Abstract
In early December 1877 a young Irishwoman named Bridget Flanary arrived in South Australia on the Rodney.1 Research in lreland has identified a possible baptism in the parish of Drumclift, County Clare, for a. Bridget, daughter of James Flannery and Mary Carty on 29 December 1857. Given the prominence of County Clare in colonial Irish immigration, and the correlation between the name of Bridget's father at baptism, and the name oh her South Australian marriage certificate, there is some probability of this being her family. Just why she travelled to the colony is unknown, but it was likely due to reasons shared by other single, young Irish women who were persuaded and assisted by nineteenth-century immigration schemes to leave their homes to pursue opportunities in the Australian colonies that were lacking in Ireland. Bridget's landing at Port Adelaide coincided with a 'surge' in lrish female immigration to the colony in 1876-1878. These arrivals followed the migration of significant numbers of single, young Irish females in 1848-1849 and the mid-1850s, including the well-known 'Irish Orphan Girls' who were sent to South Australia to correct the colony's gender imbalance and the shortage of domestic servants.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Title of host publication | Irish Women in the Antipodes |
| Subtitle of host publication | Foregrounded |
| Editors | Susan Arthure, Stephanie James, Dymphna Lonergan, Fidelma McCorry |
| Place of Publication | Mile End, South Australia |
| Publisher | Wakefield Press |
| Pages | 89-119 |
| Number of pages | 31 |
| ISBN (Print) | 9781923042339 |
| Publication status | Published - 2024 |
Keywords
- Bridget Fitzgerald O’Hara
- Irish women
- Colonies
- South Australia
- domestic service
- gender imbalance