Elizabeth McClutchey

  General Notes:

edward to dylan 1.ged where it is noted:
Elizabeth McClatchie was born in Glasgow, Scotland in about 1829 the daughter of David and Mary McClatchie. She arrived in the Colony as an assisted immigrant on board the "Monica", which sailed from Liverpool England in 1857, and arrived in Port Jackson on August 18th, in the same year. The indents give her occupation as a general servant, she was then twenty-eight years of age, could read and write and she paid ten Shillings for her passage to N.S.W.

In 1859 Elizabeth gave birth to a daughter Mary Elizabeth, registered as McClatchie; her father's name does not appear on the record of her birth. According to family legend, Elizabeth worked as a house servant to the Hall family,

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"The Pragmatic Pioneers"possibly George Smith Hall of Lilburndale and that one of the Hall Boys was the father. It is said that the Halls were very kind to her during her confinement, but it was one of their labourers, Richard Simmons, who was to marry her in 1862.

Richard Simmons, who was to give his stepdaughter Mary his name, arrived on the "Heroine" in 1833. He had been convicted of House Breaking at Shopshire, and was given a seven year Sentence. He married Elizabeth at the Wesleyan Parsonage at Windsor on 31st March 1862 the witnesses were John Corbett and Ellen Leet. The Simmons are said to have at one time rented the property next to Joseph Gosper's grant Myrtledale, and it was probably here that Jonathon met his future bride, Mary Elizabeth.

Richard and Elizabeth had a number of children. Their family is notable for their longevity; one son lived well in excess of one hundred years. Richard died in 1900 at the grand old age of eighty-seven years, a highly respected citizen, his convict past long forgotten; but still carrying no doubt the tattoo on his right upper arm of three fish and the letters R S, as described in the convict indents of the "Heroine". He is buried in an unmarked grave in the Upper Colo cemetery. Elizabeth lived on until 1911, and was thought to have been ninety-one years old at the time of her death, but in fact she was probablyonly about eighty-four.


Sources.

The research and reminiscences of Cliff Paul, Alex Conolly.

Elizabeth married Richard (convict) Simmons on 31 Mar 1862 in Windsor, NSW Australia Wesleyan Parsonage. (Richard (convict) Simmons was born in 1813, died in 1900 and was buried in 1900 in Upper Colo, NSW Australia.)