John Kenny

40

Sandie McKoy on 30th November 2024

Information John was born around 1825 at County Galway to dairy workers Patrick and Mary Kenny. As a teenager, John worked as an errand boy and received a basic education where he learned to read and write. At the age of 15, John and his parents were convicted of grievous assault at the Galway court on 2 January 1840. They were sentenced to be transported - John for 7 years, Patrick for 17 years total from two court trials (grievous assault and burglary and robbery), and Mary for 7 years. Mary was transported on the convict ship Margaret and arrived at Port Jackson on 17 August 1840. John and his father were transported to Australia on the ship King William. They boarded at Kingstown Harbour, Dublin, and left for Australia on 28 April 1840 along with 178 male Irish convicts and a military guard. When the weather was cold and rainy, the ship was continuously flooded and many of the men suffered from catarrhal, diarrhoea, and rheumatism. On the 10th of July, John was treated for catarrh and was placed on the sick list. He was discharged three days later. On 17 August 1840, the ship pulled into Port Jackson, New South Wales. John and his father were processed on the ship and John's appearance was recorded as: height - 5 feet, complexion - ruddy and freckled, hair - brown, eyes - bluish, nose a little crooked, three small scars on centre of forehead, and two on left eyebrow. John arrived just as the transition between the assignment to the probation system was in effect. I'm not sure where he was assigned to or completed his probation period at between 1840 - 1844, but he received his first indulgence in the form of a ticket of leave on 13 January 1844 at Yass, New South Wales. He was now able to work some hours on his own accord and earn money. He wasn't allowed to leave the Yass district, but the ticket of leave gave John the opportunity to start saving money and build a life for himself in the colony. His father Patrick was living at Yass by at least 1846 and his mother Mary was transferred to Yass in the same year. By 1846 he was living at Murrumbidgee and was assigned to 'Mr Peters'. His second ticket of leave received on 17 February 1846 enabled him to continue earning money through private arrangements, but he wasn't allowed to leave the service of Mr Peters or the Murrumbidgee district. At some point he settled back at Yass and in 1852 he married Ann Bowen. He started a carrier business and transported goods for companies to various towns. He and Ann welcomed the following children: Thomas (b 1852), Patrick (b 1854), and Mary (b 1855). Around July 1856, moved from Yass to Woolshed, Victoria, to live temporarily with his brother Thomas. Ann and the children stayed at Yass. On 23 October 1856, John and his mate William Masson (bullock driver) were drinking at the Lord Raglan Hotel at Reids Creek. In the evening they attempted to follow a miner, John Atley, across the Woolshed Creek by walking over a log. William and and John Atley warned John not to cross but he attempted the trip and fell into the fast rushing water. Recent rains had flooded the creek and the currents were strong. John was dragged 100 yards downstream by the current and he became lodged under a group of logs. Another miner, James Jackson, attempted to rescue John but it was too dangerous. John sadly drowned and his body was recovered the next morning. An inquest was held at Woolshed Creek on the 24th of October. John's brother Thomas was the death informant and John was laid to rest in the Beechworth Cemetery on the 26th of October. Charles Arnold was the undertaker and John Kennedy (Roman Catholic priest) presided over his burial. John is buried in an unmarked grave in an unknown location in the Cemetery. Sources Convict Ship King William - 1940, Free Settler or Felon, Convict and Colonial History, Jen Willetts, https://freesettlerorfelon.com/convict_ship_king_william_1840.htm. Medical Journal of the King William, National Archives, Folio 5, https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C10531429. John Kenny, King William, 1840, annotated printed indent, New South Wales State Archives, NRS 12189, pp 136–137, in New South Wales, Australia, Convict Indents, 1788–1842, Ancestry.com. John Kenny, King William, 1840, Butts of ticket of leave passports, 13 January 1844, New South Wales State Archives, NRS 12202, 4/4185, in New South Wales, Australia, Tickets of Leave, 1810-1869, Ancestry.com. John Kenny, King William, 1840, Butts of ticket of leave passports, 17 February 1846, New South Wales State Archives, NRS 12204, in New South Wales, Australia, Tickets of Leave, 1810-1869, Ancestry.com. Patrick Kenny, King William, 1840, Butts of ticket of leave passports, 16 March 1846, New South Wales State Archives, NRS 12202, 4/4205, in New South Wales, Australia, Tickets of Leave, 1810-1869, Ancestry.com. Mary Kenny, Margaret, 1840, Butts of ticket of leave passports, 12 November 1845, New South Wales State Archives, NRS 12202, 4/4204, in New South Wales, Australia, Tickets of Leave, 1810-1869, Ancestry.com. Marriage registration of John Kenny and Ann Bowen, married 1852, Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages, Victoria, 5677/1852. Death registration of John Kenny, died 23 October 1856, Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages, Victoria, 5677/1856. Inquest of John Kennedy, inquest held 24 October 1856, PROV, VA 2889 Registrar-General's Department, VPRS 24 Inquest Deposition Files, P0000, 1856/704. Death certificate of John Kenny, died 23 October 1856, obtained from the Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages, Victoria, by Sandie McKoy. Research by Sandie McKoy

338

Penny-Lyn Beale on 6th November 2023

FATHER; Patrick Kenny aged 40 years on board. MOTHER; Mary Kenny sent out in ship "Margaret. 3" - 1840" 1844 - 13 Jan 1844 - Ticket of Leave. Allowed to remain in the District of Yass. No; 44/298.