As to be expected in these early times, the child mortality rate was very high. If you lived away from a large population, it was even higher. The risk was not just for the babies and young children, but for the mothers as well. It is said, that if you were pregnant and living in the bush, you had a 1 in 10 chance of dying pre 1910. You will see that in some cases there were more than one child death to the same parents (these are grouped together) including the death of two sets of twins. I doubt if the mothers even knew they were to have twins until the birth.
Of the 164 burials in Lawlers Cemetery, 41 were aged under 2yrs with several stillborn or only living a very short time. There are only 8 burials for women in the cemetery and three of these died in childbirth:-
Margaret Mary DONALDSON
Margaret GROGAN
Mary Helen WILLIS
You may think that most of the children that died were born elsewhere, but this isn’t the case. All but four of them were not born in Lawlers. So there must have been a number of women to account for all these child deaths. To be a child, or a pregnant woman, in this town, as was the case in many isolated places, was a dangerous thing. The town, although isolated, did have medical facilities with a hospital with a matron and two nurses and two ‘private’ hospitals, in 1900. However, it wouldn’t have been usual for babies to be born in the hospital and children were expected to be nursed at home.
Lawlers Hospital 1900
The cause of death for the other women were, 1 perforated ulcer, 1 old age, 1 murder, 1 abortion and 1 unknown.
BARRATT Olive Vivien d 2 June 1907, Aged 10 months Father:- Albert William BARRATT (Gardener) Mother:- Norah Agnes Maude PROSSER Cause:- Chronic Indigestion/Marasmus, born Vivien WA
BOYD David John d 19 Apr 1904, Lawlers, Infant 7mths, Cause:- Asthenia, Father:- David BOYD (Grocer) Mother:- Ellen Margaret FOLEY, Born Leonora WA.
CADDY Kenneth Harry d 18 November 1910, Sutton Street, Lawlers, Aged 2 months, Cause:- Pneumonia, Father:- John Freeman CADDY (Tailor) Ethel May BROWN, born Lawlers WA.
DONALDSON Unnamed female, d 17 September 1908, Police Quarters Lawlers,
Cause:- Stillborn Father:- Kennedy Andrew DONALDSON (Police Constable) Mother:- Margaret Mary CAHILL. (mother died also)
DUNCAN Simon David 21 May 1901 Aged 5 months, East Murchison Mine, Lawlers, Cause Marasmus, Father:- Walter ?, Mother:- Margaret DUNCAN (Illegitimate) born in WA
FARRELL Hilda Florence d 30 November 1900 Aged 2 months Father:- Hugh Kernohan McNice FARRELL Mother:- Isabella DONALDSON
FITZGERALD Eileen Mary d 12 May 1908, Harris Street, Vivien, Aged 6 months, Cause:- Chronic Colitis, Father:- Patrick Walter FITZPATRICK (Carpenter) Mother:- Kate NOONAN, born Vivien WA.
FITZPATRICK Mary Dorothy Violet 25 February 1907 Aged 11 months
FITZPATRICK Walter d 30 June 1909, Lawlers, Aged 21 days, Cause:- Malnutrition due to premature birth, Father:- Patrick Walter FITZPATRICK (Miner) Mother:- Kate NOONAN, born Lawlers WA.
GAFFNEY Claude Walter, d 31 Oct 1900, LakeWay Wiluna, Infant 17mths, Cause:- Convulsions, Father:-Walter Prior GAFFNEY (Assayers Assistant) Mother:- Amy Beatrice SMITH, born Elsternwick VIC, Reg: East Murchison 6/1900
GREYMAN Florence Mabel d At International Lease, Ogilvies, 20 January 1901 Aged 18 months Cause:- Accidentally, due to immersion in water and partly due to the cyanide in the water in which she was found, Verdict of Coroner, Father:- Henry Frederick GREYMAN (Enginedriver) Mother:- Mabel COTTON, born Bunbury WA, buried by father in Lawlers Cemetery
GREYMAN Keith Ralston, d 23 November 1910, Mrs William’s Clifton Street, Lawlers,
Aged 1 month Cause:- Exhaustion and Peritonitis, Father:- Henry Frederick GREYMAN (Miner) Mabel COTTON Born Lawlers WA.
GRIFFITHS Mary Ann d 30 December 1906 Aged 1 year 3mths Cause:- Acute gastroenteritis, Father:- Henry Reginald GRIFFITHS (Labourer) Mother:- Annie Maria MILLIGAN, born Lawlers WA.
GRIGG Violet May d 4 February 1904 East Murchison GM, Lawlers, Aged 1 year, Cause:- Convulsions, Father:- James Henry GRIGG (Mine Foreman) Mother:- Harriet LARK, born Lawlers, born Lawlers WA
GRIGG Vivien Herbert d 19 March 1909 Aged 4 months at Mrs Kells residence Lawlers, Cause:- Heart failure/Marasmus, Father:- James Henry GRIGG (Mine Superintendant) Mother:- Harriet LARK, born at Harris WA.
GRIGG Unnamed female, d 20 June 1907, Lawlers Cause:- Stillborn, Father:- James Henry GRIGG (Mine Manager) Mother:- Harriet LARK.
GROGAN Hester Kate d 25 September 1900 Aged 17 months, Born Lawlers WA, Father:- John GROGAN (Battery hand) Mother:- Margaret FOLEY
GROGAN Joseph Edward d 10 March 1904 Aged 24 hours, Clifton St, Lawlers, Cause:- Premature Birth, Father:- John GROGAN, Mother:- Margaret FOLEY (Twin to William) Mother dies also.
GROGAN William d 10 March 1904 Aged 24 hours, Clifton St, Lawlers, Cause:- Premature birth, Father:- John GROGAN (Miner), Mother:- Margaret FOLEY (Twin to Joseph Edward Mother dies also)
HARRISON Margaret Hamilton, d 25 March 1902 Aged 11 mths, Father:- Charles HARRISON, Mother:- Maggie Hamilton SMITH, Cause:- Water on the brain, born Lawlers WA
HEENAN Mary Eileen d 10 July 1905 Aged 4 weeks, Cause:- Croupus pneumonia, Father:- Michael HEENAN, Mother:- Alice DORIZZY, Born Leonora WA
HINCE Emily Bertha d 29 November 1905 Aged 10 months, Cause:- Bronchitis, Father:- John Stockwell HINCE (Baker) Mother: Elizabeth Bertha HAINES, born Lawlers WA.
KILNER male child, d 11 December 1911 Cause:- Stillborn, Father:- Robert Victor KILNER (Accountant) Mother:- Mary BINNIE.
LYON Ian Frank d 12 July 1910, Northern Mines, Lawlers Aged 5 months Cause:- Exhaustion/Marasmus, Father:- Gerald Robert LYON (Amalgamator) Mother:-Lillie May GRIBBLE, born Lawlers WA.
McMEEKIN Male child, d 2 December 1911, Mrs Hills Eastern Street, Lawlers, 1 day, Cause:- Premature birth, Father:- John McMEEKEN (Farrier) Mother:- Minnie Elsie SCOTT, born Lawlers WA.
MELLENDORF Harry, d 2 October 1916, Lawlers Hospital, Cause:- Stillborn, Father:- Heinrich Christian Johann Griederick MELLENDORF (Miner) Mother:- Adelaide Constance STURKE.
PSICHITSAS Emanuel 20 December 1902 Aged 9 months, Clifton St, Lawlers, Cause:- Murdered, Father:- John PSICHITAS (Fruiterer) Mother Sophia LEADAKIS, born in Mt Magnet WA (Mother also murdered)
http://wwwoutbackfamilyhistoryblogcom/2017/03/26/greek-tragedy-lawlers/
RAVOTTI William Carl d 7 May 1904 Aged 4 days at Lawlers, Father:- Guiseppe RAVOTTI (Miner) Mother:- Annie SARTORI.
SCOTT Margaret Lucy d 5 December 1902 East Murchison GM, Lawlers Aged 5 months, Father:- John SCOTT Mother:- Ann KERSHAW, (Twin to Walter Charles)
SCOTT Walter Charles d 1 December 1902 East Murchison GM, Lawlers, Aged 5 months, Father:- John SCOTT (Miner) Mother:- Ann KERSHAW, (Twin to Margaret Lucy)
SHIEL Charles Victor d 2 September 1907, Lawlers, Aged 3 weeks, Cause:- Inter cranial haemorrhage, Father:- Sydney SHIEL (Miner) Mother:- Isabella Mary BARNARD, born Lawlers WA.
SHIEL Mary Gladstone d 17 March 1927,Northern Mines, Lawlers, Cause:- Stillborn/Premature birth, Father:- Sydney Bernard SHIEL (Secretary) Mother:- Mary Isabella BARNARD.
SIMES Clara d 23 April 1906 Aged 3 days, Lawlers, Cause:- Premature birth, Father:- Thomas SIMES (Amalgamator) Mother:- Grace LOGAN, born Lawlers WA.
SMITH Leo Henry d 26 November 1905 Aged 21 months, Cause:- Cholera, Father:- Henry Mayhew SMITH (Draper) Mother:- Veronica Hannah SULLIVAN Born – North Melbourne VIC
STONE Unnamed male Child, d 11 March 1908, Northern GM, near Lawlers, Cause:- Stillborn/Premature birth, Father:- Thomas STONE (Engine Driver) Mother:- Mary PASCOE
WHITE Francis George d 15 December 1903 Aged 3½ hours, Clifton Street, Lawlers, Father:- George William Ernest WHITE (Contractor) Mother:- Jane CLOUGH
WILDING William Frederick d 27 November 1904 Aged 24 days, Cause:- Infantile Debility, Father:- William WILDING (Miner) Mother:- Agnes REDMAN
Taylor Teddy (Age 6)- photo by Kerri Blakeman
WILLIAMS Unnamed Female d 20 March 1909, Kathleen GM, Lawlers Cause:- Stillborn Father:- William Henry WILLIAMS (Jem Turner) Mother:- Lily MORETON.
WILLIS Frank 13 August 1906 Aged 6 months
WILLIS Unnamed male, d 14 December 1903 Stillborn, Sutton Street, Lawlers, Father:- James Bert WILLIS, Mother:- Mary Helen WEATHERALL (mother died also)
GROGAN Hester Kate 25 September 1900 Buried 8 Aug 1900 50miles from Lawlers on the Mt Magnet road Aged 17 months, Born Lawlers WA, Father:- John GROGAN (Battery hand) Mother:- Margaret FOLEY Cause:- phosphorus poisoning by eating watermelon accidentally obtained
Lawlers 1910
Moya Sharp
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Thank you for posting these details about the little children. The three Grigg children were my grand-mothers siblings. As you mention, it was dangerous for the mothers as well. Following Vivian’s birth, his mother Harriet (my great-grandmother) was confined to hospital due to complications during the birth. The doctor was Dr Triado. Including these three children, she had ten children in total, although one other had died a 1yr back in UK. I’d be interested to know the source of your information about the three Grigg children, as you had a bit ore information than I’d been able to find
Hi Steve I have copies of the death certificates for these children. Your G Grandmother sounds like a very tough lady to go through all that, just imagine 10 kids, just amazing.
Hi Moya. She certainly was. My G Grandfather & G Grandmother first went to USA, where two of their children were born – one dying just after they returned to UK. Three were born in UK and the other six were born in Lawlers, with three living to old age and three dying in childhood. G Grandad and G Grandmother, returned to UK in 1914 with three of the children and one subsequently returned to WA. G Grandfather then made two separate trips to work in South Africa. I always knew from my Grandmother that it was a tough life in Lawlers, however, only as I started to research her life did I realised just how tough and dangerous it was.
I have some of the family mementoes from their life in Lawlers, including two inscribed tea services presented to my G Grandfather and G Grandmother. I’m happy to provide photos of the inscribed pieces, if they would be of any interest.
My grandfather John Grogan – lost his wife Margaret (Foley), the twin boys, and Hester Kate Grogan – another child. He lost them over a short period of time the 4 of them. My father was born there and survived, after a lot of illnesses – and was eventually taken to Geraldton to the Convent, as he had three aunties Nuns, Irish girls and they looked after him to a certain age.
Thanks Moya – I was just wanting to know that I was always told by my father and a priest who knew my family that my would have been Aunty Hester Kate Grogan whom died at 17 months, died of phosperous poisoning from eating match stick tops. How would I find out if this is so? The information of her death would be wrong as it states that she died in 25 September 1900, but was buried in August 1900.