Meeting through time: The story of the grandchildren of two of Waterford's women convicts
Mary Vanderfeen and Heather Multimer.
We are the great-great-granddaughters of Waterford convicts Bridget Dooling and Bridget Scanlon. How wonderful it was for us to meet recently, knowing our female ancestors shared such an incredible story from so long ago.
Meeting in Country Victoria, we discovered we had more than arsonist grannies in common. It quickly became apparent, like our Bridget’s, we were both feisty and resilient! We have both had lives persuading, raising points of order, often on behalf of others, in the interest of social justice. Our question, what influence did the experience of these brave women have?
Our Bridget’s thought and dreamed in Gaeilge, they did not read or write English. Sentenced to transportation for 15 years, Bridget Dooling, and Bridget Scanlan left ‘An Gorta Mór’ behind. Arson and the convict ship their means of survival. Illegally pregnant, malnourished, in the cold, stark Female Factory, both carried, and lost, their first child, nurtured under a rule of silence.
The trials and tribulations of both Bridget’s continued throughout their lives, each with their own individual stories of hardship and survival, each living into their late 60s – considering the hardships they faced, relatively long lives.
As female descendants of these two incredible Irish women, we find it almost impossible to comprehend the layers of pain and suffering they experienced. Having grown up with strong family ties and a deep love for our country, the thought of being banished to the other side of the world and losing contact, possibly forever, with our loved ones and homeland is inconceivable. How traumatic and heart-wrenching. We ponder, does our DNA carry traces of our ancestors’ pain and trauma? Is there a healing process involved as we uncover and share their stories? We think so!
Little Bridget Scanlon,
Dark hair and freckled face,
I have made you a bonnet - trimmed with just a wee bit of lace.
As I sewed your name upon it I thought of you with tears,
My Irish great great grandmother who suffered all those years.
When I read your convict record, I saw myself in you,
A feisty little rebel,
Who didn't like to be told what to do,
And "garrulous and quarrelsome" can be said about me too!
Bridget, I'm glad I have your genes,
For I am strong and brave,
I've had my share of women's pain and shed a lot of tears,
I have survived - just like you!
My Irish great great grandmother who suffered all those years.
