as LEARY with mother mn as BARY).

Found a death for John Thos in 1883 in West Melbourne aged 33 (reg 2572). He married Theresa Mary Frances McGRATH in 1872 (reg 2887). They had a son at 39 Gipps-street, East Melbourne on 2nd August 1873. The original marriage notice indicates his father Wm was dec'd by Sept 1872:

The Argus, Friday 4 October 1872
O'LEARY-M'GRATH - On the 30th ult., at St. Patrick's Cathedral, by the Rev. Father Sullivan. John Thomas O'Leary, eldest son of the late William O'Leary, of Melbourne, to Theresa Mary Frances, oldest daughter of Mr. M. M'Grath, of Cardigan street, Carlton.

The Argus, Wednesday 13 August 1873
O'LEARY—McGRATH.—On the 30th September, 1872, at St. Patrick's Cathedral, Melbourne, by the Rev. J. P. Sullivan, John Thomas O'Leary to Theresa Mary Frances McGrath, eldest daughter of Michael and Catherine McGrath. Leinster Express please copy.

(You probably have all this but thought I'd include it anyway, in case! Leinster Express may be a clue as to the origins of the family - Portlaoise area, Ireland - but may relate to the McGraths instead). Note it states he (JT) was the eldest son, so perhaps Wm J died as a child? Can't see it...

His death notice:
The Argus, Thursday 22 February 1883
O'LEARY -On the 28th inst, at 28 Victoria street, West Melbourne, John Thomas O'Leary, the beloved husband of Theresa O'Leary, aged 31. R.I.P.

Theresa died in 1901, daughter of Michael McGRATH and Catherine TRACY (reg 12124). Can't find a notice for her.


No deaths found for Wm & Johanna nor arrival, sorry.

Since we now know Wm was decd by 1872, when JT married, this may be his death as I can't see any other possibilities:

Surname: OLEARY
Given Names: William
Event: D
Father: John
Mother: Mary MAHENY
Age: 50
Birth Place: LIME [Limerick]
Year: 1861
Reg Number: 3745

You may need to take a leap and get the certificate...uncertified copies are about A$18 online and you get to download them immediately as a pdf. Don't want to lead you down the wrong path, so hopefully this is the right man!

Hi Cherilyn,

Thankyou so much for your help - I didn't have the birth of Ellen - will definitely look into that and John Thomas' marriage, as well as the death details of William. I really appreciate your advice! Sometimes you can go round and round and not find the answer you're after, when it can be looking you in the eye all the time, hey! Regards, Jan.

Just in case the above is correct - from Family Search

Name: William Leary
Gender: Male
Baptism/Christening Date: 27 May 1810
Baptism/Christening Place: CATHEDRAL ST MARY,LIMERICK,LIMERICK,IRELAND
Birth Date:
Birthplace:
Death Date:
Name Note:
Race:
Father's Name: John Leary
Father's Birthplace:
Father's Age:
Mother's Name: Mary
Mother's Birthplace:
Mother's Age:
Indexing Project (Batch) Number: C70056-1
System Origin: Ireland-ODM
Source Film Number: 0897365 IT 9
Reference Number:

Hi again Cherilyn,

Just to let you know I downloaded William's death cert and John Thomas' marriage certificate, and they're the correct ones!! I am just so thrilled and so grateful for your help. The death cert shows Johanna's name, and their children as Ellen (you were right again!), Kate, Mary Ann, and John Thomas. It looks like at least one other died, and maybe 3 more, but haven't had a proper look yet as it's a bit hard to decipher. Just wanted to let you know the results. A million thankyous! Jan.

Dear K,

Your post just came through after I posted the above, and the details you gave about William's birth look to be correct! The death cert states he came from Limerick in Ireland and his parents were John and Mary.

A million thankyous to you, as well! Jan.

Glad it looks OK. Interesting that a tree on Ancestry lists another Oleary as below

Name: James O'leary
Birth: Abt 1820 - Limerick, Ireland
Death: 24 Sep 1871 - Melbourne, Vic (Victoria), Australia
Marriage: Abt 1844 - Melbourne, Vic (Victoria), Australia
Parents: John Arthur O'leary, Mary O'leary (Mahony)
Spouse: Elizabeth O'leary (O'halloran)
Child: Margaret Mary Teresa O'Leary Birth Sep 1846 in Tower Hill Death 18 Jul 1919 in Essendon, Vic, Australia

That's brilliant news, Jan! Just wish I knew what happened to Johanna. Does Wm's death cert indicate she was alive at the time he died? Also does it say when/where they married and how long they had been in Oz?

Good work, K, hadn't thought to look for siblings but here's another (and Jas):

Surname: OLEARY
Given Names: Catherine
Event: D
Father: John
Mother: Mary MAHONY
Age: 49
Birth Place: LIME
Year: 1867
Reg Number: 8903

Surname: OLEARY
Given Names: James
Event: D
Father: John
Mother: Mary MAHONY
Age: 51
Birth Place: LIME
Year: 1871
Reg Number: 6693

James lived (and died) at 4 Reilly St, Carlton. He was interred at Melbourne General Cemetery (as I suspect were the other family members). Might be worth contacting them.

Looks to be MAHONY as correct spelling. Can't see daughhter's birth in Vic in or around 1846 (or any others).

P.S. Wm & Johanna may have had chn before they came to Oz, but it also occured to me that it was odd for JT to be referred to as 'eldest' son if he was the only (surviving) son! Chn are usually listed in birth order on the death cert...

Just a thought :-)

Hi Cherilyn,
A/c to the death cert, it seems Johanna was still alive. It also states (now that I have the magnifier out!) that Johanna was previously married and I think 3 children of that marriage died. It states that William was in Victoria for 20 years and that James Molony, son-in-law, was the informant. Witnesses at the burial were James Molony and James O'Leary. William's parents are noted as John O'Leary and Mary O'Leary (formerly Maheny). William is shown to have married Johanna in County Limerick, aged about 28. Phew, there's so much information it's incredible; plus with all the information so kindly provided to me, I'm going to be researching well into the night (it's 8.30pm here at the moment). Thankyou again....Jan.

Thanks K, very very much!

Chrerilyn - I wonder if their parents came with them - Any sign of deaths for a John and Mary?

Sorry Jan - we crossed. It is marvellous to get that much information on a document.