James Murphy

Compiled from information passed onto me from Mrs Jean Murphy of Lake Cathie NSW and the Cunningham Family of Gippsland Vic.

JAMES MURPHY was born 1796, and died 19-Apr-1884 at Glenmore (ClunMore?). He married CATHERINE FITZGERALD, daughter of JOHN FITZGERALD in Ireland on 02 Nov 1824. She was born 1797 in County Meath, Ireland, and died 01 Sep 1868 in Woolway, NSW.

James native place was Summerhill, County Meath, Ireland. James and Catherine with children Patrick and Roseanna (Rose) arrived aboard the vessel Argyle. The barque Argle departed from Plymouth 12th December 1838, arrived Sydney 1 April 1839. They came as assisted migrants (Marshall migrants), John Marshall was the Emigration agent. They left the older children, William, Bridget and James, in Ireland. Shipping indexes show James and Catherine "were of good character, in good health, and could both read".

James and Catherine took up land adjacent to the present Berridale-Jindabyne road in the vicinity of Varney's Range. Mr Reg Mould bought this property then known as "Summerhill" from Bill and Annie Kelly in 1929. (Annie was a grandaughter of James and Catherine).

"Summerhill" in County Meath was also the birthplace of Catherine. Her headstone in the Gegedzerick Cemetery, Berridale, reads -"Catherine Murphy, wife of James Murphy, died at Woolway, 2nd September, 1868, aged 82 years. Maiden name, Fitzgerald, native of Summerhill, County Meath, Ireland."

Although other members of the Murphy family are also buried at Gegedzerick, no record of James can be found.

A further two children Andrew, & Margaret, were born in Dalgety and Kiandra respectively. William, Bridget and James, were raised in Ireland, and rejoined the family around the mid 1860's, Bridget married Francis Burke in Ireland, and came out with 2 children, and a third was born at sea. William and James were of adult age. The Murphy property, known as "Summerhill", was sold out of family hands in 1929. (source Cunninghams web)

James Death Certificate reads - Date & place of death, 19-4-1884 Clun More (perhaps meant to be Glenmore). Name and Occupation, James Murphy labourer. Sex & Age Male 88. Cause, ague ( malarial fever with cold, hot,& sweating stages; fit of shivering. Oxford Dictionary) . Parents, James Murphy labourer and Rose Burke. Certified, by Francis Burke son-in-law. Registration, Alfred Salway 2-5-1884. Burial, 22-4-1884 Gegedzerick. Witnesses, John Rutherford and Thomas Burke. Where born and how long in NSW, Ireland 48 yrs. Place of marriage/age/to whom, Ireland - 25 yrs - Katherine Murphy. Children William/Bridget/James/ Patrick/Andrew/Margaret. It seems that Rose and John predeceased their father and John predeceased his mother.

James and William grew up in Ireland and made their way to rejoin the family on the Monaro in the mid 1860 period. William had served for a time with the British Army in India. His sister Bridget married Francis Bourke in Ireland around 1849 Bridget is buried in the Mittagang Cemetery, Cooma, her son John was married at Buckley Crossing in 1887.

1862 is the first record of a Murphy being at Cathcart. Prior to that date, all birth and marriage certificates refer to places around Dalgety, Berridale and Cooma, such as Grosses Plain, Bulgandra Plains, Coolamatong and Woolway.

William married Mary Johnston in Bombala in 1867 and most likely took up land at Cathcart about that date. William called his property "Spring Valley". In County Meath, "Spring Valley" is a locality just down the road from "Summerhill". William and Mary had five sons, James, Thomas, Fergus, Patrick and Stephen. All the sons at sometime lived and worked on small dairy farms at Cathcart, supplementing their incomes with horse carrying part of teams, roadwork and school vans, until intra-family dealing left most of the land with Thomas.

James who was born in Ireland, acquired small fertile portions of land at Cathcart. His stay at Cathcart was short and tragic with the unsolved death of his wife Mary in 1871, as outlined in the book "The Cathcart Murders".

I recall an email contact with your Monaro Pioneers group of many years ago, regarding research into my great great grandparents, Margaret Murphy as above, and her husband Thomas Henry Cunningham from Manchester UK..

Am very pleased to advise, I have finally established a web page focussing on my late mother's Richardson family side, which graphically and factually outlines the lives and times of Thomas and Margaret Cunningham, from their mutual roots in Ireland, through to details of their 10 children and some grandchildren, raised near Swan Reach in Victoria.

I have created a link to your site, regarding an acknowledgement of your notes on Margaret Murphys family, and would appreciate a reciprocating link to my site, if you deem that appropriate. Data and records are currently being fine tuned, from some Cunningham family descendants here in Victoria, however in the mean time, I hope you accept this personal invitation to review my research at

Descendants of James Murphy

Ian Harvey <iansharvey-at-bigpond.com> 10.03.07
Recompiled from the new Monaro Pioneers database 15.08.07
with additional information supplied by:
Sue Kirkpatrick [suekirkpatrick-at-bigpond.com] 22.12.07
Tamateena Russell [tamateena-at-bigpond.com] 1.05.10

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