Sarah LYNCHEY was sentenced at Castle Rushen on the Isle of Man to transportation to Australia in November 1833 for receiving £33-0-0 from her (apparently) eldest son, Thomas, who had stolen it from an attended residence. This was quite a bit of money then and I am pleased to say that Sarah and Thomas had spent about £5-0-0 before they were arrested, in a public house. Sarah arrived in Australia in 1835. Thomas was transported also and I have found his trail up to his Ticket of Leave (an early colonial form of parole) but have not found anything following.
The ships indent for the ship Mary III states that Sarah was a widow, a catholic and born in County Down, it also states that she had 3 sons with one on board and 2 daughters both on board. This means that besides Thomas one son was left behind, no doubt older than 8 years. (At that time the Home Department (now Home Office) permitted convict mothers to take with them boys up to 8 years and girls up to 12 years.) Given the ages detailed on the Indent and other documents in Australia Sarah was born c1785.
On the Isle of Man there is a record of the baptism in 1826 of a Sarah LYNCHY daughter of Michael LYNCHY and Sarah MULLEN.
One daughter was Mary Ann LYNCHEY my GG grandmother; the other may have been Sarah LYNCHY (no "e") who was baptised in a "Dissenter Baptism" in Douglas in 1826 with parents Michael LYNCHY and Sarah MULLEN. The accompanying son could have been born no later than 1829 so Sarah was either widowed around that time or had formed another relationship.
