Alexander & Jane McDonald
The McDonald’s came from the parish of Dunblane in Perthshire, Scotland.
They married there on the 19th January 1850. The parish register shows that both Alexander McDonald and Jean (sic) Stewart were of that parish.
Alexander’s family were Scottish tenant farmers. He was one of 9 children born to Donald (occ. Daniel) & Catherine McDonald (nee McLaren).
Census records show that they leased a farm named Dalbrack, about 7.5km NW of Dunblane.
An 1857 valuation report states that Dalbrack was owned by Sir James Campbell, Baronet. It is described as "A small farm steading with two cotters houses in inferior repair, it is on the farm of Upper Glastry." Other census records show that the McDonalds also leased Upper Glastry. It is described as "A small two storey house with steading attached, the whole slated and in good repair. The property of Sir James Campbell, Baronet".
When Donald McDonald died in 1873, his estate was valued by his executors at £1517, equivalent to about $400,000 today.
Alexander & Jane McDonald arrived in Melbourne on 23rd August 1850 aboard the ‘Duke of Portland’.
However this is not the ship they travelled out to Australia on.
The ‘Port Phillip Gazette & Settler's Journal’, published on Saturday 24th Aug 1850 reported that the ‘Duke of Portland’ arrived 23rd Aug with its own passengers and including 51 passengers in the steerage transshipped from the 'Lucy'.
The ‘Duke of Portland’ had left Adelaide Sunday 18th Aug 1850, and Alexander & Jane Macdonald were listed as two as those 51 transshipped passengers.
The ‘Lucy’ departed Liverpool on the 25th March 1850. The shipping register shows among the 74 passengers; ‘A. McDonald & Wife’.
The ‘Lucy’ arrived in Adelaide on the 25th July and anchored there to discharge cargo. But its captain failed to report the arrival to customs until the 29th. Subsequently the captain was charged and required to appear in court at a later date. As a result of this delay, 51 passengers from the ‘Lucy’ were moved to the ‘Duke of Portland’ to continue their journey to Port Phillip.
Alexander was not the only McDonald of this family to move to Victoria.
Donald McDonald’s will in 1874 mentions sisters Janet & Elizabeth McDonald, and a brother James McDonald who also moved to Victoria.
Janet married James Henderson in 1856 in Dunblane. They possibly came out to Victoria aboard the ‘Champion of the Seas’ in March 1857. They had one son, Thomas, born in Ballarat in 1858.
Elizabeth McDonald moved to Victoria as a single woman, and married Finlay McBeath in 1858. They had one daughter, Catherine, born in Glendaruel in 1859, before Finlay died in 1860.
James possibly came to Victoria aboard the ‘Chalmers’ arriving in Nov 1852. He married Margaret Paul Thomson in Geelong in 1852. They had a son, James, born in Ballarat in 1854. James (senior) died at Eureka (Ballarat) in 1855. His will contains a statement from his widow Margaret, where she mentions James’ brother Alexander, who also lives in the colony of Victoria.
We know that Alexander & Jane settled in Hamilton.
The first official record of them living there is when the twins Donald & Isabella are born on the 26th Aug 1854, and registered at Hamilton.
It is possible they were living there sooner, but without official documents this cannot be proven.
We do know however that Donald had an older brother, John (Isabella died in 1855 at about 6 months of age).
John is mentioned in Alexander’s will, written 1st Oct 1869.
Alexander McDonald died on the 2nd Oct 1869.
At the time Alexander died, they were living at ‘Warrabkook’, near Macarthur.
His will states that he was a farmer.
The will gives clues to Alexander’s activities at Warrabkook, showing accounts for ‘reaping & thrashing of crop’, and also mentions of accounts for sheep. Also in the will are mentions of receipts for ‘bushels of wheat and oats’, as well as ‘eight bags of potatoes’, ‘135 tons of firewood’ and ‘cash received for the use of the bullocks’.
It is clear though that Alexander did not trust his wife Jane in financial affairs.
The will bequeaths all his real and personal effects to George Holmes of Byaduk and Mr. Silverberg of Macarthur, storekeeper, to be held in trust for the use of his wife and his children, named in the will as John, Donald, Catherine & Helen. Jane was required from the estate to support the children during their minorities. Mr. Silverberg (along with Jane) was appointed guardians of the four children.
(Research shows that Mr. Silverberg was Siacob Sillberberg, shopkeeper of Macarthur)
The farm was sold on the 1st Dec 1870 for £546. Included in the accounts for the probate is the mention that the dwelling on the farm will be removed and rebuilt for Mrs. McDonald & family.
The will shows a purchase of Cottage & Land at Macarthur as an investment and for use of Mrs. McDonald & family. Price of purchase was £60. Records show that the Wooden Cottage on Warrabkook was indeed dismantled and rebuilt on the new property at Macarthur. Also moved were the household furniture & utensils, 4 bullocks & dray, 1 cow & 1 horse.
Jane McDonald lived another 20 years after Alexander’s death.
Jane was involved in quite a horrific incident in 1878, when she was in her early 50’s.
The full details of the incident were reported in the Hamilton Spectator on Sat 11th May 1878, but here is a summary of the events:
In the report, Jane was described as ‘a widow, borne of good character, although occasionally fond of drink’.
On the evening of the 15th Feb 1878, Jane was walking home to her home in Byaduk from Macarthur, about six miles away. She had about half a bottle of gin with her, although claimed to be quite sober. On the way she stopped for a little while at a road camp as she knew the road contractor and had done some washing for him. After a little conversation with the men in the camp she proceeded on her journey home. She had walked about 2 miles when a buggy came along the road driven by George Bishop, and containing Thomas Whyte & Robert Young. She asked if they could give her a lift to her home. Young commited a ‘criminal offence’ upon her whilst Whyte held her so that she could not get away. Young then took the reins of the buggy, and Bishop treated her as Young had done before.
By this time the buggy was nearing Jane’s home, and she begged to be allowed to get out but was not allowed to do so. Before reaching Harding’s Hotel at Byaduk, Whyte also made a ‘criminal assault’ on her whilst Young held her down.
At the hotel the buggy was stopped and everyone got out. Jane was intending on complaining to the hotel owner but he was too busy. In the bar, Bishop forced Jane’s hair into her mouth to keep her quiet as she was screaming. Harding asked the men what they were doing with the woman, as she was in an ‘exhausted state’, and they claimed they were going to take her home. They were turned out of the hotel as they had no money to pay for any more drink and were behaving in ‘indecent attitudes’.
Everyone got back into the buggy and headed toward Hamilton. Lots of screaming was witnessed to be heard, both by Jane and the men in the buggy.
Offences were committed against her again on the way to Hamilton, and as it was getting dark she was ‘chucked’ out of the buggy on to a thistle bed. Jane was screaming at them and making threats so offences were committed against her a fourth time. She was then left at the waterhole about 9 miles from her home, at about 11pm that night.
Her clothes were all torn to pieces, very ragged and the top of her dress gone and her skirt all torn. She was in a very weak state.
At daylight she tried to walk home, and on reaching Harding’s Hotel made a complaint to Mr. Harding. His wife gave Jane some clothes and sent her home in a cart. It was a week before she was able to rise from her bed.
On the 19th Feb Jane was examined by a doctor who was brought to him by the Sergeant.
He wrote that her body, front and back was literally covered in bruises. There were bruises under the jaws, on both arms, in the small of her back, and above the knees. There were abrasions of skin in various prominent parts and also a cut on the chin. She was said to be in an ‘excited state, sometimes giving very smart answers, and sometimes not appearing to understand questions, or make herself understood’.
Subsequently Thomas Whyte, George Bishop & Robert Young were charged with several counts of violently and feloniously assaulting Jane McDonald with intent.
They were found guilty, Young receiving 18 months & 9 months imprisonment with hard labour. Whyte was sentenced to 9 months imprisonment and Bishop 12 months with hard labour. Also imposed on them at the end of their sentences was recognizance of £50 for Whyte & Young and £100 for Bishop. For a labourer in the 1880’s, this was a virtual life sentence.
Perhaps this event, and the loss of family living close by, took its toll on Jane and her wellbeing.
She died on 6th June 1889 in quite sad circumstances.
Her inquest gives quite a bit of detail about her death:
Jane was discovered deceased in one of the paddocks of Mr. Melville near Byaduk.
As he was travelling along the road from Hamilton to Byaduk on Friday the 7th June, he observed some personal effects in the paddock beside the road. They included a parasol, a hat, a slipper, a bag and a pocket handkerchief. Also there was a smashed gin bottle and another empty bottle.
He believed the items probably belonged to Mrs. Jane McDonald, whom he had known for about 23 years. But he thought little of the discovery as he knew Jane well and knew that she was ‘addicted to drinking habits’, and had probably had dropped the articles there on her way home.
It was not until the 12th June when questions around the district were being asked as nobody had seen her for about a week. Upon returning to the scene where the personal effects were found, Mr. Melville stood up on the fence and observed an object about 40 yards away. Upon closer investigation it was discovered that this was the body of Jane, lying on her back.
It was stated in the inquest notes that she was ‘very much addicted to drink’. Gin seems to be her drink of choice.
The verdict was that her death was caused by ‘intemperance and old age and exposure to the weather’,
We know only a little of what happened to the four surviving children:
Donald McDonald married Ann Maria Colyer at Byaduk on the 15th Feb 1876.
They lived at Byaduk, and had 3 children there before moving to Branxholme (about 20km NW) and had another 10 children.
Both Donald & Ann Maria share a grave in the Hamilton Cemetery.
Helen (Ellen) McDonald married Francis Thomas Tomlins in Hamilton in 1871. They lived in Macarthur first of all and had five children there. Followed by another two after a move to Neerim and the final four were born after their move to Bairnsdale. Ellen Tomlins died at Carlton in 1918.
Catherine McDonald married John Russell in 1886. They lived in Carlton and had four children. She died in 1940.
John & Catherine Russell are buried in Fawkner Memorial Park, Melbourne.
I cannot find any information about John, although he must have died after 1869 as he is mentioned in his father’s will.
There is a John McDonald who appears in the Hamilton papers around that time, but as there were several John McDonald’s in the area, including a second one living at Macarthur, it is very difficult to discover what happened to him.
He may have been the one who died in 1879. The record states father Alexander and mother Ann Stewart. But also states aged 32 and born in Scotland.