Madden, Wm Patrick & Nora Ford, Forbes, Cobar, Louth, Cunnamulla

The New South Wales baptismal returns of 1 January – 31 December 1850, parish of Berrima, county of Camden show that Patrick Madden was born on 14 January 1850; baptised a Catholic on 24 February 1850 by the Rev. Fr W. McGinty, and Michael Moran and Mary Nichols were his sponsors. I am confident in saying that Patrick was his baptismal name and William his given name as his marriage certificate and some of his children's birth certificates(1) state either William or William Patrick. In adult life he was known as Bill.

The name Patrick was most certainly a very popular choice of Christian name as it was given to three Madden boys—Patrick I (1814-1863), son of John and Bridget; Patrick II (1850-1934), son of John and Margaret; and Patrick III (1860-1940?), son of Patrick and Margaret. The second and third named were cousins and no doubt family conversations would have caused much confusion, particularly with the arrival of Patrick III.

Bill and Nora's marriage certificate gives few details but fortunately it does disclose that the ceremony was performed at the Forbes Court House by Stephen Fellman, Registrar. The groom's name was recorded as William Madden, the bride's as Norah Ford, both of Bushman's Lead(2). William's occupation was labourer and John Taylor and Catherine Wickham, the witnesses. Both of Nora's parents by this time had passed on and she was only a tender young girl of 15 years when she married Bill in 1873. Her decision to marry upset her family greatly and caused a rift(3) between them and this may explain the reason for marrying in the Court House, and not in the Church, as would have been expected of them. See photos of Nora and her father, William Ford.

William Patrick (Bill) and Nora were parents of 11 children—three boys and eight girls whose birthplaces occurred in various parts of New South Wales and Queensland. William's stated occupation varies depending on which of his children's birth certificates you consult— labourer, carrier, contractor and bullocky—all descriptions nevertheless pointing to the family's very nomadic lifestyle. Stories reaching us down through the generations describe how “the family lived in tents on the banks of this or that river”. Their meanderings were not so unusual for that era as the pioneers of Australia were constantly on the move searching for work.

Newspaper(4) records reveal that Bill's father, John (II) was a carrier, transporting people's goods and chattels by bullock team. It therefore comes as no surprise to learn that his son, William Patrick also had a bullock team used to haul drays and wagons laden with stores, provisions and the like to outlying western sheep and cattle stations. He would then backfill with baled wool to the railheads of Bourke, NSW and later, Cunnamulla, Queensland. The latter town was the meeting point of roads to Eulo, Bourke, Charleville and across the Widgeegoara and Culgoa into NSW. The railway did not reach Cunnamulla until the end of 1898 which meant that all rations for the western areas of Queensland had to be brought by road from Bourke, NSW, 180 miles away and the teams only came with fresh supplies at shearing time(5)! The alternative source of supply was again by dray or wagon from Charleville, St George, Roma or Dalby in south-western Queensland.

Each man had his wife and children with him, his herd of goats and his coop of poultry. The camp resembled a prosperous farmyard. The women sat in groups under the trees in the evening cool, the men were by the wagons swapping experiences, the children were hard at play in and around the billabong.

This description would undoubtedly have applied to the Madden family who had no known permanent place of abode and who most certainly would have travelled the countryside on board the wagon, camping in tents en route.

As Nora's time of labour approached, the children's birth records suggest that the family stayed at a homestead to await the birth and when each baby was old enough to travel, William Patrick and his family would set off again in search of more work to support them. Some homesteads at which Nora gave birth include Eremeran, NSW (John); Milo near Adavale, Queensland (Bidelia); Mount Margaret, north of Thargomindah, QLD (Ann Norah); Langlo, north of Charleville (William Patrick II) and Winbar, near Louth, NSW (Margaret).

William Patrick has been described as the mad Irishman, a bit of a lad, with black curly hair, tall and good looking, and having a heavy Irish accent. He has also been described(7) as a very cruel man and having a very bad temper. Family lore states that he never returned to his family in Cunnamulla and this is borne out by court records that indicate he deserted the family. This anecdote would therefore explain the reason why Nora was forced to seek work to support her family as evidenced by Post Office directories which record Nora working at the Cunnamulla laundry in 1902. (Women in the workforce as early as this!)

Nora's birth certificate shows her given name as Ann and states she was born at Warrowrie Station, Binalong, NSW. I can only speculate on the reasons for adding the names Nora and Josephine but one scenario is that, in the 1860s, it became fashionable to have a second name. My guess is that Nora was chosen in memory of her mother, Hanora, whom she left behind in Ireland in 1850 never to set eyes on again. The name Josephine does not appear in records until the early 1900s when it was found in Toowoomba Post Office directories and Electoral Rolls.

Nora's father was aged 40 years when she was born and he came from Hampshire, England. Her mother was aged 27 years and came from Listowel, county Kerry, Ireland. William and Mary were married at Carcoar, NSW in 1851. William did not read or write as is evidenced by his daughter's birth certificate which shows "his mark" as his signature. William was recorded as working at nearby Watamondera, a 23,040 acre cattle station in the Lachlan District of NSW.

Nora has been described(8) as being a Jewess(9), with long, jet black hair and having very beautiful skin. She dressed in long sleeved, black frocks(10) which covered her body from neck to toe in the style which was fashionable in that era. I also understand that she was a mid-wife and this was not uncommon in those days, particularly in outback areas of the State far removed from large towns. Nora and family were reported to have been on friendly terms with the Aborigines, each was said to have accepted the other and Nora often ate with them. The Aborigines were said(11) to be fascinated with Nora's long, black hair and took great delight in running their fingers through it.

During the time the family lived at Cunnamulla, Alice Street was recorded in the Post Office directories as their address(12). It was while the family resided there that Veronica, Kate Madeline and Daisy Ethel were born. Veronica died on 4 March 1894, aged 11 months and was buried the same day in the Cunnamulla cemetery in grave No. A91.

Later addresses found in Post Office directories and Electoral Rolls include Little John Street, Toowoomba (1906), Herries, Range (1909), and George Streets, Toowoomba (1909-1910), Margaret (1912) and Margaret Street West, Toowoomba (1913-1915). It was while living in Toowoomba that Kate Madeline died from "dropsy" at the age of 13 years. She was buried in Drayton cemetery. Harcourt Street, Fortitude Valley, 216 Leichhardt Street, Valley (1921), North Street, Spring Hill (1933) and 52A Grey Street, South Brisbane (1938) are even later addresses at which the Madden family lived in Brisbane. Other entries show that in 1912, James was still resident at Cunnamulla as was Mary Elizabeth, "Molly" in the year 1914.

Not a lot is known about Nora during the time she spent in Brisbane except that she lived with, and was nursed in ill health by, "Molly". My mother, Ruby Thurlow (née Berthelsen) recalls taking billycans of soup (made by her mother) to Nora in Spring Hill around 1932. "Molly" and family shared their home also with younger sister, (Daisy) Ethel until she married "Teddy" Doherty. When Nora died in 1938, she had been living at the 52A Grey Street abode. Causes of death are given as myocarditis, cirrhosis of liver, anasarca and arteriosclerosis. According to her death certificate, William Ford, her father, was shown as a marine captain—just what this means, I do not know. When Nora died, nine of her 11 children were recorded in her death certificate as still living, although some of their ages were awry. Nora was buried at Dutton Park (formerly South Brisbane) cemetery in Portion T, grave 17 and was later joined by her devoted daughter, "Molly" on 26 November 1973. It is fitting that they now share the same resting place.

It was only in 2000 did I learn from the Campbelltown Pioneer Register (after submitting family information) that Bill Madden died in 1934 at Parramatta, NSW.

Next to nothing is known of the eldest child, John. He was born in the Tarran Hills of central western NSW, north-west of Condobolin at Eremeran homestead on Eremeran Creek, a tributary of the Lachlan River. See also Rebecca (Cobar NSW), James Joseph Patrick "Jim" (Cobar NSW), Bridelia "Dealie" (Milo Station, Adavale QLD), Ann Norah (Mt Margaret Station, Eromanga QLD), William Patrick (Langlo Downs, Charleville QLD, Margaret (Winbar Station, Louth NSW), Mary Elizabeth "Molly" (Cobar NSW) and Daisy Ethel (Cunnamulla QLD).

(Ann) Nora Josephine (née Ford) Madden