Father Brian Maher Collection
This collection, gathered by Father Brian Maher over more than four decades, is a unique and valuable manuscript collection of written papers and files, detailing the lives of over 400 Catholic families and their descendants. Many of these families are directly linked to the early settlers in the ACT and southern New South Wales, and include Irish immigrants, convicts, and free settlers.
The files of 27 local pioneering families and their descendants have been indexed and digitized as part of a pilot project made possible by funding made available from the ACT Government under the ACT Heritage Grants Program. For each family line the source documents are wide ranging and may include details from parish registers, birth, death and marriage certificates, books, newspaper and journal extracts, immigration and convict records, wills, maps, photographs, and private letters.
An index of names and a finding aid for each family line is available below to assist with planning your research.
Research on the database can be undertaken at the FHACT Library at Cook.
Links to Finding Aids
- Thomas Cavanagh of Ginninderra
- Robert Corkhill and family of Yarralumla
- Garrett Cotter and family of Cotter River
- Crace Families
- Patrick Curley and family of Woden/Red Hill
- Patrick Curran and family of Yass
- James Cusack and family of Goulburn/Young
- Michael Cusack and family of Yass/Gunning
- William Darmody and family of Majura
- Henry Donnelly and family of Bungendore/Canberra
- Michael Flanagan and family of Tuggeranong
- Michael Flanagan and family of Boorowa
- Richard Guise and family of Guise Creek
- James Keefe and family of Cuppacumbalong
- Michael Maloney and family of Canberra/Yass
- John Morrison and family of Tralee
- Thomas Muldoon and family of Taree
- Mulligan family of Mulligan's Flat/Gungahlin
- Anthony Rolfe and family of Ginninderra
- Rolfe/Logue family of Camberry/Gold Creek
- Jeremiah Ryan and family of Queanbeyan/Canberra and Cooma
- William Ryan/Elizabeth Gore and family of Queanbeyan
- William Ryan and family of Mulligan's Flat and Ginninderra
- John Sheedy and family of Queanbeyan
- Shumack family of Ginninderra/Hall
- Patrick Sheedy and family of Yass/Canberra
- William Sullivan and family of Springbank and Kambah