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From: Leonie Oliver <>
Subject: [GEELONG] SHAW family puzzle
Date: Sun, 25 Mar 2001 11:00:50 +1000


Hi all
Sometime ago, Suzie or Pam sent me details of the deaths of 2 Catherine
Shawa who were possible members of my family.
Both were buried in Geelong Eastern cemetery.

1. Died 15 November 1841, natural causes. This is the only one likely for
me. I have copies of the inquest statements now (Geelong, number 8), and
have managed to decipher them, except for the name of the Acting Coroner.
He was Foster Someone JP.
The writing of the clerk is very scrawly-does anyone have any idea who the
Acting Coroner for the district of Portland Bay was in 1841?
The name of surgeon who carried out the examination looks like J. Clarke.
Anyone know if this is right?

2. Died 1857. Wife of Captain Shaw who had taken to drink. She swallowed
strychnine to teach him a lesson, but unfortunately it was she who died.
Bit of a drama queen this one. Unfortunately not mine.

So it looks like number 1 if at all.
My Catherine was the wife of Joseph Shaw, a carpenter. He died in 1870 and
is buried at Geelong Eastern as well.
Is there a list of early settlers of the Geelong district or some way of
confirming that Joseph Shaw was living in Geelong in the 1840's? According
to his death certificate, he was there from about 1835, but how to confirm
this? The information was supplied by a friend, schoolteacher Mr Charles
John Proper.

If anyone has any ideas, I would appreciate them please.
Thanks for taking the time to read this.
Regards
Leonie Oliver
Binna Burra
NSW

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