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.

---

Well said Gina.

---

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?

---

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).

---

@ 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?

---

My sentiments exactly.

Answer 1

Ancestors and Cousins

• 19 Degrees to William (O'Brien) Smith O'Brien 12C 6xR (Uncertain)

Connections

• 18 Degrees to Joseph Marceau
• 19 Degrees to Matthew James Everingham
• 22 Degrees to Joseph Bolitho Johns
• 22 Degrees to Mary (Haydock) Reibey
• 22 Degrees to James Squire
• 23 Degrees to James Ruse
• 24 Degrees to John Kelly
• 24 Degrees to Joseph Holt
• 25 Degrees to Thomas Francis Meagher
• 26 Degrees to Kevin Izod O'Doherty
• 31 Degrees to Francis Howard Greenway

Answer 2

Ancestors and Cousins:

20 degrees - William Smith O'Brien - (9th cousin, 5x removed)

Connections:

17 degrees - Joseph Marceau - 2 branches (10-8)
21 degrees - Mary Reibey - 4 branches (2-8-2-10)
22 degrees - Matthew Everingham - 4 branches (3-6-4-9)
22 degrees - John Kelly - 5 branches (1-5-6-4-7)
22 degrees - James Squire - 6 branches (3-2-2-5-3-8)
23 degrees - Kevin O'Doherty - 3 branches (2-12-11)
23 degrees - Kelly J. Kendro - 5 branches (4-5-5-4-6) MOTW
24 degrees - Joseph Holt - 5 branches (4-4-2-6-9)
24 degrees - Joseph Johns - 5 branches (5-6-6-1-7)
24 degrees - James Ruse - 9 branches (3-2-3-1-2-1-2-1-10)
25 degrees - Thomas Meagher - 5 branches (9-1-4-6-8)
29 degrees - Francis Greenway - 6 branches (4-8-2-4-3-8)

Answer 3

18 degrees from Matthew Everingham.

19 degrees from Mary Reibey.

19 degrees from  William Smith O'Brien. 11th cousin 4 times removed. MRCA Isabel (Meade) Berkeley (abt 1444 - 1314).

20 degrees from Joseph Marceau.

21 degrees from James Squire.

21 degrees from Kevin O'Doherty.

22 degrees from Joseph Johns.

23 degrees from Joseph Holt.

23 degrees from Thomas Meagher.

23 degrees from James Ruse.

24 degrees from John Kelly.

32 degrees from Francis Greenway.

Answer 4

I'm closest related to Joseph Marceau. He's my 3rd cousin, 6x removed.

Answer 5

I am most closely connected to John Kelly at 20 degrees.

Answer 6

14 degrees from Joseph Marceau (3rd cousins, 7x removed)
17 degrees from James Squire
18 degrees from Thomas Meagher
19 degrees from William Smith O'Brien (9th cousins, 5x removed)
20 degrees from James Ruse
21 degrees from Matthew Everingham
21 degrees from Joseph Holt
21 degrees from Joseph Johns
22 degrees from Red Kelly
22 degrees from Molly Reibey
25 degrees from Kevin O'Doherty
29 degrees from Francis Greenway

Answer 7

•  21 degrees from Matthew Everingham
• 31 degrees from Francis Greenway
•  23 degrees from Joseph Holt
• 22 degrees from Joseph Johns
• 22 degrees from Red Kelly
• 17 degrees from Joseph Marceau
• 22 degrees from Thomas Meagher
• 24 degrees from Kevin O'Doherty
• 22 degrees from Molly Reibey
• 22 degrees from James Ruse
• 19 degrees from William Smith O'Brien 11 C 4xr
•  23 degrees from James Squire.

Answer 8

12 degrees from Molly Reiby (but no blood relation) and my most distant connection is 24 degrees from Francis Greenway (also not a blood relation).

Answer 9

Cousins

• 19 degrees - William Smith O'Brien
  • 12C8R -- MRCA: Joane Bruley (abt. 1396 - aft. 1469), John Danvers MP (abt. 1390 - 1449)

Connections

• 17 degrees - Matthew Everingham
• 21 degrees - Joseph Marceau
• 22 degrees - Molly Reibey
• 23 degrees - Red Kelly
• 23 degrees - James Ruse
• 24 degrees - Joseph Johns
• 25 degrees - Joseph Holt
• 26 degrees - Kevin O'Doherty
• 27 degrees - Thomas Meagher
• 29 degrees - Francis Greenway

Answer 10

The closest connections are 18 degrees to Molly Reibey and James Ruse.

Only one cousin, William Smith O'Brien.  I see that he changed his name in order to inherit, and I have seen that on other profiles.

Your truly,

Steve Bezos Gates Buffet

Answer 11

• William Smith O'Brien,  11th cousin four times removed​​​​​​​

Comments

Could someone please check this out: I’m not sure that I’ve got the cousin business worked out.

According to the connection finder, the common ancestor connection was 28 degrees: up 16 degrees to Thomas Heveningham-10 and then down again 12 degrees to O'Brien.

Which makes about 50 million potential cousins, using the statistical approximation that cousins increase by a factor of 5 per degree.

Is that correct?

---

@ Patrick  You and I are 16th cousins So when you check the relationships out, are you using the Extension browser?  Are you seeing this? If not  Click Here for WT Browser  

---

Patrick,

Not sure I even understand your question about 'factor of 5 degrees" sorry but in WT degrees of connection are about connections and they might also be cousins...

Cousins and connections are not the same, you are connected by blood to cousins and connections go any which way by marriage, ancestor, sibling etc.

Not sure if this helps.

Sue

Answer 12

16 degrees Joseph Marceau

19 degrees William Smith O'Brien, 12th cousin three times removed MRCA Constable-47, Wentworth-7

20 degrees Molly Reinbey

21 degrees Joseph Johns

21 degrees Matthew Everingham

23 degrees James Squire

23 degrees Thomas Meagher

23 degrees John (Red) Kelly

24 degrees James Ruse

24 degrees Kevin O'Doherty

24 degrees Joseph Holt

29 degrees Francis Greenway

Answer 13

My closest by degrees is William Smith O'Brien at 17 degrees and a 12th cousin, 3 times removed.

My next closest by degrees are Joseph Marceau and Molly Reibey at 18 degrees, followed by Kevin O'Doherty at 19 degrees and Matthew Everingham at 20 degrees - none with any known relationship.

Answer 14

I'm related to only one: William Smith O'Brien is my 8th cousin four times removed.

Answer 15

Wm Smith O'brien 8c8r. Imagine that, a politician and criminal, the best of both worlds!

Answer 16

15 degrees in connections to James Squire, my closest so far in any of the weekly connection finders.

How do people get the answers where you see them all in one hit with Ancestors and cousins and then connections underneath?

Comments

I'm not sure if there is a way to do that exact list of people as listed above, but if you click on one the links in the following paragraphs like Famous Australian Convicts, it takes you to another page and then in top right corner is a button "My Connections". Click that and up it comes.

Answer 17

My closest is Matthew Everingham at 8 degrees.  Eight are 17 degrees or less, though only one is a known genealogical   connection - William Smith O'Brien at 17 degrees is my 14th cousin, 4 times removed.

8 degrees from Matthew Everingham,
13 degrees from James Squire.
14 degrees from Joseph Holt,
15 degrees from Molly Reibey, 
15 degrees from William Smith O'Brien (11th cousins 4x remvd)
16 degrees from James Ruse, 
17 degrees from Red Kelly, 
17 degrees from Joseph Marceau 
20 degrees from Thomas Meagher,
20 degrees from Joseph Johns,
21 degrees from Kevin O'Doherty, 
24 degrees from Francis Greenway,

Answer 18

It seems that like many in North America, my only relative here is William Smith O'Brien at 12 cousin 3 times removed. Perhaps someday WT will grow to the point that the distant  connections to the others become visible.

Answer 19

Matthew Everingham (11 degrees) is my closest on the list, but the convict I most closely relate to is Samuel ADAMS, Adams-35517.  He seems to have been an incorrigible, sent to the Hulks then to VDL, where he was punished for offences there.  After his term expired, he moved to Victoria.  He has no gravestone; he was buried in a grave that belonged to a different person.

Answer 20

My closest and only relation is William Smith O'Brien – 9^th cousin, 4x removed. He is also my closest connection at 16 degrees.

Ancestors and Cousins

• 16 degrees from William Smith O'Brien – 9^th cousin, 4x removed.

Connections

• 19 degrees from Joseph Marceau – 4 branches (3-4-5-8)
• 19 degrees from Mary Reibey – 3 branches (3-5-12)
• 21 degrees from Thomas Meagher – 3 branches (1-12-9)
• 21 degrees from Joseph Holt – 4 branches (4-4-6-8)
• 21 degrees from Matthew Everingham – 3 branches (4-4-14)
• 22 degrees from Kevin O'Doherty – 3 branches (2-5-16)
• 22 degrees from John Ruse – 7 branches (3-2-3-1-5-6-3)
• 22 degrees from James Squire – 6 branches (3-3-8-1-5-3)
• 23 degrees from Moondyne Joe Johns – 4 branches (5-5-5-9)
• 23 degrees from John Kelly – 6 branches (1-3-2-4-5-9)
• 31 degrees from Francis Greenway – 8 branches (4-7-3-1-3-2-4-8)