ALLEN

Winifred Curley died in 1892 in the Kilmore Hospital, aged 61.

John Curley was born c1833 and died in 1894 in Victoria, age 61.

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Henry worked for many years as a cattle driver, drover & dealer. He moved about in Victoria and NSW, probably working with the cattle. I know he spent time in Echuca, Narrandera, Menindee and Wilcannia, before settling in Broken Hill.

In 1884 we discover him at Weinteriga Station near Menindee.

Later at Wilcannia he lived at Murtee Point about 5km from the town. During this time (1889) it is known that he owned his own ‘brand’.

He held licences for two Wilcannia hotels; the Murtie Point Hotel in 1888-1889 and the Kempro/Kenepro Hotel in 1891.

Between 1891 & 1894 he spent 3 years in the Goulburn gaol.

From the Sydney Morning Herald on the 26th November 1891 we read:

Wilcannia Quarter Sessions.

23rd November 1891.

‘…Henry Allen, larceny of a cheque for £10, the property of James Burgess, at Kennager’s Hotel, on the 14th October, pleaded not guilty. Mr. Forster appeared for the prisoner. The jury, after deliberating for several hours, brought in a verdict of guilty, and the prisoner was sentenced to three years hard labour in Hay gaol. Timothy Murphy, charged with being an accessory after the fact to larceny from the person, was discharged, as the Crown Prosecutor stated he did not think the evidence justified him putting the case before the jury.’

In 1902 he was the caretaker of the government water tank at Little Topar on the Wilcannia Road near Broken Hill.

Again he appears in the newspapers:

BROKEN HILL, October 2 1903.

‘Donald McIntyre, a young man, whose father is a horse-owner, of Wilcannia, was committed for trial at the Police Court today on a charge of obtaining two horses, the property of Henry Allen, caretaker, at Little Topar Tank, by means of false pretences, on May 20. It is alleged that the accused exchanged two horses he had for two belonging to Mr. Allen. Reaching Broken Hill next day, he sold the horses. The father of the accused afterwards claimed the horses, left by his son at Topar, saying the accused had no authority to dispose of them’

There is record of fourteen children born to them:

1)John Henry (Jack) ALLEN.   *Born 14-9-1880 in Narrandera.

                                                 *Died 1-8-1936 in Broken Hill.

                                                 *Married 1908 to Edith Burns in Broken Hill.

                                                                                     (Edith died 11-4-1971, age 84).

                                                     Issue:

                                                     a)Henry William Allen. b.1909-Broken Hill.

                                                                                            d.1973-Broken Hill. Buried 10-5-1973.

                                                     b)Eric J. Allen. b.1911-Broken Hill.

2)Annie Allen.   *Born c1881.

                          *Died 1953 in Mildura (aged 71).

                          *Married 1900 to William Morris in Wilcannia.

          Issue:

          a)Thomas W. Morris. b.1901-White Cliffs.

          b)Ellen M. Morris. b.1903-White Cliffs.

          c)Mary A. Morris. b.1906-Broken Hill.

3)Maud Cilvesta Allen.   *Born 16-4-1884 at Weinteriga Station near Menindee.

                                       *Died 1954. Buried in Karrakatta Cemetery, WA.

                                       *Married 1905 to William H. Stanley in Broken Hill.  Wm died 1947.

          Issue:

          a)William A. Stanley. b.1906-White Cliffs.

          b)Alice S. Stanley. b.1907-White Cliffs.

          c)Maud Catherine Stanley. b.December 1911-Williams, WA.

          d)Edna Mary Stanley. b.September 1913-Williams, WA.

4)William ALLEN.   *Born 1886 in Wilcannia.

                                  *Died 1906 in Broken Hill. Buried 10-7-1906. Aged 20.

                                                   *Died 3-5-1961 at Fullerton, Adelaide. Lived in Pt. Augusta.

                                                   *Married 1907 to George Patrick McMahon in Broken Hill.

                                                                                                                  (Died 15-3-1957)

          Issue:

          a)William P. McMahon. b.1908-Broken Hill.

          b)George V. McMahon. b.1910-Broken Hill.

          c)Mary P. McMahon. b.1911-Broken Hill.

6)Henry ALLEN.   *Born c1891 in Wilcannia.

                             *Died 1955 in Broken Hill. Buried  25-8-1955. Aged 64.

                             *Married 1915 to Grace Maud McRorie in Broken Hill. Grace died in 1937 in Broken Hill.

         Issue:

         a)Jack ALLEN. b.1916-Broken Hill.

                                  d.2002-Broken Hill.

                                  m.1937-Desma Elaine Carroll-Broken Hill.

7)Peter Bertie ALLEN.   *Born 7-1-1895 in Wilcannia. Birth registered as George Allen but child was

                                                                                      baptised as Peter Bertie Allen.

                                           *Died 21-1-1989 in Broken Hill. Aged 94.

                                           *Married Holly Doris Unknown. Holly died 18-7-1994 in B.H. age 81.

8)George ALLEN.   *Born 17-5-1896 at Murtee Point, Wilcannia.

                                *Died 2-9-1960 in Broken Hill.

                                *Married 9-10-1917 to Lucy Ellen TONKIN in Broken Hill with issue.

9)Albert ALLEN.   *Born 1897 in Wilcannia.

                               *Died 1897 in Wilcannia.

10)Mary R. ALLEN.   *Born 1899 in Wilcannia.

                                  *Died 1899 in Wilcannia.

11)Frank/Francis ALLEN.   *Born 1900 in Wilcannia.

                                            *Died 1901 in Wilcannia.

12)May ALLEN.   *Born 30-8-1902 at Little Topar Tank, Wilcannia Road near Broken Hill.

                               *Died 17-11-1902 at Little Topar Tank, Wilcannia Road near Broken Hill.

13)Alfred ALLEN.   *Born 19-4-1904 at Eyre Street in Broken Hill.

                               *Died 1905 in Broken Hill South. Buried 6-6-1905. Aged 7 months.

There is also record of another girl who was adopted by the Allens:

1)Violet Rich.   *Born 1877 in Wentworth to Benjamin & Eliza Rich.

                         *Died 1907 in Menindee.

          Issue by unrecorded father:

          a)Violet Rich. b.1896-Wilcannia. Violet claimed William Tootell was the father and unsuccessfully filed for maintenance payments.

          b)George Rich b.1898-Wilcannia.

                                   d.11-5-1899-Wilcannia. Violet was charged with murder of this child after he died from severe neglect. Case was dismissed.

         c)John F Rich. b.1900-Wilcannia.

                                  d.poss.1920-Broken Hill as John Hornal. Burial 27-4-1920. Aged 22 yrs.

                         *Married 1902 to Bruce Hornal in Menindee.

          Issue:

          a)Lilly M Hornal. b.1903-Menindee.

          b)Nellie H Hornal. b.1905-Menindee.

          c)Rosie Hornal. b.1907-Menindee.

                                    d.1908-Menindee.

Mary Allen and Violet Rich appear in the Wilcannia sessions on the 27th July 1892, charged with larceny. Thet stole £24 from a ‘chinaman’. They were fined and imprisoned. Both prorested their innocence and ‘sobbed bitterly’ in court.

After the dismissal of the charge of murder against Violet Rich in May 1899, the court made an opinion about the goings on at Murtee point:

‘...the Bench have given great weight to such evidences of natural affection appeared, and to the fact that it would seem you had nursed the child as a mother, though that might amount to absolute starvation. They are willing to believe that you had not the money to buy artificial food. At the same time, they consider you are terribly to blame for the condition in which the child was found. They consider your conduct the result of ignorance, and probably of the circumstances which surround you. The Bench, however, in blaming this girl desire to express their very decided opinion that the Allens, both man and woman, are far more culpable. They cannot find words to express their abhorrence of the unnatural conduct of the older people. Further, they consider that the father of the child, whoever he may be, it makes no difference, is almost equally culpable, and if he happened to be a man of experience and education so much greater the blame attributable to him.'

Clearly life was on the rougher side for the Allens.

When questioned about why she had neglected the child, left it in a house alone and not worked to buy food, Violet replied to the police:

“How can I go out and work? If I do get a place, Allen, when he gets drunk, spreads all sorts of bad reports about me, and then I've got to leave my place." Allen is her adoptive father ; she has lived with him, to my knowledge, more than three years ; I said to her on the way to Mrs. Cummerford's, " What were you doing with the child shut up in that house all by itself if you weren't neglecting it?" she said, " It's not my fault ; I would not have it shut up there if I could help it, because when Allen comes home drunk he always growls and kicks up a row about the child and won't let me keep it in the house.”

Henry Allen appears twice more in the newspapers:

The Argus, Saturday 1 May 1909:

‘BROKEN HILL, Friday. A fire occurred on Wednesday night in Eyre Street, South Broken Hill, when a nine-roomed house, owned and occupied by Henry Allen, was gutted. The house and furniture were insured for £200 in the Liverpool, London, and Globe office. This is the fourth fire in less than three days.’

The Advertiser, Saturday 26 February 1910:

BROKEN HILL,  February 25.

‘In the Police Court today Henry Allen, 73 years of age, proceeded against Thomas Humphrey on a charge of assault. The evidence showed that the defendant had accused the plaintiff of gossiping about him, and had struck the old man, following him into the house to continue the attack. The magistrate said he considered it an aggravated assault by a hale, hearty man on an infirm old man, and he fined the defendant £4 with £3 18/ costs.’

Mary Allen died in 1911 in Broken Hill and was buried on the 24th March. Also in the same grave is her son, William who died in 1906.

Henry Allen died 10th July 1918 (aged 93) in Broken Hill and was buried on the 11th. At the time he was living in Piper St. off Central St.