Margaret Ryan

Level 116

Tony Beale on 17th September 2020

From Co Clare Ireland single catholic who could read has 1 female child 5' 1 1/4" ruddy complexion light red hair grey eyes UK, Royal Navy Medical Journals, 1817-1856 for Margret Ryan Thomas Harrison 1836 24 Jan - 1836 23 Jun. Suffered fro Pyrexia, fever after being wet on deck and treated for 4 days in the sick bay New South Wales and Tasmania, Australia Convict Musters, New South Wales General muster 1837 assigned to Mr W Lewis Sydney New South Wales, Australia, Registers of Convicts' Applications to Marry, Margaret Ryan 27 Bond per ship Thomas Harrison 1836 Granted to marry Charles Delaney 42 free (7yrs) per ship Andromeda (1) on 16/11/1837 New South Wales, Australia, Certificates of Freedom, cert no 43/641 dated 24/4/1843 also states wife of Charles Delaney per ship Andromeda (1) free by servitude New South Wales, Australia, Gaol Description and Entrance Books, 1818-1930 for Margaret Delany Entrance Book Bathurst 8/1/1847 original name Ryan accompanied by two children per ship Thomas Harrison Committed fro trial as an accessory to the murder of her husband Charles Delaney and as a witness against Mick Butler in the circuit court 24/2/1847 The Citizen (Sydney, NSW : 1846 - 1847) View title info Sat 16 Jan 1847 Page 2 Local news. Revolting Murder near Bathurst. — On the 4th instant a dreadful murder was perpetrated at a sheep station called Wattle Flat, about twenty miles from Bathurst. The victim was a shepherd named Charles Delaney, in the employ of Mr. P. White, proprietor of the above station. The actual murderers are not yet positively known, but a man named Butler, and the wife of the victim are both in custody on suspicion. It appears that the said Butler, who was employed at a station only a few miles distant, had been accustomed occasionally to make friendly visits to Delaney's hut ; on a recent occasion poor Delaney went into Bathurst to get some medicine for a sick child, and during his absence Butler had been frequently at the hut, and it is thought he was too intimate with Delany's wife ; and this familiarity Delaney often noticed, and checked his wife for. On Monday the 4th the wife had been washing some linen, which she put out to dry in a wheat field, some two hundred yards from the hut — which she had never been known to do before. On that evening, about sun down, Delaney came home with his flock, secured them in the pen, and went to his hut, when his wife requested him to fetch water from a waterhole about a hundred yards from the hut ; but the deceased, unwilling to do what appeared to him unnecessary, expressed a desire to get the clothes in from the paddock ; the wife persuaded him not to do so then — this wish for delay by the woman, with other circumstances, was thought by several to be, to give time to the party who were to kill her husband to arrive at a certain spot — the water he brought to the hut, soon after which his wife wished him to go with her to bring home the linen, which he readily consented to do. Dan, the other shepherd of the station, thinking Delaney and the wife were staying too long, began to entertain forbodings of a fearful nature, walked out from the hut and stationed himself behind a tree about fifty yards from the paddock where the clothes were to be brought from (between the hut and the wheat paddock there is a rising ground which would prevent any one at the hut from seeing what was doing in the paddock), in order that he might ascertain what passed in the paddock ; he was not long there till he saw the woman collect up some of the linen in a great hurry and go on towards the hut ; when she came up where Dan was, she started at seeing him beckoned him to return to the hut, and when close up to him said there were three men in the wheat paddock murdering her husband. Dan said he would go and try to assist Delaney, but the wretched woman entreated him not, saying if he would he might also be murdered. Dan and the woman then returned to the hut, and in an hour afterwards she asked him to go and see what had happened to Delaney, but as it was dark he would not go then ; but the following morning at day light he went over and found the body of deceased stretched on its back, and the limbs fixed in such a way as might lead to the supposition that the deceased had died a natural death . A severe contusion was found at the back of the head, as if caused by a blunt weapon ; some incisions under the chin, caused by a sharp instrument, and on the left side of the head a heavy fracture of the skull, part of which was three inches long, and two wide. On Wednesday following an inquest sat, and the verdict returned was, " Wilful murder against some person or persons unknown." Margaret De laney, the wife of deceased, was committed on the Coroner's warrant as being accessary to the fact : and on the Friday after a warrant issued for the apprehension of Butler, who was arrested on same evening. The Citizen (Sydney, NSW : 1846 - 1847) View title info Sat 6 Mar 1847 Page 4 BATHURST CIRCUIT COURT. Wednesday, Feb. 24. murder. Michael Butler, Ticket-of-leave holder, was indicted for the wilful murder of Charles Delany, on the 4th of June last, at Wattle Flat. The first witness called in this case was Margaret Delaney, the wife of the deceased ; from whose evidence it appeared the prisoner had called on her and deceased on Christmas last, when her husband and the prisoner became intoxicated, and a quarrel ensued, in which the latter received a severe wound in the head with a flat-iron from deceased. On the prisoner leaving, he threatened to have revenge. On the 4th January, Butler made his appearance again where deceased lived, and while deceased and his wife went to collect some linen, which was in the paddock, deceased was struck from behind by some missile thrown by Butler, which knocked him down. The prisoner rushing on the top of deceased, drew some instrument from his breast or pocket, with which he inflicted a severe wound on the head of deceased, and kicked him several times with the heel of his boot in the stomach and bottom of the belly. The wife of deceased at this junture threw herself on the top of her husband, to save his life ; but the prisoner dragged her off, and threw over a fence, telling her to take the linen in the paddock home, and prevent any person from coming to see what he had done, or he would take all the lives on the station. On the morning after the murder, the wife of the deceased and the man named Donovan went to the paddock, where they found the body of the deceased dead, having two severe wounds in the head. The evidence ©f this witness occupied four hours, and, although cross-examined at considerable length by Mr. Holroyd, her testimony was unshaken. She however admitted having slept with the prisoner twice, and arriving in the Colony under sentence of transportation for seven years. Several other witnesses in their evidence corroborated the principal portion of the foregoing evidence. The learned Judge then summed up, and the jury retired. After the absence of one hour, the prisoner was found — Guilty, and sentence of Death was passed on him. This case occupied the Court twelve hours.