The Story Of Thomas Farrell

This is the story of my maternal great grand-uncle, Thomas Farrell  (1868 - 1927).  

Our common ancestors are: Michael Farrell and Susan Muldowney — sometimes recorded as Downey or Downie — my 2x great-grandparents.

I have written about Thomas before, but it was really only an outline: born in England to Irish immigrant parents, emigrated to Australia with his family, spent most of his adult life at one address in Charters Towers, and then passed away comparatively young.

I felt the need to return to his story and approach it a little differently. He was not a man who left behind a large paper trail, nor does he seem to have lived the kind of life that draws much notice in the records. There are no dramatic headlines around him, no rich archive of letters, and sadly, no photograph of Thomas himself in my collection.

And yet, I have increasingly felt that his life is worth pausing over precisely because it was so quiet.

Family history is not only about the ancestors who made a stir or left behind plentiful records. It is also about those who lived more modestly — people whose lives were shaped by work, endurance, sorrow, loyalty, and family care. Thomas seems to have been one of those people. The records for him are thin, but they still reveal something strong and lasting: a man who worked steadily, remained close to home, endured much, and at the end of his life was held within the care of family.

That is really the intention of this piece: to try to honour the shape of a quiet life. Not an empty one, and not an unimportant one, but a life lived without fuss, and still deserving to be remembered with tenderness.

Sadly, I do not have a photograph of Thomas himself, but the few family photographs I do have help place him more closely within the family group he belonged to — his parents and the Farrell brothers and sisters whose lives were so intertwined with his own.

The  Farrell  Family

(with the few photos of the Farrell siblings that are in my collection)

A Quiet Life

When I sat down to write this post about Thomas Farrell, I was immediately aware of the gaps.  I could trace him through the official breadcrumbs left in records — a birth record, census records, electoral rolls, a passenger list, and a death record - but these are thin facts. They do not tell me what kind of company he was, what made him laugh, what his voice sounded like, or what private burdens he may have carried. 

Family history can so often be like that. Sometimes it gives us the frame of a life, but leaves the person inside it only partly seen.

Yet, every now and then, one small detail says more than a whole page of records ever could. In Thomas’s case, that detail kept drawing me back.

When Thomas — unmarried and living alone by that stage of his life — became seriously ill, he did not die alone, and he did not die in a hospital surrounded by strangers. He died at Molongle Creek near Gumlu, in the home of his married sister, Margaret McCane, née Farrell, my great-grandmother.

That single fact does not tell me everything about Thomas, but it tells me something that matters very much. He was with family. He was cared for. He was loved.

That feels like the truest starting point for telling his story. Thomas may be one of those relatives who left only a light paper trail, but his life does not feel empty because of that. Instead, it feels quiet in the truest sense: modest, steady, and deeply human. 

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The family Thomas belonged to

1868 Birth Record - Thomas Farrell

Thomas was born on 15 January 1868 at East Field House, Holmside, County Durham, England, the second child of Michael Farrell (1834–1917) and Susan Muldowney, whose surname appeared in records as Downey or Downie at times (1842–1919).

Thomas's siblings were:

·         Margaret (1865–1955) - my great grandmother

·         Michael (1869–1873) - who sadly died in infancy

·         Helen Ann “Annie” (1871–1937)

·         Elizabeth (1873–1934)

·         Michael (1875–1918)

·         Patrick Joseph (1877–1917), WWI soldier

·         James “Jim” (1880–1946), WWI soldier

·         Matthew Felix (1887–1922), WWI soldier

Even set out simply as a list, there is something moving about it. It speaks of a large family life — full at first, and then gradually marked by sorrow, distance, war, and loss.

Thomas belonged to that family story in the deepest sense. His life cannot really be separated from the people around him — the parents, brothers, and sisters whose names appear alongside his in the records, and whose own lives shaped the course of his. 

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A boy already in the mines: Tanfield, 1881

The Farrell family lived in the Durham coalfield region of north-east England.  They moved around the region regularly, looking for lodging as the family grew, and likely experienced impoverished living conditions, periods of hunger, and poor health.

  

1881 England Census - Civil Parish of Tanfield, County Durham, Registration District of Lanchester

One of the records that brings Thomas closest for me is the 1881 England Census, because it shows him before emigration to Queensland, before adulthood, before all the later losses in his life. In the civil parish of Tanfield, County Durham in England, Thomas appears aged 13, living at home with his parents and younger siblings. Unlike many boys of that age, whose occupation might still be given as “scholar,” Thomas already has a job recorded beside his name:

Thomas Farrell — “Screener Collier”

That single line says so much. At thirteen, Thomas was not just growing up in a mining district — he was already part of that working world. He was a child, really, but also a worker who had likely been toiling for a number of years.

The primary duty of a screener collier was to inspect coal as it passed over screens, picking out stones, slate and other impurities by hand. Screeners worked above ground, usually on the brow of a pit or in a screening shed.  The work was physically demanding, carried out in high-dust environments, with the working day often lasting twelve hours.  It is sobering to think that this was his childhood.

Thomas's father, Michael Farrell, is also recorded with a mining-related occupation in the 1881 census:

Michael Farrell — “Coke Drawer (Burner)”

So here we have father and son, both working within the industrial life of County Durham long before the family ever came to Queensland, Australia. It also helps explain why, years later in Charters Towers, Thomas appears again and again in local census records as a miner. Mining was not some new path he stepped into in Australia. It had already shaped him from boyhood.

I always find details like this especially affecting, because they bring a person down from the branch of the family tree and place them back into real life. Thomas was not only a name in a lineage. He was a thirteen-year-old boy who already knew the reality of hard work.

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Two sisters go first: January 1886

Before the rest of the Farrell family left England, two of the sisters — Margaret and Helen Ann, known as Annie — emigrated ahead of them in January 1886.

This is one of those family details I particularly love. Margaret, my great grandmother, is the one who was credited by family members with working diligently and saving her money to sponsor the family’s emigration. That gives such a strong little glimpse of her character. She was not simply hoping life might improve — she was actively helping to change its course. 

For Thomas, as for the rest of the family, her determination mattered enormously. It is another reminder that quiet lives are often shaped by the quiet strength of others around them.

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The Chyebassa voyage: Thomas follows with the rest

Queensland, Australia, Passenger List - Cheybassa 1887

In September 1887, the remaining Farrell family emigrated aboard the Chyebassa: Thomas, aged 19, his parents Michael and Susan, and siblings Elizabeth, Michael, Patrick, James, and baby Matthew. They arrived in Townsville on 28 September 1887 and then travelled on to Charters Towers to reunite with Margaret and Annie, who were already there.

The records do not tell us what that reunion looked like, of course, but it is hard not to pause there and imagine it. After the long voyage, after all the uncertainty and upheaval, there must have been great relief in seeing familiar faces in a new land.

For Thomas, still a young man, this was the beginning of the life he would go on to live in North Queensland — a life that, on paper at least, would remain remarkably steady for many years afterwards.

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Charters Towers: the steady years on Bridge Street

By the early 1890s, Thomas and his family were firmly settled in Charters Towers.  His parents had moved into a house on Bridge Street that would remain the family home for nearly thirty-five years.   

From 1903 through to 1925, Thomas appears in electoral roll records living at that address for that entire time.  He was the family member who remained in the family home the longest.

·        The 1903, 1905, 1906, 1908, 1913 electoral roll records show him living on Bridge Street with his parents and his occupation was listed as miner.  During the years spanning 1903 to 1908, Thomas's younger brother Patrick was also living in Charters Towers and worked alongside his brother as a miner.

·        The 1919 electoral roll record still shows Thomas, aged 51, living on Bridge Street, but only with his youngest brother Matthew at this time.  Occupation: miner

·        The 1925 electoral roll record shows Thomas, aged 57, living on Bridge Street, but by this time he is living on his own.  Occupation: miner

On paper, it looks like a steady working life: one town, one street, one occupation, repeated across the years. 

There is something about that repeated pattern that feels quietly revealing. Thomas does not come across in the records as restless or showy. Instead, he seems to have been one of those people who remained — living on, working on, and holding to the familiar centre of home as the household around him gradually changed.

That too feels like part of the meaning of his life. It was, in many ways, a quiet life — not empty, but steady.

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Loss, war, and what Thomas carried

Thomas’s later years in Charters Towers were marked by a great deal of family grief.

His brother Patrick Joseph Farrell was killed in Belgium on 20 September 1917 at Polygon Wood, West Flanders. Years later, Patrick’s Victory Medal was sent to Thomas in May 1923.

I always stop over details like that. A medal arriving years after a brother’s death — an official token of service and sacrifice — and it is Thomas who signs the receipt and receives the engraved medal.

Whether that happened because he was the next-of-kin contact, or because he was the one still at the family address, it feels meaningful. Thomas became the one who received that tangible reminder of Patrick’s absence.  He seems to have been the family member who remained at the centre of things when others were gone.

By 1917, Thomas’s sisters - Margaret, Elizabeth and Helen (Annie) had long since married and left Charters Towers.  Thomas's brother James had also married years before, moving out of the family home but still remaining in Charters Towers.  The family home on Bridge Street had become a much quieter place.  Then, after Patrick's death, other losses followed in quick succession:

·       18 November 1917 — his father Michael died in Charters Towers, a mere two months after the loss of Patrick in WW1.  

·         7 July 1918 — his brother Michael died in Charters Towers

·         14 January 1919 — his mother Susan died in Charters Towers

·         23 July 1922 — his brother Matthew Felix died at Charters Towers District Hospital, four years after returning from WWI

Undoubtedly, after his father's death, Thomas, aged 49, would have stepped more fully into the role of head of the household and carer of his ageing mother.

The death of mother Susan left just Thomas and his younger brother Matthew still living together on Bridge Street. Then, by mid 1922, Matthew too was gone. After that, Thomas, aged 54, was left on his own.

There is something especially poignant in that. The earlier Farrell years must once have been full and busy, with parents, brothers, sisters, and all the ordinary life of a crowded household. Then, little by little, over a period of just six years, that household thinned significantly through marriage, war, illness, and death. Thomas’s story seems to carry much of that quiet aftermath.

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A shift in working life: miner to auctioneer

After the death of his younger brother Michael in 1918, it appears Thomas took over Michael’s auctioneer business, possibly in an effort to support Michael's widow and fatherless children.

Queensland, Australia, Government Gazettes, 1859-1918

The Queensland Government Gazette has Thomas's name recorded on a list of Auctioneers' Licenses issued at the end of September 1918.  

Newspapers published a few years later gives one of those wonderful little glimpses into the practical everyday world of his later life.

On 12 March 1920, The Northern Miner published a full auction notice under the name “T. Farrell, Auctioneer.”

The notice advertises his “usual weekly auction sale” at “the old address,” given as Carg’s Buildings next to Carr Bros., Saddlers, with the sale to begin “tomorrow at 11 o’clock.” 

What I love here is how practical and ordinary it all is. Poultry in the yard — prime ducks, hens, and good turkeys — and then, in the mart, produce, fruit, vegetables, and useful items such as fly veils for horses, an ice chest, and confectioner’s scales. The tone is brisk and businesslike: “No reserve. Terms cash.”

Then, on 4 April 1925, Thomas appears again in The Northern Miner, this time in the paper’s “To-Day” auction listings:

“T. Farrell, mart sale, 11 a.m.”

It is only a very brief notice, but it says a lot. By then, a T. Farrell sale was familiar enough to be part of the town’s ordinary weekly rhythm.

Taken together, these newspaper mentions help explain why Thomas’s death certificate lists him as an auctioneer, even though earlier records over many years call him a miner. Lives do not always fit neatly into a single label. Sometimes the paperwork preserves one part of a life while another part is already unfolding.

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The closing chapter: illness, and a sister’s home

Thomas died on 7 February 1927 at Molongle Creek near Gumlu, Queensland.

Death Certificate 1927

He had celebrated his 58th birthday less than a month before this.  His cause of death was pulmonary tuberculosis.

Now here comes the detail that moves me most in his story.

Death Notice - published in a prominent northern Queensland newspaper

Death Notice - published in a Charters Towers newspaper 
(his home town in Australia)

Thomas died at the house of his older sister, Margaret McCane, née Farrell.

In the years before effective antibiotic treatment, pulmonary tuberculosis could mean a long and difficult decline. It was a feared illness, and often a lonely one. So, the fact that Thomas was taken in and cared for at home by family feels deeply important. He was not left to face that closing chapter alone.

At this point, it is hard not to notice the quiet echo of Margaret’s place in this story. She is remembered as the sister who worked and saved to help bring the family out from England and at the end of Thomas’s life, she is there again — the sister whose home became his refuge. 

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Burial: the two unmarried brothers, side by side

One more detail adds a quiet tenderness to the ending.

Thomas never married, and neither did his younger brother Matthew Felix. Younger brother Matthew had served in the First World War, returned home, and then died four years later in 1922.

When Thomas died in 1927, he was buried beside Matthew in the Charters Towers Cemetery — the two unmarried brothers laid to rest, side by side.

Burial plot for the Farrell brothers at the Charters Towers Cemetery
(its present day condition looks rather sad)

It is such a simple fact, but it feels like a deeply human one too. After all the movement in this family story — from Durham to Queensland, from the mines to the auction mart, from a full household to the losses of later years — the brothers were together again. 

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What I am left with

Thomas Farrell’s story is still mostly outline, but it is not empty.

He was a Durham boy already working in the mines at thirteen. A young man who crossed the world to Queensland as part of a family migration made possible by his sister Margaret’s determination. A man who spent years in Charters Towers, first recorded working steadily as a miner, and later appearing in the newspaper as “T. Farrell, Auctioneer.” A brother trusted to receive his younger brother Patrick’s Victory Medal. A man who, at the end of his life, was cared for in his sister’s home. Then finally, a brother buried beside his brother.

There is still much I would love to know about Thomas that the records cannot tell me. But I do not think of him as a faint figure at the edge of the tree. He feels to me like someone who lived quietly, worked steadily, endured much, and remained close to the heart of his family.

Perhaps that is the true shape of Thomas Farrell’s life: not a loud one, not a highly documented one, but a quiet life lived within the shelter of family, and remembered with love.

Note:  For those who are interested, my previous post is all about the Farrell home on Bridge Street in Charters Towers.  Here is the link - The Story Of The Farrell Family & Bridge Street

Spotlight On ... Off To School At Molongle Creek Provisional / Gumlu State School (1913 - 1956)

This is the story of how my family helped fill a tiny bush school for more than four decades.  A distant relative sent me a copy of this captioned 1939 school photo showing three of my maternal uncles - Jim, Jack and Morrie O'Donnell - lined up showing off their best school faces.

Yes, this was the entire student population.  A blue line marks my uncles; the roll beneath the photo also lists their Bidgood and McCane cousins (my first cousins, once removed).

This picture set me thinking.  I knew these relatives all lived in the same area and I wondered just how many of them attended the nearby school - Molongle Creek Provisional, later named Gumlu State School?  How intertwined was our family with the local education scene?  I went in search of pertinent data relating to the five branches of my family that I know were living in the Gumlu district:  McCane, O'Donnell, Bidgood, Farrell & McCabe.

The Find That Opened The Door:

On the Queensland State Archives website, I located the Admissions Register for Molongle Creek Provisional / Gumlu School, spanning 1913 to 1950.  My first task was to find the entries for the boys in the 1939 photo (and to see if my Mum was in there too).  

Here's what I discovered during my initial search:  

Older brothers, my uncles Edmond James and Maurice Owen (known as Morrie) O'Donnell were enrolled in 1934 ...

my mother Margaret Bridget O'Donnell in 1935 ...

and my uncles John Joseph (Jack), James Thomas (Jim), and Edward Martin (Eddie) O'Donnell in 1938.

As I read on, I was amazed at how many names I recognised, and how much detailed information was recorded: dates of birth, age at enrolment, parent's name / residences / occupations, initial grade level upon enrolment, subsequent grade levels and duration of enrolment, and the dates when students left the school.

[Note for the family data-nerds:  I've included individual enrolment snapshots further down the page - you might need a cuppa!]  

The Community And The School

Another treasure surfaced along the way: Gumlu State School 100 Years, a centenary book that gave rich context about the school, the district, and its early families (and - surprise - it turned out to be the source of that 1939 photo).

So let the story begin ...

Pioneering families began arriving in the remote district that would become known as Gumlu around 1910.  

There were no buildings at the time, no sealed roads, no cleared land - just the promise of a future where families could own land, build homes, establish farms, and provide a new life for themselves and their children.

Within three years of settlement, the community recognised the urgent need for a school, as noted in the newspaper article above.  By October 1913, the Molongle Creek Provisional School opened - two railway construction tents repurposed as a classroom, boarded to four feet with tent-fly walls and an iron roof on timber posts.  The school was erected close to the stretch of highway that ran between Bowen, to the south, and Home Hill, to the north; and sat about 2 kilometres / 1 mile from nearby Molongle Creek.

The first teacher, Miss Dean, came from the Burdekin Bridge tent school and took charge of nine pupils - 6 in first grade, 2 in fourth, and 1 thirteen-year-old who had never been to school before (I imagine Miss Dean had to 'start where he was' and see!)

Miss Dean taught for three months, and then the school was closed for the school holidays at the end of 1913.  While on holiday, Miss Dean apparently fell ill, and never returned to the school.  It remained closed for a few months at the start of 1914.

Our Family Moves To The District

Owen McCane (Muckian) and wife Margaret Farrell (my great grandparents) seated in the centre
of the front row, flanked by their daughters Sarah (my grandmother) on the left, and Susan
(my grandaunt) on the right
My grand uncles stand in the back row - from the left James Patrick, Thomas Owen, John Michael and Edward Joseph.
(Photo dated 1921 - shared by my uncle Terry O'Donnell)

By early 1914, my maternal great grandparents - Irish immigrant, Owen McCane (the family surname was Muckian in Ireland) and English immigrant Margaret McCane nee Farrell - had left Charters Towers and settled on the south side of Molongle Creek with some of their six children. 

Owen and Margaret sent their youngest children - John Michael (known as Jack), James Patrick (Jim) and Edward Joseph, my maternal grand uncles - to school as soon as it re-opened in 1914.  Those boys - enrolment nos. 14, 15, and 16 - were the first members of my family to become pupils of Molongle Creek Provisional School.

The two eldest children, daughters Susan and Sarah, were both teaching in the Charters Towers district when their parents and younger siblings moved to a new home in the Gumlu district, about 130 miles away. 

 

Susan Mary Bidgood
nee McCane

Susan Mary McCane, the older daughter (my maternal grand aunt), was offered a transfer from Charters Towers to the Provisional School in May of 1914, and she remained posted there until early 1919.  

Susan later married Frank Bidgood, a Wakala siding farmer who had arrived in the Gumlu district almost twenty years earlier.  They married in 1919 and, like so many women teachers of that era, Susan was required to resign her job upon marriage, ending a six-year teaching career.

Together, Susan and Frank had seven children and all were sent to the school in the late 1920s and early 1930s - enrolment nos. 124, 141, 179, 180, 198, 205, 217.

Thomas Owen McCane,
known as Tom.

The eldest of Owen and Margaret McCane's sons, Thomas Owen (known as Tom) McCane, my maternal grand uncle, was the teacher who took over at the school when his sister resigned in 1919.  

Tom served as the head teacher from 1919 to 1921, and then again from 1924 to 1938.

Tom married Agnes Parnell in 1922.  They had two sons who later became pupils at the school during their father's second posting there - enrolment nos. 149, 194.

Sarah McCane and
James O'Donnell

Back around 1915-1916, my paternal grandfather, James O'Donnell, and his brother had settled near Kyburra, close to Armstrong Creek, on the Broadlands in the Gumlu district.  

James went on to marry Sarah Mary Josephine McCane, my grandmother and the older daughter of Owen McCane and Margaret McCane nee Farrell.  

Sarah had started teaching in 1910 while still living in Charters Towers, had moved to the Bowen district to take up several different teaching posts, but then had to give up teaching when she married.  

By 1921, she was living on the Armstrong Creek farm, in the Gumlu district, with her husband James.  She home-schooled her growing family in their early childhood years, before sending most of them off to the local bush school in the mid- to late-1930s - enrolment nos. 184, 185, 201, 226, 227, 228.

That wasn't the end of the McCane presence at the school though.  Two of those boys first sent to school in 1914 later married, and enrolled some of their children.  

John Michael McCane married Myreen Catherine Farrell (his cousin, who came to live with the McCane's and also attended the school - enrolment no. 98).  Two daughters became pupils at the school - enrolment nos. 239 and 383.  

James Patrick McCane married Margaret Sybil (Marie) Crofton (who also attended the school as a child - enrolment no. 53) and all five of their children were enrolled as well - enrolment nos. 208, 214, 265, 279 and 366.

My great grandparents, Owen and Margaret's farm often acted as a home base for extended kin.  Over the years, my great grandmother Margaret's nieces and nephews (surname Farrell) - who experienced considerable turmoil in their childhood - were sent to live with their aunt at various times and were enrolled at the school - enrolment nos. 42, 43, 51, 97, 98.

In addition, Owen's Irish-born nephew and his family (surname McCabe) stayed with Owen and Margaret when they first immigrated to Australia, before moving to a nearby town to establish their own home.  Two of the sons spent a brief period at the school before the family moved to Home Hill - enrolment nos. 144 & 145.

These arrangements help explain why Farrells and McCabes appear alongside McCanes, O'Donnells and Bidgoods in the school's story - my great grandparents' household was a gathering point and springboard for their extended family.

The School Grows With The District

• Opened as the Molongle Creek Provisional School on 13th October 1913.
• 1914:  Became Molongle Creek State School (Grades 1 - 6).
• 1916:  Original provisional building replaced by a sturdier structure (due to white ant damage) - the new building was 24 x 18 feet, on blocks, with blinds on three sides (pictured befow).
• 1920:  Renamed Gumlu State School (Grades 1 - 7).  

The photo below shows the 'new' building, photographed in 1921, shortly after being renamed "Gumlu State School".

School photo taken in early 1921 - a total of 19 students were attending at that time.

What a great photo:  Pupils in neat rows, dressed in simple clothes, barefoot.  Sun hats on the pegs along the wall of the school, along with a saddle!  There's a bike propped up against the wall - perhaps the teacher's mode of transport!  My granduncle Tom McCane would have been the teacher at this time, and it's likely he is the one taking the photo.

The 'new' school building shown again in this photo dated around 1925.

It looks like there's a community event happening at the school in this photo.  My granduncle Tom was still the teacher at this time, so once again it's likely he is taking the photo.  It shows how many of the pupils travelled to school - taking long rides on horseback, in practical dress and often barefoot.

• Late 1930s:  School expanded from Preparatory to Seventh Grade, enrolments averaging around 30 pupils.
• 1938: a newer, much more substantial building was erected - one classroom with a wide verandah on three sides.

• 1940: A teacher's residence built thanks to the efforts of the School Committee and the Head Teacher.

A Quick Snapshot Of My Family's Presence At The School

Over four decades, from 1914 to 1956, my relatives formed the backbone of this tiny bush school.  33 children from the O'Donnell, McCane, Farrell, and Bidgood families contributed to its growth during this time and their parents advocated for new buildings, kept committees running, hauled timber, signed petitions, helped with fund-raising and building works.

When Enrolments happened, by the decade of first enrolment:

1910s (foundation years)

• McCane: John Michael (1914), James Patrick (1914), Edward Joseph (1914)

• Farrell: Muriel (1918), Edward Francis (1918), Arthur Thomas (1919)

• Crofton: Marie Sybil (1919)  - She married into our family later on, so counted as one of us!

1920s

• Farrell: Laurine Florence (1924), Myreen (1924)

• Bidgood: Leonard Ashley (1926), Ernest Alfred (1928)

• McCabe: James Gerard (1928), Patrick Gerard (1928; both left Nov 1928)

• McCane: Edward Joseph (1929)

1930s (the big wave)

• Bidgood: Lorna (1932), Irene (1932), Frederick Alfred Owen (1935), Frank Alexander (1936), Neville Edward (1937)

• O’Donnell: Edmond James (1934), Maurice Owen (1934), John Joseph (1938), James Thomas (1938), Edward Martin (1938), Margaret Brigid — my mother (1935)

• McCane: Kevin Thomas (1934), Marie Dorothy (1936), James Owen “Owen” (1937), Margaret (1939)

1940s–1950s

• McCane: Jean (1941), Rita (1943), Lawrence Edward (1954), Ailsa Janice (1956)

Farm cycles, harvest times, transport availability, harsh weather, family mobility, war times (WW1 & 2), disease outbreaks, family illnesses - all these anchored everyday life for this dense kinship network and school attendance would have flexed with reality of their rural lifestyle.

This is a McCane / O'Donnell / Bidgood family photo, taken in 1935.  

Some of the adults, and nearly all of the children in this photo were pupils of Molongle Creek Provisional School / Gumlu State School at some point from 1914 to 1956!   

All those who attended the school are marked with hearts.  

The two people with ribbons were teachers at the school - brother and sister, Thomas Owen (Tom) McCane, and Susan Mary Bidgood nee McCane.

Multiple cousins and sibling groups enrolled in quick succession during the 1930s creating a "wave" of attendance from the McCane, O'Donnell and Bidgood clan.  During my research, I found a newspaper item that gives a clear picture of this peak of concurrent attendances.  

The item published in a local newspaper described the annual school break-up at the end of 1936, attended by the students and their families.  It mentions my grand uncle Tom McCane, who was the head teacher at the time, and lists all the students and their siblings who placed in the various sporting events.  All family members are highlighted in yellow:

My Family's Roll Call In More Detail:  Over Four Decades      

In small rural communities like Gumlu, the schoolhouse wasn't just a building; it was the hub of the community, and my family's story is woven through its teacher lists and admission rolls.

(Caution: detailed data ahead.  For those who wish to skip ahead and read family anecdotes about the school, before coming back to this in-depth study of register details, scroll down to the next highlighted section)

McCane:  

(My maternal granduncles)

My great grandparents' younger boys, John Michael (known as Jack), James Patrick (Jim), and Edward Joseph all attended this school.  

- John Michael, James Patrick, and Edward Joseph were enrolled together in September of 1914 (a year after the school had opened and eight months after their sister Susan had started teaching there).  Their enrolments increased the school's population to 14 pupils!

- John was 13, enrolled for fifth grade.  He continued fifth grade the following year, before leaving in October of 1915, aged 14. 

- James was 10 and was enrolled for fourth grade.  He continued in fourth grade the following year, 1915. Started fifth grade in 1916.  It then appears that he continued fifth grade into 1917 before leaving in August, aged 13.

- Edward was 7, enrolled for second grade and stayed until he completed fifth grade in 1918, aged 11.  It appears that he stayed in third grade for two years.

My granduncle, Thomas Owen (Tom) McCane, who had taught at Gumlu State School had two sons attending the school during the time he taught there.

(My maternal first cousins once removed)

- Son Edward Joseph was enrolled at the start of 1929, at the age of 5.  He was enrolled in first grade remained in that grade the following year, then went on to complete second grade to sixth grade; leaving school at the end of 1935, aged 11.

- Son Kevin Thomas was enrolled in October of 1934, aged 5.  He was enrolled in Preparatory Class and remained in that class until the end of 1935.  He then completed first, second and third grades, leaving school at the end of 1939, aged 10, after repeating third grade.

James Patrick McCane (listed above as a pupil from 1914 to 1917) also enrolled some of his children at the school.

- Daughter Marie Dorothy was enrolled in June of 1936 at the age of 5.  She was initially enrolled in Preparatory class and stayed in that class during 1937.  After that, Marie completed all grade levels to seventh grade and left school at the end of seventh grade in 1944.  She was aged 13.  

- Son Owen was enrolled in 1937, aged 5.  He was  enrolled in Preparatory class in 1937, and went on to complete all grade levels up to the seventh grade.  He left school at the end of 1945, aged 13, having sat the Scholarship Examination. 

- Daughter Jean was enrolled in April 1941, aged 5.  She was enrolled in Preparatory class and appears to have remained in that class in 1942.  She was then enrolled in first grade in 1932.  She completed all grade levels to seventh grade and left school at the end of 1948, aged 13.

- Daughter Rita was enrolled in 1943 at the age of 5.  She was enrolled in Preparatory class in 1943 and continued in this class in 1944.  She then went on to complete fifth grade and left school in early 1950, aged 12.

Another of the brothers, John Michael (listed above as a pupil from 1914 to 1915), enrolled one of his children at the school as well.

- Daughter Margaret was enrolled in 1939 at the age of 5.  She was enrolled in Preparatory class in 1939 and then completed each grade level to seventh grade.  It seems she took two years to complete sixth grade, then went on to seventh grade at the start of 1947.  She left school at the end of 1947, aged  13.

  

O'Donnell:  

(My maternal uncles, aunts and my mother)

Most of the children of my grandparents, Sarah O'Donnell nee McCane and James O'Donnell, received education at the school, including my mother.

- Edmond James and Maurice Owen (Morrie) were enrolled together in February of 1934.

- Edmond was almost 12, and enrolled in fifth grade.  He then completed sixth and seventh grade, and left in mid-1936.

- Maurice was 8, enrolled in second grade, completed all grades to sixth grade, leaving around September of 1939 without completing seventh grade.

- Margaret Bridget (my mother) was enrolled in 1935 at the age of 12.  She was enrolled for fifth grade, then completed sixth and seventh grade, and left at the end of 1937.

- John Joseph (Jack), James Thomas (Jim) and Edward Martin (Eddie) were all enrolled together in February of 1938.

- John Joseph was 11 and was enrolled in third grade, then completed fourth, fifth, and sixth grade; and left at the end of 1941.

- James Thomas was 9.  He was enrolled in third grade as well, completed all grades to seventh grade, and then left school at the end of 1942.

- Edward Martin was 7.  He was enrolled in first grade, completed all grades to fifth grade, and also left school at the end of 1942.

Bidgood:  

(my maternal first cousins once removed)

Most of children of my grand aunt, Susan Bidgood nee McCane (Grandma Sarah's sister), were taught at this school as well.

- Leonard Ashley was enrolled at the start of 1926, aged 5.  He was enrolled in first grade, but then had a break from school for three years.  He started school again in 1932 in fifth grade, completed sixth and seventh grades, and left school at the end of 1933, aged 12.  (It's likely he was home-schooled by his mother Susan during for the three years he was absent from school.  Not sure of the reason for the long absence though!)

- Ernest was enrolled in May of 1928, at the age of 6.  He was enrolled in first grade, but left the following month.  He returned to second grade in 1932 (four years later) and completed all grades to fifth grade, but it appears he repeated fifth grade and left school at the end of 1936, aged 14.

- Lorna and Irene was both enrolled in 1932.  Lorna was enrolled in March, aged 7, in Prep.  She completed all grades to seventh grade, leaving school at the end of 1938, aged 13.

Irene was enrolled three months after her sister.  She was 6 years old and was also enrolled in Prep.  She repeated Prep the following year, then completed all grades to sixth grade.  She started fifth grade in February 1938, but was moved up to sixth grade in July.  She completed sixth grade and then left school in mid-1939, aged 13. 

- Frederick Alfred Owen was enrolled at the start of 1935, aged 6.  He was enrolled in Prep and completed all grades to seventh grade, although he had a period of six months off school at the beginning of third grade.  He completed his schooling at the end of 1942, aged 13.

- Frank Alexander was enrolled in June of 1936 at the age of 6.  He was enrolled in Preparatory Class and appears to have stayed at that grade level until he moved on to first grade at the start of 1938.  He completed all grades to sixth grade.  He began seventh grade in February of 1944 but left school the following month, aged 14.

- Neville Edward was enrolled in July of 1937, aged 5.  He was enrolled in Prep and continued in Prep the following year.  He moved on to first Grade in February of 1939, but was accelerated to second grade in July.  He moved on to third grade in 1940 but was then returned to first grade a few months later.  He continued on to second grade again in 1941, then on to third grade in 1942.  He completed fourth and fifth grades, and left school in 1944, aged 13.  (There are so many questions in my mind about Neville's experiences at school!  It was not the typical grade level progression!)

As mentioned previously, my great grandparents' farm often became a home for various other extended family over the years, including my great grandmother Margaret's nieces and nephews - surname of Farrell, and my great grandfather's Irish-born nephew and his family - surname McCabe.

  

Farrell:   

Keep in mind all these children, the sons and daughters of Michael Farrell and Hannah Margaret Hynes (brother and sister-in-law of my great grandmother), had a turbulent childhood.  They were to lose their father in 1918 and their mother in 1923.

(My maternal first cousins 2x removed)  

- Muriel and younger brother Edward Francis were enrolled in February of 1918.  Their father was listed as their parent but he lived and worked in Charters Towers.  Both children were staying with their aunt Margaret McCane nee Farrell, on the McCane family farm near Gumlu.  

(Note: It's likely their father was ill, as he passed away just five months later.  It seems the children's mother was unable to care for them at this time.)

- Muriel was enrolled in fifth grade, aged 14, but only stayed at school for one month.  She left in March of 1918.  

(Note:  It's highly likely Muriel remained on the McCane family farm after the death of her father, as she would have been old enough to help out around the home and the farm.  It's doubtful she ever returned to Charters Towers.)

- Edward Francis enrolled at the age of 6, in first grade, came and went quite often over the following seven years.  

It's quite the story: Enrolled in February 1918, Edward then left school in March (the same time as his sister). He was enrolled again in January of 1919 in second grade, 

then enrolled in third grade in 1921, this time with his mother listed as the parent - perhaps he repeated second grade in 1920.  It's unclear what happened during 1922 and 1923!  

He was then enrolled in August of 1924 in fifth grade and left school in March the following year.  He returned in April of 1925, one month after leaving, and was enrolled in the next grade level - sixth grade!  Edward then left school for the last time at the end of 1925, aged 13. 

(Note: Edward never returned to his parents' home in Charters Towers, as he was recorded on the 1934 census as living with his aunt and uncle, Owen and Margaret McCane, and his younger brother Arthur, on the McCane family farm near Gumlu).

- Arthur Thomas was enrolled at the start of 1919.  He was 11 years old, staying with his aunt, enrolled by his mother who was still living in Charters Towers.  He was enrolled in fifth grade and he left school in October that year, having turned 12.  

(Note:  As mentioned above, Arthur was recorded on the 1934 census as living on the McCane farm with his older brother, so it seems unlikely the brothers ever returned to live with their mother in Charters Towers).

- Twin sisters Laurine and Myreen were enrolled in 1924, at the age of 8.  They were both living with their aunt and uncle, and their siblings, as both parents had passed away by this time.  Laurine was enrolled in second grade, and Myreen was enrolled in first grade (for some reason!)  They both left the school at the end of 1924 and did not return until the start of 1926.  At that time Laurine was enrolled in third grade, and Myreen in second grade.  Myreen moved up to third grade in July that same year.  She stayed in third grade the following year, 1927 and left school at the end of that year, aged 11.  Laurine completed fourth grade in 1927, leaving at the same time as her sister.

McCabe: 

(My maternal second cousins once removed)

- James and Patrick McCabe were enrolled in September of 1928, just two weeks after their arrival in Australia with their parents and four other siblings.  The McCabe family had travelled straight to the McCane family farm once they had stepped off the ship.  William, the head of the family, was Owen McCane's nephew, so he headed to his uncle's farm to stay.

- James was 8 years old and Patrick was 7 upon enrolment and they both began schooling in first grade.  The brothers left school in November as their family moved to a new home in the nearby town of Home Hill.

Down Memory Lane:

Some of my family members provided wonderful anecdotes about their time at Gumlu State School for the book published as part of the school's 100th anniversary.  These memories provide a little extra insight into the history of their schooling and their school life.  

A Story From The Bidgood Family

By Fred Bidgood  1935

"Susan McCane came from Charters Towers with her parents who selected land at Broadlands from Land’s Block. Owen McCane (Susan’s father) had their home railed from Charters Towers and here the McCane family of six children commenced their new life.

In 1914 Susan began her employment with the Education Department as Teacher at Gumlu State School. She held the position until the 21^st of July 1919. Prior to this she met Frank Bidgood who originated from Toowoomba. Frank served in the First World War along with several others from the district.

Susan and Frank were married in 1919 and settled down into farming. At first, they were into cane growing and later moved into mixed farming. The Bidgood family increased with the arrival of their first son Len, and he was followed by another six children. Susan was kept busy with home schooling her children until they were old enough to ride a horse, which was their method of transport to and from school. Riding to school was done bare back until such times as saddles became available. I can recall one student from the school never got the use of the saddle but continued to ride bare back.

Seasons came and went, and creeks often burst their banks. During the wet the Bidgood children along with others in the district relied on the rail for their transport. The children were very familiar with the guards, two in particular come to mind, Paddy Foley and Alex McGuiness. 

At other times, Mr. Linsket on a 'pumper' came to their aid.

('Pumper' shown in the photo.  The young lady posing on the pumper would become one of the school pupils not long after this shot was taken.)

There was a time when my sister and I had to stay at Broadlands with our Grandmother. We used to set off to school walking the three miles and hoping that Mr. Betteridge, who took his family to school, would come along and offer us a lift.

Sadly, our father passed away in 1932 leaving our mother to continue working the property then known as Cape View at Wakala. Jobs were always allotted to family members with some becoming dairy farmers and others fruit packers. One I remember especially chose horse training which could be quite dangerous as he put the bag on the horses’ head and then mounted the horse. Fortunately, most times the rider won.

Eventually the Bidgood family moved to Bowen, and it was in June of 1974 that Susan Bidgood passed away – a remarkable lady."

Stories From The McCane Family

 

By Ailsa Oats (nee McCane)  1956

"This is just something that has always stayed in mind from my school days in Gumlu. The teacher at the time was Mr. John Sorensen, and his wife took the girls for sewing classes. We were learning to knit, which I hated, and I couldn’t do it, so I would take it home and Mum would do it for me. Mrs. Sorensen figured this out, and was not impressed, so after school she would make me sit in her kitchen, the school residence next to the school, and knit!!!"

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By Owen McCane  1937 – 1945

"The school when I started was a low set building consisting of one room. Soon after, in 1939, a new school building and a teacher’s house were built. This school building was higher, again with one room and a verandah on three sides. The two side verandahs were partly enclosed.

The teachers during this period were Tom McCane, Herb Vaughan, and Jack McDade. The classes ranged from Prep 1 to 4 and Grades 1 to 7. Student numbers ranged from 35 to 45. This was a one teacher school. Some children attended from Bobawaba in the north and Guthalungra to the south. These children came to school on a train, so arrival and departure times were a bit haphazard. Other children used all sorts of transport to get to school from walking, push bikes and horses. I can remember when my sister Marie and I started school, we travelled in a horse and sulky driven by a pensioner, Frank Sherwood, who lived on the farm with Mum and Dad.

Our class in 1945 had the distinction of being the first class to sit for the Scholarship Examination at Gumlu itself. The supervisor was Jim Petrofski. Previously students had to travel to Home Hill or Bowen to sit for this exam.

Marbles were a popular pastime during lunch breaks. Most children were bare foot, so we had to watch some of the lads who were very clever at picking up the marbles between their toes as they walked near the marble game!

On a few occasions, we travelled to Ayr to take part in inter-school sports (athletics). These were grand days, but I cannot remember any of us winning a race, but we were there taking part."

Gumlu State School pupils on their way to school

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Stories  from  Jim  McCane’s  children  1936 – 1959

 

By Marie Sorensen (nee McCane)  1936.

"I started school at Gumlu in 1936. The teacher was Tom McCane and many of his students were his own two sons and the Bidgood and O’Donnell families who were his nieces and nephews – so attending school was a family get together for us. For the first year we were driven to school in a horse and sulky. Bikes arrived as Christmas presents – so from then on, we rode the four miles to and from school daily along Molongle Creek Road.

Children in the lower classes would often be sent downstairs under the tree to learn spelling or tables while the teacher taught the higher classes in the school room. I remember the cricket games when we all played – young and old – boys and girls – altogether to make a team. 

During the war, air raid drills were held – when we would all file into the air raid shelter. I remember a small plane flying over, very low, and the pilot waving to us. Sometimes, on our way home from school, we would have to wait for long periods of time while a convoy of army vehicles passed by.

My school days at Gumlu are remembered with great fondness – the memories and friendships are with me still. The dedication and work ethics of the teachers is commendable."

________________________________________________________________________

By Jean Webb (nee McCane)  1941.

"I remember my school days at Gumlu very well. These are very happy memories for me.

My love for sewing was reinforced by Mrs. McDade, the principal’s wife. I always looked forward to her weekly lessons and I still have my Sampler Book. Art was fun. I remembered the art books – very still grey paper with tissue paper in between. We drew with coloured chalks:  a carrot being my first masterpiece!

Most of our work was done on slates which were slipped into place in front of the desk when not in use – leaving the desk tidy. Our Copy Books had to be kept very neat. Pot hooks were our starting point – from there we graduated to writing. I remember the large charts which hung on the wall from which we learnt our tables.

In my early years at school, I remember the big trench in the yard – the Air Raid Shelter. We always celebrated Arbour Day with tree planting.

The atmosphere at the school was very friendly and family orientated. The friendships made in those early school years are still important to me."

________________________________________________________________________

By Rita Boccalatte (nee McCane)  1943.

"I have fond memories of my school days at Gumlu. With my three older siblings – we would make the four-mile trip on our bikes – to and from school daily – meeting up with the other children along Molongle Creek Road. (If the creek was running – we had a holiday – no bridge in the early days).

I remember daily parade and singing the National Anthem. Different classes would move to the verandah for reading – or under the tree to learn our tables – parrot fashion, while the teacher took classes in the school room.

Weekly sewing classes were a highlight, when Mrs. McDade, the teacher’s wife, taught the basic stitches as well as some fancy ones. We even learnt to darn a mosquito net!

Fancy Dress Balls were always fun. The whole community supported school functions. Break-up day was a big event, with all the races – three-legged, egg and spoon, and sack bag – and sixpence prize money at the end of the day … and always plenty of food.

I left Gumlu School early in Grade Six and went to boarding school. My early years at Gumlu were very happy and many lifetime friendships were made. In spite of school size – the standard of education was high – this reflects the dedication of the teachers. I feel indebted to these men and still hold them in high esteem."

School Break-Up Day at Gumlu State School in the 1930s.

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By Lawrence McCane  1953.

"We were bush kids with no uniform and no shoes, about 30 or us, from Grade 1 to Grade 8. In those days we usually had an intake of new Grade Ones every second year, which allowed the teacher time to settle the new Grade Ones when he did not have the pressure of preparing the scholarship class for their public examination. The Gumlu families did not always cooperate in having children at the right time, so sometimes that neat plan got out of sync.

My teachers were Alex Barnett, Alan Yates and Neil Sorensen, all of them good men and great teachers, though Alan at times lost his temper with us, and we had to sit in silence, doing nothing with heads on desks, until he and his students calmed down.  I don’t recall any major problems with discipline. In fact, it was a family environment where the older students looked after and frequently enough took over the teaching of us younger ones on the verandah.

It was a thoroughly balanced education with art, music, woodwork, craft, and sport being part of the curriculum. I remember our pride when the mums got together and made us uniforms for the school spots in Ayr, along with a large flag, with a kangaroo and big white letters proudly proclaiming we were the Gumlu kids.

The long bike ride – four miles – to and from school was a highlight of our day – never any traffic on the unsealed Bruce Highway in those days, apart from the occasional local farm truck. We would frequently stop at the Fishers or the McAfees for a drink of cool water, or sometimes to pick the chonky apples – which usually ended in trouble at home because of the tell-tale white tongue which resulted after eating a few. These trees were a pest and were being sprayed with poison, so we were not allowed to eat these tasty little delicacies. I remember one day, Rodney Tuxworth jumped from Molongle Creek bridge to the sand below as a dare. He was unharmed, but none of the rest of us was game to follow his example.

I left Gumlu State at the beginning of 1960 when we moved to town after we sold the farm. It was a sad transition for me, as it was a great school, where I received a sound start to my education and had lots of friends."

Somewhere in this photo will be a number of my relatives!
It looks like something very special is being celebrated - perhaps it's the end of a school year party.