Finding female ancestors

Example one

I have a female ancestor, Grace Marion McDonnell, wife of Alfred Napoleon Bemi, [who] died in Sydney in 1906. Her death notice spoke of a sister Mrs John Fotheringham. Would you be able to uncover any information regarding this sister please?

The first step was to locate the death notice to confirm the information provided. This was found on Trove digitised newspapers in The Sydney Morning Herald. From there a search of the NSW registry office for births, deaths and marriages online indexes revealed a possible marriage between a John David FOTHERINGHAM and a Mary MACDONNELL in 1856. This provided a first name, Mary. Also discovered in this search was the death of a Mary FOTHERINGHAM in 1913 that lists the father’s name as MACDONNELL.

Going back to the Trove digitised newspapers, a funeral notice in The Sydney Morning Herald in 1913 for a Mary FOTHERINGHAM shows that Mary died in Waverley. This matches her place of living in the original death notice. Also, the husband is listed as the late J D FOTHERINGHAM, which correlates with the marriage index.

Using the NSW registry office for births, deaths and marriages online indexes, the marriage of Grace Marion MACDONNELL in 1853 to an Alfred BEMI can be found, as well as the death index entry for Grace BEMI nee MACDONNELL. Using the dates of the marriages to search the NSW State Archives & Records online NSW immigration indexes brings up a Grace and a Mary MACDONNELL arriving into Sydney in 1852 aboard the vessel "Tartar".

The passenger list, which is the Government Board list, provides additional information such as parents' names. The names listed for the parents of Grace and Mary MACDONNELL on this vessel are Charles and Grace Grantley. The father matched the information available on the NSW death index for Grace. This information confirmed that the Mary MACDONNELL who married John David FOTHERINGHAM in 1856, was indeed the Mrs John FOTHERINGHAM in the death notice for Grace BEMI in 1906.

Example 2

I would like to locate my 2 x Great Grandfather on (1) Electoral Roll (2) Post Office Directories for the period 1872 onward. NAME: GALLAGHER, James (family - Wife: Eleanor. Children: Emma, Amelia, Edward, Harry, Eleanor, Annie, Elizabeth, Maude Mary, John Thompson). James arrived in Australia c. 1872/1873. His wife and eight children were passengers to Brisbane by the last trip of the "Gauntlet" in 1876. It would be fantastic if I could find where he and his family lived between 1872 and the year he died - 1884. Plus where his widow resided from 1884 onwards.

Where did Mrs Eleanor GALLAGHER live after 1884? A search of Trove digitised newspapers located the first clue - a marriage notice, published in The Telegraph (Brisbane) on 28 December 1889 for her daughter Eleanor. This states that the bride was married at her mother's residence at Kangaroo Point.

Further searching in online newspapers uncovers a reference to an Eleanor GALLAGHER, Thomas Street, in connection to a petition in 1889 for the establishment of a Borough of East Brisbane.

From there a search of the Queensland Post Office directories, available at State Library (and also online via Ancestry) confirmed an address in 1885 for an Eleanor GALLAGHER at Thomas Street, Kangaroo Point (KP). Listed at the same address is an Edward GALLAGHER, the same name as one of her sons. In 1887 in the post office directory she is listed as a Mrs Eleanor GALLAGHER, running a boarding house on Thomas Street, KP. Searches of early 20th century Queensland electoral rolls, available at State Library, confirmed that Eleanor GALLAGHER was still living in Thomas Street until her death in 1908.