History of Caroline King and Thomas Casey

Irene’s Parents

This is the story of Caroline Elizabeth King and Thomas (Tom) Casey, Irene’s parents. It’s fabulous that we have a few photos of them and their family, along with a set of documents and articles that provide a window into their lives.

Of course, as is the case for a few of our antecedents, not everything we find is 100% accurate. As an example, most accounts show that Tom was born 13 years prior to Caroline, on the 8th of July 1837 in Gundaroo NSW, but towards the end of this story, you’ll see that his obituaries indicate that he was actually born in 1835.

If you take a quick look at Tom’s Baptism certificate below, you’ll see that he was baptised on the 9th of July 1837 at St Mary’s Roman Catholic church.

The thing is, there was no Catholic Church in Gundaroo at that time. In fact, there were only a handful of Catholic churches built across Australia by 1837, and only one was called St Mary’s, and that was St Mary’s near Hyde Park in Sydney. This wasn’t St Mary’s Cathedral as it is now, but rather the first of a couple of churches built at that location.

So, let’s consider Tom’s birth for a moment. Tom’s mother was Caroline Purcell, and his father was John Casey – you can read more about them here. But what I’m trying to picture is Caroline having just given birth to Tom on the previous day (8 July 1837), hopping onto the horse and buggy in Gundaroo with her husband John and baby Tom, with the three of them heading off at about 15 kilometres per hour, travelling the 250 kilometres to Sydney, arriving some 16 hours later (on 9 July 1837) – not counting breaks for the toilet and to pick up a burger at the roadside service station – and then having Tom baptised at the only St Mary’s in Australia. It doesn’t make sense, does it?

So, maybe his obituaries below are right, and Tom was born in 1835, with his baptism taking place some two years later. I’ll dig into this some more as time allows.

Anyway, whatever the year, at the time of Tom’s birth, Gundaroo had developed into a township, with the surrounding area having first been settled in the mid 1820’s.

Gundaroo Natives, 1853 - by Thomas Balcombe

I found an eleven-page document on the Casey family amongst my Mum’s collection of family history, but I’m yet to determine who wrote it. It refers to the fact that there was a considerable amount of religious tension and prejudice in Gundaroo around the time Tom was born, to the point where the Catholics and Protestants couldn’t agree on the building of a school during the 1850’s. The delay had an impact on education and literacy levels, and Tom was one of the children who missed out on this part of his education as a result. This obviously had an impact on young Tom, as later, he and Caroline would play a big part in the affairs of the local school.

Tom was one of Caroline and John’s eight children. Unlike Caroline’s family, Tom and his siblings had longevity on their side. Their life spans averaged 75 years – an impressive figure for the times.

The Caseys weren’t a wealthy or well‑educated family, and so career options were few. So, like his father before him, Tom became a farmer and bullocky, although it seems that he would take on pretty much any work that was available.

Caroline Elizabeth King was born on 17 November 1850 in Goulburn NSW. She was the daughter of Catherine Kiely and William King – you can read their story here. She was the 5th of 10 children, only three of whom lived beyond their 50’s. Elizabeth lived to 83, Emma died in her 97th year, and George was 76 when he passed away. Caroline herself lived until she was just 51.

Of the remaining children John lived to 35, Austin to 40, Louisa was barely 1 year old when she died, William was just 4, a second William (clearly not the luckiest of names) was 16 when he died, and Margaret lived to see her 40th birthday.

This sort of pattern wasn’t that unusual for the times. In Australia in the mid 19th century the average life span was less than 40 years. So, at an average of 43 years, the King children did marginally better than expected. It puts things into perspective when you realise that the current average life span is double that of the 1850’s, and that’s just 170 years ago.

Caroline lived all her life in the Goulburn and Yass districts. In 1863 she moved from Tuena to Goulburn due to the death of her mother, Catherine King (nee Kiely).

I’m not sure how, when or where Caroline and Tom met, but they were married on 9 June 1872. At the time, NSW law allowed “bona fide agriculturalists” to take up 320 acres of land on payment of a small deposit, and it seems that Tom and Caroline took up that offer, establishing their home called “Rose Villa”, on the Tallagandra Road a few kilometres east of Gundaroo where they ran sheep and cattle, and grew wheat. There is no “Tallagandra Road” in that area now, but there is a “Tallagandra Lane” east of Gundaroo – perhaps the streets were renamed.

There are some records which show that Tom and Caroline had eleven children, but I believe that the actual number is thirteen, with the difference being accounted for because their first born, Emma is shown as having died in the year she was born (1872), as did Amelia Ann some years later in 1879.

Their children were: Emma (1872-1872), John William (1875-1934), Ada Evelyn (1876-1951), Amelia Ann (1879-1879), Bernard King (1880-1947), Sydney Thomas (1882-1934), James Patrick (1884-1956), Austin Joseph (1885-1943), Harold Bede (1888-1969), George Washington (1890-1950), Catherine Irene (1891-1959), Caroline Elizabeth (1894-1959), and Vincent Roy (1896-1979).

It’s interesting that the main photo I have of the family from the early 1900’s shows just ten of the eleven children, with Sydney missing. I’m not sure what the story is there. Again, more digging required – does it ever end?

That aside, of those children, it’s Catherine (Irene) who interests us most, as Irene and her husband Bill are the focal point for our family story.

Caroline and Tom were active in the local area, where they assisted with the establishment of the Catholic Church, along with setting up improved schooling. No doubt the latter came about because Tom hadn’t had the educational opportunities he would have liked.

By all accounts it seems that Caroline and Tom enjoyed hosting gatherings at their home, and that Tom was quite the personality. This is a photo of Tom and Caroline from around 1898.

Caroline and Tom Casey and 10 of their 11 children, circa 1898

I believe that Irene is 3rd from the left in this shot, but I’ve tried to work out who’s who in terms of the kids using their gender and year of birth, but it’s not as easy as it might appear. When time allows, I’ll do some more work on that.

You can see that Tom is holding a violin. He no doubt entertained his family and their guests on many occasions. These were the days when you had to make your own fun. On a rare day off (generally a Sunday), neighbours would get together to play musical instruments, sing, dance and tell stories. One such story is recorded in the document I found amongst my Mum’s family treasures, and it’s a ghost story that goes like this.

Thomas and his brother William Casey (Bill) were on their way to Sydney, traveling in their wagon. They passed another wagon and the bullockies in charge of it had hired a man called Charlie Jones, who’d been drinking. And while they were talking, Charlie took a pint pot and went down the flat to get a drink of water, a trip from whence he never came back.
So, both wagons pulled away. A year later, on the next trip the Caseys hired Mickey Reilly to do the odd jobs during their journey. They camped at Lambing Flat on a beautiful moonlit night and Mickey Reilly was sleeping under the dray, with Tom and William on the dray.
During the night Mickey cried out, "Here comes a man, he’s coming up the flat towards us." Tom answered him that he couldn't see anyone and said, "Go to sleep you old fool, there's nobody there”.
But Mickey, still not satisfied said, "He’s leaning on Bill’s pole and looking in at him”. And just at that time, Tom’s old dog came in to where Tom and Mickey were sleeping; and wet or fine, the dog never went under the dray.
Tom said “Go to sleep" for he could see the pole but not the man. Anyway he ordered the dog out, and he went.
Mickey said, "There he goes, he’s going back the way he came."
Tom, still insisting that he forget the matter and go back to sleep, didn't seem unduly disturbed.
They got up the next morning and they were having breakfast when Tom said, "Mickey saw a ghost last night", to which Mickey replied, “I don't know about a ghost, but I saw someone”.
Tom asked, that he describe the man, and Mickey could. "He had a moleskin pair of trousers and a white shirt with the sleeves rolled up to the elbows. He had a cabbage tree hat on and a bright pint pot in his hand.”
"That’s exactly the way Charlie Jones was dressed when he went to get a drink of water” said Tom, and Mickey Reilly had never seen Charlie Jones in his life before!
Tom said “If that were Charlie Jones come back in spirit….they found some bones a couple of years later and they reckoned that they must have been the bones of Charlie Jones.”

Look, I didn’t say it was a GREAT story…just a story. I believe it may have been stories like this that led to alternate forms of entertainment being developed, such as Netflix and Nintendo.

You can read more about Tom’s bullock runs to and from Sydney in this poem written by Irene’s nephew and Tom’s great grandson Pat Dwyer.

And this is a shot of Tom Casey with his bullock team in Bywong around 1900.

While living at Rose Villa, Tom Casey owned a racehorse by the name of Union Boy. Having owned a share in a racehorse, I know how expensive they can be. So I’m guessing this was seen as quite the luxury. That said, and rather sadly, Union Boy’s only claim to fame was never to have been placed in the 'One Tree Hill' races.

The Tallagandra tennis courts and cricket pitch were built on the Casey land, as both sports were popular forms of recreation for the locals. And adjoining the Casey farm was the Tallagandra school, which was built in 1882. The Casey children simply had to walk across the paddock to go to school, although the youngest (Roy) generally only attended 3 days a week, as he was otherwise occupied on the mail run on the other days, as you’ll read a little later.

Mrs Rosanna McAlister was the teacher in charge at Tallagandra for 30 years from 1876 to 1906. Below are two photos of the pupils at the school. The first is from 1901, which is the year that Irene’s mother Caroline died. Given that she died in the September, and that the second of the school photos was taken in August 1909, I’m guessing that this first one may have been taken just before Tom’s children lost their mother.

In the above photo the teacher, Mrs Rosanna McAlister stands to the left holding the hand of her grandson. There are four Casey children in the photo: Back row third from the left is Harry Casey, at left (next to Mrs McAlister’s grandson) in the middle row is young Roy Casey, two to his right is Irene Casey (who would later become Bill’s wife), and at left of the front row is Caroline (Lina) Casey.

Eight years later, Mrs McAlister had retired from teaching, and things had moved on in the Casey family. There are only two Casey’s in the photo below: Caroline (Lina) is third from the left in the back row, while Roy is fourth from the left in the second row from the front.

Given Roy’s post office duties, it’s lucky that he made both photos.

Every year, a school picnic was held, and it often ended with a dance. Many times the dance was held at the Casey’s home, Rose Villa. This is the story of one such picnic in 1897. It’s taken from the Queanbeyan Age of the 28 Apr 1897.

Gundaroo
After an elapse of four years the folks at and around Talagandra held their Public School picnic on Easter Monday, 97, and as in the past, a large number of adults from the neighbouring circles received invitations, which were well responded to. So much so that the visitors considerably overnumbered the children. In all about 250 souls assembled.
The day was by no means pleasant, owing to incessant blasts of strong wind enveloping the picnickers with clouds of dust. Consequently the hard-worked caterers were sorely troubled. The eatables were of the very best, and plentiful. It is a big undertaking to provide provisions such as poultry, sandwitches (sic), pastry, sweets, etc., equal to catering such as I saw provided for the number stated; and most disheartening to have to contend with a day like we had on Monday. Nevertheless everyone seemed to be anxious to do justice to the spread, and show their thorough appreciation of the substantial supply, prompted by good appetites in its consumption.
Those who provided in one way or another for the picnic have been hard at it "shoulder to shoulder" for weeks past to make everyone remember with a joyful heart Talagandra picnic of Easter Monday, 97, and among the energetic providers and workers. I noticed Mesdames McAlister, P. Blewitt, J. Reid, Casey, Murphy, etc., Misses Coleman, Lucas (2), Reid (2), Rolfe, Murphy, and a host of others Messrs T. Lucas, D. Murphy, Grubber, and E. Coleman were constantly occupied in keeping the boys and girls going in races etc, for prizes, which were most liberally supplied, and were also of a very useful kind ; at the conclusion, if not all, the greater number of the school attendants could be seen with a winning result.
It was very evident that as far as the whole arrangements went everything was a great success; that the day was so unpleasant could not be helped, and although it deprived the working committee of displaying their efforts to advantage, it was none the less creditable to them, and I feel sure everyone present will join me in saying, in absence of the gale of wind and dust, it would have been one of the most enjoyable outings and the best provided spread we have seen in the district.
Well dressed and well conducted people were there from Gundaroo, Sutton, Gininderra, Talagandra, etc., in large numbers. Mr .and Mrs. T. Casey kindly invited about 20 couples to their residence, where a most enjoyable dance was held, proving an appropriate windup to the day's outing.

Wouldn’t you just love to be able to pop back to that time and place, if only for one day? Maybe enter the three legged race, get blown over by the gale force winds, eat a couple of sandwitches (love that spelling!) covered in layers of dust, and head back for a cheeky foxtrot at the Casey’s abode.

In 1906, nine years after that school picnic and between the years of the two school photos above, Mrs McAlister retired. She’d been a popular teacher for her 30 years at Tallagandra. Her farewell was held at Tom Casey's home Rose Villa, chaired by Thomas Coleman who’d been “voted in” as chair, and it was a grand occasion by all accounts. It seems odd that gatherings like this were “chaired” by someone, and even more so when a vote was taken to determine who that would be. I guess back then that these were more formal occasions - nowadays we’d probably refer to that “chairperson” as the MC.

Sadly, by this time Caroline had died, so it remained for Thomas and his children to act as hosts.

The Goulburn Evening Post covered the occasion in their 6 September 1906 edition.

Quite a crowded meeting of Tallagandra residents, with a few visitors from Gininderra and Hall, assembled at Rose Villa, the residence of Mr. T. Casey, on Saturday afternoon last for the purpose of making a presentation to the retiring respected teacher of the school, Mrs. McAlister.
On the motion of Mr. Jas. Gillespie, Mr. T. Coleman was voted to the chair. In opening the proceedings the chairman in a lengthy address spoke in the highest terms of praise of Mrs. McAlister, not only as a teacher, but also as a neighbour and good Samaritan. What better proof, asked the chairman, could they have of Mrs. McAlister's ability as a painstaking teacher than the fact that during her 20 years' residence amongst them as a teacher, not a single complaint had ever been sent in against her. Such faithful services to the State and people deserved to be recognised, and he felt proud of the little assistance he had given towards doing so.
When the chairman had resumed his seat Miss C. Casey [this is Thomas’s 12 year old daughter, Caroline (Lina), Irene’s younger sister] came forward and on behalf of herself and fellow pupils attending the school, read an address which they had prepared for the occasion, and which, though short, spoke volumes for the good feeling existing between Mrs. Mc Alister and her pupils.
Another pupil, Miss Maggio Reid, then presented Mrs. McAlister with a beautiful leopard-skin combination purse and card-case as a gift from her pupils.
The next part of the proceedings was the reading by Miss Ada Casey [this is Thomas’s eldest daughter] of an address tendered by ex‑pupils and adult friends of Tallagandra to Mrs. McAlister. The address, which was a lengthy one, contained sincere expression of regret at the departure of and best wishes for the future health and wellbeing of their old teacher and friend. Having finished the reading of the address, Miss Casey advanced and, on behalf of those tendering it, presented Mrs. McAlister with an elaborately finished travelling companion, to which was affixed a silver plate bearing the following inscription -"Presented to Mrs. McAlister on her departure from the district by the residents and ex-pupils of Tallagandra, Sept. 1st, 1906."
Mrs. McAlister, who appeared deeply affected, briefly thanked the donors for their flattering addresses and beautiful presents, both of which she would ever cherish as mementoes of the esteem in which she was held by her dear friends of Tallagandra. After Messrs. J. Blewitt and Jas. Gillespie had paid some well-deserved compliments to Mrs. McAlister, both as a teacher and a friend, the meeting was brought to a close by the singing of "Auld Lang Syne" and a hearty vote of thanks to the chairman. Tea and dainty refreshments, provided by the ladies of the locality, were then handed round to all present, which brought to a termination a most pleasant and enjoyable reunion.

As mentioned earlier Caroline died in 1901 of pneumonia, aged just 51. She’s buried in the Gundaroo Catholic Pioneer Cemetery. I visited her gravesite in October of 2022. As you can see from my photo below, it’s in a bit of a sad state. You can read more about the cemetery here.

The inscription on Caroline’s headstone reads as follows:

In memory of Caroline beloved wife of Thomas Casey. Died 22nd Sep 1901, aged 51 years. May her soul rest in peace.

This is Caroline’s obituary which appeared in the Goulburn Evening Penny Post on 28 September 1901.

GUNDAROO.
From Our Correspondent.
General regret is expressed at the death of Mrs. Casey, wife of Mr. Thomas Casey, of Talagandra, which took place on Sunday last. Deceased contracted influenza; pneumonia unfortunately supervened, and proved fatal notwithstanding the utmost care and attention. Drs. Richardson and Blackall, of Queanbeyan, were both in attendance, but their efforts were unavailing. The funeral took place on Tuesday, and was largely attended, the remains being laid at rest in the local R.C. cemetery. Deceased leaves a large family, most of whom are, however, grown up.

Goulburn Evening Penny Post, 28 September 1901

Below is a photo of the Casey family after the death of Caroline. From left to right, the back row is as follows: Austin Joseph, Harold Bede, James Patrick, Bernard King, Catherine Irene and George Washington. In front of them from left to right are: John William, Caroline Elizabeth, Thomas, Vincent Roy and Ada Evelyn. Note that Sydney Thomas is missing from the photo.

At the time of Caroline’s death, Thomas had 11 children ranging in age from 5 to 26, with five of them under 15 years old, which is interesting considering that Caroline’s obituary above said that most of the 11 children were “grown up”. You grew up a lot faster back in those days.

So, Thomas called on his oldest daughter Ada (bottom right in the picture above), to take on most of the responsibilities that her mother would normally have carried out. Ada was 25 years old and engaged to be married, so she had to break that engagement and put thoughts of marriage and children on hold. In fact, Ada didn’t marry until much later in life, in 1923. She was 47 years old when she married Michael Darcy in Cootamundra, NSW, and never had any children of her own.

Normally photos from around these times are very formal, and there’s no doubting that everyone’s put on their Sunday finest, spent an inordinate amount of time on their hair, and been told to stand as still as possible. I’m guessing this may be about 1902 or 1903, so not long after Caroline had died - perhaps that’s why everyone is really serious, although there generally wasn’t a lot of smiling in photos back then.

And there’s a few nice touches. I love the way Lina is casually resting on her Dad’s shoulder, and how Irene has her hand resting gently on Ada’s shoulder, as if to say “Don’t worry…I’ll pitch in”, while Ada looks like she may be thinking “Oh God, being the eldest female now that Mum’s gone just doesn’t sound like a good deal.”

Thomas and the Casey family continued to live on their property after Caroline’s death, with his children gradually marrying and leaving home. Most became share farmers in the Cootamundra district.

During that time the family ran the Tallagandra Post Office. Ada was Postmistress, and in the early years, the mail was delivered by her father and her youngest brother, Vincent Roy (Roy). The two would set off on horse and cart, laden not just with the mail, but also with various goods to deliver to the surrounding farms.

By the time Roy was 12 in 1908, he’d taken on the postal delivery responsibilities on his own. Roy was a familiar figure as he drove the horse and sulky to Gundaroo to pick up the mail and deliver it as he returned home. He was so reliable and punctual that he had an understanding with all the farmers on his trip that he picked up messages, packages and other items on his way to Gundaroo, and delivered the articles as he returned. And so it was that delivery of items such as bread, meat, stamps and the like were assured, and Roy's help saved many a farmer an unnecessary trip. You can read more about Roy here. He was one of my Mum’s (Gwen) favourite uncles.

Of course, life in rural Australia in the early 20th century was not always easy. The summer of 1904 was a hot one, and massive bushfires were rampant, right across Western NSW. The only good to come of them was that, as a direct result of the fires, many official rural bushfire brigades were formed. The Queanbeyan Observer of Friday 9 Dec 1904 reported on one such fire and the impact it had on Thomas.

Gundaroo
(From a Correspondent)
Bush Fires.— This part of the district has been invaded by the fire fiend. Last Friday a bush fire broke out at Tallagandra, and as a strong wind was blowing it was almost impossible to subdue the flames during the day. Fortunately the night was calm and a large band of willing workers succeeded in mastering the devouring clement. Many homesteads were saved with difficulty, amongst the number, being those of Messrs. John Blewitt, Thomas Casey, and W. Browne. The property of Messrs. Reid Brothers and Thomas Coleman also suffered, and the Bywong Estate was a considerable loser. There were many narrow escapes. Mr. T. Casey lost a shed and a quantity of hay. Some thousands of acres of grass were destroyed and fences swept away in all directions. We all feel deeply, grateful to the noble band of men who fought the fire so gallantly and saved much valuable stock and property.
The weather is causing the most intense anxiety. The majority of the crops about here are being cut for hay.

“Mastering the devouring clement” is such a mighty expression. It conjures up a far more vivid picture than just “getting it under control”.

The Queanbeyan Observer,
Friday 9 December 1904

Mid October in 1912 it seems that Thomas was struck down with pneumonia. Nowadays this wouldn’t warrant a mention in the regional newspaper, rather it would possibly be the subject of a Facebook post, and a bunch of SMS’es – “Got a touch of pneumonia – chance to catchup on Succession on Netflix. LOL”. But back in 1912, things were different, hence the Goulburn Evening Penny Post of Saturday 19 October 1912 ran this story under their “Gundaroo” section.

Mr. Thomas Casey. of Tallagandra, has been seriously ill for some days, suffering from an attack of pneumonia. Dr. Blackall, of Queanbeyan, has been in attendance, and at latest reports it is pleasing to be able to say that Mr. Casey is nailing steady progress towards recovery.

Goulburn Evening Penny Post,
Saturday 19 October 1912

Given that Dr Blackall had also been in attendance when Tom’s wife Caroline succumbed to pneumonia some 11 years earlier, I would have loved to see Tom’s face as one of his kids came to the door and said “Hey Dad, good news. I’ve brought Dr Blackall to see you.”

That same article also reported the following:

Miss Caroline Casey, who was successful in passing the recent examination for appointment as teacher under the Department of Public-Instruction, has proceeded to Hereford House to undergo the prescribed course of training.

I’m sure that Tom was suitably proud of his youngest daughter’s achievement at just 18, although as he was languishing in bed with pneumonia, there would have been little appetite for celebration.

The good news was that Dr Blackall had sharpened up his act overt the previous 11 years, managing to do a considerably better job with Tom than with poor Caroline, with the Goulburn Evening Penny Post of 31 October 1912 reporting that:

Mr Thomas Casey, who has been seriously ill with pneumonia, is now rapidly recovering.

Goulburn Evening Penny Post, 31 October 1912

And so 1912 rolled over into 1913, and in May of that year, Thomas’ son Bernard married Mary Ann Lenane, an event that was to prove fortuitous for Thomas just two years later, as we’ll see shortly. The wedding was covered by the press, with the following appearing on in the Freeman's Journal of 8 May 1913.

CASEY—LENANE.
On Wednesday, April 23, at ''Mount Pleasant”, the residence of the bride's mother, the marriage was solemnised of Mary Ann, second daughter of Mrs. and the late 'Fergus' Lenane, to Bernard King, third son of Mr and the late Mrs. Casey, of 'Rose Villa’, Yass. Father Lynch celebrated the Nuptial Mass and performed the ceremony.
The bride, who was given away by her brother, Mr. J. Lenane, wore a pretty frock of white crepe de chine, over white silk, the trimmings being effectively carried out in shadow lace; the train, and overdress beautifully embroidered with seed pearls, and looped up with sprays of orange blossom. She wore the usual wreath and veil, and carried an ivory prayer-book (presented by Rev. Father Hilly, cousin of the bride), and wore also a gold pendant (gift of the bridegroom).
Miss Bridget Lenane (sister of the bride) attended as bridesmaid, and wore a lace dress over white silk, and lace hat; she also wore a gold brooch (gift of the bridegroom). Mr. Harry Casey acted as best man.
Immediately after the ceremony the guests retired to the large drawing-room, where the wedding breakfast was served. Rev. Father Lynch occupied the chair, the usual toasts being proposed and honoured. Later Mr. and Mrs. Casey left Cootamundra for Sydney, where the honeymoon will be spent. The bride's travelling dress was a tailor-made coat and skirt, navy hat to match. The presents were numerous and costly, including a prayer-book from the Children of Mary.

As Tom Casey approached his 80’s, he made the decision to sell the farm and move to Cootamundra with his son Bernard and Bernard’s wife, Mary Ann. The Casey family were well respected, and so friends and neighbours gathered to farewell old Tom. The occasion was reported in The Queanbeyan Age and Queanbeyan Observer on 29 January 1915.

GUNDAROO JOTTINGS.
When it became known that Mr. Thomas Casey of Tallagandra had disposed of his property, and intended residing in future in the Junee district, steps were at once taken by friends and neighbours of the Casey family to mark in a fitting manner the general regret at their departure from the district. As the outcome of the movement quite a number of local residents met at Mr. Casey’s residence to make a series of presentations and wish their departing friends good fortune in their new home. Mr. M. Cavanagh was voted to the chair.
The following gentlemen voiced their regret at the prospect of losing such good friends and neighbours, and referred feelingly to the many pleasant recollections associated with the lengthy residence of the Casey family in the Gundaroo district:-Messrs. Wm. McEnroe, E. N. Lucas, G. A. McInnes, P. Reid, R. Reid, and the chairman.
During the evening the presentations were made. Miss Josie Reid, on behalf of the subscribers, presented Miss Ada Casey with a silver-backed hair brush, mirror, and comb, Mr. Wm. McEnroe responding on behalf of the recipient. On behalf of his old friends Mr. Thomas Casey was presented with a handsome travelling bag, a set of pipes, and hair brushes. This presentation was made by Mr. N. Lucas, Mr. Harry Casey responding for his father. Still another presentation followed, the fortunate recipient being Mr. Roy Casey, who received a token of good fellowship in the form of a handsome gold pendant, which was presented to him on behalf of his friends by Mr. Tom Reid, Roy expressing his thanks for the gift.
Dancing was indulged in for some hours, all returning to their homes pleased at having been able to mark their appreciation of the many good qualities of their departing friends, but sorry at the prospect of losing such excellent neighbours. Mr Casey has disposed of his property to Mr. Hugh Reid, of Sutton, who, in addition to pursuing farming and grazing, will assume charge of the Tallagandra Post Office, and carry out the Gundaroo-Tallagandra tri-weekly mail service, both of which for years past have been in the hands of the Casey family.

The Queanbeyan Age and Observer, 29 January 1915

Thomas Casey resided at the Mount Pleasant property with his family for two and a half years, dying on 27 August 1917. He was 82. He was buried with Caroline at the Gundaroo Catholic Pioneer Cemetery, and these words were added to the headstone – although with the headstone broken in two, and the grave being so overgrown, I couldn’t read this inscription on my visit:

Also her beloved husband Thomas. Died 27th Aug 1917 aged 82. At rest.

It’s a testament to the high regard that Tom was held in, that many newspapers covered his death, including this obituary in the Cootamundra Herald of 29 August 1917.

OBITUARY - THOMAS CASEY
The death occurred on Monday of Mr. Thomas Casey, aged 82, who was share-farming on Mr. Lenane's property, 'Mount Pleasant,' Dudauman. The body was taken last night, for interment, to Gundaroo, where deceased resided prior to settling in this district, a few years ago. Deceased's wife predeceased him. He leaves a family of nine. One daughter is a school teacher at Canberra; another is Mrs. O'Brien, Junee Reefs [of course, this is Irene, who’s at the centre of our story]; and Miss Casey resided at home. There are six sons - Jack, Burnett, James, Henry, George, and Roy.
All the family were present at the bedside excepting one son, who wired that he could not come owing to the death of his own daughter.

Note that there’s a few errors here. Firstly in the names - Burnett is actually Bernard, Jack is John, and I’m assuming that Henry is Harold. Again, as was the case in the photo of the family group, there’s no mention of Sydney Thomas Casey, nor is Austin Joseph mentioned, although both were alive when their father died.

Another obituary appeared in the Sydney based Freeman’s Journal on 20 September 1917.

MR. THOMAS CASEY, COOTAMUNDRA.
At the ripe old age of 82 years the death occurred at Dudauman, near Cootamundra, of Mr. Thomas Casey, on August 27. At the time of his death the old veteran colonist was residing with his sons on their holding near Cootamundra. Deceased was widely known and highly respected in the Tallagandra district, where he was born in 1835, and for a lengthy period of his life resided near his birthplace, where he carried on successful grazing pursuits. Just about two years ago the old gentleman decided to retire from active life, and spend his remaining years with his sons. With the exception of one son, whose own child died about the same time, all the family of seven sons and three daughters, as well as two brothers of deceased, were present as the old veteran breathed his last. The remains were conveyed from Cootamundra to Gunning, and the funeral left the church there on August 29. The lengthy cortege moved slowly to the cemetery at Gundaroo, where the last sad rites for the dead were recited by Rev. Father P. Leonard in the presence of one of the largest gatherings that had ever assembled in the local burial ground. Deceased was laid to rest in the same grave with his late wife, who died sixteen years before.— R.I.P.

Tom’s death was also covered in The Queanbeyan Age and Queanbeyan Observer of Tuesday 4 September 1917.

On Monday morning, 27th ult. there passed away at his residence, near Cootamundra, Mr Thomas Casey. Born near Gundaroo, 83 years ago [actually 82], he had spent the whole of his life there with the exception of the last two or three years. Then most of his family had settled in the Cootamundra district, so he disposed of his property and went to live close to them. Mr. Casey was held in very high esteem in this locality, where he had many friends.
His father, the late Mr. John Casey, must have been one of the real pioneers as he settled in the district over 100 years ago. Mr. Casey was one of the old carriers from Sydney very few of whom remain. He had a good memory and could tell of many interesting events, and tell them well. Many a time the writer has listened with much interest to his reminiscences. The remains were brought up and interred in the cemetery at Gundaroo, close to the Queanbeyan Road. The funeral was one of the largest ever seen in these parts. A large family of sons and daughters survive him; only two however, reside in this district viz. Miss C. Casey, Majura, and Mr. Austin Casey, Glenrock.

The Queanbeyan Age and Observer, 4 September 1917

The Albury Banner and Wodonga Express also marked Tom’s death with this article in the Friday 31 August 1917 edition.

The death occurred at Cootamundra on Monday of Mr. Thomas Casey, aged 82, who was share-farming on Mr. Lenane's property, “Mount Pleasant”, Dudauman. The body was taken for interment to Gundaroo, where deceased resided prior to settling in the Cootamundra district a few years ago.

Albury Banner and Wodonga Express, Friday 31 August 1917

Written by Rob Landsberry, last updated 17 May 2023

References:

https://gundaroohistoricalsociety.com/history/

https://museum.hall.act.au/school/1258/tallagandra-school.html

An eleven page document found amongst Gwen Landsberry’s papers which included Casey history starting with John.

Eulogy for Vincent Roy Casey given by his son Tom Casey, 1979

History of Caroline King and Thomas Casey

The Bywong Bullock Team