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More Australian help please (NSW)

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  • More Australian help please (NSW)

    My second cousin three times removed, Mary Anna BROWN, married a Charles Edward Devenish Meares in Ashfield, NSW in 1908. Charles had previously been married to Annie E Pechey (they married in 1899 in Burwood.) There is a death in 1906 for Annie E Meares at Ashfield which I would think is the same Annie.

    I can only see two children for Charles and Annie on the NSW birth index - Alfred D Meares in 1904 and Stanley D Meares in 1906.

    Charles and Mary Anna had at least two children - Russell Devenish-Meares who was born 10th Oct 1910 at Ashfield and was presumed dead in 1942 after his plane went missing in Dec 1941 (he was a pilot in the Australian Air Force and I've just been reading through the 58 pages of one of his files on NAA.) And Lambert Devenish-Meares who died in 1960. The online birth index only goes up to 1907 so I have got this from the CWGC and the death index.

    Now then, on the 1930 electoral roll for Ashfield, Charles Edward and Mary Anna are at 6 Chandos Street with Alfred, Stanley and Charles Laycester Devenish-Meares, a student. Then in 1936 Lambert and Russell appear on the e roll too.

    Searching for Charles Laycester Devenish-Meares, it seems that his second name should actually be Leycester. And there seem to have been two people of that name but one died in 1922 so can't be the one who was on the e rolls. The other one was a Supreme Court Judge in NSW from 1969-1979 and Chairman of the NSW Law Reform Committee at the same time, and has a page on Wikipedia and everything. He was born 16 Jan 1909 at Summer Hill, NSW and died 5 Aug 1994. His WW2 army papers are listed on NAA but not available to download yet and it gives his next of kin as "Charles Meares".

    I should add that these people seem to have started out as Mear(e)s with Devenish as a middle name but at some point made their surname into Devenish-Mear(e)s. On the e rolls the parents don't have the second e in Meares but the younger people do! Makes searching take four times as long as it should!

    So, what I'm trying to do is to find something somewhere which says that Mary Anna was definitely the mother of Charles Leycester Devenish-Meares before I start telling all my family that we were related to an NSW Supreme Court judge! (I know it's the right Mary Anna because it has her marriage in a family Bible, but it doesn't list her children, annoyingly enough.) Can anybody help, please?
    KiteRunner

    Every five years or so I look back on my life and I have a good... laugh"
    (Indigo Girls, "Watershed")

  • #2
    Not sure if it'll help, but his obituary's listed in the Ryerson Index:

    Ryerson Index

    If you follow the instructions on the site, you can apply for a copy of the obit, which may contain the names of his wife and children.

    There are loads of other Devenish-Meares in the index. If you do a search on Ancestry or GR, you may be able to find some living descendants of Charles.
    Last edited by Mary from Italy; 16-09-08, 12:01.

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    • #3
      I have to go out now, but you may find something here:

      Devenish-Meares Family History - pafg05.htm - Generated by Personal Ancestral File

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      • #4
        Thanks, Mary. It does say on that family tree that he was Charles Edward and Mary Anna's son, and in Charles Edward's entry in the Australian Dictionary of Biography it says he had five sons but doesn't give their names! I'm sure it must be right but will keep searching around to find more definite evidence. He (Charles Leycester) was a Lieutenant Colonel in WW2. Don't think I've had any of those in my tree before!
        KiteRunner

        Every five years or so I look back on my life and I have a good... laugh"
        (Indigo Girls, "Watershed")

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        • #5
          OK, back now - yes, that last link shows Charles as being the son of Charles Edward Devenish-Meares and Mary Anna Brown.

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          • #6
            If you get Charles' death cert, it should give the names of his wives and children.

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            • #7
              Well Kate we may be related or our relatives may be at least. My Oh and I both have Devenish Meares in our tree. The head of that family was Alfred. He had approx 6-8 children. I stopped looking when I linked my rellies to OH's. We both married into the family. Let me have a look and I'll see what I can find.
              Kit

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              • #8
                Just had a thought - although the online birth index only goes up to 1907, I think the one in Australian libraries, and maybe on the Federation Disc, goes up to 1918, so maybe one of our Australian members could help.

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                • #9
                  Kit, Charles Edward's father was Alfred - ooh, how exciting!
                  KiteRunner

                  Every five years or so I look back on my life and I have a good... laugh"
                  (Indigo Girls, "Watershed")

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    Oh, that's interesting, Kat!

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                    • #11
                      Service Record
                      Name MEARES, CHARLES LEYCESTER DEVENISH
                      Service Australian Army
                      Service Number NX12239
                      Date of Birth 16 Jan 1909
                      Place of Birth SUMMER HILL, NSW

                      Did you have Charles' DOB? This is from the WW2 Nominal Roll.
                      Kit

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                      • #12
                        My Sydney relatives mostly lived in Ashfield and Burwood - they were probably servants to your lot

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                        • #13
                          If it is the same family Alfred Meares married Eliza Tooth. I'm sure you can google Alfred. I think he was a minister.

                          Sorry for being vague, am doing this from memory and can't settle down to decide what to look at first.
                          Kit

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                          • #14
                            Mine married in Mary, they weren't rich on mine or OH;s branches,
                            Kit

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                            • #15
                              Ok Alfred's father was Matthew. He may have been the minister. Off to google now.
                              Kit

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                              • #16
                                Yes, Kit, I did find that WW2 service info, thanks. It give his next of kin as Charles Meares. If only it said "Charles Edward Devenish Meares, father" or, even better, "Mary Anna Meares, mother"! And the actual WW2 service record isn't available as a digital copy yet.
                                KiteRunner

                                Every five years or so I look back on my life and I have a good... laugh"
                                (Indigo Girls, "Watershed")

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                                • #17
                                  No not many WW2 ones are. It's annoying to see them listed but not available
                                  Kit

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                                  • #18
                                    Originally posted by Mary from Italy View Post
                                    My Sydney relatives mostly lived in Ashfield and Burwood - they were probably servants to your lot

                                    I've got other Sydney relatives on a different branch of my tree who weren't so illustrious, Mary. I wonder whether they knew these people, now that would be weird.
                                    KiteRunner

                                    Every five years or so I look back on my life and I have a good... laugh"
                                    (Indigo Girls, "Watershed")

                                    Comment


                                    • #19
                                      Picture of said Charles

                                      MEARES, Charles Leycester Devenish - Law Reform Commission : Lawlink NSW
                                      Kit

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                                      • #20
                                        Oh yes, I already saw his picture - I've been to that page before! Shame it doesn't give his parents' names!
                                        KiteRunner

                                        Every five years or so I look back on my life and I have a good... laugh"
                                        (Indigo Girls, "Watershed")

                                        Comment

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