What's in a name

Moya Adams (right) of Toogoom, whose great-grandfather Joseph Mungomery arrived in Australia from Ireland in 1853 as a boatswain's mate on board the Talavera, said she thought the family name had orig inally been Montgomery.

Rumour had it that Joseph changed the spelling himself after jumping ship, but Mrs Adams' researching of the family tree revealed that he had in fact been discharged two months after arrival in October 1853.

She said the more likely story was that the name had been altered through continual mis-spelling.

Joseph married fellow Talavera immigrant Charlotte Priddech and they had seven children – their babies' surnames were spelt in various ways on the register.

The family's foothold in Maryborough began when Joseph came to the river city to rig the first seagoing ship ever built there, the Blue Jacket.

The ship was built for John George Walker (no connection with Walkers Ltd) and subsequently bought by a James Prout.

It changed hands several times before being lost at sea in 1857 en route to New Caledonia with a crew of four and one passenger.

Mrs Adams's grandfather John was the third son of  Joseph and Charlotte's seven children.

A blacksmith by trade, he also had a sugar cane farm at Childers and was one of many farmers who employed kanakas at the turn of the century.

Mrs Adams said the kanakas on her grandfather's farm were brought to the district by Cran & Co of Maryborough.

She said one of her enduring memories was of hearing her mother talk about Queen Maria, the head of the Aboriginal clan at Childers, who was given a special brass nameplate by Childers solicitor Mr Butler.

She said the name plate was now a feature in the Childers Historical Society Museum.

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