John McPhee Family - Blue Vapours

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Samuel and Catherine Loney: Port Phillip & Wimmera Pioneers in the same Church of St Francis in Lonsdale Street Melbourne, to recall devoutly the 150 years to the day since that Baptism so long ago. Bridget Loney had fifty-six grand children, of whom the author of this article is the fifty-fifth. In his first years working in these distant places in North Western Victoria, as a shepherd and tailor, Sam Loney brought his family back to Melbourne again once a year, so that they could receive the Sacraments in their beloved Church. When the Catholic community had Mass celebrated for them for the first time in Horsham in 1857, it was Jane Loney who was among the helpers and caterers for the refreshments after-wards. She would have been about sixteen years old at the time. It had only been a few weeks before this, when her parents, Samuel and Catherine Loney had walked from Horsham to Ballarat, carrying their daughter Mary Ellen, and taking her to the Catholic Church for Baptism. As a result of the Loney’s visit to Ballarat, the priest, Father Madden, went soon afterwards to minister to the people in distant Horsham. In 1871, when he sold the property in Lonsdale Street, Loney left Janie and Mary Ellen in Melbourne, to be educated. He paid in advance for them, for their board and the school costs. He paid for everything that the girls would need, and a good supply of clothes and shoes. The children had been in Melbourne for about twelve months, when word reached the Loney parents that one of the girls was very ill. At this time the Loneys were living up near Lake Hindmarsh. When she heard this worrying news, Catherine Loney set off walking through the rough country to Dimboola, carrying a few necessities she had thrown together for the journey. From Dimboola, after some time waiting, she was able to catch the coach to Melbourne. But in Melbourne, she was told that the sick daughter, Mary Ellen, was dead and buried. She had died from neglect. Catherine Loney could do nothing, but she took the other daughter Jane with her, and returned to her husband’s side at Lake Hindmarsh. Jane gave her parents details of how the girls had been so poorly treated in Melbourne, no school, and no kindness, from the landlady to whom they had been entrusted. Catherine took the coach back to Dimboola, and Samuel Loney met her there, and took her and Jane home to Lake Hindmarsh, by bullock dray. This was their sad and lonely trip back to their little home. On one occasion, when they were comfortably settled in their home, in a lovely clump of trees and undergrowth, fires began to rage all around them. Fortunately for them, their shepherd’s hut was a substantial and solid structure. The children who were there at the time, kept filling saucers and dishes of water for the many birds, some of whom came right into the little room. The fires miraculously passed by. They believed that the good mother’s prayers were answered that day. And the children loved the long trips to Melbourne at first, and later to Ballarat, for the Sacraments, and the family made these trips into a long picnic. They looked forward to the annual pilgrimage to Melbourne with feelings of keen pleasure. Catherine Loney, whose tastes had been moulded by the rustic scenery about her, is known to have appreciated especially the Burnbank locality (near Lexton) where they would camp on route. Later on, the Wilson Brothers asked Samuel Loney to go to another outpost on their extensive properties, that of Darragan, where he continued with his trade of tailoring, which he did by candlelight, and with shepherding Wilson’s sheep by day. While living at Darragan, the Loney family started to receive frequent visits from John McPhee, another Wilson employee. The Darragan Creek became a favourite pasture and grazing for the sheep under McPhee’s care. So in 1864 John McPhee married Bridget Loney. The marriage, which was celebrated at the home of Page 8 John McPhee Family
Mr Michael Healy at Natimuk, with Father Thomas Barrett officiating, was recorded in the Stawell Catholic Parish. Bridget Loney and John McPhee made their home at Nurrabiel, and lived there for nine years. The passage of time saw the Samuel Loney family gradually accumulating properties around Dooen, on the site of Glover’s shop of the 1940’s, and the block of the Presbyterian Church, and around Horsham, and helping his son-in-law to get better land at Natimuk. Jane Loney married James Hammond at Pleasant Creek in 1861. James had come to Australia from Norfolk, England. Like nearly everyone else in the area, Hammond had been working for the Wilsons. He was a boundary rider at the Vectis Station at the time of his marriage. Catherine Loney died in March, 1877, at the home of her daughter Jane O’Donnell in Horsham. Jane, whose husband Hammond had died, was by then married to her second husband John O’Donnell. Jane was to live for another forty years in that small house behind Weight’s funeral parlors. There is a picture of Catherine Loney in the wonderful book by the local historian Rev JF Coughlin in his: “Horsham Parish Centenary Booklet”, and the photo is reproduced on page 41 in the book: “John McPhee and His Family”, published at Port Melbourne by Bernard McPhee, in 1982. Samuel Loney was accidentally killed in 1883. This is how it happened: Samuel Loney’s youngest two sons Robert, aged twenty three, and Eugene, aged twenty, were working with their father at Darragan, where it seems they were clearing some land. Robert recalled that it was about 10.30 in the morning when the accident happened. His father Samuel had been talking away cheerfully to him a little while before, about some land to select, said Robert afterwards. Samuel and Robert had been working on their section of clearing, about a mile from where Robert was engaged in cutting limbs from a big tree. After he had seen to Eugene’s going off to look at some other section, Samuel Loney approached to where Robert was John McPhee Family Bridget McPhee, at Kenmare, 1911 working. By the time Robert saw Samuel approaching, and had called out to him of the danger of coming so close, it was too late for Samuel to avoid a giant limb, which fell. Robert ran to him – “Father, can you speak?” he said. He called for Eugene, who was attracted by the loud cries and at once ran back, and then they both together tried to get the big limb off him. But they could not move it. And Eugene added: “My father did not move.” Samuel Loney had been in Victoria for some fortythree years, and he died when he was only sixty-six years old. He did not leave a will. His son James applied to administer his estate, but James also died before this could be affected, so Samuel Loney Junior got permission to administer the estate. The deceased’s estate showed that Samuel Loney had a bay mare called “Poll”; he had a black mare called “Gipsy” and he had two bay horses called “Prince” and “Chance”. Samuel Loney had owned a block of land in Richmond, what is today 12 Albert Street Richmond. In Horsham he owned land on the corner of Firebrace Street and O’Callaghan’s Parade. And he owned a single block in Urquhart Street Horsham. - Bernard McPhee Page 9
Page 1 and 2: John McPhee Family Bernard McPhee A
Page 3 and 4: Introduction Welcome back to reader
Page 5 and 6: main man was Captain John MacDonell
Page 7 and 8: MacArthur of Penola was quite close
Page 9: John McPhee Family Samuel and Cathe
Page 13 and 14: John McPhee Family This very happy
Page 15 and 16: Scottish origins of our McPhee fami
Page 17 and 18: Jane Loney, born in Melbourne in 18
Page 19 and 20: Bridget and John McPhee. This is a
Page 21 and 22: Below: Bessie Drummmond, known as A
Page 23 and 24: James and Julia McPhee. James Hughb
Page 25 and 26: If you visit ‘THE GRANARY’ in t
Page 27 and 28: John McPhee Family Watchupga and Na
Page 29 and 30: all was right there in front of me.
Page 31 and 32: Macphee found strong indications of
Page 33 and 34: Portland to Coleraine It was a long
Page 35 and 36: them as they really were - kind, go
Page 37 and 38: Letter 2 Natimuk 28th Feb. 1881 Hon
Page 39 and 40: NATIMUK John McPhee Family Natimuk
Page 41 and 42: Tom Murphy John McPhee Family J Mit
Page 43 and 44: John Thomas McPhee, the eldest son
Page 45 and 46: John T McPhee and the Gartland Fami
Page 51 and 52: Frank Hallam pauses in front of McP
Page 55 and 56: Jack McPhee and his cousin Bob McPh
Page 57 and 58: At Donvale Victoria in 1956. A fami
Page 59 and 60: Matthew Middleditch married Catheri
Page 61 and 62:
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Page 63 and 64:
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