The Connollys & Bells

The Connolly Family

The Connolly side of my family basically begins with Jeremiah Connolly. He was born in County Cork, Ireland around 1815. His father Daniel was a soldier and Jeremiah also joined the army but in 1837 was court-martialled for violence to a superior officer and transported for life to Van Diemens Land (Tasmania, Australia).

Little is known of Jeremiah's life in Ireland. The Connollys were spread throughout County Cork although they were most prevalent in the south west around Drinagh. Were they a family of soldiers? Possibly, but it was also common for convicted republican rebels to be allowed to join the army as an alternative to jail or transportation. Jeremiah certainly wasn't part of the failed uprising of 1798 and Daniel probably wasn't either, unless he was quite old when Jeremiah was born. Nevertheless, I like to think of them as rebels rather than mercenaries.

GENERATION 1

Daniel Connolly m. Mary

Jeremiah c1815 Cork -- 15-3-1885 Hobart

Jeremiah arrived in Tasmania aboard the Marquis of Hastings on 18-7-1839. After a number of years at Port Arthur and other Tasmanian penal settlements, he was given his freedom and moved to Victoria where he worked as a clerk. There he married Louisa Gurnett, the daughter of another former soldier, George Gurnett. Shortly after, Jeremiah accepted a position as a clerk back at Port Arthur in Tasmania where all of their children were born.

GENERATION 2

Jeremiah Connolly m. Louisa Gurnett 13-1-1854 Pentridge VIC

George c1855 -- 1925 Hobart
Annie c1856 -- 13-9-1884 Hobart
James 16-7-1858 Port Arthur -- 18-7-1938 Hobart
(male) 26-10-1860 Port Arthur
Jeremiah 23-7-1863 Port Arthur -- 25-5-1886 Launceston
Maria 15-2-1866 Port Arthur
Eliza 28-3-1869 Port Arthur -- 11-8-1873 Port Arthur
Nora 24-1-1872 Port Arthur

The mid 1880s were tragic for the family. Jeremiah's oldest daughter Annie died in 1884, Jeremiah himself died in 1885 and third son Jeremiah Thomas died in 1886. 1887 finally brought some good news when son James married Lily Bell. Lily, although born in Tasmania was also from an Irish family. James followed in his father's footsteps somewhat, working as a clerk in various prisons and institutions in Hobart. Tragedy was never far from the family, however. In 1898, Lily died suddenly. Then in 1901, James's daughter Margery burnt to death when her dress caught alight while she was playing with fire.

GENERATION 3

George Connolly m. Bridget Daly 30-7-1890 Hobart

Alice 17-7-1891 Hobart
George 12-3-1894 Hobart
Mary 7-8-1896 Hobart
Annie 26-1-1900 Hobart

James Connolly m. Lily Bell 16-2-1887 Hobart

Annie 14-11-1887 Hobart
Robert c1889 -- c1954 Sydney
Thomas 17-1-1891 Hobart -- 16-10-1891 Hobart
James 21-1-1892 Hobart -- 14-9-1970
Hilary 6-5-1893 Hobart -- 15-9-1966
Margery 21-6-1894 Hobart -- 13-7-1901 Hobart
Joan 10-7-1896

Norah Connolly m. George Bennett 22-11-1898 Lyell TAS

Lilly 1901 Hobart
Alan 1902 Hobart
Francis 1904 Hobart

James's third son James Bell Connolly had a successful career as a politician. He held a seat in Tasmania's upper house from 1948 to 1968 and was a minister in the Labor Governments of that era. Fourth son Hilary (later known as Paddy) ran away to sea while still young and ultimately settled in Sydney and had a family. Oldest son Robert also moved to Sydney and has numerous descendants living there today. Oldest daughter Annie's husband Thomas was an Australian cricket selector and her children constituted an ideal Catholic family. Two became priests, one a nun, and the other three had around 30 children between them. Information on subsequent generations is not published to protect the privacy of living members of the family.

GENERATION 4

Annie Connolly m. Thomas Carroll 4-11-1914 Hobart

Joan
Patrick
James
Phillip
Shirley
Margaret

Robert Connolly m. Dorothy Ritson

Robert
Patrick
John
Philip
Dorothy
Vincent

James Connolly m. Clytie Chew 5-2-1914 Hobart

Marjorie
Clytie
James
Rex
Brian
Cecily

Hilary Connolly m. Ivy Bassett 15-4-1933

Michael
James
Joan
Peter
Mary

The Bell Family

The Bells came from County Antrim in the North of Ireland. They were probably farmers there since they took up farming when they arrived in Tasmania. This may have been the cause of their emigration since Ireland was hit by a severe famine in the late 1840s when huge numbers of Irish left for England, America and Australia. The fact that they were Catholics in predominately protestant Ulster could also have played a part in their decision. The Bells arrived in Tasmania in a couple of waves. Robert appears to have led the way. John, wife Margaret and four children arrived aboard the Great Tasmania in 1857 and settled fairly quickly in Franklin, south of Hobart. The other brother James and mother Margaret appear to have arrived later.