470 La Trobe Street

Mary Quinlan nee Kennedy – background

Mary Kennedy was born about 1838 in Ireland, the daughter of Patrick and Mary Kennedy.

She arrived in Victoria sometime before 1865, later that year she gave birth to Michael Quinlan.

In 1866 she married the father of her firstborn, Mr. Michael Quinlan. Like Mary, Michael had been born, also in Ireland in 1843, and was the son of Michael Quinlan and Ellen Devitt.

Their son, baby Michael died in infancy, likely caused from generally poor community sanitary conditions and very basic level of medical care and facilities available in the early colony at around that time.

Nine years later, in 1875 Mary gave birth to twins, Bridget and Michael. Her husband Michael had been a manager of the Glenmore Hotel (later called the Carron Tavern) on the south side corner of Batman Street, (formerly Franklin St) West Melbourne, between King and Spencer Streets.

In 1876 Michael Quinlan was assaulted and later died at the age of 33 years, of injuries he received from John Foley, landlord of Foley’s Hotel, Bourke Street, Melbourne. Foley was later charged with manslaughter in January 1876.

Mary Quinlan was left to raise their children as a single parent when she lost husband Michael. She took on odd jobs such as doing washing for other families in the local community.

Life dealt Mary Quinlan a very tough hand. She would have struggled to raise her kids let alone survive without the help of Michael. Unlike today, she had no access to any form of government financial support offered to people in difficult situations these days. As a single parent, Mary had nothing to fall back on, except her own labor and initiative.

In 1877 they moved to Latrobe Street and lived there until 1879.

She was charged in 1879 with being, the “keeper of a disorderly house”. She once occupied a respectable position, but since the death of her husband, she had fallen in with “evil companions” and became “depraved”. Inspector Montfort stating that he only wanted to arrest the downward career of Mary Quinlan.

Tragically her son Michael died at the age of seventeen years in 1893. The whereabouts of her daughter Bridget Quinlan, whether she survived to live a happy productive life or not, is unknown.

Information sourced from Births Deaths and Marriages Victoria, Trove, Council Rate Book records and the State Library of Victoria.

image: State Library

Franklin Street, West Melbourne.

Glenmore Hotel, Michael Quinlan.

source: Sands & McDougall directory 1867

Birth and death of Mary and Michael Quinlan’s three children in the state of Victoria.

source: Births Deaths and Marriages Victoria

Marriage record of Mary Kennedy to Michael Quinlan in Victoria in 1866.

source: Births Deaths and Marriages Victoria