Category: Patrick Keady

Another clue in the Puzzle – Where did the Keady’s come from in Ireland.

Baptism of John and Mary Keady 23 April, 1840, Parish of Tisaron and Galen, County Offaly, Ireland.

Background

The first Keady family arrived in Melbourne on 29 November, 1841 on the sailing ship Frances from Liverpool.

John Keady (1812-1884) and his wife Hanora (1811-1892)(nee Kenny) arrived with four children; Thomas (8 years old), Patrick (5 years old) and twins John and Mary (18 months old). The shipping record confirms that John and Mary were twins.

Their origin is identified as Kings County, Ireland, later to be renamed Offaly County.

See more detail on family arrival. Click on link below.

ttps://keadyfamily.blog/2019/06/04/arrival-of-keady-family/

First piece of the puzzle.

The only record found until recently of the family (Birth, Deaths or Marriages) was the Baptism record for Patrick Keady, the 5 year old mentioned above. With the help of the East Galway Historical Society, Patrick’s baptism was tracked down to 8 April, 1837 at Laurencetown, County Galway.

New piece of the puzzle

A recent search through the Family Search web service, a free web service provided by “The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints”, hit gold. A record was found for the baptism of Joannem Keedy or Kiedy, with his parents being Joannis Keedy or Kiedy, father; and mother, Honorae Kenny. Screen shot below. (Website: family search.com)

For all those who have forgotten their high school latin, this Baptism record can be translated as John Keady(name of baby being baptised), father – John Keady and mother – Honora Kenny.

Unfortunately, the image of the original scanned page from the Parish Register cannot be viewed on “FamilySearch”. However, images of the scanned document can be viewed at the National Library of Ireland (NLI) website. Knowing the Parish name (Tisaron and Galen) and date, the original page can be viewed. The relevant entry from the Register is shown below.

Reading across from the numeral, “23” two names can be seen, Joannus and Mariam. In other words, John and Mary, confirming that this is indeed the record of the Baptism for the twins of John Keady and Honora Kenny.

While this record only shows the Parish name, and not a particular Church or Town, the Parish location is very close to Laurencetown where Patrick was baptised.

These Baptism records suggest that the Keady family were living in the vicinity of Ballinasloe, County Galway. This general vicinity is where the three Counties of Galway, Roscommon and Offaly(Kings) converge.

Further support for this location is demonstrated in John Keady’s naming of his properties in Australia as “Somerset”. This is the name of an Irish homeland just a couple of miles from Laurencetown.

Sad Endnote

Sadly, John’s twin sister Mary died in February 1842 only a few months after arriving in Melbourne. Mary was buried in the Old Melbourne Cemetery, which became the Queen Victoria Market carpark. There are no records available for the period when Mary was buried.

Trooper Keady serving in Boer War, South Africa

One of the Keady brothers in Boer War, South Africa, 1900-1902.

Two of the Keady Family joined the 3rd NSW Mounted Rifles and served in South Africa from May 1900 to May 1902. See earlier blog for a little more history. Click here.

The two adventurers were Michael Thomas Keady (1869-1940) and Patrick John Keady (1876-1951), sons of Patrick Keady (1837-1923).

Michael and Patrick were cousins of our grandfather, Thomas Patrick Keady (1874-1946). They would no doubt have shared many experiences as they grew up in Koetong through their teenage years and early 20s. The Koetong community about this time was quite small. On the 1903 electoral roll there were only 61 adults enrolled to vote, of whom 13 were from the Keady families.

The above photo has been discovered by Brian amongst the documents and photos collected by our grandmother, Lillian Keady (nee Crawford).

As is so often the case, there is no writing of any kind to help identify the person in the photo, however I think it is a fair bet to say it is either Patrick or Michael. You can see that the soldier on the horse is not an officer otherwise he’d be decked out in all his regalia. The photo is clearly a posed shot taken in the open by a professional photographer however this wasn’t enough to stop the blurred intruder who walks into the scene on the right hand side as the photo is being taken.

Unfortunately the only photos of Patrick and Michael are taken much latter in life when they are living in New Zealand and it is impossible to make any kind of comparison with the trooper in this photo.

In the absence of any other information coming to light I am quite happy to claim this trooper as one of the Keady family. Anyone seen any photos of similar vintage which might shed light on his identity ?

Keady brothers join the 3rd NSW Mounted Rifles

There didn’t seem to be any involvement of the Keady family with the armed forces until the 1890s. With lingering troubles between the British establishment and the Irish settlers perhaps this is not surprising.

The Keady family were strong supporters of the Irish Republican movement, with their names appearing quite often in the published list of contributors to various organisations supporting Irish independence back “home”.

Two sons of Patrick Keady (1837-1923) , Michael Thomas Keady (1869-1940) and Patrick John KEADY (1876-1951) joined the 3rd New South Wales Mounted Rifles and served in the Boer War in the period May 1900 to May 1902.

The brief history below for the 3rd NSW Mounted Rifles, sourced from The Australian War Memorial provides some background to the formation of the Corp and their role in the Boer War.

Michael and Patrick were living in pretty remote circumstances at Koetong about the time they enlisted and would no doubt have met the criteria of being “good shots and riders”.

Source: The Australian Boer War Memorial

The brothers seemed to have survived their expedition but when they returned to Australia they would have found economic conditions very harsh, so according to one of their descendants both headed off to New Zealand looking for a brighter future. They both eventually married and lived out their lives in New Zealand.

Micheal Keady – future life

Micheal took to the family tradition of running pubs and went on to manage a number of Hotels in the Auckland area. The only photo of Michael which can be found is a Police mug shot from 1926 when he was in his mid 50s. Micheal was trying to improve his profit margins and was found in possession of certain alcohol which had mysteriously disappeared from a warehouse. He received a hefty fine and 3 months in jail.

Michael Keady 1936. Source: New Zealand Police Gazette

Patrick Keady – future life

Patrick seems to have taken up sheep farming. Perhaps this was also a tough profession in New Zealand at the time because he enlisted in the army again, this time for New Zealand. Patrick enlisted in the Otago Mounted Rifles in August 1914 and after a long journey was stationed to Gallipoli where he suffered gunshot wounds to his left arm and left side on 6 August 1915. After medical treatment in Malta and England he was eventually repatriated to New Zealand in March 1916.

The rest of his life was spent around Orepuki and Tuatapere just west of Invercargill in the extreme south of New Zealand. The only photo of Patrick with the border collie below, suggests he lived his life out on the land.

Precious Photos – Patrick and Mary Keady – Koetong

While family photos of the first generation Keady family are pretty scarce or at least cannot be found yet, there are a few which have been passed down through the generations. The following photos of Patrick Keady, his wife Mary Ann Quinlan and the Keady farm at Koetong have been provided by one of Patrick’s descendants.

The first two photos are large portraits of Patrick and Mary which hung on the wall of the farmhouse at Koetong. (The farmhouse with some additions is still standing at Koetong, although no longer in the family.)

The following photos were taken on the family farm. The first was possibly taken in the early 1920s and shows Patrick and Mary in the fields around the farmhouse. (This is an educated guess based on the appearance of Patrick and Mary.)

The second photo of the Keady farmhouse, with snow on the ground is thought to have been taken in the 1950s.

If you have any early photos tucked away, or have any thoughts on leads to follow up, don’t hesitate to get in touch.

Keady Family Tree

The Family tree below provides the basic details of the first Keady family in Victoria. Keep in mind that the dates and locations related to John and Honora’s life in Ireland are so far pretty much based on working backwards from information and records available in Australia.

For example, the shipping records show the family originated from King’s County, Ireland, however, Gravestones and death certificates refer to County Roscommon.

The only confirmed record sourced from Ireland relates to the Baptism of Patrick Keady on 27 April, 1837 at Laurencetown, County Galway. (The art of finding Irish records seems to come down to luck more than anything. If you are able to find a rough location, it then becomes an exercise in reading a photocopy of a page in a 180 year old parish register, hand written by a Parish Priest, in latin, more often than not using shorthand. So, put your hand up if you’re an expert in deciphering shorthand latin !)

Future blogs will provide details for each of the children including their spouse and children.

First Generation of Keady Family in Victoria (2019)

Keady watering hole

Keady and Gerecke families share an ale at the Welcome Hotel, Koetong

Welcome Hotel, Koetong cc 1895. Source: State Library of Victoria

This beautiful photo of the Welcome Hotel at Koetong is believed to have been taken about 1895.  The proprietor was Hermann Gerecke, a German immigrant who arrived in Australia in 1857.

The Keady families of John Francis Keady (1840-1902) and Patrick Keady (1837-1923) moved to the Koetong area about the mid to late 1890s when land became available for selection.  Tin mining was also a major attraction to the area.  John and Patrick’s brother James Henry Keady (1843-1936) also moved to this area and was involved in tin mining.

The licencing records of the times suggest there were only two pubs in town, the Koetong Hotel and the Welcome Hotel. Perhaps the Koetong Hotel is the other building in the distance on the right.

There weren’t many people in the town and surrounding district so no doubt the Keady families enjoyed a few ales at these pubs.  In 1903 there were only 100 people listed on the Electoral roll for Koetong, including 13 Keady family members. Some of the family may even be one of the three bearded gentlemen standing on the verandah in this photo.

The links between the Gerecke and Keady families were to become stronger as the years progressed. 

Patrick Keady’s son, John Henry Keady (1867-1929) married the eldest daughter of Hermann Gerecke, Christina Frances Gerecke (1874 -1941) in 1901. This couple would go on to become publicans of the Everton Hotel.

Just to keep the family ties strong, Patrick’s daughter, Honorah Ann (Nora) Keady (1880-1937) married William Herman Gerecke(1875-1947), Hermann’s eldest son in 1901.  Perhaps it was a double wedding. In 1904 William took over as publican from his father.

Both the Welcome and Koetong Hotels were a focus for community sporting and social gatherings.  Newspaper reports of Keady family activities will follow in future blogs.

Somerset Estate 1854

John Keady puts his Estate up for sale in 1854 with thoughts of moving back to Ireland.

After arriving in late 1841 with his wife, Honorah and four young children, John Keady certainly seems to be doing well in his new home by the mid 1850s.

In 1854 he places on the market his land known as the “Somerset Estate” which comprises 550 acres, just 6 miles from Melbourne.  It is described as having a frontage of 1 mile along Sydney Road and 4 miles along the Merri Creek.   The advertisement talks about Mr Keady selling up so he can return to his native land, but clearly this didn’t happen.  

John seems to be doing exceptionally well from the description of the property.  Well worth the read to see how John and the family were living.

The naming of his land, “Somerset Estate” provides one of the few clues as to his origins in Ireland.  While many would immediately think of Somerset in England, Somerset is also the name of a small Townland in County Galway, near the town of Laurencetown. The connection is certainly confirmed with the baptism of his second son, Patrick, in Laurencetown on 8 April, 1837.

Imaging the value of this land these days !

“You’ll never get seedy at the Keady”

Keady Hotel, Everton, Victoria. (now Everton Hotel)

Good advice behind the bar at the Everton Hotel, formerly the “Keady Hotel”.

There seems to have been something in the blood which lead Keadys thru the generations to have a go at running pubs.

John Keady (1812-1884) kicked off the tradition when he became the Publican of the Prince Alfred Hotel in High Street, Preston in 1876. He renamed it, “Keady’s Hotel”, remaining the Publican until 1882, when the name reverted to the Prince Alfred Hotel.  It closed as a pub in 1922, but the building remains at 133 High Street, Preston, Victoria.

John’s son James Henry Keady (1843-1936) was also running a pub about the same time in Murchison through the late 1870s until he got into financial difficulties.

While John’s son Patrick (1837-1923) did not seem to have a go at running a pub, three of his sons certainly kept up the family tradition.

John Henry Keady (1867-1929), along with his wife Christina Gerecke(1874-1941) operated the Keady Hotel at Everton over the period from 1904-1937.  The Keady (now Everton) Hotel hasn’t changed much since that time.

Patrick’s son, Michael Thomas Keady (1869-1940) spent most of his working life as a publican in New Zealand.  Michael moved to New Zealand with his brother Patrick John Keady (1876-1951) after returning from service with the Australian 3rdNSW Mounted Rifles during the Boer War.  Michael ran pubs are various locations including the Edinburgh Castle Hotel in Auckland where he was the publican in 1919.  Both Michael and Patrick lived out their lives in New Zealand.

The Koetong Hotel on the Murray Valley Highway between Albury and Corryong was also in Keady hands in the early 1900s.  The publican is recorded as James Keady, but it is not clear if this was James Henry Keady, noted above or his nephew, James Keady (1890-1941) another son of Patrick Keady.  Irrespective of who was the publican, one can imagine that the Koetong Hotel was a regular water hole for the two large Keady families who lived at Koetong at the time. The Koetong Hotel still serves a cold beer.

Does Daniel Keady fit in the Keady family tree ?

The family photo below is Daniel Keady (1838 – 1928), wife Bridget O’Shea (1839 -1914) and seven of their eight children.  In addition, the young woman standing directly behind Daniel is Margaret Frances Keady (1886 -1982).  The photo was taken sometime before 1914.

Margaret is the 2ndyoungest daughter of James Henry Keady (1843-1936), the younger brother of Patrick and John Francis Keady whose pictures appear in earlier blogs.

Daniel and Bridget raised Margaret after her mother (Margaret Rose McManus) died in 1890 at which time Margaret would have been only 4 years old. The other four children of James Henry Keady and Margaret McManus seem to have been raised by the McManus family.

Daniel Keady and Family (prior to 1914)

It would appear that James Henry felt he could not raise five children under 10 and he leaves the Nagambie/Murchison district and moves to the Koetong area near Corryong where he is identified as a miner in a number of sources.

Back to the mystery !

No one has yet found any shipping record for Daniel, nor any articles or resources which might shed any light on a relationship between Daniel Keady and the family of John and Honora Keady.  

The fact that Daniel fostered James Henry’s daughter and they owned adjacent properties in the Murchison area suggests a family tie, but who knows, maybe they just met in a pub and struck up a strong friendship based on a common surname.