Which Australian Convict are you most closely connected to?

Question

To commemorate the anniversary of the last Australian Convict ship to set sail, we're looking at some of the most notable (and notorious) passengers in the Connection Finder this week, like Francis Greenway, who was a notable Australian architect.

Here are a few other Australian Convicts to check your connection to:

• Matthew Everingham, part of the first group of Europeans to try to cross the Blue Mountains and whose death inspired the Everingham's Millions fraud
• Joseph Holt, leader of the 1798 Irish rebellion
• Moondyne Joe Johns, repeat offender and escapee
• John Kelly, father of outlaw Ned Kelly
• Joseph Marceau, member of the Lower Canada Rebellion
• Thomas Meagher, escapee and governor of Montana Territory
• Kevin O'Doherty, British and Australian politician
• Mary Reibey, businesswoman
• John Ruse, first successful European farmer in Australia
• William Smith O'Brien, Irish politician
• James Squire, first commercial brewer and hops grower in Australia

Which of these is closest to you on our single family tree? If you're one of the 30.9 million of us who are connected to each other on our big tree, you can check with the Connection Finder.

In addition to the above and our many Featured Connections, you can check your connections to any category on WikiTree, such as Famous Australian Convicts, First Fleet, and Convicts After the Third Fleet. Click the green MyConnections button in the upper right hand corner of the category page.

Let us know how you're related below. If you want to share your connection on social media with cousins and friends, click the "get shareable image" below the results, e.g. Charlton Heston and Francis Greenway. Then just upload it along with the URL of your direct connection. (Please refrain from sharing your connection on the featured profiles themselves, though. It clutters conversations on research and collaboration. Thanks!)

Help us find and improve the profiles for next week's Screen Doctors feature.

Comments

I feel compelled to point out that people had been successfully crossing the Blue Mountains / Gulumada and farming the land for millennia before the arrival of the Europeans. Everingham and Ruse were not the first.

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Well said Gina.

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Well, this surprised me!

William Smith O’Brien was a 6th cousin - 18 degrees up and down via Stewart-13115.

But 12 degrees by marriage!

P.S. How do I get this into line with the other answers?

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You are, of course, correct, Gina.  Thanks for pointing that out. It would be correct to say that James Ruse was the first commercially-successful wheat grower on the Australian continent).

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@ Patrick who asked P.S. How do I get this into line with the other answers?

I think Answer the original Post, rather than comment on another answer?

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My sentiments exactly.

Answer 1

I am most closely connected to Joseph Marceau at 16 degrees of separation.

Cousins:

• 21 degrees from William Smith O'Brien (9C, 6R)

No Relationship Found:

• 16 degrees from Joseph Marceau
• 20 degrees from Thomas Meagher
• 21 degrees from Molly Reibey
• 23 degrees from Matthew Everingham
• 23 degrees from Joseph Holt
• 23 degrees from Kevin O'Doherty
• 23 degrees from James Ruse
• 24 degrees from James Squire
• 25 degrees from Joseph Johns
• 27 degrees from Red Kelly
• 32 degrees from Francis Greenway

Answer 2

I think the most noteable thing about these noteables in connection to me is there isn't any close connections & no blood relatives at all.

Answer 3

This collection has some fascinating life stories!

Having suggested Thomas Meagher, I felt a certain obligation to see if I could add to his small CC7. With pretty minimal effort, I succeeded beyond expectations. Yesterday my own connection path for him was somewhere near 30 steps, and it is now down to 13 steps, although it currently displays as 18 steps on the featured connections list on my profile.

It's possible that some of these other connection paths could be similarly reduced, if people pursue this as a challenge.  (And there are some additional CC7 connections to made for Thomas Meagher....)

Answer 4

I am 20 degrees from William Smith (20th cousins tree times removed)

23 degrees from Joseph Marceau

23 degrees from Kevin O' Doherty

24 degrees from Molly Reibey

24 degrees from Joseph Holt

25 degrees from James Squire

25 Thomas Meagher

26 degrees from Matthew Everingham

26 Joseph Johns

26 degrees from James Ruse

28 degrees from Red Kelly

35 from Francis Greenway

Answer 5

Well, bummer, I am related to only one of these outstanding Australian Convicts:

1) 21º William Smith-O'Brien:15th cousins/5xr, MRCA Joane (Holand) Radcliffe

Other non-related Australian Convicts:

13º Joseph Marceau; 18º Joseph Johns; 19º Matthew Everingam and Thomas Meagher; 20º Molley Reibey and James Squire; 21º Joseph Holt and James Ruse; 22º Kevin O'Doherty; 25º Red Kelly; 32º Francis Greenway.

These were some very successful convicts and I am proud to be related, albeit distantly, to at least one of them!

Answer 6

Cousins (Other Connection)
William Smith O'Brien - 11C7R - (22 degrees)

Connections
Joseph Marceau - 20 degrees
Thomas Meagher - 21 degrees
James Squire - 24 degrees
Matthew Everingham - 25 degrees
Joseph Holt - 25 degrees
Joseph Johns - 25 degrees
Red Kelly - 25 degrees
Molly Reibey - 25 degrees
James Ruse - 25 degrees
Kevin O'Doherty - 27 degrees
Francis Greenway - 35 degrees

Answer 7

Joseph Marceau -  fourth cousins 6 times removed

William O'Brien - 16th cousins 8 times removed

Answer 8

9 degrees from John (Red) Kelly.

Answer 9

I am not sure, but there is a possibility that my grandfather's great-uncle, John Sidaway, was transported to Australia.  The name appears on a Convict List but I do not know how to check out if it is the same John Sidaway.  The surname is not common anywhere else but the West Midlands.  He was born in 1811 at Oldswinford in Worcestershire, was a nailor and married Zilpha Homer in 1829.

Comments

It's not him. The one  convict John Sidaway, I found(checked here to start with)  gave his native place as Birmingham. He was transported in 1838. Sharing image

John Sidaway b  Oldswinford,  wife  Zilpa apears on the 1841 and  1851 and   sharing    sharing (ingnore ancestry transcript)  Seem to move to Birmingham between 1871 and 1881  Zilpah dies there in 1879 need more research to find John after this. 

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Thank you very much, Helen.  It is good to know that "our" John wasn't transported but sad that another one was.  I've looked at all the records you've given links to; thank you.  I notice that John's wife's name is given as "Zilpha" in the census record.  It's an unusual first name so it would be very unlikely that this was a different couple.  I wasn't sure before because Birmingham is the nearest big city to Oldswinford and the birth dates of the two John Sidaways are close.  Best wishes, Judith

Answer 10

Only connections through marriages, no direct cousins.

• 12 Degrees to Matthew James Everingham
• 14 Degrees to Joseph Marceau
• 14 Degrees to James Squire
• 15 Degrees to James Ruse
• 15 Degrees to Joseph Holt
• 16 Degrees to Mary (Haydock) Reibey
• 17 Degrees to Joseph Bolitho Johns
• 17 Degrees to John Kelly
• 18 Degrees to William (O'Brien) Smith O'Brien
• 21 Degrees to Thomas Francis Meagher
• 21 Degrees to Kevin Izod O'Doherty
• 25 Degrees to Francis Howard Greenway

Answer 11

12 Degrees from Matthew Everingham  at 3 branches.

13 Degrees from James squire at 3 branches. 

The rest: 

• 21 degrees from Francis Greenway
• 16 degrees from Joseph Holt
• 21 degrees from Joseph Johns
• 18 degrees from Red Kelly
• 15 degrees from Joseph Marceau
• 20 degrees from Thomas Meagher
• 20 degrees from Kevin O'Doherty
• 17 degrees from Molly Reibey
• 16 degrees from James Ruse
• 19 degrees from William Smith O'Brien

Answer 12

18 degrees to Joseph Marceau from my Scottish side, that traveled to Canada.

Answer 13

I am related to Joseph Marceau 4th cousin 4x removed. I am also related to William Smith O'Brian 16th cousin 6x removed. The only reason I am related to these men is they have a French ancestor.

Answer 14

Maybe william o'brien, as i havr an ancestot with the boyen surname. Cheers dony know the degrees.

Answer 15

William Smith O'Brien is the only connection for me.

10th cousins 5x removed.

Common ancestor is Anthony Poyntz  (1480-1533)

Answer 16

I had a surprise with these connections although related through degrees with all of them, I usually have more relationships.  I have at 15 degrees (the closest) with  Joseph Marceau.  I am, actually, only related to one, William Smith O'Brien - Irish politician - he is my 11th cousin 4 times removed on my  maternal side.

Sharon

Answer 17

9 degrees from James Squires.

• 14 degrees from Matthew Everingham
• 22 degrees from Francis Greenway
• 13 degrees from Joseph Holt
• 18 degrees from Joseph Johns
• 19 degrees from Red Kelly
• 15 degrees from Joseph Marceau
• 20 degrees from Thomas Meagher
• 19 degrees from Kevin O'Doherty
• 15 degrees from Molly Reibey
• 16 degrees from James Ruse
• 17 degrees from William Smith O'Brien
• 9 degrees from James Squire

Answer 18

I'm very much an Australian convict descendant with numbers like these!

Connections

• 12 degrees from Matthew Everingham
• 22 degrees from Francis Greenway
• 17 degrees from Joseph Holt
• 18 degrees from Joseph Johns
• 20 degrees from Red Kelly
• 17 degrees from Joseph Marceau
• 21 degrees from Thomas Meagher
• 23 degrees from Kevin O'Doherty
• 19 degrees from Molly Reibey
• 17 degrees from James Ruse
• 19 degrees from William Smith O'Brien
• 16 degrees from James Squire

Answer 19

I am directly related to William O'Brien, we are 13th cousins, 4xr. Interesting biography, I hadn't heard of him before. Thanks!

Answer 20

Ancestors & Cousins

• William Smith O'Brien - 10c7r, and 20 degrees

Connections

• Francis Greenway - 30 degrees
• Matthew Everingham - 21 degrees
• Joseph Holt - 23 degrees
• Moondyne Joe Johns - 20 degrees 
• John Kelly - 24 degrees
• Joseph Marceau - 19 degrees
• Thomas Meagher - 19 degrees
• Kevin O'Doherty - 23 degrees 
• Mary Reibey - 19 degrees
• John Ruse - 20 degrees
• James Squire - 21 degrees