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From: "Janice Doughty" <>
Subject: A FAVOURITE ANCESTOR. Mary Lees - Part 8 (should be 9 as I missed numbering one chapter).
Date: Sat, 13 Nov 2004 10:34:14 +1100


Good morning Marg and Listers,

First a correction, the land sharing the border with Isaac Nicholas Jnr at Surry Hills, was not the property owned by John Pearce, his son Richard Pearce owned this property, John Pearce's Surry Hills property was on the new road to Botany Bay, at Surry Hills

The Mary Lees story continues................

Richard Pearce died on 18th April 1839 and at the age of 27 years and was laid to rest in the Sandhills Cemetery in Devonshire Street in Old Sydney Town. His funeral service was held on Tuesday the 21st April and was attended by all the grieving family. The service was at Christ Church in the Parrish of St Lawrence, at the bottom of George Street, near the cemetery. The minister was the Rev. William Horatio Walsh. After the burial Richard's father and mother, John and Mary arranged for an Alter tomb to be erected over Richard's grave.

Before, I relate the family "fable" regarding the "Pearces" I first will have to bring the story up to 1840. The Pearce family felt deeply the loss of John and Mary (Lees) Pearce's youngest son Richard and the husband of Elizabeth Pearce (Mcguiness) at the young age of 27 years. However, over the next 16 months the family had begun to heal their pain and were getting on with their lives. Then another death was to strike the family down and cause more anguish and pain.

John and Mary Pearce's eldest son, Robert and his wife Mary (Scanlan) by 1840 their marriage was still childless. Robert Pearce still carried on with his trade as a Currier (tanner), while his wife Mary with help, managed their hotel, "The Currier's Arms" on the property on Bourke Street in Surry Hills. Then, Robert Pearce's health began to fail and by August of 1840 he was very ill indeed. Again, it is not known what caused his illness, though being a tanner he too came in contact with cattle on a regular basis and it could have contracted Bovine tuberculosis. On the 8th August, 1840 Robert Pearce, the eldest son of convicts, John and Mary (Lees) Pearce, had word sent for his solicitor to attend his bedside, where he made his last Will and Testament.

The Will of Robert Pearce: # 1247.
Robert Pearce - Tanner to Mary Pearce nee Scanlan.

Mary to live in the property known as the "Currier's Arms" at Surry Hills for Life, as long as she remained a chaste Widow.

Use of my horse dray truck, implements of tanning stock in trade for the use forever to my father, John Pearce.
Horned cattle to my mother Mary Pearce (Lees) and my wife's mother Alice Sullivan (Scanlan).

Allotment #7 of section 14 in Castlereagh Street to my nephew Robert Pearce.

Land at Surry Hills for the use of my brother's children, Elizabeth and Mary Ann Pearce

Land at Surry Hills purchased from Henry Ferris for the use of my nephew Richard Pearce. Use of the farm to my brother in law John Scanlan.

Mary Pearce (nee Scanlan's) mother Alice, and Mary's older sister Margaret Scanlan had been in the Colony since 1830, they had arrived as convicts on board the Asia. Alice Scanlan, Mary's mother, had received permission from the Governor to marry, and she married Michael Sullivan at St James Church of England, in 1831. Also, arriving as Bounty immigrants in early 1840 were Mary Pearce (nee Scanlan's) brother John Scanlan, and his wife and two children, and Johanna Scanlan their youngest sister.. This explains Robert Pearce's Will, leaving the use of his farm to his brother-in-law, John Scanlan. Until we were able to read Robert Pearce's Will, we had no knowledge that more of Mary's family had arrived from Ireland.

It was on 10th August, 1840 when Robert Pearce at the age of 32 departed this life. His funeral service was also held at Christ Church, where his brother Richard's service had been held in 1839, and Robert was buried in the Alter tomb with his brother. One can only imagine the sorrow that was felt by the family. John and Mary (Lees) Pearce, had now lost both their sons in their prime and in time this would effect Mary their mother, leaving an empty hole in her heart, that she needed to fill.

Still grieving the loss of Robert, the family would not have been prepared for the next terrible loss. On 21st January 1841, Elizabeth Pearce (nee Mcguiness) the widow of Richard Pearce, was working behind the bar at "The Horse and Carriage" inn, while her little boy Robert (named after his Uncle) was playing on the floor. As she poured drinks or wiped down the bar, she mostly likely would look down at her son and give him a smile, then out of the blue he took a fit and died on the spot. He was only two years and nine months old. An inquest was held into his unexplained death and it was found he had died from a "Visitation from God".

Little Robert's burial service was also held at Christ Church, St Lawrence and he was buried with his father and his uncle in the family tomb at the Devonshire Street Cemetery. Mary (Lees) Pearce, little Robert's grandmother, was distraught and almost at breaking point, her family was dying around her. She was haunted day and night by the deaths of her two sons and now her grandson. One can just imagine how this woman was effected, she had suffered so much over her life.

This terrible loss was felt deeply by Mary's daughter-in-law, Elizabeth (nee Mcguiness), as in the space of two years she had lost her beloved husband Richard and now her youngest child, Robert. What was she to do, how was she to cope. The hotel takings and her husband's estate gave her some income. Also, the cost of the education of her children was being paid by the estate. However, Elizabeth must have felt this was all too much for her. She was only 30 years of age, she needed a man around to help her with the running of the hotel, the chores and the raising of her surviving children. However she had to weigh up the fact that if she married, she would lose everything. What was she to do? ..."

In the next part of the story we will leave the facts and bring the family "fable" into the tale and as I mentioned before, some small parts of this story could be true and I will explain this later. When the story was carried down by family members, no one knew anything about the convict connection, and many things were added, and also many facts taken away. It is a lesson in how the true story can be corrupted to such an extent, it becomes a fairy story.

..................to be continued.

Regards,
Janice


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