Phelan and Atkin Family History

Kew Asylum in 1894, known as the Kew Mental Hospital during Alma Collins' time. Later it would be known as Willsmere, and today is a residential apartment complex. My recent research into the Collins family has revealed them to be a somewhat troubled bunch. I've already written about matriarch Anne's drink-induced death and her son Thomas' dodgy cattle deal with William Atkin. As far as I can tell, daughter Lydia turned out ok - just as well given she is my direct ancestor! And while youngest son Alfred Charles Collins seems to have led an uneventful life as a butcher in the inner suburbs of Melbourne, life would not be easy for many of his children. Firstly I should mention the sadness that Alfred and wife Annie must have endured in losing three of their first four children in infancy. Alfred Charles Collins (named after his father) died at 5 months in 1894, while a second son Alfred and twin daughter Ruby died within a day of being born in 1896. In between was bo...

As mentioned in my previous post, several of the Collins family relocated to Gippsland following the death of their mother in March 1884. Thomas Henry Collins was working as a butcher in the town of Yarragon, where his sister Lydia Ann Collins - my great-grandmother - would meet my great-grandfather William Atkin. In September 1886 William and Lydia were married at St James' Cathedral in Melbourne (now the St James 'Old' Cathedral, relocated to West Melbourne in 1913-14). Those who have had read the thesis I wrote for my Family History Diploma in 2018 may recall the story that follows. William, aged 22, was granted a slaughtering license early in 1887 and bought the butcher shop formerly held by his 26-year old brother-in-law Thomas. However both were soon embroiled in a controversy that would play out in a Warragul courtroom. Collins had purchased cows from farmers who were under the impression that he was still running the business, and had paid for them with a cheque ...

Annie Collins name can be found on this memorial to pioneers' graves at the Seymour Pioneer Park Happy 2020 to all Phelans and Atkins out there! Having finished work on the Phelans for the time being, I have decided to switch my research back over to Mum's side of the family. The New Year finds me working on the Collins branch of the tree. Lydia Ann Collins, shown in the wonderful portrait at the end of this post, was Mum's paternal grandmother, the wife of William Atkin. Lydia was one of five children of Joseph Edmund Collins and Anne O'Regan. It hasn't always been easy to find information about this family, and even now some questions remain. One thing that there is no doubt about however is how Anne Collins met her end - the subject of today's post. Joseph Edmond Collins hailed from Sussex and was a butcher by trade. He came out to Australia in the late 1850s and found his way to Stanley in northeastern Victoria, where he ran a butcher's store ...