Orphan Profile:
.
Mary Adderley from Portarlington, Co. Laios
Snapshot:

Workhouse location
prior to emigration yet
to be confirmed.

Arrived aged 16, with
sister Jane on the
William & Mary in 1849

Lasted 2 weeks with
Employer in Pyrmont
before being dismissed
and returned to the
Barracks

Move to Bathurst region
where sister Jane was
employed

Married aged 18 to
Matthew Rose a free
settler from
Buckinghamshire

Moved around the
Bathurst and Orange
area, taking a selection
at Colville and in later
years owned Hotels in
Guyong and Millthorpe

13 children, 72 grand
children

Outlived husband by 20
years

Lived to age 76, died at
Millthorpe in 1909
Mary Ann Adderley
Photo believed to be of Mary Ann
Adderley, circa 1875
Early Life in Ireland
Mary Ann Adderley, and her older sister
Jane, born April 1833 and Jan 1832
respectively, are believed to have been
born in Portarlington of English
Protestant parents, Thomas (a farmer)
and Eliza Adderley.
Portarlington sits on a bend in the
River Barrow that divides the town; the
south side being in County Laois
(formally Queen's County) and the
north side in County Offaly (formally
Kings County)
The proximity of the county borders
may account for the variations in
Mary’s place of birth, which has been
Mary’s place of birth, which has been
variously captured in official records as
Kings County, Queens County or
Portarlington.
In 1849, the sisters informed the Board
of Immigration Agent in Sydney that
their ‘native place’ was Glenmore or
Clenmore, Kings County.
No town resembling either place name
has been found to date in either
County. It is possible the girls had
stated ‘Clonmore’ a place close to the
border of County Meath, about 17
kilometers north from Portarlington.
Portarlington, Queens
County circa 1850s
Page 2 of 5
Mary Ann Adderley per William & Mary
Workhouse
Mary Ann and Jane, the only two known
children of parents Thomas and Eliza
(who had predeceased them), at some
point entered the local workhouse.
The closest workhouse to Portarlington
is the Mountmellick Union workhouse
which was erected in 1842 on a six-acre
site half a mile to the south of
Mountmellick.
Assuming Clonmore may have been
the girls abode at the time of
emigration, then the Edenderry Union
workhouse which received its first
admissions on 19th March 1842, is the
most likely.
Edenderry workhouse was demolished
in the 1970s.
Voyage to Australia
On 25 July 1849 166 female orphans
from counties Meath, Wicklow,
Tipperary, Queens, Kings and Kildare,
sailed from Plymouth on the barque
“William and Mary”, arriving in Sydney
on 21 November 1849.
The Master was Robert Petrie (or
Peter/Petrie) and the Surgeon
Superintendent Dr Phillips who was
accompanied by his wife and four
daughters. There were 5 matrons who
between them brought along four of
their children. There were also 3
married couples and their five
children.
On 10 December 1849, the Sydney
Morning Herald reported the
passengers were dispersed as follows
- Forwarded to Bathurst 9; received
into Hyde Park Barracks, 168; sent to
hospital, 1; left the ship on their own
account 6 – total souls 184.
Extract from the ‘William & Mary’ Immigration
Register with Jane and Mary Ann’s details.
Into Service
Mary stayed in Hyde Park barracks
prior to entering into employment
with a Mr E Davis of Pyrmont where
she only remained for two weeks
before being dismissed for “neglect of
duty and disobedience”, her
indenture was cancelled on 3 January
1851.
Some time later Mary joined her sister
Jane, who was employed by Scottish
farmer James Jardine of Fitzgerald
Swamp at Bathurst on 1st March 1851.
Fitzgerald Swamp (later renamed
‘Valley’) about 10 miles from
Bathurst, consisted of large tract bush
and farming estates. The area was
flooded with prospectors in the 1850’s
when gold was discovered in the area.
In 1853, one of Jardine’s sons was held
up in an attempted robbery by three
men on the Carcoar Road. Jardine Jnr
took off on his horse dodging bullets
fired by two of the robbers.
In 1856, the local Bathurst press
referred to the Fitzgerald Swamp gold
diggings as having ‘upwards of 100 men
at work, whose operations extend over
about 4 miles of country. On one small
creek there are about 40 diggers, all of
whom appeared satisfied with their
luck’.
Later in the 1860s, the area became
notorious for being a robbery target and
campsite of bushranger Ben Hall and his
gang.
Page 3 of 5
Mary Ann Adderley per William & Mary
Marriage
Sometime in 1852, Mary Ann met
Matthew Rose; a free settler of
Fitzgerald Valley, born at
Sherrington, Buckinghamshire,
England on 10th April 1831.
A qualified baker, Matthew arrived
in Australia on the “Emperor’ in
1848 giving ‘complete satisfaction’
to the 336 passengers whom he
sometime cooked for on the voyage.
On landing, Matthew worked 6
months for Mr E Blaxland on the
Parramatta River at his salt-boiling
works before moving onto Bathurst
where he was engaged as cook at
Toogong by a Mr Archibald Campbell.
Ever adaptable, a further 6 months on
saw Matthew engaged in shepherding
and hut-keeping before being enticed
to the Gold Diggings at Sofala in 1851.
Matthew, 21 and Mary Ann,18 married
on 30th December 1852 in a Church of
England ceremony at Bathurst. As Mary
was considered a ‘minor’ the JP, Mr.
S. North, gave his consent to the
marriage. James and Helen Jardine
(employers of Mary’s sister Jane)
witnessed the marriage.
Pre 1889 – Matthew Rose and Mary Ann Rose
The background setting indicates these photos may have been taken at the same time.
Working hard, building prosperity
Following their marriage, the Roses
rented a farm at Walmer, then
moved to One Tree Fall starting up a
business of fence splitting and
shearing.
In 1860 the couple selected a farm
at Colville which they managed until
1873.
In that same year they set up a
chaff cutting business on the road
between Bathurst and Orange which
they maintained profitably for the
next 3 years.
In 1876 Matthew and Mary Ann took
on the management of the Commercial
Hotel at Guyong where they remained
for the next ten years.
During this period Mary Ann had
thirteen children, eight girls and five
boys. Unusually for the cohort of irish
orphan girls, Mary Ann did not lose any
of her 13 children.
In 1886 the family moved to Millthorpe
where Matthew Rose built the “Royal
Hotel” noted for having ‘eighteen
rooms and a billiard room’. The
building still exists, though as a one
story private residence (the second
story having since been removed).
Page 4 of 5
Children:
Mary Ann Adderley per William & Mary
‘…..An example worthy of imitation’
Jane Theresa b. 1854,in
Millthorpe, d. 1931
Newtown
Matthew’s tenure at the Royal Hotel
was short lived – dying 3 years later in
1889 aged 58.
2.
James b. 1855
Abercrombie District,
Bathurst, d.1945 Blayney
3.
Emilene b. 1857 in
Bathurst, d. 1934 Guyong
4.
Lavinia b. 1860 in Orange,
d. 1947 Orange
In the year of his death he featured in
the biographical series “Men of Mark’
where he was noted as doing a fine
business and living in a comfortable
position. The biography stated
Matthew arrived aboard the Emperor
of China.
5.
Mary Ann b. 1861 in
Orange, d.1952 Blayney
6.
Matthew b. 1863 in
Orange, d.1931 Peak Hill
7.
Clara Beilby b. 1865 in
Orange, d. 1942 Peak Hill
8.
George Henry b. 1866 in
Guyong, d. 1961 Burwood
1.
9.
William John b. 1868 in
Guyong, d.1948 Millthorpe
10. Sarah ‘Sadie’ b. 1870 in
Guyong, d. 1949 Randwick
The author commended Matthew for
‘making his way up’ from earning low
wages (£14-£18 per annum) to
possessing considerable amounts of
property in various places’. This is
substantiated by his estate which was
valued at £1,973 in 1889.
The author goes on to say ‘It has been
solely by his own ability and energy
that he has made his way to his
present comfortable position, and he
may be well looked upon as an
example worthy of imitation’.
Mary Ann continued to live in and run
the hotel herself for a further 20
years with the help of sons, Matthew
and George until her death in 1909.
Had there been an equivalent
‘Women of Mark’ series, no doubt
Mary Ann’s accomplishments would
have also been noted.
Millthorpe
Township.
The Royal Hotel
can be seen in the
middle toward the
left hand side.
Photo
State Library
NSW
11. Martha Helena b. 1873 in
Guyong, d. 1959 Newtown
12. Elizabeth ‘Ciss’, b. 1875 in
Orange, d. 1942 St Peters
13. Sydney B b.1877 in
Guyong, d. 1947 Western
Suburbs
Royal Hotel
Millthorpe.
The sign above
the door says
Royal Hotel, Mary
Ann Rose.
Photo: Courtesy of
Janeen Wright
1997 picture of Royal Hotel – now
a one story private residence.
Photo courtesy of Janeen Wright
June 1909 advertisement for the sale of the Royal
Hotel including the prized Alcock’s (Billiard) table
following Mary Ann’s death.
Mary Ann Adderley per William & Mary
Page 5 of 5
Final Years
On 19 January 1909, Mary Ann passed
away from Cholangitis Syncope and was
buried in the Church of England
cemetery at Guyong the following day.
news of her death came as a shock. It was
expected a few months ago she would
never recover from an attack of
pneumonia but against expectations she
recovered sufficiently to get about, but
Mary’s estate was valued at £1,780.
four or five days ago she was again
According to descendant Val Bower, the
compelled to take to her bed, suffering
hotel was left to son George who
from gallstones which was the ultimate
elected to sell the property and divide
cause of her death.
the proceeds equally among his
Guyong Cemetery
siblings. George moved to Sydney
whilst Mary and Matthew’s other
children remained in the Millthorpe/
Orange area.
Mary’s death notice in the “Orange
Leader” of 19 January 1909 illustrates
the measure of high esteem that Mary
held in her local community.
The Deceased leaves 8 daughters, 5 sons,
72 grandchildren and 13 great
grandchildren to mourn their loss, to
whom we extend our sincere sympathy in
their sad bereavement. The Funeral will
take place today where the remains will
be interred in the Guyong Cemetery.”
In 1909, a stained glass memorial window
at St Mark's Church of England was
“We deeply regret having to chronicle
the sad news of the death of Mrs Rose of erected to the memory of Mary Ann
Rose.
the Royal Hotel, Milthorpe.
The deceased lady who was 74yrs. 7
months of age was a native of Queen’s
County, Ireland and came to the
colonies at an early age and has been a
resident of the Bathurst and Orange
districts ever since.
1997 picture of Royal Hotel –
now a one story private
residence.
Photo courtesy of Janeen
Wright
Her husband, the late Matthew Rose,
who died about nineteen years ago, kept
a hotel at Guyong for ten years and
twenty years ago opened the “Royal” at
Millthorpe. The Deceased conducted the
business of the Royal Hotel ever since
her husband died.
The late Mrs Rose was one of the most
highly respected residents of Millthorpe. The
In summing up Mary’s life, descendant
Elaine Fisher says…’I admire this woman,
my Great Grandmother, very much for
what she achieved at the side of her
husband and for her tenacity in running
their business for twenty years after his
death, and that her thirteen children
were still alive proved by the photo of
the group taken outside the hotel after
her funeral’.
Descendant Val Bower recalls a recent
reunion at Milthorpe, attended by 450
‘Roses’ representing a 50% turnout of all
known descendants. Val has left several
photos and documents at the local
Golden Memories Museum in Millthorpe.
The Rose
children at
Mary Ann’s
Funeral in
1909.
Descendants Researching
MaryAnn Adderley[@2012]:
Only son
Matthew is
absent, being
in Fiji at the
time.
Val Bower
Valerie@invg.au
Descended from George Rose
Elaine Fisher
normelaine@optusnet.com.au
Descended from Clara Rose
Back row from left – Martha (Helen), George, William (Billy), Sydney (Sid), Elizabeth (Lizzie)
Front row from right – Sarah, Lavinia, Emily, Jane, James (Jim), Mary Anne (Polly), Clara
Written By: Karen Semken with assistance from Val Bower and Elaine Fisher in Dec 2012