The Six Wives of Captain Kearney Part Two: The Kindly Gael's Daughter

In part one of this series, The Six Wives of Captain Kearney I introduced my 2x great grandfather Richard Adderley Kearney, a man known for brushes with the law and romantic encounters. I also introduced the first of his six wives, Elizabeth Gilpin. Having concluded her tale, it's time for our attention to turn to the second wife - Jane Maclean. Just a note, the spelling of Maclean hops around a bit in records and is also sometimes Mclean. I default to using Maclean because this was the first recorded spelling I found. 

Meet Jane Maclean

I didn't learn about Jane chronologically. I discovered my own 2x great grandmother Mary Reeves Rainsford and Elizabeth Gilpin far earlier. I almost missed Jane entirely. Most people do. Jane didn't feature in the bigamy case that led to Richard's arrest and imprisonment, so the splashy spotlight of the courtroom wasn't on her. For a long time, she was simply one entry on a marriage certificate - more evidence of Richard's perfidy - but with little more dimension than that.

My first encounter with Jane Maclean was when I was deep into my search for material on Richard Adderley Kearney. I found a marriage record that puzzled me deeply. It showed Richard Adderley Kearney marrying Jane Robertson Maclean. But this record was in London. As far as I knew, my Richard was in Australia, married to Elizabeth Gilpin and a few years away from marrying Mary Reeves Rainsford. 

London, England, Church of England Marriages and Banns, 1754-1940

Still, it gave me pause. There was a lot that lined up with my Richard Adderley Kearney. Notably, he was a sailor - Chief Officer in the Merchant Service in fact. His father was also listed as Edward Kearney - Civil Engineer. This also lined up with what was on his marriage record to Elizabeth Gilpin. 

I decided to look into Jane Robertson Maclean. Perhaps by following her, I could figure out if this was another wife of Richard or simply an amazing coincidence. The basic facts could be ascertained from the marriage certificate.  She was 33 - suggesting a birth year of 1842. Her father was Lachlan Maclean - merchant. She sounded vaguely Scottish. So, I embarked on a search. But instead of finding Scottish records, what I found was Australian records. Australian electoral records from 1912 in fact. They showed Jane Robertson Kearney living in Echuca. To say this threw me for a loop would be an understatement.

Australian electoral records 1903-1980: Echuca 1912.

Why Echuca?

For the benefit of those reading from outside Australia, Echuca is a fairly small town (2021 population; 15,056 people) in regional Victoria. In 1912, Echuca's population was around 3,700 people. This was not a place I knew Richard Adderley Kearney to have ever been. It was an "inland port" city, being the shortest distance between the Murray River and Melbourne, so there was plenty of paddle steamer traffic, but it wasn't a likely place for a seagoing mariner to be. I couldn't imagine Jane setting off there without knowing somebody. Also, in 1912, it wasn't going to be Richard she was pursuing, because he had died in 1898. 

Echuca High Street, 1915

Very quickly after that, I found the index to the death certificate for Jane Robertson Kearney who died in Echuca in 1915. At that stage, I didn't order it - rookie mistake, but I wanted to save the $20. The index was suitably informative anyway. It showed that her parents were Lachlan McClean and Ashmore. This was the Jane from the marriage record in London. But I still had no clue why she was in Echuca. 

For my first line of enquiry, I decided to research the other Kearneys on the electoral page. Maybe Michael Kearney and his wife Jane who lived on Connelly St, Echuca were related to Richard. But that very quickly blead nowhere. Michael Joseph Kearney from Echuca was born in 1869 in Echuca. His parents were Michael Kearney and Jane Dunn. Michael Kearney Senior was born in Cahir, Tipperary, Ireland. My Richard Kearney was from Cork. No obvious link. 

But the question remained. Why Echuca? As luck would have it, my 900th search on Trove for articles about Richard Adderley Kearney revealed something new. An obituary for Jane in the Riverine Herald. 

Riverine Herald, Monday August 23, 1915.

In addition to pretty well confirming that this Jane was the Jane from the wedding certificate (and really married to my Richard-famous Sea Captain), this obituary gave me some solid additional information. Jane was living with her brother-in-law in Hovell Street, Echuca - F Phillips. It turns out I was right; you don't go to Echuca in 1915 unless you know somebody there. 

A family tree or a bush?

F Phillips, it soon emerged was Frederic Phillips - who had indeed lived at Hovell Street, Echuca. And his wife - the likely sister of Jane. Not a clean answer. As the records started popping up, it became clear that Frederic Phillips had been married twice. And both those wives were sisters to Jane. Disentangling the mess took time. But eventually clarity emerged. 

Frederic Phillips first married Margaret Ashmore Maclean on 28th May 1863 in Williamstown. He was 27 and she was 25. Her birthplace was Glasgow, Scotland (yay - my Scotland hunch was right) and his was Gosport England. Also worth noticing is the witness - one Agnes Ashmore Maclean - of whom more later. 

1863 marriage of Frederic Phillips and Margaret Ashmore Maclean. Victoria BDM ref: 67. 

Better yet, there were fuller details of the Maclean parents, Lachlan Maclean and Agnes Ashmore. Lachlan was recorded to be a hosier, which is more information than the "merchant" we got from Jane's marriage to Richard. After the marriage, Frederic and Margaret have a succession of children. First was Agnes (clearly a namesake of the matriarch Agnes Ashmore) born in Williamstown in 1864. 

The family clearly moved between 1864 and 1865, because the next child George was born in 1865 in Echuca (yes, we have finally arrived at the centre of the action). Jemima Jane (maybe for my Jane?) was born 1866 in Rochester and died at 2 months old. A second Jemima Jane was born to the couple in 1868 in Deniliquin NSW -just over the NSW border. At some point after Jemima is born, but before 1873, Margaret died. 

How do I know this? Well, in June 1873, Frederic and Mary Murray Wood Maclean got married in Fitzroy. Once again, the parents of this Maclean sister were familiar. Lachlan and Agnes Ashmore. The certificate notes that Frederic was a widow and this his previous spouse died in 1870. I have not been able to confirm this via records. Oddly, he noted that he had three living children and two deceased, but I have only been able to find one deceased child - Jemima Jane the first.

1873 marriage of Frederic Phillips and Mary Maclean. Victoria BDM ref: 2426

I haven't included the second side of the marriage certificate, but from it I did learn some new facts. The pair were living at Echuca but were residing on Lonsdale Street, Melbourne at the time of the wedding. At this stage, Frederic was a carpenter, and Mary was a housekeeper - presumably at Frederic's house. You'll see why I say this in the next paragraph. Finally, I learned that George Phillips was a customs officer. 

As with his first wife, Frederic's second marriage produced several children. The first child born was Elizabeth Goodchild Phillips born on the 16th of September 1873 - three months after her parents' marriage. Her name is a very clear ode to Frederic's mother Elizabeth Goodchild. At the time of her birth, the family were living at Mitchell Street Echuca and interestingly, her father indicated he had no previous issue. Presumably this question was answered in the context of his current marriage. 

1873 birth of Elizabeth Goodchild Phillips. Victoria BDM ref: 23647

Three more children followed in quick succession: Margaret Mabel born 1876 - presumably named for her deceased aunt, Alice Maude born 1878 and Mary Murray Alma born 1879. The family don't appear in the records again until Mary Murray Maclean's death in 1888. This double tragedy of two sisters dying and leaving large families casts Jane's decision to move to Echuca in a new light. I read her as a nurturing, aunt who took the place of caregiver and interim parent and helped her brother-in-law raise his seven children. However, she maintained a level of separation, living at Hare St whilst her brother-in-law and children lived on Howell St. And despite possible expectations, she and Frederic never married.

Finding the Macleans

Armed now with the names and ages of four Maclean sisters and their parents, Lachlan and Agnes Neil Ashmore, it was relatively easy to trace the family back to Scotland. Lachlan and Agnes married in Glasgow on the 18th of March 1832. They had the four daughters I already knew about, but also a son Norman McLeod Mclean born the 21st of March 1841. But it was learning about Lachlan and Agnes that suddenly breathed life into Jane.

Lachlan Maclean was "the eleventh in direct male descent from John Garbh, First Maclean of Coll..."  He was highly educated, receiving tutelage under Ebenezer Davidson. He later learned Hebrew from a Rabbi in Glasgow. But he is most well-known for his poetry and his writings including "History of the Gaelic Language." 

In a lovely book by a distant relative, Dr John Patterson Maclean, quotes are collected about Lachlan from those who knew him. But the most poignant passage for me is the first and only words I have ever seen direct from Jane Maclean herself, describing her father. The passage reads: His daughter, Mrs. Jane R Kearney, writing of him, says: ""My father's love for the Highlands and Highlanders amounted to an absorbing passion. He was such a bright, genial, noble spirit, full of sparkling wit, yet gentle and harmless as a child." Jane clearly inherited some of her father's turn of phrase - her tribute of him is tender and evocative.  

A Sketch on the Life and Writings of Lachlan Maclean - edited by J. P. MacLean

The Macleans are scattered

Lachlan died from a long-standing illness in 1848. His reputed last words are characteristically funny and reflect his love of the Gaelic language. On requesting that he be remembered in the prayers of the congregation, he had anticipated that this would occur in the morning Gaelic service. When he was told that it was in the English service he was prayed for, he signed and exclaimed: "Cha dean e feum sain bith ! cha dean e feum sain bith !" (It will do no good, it will do no good). On becoming so feeble that nobody could rouse him, someone entered and spoke in Gaelic, whereupon Lachlan was revived and managed to say: "Canain mo dhutchcha chula mi' aon uair eile thu." (My native tongue, once more I have heard thee). His tombstone eulogises him the following words: "A kindly Gael who had an intense love for his country and for his native language."

His wife Agnes Neil Ashmore didn't survive him long. She was the daughter of a schoolteacher, and she herself operated a school in Lochgilphead, where she died in 1850. She was an educated woman, who dedicated her career to educating others, almost certainly including her daughters. After Agnes' death, the family's five children were left orphans and scattered amongst various family members to be reared. Per the 1851 Scotland census, Jane lived with her aunt Jane Ashmore Kyle and her family in Glasgow. By 1861, she was working as a governess - presumably putting her education to good use to support herself. This early training would also likely help her in her later role caring for her six nieces and one nephew. 

In 1851, Jane's younger brother Norman and her sister Margaret were living with another sister of their mother, Mary Murray Wood Ashmore and her large family. I haven't yet found where Agnes and Mary were living, but presumably also with family in Glasgow. What I do know is that in 1857 the three younger girls left for Australia, arriving in Melbourne on the 4th of September on the Marco Polo. Norman followed in 1863, arriving in Melbourne on the 12th of January on the Blue Jacket. 

I have no idea why Jane didn't come with her sisters, or later with her brother. Perhaps it was because she was already established as a governess and didn't feel compelled to leave. If she had left with either earlier party, she wouldn't have met my 2x great grandfather in London and married him. But that isn't how events played out. I also don't know why Jane was in London at all. I haven't yet found her in either the 1871 Scotland Census or the 1871 England census - either of which might fill in her movements for me. What I do know is this.

On 28th September 1874, Richard Adderley Kearney received a Certificate of Competency from the Marine Board of Australia for "First Mate - Foreign-Going". This allowed him to work on vessels bound for overseas. This was also around about the time that I know his first wife, Elizabeth Gilpin left him. Perhaps bored or frustrated, he decided to stretch his legs at sea. The next time he appears in records is in the Fberuary 1875 amrriage to Jane. Richard then worked on Irish Home Trade Ships through 1875 and early 1876. But by January of 1877, Richard was back in Australia, having served on the SS Northam from London to Sydney. And in Australia he stayed, not to return to London until at least 1883 (spoilers). 

At most, Jane could have spent slightly less than two years with Richard, and for much of that time he was at sea. I don't know when she realised that he wasn't coming back, or if she assumed he had died at sea. But it must have dawned on her at some point, because in June of 1882, Mrs Jane Kearney arrived in Melbourne Australia on board the SS Austral. The ship was a brand new one, and the accommodations on board were described in detail in the Argus on the 28th of June 1885. Of this first saloon, the paper reported that "It is decorated with extreme elegance. The walls are ornamented with walnut and gold in the Italian renaissance style, and panels at each end are enriched with carvings representing the arms of Great Britain, the colonies and other countries." All this elegance was sadly destined for the bottom of Sydney harbour, when in November of 1885, the ship sank killing five crew members.

SS Austral - State Library of Queensland

Tracing Jane in Australia

It's my belief that Jane did not follow Richard to Australia but instead moved there to be near her family. I came to this position for a couple of reasons. First of all, there's no particular reason to think Richard mentioned Australia to Jane. They met in London and he proceeded to work for the Irish Merchant Marines during their marriage. He even listed himself as a Chief Officer - Merchant Service in his marriage certificate to Jane. His time in Australia, with its attendant first marriage, isn't likely to have been a topic of conversation. Secondly, when Jane eventually left, she went to Melbourne, one of the only places I know Richard not to have lived, worked, or had a family in. The people who lived in Victoria were Jane's family. I can picture Jane writing to her living sisters Agnes and Mary saying: "I can only conclude that my husband has perished at sea. Being now nothing here for me, I propose to travel to Australia, to once again be with my family."

From her 1882 arrival until her appearance on the 1912 Echuca electoral roll, Jane's whereabouts are not recorded in documentation. Much to the chagrin of Australian family historians, historical Australian census returns were all destroyed. Tracing family members in Australia often relies on civil vitals, newspaper mentions and later, electoral rolls. It's important to note though, that compulsory voting didn't begin in Australia until 1911, so it's entirely possible for relatives to be largely invisible to the historical record outside of births, deaths and marriages. What this means for Jane is that I have long had an enormous 40-year window where I don't really know her whereabouts. But there are two documents that have helped me fill this gap.

First, the book A Sketch on the Life and Writings of Lachlan Maclean, which was clearly informed by correspondence with Jane, includes details about the fates of Agnes, Jane and Norman. It notes, "the family consisted of one and son and four daughters. The son, Norman MacLeod MacLean, emigrated to Australia where he died 1892 (actually 1895). Two of the daughters, Agnes and Jane also went to Australia, where both are still living. Agnes (Mrs McNeill) lives in East Melbourne, and Jane, married to J. C. Kearney, lives in N. Warrnambool, Victoria."

This passage is interesting for a number of reasons. It totally omits Mary and Margaret - perhaps as they had been dead for so long. It also gets some details wrong, like the date of Norman's death and the name of Jane's husband. The fact that Jane mentioned her husband in correspondence to a distant cousin writing a book on her father strongly suggests to me that she did not believe herself to be a scorned wife, abandoned by her husband. It instead speaks to a wish to have him recorded for posterity - potentially because she believed him lost at sea. 

The other interesting nugget here is that at the time of writing, Jane described herself as living at North Warrnambool. North Warrnambool is not close to Echuca - they are about 380 km apart. And it is a pretty unlikely name for a historian cousin (John Patterson Maclean) in the United States to make up or confuse for another. On balance, I think he knew her address from her letters. Which means that at some point prior the publication of the book in 1914, Jane must have lived in North Warrnambool. To add to the probability, Norman lived in Framligham West, Warrnambool. It seems likely that Jane decided to live near her youngest sibling Norman. He died of dysentery in East Melbourne in 1895 - and the lack family information from the informant in the death certificate suggests Jane wasn't in the immediate vicinity to provide the information. At some point after the death of this brother, Jane undertook her final move to Echuca. 

The last and most vital hint to fill in the missing years between Jane's arrival in 1882 and her death in 1915 is contained within her death certificate. On the far-right of the certificate, is a column reserved to record how long someone has been in Australia. Jane's notes that she was in Victoria for 30 years. And next to it, her marriage to Richard Adderley Kearney has been dutifully recorded, although amusingly, is said to have taken place in Dublin when Jane was 43. I am lucky that Jane was living with her brother-in-law, who having married two of her sisters was amply provided with the particulars of Jane's parents.

Jane Robertson Kearney death certificate 22 August 1915.

I mentioned at the outset, that if Jane had of been located, then Richard's bigamy trial might have gone very differently. That is because Mary Reeves Rainsford provided testimony that she knew about Richard's prior wife and stated both she and Richard had believed her to have been dead. The judge took this into account when sentencing Richard, noting that if he had waited seven years since last seeing Elizabeth Gilpin, he would have been legally free. He essentially bought Richard's assertion that the bigamy was sort of an accident. I imagine that the judge might have felt very differently knowing that Richard had contracted another marriage in the intervening period with Jane. 

Imagine instead if the prosecution had of been able to produce this Marriage Licence Allegation from 1875, where Richard swore under oath that there was no impediment to him legally marrying Jane - despite having only parted from his first wife Elizabeth Gilpin two years ago in Australia.

But while that would have made for high drama, in the end I am glad Jane was spared the indignity of the court proceedings. After being separated from her family after the death of her parents, she was able to come to Australia and reunite with all her siblings, living a life full of purpose and meaning. She lived near to both her brother and her sisters' children, helping her brother-in-law care for them. And in the end, she was remembered by her brother-in-law, which helped me to discover and remember her too. In the end, the words of her father in his poem, Review of Rosneath, can probably be said to have been true for Jane: 

"O grant me once this one prayer,

My days be peaceful, foreign to Despair;

My sand-glass run, let me depart in faith,

And gather’d be in sylvan, sweet Rosneath."

Jane seemed to inherit her father's bright, genial spirit, and left behind a quiet legacy of care, intellect, and loyalty — remembered not by headlines, but by the lives she touched.

Maclean Crest and Cost of Arms. Taken from: A Sketch on the Life and Writings of Lachlan Maclean