My gg grandmother 16 year old Mary Foran (from Kilfenora) was fortunate to escape from the Ennistymon Work House on the Thomas Arbuthnot and in January 1850 she arrived in Sydney. She had been chosen to be part of her Earl Gray Scheme which purpose was to supply wives and servants for the female starved colony. Most were orphans. She was one of the very few girls who could read and write which probably influenced her being chosen. Although she was a Gaelic speaker she also had a good command of the English language. Mary ended up in Moreton Bay Brisbane to become nursemaid (tutor) and house servant. She married my gg grandfather, Edmund Mellor in 1854 & had 3 children in which two died before age of two; she died of consumption 1859. Edmund Mellor was extremely wealthy owning paddle steamers & many properties.
Her only surviving child was Edmund Foran Mellor, my great grandfather. The Earl Gray Scheme was unfortunately forced to cease after several years due to increasing mass public hostility and prejudice towards the Irish Catholic girls who were seen as no more than vermin and the worse low life of society. Almost 5000 arrived. Many more lives could have been saved if the Scheme continued.
| Additional Information | ||
|---|---|---|
| Date of Birth | 1st Jan 1832 | |
| Date of Death | 17th Jan 1859 | |
| Associated Building (s) | Ennistymon Workhouse | |
