Duley Family History & Genealogy

Jane was born about 1826 in Enniskillen, Ireland. She was the daughter of James Robinson and Leah Irvine. (Note: Jane's date of birth is in doubt. Her birth year has been variously recorded as 1822, 1827, 1828, and 1834.) Jane was the widow of Alexander Weir, who (according to Jane's marriage certificate to John) had died on 12 May 1856. There is so much we do not know about our ancestors, John Thompson Duley and his wife, Jane. We know they were married on 9 Feb 1858 in Sandridge, Victoria, Australia, and they had three children. When Jane married John Duley she was illiterate, signing her marriage certificate with an "X." At some point the marriage failed - this may have been the cause of Jane's return to the UK, to Lanark in Scotland, with the two boys. (Their daughter, Leah, had died as a 2-3 year old some years earlier.) Why she chose Scotland over Ireland (her birthplace) is hard to say. (One theory is that Jane's father was Scottish and may have been serving as a soldier in Ireland at the time of her birth, but we have since learned that her likely father was also born in Ireland. Perhaps she had a sibling in Scotland?) In 1874 she set out again from Scotland, giving her age as 40, Lanark as her birthplace, and tailoress as her occupation, Perhaps she was hoping to find her husband? By then, John had moved from Australia to New Zealand, probably in search of gold. Jane may have known this much, as she, John and James sailed for New Zealand. (Joy Shelford discovered that their fares, totalling £40.10.0 were covered in two ways: £12.0.0 "in bills from friends in the colony" and £28.0.0 was a cost to the New Zealand government." Efforts to find out who the £12 was paid by have come to a dead end: the Shaw Savill offices were completely destroyed in the London Blitz, and all the records were lost.) Jane and her two sons embarked at Glasgow on the "Invercargill" on 16 July 1874 and arrived at Port Chalmers, Dunedin, on 14 October 1874. Jane may have been looking for her husband, John. What we do know is that she chose to head to Marton and build a new life there for her sons. The journey, however taken, would have been long, uncomfortable, and risky. Roads were still dirt tracks, and even those with gravel surfaces were still dangerous and uncertain. Why did they choose Marton? One possibility could be that they had heard that a James McDonald, who had arrived in Marton in 1866 from Scotland, had set up at tailor’s workshop in the town. McDonald proceeded to earn a New Zealand-wide reputation for the quality of his tailoring, so there could well have been positions available for a tailoress such as Jane, who needed to earn her way and support her young sons. Assuming they arrived in Marton in 1875 or thereabouts, Jane, John and James would have been at the tail end of the first wave of immigration into the new settlement. The total population of Marton at the time was around 250. Despite the hard labour of breaking in new land thick with toetoe, manuka, and harakeke, Marton was a good place to live. “All the inhabitants were bound together by the common bonds of Pioneer settlement, with a working for themselves or others; there was next to no floating population; and all had the prospect of a freehold In front of them.” And it was beautiful. “The country was all flax stalks in full flower; thousands of tui and makomako sucking flowers. It was more like fairyland than any description I can give.” Marton was also a town with young people, and therefore friends for John and Jim, aged about 15 and 13 on their arrival from Scotland. In 1879, The Advocate noted, “Some place in which to pass the evening is wanted by the youth of our town, and Marton also. I have often been struck by the number of boys from 10 to 16 years of age who are allowed by the public and to loiter about billiard-rooms and bars of country hotels. The local constables should exercise their authority to clear the young scamps out.” Jane had a photograph album that included this quip: "Yes, this is my Album, But learn ere you look That all are expected to add to my Book. You are welcome to quiz it, The penalty is You add your own Portrait for others to quiz." Jane died on 31 Aug 1911 and was buried two days later in the Dannevirke Settlers Cemetery. (Grave 92, Block K) [6] An obituary written by Helen and Claude Hayward reads: "Jane Duley died at Dannevirke on Aug. 31st, 1911 - aged 89 years. Friends are respecfully informed that the funeral of the late Jane Duley will leave the residence of Mr. John Duley, Cadman St, at 3.30p.m. on Saturday for the Dannevirke Cemetery. An old colonist, Mrs Jane Duley passed away quietly this morning at the residence of her son Mr John Duley. The deceased lady and her husband landed in Victoria in 1852 and after living for a few years in that state, returned to the Old Country and came to New Zealand 38 years ago - 1873 when they settled near Marton. The deceased lady, who had reached the ripe age of 89 years, leaves behind two Sons, J A and J W Duley, 16 Grandchildren, two Great Grandchildren." Although some of the detail given in the obituary appears incorrect, but we can see that Jane had a challenging life, approaching it with courage and forging a path for her two sons that ensuing generations appreciate. From Wikitree profile by Kathy Viney, 2021.

John Thompson Duley of Melbourne, Victoria County Australia was born on October 3, 1827 in Northampton, Northamptonshire County, England United Kingdom. John was baptized on December 31, 1827 at St Giles Church in Northampton. John Duley was married to Jessie Stewart (Munro) Duley in 1872. Family, friend, or fan, this family history biography is for you to remember John Thompson Duley.

Leah Elizabeth Duley of Black For Australia was born in 1859 in Black For. Family, friend, or fan, this family history biography is for you to remember Leah Elizabeth Duley.

Carroll C Duley of Farmington Falls, Franklin County, ME was born on March 24, 1871, and died at age 95 years old on August 15, 1966.

Frederick Duley was born on May 10, 1873, and died at age 93 years old in January 1967.

Martha Duley of District Of Columbia was born on August 16, 1874, and died at age 88 years old in January 1963.

Leon Duley of Connecticut was born on January 20, 1876, and died at age 88 years old in March 1964.

Katie Duley of Morgantown, Monongalia County, West Virginia was born on August 9, 1878, and died at age 89 years old in March 1968.

Andrew Duley of Grants Pass, Josephine County, Oregon was born on September 12, 1878, and died at age 90 years old in January 1969.

Milley Duley of California was born on March 17, 1879, and died at age 85 years old in March 1964.

Eli Duley of Ohio was born on September 2, 1879, and died at age 85 years old in August 1965.

Percy Duley of Boston, Suffolk County, MA was born on July 13, 1880, and died at age 86 years old in November 1966.