Local District Past Residents
Local Tragedies 1800's
The Sunshine District, like all districts has seen it's fair share of tragedies.
The most significant accident was the Sunshine Station Railway disaster in 1908. At that time it was Australia's worst railway accident.
But there has been many more tragedies in the local district and whether these have been work site accidents, motor car accidents, level crossing accidents, drownings in the district's creeks & pools and murders. Other tragedies have not happen in the district but the families of the district has had to mourn these events.
A sample of these tragedies have been recorded in various Victorian papers.
1839
Intoxication lead to the destruction of a strong and fine a man
1840
1849
The Keilor murder case, John Kane
1851
Timber dray capsizes, Henry Delahey killed
1857
Accident drowning, Kororoit Creek Rockbank, William Rusden
1861
Bushrangers Sanders & Johnson, hold-up the Cropley's Farm & rape their servant girl, Mary Egan
1862
Mariibyrnong River Toll Bridge Keilor, William Anderson
1866
A child killed by swallowing a bean, Sarah Jane Seuling, Aged 5
Thomas Cahill's house destroyed by fire
1867
The murder at Keilor, John Fairweather
A fire at Braybrook, Mr Kell's
1868
Albion Commons School destroyed by fire
1869
1870
Salt Water River, boy John Clancy & man James Morris drowns
1872
Fatal Accident, John Scott, Aged 63
Stabbing a Chinaman at Braybrook
Destructive fire at Maribyrnong
The Coroner - Accidentally drowned, Michael Brown, Aged 4
1873
Fire at the Melbourne Meat Preservation Company Works
1875
Scarlet Fever at Kororoit Creek
1876
Fire at the Lithofracteur Works Maidstone
1877
Fatal accident, Mary Corcoran, Aged 66
1878
Nitro-Glycerine explosion, James Hodsman, Aged 50
Mr. C.B. Fisher employee drowns, William Edward Rolfe, Aged 17
1880
Explosion of gun cotton, Charles Kampf, Aged 15
Water tank drowning, Meat Preservative Company, Maribyrnong, William Farrar, Aged 8
1881
Inquest, determined suicide, George Hales, Aged 30
1883
Killed by a stone, Patrick Harrigan, Aged 40
1885
Drowned, William McIntosh, Aged 55
Another death by drowning, 'Billy' Workman
Fatal accident, Michael Fox, Aged 11
1886
Awfully sudden death, Patrick 'Pat' Leddin, Aged 21
1887
The peculiar death at Footscray, Alexander Watson, Aged 60
1888
Accident at a Footscray Millinery Factory, Dianna Newman, Aged 22
The Braybrook shooting affair, Death of the boy John Butterworth Peach, Aged 12
The fatal quarrel at Braybrook, Thomas Ryan
1889
Extraordinary suicide at Kororoit Creek, A woman drowns herself and her infant, Charlotte Lacey
Dickson's Hotel Kororoit Creek, sudden death of Matthew Harrison
1890
Fire at Keilor, another old land mark destroyed
The railway fatality at Braybrook, Benjamin Warner, Aged 39
Supposed suicide of a man, Thomas Strachan, Aged 30
1891
Fatal accident at Stone Quarry, Hugh O'Brien
The Braybrook fatality, cause of death typhoid, Margaret Jane Roberts, Aged 2
Fell 18 feet to his death, Michael Connolly, Aged 50
Fatal accident at St. Albans, Patrick Ginane, Aged 19
The Braybrook Railway Fatality, Mary Goodwin, Aged 67
1892
Fatal accident, Alfred Caesar Harold Berry, Aged 19
1893
The quarry explosion, Death of Daniel Reidy, Aged 34
Fatal Steeplechasing Accident, An Amateur Rider Killed, William Thomas Kirkup Harrison, Aged 27
Seymour Street Braybrook South house fire
Fatality at Braybrook, George Lightfoot, Aged 62
1894
Accident at an explosive factory, William Ross dies, Aged 23
The railway accident at Braybrook, death of the victim, Mrs June Taylor, Aged 75
1895
The fatal gun accident at St. Albans, John Bristow Burrows, Age 23
Riding fatality at Deer Park, Thomas Gill, Aged 36
The Maidstone fire, death of Mrs Brundell
1896
The Keilor drowning fatality, brothers David (Aged 10) & Joseph (Aged 8) Yates
Another man run over, Richard Delahey, Aged 48
1897
Death by drowning, John David Dempster, Aged 15
Cottage fire near Solomon's Ford
1898
Terrible explosion, one man killed, John O'Shannassy
Death of a cricket enthusiast, Henry Joyce, Aged 71
Thrown from a horse, Peter Harrick, Aged 29
Found drowned, Thomas O'Rourke
Another case of drowning, Joseph Coombes, Aged 73
1899
A pig dealer's death, John Baker, Aged 66