Sepia Saturday: A wedding at Balmattum

In 1890 William Robert Phelan was appointed headteacher at Balmattum, a rural area north of Euroa in north-east Victoria. He was 29 years old, the son of an Irish Catholic family in Coburg, a northern suburb of Melbourne. He's my husband's great-grandfather.

Seven years later, in 1897, he married a local girl. Maggie was the daughter of Daniel and Christina McKernan, prominent residents of the area. Daniel was also Irish-born but Protestant, as was his Scottish wife. Maggie was 24 and William was 36. They were married at Maggie's home, the 'Royal Hotel' . The Royal was a combined hotel, post office, general store and residence for about forty-five years. It is now a private residence called 'Hawthorn House' and is owned by a descendant of Daniel and Christina McKernan.

Mixed marriages (as in Catholic-Protestant) were unusual at the time so I'm not sure how it came about and I wonder of what their parents and the community thought of it. William was never a practising Catholic so that may have helped.

William Phelan and Maggie McKernan wedding, Balmattum, Victoria 1897

The wedding party includes four bridesmaids and two groomsmen, all of whom are siblings or cousins of the bride and groom. It also includes the parents of both Daniel and Maggie. And this is why I treasure this photo - it's the only photo I have of Jane and Daniel Phelan. And it's the only photo I have of William's brother, Jack Phelan (top left in the above photo), who died 12 years later at the age of 37.

Jane and Daniel Phelan

Christina McKernan (nee Gordon)

Daniel McKernan

The wedding was reported in great detail. including a list of all the presents. Apparently the wedding was a 'scene of great excitement', there were about 100 guests and the room was beautifully decorated.

Euroa Advertiser, 15 Jan 1897

You can see more delightful wedding photos over at Sepia Saturday.