John Edwin Dillon (abt. 1873 - 1959)

Born about 1873 in Munmurra (near Cassilis), New South Wales

Ancestors

Husband of Frances Elizabeth Maude (Kilfoyle) Dillon — married 7 Jan 1906 in Gunnedah, New South Wales, Australia

Descendants

Died 7 Jul 1959 at about age 86 in Gunnedah, New South Wales, Australia

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Biography

John Dillon was born in the Colony of New South Wales (1788-1900)

John Edwin Dillon was likely born at a hamlet of several families called Munmurra or Munmurra Brook in New South Wales located about 12 km south of Cassilis in New South Wales ^[1].

The inscription on his grave suggests he was aged 86 years when he died on 7 Jul, 1959, suggesting a birth year of circa 1873 or 1874. John's putative father was Thomas Dillon, a convict exile and bush ranger from Ireland who arrived in New South Wales in 1849. In 1863, he was sentenced to gaol for 14 years after a series of armed robberies. He was not released until 1 Jan 1872. It would have been impossible for Thomas to father a child with his wife and John's mother, Mary Ann until after this time. At present, no birth or baptism records to confirm the birth date on John's grave have been located. Thus, the details of John's birthdate and the identity of his father are uncertain.

Cecil Dillon the son of John Edwin, recalled a story passed down by his father that suggests his family moved from Cassilis to Gunnedah when he was six years old (around 1878), which was notable because he walked alongside a sulky for the entire distance of about 175 km ^[1]

On 7 Jan 1906, John, aged ~32, married Frances Elizabeth Maude Kilfoyle ^[2]

During their marriage, they had five daughters and four sons. All of these births were registered in in Gunnedah, New South Wales. Their first-born child was Mary Frances, born on 29 Sep 1907

In 1930 and 1936, John is listed in the Electoral role as living with Frances as a farmer in the parish of Denison, between Gunnedah and Boggabri. ^{[3] [4]}

By 1943 and again in 1953, John had moved into Gunnedah to an address at 96 Henry Street, where he is listed as living with a lot of other Dillon working as a market gardener ^{[5] [6]}

John died on the 7th of July 1959 in Gunnedah and was buried at the Gunnedah General Cemetery ^{[7] [8]}

Research Notes

• A birth record for a child named John Dillon, born on 7 Apr 1868 ^[9] was sourced. It was of interest due to the surname and the low population of the Mudgee region at the time (1,786 people in 1871) ^[10] However, this person appears to have been born to Adam Coram (Frederick) Dillon, who worked temporarily in the area logging timber before moving to Armidale circa 1870, and his wife, Mary Ann Carroll. It is unclear if this man was related in any way.

Sources

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1} Dillon, Mark (n.d) 'Thomas Dillon (1835-1887)' [self-published biography]
2. ↑ New South Wales Registry of Births Deaths and Marriages Marriage Certificate 1405/1906 Groom: DILLON, JOHN E Bride: KILFOYLE, FRANCES E M District: GUNNEDAH
3. ↑ Australian Electoral Commission. [Electoral roll]; cited in Ancestry.com. Australia, Electoral Rolls, 1903-1980 [database online] Name: John Edwin Dillon Gender: Male Electoral Date: 1930 Electoral Place: Boggabri, Gwydir, New South Wales, Australia Address: 'Denison', Gulligal Occupation: Farmer Other Residents: Frances Elizabeth Maid Dillon
4. ↑ Australian Electoral Commission. [Electoral roll]; cited in Ancestry.com. Australia, Electoral Rolls, 1903-1980 [database online] Name: John Edwin Dillon: Gender: Male Electoral Date: 1936 Electoral Place: Boggabri, Gwydir, New South Wales, Australia Address: 'Denison', Gulligal, via Gunnedah Occupation: Farmer Other Residents: Frances Elizabeth Maid Dillon, Dulcie Clare Dillon, and Edwin Michael Dillon
5. ↑ Australian Electoral Commission. [Electoral roll]; cited in Ancestry.com. Australia, Electoral Rolls, 1903-1980 [database online] Name: John Edwin Dillon Gender: Male Electoral Date: 1943 Electoral Place: Gunnedah, Gwydir, New South Wales, Australia Address: 96 Henry Street Occupation: Market Gardener Other Residents: Annie Victoria Dillon, Dulcie Clare Dillon
6. ↑ Australian Electoral Commission. [Electoral roll]; cited in Ancestry.com. Australia, Electoral Rolls, 1903-1980 [database online] Name: John Edwin Dillon Gender: Male Electoral Date: 1953 Electoral Place: Gunnedah, Gwydir, New South Wales, Australia Address: 96 Henry Street Occupation: Market Gardener Other Residents: Cecil Harrington Dillon, Neville John Dillon Edwin Michael Dillon, Nellie Dagmar Dillon,
7. ↑ New South Wales Registry of Births Deaths and Marriages Death Certificate 27582/1959 Name: DILLON, JOHN EDWIN Father: THOMAS Mother: MARY District: GUNNEDAH
8. ↑ Find a Grave memorial for John Edwin Dillon (unknown–1959): accessed 20 April 2020; citing Gunnedah General Cemetery, Gunnedah, New South Wales, Australia
9. ↑ New South Wales Registry of Births Deaths and Marriages Birth Certificate 8238/1868 Name: DILLON, JOHN (not present at registration) Birthplace: Bobadeen Creek, near Cassilis Sex: male Father: not listed Mother: CARROL, MARY ANN, 18 years old, born at Fish River, New South Wales Informant: Frederick Dillon (father) Bobadeen Creek Witness: Mary [Bedford?] Particulars of Registration: John Morris 4 May 1868 Court [A______?] Cassilis District: CASSILIS.
10. ↑ The Sydney Morning Herald Sat 18 Feb 1882 Page 3 Census of New South Wales for 1881.