Sarah Jane MASON (1873-1916)

Dear Little Man,

History is full of wonderful achievements, but also great tragedy.  Your ancestors are so much more than just names on a family tree, and lived full and rich lives.  This is the story (as far as I know it) of one lady in your tree whose life was cut short by the decisions she made. 

Sarah Jane MASON (1873-1916)

Sarah's birth was registered in 1873 in Mudgee, NSW (13930/1873).  Her parents were William and Charlotte Jane MASON.  I don't know much about her early life (yet) until she married William EVANS on 16 January 1894 in Penrith NSW (5953/1894, and divorce notice in The Sydney Morning Herald 20 April 1915).  She had a number of children with her husband, but they divorced in 1915 on the grounds of infidelity.

Sarah died the following year at the Royal Oak Hotel in Parramatta (3882/1916).  The cause (per the Coroner) was “septic infection of the uterus and hemorrhage (sic) following on an abortion probably procured by an instrument, but who procured such abortion the evidence adduced does not enable me to say”.

Following the death and coroner’s report, the media reported on a ‘need’ for doctors to liaise with police where they suspected illegal operations and procedures had occurred.  However, the medical profession of the time denied that such a duty applied to them (although it would obviously apply to “ordinary citizens” other than barristers or solicitors) and argued that patient confidentiality is paramount to their profession.

Further research required:

Sarah's story is so sad, and there are many questions I wish I knew the answers to.  Did her children (who would have been quite young really) ever know the truth about their mum's death? Where was the father of her baby? Did she even know who that was? How was she coping financially after the divorce?  What became of the nurse who was suspected of having carried out the procedure, or at least organised it?

 Reference:

• DIVORCE COURT. (1915, April 20). The Sydney Morning Herald (NSW : 1842 - 1954), p. 7. Retrieved September 26, 2014, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article15591378  
• A Woman's Fearful Death. (1916, March 8). The Cumberland Argus and Fruitgrowers Advocate (Parramatta, NSW : 1888 - 1950), p. 3. Retrieved September 26, 2014, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article86082063

Please note that my entries on this blog are works in progress, and will be updated periodically as I find more information to add/verify/correct what I have.  If you have more information that can help flesh out this person's profile, or have corrections to make, please leave a comment below and get in touch :) 

A letter to The Boy

Dear my beautiful boy,

You have a wonderful close family.  Sure, we don't see everyone very often, but you are so lucky to see Grandma at school every day, and that Dad works shifts and can pick you up every day from school.  You only have a small local family - Grandma and Grandad live 20 minutes away, and so does Grandma D.  Everyone else is widely dispersed. 

It never used to be this way.  Your grandparents can tell you about enormous family gatherings, where there would be cousins running around playing games, mum and aunts in the kitchen gossiping, and dad and the uncles out the back talking manly things.  Sunday roasts were a family affair, and extended family was a large part of everyday life.

Over the years, so many of the family have moved on, and big family events are getting rarer and rarer.  I recall one evening in the last few years that some of Grandad's family were in the area, and came for dinner at Grandma's house.  You weren't very old, maybe 3 or 4.  The only part of the evening I remember is your insistence that it must be a party, and that if it's a party, there must be a cake with candles.  We made do with a single candle in a custard tart at dessert. 

What I want to do for you, my little man, is introduce you to some of the family that you have not met.  Mostly I will tell you stories about people who have passed on, who survived tragedy, loved deeply and who left you a legacy of honour, love and spirit.  Each of the people and places I will tell you about have special stories to tell, and I hope that you will keep them close to your heart, and share them with your own family when you are older.

The reason I have chosen to use a blog for this project is that are twofold: there are many gaps that others may be able to fill in for us, and also to keep everything ordered and tidy - you have seen my craft room, I am not exactly the most organised, tidy person when I am being creative or undertaking projects!  I also know that this information will be safe in the cloud, in case I lose my research through carelessness, hard drive crash or disaster.  To preserve privacy for you and your family, I will not be identifying living people, nor writing how people fit into your overall family tree - you will need to refer to my family tree data for that.

So my beautiful boy, I entrust the following stories to you.  I hope you will share these as appropriate with any future siblings, cousins and children you may have in the future.  My gift to you is knowledge of, and appreciation for those who have come before us, and who are waiting to welcome us to that big party in the sky.

Love,
Mum xo