The Story of Elizabeth Farrell

Photo shared by my second cousin once removed
Jamie Gordon

This is the story of my maternal Great Grand Aunt, Elizabeth Farrell  (1873-1934).  

Our Common Ancestors are:   Michael Farrell and Susan Muldowney (Downey) - my 2x great grandparents and Elizabeth's parents.

Elizabeth's story began on July 10th 1873 when she was born in Oakey's Houses in Tanfield, Durham, England.  Oakey's Houses were rows of small, rather humble, colliery houses, owned by the owners of the coal mines and coke works in the Durham Coalfield area of north-eastern England.  These houses were built specifically to provide housing for the workers and their families, but it was substandard housing.  Families often lived in cramped one-room cottages, quite inadequate for housing large families, and the harsh living conditions became a breeding ground for disease and ill-health.

Elizabeth's parents had both been born in Ireland, but had moved to England looking for work.  Elizabeth's father was Michael Farrell and her mother was Susan Muldowney (sometimes recorded as Downey).   

Elizabeth was the fifth of nine children born to Michael and Susan.  Before her birth:

Elizabeth's oldest sister, Margaret (my great grandmother), had been born in 1865.

Elizabeth's oldest brother, Thomas, came along in 1868.

Another brother, Michael, was born in 1870.

Another sister, Helen Ann, was born in 1871.

Sadly, Elizabeth's older brother Michael died in June of 1873, aged 3, just a month before Elizabeth was born.

Elizabeth was born in 1873 and she would have been born at the colliery house where the family were living in at the time.  It was quite the humble beginning to life!

Another brother was born in 1876 and was also named Michael, most likely to honour the memory of her other brother named Michael who had died. 

A younger brother named Patrick came along in 1877.

Yet another younger brother named James was born in 1880.

The census taken the following year, in 1881, shows that the Farrell family, father Michael, mother Susan, Elizabeth and her siblings, Thomas, Helen Ann, Michael, Patrick and James were all now living in a house on Havannah Street, in Tanfield.  They had moved from the Oakey's Houses, a few streets away, and there was also a boarder living with the family.   

Elizabeth's older sister Margaret (my great grandmother) was living and working as a domestic servant in a house located at the "better end" of Havannah Street at this time.  While she wasn't living too far away, it's unlikely Elizabeth would have seen very much of her oldest sister. 

In 1886 Elizabeth's sisters, Margaret and Helen Ann, left England and emigrated to Australia.  

The remainder of the family, including Elizabeth, continued living in the Durham area until 1887. I can only imagine the pain and heartbreak Elizabeth would have felt watching her only sisters leave home to travel to the other side of the world!

The youngest of Elizabeth's siblings, a brother named Matthew Felix, was then born in March of 1887.  Elizabeth was 13 years old at the time, and life was about to change significantly.

By August of 1887, the family had travelled to London where they boarded the 'Cheybassa' and embarked on the life-changing journey to Australia.  They arrived in Townsville, Queensland on October 4th and headed to Charters Towers where Elizabeth's older sisters were living.   Elizabeth was 14 years old when she arrived in Australia.

After Elizabeth, her parents and her brothers had arrived in Charters Towers, there must have been an emotional and joyous reunion with Elizabeth's older sisters.  The whole family was together again!

Elizabeth's sisters continued their work as domestic servants.  Elizabeth's father and oldest brother began working in the gold mines. Charters Towers was experiencing a heightened phase of prosperity throughout the 1880s, with the discovery of rich new gold deposits, so there were employment opportunities aplenty at this time.  I think all the working members of the Farrell family would have enjoyed the change in their fortunes, even though they were still working class.  Their living conditions would have improved immensely!

The 1890s saw a few more changes for the Farrell family.  All of the girls in the family married and began new lives of their own.  

Elizabeth's older sister, Helen Ann, married in 1890 and gave birth to nine children over the next nineteen years.  Sadly, one of her daughters died when she was only a few days old.

Elizabeth's oldest sister, Margaret, married in 1892 and went on to have seven children over the following fifteen years.  Tragically, her son Edward died in a drowning accident when he was only 8 years old.

Elizabeth would have been there at the weddings of both her older sisters and no doubt present at some of her nieces and nephews' births.

Image from "The History of Queensland: its people and its industries"
compiled by Matt. J. Fox, published 1919-1923

Ten years after arriving in Australia, on the 26th of January 1897, Elizabeth married Frank Edwin Shaw.  

Information gleaned from their marriage certificate shows that Elizabeth was 23 years old and Frank was 26.

They married in Charters Towers at Saint Columba's Church.

Frank Edwin Shaw was also an English immigrant, like Elizabeth, but he had been born in Yorkshire, England.

Frank's residence was listed as Geraldton, which was in north Queensland.  In 1911 the town was then named Innisfail (to avoid confusion with Geraldton in Western Australia!).

Shortly after their marriage, Elizabeth left Charters Towers to begin her married life much further north in Queensland.

Elizabeth was the first of the siblings to move away from Charters Towers, so it must have been quite a wrench for her knowing that she would not see her parents, older sisters and her brothers for some time, or indeed, if at all!

From 1899, Elizabeth and her husband Frank resided in the Geraldton (later known as Innisfail) area, a coastal region about 250 miles north-east of Charters Towers.  This is where they established their family home and raised their family.

Elizabeth and Frank went on to have six children over the next eleven years.  Elizabeth's death certificate indicated that she gave birth to three sons and three daughters, but I have only been able to find the records for two sons.

Frank Warren was born in 1899.

Mary Evelyn Downey came along in 1901.

Margaret Hilda (known as Hilda) was born in 1905.  She was the only child born in Charters Towers.  I'm not entirely sure why Elizabeth was back in Charters Towers at this time.  It's possible she had travelled there for the wedding of her brother James.

Dorothy Alma was born in 1907.

Edwin Gilbert, their last child, came along in 1909 when Elizabeth was 35 years old.

Elizabeth's husband had become very well known in the community by this time, working as a mercantile store manager.  He was a prominent figure, becoming Shire Councillor in 1908 and then holding the office of Shire Chairman in 1913.  Elizabeth, her husband and her children would have likely lived a comfortable life, filled with family, social and community engagements.

Photo shared by my second cousin once removed
Jamie Gordon

This photo was likely taken sometime around 1911 and shows Elizabeth with her children:
Frank Warren is standing at the back.  Mary Evelyn Downey is seated in front of her older brother.
Margaret is seated in front of Mary.  Dorothy is the little girl sitting on the seat with her mother, and Edwin is the little boy standing on the seat next to his mother.  Elizabeth would have been 37 years old at the time.

1911 saw the unfolding of a very tragic event for Elizabeth's sister Helen Ann, and shows clearly that Elizabeth remained very close to her mother and sisters despite the distances between them.  Helen Ann's husband perished when the S.S.Yongala sunk off Townsville in March of 1911.  He was returning home to Cairns to be with his family after he received news that a cyclone had hit the city and his family were possibly homeless.  He boarded the Yongala hoping all was well, but he never reached Cairns to find out whether his wife and children were safe and sound.  Elizabeth's sister Helen Ann was left widowed at a young age and her eight children were now fatherless.

Two short newspaper items appeared in the April 26th edition of the 1911 Cairns Post which shows that Helen Ann received the much needed emotional support of her close family - her mother and her sisters. 

Mrs. M. Farrell was Elizabeth's mother Susan, who was in her late 60s and still lived in Charters Towers.  It would have taken a couple of days to travel by train from Charters Towers to Cairns and would have been an exhausting trip for an elderly woman.  Obviously though Susan was determined to be with her daughter after such a devastating loss.

Elizabeth (Mrs. F. E. Shaw) and her older sister Margaret (Mrs. Owen McCane) had joined their mother and travelled to Cairns to be with their sister.  It's heartwarming to know that nothing in Elizabeth's life at this time was more important than to join her mother and oldest sister while they spent time with Helen Ann during her grief.  That's a sign of an immensely strong family bond.

Australian Electoral Roll 1912

From 1899 to around 1915, Elizabeth and her husband Frank were living on Rankin Street in Geraldton (later named Innisfail).  Frank was earning a very good living as a store manager, while Elizabeth was the homemaker, raising their growing family.

Photo shared by my second cousin once removed
Jamie Gordon

This photo, showing four of Elizabeth's children, her three daughters and youngest son, was likely taken at the family home on Rankin Street.

During the years from mid 1914 to the end of 1918, the Great War had embroiled most of the world, including Australia, in international conflict.  It also cast its shadow over Elizabeth's life.

Three of Elizabeth's younger brothers, James, Matthew (bottom left) and Patrick (bottom right) all enlisted and went on to serve overseas during the war.  

James returned home safely in 1919.

Tragically, brother Patrick was killed in action in late 1917 while serving in France, and never returned home.

Matthew, wounded in the war, did return home in 1918, but succumbed to heart failure just four years later.

Elizabeth was mentioned in the death notice of her brother, Patrick. 

"Killed in action .... (the) dearly beloved brother of Mrs. F. E. Shaw ..."

Meanwhile Elizabeth lost her father, Michael Farrell just a month after Patrick's death in 1917.

Another of Elizabeth's younger brothers, also named Michael (after his father), was slighter older than the three brothers who served and did not go off to fight.  He died unexpectedly and tragically though in mid 1918.  

Once again, Elizabeth was mentioned in the death notice of her brother Michael as Mrs. F. E. Shaw.

Elizabeth's mother passed away just six months later.  So in the period of less than two years Elizabeth had lost both her parents and two of her younger brothers.  These trials tested Elizabeth's resolve but her strong Catholic faith carried her through these dark days.

In the midst of all this turmoil, things had changed for Elizabeth.  An excerpt taken from a section all about Elizabeth's husband Frank in  "The History of Queensland, its people & industries" Vol. 111 (compiled by Matt. J. Fox and published  between 1919-1923) states:

"towards the latter part of the period (1914) he acquired interests in the sugar industry.  So as to be free to personally supervise these interests and others of the same nature then recently acquired, he relinquished his managerial duties in commercial life and entered upon the personal administration of 'Brucelee', where he has since resided as one of the prominent sugar producers of the district.  Some time after the purchase of this property he enlarged the sphere of his operation in the industry, buying 'Stockton', the oldest clearing on the river."

   

So, as evidenced in the 1917 Australia Electoral Roll, Elizabeth, her husband Frank and their children had moved and were now living on the family property near Goondi, which was on the outskirts of Innisfail.  Elizabeth's husband Frank's occupation was now 'farmer' as he had taken over the running of two large cane farms.

Goondi was riverside land that wrapped around the southern side of an elbow-shaped bend in the Johnstone River.  It was very flat land and used predominantly for the growing of sugar cane at that time. 

Image from "The History of Queensland: its people and its industries"
compiled by Matt. J. Fox, published 1919-1923

The family property known as "Brucelee" (pictured above) is where Elizabeth lived out the remainder of her married life as a farmer's wife. 

This property was listed in the Australian Electoral Rolls as being located at Goondi, however I have recently been informed by my second cousin once removed Mary Ann (a granddaughter of Elizabeth's) that:

"The farm supplied cane to the Goondi Mill, but wasn't in the Goondi township. The farmhouse was on top of a hill that overlooked the North Johnstone River. As long as I can remember it was called Shaw's Corner, but that name may have come much later."

In October of 1926, tragedy struck again when Elizabeth's husband Frank died at the age of 55.  He passed away while in Brisbane and was buried at the Toowong Cemetery.  Elizabeth was 53 years old at the time.

The 1934 Australian Electoral Roll shows that Elizabeth, aged 60, carried on living on the family property near Goondi after her husband's death, and she continued to run the farm.  

Further information shared recently by my second cousin once removed (Elizabeth's granddaughter):

"She (Elizabeth) was a very strong-minded woman and ran the farm when Frank was sick and after he died.  My father, Edwin Gilbert, was called home from boarding school to help run the farm after his father died. His brother Warren (Frank Warren) was already managing the farm at Stockton."

Sadly, it was not long after this that Elizabeth, who had been ill for quite some time suffering from arteriosclerosis (the medical term for hardening of the small arteries) travelled interstate, to Sydney in New South Wales.  She stayed there for several weeks undergoing treatment and was never to return to her home.  Elizabeth went in for an operation, likely for cholelithiasis (gallstones) which she was also suffering, and unfortunately, she did not survive the surgery.  She passed away just after her 61st birthday while in hospital in Sydney.

Her death certificate lists both arteriosclerosis and cholelithiasis as causes of death.

Johnstone River Advocate & Innisfail News, Tues 9 Oct 1934 p5

Catholic Freeman's Journal, Thurs 22 Nov 1934, p29

Elizabeth was buried at the Waverley Cemetery at Bronte in New South Wales.   

She was survived by her children and her two older sisters.

Interestingly, the probate of Elizabeth's will was granted in early 1935, but only to her sons and the amounts were quite sizeable - property worth £21,257 and money amounting to £15,551.  I guess the practice of leaving property and wealth to the male descendants was still common in the early 1930s. 

Family Anecdotes:

From my second cousin once removed, Mary Ann:

"She (Elizabeth) was on the first committee of the Innisfail Country Women's Association. 

Interesting that my grandmother (the future mother-in-law of Elizabeth's son Edwin) was one of the vice presidents on that same committee. That was in December 1926. 

 

From my second cousin once removed Jonathan:

"A First Nations woman worked as housekeeper in the Shaw household. When Mrs. Shaw (Elizabeth) died she walked to Ingham and turned up at daughter Dorothy’s house, saying she now worked there!"

Another bit of information shared by my second cousin once removed Mary Ann:

"She (Elizabeth) used to holiday a lot during the slack season (from December to March). Armidale with Mary in 1918;  Tasmania was another destination with one of the girls and Edwin in 1932. Sydney and Brisbane have also been mentioned."

This led me off on a search for any mention in the local newspaper about trips Elizabeth might have taken.  I had to use her married name for this search as it was the custom to back then to identify married women with the name of their husband.  I found quite a few trips taken by Mrs. F. E. Shaw or Mrs. Shaw:

In 1917 Elizabeth travelled with her husband and children to the Palm Islands, which is a journey of around 180 miles south and it's likely they would have first travelled north to Cairns, and then boarded a steamship to travel down the coast.

In 1918 Elizabeth and her daughter Mary travelled to Armidale in New South Wales, which is over 1200 miles away from their home in Innisfail.  They definitely did travel by steamship first as it's stated in the newspaper item - they "left by the Lass o'Gowrie" - which was an iron steamship that regularly travelled up and down the coast of Queensland with passenger and cargo trade.

The following newspaper items show that Elizabeth travelled quite a number of times and for lengthy periods of time in the 1930s ....

November 1930:   She travelled with her daughter Mary to Tasmania, a state that is over 2000 miles away, where they spent several months.

May 1933:  She travelled by steamer with her daughter Hilda to spend a few months "in the south".  There are no more details about specifically where they went "in the south" though, and there's a whole lot of countryside south of Innisfail and Queensland!!!

November 1933:  Elizabeth had obviously returned from her trip away to "the south" and was heading off once more.  This time she was travelling with her daughter Mary to Stanthorpe, which is around 1000 miles south of Innisfail but still in the state of Queensland.  They more likely travelled by train this time.

April 1934:  Elizabeth was returning to Innisfail with her daughters Hilda and Dorothy after they had travelled by steamship to Cairns.  Cairns is only around 55 miles to the north of Innisfail, so this particular trip would have been a short one.  

Sadly, this was to be one of the last trips Elizabeth would make, apart from her trip to Sydney for treatment in October 1934.  That was her final trip.

 Special Note to any family members:  If you have memories to add, photos or information to share, can I graciously ask that you do so.  Please use the comments box below or email me.  It may prove to be invaluable to the story and provide future generations with something to truly treasure.