Y is for Young #AtoZChallenge2016

My theme for the AtoZChallenge is exploring the Walker family . Thinking about the family I realised that they were around in Mackay, Queensland in the early days of settlement so I have decided to discover some snippets of early Mackay as it relates to this family and others in my family tree. I hope you enjoy the journey.

Nearing the end of the 2016 A to Z Challenge, Y is for Young.

Mary Jane Young, my 2nd great-great aunt, was a sister to Elizabeth Hanna Young, my 2nd great-grandmother. Both were the Dublin-born daughters of Henry Young and Hanna (Anna) Young nee Murry. Mary Jane was born about 1845 and Elizabeth Hanna in1846.

Elizabeth arrived in Australia on the Fiery Star in 1864 as noted in her obituary in the Daily Mercury of February 1921. Elizabeth married Joseph Antoney in Bowen on the 30th July 1867. Joseph coincidentally was the quartermaster on the Fiery Star, an obvious shipboard romance.  Elizabeth is buried in the Mackay Cemetery.

1921 'PERSONAL.', Daily Mercury (Mackay, Qld. : 1906 - 1954), 2 February, p. 2. , viewed 28 Apr 2016, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article188692401

Mary Jane arrived per the Royal Dane on 2nd December 1871 as an Assisted Immigrant. No doubt her sister had encouraged her to emigrate. She married Alexander Walker in 1872 in Mackay. Mary Jane was widowed in 1909 and lived until 17th October 1931. She is buried with her husband in the Walkerston Cemetery.

1931 'OBITUARY.', Daily Mercury (Mackay, Qld. : 1906 - 1954), 20 October, p. 6. , viewed 28 Apr 2016, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article170287898

There is a marked difference in their obituary published in the Daily Mercury, possibly because Elizabeth's family, the Antoney's, were better known in the district. I am sure that Elizabeth received comfort in her last illness with her sister at her bedside. I intend to travel to the Mackay district in the next year or so to visit places that both Elizabeth and Mary Jane lived.