1868 A sketch of Dalby.
Jane McLaran 1804 - 1868
Jane McLaran was Malcolm McLaran's second wife. Their only child (discovered to date) was Alexander. It is not known if Jane was married previously or had other children. The inquest into her untimely death (below) suggests that Alexander was not her only child.
Jane McLaren’s accidental drowning death on 22 Dec 1868 occurred in very hot weather. She had visited her neighbours, William and Mary Dale in the morning. The accident occurred whilst she was doing the laundry in a waterhole on Myall Creek, 5 km downstream from Dalby, where the family lived.
The inquest into Jane's death provides a rare insight into the lives of the McLarans of Dalby in the late 1860’s.
Jane McLaren’s accidental drowning death on 22 Dec 1868 occurred in very hot weather. She had visited her neighbours, William and Mary Dale in the morning. The accident occurred whilst she was doing the laundry in a waterhole on Myall Creek, 5 km downstream from Dalby, where the family lived.
The inquest into Jane's death provides a rare insight into the lives of the McLarans of Dalby in the late 1860’s.
Jane and Malcolm McLaran lived close to the waterhole (adjacent Lot 53) in 1868.
26 December 1868 Dalby Herald
On Tuesday, about 5 p.m., a woman named Jane McLaren, sixty-four years of age, was found dead in a waterhole down the creek, about three miles from Dalby. Information of the occurrence was at once given to the police, and the Police Magistrate held an inquiry at the Court House into the matter on Thursday. From the evidence then adduced, it appeared that deceased has for some time been subject to fits of dizziness and cramp. On the afternoon of the above day, she went to a waterhole near her residence, while her husband was absent, with the intention of washing cloths. While stooping, it is supposed she became dizzy and fell into the water, where she was drowned. She was found, quite dead, by her son, when he was passing the waterhole on his way home, and he at once had the body removed.
On Tuesday, about 5 p.m., a woman named Jane McLaren, sixty-four years of age, was found dead in a waterhole down the creek, about three miles from Dalby. Information of the occurrence was at once given to the police, and the Police Magistrate held an inquiry at the Court House into the matter on Thursday. From the evidence then adduced, it appeared that deceased has for some time been subject to fits of dizziness and cramp. On the afternoon of the above day, she went to a waterhole near her residence, while her husband was absent, with the intention of washing cloths. While stooping, it is supposed she became dizzy and fell into the water, where she was drowned. She was found, quite dead, by her son, when he was passing the waterhole on his way home, and he at once had the body removed.
Here is a transcription of the Police Magistrate's inquest into the death of Jane McLaran.
24 December 1868
Inquest of death held on the body of Jane McLaren. Adjourned from Wednesday the twenty third instant of this day Thursday the twenty fourth instant.
Alexander McLaren's Statement
This deposed Alexander McLaren being duly sworn states as follows:
I am a shepherd in the employment of my brother Donald McLaren. I reside on Myall Creek about 5 miles from Dalby with my father.
On Tuesday last the 22nd instant, I was at a place called the Three Mile Scrub with my sheep. I came back to where we were living about one o’clock in the afternoon. When I came back I found no one inside the hut.
I stopped in the hut about 10 minutes. I left the hut to see where my father and mother were. I was crossing the creek opposite our hut and about ten yards from where I crossed the creek, I saw the body very swollen, lying in the creek in a place where the water is about one foot deep.
The body was lying on its face, the head was under the water, one load* was in the creek, and the other load and arm twisted around a log. All the body but the feet was in the water.
I took the body out of the water and laid it on the bank and immediately went to our nearest neighbour one Pinkney Wormwell and reported the death of my mother to Pinkney Wormwell and to my father whom I found there.
Pinkney Wormwell, my father and a W. Dale, another of our neighbours, hurried with me to the creek where the body was.
We carried the body up on to the top of the bank. We then got a sheet of bark and carried the body to the hut and laid it on the bed where I saw the body lying yesterday.
I came into Dalby and reported my mother’s death to my sister Catherine Milford. I then went out to the camp at the Three Mile Scrub and reported my mother’s death to my brothers Donald and Duncan McLaren.
I stopped at the camp and my brothers left to go to my father’s hut where my mother’s body was lying.
My mother was a beautiful person. She never drank. My father and herself lived happily together. I had not heard her complain lately but she was subject to dizziness in her head.
The body I saw yesterday lying on the bed in my father’s hut is the body of my mother Jane McLaren. I do not think the body could have been in the water any length of time when I found it.
Signed Alexander McLaren
The above deposition of Alexander McLaren taken and sworn before me this twenty-fourth day of December AD 1868 at the Police Office Dalby.
(Signed) Philip Pinnoch P.M.
* washing load
Inquest of death held on the body of Jane McLaren. Adjourned from Wednesday the twenty third instant of this day Thursday the twenty fourth instant.
Alexander McLaren's Statement
This deposed Alexander McLaren being duly sworn states as follows:
I am a shepherd in the employment of my brother Donald McLaren. I reside on Myall Creek about 5 miles from Dalby with my father.
On Tuesday last the 22nd instant, I was at a place called the Three Mile Scrub with my sheep. I came back to where we were living about one o’clock in the afternoon. When I came back I found no one inside the hut.
I stopped in the hut about 10 minutes. I left the hut to see where my father and mother were. I was crossing the creek opposite our hut and about ten yards from where I crossed the creek, I saw the body very swollen, lying in the creek in a place where the water is about one foot deep.
The body was lying on its face, the head was under the water, one load* was in the creek, and the other load and arm twisted around a log. All the body but the feet was in the water.
I took the body out of the water and laid it on the bank and immediately went to our nearest neighbour one Pinkney Wormwell and reported the death of my mother to Pinkney Wormwell and to my father whom I found there.
Pinkney Wormwell, my father and a W. Dale, another of our neighbours, hurried with me to the creek where the body was.
We carried the body up on to the top of the bank. We then got a sheet of bark and carried the body to the hut and laid it on the bed where I saw the body lying yesterday.
I came into Dalby and reported my mother’s death to my sister Catherine Milford. I then went out to the camp at the Three Mile Scrub and reported my mother’s death to my brothers Donald and Duncan McLaren.
I stopped at the camp and my brothers left to go to my father’s hut where my mother’s body was lying.
My mother was a beautiful person. She never drank. My father and herself lived happily together. I had not heard her complain lately but she was subject to dizziness in her head.
The body I saw yesterday lying on the bed in my father’s hut is the body of my mother Jane McLaren. I do not think the body could have been in the water any length of time when I found it.
Signed Alexander McLaren
The above deposition of Alexander McLaren taken and sworn before me this twenty-fourth day of December AD 1868 at the Police Office Dalby.
(Signed) Philip Pinnoch P.M.
* washing load
22 Dec 1868 Alexander's ride from Myall Creek farms to Dalby then to Three Mile Scrub.
Nov 1868 This notice announced the construction of Blaxlands Boiling Down establishment adjacent Three Mile Scrub. It was a large undertaking, boiling down 10,000 to 15,000 sheep per week and would have employed many shepherds.
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Mary Dale's Statement
This deposed Mary Dale being duly sworn states as follows: I am the wife of William Dale who has a dairy farm on Myall Creek, about half a mile from the hut in which Malcolm McLaren and his wife the deceased lived. On Tuesday afternoon about one or two o’clock I saw the last witness Alexander McLaren galloping towards his father’s hut from Pinkney Wormwell. I said to my husband there is something to matter down at McLaren’s. I thought so because as the last witness passed I saw and heard him crying. I rode across to McLaren’s. When I got to the creek below the hut, I saw the body of the deceased Jane McLaren on the bank of the creek. We placed the body on a sheet of bark. The body was carried in to the hut and laid on the bed, where I saw it lying yesterday. I washed the body and laid it out. There was a bruise on her nose and on her ankle. The deceased had been over to my house about two hours before. She complained of her head. She said she had suffered from her head ever since her last child was born. The deceased was a very helpful and respectable person. She lived happily with her family. (Signed with her mark) Mary (X) Dale This deposition of Mary Dale taken and received before me this twenty fourth day of December AD 1868 at the police office Dalby. (Signed) Philip Pinnoch P.M. |
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Malcolm McLaran's Statement
This deposed Malcolm McLaren being duly sworn in states as follows: I am a shepherd and we are living in a hut on Myall Creek about four or five miles from Dalby. I was the husband of the deceased Jane McLaren. On last Tuesday afternoon I was at the house of Pinkney Wormwell. About one or two o’clock in the afternoon, I was just about to leave to return to my house when my son Alexander McLaren rode up and said: “You are here and my mother is drowned.” I went home as fast as I could and Pinkney Wormwell followed me. When I got to the creek I saw the body of my deceased wife laying on the bank by the side of the creek. We placed the body on a sheet of bark and carried it to the hut and laid out the body on the bed. The body I viewed in my hut is the body of my deceased wife. She was sixty-five years old. She complained to me about a week ago of cramp in her knees and of giddiness in her head. (Signed in his own hand) Malcolm McLaren The above deposition of Malcolm McLaren taken and sworn before me this twenty-fourth day of December AD 1868 at the Police Office Dalby. (Signed) Philip Pinnoch P.M. |
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Pinkney Wormwell's Statement
This deposed Pinkney Wormwell being duly sworn states as follows: I have a dairy farm on Myall Creek about four or five miles from Dalby. I knew the deceased Jane McLaren. On Tuesday last the twenty second instant, she was at my house about eleven o’clock in the morning. She seemed then well and hearty. About one o’clock the last witness, Malcolm McLaren, the husband of the deceased came to my house and stopped there until his son Alexander McLaren rode up. As soon as Alexander rode up he jumped off his horse and said: “This is a nice thing you up here and my poor mother drowned in the creek and no witness.” The old man Malcolm McLaren hurried away down and I followed. When I got to the creek below McLaren’s hut they were carrying the body up the bank. The body was placed on a sheet of bark and we carried it to the hut. The body I saw laying in the hut yesterday was the body of the deceased Jane McLaren. The McLarens have been neighbours of mine for nearly three years. The deceased was a person of temperate habits. She was a respectable person. The family lived happily together. (Signed in his own hand) Pinkney Wormwell The above deposition of Pinkney Wormwell taken and sworn before me this twenty-fourth day of December AD 1868 at the Police Office Dalby. |
This is as close a photograph we can get - Pinkney Wormwell's son, Pinkney Junior. Pinkney Senior died in 1910. We have to assume that Junior is a chip off the old block!
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Jane McLaran's death certificate
Jane's death certificate was recorded by F.W. Roche, the self-styled "King of Dalby".
Points to note:
Points to note:
- the surname was spelt by Roche with an "en" ending on no fewer than 5 occasions in this certificate.
- Jane's father was recorded as "Donald McLaren, blacksmith". This may be a Freudian slip by Roche. Donald McLaran reported the death and it is possible Roche subconsciously entered "McLaren" for "McShammock". Perhaps the father's occupation of blacksmith created an association with "McLaren" in Roche's mind as Donald's brother Duncan McLaren worked as a blacksmith.
- The second half of the certificate indicates that Jane and Malcolm married in Campbeltown, Scotland, in 1846 and her son-in-law James Milford made her coffin and was the undertaker. There is no mention of a previous marriage or children other than Alexander.
- Jane was buried the next day in the Dalby Monumental Cemetery. Her grave is unmarked. James Milford and Donald are recorded as witnesses.
Q & A: Questions and (possible) Answers:
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Many interesting points arise from the inquest and the death certificate, not only about Jane McLaran's death but also the lives of the McLaran(en)s in Dalby:
Q1. Why did Alexander return home around 1 or 2 PM? A1. He may have been working a night and morning shift at Three Mile Scrub. Q2. Were Donald and Duncan also living with Malcolm and Jane? A2. It appears they lived independently, at this point of time they were camping at Three Mile Scrub. Q3. Why was Alexander upset his father was absent when Jane fell in the creek? A3. Malcolm and Alexander would have been aware of Jane's condition. Instead of looking after Jane's welfare, Malcolm was probably having a drink with Pinkney Wormwell, whose drinking habits were legendary. Q4. Where is Three Mile Scrub and what is its importance in the history of Dalby? A4. Three Mile Scrub was located on the eastern side of Dalby near Blaxlands (see map above). It was adjacent Blaxlands and EJ Blaxland's boiling establishment, located beside the new railway line. Donald may have been involved in the construction work or in the shepherding of sheep. Blaxlands was later owned by John Nicholson, who married Christina McLennan, a sister of Donald's daughter Sophia's first husband. John will be mentioned in other pages. Q5. How long would the ride from the hut to Dalby and then to Three Mile Scrub have taken Alexander? A5. The journey is about 8 to 10 km. He first visited his sister Catherine in Dalby, so his travel time must have been around 2 hours. We will discover later that Alexander was a fearless horse rider. Q6. Why did Alexander sign his surname “MacLeran”? A6. It may be a combination of the original spelling "McLeoran" and "McLaran" and perhaps it indicates the accepted pronunciation of the day. Alexander was not consistent with the spelling of his surname. See Family Names. Q7. Is it unusual that Jane’s body is “swollen” so soon after drowing? A7. This is my one concern in the story. I am unsure but perhaps it indicates that Jane may have gone to the creek soon after visiting Mary Dale and commenced the washing. Q8. Do Mary Dale's words “last child” indicate that Jane had borne children other than Alexander? A8. We have yet to find records of any other children sired by Malcolm or another man. No other children are listed on her death certificate. Q9. What proof exists that the waterhole shown on the 1864 allotment plan is the one in which Jane drowned? A9. Records at Qld Department of Natural Resources Mapping suggest that Pinkney Wormwell owned land in this subdivision near allotment number 53. We have not yet found evidence that Malcolm McLaran owned an allotment in the area, which may suggest that the McLarans were renting the land. I suspect the McLaran hut may have been west of the waterhole, on the higher bank. Q10. What happened to Pinkney Wormwell? A10. Wormwell eventually selected land in the Kupunn area and he and his descendants became successful and resourceful farmers in that area and further west. The exploits of Wormwell and Dale regularly gained the attention of the Dalby Herald in the 1860's and 1870's. |
Q11. Who are William and Mary Dale and what became of them?
A11. William Dale (1830 - 1875) and Mary Dale (nee Shelton) (1828 - 1908) were from Leicestershire and by coincidence were my 3 x great-grandparents. They arrived in NSW (Moreton Bay) 10 May 1855 aboard the John Davis, both could read and write and were adherents to the Wesleyan Church. William selected land at Spring Creek, on the road from Dalby to Rangers Bridge. They had 8 children born between 1852 and 1865. One of their grand-daughters, Emily (Emma) Wain was my great-grandmother and I met her many times in the 1950's and 1960's. In Dec 1868, 5 of the Dale's children ranging in age between 3 and 14 years would have been living on Myall Creek. 
Ellen Mary Dale 1852 - 1919, a daughter of William and Mary Dale, she was my great-great-grandmother. Married in Apr 1868, Ellen would have heard of Jane's death from Mary Dale.
Q12. What type of hut would the McLarans have lived in on the banks of Myall Creek.
A12. The hut would have been very modest & constructed of saplings and bark with an earth floor. My grandfather Malcolm Lewis McLaran won a prize for the best pioneer exhibit in the 1924 Back to Dalby Week parade. He constructed a small hut which formed part of a float - see photo. His father Donald would have related the details of hut construction to his son. 
1924 A float in the parade for Back to Dalby Week. The hut was constructed by Malcolm Lewis McLaran.
Q13. When did Malcolm McLaran move from Ipswich to Dalby?
A13. It is most likely that Malcolm McLaran and the Dales rented (or squatted on) the land on which they were living. Malcolm and family had been living on the property for around 3 years, since 1865. This may indicate a time when he moved from Ipswich to Dalby, but it may well be closer to 1864 when Catherine married James Milford. |
Q14. The Big Question: Does Jane have any descendants alive today in Australia?
A14. Official records say no. But I will mount a case that her descendants may live on today in New South Wales. See Alexander McLaren.
A14. Official records say no. But I will mount a case that her descendants may live on today in New South Wales. See Alexander McLaren.
Conclusions
On 22 Dec 1868, Jane had a very busy morning. She visited both the Wormwells and the Dales - probably a walk or ride of over a mile and a half - before, in the middle of the day, carrying her washing from her hut to the waterhole to commence laundry chores in Myall Creek. It was a period of very high temperatures in Dalby say the papers, so it comes as no surprise that Jane had a dizzy turn, hit her head on a log and drowned. Alexander's anger towards his father is well justified.
On 22 Dec 1868, Jane had a very busy morning. She visited both the Wormwells and the Dales - probably a walk or ride of over a mile and a half - before, in the middle of the day, carrying her washing from her hut to the waterhole to commence laundry chores in Myall Creek. It was a period of very high temperatures in Dalby say the papers, so it comes as no surprise that Jane had a dizzy turn, hit her head on a log and drowned. Alexander's anger towards his father is well justified.