Michael McSheffrey was born in 1856 in Donegal, Ireland – the first born son of Michael McSheffrey and Margery McLaughlin
QUESTION: Why did Michael choose New Zealand and did he have someone to go to there?
In 1886 Michael married Clara Bridget O’Donoghue in New Zealand. Clara, born in Dromcarban, County Kerry, Ireland in 1867 to Alexander O’Donoghue and Elizabeth “Eliza” Collins. Clara’s family has a few interesting stories and I hope I get time to write them later.
Michael and Clara had 10 children together. She passed away on October 21, 1941 in Te Aroha, Matamata-Piako, Waikato, New Zealand.
I am not 100% sure but I think this is Clara – I found this among my old family photos.
Michael’s brother James McSheffrey followed him to New Zealand and went to work with him. James is in a photograph in the book “This is Kuaotunu”
The first glimpse into James’s New Zealand adventure comes from a faded newspaper clipping dated 1891, recounting an unfortunate incident. The paper tells the tale of an accident that befell James, and shows him to be a hard working man. He was hauling timber from a logging site using a cart pulled by two horses. One of the chains came loose, and as he finished fixing it one of the horses lunged sideways, hitting him in the stomach with the shaft of the cart and knocked him off balance. You will see in the newspaper clipping below that another worker that same day met with a worse fate but luckily survived.
October 20, 1896 saw a devastating blaze originating at the Public Hall, which swiftly spread to consume Tammadge and McSheffrey’s store, as well as McSheffrey’s stable. Michael, the owner, faced substantial losses as only a portion of the property was insured. This catastrophic event likely led to Michael’s bankruptcy filing in the subsequent year, 31 July 1897.
Following is the continuation of George’s family tree – his descendants to the extent I have found at the moment.
