Children of John and Ellen Tobin

Patrick	Born	1855 in Co.Westmeath or Co. Offaly, Ireland
	Married	Ellen McDonald about 1900 in Ireland. She was born in Borreioleigh, Co. Tipperary and died in 1921
	Child of Union	John Brendan (1905 – 1990).
	Died	August 6th 1943 in Brosna, Co. Offaly, Ireland


Michael	Born	about 1856
	Died	September 7th 1880 at 24 years old.
	Oral History	Michael had been out all night playing cards. He caught a terrible chill and died of pneumonia.


John Robert	Born	about 1857 in Roscrea, Co. Tipperary, Ireland
	Married	Mary Chapman before 1884 in Co. Kerry. She died in childbirth in 1889.
	Children of Union	Agnes (1884 – ?), Evelyn (1886 – ?) and Mary (1889 – ?).
	Oral History	All three girls moved and settled in the USA in 1901, 1904 and 1907 as they reached 17 years approximately. Agnes and Evelyn had been reared by their Tobin grandparents and Uncle Patrick. Baby Mary was reared by the Chapman grandparents.
	Died	September 1st, 1925 in Tullamore, Co.Offaly, Ireland.


Margaret	Born	about 1858 in (Parsonstown/ Birr) Ireland.
	Married	George Barber, a Lawyer, June 7th 1881 in Cunnamulla, Queensland. He was born in Tring, Hertfordshire, England in 1855 and died ?
	Children of Union	Mary (1887 – ?) and Priscilla Henrietta (1892 – 1973).
		Priscilla married Robert Cecil Cairns in 1915 in Queensland. They had 3 children – Leah, Robert and Moreen.
	Died	September 12th 1898 in Croydon Queensland of ‘asthenia after intensive burning lower extremities’ aged 40 years.


Mary	Born	about 1860
	Died	?
	Oral History	It is believed that Mary went to Scotland, never married and took a housekeeping position for a Parish Priest. This sister of Thomas is the least known of his siblings. To date, research has not ‘discovered’ her.


Thomas	Born	March 8th 1863 in Birr, King’s County (now Offaly), Ireland.
	Married 1)	Maria (Marie) Christie July 3rd 1889 in Church of St Andrew in Dublin. She was born c.1863 in Rostrevor Co. Down Ireland and died February 10, 1897 in Fremantle Western Australia.
	Children of Union	Ellen Maria (infant death), Winifred (Winnie) Agnes (1892 – 1961), John Michael (1894 – 1973) and a stillborn female.
	Married 2)	Alice O’Dowd in St Patrick’s Church, Fremantle Western Australia on April 20th 1898. She was born May 8th 1872 in Toorak, Victoria Australia and died January 28th 1944 at 13 Kent Street Flemington (Ascot Vale), Victoria.
	Children of Union	Mary Julia (Mollie) (1899 – 1966), Leo Thomas (1902 – 1970), Joseph Mark (infant death 1904), Alphonsus (Phonse) Vincent (twin) (1905 – 1993), Bernard (twin – infant death 1905), Noel Patrick (1907 – 1981), Thomas O’Halloran (1909 – 1969), Kevin (1912 – 1998) and Catherine (stillborn c. 1917).
	Died	July 6th 1953 in East Camberwell, Victoria, Australia.

Julia	Born	1864 in Brosna, Ireland.
	Married	James Clavin, a coachman, July 12th 1880 in Dublin, Ireland. He was born about 1862 and died of influenza about 1885 in Brosna.
	Children of Union	Mary Ellen (1881 – 1975) and James (1884 – 1964).
		On being widowed, Julia returned to live with her parents. Her children grew up with their younger cousins – John R’s girls. Julia emigrated to New York in 1900, Mary Ellen in 1901 and James in 1904.
	Died	May 12th, 1923 in New York City, USA

Which Sister?

Thomas referred to one of his sisters as ‘only writing when she was in need of money’. [Recollections of Noel Tobin of Early Family Life]. There is no record of ‘when’ he received such letters. The only time his family in Ireland heard from him was in 1896 from Canning River in W.A.

Widowed young, Julia Tobin Clavin was dependant on her family to support her. She would be the obvious sister to ask him for money as he was god-father to her daughter. The letters that Mary Ellen McCarthy wrote to Winnie in 1920 hint of some form of correspondence. [Old Letters from America].

Margaret can be discounted as she died in 1898 and probably had no knowledge of her younger brother’s whereabouts, after he immigrated to Australia.

If Mary worked as a house keeper in Scotland and remained single, she probably had no need to ask for money, either.