Colour photograph of the grave of Donaldina MacLean, Tiree, in the Australian outback near Charleville in Queensland.
Courtesy of Mr Chris Hurst
A few years ago, four friends on a trip in central Queensland came across a grave near Charleville. The inscription on the headstone reads: ‘In loving memory of Donaldina McLean only daughter of Dugald and Mary McKinnon Born on the Island of Tiree Argyleshire Scotland November 30th 1880 Died May 1st 1886 Aged 5 years and 3 months.’
According to local knowledge, the child was restless and crying, and the parents attended to her several times during the night. In the morning they found the girl dead with a snake in her bedclothes. She had been bitten several times.
Isolated graves like these are not uncommon in the outback, a testament to the hardships and tragedies endured by the early settlers.
Colour photograph of a grave in the Australia outback .
The grave of Donaldina MacLean near Charleville in Queensland Australia. The inscription reads: ‘In
loving memory of Donaldina McLean only daughter of Dugald and Mary McKinnon Born on the Island of Tiree Argylshire Scotland November 30th 1880 Died May 1st 1886 Aged 5 years and 3 months.’ According to local knowledge the girl died of snakebite during the night.
Composition `The Macdonald Family in Australia` by Barbara Hall.
Family history of the descendants of John MacDonald (1809-1888) of Balinoeand his second wife Flora Campbell (1829-1865) who emigrated to Australia in 1853.
Composition `Leaving Home` by Keith Dash and Barbara Hall.
An account of the emigration of John MacDonald (1809-1888) and his family from Balinoe to Australia.
Handwritten copy of a diary kept by an unknown young woman aboard the emigrant ship `Jessie Munn`, en route to Australia in 1861-2.
Click here for full transcript
Letter from May MacLean to Dr John Holliday with family information for A` Bhuain.
Letter from May MacLean to Dr John Holliday with an account of how her husband and family emigrated to Queensland, Australia.
Reference map of Australia.
Reference map of Australia at a scale of 1:5,800,000, with state capital maps.
Reference map of South Australia.
State map of South Australia at a scale of 1:1,900,000.
Reference map of Queensland, Australia.
State map of Queensland, Australia at a scale of 1:2,600,000.
Reference map of New South Wales, Australia.
State map of New South Wales, Australia at a scale of 1:1,600,000.
