Mary Ann, the youngest child of James Cahill and Eliza Dunn was born on 4 October 1870

Monday 4 October 2020 was the 150th anniversary of the birth of the last child of James Cahill and his wife, Eliza Dunn.  Mary Ann Cahill was born on 4 October 1870 at Belford, near Singleton in NSW.  She was the eleventh child - although her birth certificate shows that she was the tenth of James and Eliza's children with 3 boys and 3 girls living and a son and two daughters deceased!   

As many will recall, I've not been able to find a birth or baptismal registration for my great-grandmother Agnes, the ninth child, who was born about 1867.  I've not been able to locate birth and death registrations for the fifth child, Johanna (know also as Hannah and Minnie).   However, James and Eliza's death certificates both record there were eleven children with three dying as infants.  So here's the information that's been gathered on the children-

1. Catherine was born on 15 April 1856 in East Maitland.  She died in Murrurundi on 21 January 1913.  She was 56.  On 13 May 1873 when Catherine was 17, she married William DRIES in Branxton.  They had 10 children.  
2. Richard (Died as Infant) was born on 1 August 1857 in Maitland. Richard died in Maitland  on 2 January 1858.  He was 5 months.
3. James was born on 23 November 1858 in East Maitland. James died in Branxton on 26 May 1932.  He was 73.  On 7 January 1885 when James was 26, he married Isabella HOGAN in Branxton.  They had 11 children.
4. Mary Ann (Died as Infant) was born on 15 April 1862 in Patricks Plain. Mary died in Patricks Plain on 25 February 1863.  She was 9 months.
5. Johanna (known as Hannah and Minnie) was born about 1862.  Johanna died after 1928.  On 15 July 1879, Johanna had a child, Rosanna.  On 21 February 1883, when Johanna was 21, she married Charles MONTAGUE in Patricks Plain.  They had no children.  On 16 June 1885, when Johanna was 23, she married Dominico SESE (or CECI) in Sydney.  They had no children.  
6. Alice (Anastasia as recorded on death certificate) (Died as Infant) was born on 21 July 1863 in Patricks Plain.  Alice died in Patricks Plain on 2 January 1864.  She was 2.
7. Bridget was born on 2 January 1865 in Patricks Plain.  Bridget died in Marrickville on 2 March 1949.  She was 84.  In 1883 when Bridget was 17, she married William ANTCLIFF in West Maitland.  They had 4 children.  
8. Thomas John CAHILL (known as CARROLL)  was born on 26 August 1866 in Black Creek.  Thomas died in Lidcombe State Hospital on 28 March 1931.  He was 64.  On 31 August 1907, when Thomas was 41, he married Emily Jane HOOKEYWIN (also known as WILLIAMS) in South Grafton.  Emily had 12 children and, at least, 6 where Thomas's children.
9. Agnes was born about 1867 in Patricks Plain.  She died in Drummoyne on 23 January 1946.  She was 79.  Agnes had a daughter, Annie, on 2 November 1890 who died two days later.  She had a common-law relationship with Cornelius (known as Charle or Charlie) BRAY.  They had one son, Oswald (known as James Oswald) on 20 September 1891 (my grandfather).  On 16 January 1901, when Agnes was 34, she married James WOODLAND in Maitland West. They had three children.
10. Michael was born on 23 Mar 1868 in Belford.  Michael died in Lismore on 17 February 1950.  He was 81. He never married.
11. Mary Ann was born on 4 October 1870 in Belford.  Mary Ann died in Singleton on 13 May 1909.  She was 38.  She had one child, William Alphonsus on 17 August 1904.  In 1908 when Mary Ann was 37, she second married Robert Maxwell (Bob) WOOD in Singleton.  They had no children.

We've now had autosomal DNA matches at AncestryDNA, MyHeritageDNA and FamilyTreeDNA with descendants of Catherine, James, Johanna, Bridget, Thomas and Agnes.  We'd like to hear from descendants of Mary Ann who would be interesting in taking a test at AncestryDNA.  

Not long after James and Eliza arrived in Australia in 1855, James was employed by the railways as a labourer with the Great Northern Railway which was to run between Sydney and Brisbane.  The first section was built in 1857 from the port of Newcastle to East Maitland.  The line was extended to Singleton in 1863, Muswellbrook in 1869, Scone in 1871 and Murrurundai in 1872.  James was employed during much of the construction around the Maitland/Singleton area and was employed by the railway at the time of his death in 1877.  The family story is that they lived in tents at railway camps which must have been very difficult with the children.  

Mary Ann's birth location is recorded as Belford.  This ties in as the railway station was opened there on 6 September 1869 just over 12 moths prior to Mary Ann's birth.  The station was closed in 2005 but a siding remains. 

Little Mary Ann was just a few months short of her 7th birthday when her father died on 19 August 1877. Here's a newspaper article describing the accident that led to James's death.

In January 1877 and a few months before his father's death, James and Eliza's son, James, commenced working with the railway.  He took on the care and support of his mother and younger siblings after James senior's death.  

NSW State Archives

Little is known about Mary's early life.  When she was 33, she give birth to a son, William Alphonsus Cahill, in Sydney on 17 August 1904.  William's father is unknown.  He was raised by his uncle and Mary's brother, James,  and his wife Isabella.  

On 07 May 1908, Mary married Robert Maxwell Wood, a widow with four children, in Singleton.  Robert's first wife, Hannah Ruth Lawrence, had died on 26 January 1905 when their youngest child was barely 6 months.  Robert was reportedly the son of a well known local family.  

Little over a year later on 13 May 1909, Mary died aged 38.  Mary's death certificate records the cause of death as "premature birth, haemorrhage and shock" and the length of her illness as 6 days.  There's no record of a birth or death of the child.  Young William Alphonsus was nearly five when his mother died.  Robert died on 17 July 1916 and is buried with his first wife.

When he was 22, William Alphonsus married Beatrice Adeline Sullivan at the Church of the Holy Trinity in Erskineville.  William died in 7 June 1965 at his residence at 28 Dalley Street, Lidcombe.  He and Beatrice had three children - Bill, Reg and Shirley (Mrs Ross Levi).