| Connecticut Death Index Name: Philip Grele Event Date: 13 Aug 1983 Event Place: Shelton, , Connecticut Residence Place: Seymour, , Connecticut Address: 26 NICHOLS ST Age: 93 Marital Status: Married Race: White Occupation: FOREMAN Industry: KERITE CO Birth Year (Estimated): 1890 Father's Surname (Original): GRELE Spouse's Name: MATIL Certificate Number: 17510 ----- United States Social Security Death Index Name: Philip Grele Given Name: Philip Surname: Grele State: Connecticut Residence Place: Connecticut Last Place of Residence: Seymour, New Haven, Connecticut Previous Residence Postal Code: 06483 Age: 93 Birth Date: 10 Aug 1890 Death Date: Aug 1983 ----- Father's Birthplace: Austria Mother's Birthplace: Austria ===== United States Census, 1920 Name: Philip Grele Event Place: New Haven, Connecticut Sex: Male Age: 28 Marital Status: Married Race: White Birth Year (Estimated): 1892 Birthplace: Austria Immigration Year: 1907 Father's Birthplace: Austria Mother's Birthplace: Austria Relationship to Head of Household: Head Household Role Sex Age Birthplace Philip Grele Head M 28 Austria Matilda Grele Wife F 26 Austria Rumel H Grele Son M 3 Connecticut ----- United States Census, 1930 Name: Phillip L Grele Event Place: Seymour, New Haven, Connecticut Sex: Male Age: 40 Marital Status: Married Race: White Birth Year (Estimated): 1890 Birthplace: Poland Immigration Year: 1907 Relationship to Head of Household: Head Household Role Sex Age Birthplace Phillip L Grele Head M 40 Poland Matilda Grele Wife F 37 Poland Russell H Grele Son M 14 Connecticut Elaine A Grele Dau F 6 Connecticut Harvey R Grele Son M 4 Connecticut ----- United States Census, 1940 Name: Philip Grele Event Place: Seymour Town, New Haven, Connecticut Last Place of Residence: Same House Sex: Male Age: 49 Marital Status: Married Race: White Birth Year (Estimated): 1891 Birthplace: Austria Relationship to Head of Household: Head Household Role Sex Age Birthplace Philip Grele Head M 49 Austria Matilda Grele Wife F 46 Austria Elaine Grele Dau F 16 Connecticut Harvey Grele Son M 14 Connecticut |
| U.S. World War II Army Enlistment Records: Name: Russell H Grele Birth Year: 1916 Race: White, citizen Nativity State or Country: Connecticut State: Connecticut County or City: New Haven Enlistment Date: 8 Oct 1941 Enlistment State: Connecticut Enlistment City: Hartford Branch: Branch Immaterial - Warrant Officers Branch Code: Branch Immaterial - Warrant Officers Grade: Private Grade Code: Private Component: Selectees (Enlisted Men) Source: Civil Life Education: 2 years of college Civil Occupation: Cashier or Stock Record Clerk or Bookkeeper, General Marital Status: Single, without dependents Height: 70 Weight: 188 Occupation: Accountant, Sterling Sales. http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=48664458&ref=wvr |
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| New Zealand Marriage Index 1939/10791 Kathleen Athol Chatfield Laughlan Hugh Gresham |
| Wisconsin, Death Index Name: Gerald Vincent Grew Event Type: Death Event Date: 24 Jan 1983 Event Place: , , Wisconsin Residence Place: ??, Wisconsin Certificate Number: 002382 ===== He was born in Epworth and worked at John Deere Dubuque Works for more than 20 years until his retirement in 1965. He later worked at the University of Dubuque. He was president of United Auto Workers Union Local 94 the 1950s. Gerry spent several years in Catholic Seminary. He had only one marriage, Eileen Margaret (Daly) (Chatfield) Grew. They knew each other as children and re-met after her 1st husband died. Occupation: Worked for John Deere; college maintenance worker. |
| Birth GRO 4th qtr 1893 Grey, Louisa Caroline Eastbourne 2b 67 Death GRO 3rd qtr 1978 CHATFIELD, Louisa Caroline 6SE1893 Lewes 18 1074 ===== Census, 1911 Name: Louisa Grey Gender: Female Age: 17 Birthplace: Eastbourne, Sussex Schedule Type: Household Registration District: Eastbourne Parish: Eastbourne, Sussex |
| Marriages GRO 1st qtr 1921 CHATFIELD, David Grey Eastbourne 2b 131 Grey, Louisa C Chatfield Eastbourne 2b 131 |
| Reportedly died 3 Feb 1885. |
| Burial Plot: 58-3-NW #389. Find A Grave Memorial# 79254746 ===== Occupation - Althea Melissa GRIDLEY was a Teacher. Issue - Had 10 children with 6 living to maturity. Locale - Lived in Milwaukee County. Info from Beatrice J. (GRIDLEY) SHARPE. ----- USA Census, 1870 Name: A M Gridley Birth Year (Estimated): 1846 Gender: Female Age (Original): 24y Race: White Birthplace: Wisconsin Event Place: Wisconsin, USA Household Gender Age Birthplace L L Gridley M 52y New York Mary Gridley F 51y New York A M Gridley F 24y Wisconsin L R Gridley M 19y Wisconsin L V Gridley M 18y Wisconsin Emma Gridley F 15y Wisconsin O L Gridley M 12y Wisconsin O G Chatfield M 7y Wisconsin E Grant Chatfield M 5y Wisconsin Patsey Chatfield F 8m Wisconsin |
| USA Census, 1870 L R Gridley M 19y Wisconsin L V Gridley M 18y Wisconsin Emma Gridley F 15y Wisconsin O L Gridley M 12y Wisconsin O G Chatfield M 7y Wisconsin E Grant Chatfield M 5y Wisconsin Patsey Chatfield F 8m Wisconsin |
| Other marriages: Tilden, Julia |
| Father's Birthplace Germany Mother's Birthplace Germany ===== QUERY New York Naturalization Index Name John H Griesel Event Date 1871 Event Place , New York, New York Birth Country German ----- New York State Census, 1905 Name John H Griesel Residence Place Manhattan, New York, New York Age 54 Birth Year (Estimated) 1851 Birthplace Germany Relationship to Head of Household Head Race White Page 39 John H Griesel Head M 54y Germany Nellie H Griesel Wife F 46y USA ----- USA Census, 1910 Name John H Griesel Event Place Manhattan Ward 22, New York, New York Gender Male Age 59 Marital Status Married Race White Relationship to Head of Household Head Birth Year (Estimated) 1851 Birthplace Germany Immigration Year 1851 Father's Birthplace Germany Mother's Birthplace Germany Sheet Letter A Sheet Number 1 John H Griesel Head M 59 Germany Nellie H Griesel Wife F 50 New York Mary E Murray Servant F 48 Ireland Amelia Lisson Servant F 28 Sweden |
| Grandmother of Trevor, Nathan, Kate, and Amara June Catlett. ===== USA Public Records Name Donna L Catlett Also Known As Donnal Catlett Residence Date 13 Nov 2000 Residence Place Hoffman Estates, Illinois Birth Date 09 Aug 1945 Phone Number 296-1409 Phone Number Recorded Date 20 Aug 2008 Address 1973 Kenilworth Cir Apt B, Hoffman Estates, Illinois 60169 Address Date 13 Nov 2000 2nd Address 1973 Kenilworth Cir Apt B, Hoffman Estates, Illinois 60195 2nd Address Date 01 Dec 1993-13 Nov 2000 3rd Address 1873 Lee St., Des Plaines, Illinois 60018 3rd Address Date 01 May 1975 Record Number 219867330 ----- Former Retired at City of Des Plaines Worked at City of Des Plaines Studied at Illinois Wesleyan University Lives in Des Plaines, Illinois From Chicago, Illinois |
| Find A Grave Memorial# 56655680 |
| Death GRO 4th qtr 1841 WELFARE, Adelina Hastings 7 252 |
| Marriage groom's name: Stephen Welfare bride's name: Adeline Griffen marriage date: 1809 marriage place: Hastings, All Saints, Sussex, England indexing project (batch) number: M14807-2 system origin: England-VR source film number: 1067172 reference number: 2:3K7D82F |
| USA Social Security Death Index Age 61 Given Name Lillie Middle Name A Surname Rush Birth Date 30 Aug 1940 State Kentucky Last Place of Residence Inverness, Citrus, Florida Previous Residence Postal Code 34450 Event Date 10 Nov 2001 |
| Kentucky, Vital Record Indexes Name Robert L Rush Event Type Marriage Event Date 30 Aug 1995 Event Place Whitley, Kentucky Residence Place Whitley, Kentucky Age 57 Race White Birth Year (Estimated) 1938 Spouse's Name Lily I Griffey Spouse's Age 55 Spouse's Race White Spouse's Birth Year (Estimated) 1940 |
| Parents Joshua Griffin, unknownâ Mehitable Spencer Griffin, unknownâ ----- Married 1st Truman Vaughn (1816-1850) ----- Burial Plot: 257 Find A Grave Memorial# 16888651 Marked as EMELINE GRIFFIN on tomb. Was she married before to a Mr Griffin? ===== QUERY USA Census, 1850 Name: Emiline Griffin Event Place: Newton, Luzerne, Pennsylvania Gender: Female Age: 29 Race: White Birth Year (Estimated): 1821 Birthplace: Pennsylvania House Number: 88 Affiliate Film Number: 793 Household Role Gender Age Birthplace P Griffin M 40 New York Emiline Griffin F 29 Pennsylvania B Griffin F 7 Pennsylvania Sterling Griffin M 3 Pennsylvania Household ID: 88 , Line Number: 35 , Affiliate Name: The U.S. National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) , Affiliate Publication Number: M432 , GS Film Number: 444761 , Digital Folder Number: 004205097 , Image Number: 00378 |
| USA Social Security Death Index Given Name: Bessie Surname: Chatfield Birth Date: 6 January 1892 Social Security Number: 384-38-0026 State: Michigan Last Place of Residence: Caro, Tuscola, Michigan Previous Residence Postal Code: 48723 Event Date: February 1973 Age: 81 ----- Find A Grave Memorial# 80143576 |
| Spouse of Eli E CHATFIELD Sr 1894-1956 |
| Death GRO 2nd qtr 1891 GRIFFIN, Charles 44 Fareham 2b 411 ===== England and Wales Census, 1881 Name: Charles Griffin Event Place: Wymering, Hampshire, England Registration District: Fareham Gender: Male Age: 34 Marital Status: Married Occupation: Railway Labourer Relationship to Head of Household: Head Birth Year (Estimated): 1847 Birthplace: Hilsea, Hampshire, England Page Number: 6 Registration Number: RG11 Piece/Folio: 1168/83 Affiliate Record Type: Household Charles Griffin Head M 34 Hilsea, Hampshire, England Mary Griffin Wife F 33 Hilton, Dorset, England Edith Louisa Griffin Dau F 10 Copnor, Hampshire, England Sydney Herbert Griffin Son M 8 Buckland Portsea, England Frank Lewes Griffin Son M 4 Hilsea, Hampshire, England Joseph William Griffin Son M 3 Hilsea, Hampshire, England Clara Mekebava Griffin Dau F 1 Hilsea, Hampshire, England |
| England and Wales Marriage Registration Index Name Mary Griffin Event Type Marriage Event Place Portsea Island, Hampshire, England Registration District Portsea Island County Hampshire Registration Quarter Jan-Feb-Mar Registration Year 1898 Volume 2B Page 759 Affiliate Line Number 296 Possible Spouse William Colwell |
| Birth GRO 1st qtr 1880 GRIFFIN, Clara Mahatabel Fareham 2b 588 ----- Death GRO 3rd qtr 1969 WILCOX, Clara Mehetabel 28 Jan 1880 Gosport 6b 850 ===== Census, 1901 Name: Clara M Griffin Gender: Female Age: 21 Relationship to Head of Household: Servant Birthplace: Hilsea, Hampshire Schedule Type: Household Registration District: Portsmouth Sub-District: Portsmouth And Mid Southsea Ecclesiastical Parish: St Peters Civil Parish: Portsmouth, Hampshire Census, 1911 Name: Clara Wilcox Gender: Female Age: 31 Birthplace: Hilsea, Hampshire Schedule Type: Household Registration District: Portsmouth Sub-District: North End And Buckland Parish: Portsmouth, Hampshire |
| Marriages GRO 2nd qtr 1907 GRIFFIN, Clara Mehetabel Portsmouth 2b 882 WILCOX William Portsmouth 2b 882 |
| Birth GRO 2nd qtr 1870 Griffin, Edith Louisa Portsea 2b 404 |
| Birth GRO 3rd qtr 1956 Griffin, Elaine M Chatfield Northampton 3b 721 |
| Father: Greene Griffin, born Connecticut. 1817â Mother: Elizabeth Myers, born Connecticut. ----- Find a Grave Memorial ID 143185199 |
| Samuel Griffin also a possible name. CONVICT Gender: Male Age on Arrival: 18 Hair: Dk bro Eyes: Grey Remarks: Star between finger & thumb left hand Voyage: Asia I, 1835-1836 Transported for: Stealing a Handkerchief Stated this offence: Stealing a Handkerchief Statement (other): Single Sentence: 7 years Native place: Birmingham Trade: Laborer (Labourer) ----- Death not found in NSW. Name could be Griffith. NSW Death 2807/1860 GRIFFITH, HUGH AGE 64 YEARS DIED ARMIDALE ----- Eugene (Hugh) Griffin, was an Irishman who had fought in the Peninsula War (Spain). Convicted for stealing a shirt and sentenced to 7 years transportation in Australia. He was granted freedom after few years and married Jinnie an Aboriginal from Coonabarabran, NSW. His wife, Jane was a full-blooded aboriginal woman. In the fifties they worked on Bomera Station, which at the time belonged to Mr. Hale and Mr. Durham. Jane shepherded the sheep whilst Eugene did general work, farmed, grew and harvested wheat, tobacco, etc.; and attended to the cattle. ----- Eugene Griffin 1833, New South Wales (Convict record) Name: Eugene GRIFFIN Gender: Male Birth: 1801 -- County Cork, Ireland Death: 30 March 1860 â |
| Birth GRO 4th qtr 1875 Griffin, Frank Lewis Fareham 2b 508 |
| Birth GRO 2nd qtr 1882 Griffin, Harriet Rebecca Fareham 2b 584 |
| Marriages GRO 4th qtr 1927 GRIFFIN, Henry F Patching Northampton 3b 216 Patching, Lily Griffin Northampton & Hardingstone 3b 216 |
| Spouse of Thomas Francis BRENNAN 1875-1938 |
| Spouse of Thomas Francis BRENNAN 1875-1938 |
| Spouse of Thomas Francis BRENNAN 1875-1938 |
| Birth as resident in Ardnaglass, Civil Parish of Grange of Ballyscullion. Barony of Toome Upper, Co. Antrim. Nearest main town is Ballymena and is just north of Lough Neagh. |
| Other children: Sarah GRIFFIN 1838 - 1873 Ellen GRIFFIN 1849 - Pamela Hunter nee Tighe Leonie I am interested in your Mary Tighe who married William Smith, I am missing a Mary Tighe who was the daughter of William Tighe and Ellen Griffin, married Garrawilla Station 1866. Read more: http://www.everyculture.com/Oceania/Kamilaroi.html#ixzz3iFEcOurF Margaret GRIFFIN 1851 - 1904 I know that my GGG grandmother Jinnie was the last full blooded aboriginal woman in the Gunnedah area. She had a child named Maggie or Margaret to an Irishman named Eugene Griffin. I have read the history of the Red Kangaroo which is fantastic! Anyone out there also connected with Jinnie or Margaret? Read more: http://www.everyculture.com/Oceania/Kamilaroi.html#ixzz3iFEFHlqN Eliza GRIFFIN 1858 - 1913 |
| Birth GRO 1st qtr 1878 Griffin, Joseph William Fareham 2b 563 |
| Birth GRO 3rd qtr 1960 GRIFFIN, Julie E CHATFIELD Northampton 3b 952 |
| Spouse of David CHATFIELD |
| Lauren & David About Lauren I grew up in Houston, Texas. I grew up with an amazing family, and have wonderful memories of my life in Houston. I have wonderful parents: Bill and Liz Griffin, and the best siblings: Alex, Bill, and Kelly. I also want to mention my Step-mother Judy, who was an absolutely amazing woman and full of life. I went to The Kinkaid School from Kindergarden thru my Senior year. I was huge into gymnastics and cheerleading, and I always dreamed of cheerleading in college (well, that never came true but not for lack of trying). I moved to Austin in August 2001 and attended the University of Texas where I graduated with a B.A. in Studio Art with a Specialization in Photography. I also have my M.B.A. from the University of Phoenix. Enough about my past, I am currently still living in fabulous Austin, Texas with my amazing fiancee David Chatfield and my most amazing son Connor Chatfield. I absolutely love being a mom. My favorite things: FOOTBALL!! I love football, both college and pro. My favorite teams are University of Texas Longhorns, The Houston Texans, and The Chicago Bears. I also love reading (I read anything and everything), hanging out with David and Connor, swimming (anything that is outside and by a body of water), playing golf (which I am horrible at), watching any kind of dance show (I wish I could dance), celebrating all holidays, and watching Crime Shows. My unfavorite things: Baseball (do not really care for it), flying (used to love to fly but now have a fear of it), running (but I still run anyway), tomatoes (hate them!), and not being able to see my family in Houston all the time. I love y'all!! About David The places I grew up were Indonesia, Australia and the US. Spending the majority of my youth overseas was a once-in-a-lifetime experience, and I wouldn't of had it any other way. My family consists of my awesome parents Alan & Teri, and my three unique brothers Andy, Jonny & Tommy. Growing up, I attended more schools than I can count on both hands. I did attend four different high schools (Ocean Reef, Kepner, JIS & Cinco Ranch). Since about 8th grade I have been very into photography, and for the longest time I wanted to be the next Ansel Adams and work for National Geographic. In the summer of 2002, I left our family home in Katy, Texas for college in College Station. In December of 2006, I moved up to the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and finished my bachelor's degree in Business Administration. After college, I moved back to Houston to start my career. I ended up working for a national photography company specializing in studio family portraiture. In the fall of 2009 I decided I wanted a change and transferred to Austin, TX. I am still in Austin with my beautiful fiancée, Lauren Griffin, and our amazing, but mischievous, son Connor. I still can't believe I'm a dad. My favorite things - Nebraska football, collage football then NFL football in that order. My favorite teams are the University of Nebraska Cornhuskers, Houston Texans, and the Miami Dolphins. I also like video games, bbq'n, and spending family time with Lauren and Connor. I also enjoy working on cars/trucks, camping and home projects. Dislikes - For the most part basketball, baseball, the Oklahoma sooners & the NE Patriots. How we met The very first time Lauren and I met was in the fall of 2009. Lauren had come in for an interview for a full time position with the photography company I worked for. I sat in on the interview with my manager and regional manager at the time. I remember thinking after she had left, "Why can't I find a girl like that?". I was disappointed she didn't get the job at that time due to an already planned vacation during the company's blackout dates. Then, about 9 months later, the studio was short staffed again, and the company hired her on without the new manager at the time conducting her own interview of Lauren. When new people started with the company, I was friendly towards them but usually didn't talk a whole lot to them. Lauren had just about enough of that, and on the first day that we had to close the store together she was determined to get me to open up and talk to her. She said "You are going to talk to me, and if not I will talk enough for the both of us". From then on we became close friends. Over the next few months we started to talk and joke around at work more and more. When the studio was slow, we'd watch movies or tv shows on my phone. We started talking more and more outside of work through text messaging. We had gone out with our fellow coworkers in group settings a couple times. Then came the Christmas season at our studio where we worked an insane amount of hours together. She would always bring me coffee or red bull in the morning. After our shifts, we started to go out more and more, just the two of us. When we weren't working together or hanging out outside work, we would text each other constantly. I remember one night after a long day of work Lauren said she was gonna stay up at work after she clocked out to do one of her online exams for school because she could get a better WiFi connection up there. I really didn't want to leave her up there at work alone and didn't want to go home so I told her I would help her with the exam. By the time the exam was done, she had never had that much fun taking a test because we joked around and had fun with it. The rest of that Christmas season we hung out after work almost every night going out for drinks, going to movies or getting something to eat. She invited me out with her that New Years Eve to accompany her to a couple of her friends New Years Eve parties. Not too long after that, we started dating. ----- Tuesday, December 20, 2011 How we got engaged Lauren and I got engaged 10 days after our son Connor was born on the night of December 20th, 2011. Lauren had gone upstairs to lay down while I had Connor with me downstairs. After about 10 minutes I decided that I didn't want to go another day without being engaged to the love of my life. I looked around and found some ribbon string. I had originally planned on tying the engagement ring to the string and place it around Connor's neck. But it didn't really look right so i tied the ring around one of his little wrists. I carried sleeping Connor upstairs and walked around to Lauren on her side of the bed. I got down on one knee and handed our sleepy baby to his mother while telling Lauren how much she means to me and how I wanted us to spend our lives together. She hadn't noticed the ring around Connor's wrist until after I had finished talking and then her eyes got big when she noticed the ring. I took it off our son's wrist and asked Lauren if she would marry me and she said yes. Then I placed the ring on her finger and we kissed. She wasn't expecting a proposal so soon after our son was born and I was able to completely surprise her with it. |
| NSW Birth 1145/1844 V18441145 62 GRIFFITH, MARY Parents: HUGH & UNKNOWN ----- Find A Grave Memorial# 124770066 ===== Mary Cain was born amidst the apparent frontier chaos of the 1840s. She has been described as a âf Coonabarabran. ----- Robertson Mail (NSW : Friday 6 September 1929) CHRISTENED IN THE SADDLE. When she was 14 years of age, Mrs. Mary Jane Cain, of BurraBee Dee Mission Station, Coonabarabran, who died recently at the age of 85 years, was taken in to Mudgee to be christened. The priest had left the town, but was overtaken on the road between Mudgee and Coonabarabran, and there, with the girl sitting in her saddle, the rite was performed. Among Mrs. Cain's vivid recollections, was that of the rush to the Ophir goldfields. At the time, she often said, the big squatters were supplanting black labor with Chinese, but with the gold discovery the Celes- tials decamped, leaving the flocks they were shepherding to the mercy of the dingoes. Serious losses soon followed, and, in desperation, the squatters went cap in hand to the blacks, and induced them to come to the rescue. Thereafter sheep-owners steered clear of Chinese labor. ----- Western Age (Dubbo, NSW : Thursday 22 August 1929) Wonderful Woman The Late Mrs. Mary Cain First Half-Caste Born on Castlereagh CHRISTENED ON HORSE-BACK ? When the late Mrs. Mary Jane Cain died recently at Burra-Bee-Dee Mission Station there was snapped a link between Coonabarabran as it is to-day and times when full-blooded aboriginals were ... 931 words ----- The North Western Courier (Narrabri, NSW : Monday 11 August 1947) Aboriginal names and meanings submitted by the late Mrs. Mary Jane Cain, of Coonabarabran : - I have selected a few well-known names of a fairly large list, which was published in the official souvenir of March, 1934, in Back to Coonabarabran Week. Mrs. Cain was born at Toorawandi on February 26th., 1844. Her father, Eugene Griffin, was an Irishman who had fought in the Peninsula War; her mother Jane was a full-blooded aboriginal woman. Mrs. Cain was brought up by a Mr. Cox, of Mudgee. The parents of Mrs. Cain, in the fifties worked on Bomera Station, which at the time belonged to. Mr. Hale and Mr. Durham. The mother shepherded the sheep whilst the father did general work, farmed, grew and harvested -wheat, tobacco, etc.; and attended to the cattle. ----- Extract from Cultural Excursion to Burra Bee Dee. While at Burra Bee Dee, we visited the cemetery where most of our past elders and family are buried to pay our respects. As we walked around the cemetery we discovered the grave of Mary-Jane Cain - the founder of Burra Bee Dee, and her daughter, Queenie Robinson. ----- Mary Jane Cain From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Born Mary Jane Griffin February 18, 1844 Toorawandi Station, NSW. [Spelling might be Toorawindi] Died 29 July 1929 (aged 85) Burra Bee Dee, NSW Nationality Australian Other names Queenie Cain ----- Mary Jane Cain (1844ân region of New South Wales. She was born in 1844 and was instrumental in the establishment of the Burra Bee Dee Aboriginal Reserve in 1912 and came to be known as the Queen of Burrabeedee or "Queenie Cain". ----- Biography Mary Jane was the daughter of Jinnie Griffin a full blooded aboriginal woman and Irishman Eugene Griffin. She was born in 1844 on Toorawandi Station. After a brief marriage to James Budsworth, Mary Jane married head stockman George William Cain in 1865. Much of what is known about the life of Mary Jane Cain was recorded in oral history interviews conducted by Margaret Somerville with four of her descendentsât Robinson and Maureen Sulter. Somerville described Mary as "the woman who straddles two eras of historyâeen two worlds of such profound difference, and she gives her people the strength to move forward. 'We gotta make it good for ourselves to go forward, the people say. How can I move across this space between Nganyinytja and me?'. After the death of her mother, Jinnie Griffin, in 1882, Mary became the leader of her community and was known to everyone as "Queenie" Cain. Mary Jane Cain petitioned the government and as a result Burra Bee Dee Aboriginal Reserve (no. 47521) was gazetted on 21 February 1912, it included a small parcel of land at Forky Mountain that had already been granted to Mary and her family by Queen Victoria. Mary Jane Cain died at Burra Bee Dee, Coonabarabran, NSW on 29 July 1929 aged 85. Language Mary Jane Cain spoke a local indigenous language, possibly Gamilaraay, and a manuscript compiled by Mary is held at the State Library of New South Wales containing wordlists of place names and the natural environment. ----- The bridge over the Castlereagh River is named the 'Mary Jane Cain Bridge' ----- Mary Jane Cain, the daughter of Jinnie and Eugene Griffin, was born at Toorawindi in 1844. She grew to become a shepherd and eventually took on the role of âr mother Jinnie had been a consort of King Cuttabush (refer to Section 2.1) and it has been assumed that she carried some authority from this relationship. She clearly held a high level of personal authority to whom âd to. A very capable woman Mary arranged a landholding at Forky Mountain for herself and her family. This place became a refuge and Aboriginal people came there from all over the northwest392. She died in Coonabarabran in 1929393, an article in the Coonabarabran Times describing the high regard in which she was held throughout the region: "Mrs Cain was known and loved by all from a very great distance around this district and outside it, and a word against her, had anyone been foolish enough to utter it, would have evoked the undying hostility of the oldest and most respected families of the North Western slopes and Central West. Many of todayâr fondled by her in their young days and entertain feelings of fierce and belligerent affection it would be good not to challenge." Source: Thematic History of the former Coonabarabran Shire 2006 <http://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/NationalParks/parkHeritage.aspx?id=N0035> ----- HISTORY The first European record of the Aboriginal people of the district comes from the journals of John Oxley who passed through in August 1818. Oxley, apparently depressed by the difficulty of his passage through âe nativesâcinity unheeded and unheedingâ As squatters began to move into the country from the 1830s, starting a struggle for resources, tensions began to be recorded. Connor recounts a series of incidents in 1837 that led to a punitive expedition by the NSW Mounted Police. Many of the first European settlers in the region were assigned convicts who worked as shepherds and labourers for the squatters. Convicts were sent with flocks of sheep beyond the limits of the colony such as those surrounding the Warrumbungle Mountains. Convicts and ex-convicts were in many cases the first Europeans with whom Aboriginal people had substantial contact. Colonial governments encouraged assignment of convicts as it was a far cheaper method of keeping them than maintaining them in penitentiaries or on road gangs. In 1837 it cost £17 per year to keep a convict on a chain gang. A convict on assignment cost £4.48 Landholders reaped the benefit of the cheap labour force provided by assigned convicts to build up their fortunes. In her account of the Aboriginal people of Coonabarabran Somerville quoted from Police Sergeant Ewingâe recordings include an account of a battle between the local Aboriginal people and a raiding party from the area now known as Cassilis. The raiding party was chased by the men of the local group to caves above the present day Coonabarabran and slaughtered. This story contains many elements of what is considered to be the traditional pattern of warfare between Aboriginal groups, the aim of which was âr neighbouring groupsâ Ewing recorded other reminiscences of Aboriginal people, including accounts of raiding parties that were later used by author Ion Idress in developing works of historical fiction such as The Red Chief of the Gunnedah Tribe. Ewingâe Coonabarabran group: They are numerous that Coonabarabran tribe and have their camps large ones miles apart ât there are small parties camped in numerous places ân the mountains there Warrumbungles there are many many caves âbe could fill ây before he could get up to you. âd parties of women and children leave camp to go fishing âd hunting small game. Kamilaroi (Gamilaraay) women were being abducted by stockmen and this probably led Kamilaroi men to kill Frederick Harrington in June at Charles Purcellâ. On 21 September Lieutenant George Cobban of the 50th Regiment, commanding the Hunter River division of the Mounted Police, was ordered to look for Harringtonâ During the same period Aboriginal people began to work on the properties being developed by the settlers. Mary Cain, who was born at Toorawindi in 1844, recalled that, during the gold rushes of the 1850s, European workers left the pastoral stations to head to the goldfields. She noted that James Orr and Robert Campbell of Borah station tried labour from India. This was unsuccessful and Orr later employed Chinese workers. These were more successful but Aboriginal people â Ebenezer Orr leased a number of properties around Yaminbah Creek. He readily employed Aboriginal people and particularly favoured women whom he dressed in red flannel. He lived with at least two of these shepherdesses in a house he built on Yaminba Creek. Mary Cain was born amidst the apparent frontier chaos of the 1840s. She has been described as a âf Coonabarabran. She was born to Jinnie and Eugene Griffin and grew up to be a shepherd. Jinnie was described by Sergeant Ewing as âacks, a small scattered wandering band that is still represented at Burrabeedee Mission Stationâ Mary married George Cain, a shearer, and by 1892 was living with George and their five children at Forky Mountain north of Coonabarabran. She had agitated for recognition of ownership of the 400 acres of land that she and George had taken up and were developing as a farm. Forked Mountain Station was gazetted on 6 February 1892. Mary Jane Cain wrote to Queen Victoria on numerous occasions requesting that the land was to be granted to her. Queen Victoria granted that Burra Bee Dee or part thereof be handed to Mary Jane Cain and Queen Victoria requested that Mary Jane was to manage the property and was required to provide a place for the Dark people to live on The story of Burrabeedee is quite a different one from the usual story of Aboriginal people being forced into reserves and missions and governed by officialdom beyond their control. In Mary Janeâd the district when they heard â Mary Cain not only founded Burrabeedee but also was an influential and respected citizen of Coonabarabran from whom other civic leaders sought advice. Burrabeedee has stood as an early example of Aboriginal people taking responsibility for their own wellbeing within a colonial economy. After World War I revocation of Aboriginal farms commenced and there was a âon of taking Aboriginal children from their familiesâ Burrabeedee was subsumed into the government controlled welfare system and the buildings eventually sold off . A number of Aboriginal men from the district had served in the Australian Imperial Force in World War I. These included Tommy Fuller of Baradine who was wounded at Passchendaele in 1917 and Bill Chatfield who served in the Light Horse. During the 1950s the official policy of governments changed from protection to assimilation. Changes in administration encouraged the residents of Burrabeedee to move into Coonabarabran. In 1954 the school at Burrabeedee closed down and over succeeding years the settlement was gradually dismantled by the government. Some houses and the school were sold off and moved on to various properties around Coonabarabran. An â, Namoi and White Streets. The church from Burrabeedee was relocated to the new Aboriginal housing project in Coonabarabran known as Gunnedah Hill. Not all Aboriginal people lived at Burrabeedee. Many families lived and worked in the townships of the shire, including Baradine and Coonabarabran. Somerville recounted the recollections of some of these people who experienced life on the fringes of the community. Others lived within the township of Coonabarabran. ----- BOOK The Sun Dancin': People and Place in Coonabarabran Marie Dundas Aboriginal Studies Press, Jan 1, 1994 - Biography & Autobiography - 211 pages History of Forky Mountain Reserve Burrabeedee Mission from the 1880s until people left under the influence of the assimilation policy of the 1950s; history of place told through histories of four women; Janet Robinson, May Mead , Marie Dundas, Maureen Sulter, three of whom are great -granddaughters of Mary Jane Cain, Queen of Burrabeedee; archaeological record of the area and womens knowledge and reaction to archaeological studies; contact history; place names and remnant language knowledge; biography of Mary Jane Cain based on oral history, memories and records; memories of Forky Mountain Reserve; missionaries; life on mission; movement to towns after mission closed; Burrabeedee today and discussion by women on what should happen to the site, particularly the cemetery. ----- Mary Jane Cain says in her manuscript "A man named Joseph Stafford who was partners with her father (Eugene Griffin) during this time also settled at Bomera - he married also a Miss Budsworth. Stafford then went to the Tooran diggings (Turon). Stafford later came back and was a shepherd at Bomara. Joseph Stafford was a convict who arrived in 1832 on the "City of Edinburgh" from Cork. Offence - stealing money - sentenced to 7 years. Joseph Stafford died 3/2/1871 at Bomera and is buried at Bomera. He was 62 years old. |
| NSW Marriage 2200/1857 BUDSWORTH, JOSEPH GRIFFIN, MARY MUDGEE ----- Mary aged 13. |
| Birth GRO 4th qtr 1928 Griffin, Ronald H W Patching Northampton 3b 46 |
| Marriages GRO 1st qtr 1953 CHATFIELD, Margaret R GRIFFIN Northampton 3b 1443 Griffin, Ronald H W Chatfield Northampton 3b 1443 |
| Name: Louis M Hooten Event Type: Marriage Event Date: 02 Jul 1928 Event Place: Bell, Texas Gender: Male Spouse's Name: Ruby Griffin Spouse's Titles and Terms: Miss Spouse's Gender: Female Page: 118 GS Film Number: 001617387 , Digital Folder Number: 004820671 , Image Number: 01447 |
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