Rowney Family Tree

Paddy was born in 1870 at Unley (SA), an area just to the south of central Adelaide (SA). He was the last of Thomas and Susannah's children. It is believed that Paddy was raised by his sister, Agnes, and her husband, Charles POULTON, from the time that he was about 18 months old, however this does not seem to fit well with other details. Agnes and Charles were not married until June 1874, when he would have been 4ư years old, and his mother was still alive until December 1876, when he was almost 7 years of age. It is possible that his mother may have been ailing prior to her death, but it seems unlikely that Agnes would have been living with Charles for so long prior to their marriage.

Agnes and Charles had departed Adelaide by 1877 and appear to have taken up farming around Mallala (SA). Paddy probably left with them at that time. They may have returned to Adelaide briefly around 1884, then by 1887, they had resumed farming at Dalkey (SA), where a number of siblings of Agnes and Charles had also taken up selections.

Paddy would have been around 22 years of age when the family left South Australia and trekked across to the Wimmera district in the northwest of Victoria. They are believed to have travelled overland in waggons, and the journey took them about a month to complete. They appear to have initially settled in the Galaquil (Vic) area, around Brim (Vic), working hard to establish their new selections there. However they were soon burned out by a large grass fire, and appear to have decided to abandon these properties and head further north where new land was opening up around Hopetoun (Vic). They settled in this area and managed to establish themselves successfully over the following years.

In 1895, Paddy was married to Sis MITCHELL. He was then around 25 years old and Sis was about 18 years of age. They had seven children who were all born around Hopetoun; William in 1896, Bertha in 1898, Jessie in 1900, May in 1903, Arthur in 1908, Rod in 1911, and Samuel in 1914.

The 1903 and 1912 Victorian electoral rolls both indicate that Paddy and Sis were farming at Cambacanya (Vic), near Hopetoun.

Paddy and Sis seem to have lived out their days around Hopetoun. Paddy died there in 1940 at the age of 70, and Sis died there a decade later, in 1950, at the age of 74.