Morgan Joseph Thornton
"Square Range" c1845
“THORNTONS OF NIMMITABEL”
Even today the country around County Mayo, Ireland is stark and beautiful. When the young twenty year old Morgan Thornton assaulted an abrasive rent collector, we can understand his anger and frustration. Times were hard, and when crops failed there was little compassion on the part of the landlords. So it was the young Morgan was dragged away shackled, from his crofter home and taken to the town of Mayo, where on his first conviction, he received a sentence of seven years and to be transported to the colony of New South
Wales. It was in the midst of a bitter winter 2 January 1830, when hunger and death stalked the land. What happened to his parents and siblings? We don’t know, but there are no Thornton’s in that area.
The convict ship” Edward” with is human cargo, arrived at Sydney Cove 22 February 1831. Farmers being in short supply in the infant colony, Morgan was sent to John Jenkins at Long Reef where he worked industriously and honestly, earning his ticket of leave in April 1835. He met a young woman Johanna Heffernan, a free immigrant who had come out in
1830, and who had born been in Clonmel, County Tipperary. Devout Catholics, they were married In St Mary’s Cathedral in June 1836, and a year later their first child Patrick Joseph was baptised there, as was their next surviving child Mary.
It is not known when the Thornton family came to Monaro, but Morgan’s name appears in the Government Gazette of 30 September 1848 as owning 5600 hundred acres of “Square Range”, the other section of 6070 acres was owned by Joseph Silk. At one time too, Morgan owned a licence to run the inn the “Shamrock, Rose
and Thistle” in Bombala. The rest of Morgan and Johanna’s children were born in Nimmitabel. According to Morgan’s death certificate they had eighteen children; according to Johanna’s they had fifteen. Only five who were born in Nimmitabel – Sarah, Morgan Joseph, John Ambrose, Catherine and Cecelia Mary. Morgan and Johanna are buried in the pioneer cemetery, but only Johanna’s has a headstone, erected by their daughter, Catherine who had married Alfred Foster, and who had no children.
The children all married and settled in the Nimmitabel area.
The families into which they married were the Bartley, Sims, Burke, Love, Delves, Foster, Smith, Rankin, James, Buckley, McDonald, Manning, Silk and Freebody families. Looking at the old Nimmitabel photos one sees the Thornton men, (all of whom died, and are buried at Nimmitabel), were Rugby players, builders of bridges and men of the land. The women were strong and resourceful – they had to be, since some of their men died at a relatively young age, leaving their women to raise large families. Their spirit, no doubt, lives on in their many descendants – some of whom still live in Nimmitabel, some of
whom have wandered afar.
(With thanks to SR. NOELA FOX PBVM. PHD, descendant of Morgan Thornton).
Mr. John Patrick THORNTON
FATALITY AT BIGGAM
MONARO MERCURY 22 April 1898
A sad and sudden fatality occurred at Biggam Station on Wednesday afternoon. it appears that Mr. John Patrick Thornton, of the family of that name residing at Nimitybelle (and who is in the employ of Mr. John Jardine of Curry Flat) was in charge of a team drawing a quantity of goods for Biggam Station, the residence of Mr. Angus Jardine. Mr. Thornton was riding a horse through a gateway when the team crushed through, knocking him off the horse. The laden wagon passed over him, and on rising he uttered an exclamation to the
effect that he was done for. He immediately fell down and expired from the result of internal injuries. The accident took place only 50 yards from where he intended to unload the wagon. A magisterial inquiry was held by Mr.J.M. Lette J.P.; when the finding was of accidental death.
The funeral passed through Cooma today en route to Nimitybelle. The deceased who had taken a prominent part on the football field, had numerous friends, who deeply deplore the accident. A ball which was to be held at Nimitybelle this evening, which we understand, has been postponed, in respect to the memory of the deceased.
John Patrick Thornton was born 1866 Son of John Thornton and Ann A. (Nee Delves)
This article was procured and transcribed by Betty Raffaele, Cooma, April 2003
| From Cassandra Fox <foxxy65-at-bigpond.net.au> |
|
 |
|
Descendants of Morgan Joseph Thornton
DAVID SMITH 25.01.06
Ian Harvey <iansharvey-at-bigpond.com> 28.11.06,
9.03.07
Recompiled from the new Monaro Pioneers database: 19.12.07
with additional information supplied by:
Mike Driscoll [mdriscoll64-at-hotmail.com] 2.09.08
Bryan Power [bryanp2-at-bigpond.com]
1.02.10
John Young [pensaw-at-gmail.com] 15.01.11
Bruce Thornton [bruce1943-at-dodo.com.au] 16.08.11
Descendants Report
Monaro
Pioneers