Maria Hevey

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Suzanne Hevey on 20th February 2025

On arrival in Van Diemen's Land: Maria was taken with the other members of her voyage to Cascades Female Factory in Hobart in 1849 and, as was the case at the time of their arrival, the majority were assigned to 3rd Class (criminal class) to begin their stay. She was then assigned to service work with free families (more to come here). On 8 May 1850 she was accused of larceny under 5pounds, however, with "no person appearing to prosecute", it seems there was no conviction or punishment following the accusation. On 18 July 1850 she was not so lucky and, for "quarreling with her fellow servant and being absent," she received 3 months hard labour. Newspaper advertisements on Saturday 11 January 1851 show that she received approval to marry Alexander Smith (free) and that they both resided in Green Ponds (The Cornwall Chronicle http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article65574543). No other record of this union can be found at this stage. She received her ToL on 30 Sept 1851. On 8 January 1852 she received another two months hard labour for being "absent without leave from her authorised abode." Maria's conduct record has a note that she married William Matthews (per Ratcliffe 2) on 14 June 1852, though no other official records have been found to confirm this yet. On 10 November 1852, her Conditional Pardon was Recommended, with approval granted on 18 October 1853. I have many speculative, but no confirmed records of her after this time - would appreciate any tips or insights.

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Suzanne Hevey on 19th February 2025

Before conviction: Maria was born around May 1830, to Johannis and Margaritae (nee Owens) in Athlone, Co Roscommon, Ireland. There are many spellings and misspellings of the surname (a theme which continues nearly 200 years later). So far I have a list of 28 variations that appear, but most frequently seen are: Heavey, Heavy, and Havey. Maria was baptised 23 May 1830 in St Peter's, Athlone and Drum Parish, Co Roscommon. Her godparents are listed as Ann Heavy and Patritius Prendergast. Another Maria Heavy/Hevey was christened in the same parish where Maria was tried in 1848 and the two births are frequently confused / combined on genealogical sites. Her indent helps us clarify which we're dealing with as her parents are listed here as John and Peggy - both common nicknames for the longer Johannis and Margeurite / Margaret. The Kildare christening has the parents as Ellen Connor and Patt Hevey. Similarly, her 'native place' appears on convict records as Athlone, though her trial was in Kildare. What is confusing is the recording of the birth of a Maria Heavy, again to Joannis and Magaritae (John and Peggy), but this time on 31 Aug 1834, in the Irish Civil Records Index. While it was common, if a child had died, for another child born to receive the name, I have not found a record of death for the 1830 Maria. Sometimes, the years are recorded incorrectly in indexes... Until I can get to the physical archives in Ireland, proving her exact birth year will be tricky. Her conduct record and indent both list her age as 19 at her trial in March 1848 lending further weight to the May 1830 hypothesis. She worked as a housemaid in Kildare at the house she would be convicted for burning with Mary Wilson, Julia Wilson and Rose Murray in 1848. In 1848 Maria is described as a 19yo of 5 feet 1 and a half inches. She was able to read but not write. She had an oval shaped head, sandy brown hair and eyebrows framing her high forehead. Her eyes are described as grey. She had freckles over her small nose. Her chin was round and her mouth small. She was a single woman with no prior convictions. 'Burning a house': While some records on the same voyage note the motivation of 'being transported' on similar convictions, this is not recorded on Maria's. However, with the tragedy of The Hunger raging through Ireland, and transportation offering–at a high cost–food and shelter, it was not uncommon for those with no convictions to commit a crime serious enough to achieve a sentence of transport for a first offence. It's probable that this is the case here.