John McGarry
James McGarry > John McGarry > Mary Ann McGarry > Lavinia Laws > Noreen Merrin
John McGarry was my great-great-great-grandfather. He was born in 1818 in Ireland and was the son of James and Ellen McGarry.
The 1841 Census shows John McGarry living with his wife and two children, James aged 3 and Ann aged 1, in Back Black Horse Street in Bolton in Lancashire.
The same census shows John and Ellen McGalley living in the same street. The details of this family suggest that John and Ellen were John McGarry's parents and that their surname was mistakenly transcribed as McGalley.
Note that I means the person was born somewhere other than in Lancashire. So it seems that James and Ellen moved from Ireland to England with their children John, James, Charles, Michael and Thomas sometime between about 1827 (when Thomas was born in Ireland) and 1833 (when Ann was born in Lancashire). This means John would have been aged between 9 and 15 when he moved with his family from Ireland to England.
The Census information also tells us that John was working as a carter, possibly with his father, in 1841.
The same census shows John and Ellen McGalley living in the same street. The details of this family suggest that John and Ellen were John McGarry's parents and that their surname was mistakenly transcribed as McGalley.
Note that I means the person was born somewhere other than in Lancashire. So it seems that James and Ellen moved from Ireland to England with their children John, James, Charles, Michael and Thomas sometime between about 1827 (when Thomas was born in Ireland) and 1833 (when Ann was born in Lancashire). This means John would have been aged between 9 and 15 when he moved with his family from Ireland to England.
The Census information also tells us that John was working as a carter, possibly with his father, in 1841.
Marriage and Children
I do not know when or where John and his wife Mary Ann, (nee McNamara), were married however since their first child was born in 1838 it seems likely they were married in about 1837 in Bolton in Lancashire when they were both aged about 19 or 20.
The 1841 census shows that Mary Ann was not born in Lancashire so I suspect she, too, was Irish.
John and Mary Ann had five children together:
James, born abt 1838, England. Married Mary Dawson, 1865 (NSW BDM 2335/1865);
Anne, born abt 1840, England. Married Leo Lewis, 1865 (NSW BDM 788/1865 - name transcribed as Macgearey);
John, born abt 1843, England. Died in 1870 in Hartley, NSW;
Michael, born about 1845 in England;
Mary Ann, born in 1849 in Bolton, Lancashire. Married Charles Laws in 1871;
The 1841 census shows that Mary Ann was not born in Lancashire so I suspect she, too, was Irish.
John and Mary Ann had five children together:
James, born abt 1838, England. Married Mary Dawson, 1865 (NSW BDM 2335/1865);
Anne, born abt 1840, England. Married Leo Lewis, 1865 (NSW BDM 788/1865 - name transcribed as Macgearey);
John, born abt 1843, England. Died in 1870 in Hartley, NSW;
Michael, born about 1845 in England;
Mary Ann, born in 1849 in Bolton, Lancashire. Married Charles Laws in 1871;
Immigration to New South Wales
John and Mary Ann and their five children arrived in Sydney in 1856 as assisted migrants aboard the David McIver. They were both aged 38 when they arrived.
mcgarry-family-arrival-1856.pdf | |
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Residences
Liverpool in 1865 when daughter, Anne, married Leo Lewis.
Liverpool in 1870 when he died.
Liverpool in 1870 when he died.
Death
John died on 4 April 1870 in Liverpool, NSW (NSW BDM 4053/1870).
Burial
John is buried at Liverpool Pioneers' Memorial Park.
The inscription on his headstone reads:
Sacred to the memory of John McGarry
Who died April 4 1870
Aged 57 years
Native of Cumberland, England
A faithful husband, a father dear
Beneath the clay lies buried here.
In love he lived, in peace he died.
Life we craved but God denied. [5]
To find John's grave, go to the main entrance of the park where the information board is on your left as you enter. The grave is the first one immediately to your right.
Though there's no record of John's wife, Mary Ann, on his headstone, records confirm that Mary Ann is also buried in this cemetery. I think, but haven't been able to confirm, that she is buried with her husband. The records are here.
The photos below were taken by me on Sunday 25 September 2022.
The inscription on his headstone reads:
Sacred to the memory of John McGarry
Who died April 4 1870
Aged 57 years
Native of Cumberland, England
A faithful husband, a father dear
Beneath the clay lies buried here.
In love he lived, in peace he died.
Life we craved but God denied. [5]
To find John's grave, go to the main entrance of the park where the information board is on your left as you enter. The grave is the first one immediately to your right.
Though there's no record of John's wife, Mary Ann, on his headstone, records confirm that Mary Ann is also buried in this cemetery. I think, but haven't been able to confirm, that she is buried with her husband. The records are here.
The photos below were taken by me on Sunday 25 September 2022.