Person in this family
Mary Phister
1862 – 1933
Mary Jane Phister married Patrick Hickey at Ipswich, Queensland, in 1896, and eight children are recorded. She died in 1933, twenty-four years before her husband. **Her birth year is in conflict**: this archive holds 1862, her husband's memorial gives 1871. A marriage in 1896 and a first child in 1897 sit more easily with 1871, but neither reading is preferred here without a register.
Proved by a record
Mary Phister was reportedly Patrick Hickey's wife, but our family tree disagree over whether she was born in 1862 or about 1871.
Recorded as: Mary Jane Phister
Birth: From our family tree - no record found yet
How is this person related?
Andrew John Leahey’s first cousin three times removed's spouse (by marriage)
Gina D. Cacace’s connected in this tree, but not by a line this tool can name
Abigail Ann Leahey’s first cousin four times removed's spouse (by marriage)
Marie C. Fitzgerald’s first cousin twice removed's spouse (by marriage)
Kevin Leahey’s connected in this tree, but not by a line this tool can name
Worked out from the recorded parents and marriages. No sex is recorded for anyone in this archive, so the wording stays neutral.
How this person is related to Andrew:
Mary Phister is the spouse of your first cousin, 3 times removed.
Life
Our family tree names Mary Phister as Patrick Hickey's wife and gives her birth year as 1862. A separate public tree calls her Mary Jane Phister and says, "Mary was born on.1871 in.QLD" and "Patrick Hickey & Mary Jane Phister were married on.1896 in.QLD." The two reported birth years differ by nine years.
Both trees connect her with Sarah Ada Hickey, reportedly born in Queensland in 1897; the public tree also names a son, John Thomas Hickey, born in 1898. These are claims recorded here rather than civil records. The discrepancy may reflect a bad date or a mistaken merge, but this archive does not resolve it, and an unrelated Mary Phister who married James Phister should not be combined with her without direct evidence.
How we know this: Weak and conflicting evidence; her name, birth year, marriage, and children are known only from our family tree. [1][2]
Family
Spouse
Children
See this family in the family treeWhere they lived
Use the place list first. The map below is optional.
Places listed on this page
- Ipswich, Queensland, Australia
- Ipswich General Cemetery, Ipswich, Queensland, Australia Cemetery or burial place
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The pins show approximate places. The line only joins them in time order; it does not prove the route travelled. Cemetery and burial places have red pins.
Timeline
Born
Our family tree identifies her as Patrick Hickey’s wife and gives an 1862 birth. [1]
From our family tree - no record found yet
Married
A public family-tree index instead says “Mary was born on ...1871 in ...QLD” and “Patrick Hickey & Mary Jane Phister were married on ...1896 in ...QLD.” [1]
From our family tree - no record found yet
What the records say
2 records transcribed.
Record exhibit
MyTrees
This old record gives information about the person or family named here.
Partly proved
Verbatim transcription currently held in this archive — reproduced in full.
Patrick Hickey & Mary Jane Phister were married on ...1896 in ...QLD, | A daughter, Sarah Ada Hickey, was born on ...1897 in ...QLD. | Mary was born on ...1871 in ...QLD | Patrick Hickey & Mary Jane Phister were married on ...1896 in ...QLD. | A daughter, Sarah Ada Hickey, was born on ...1897 in ...QLD | A son, John Thomas Hickey, was born on ...1898 in ...QLD. | A daughter, Sarah Ada Hickey, was born on ...1897 in ...QLD,
Record exhibit
Patrick Hickey (1868-1957) memorial, Ipswich General Cemetery
This old record gives information about the person or family named here.
Partly proved
Verbatim transcription currently held in this archive — reproduced in full.
Patrick Hickey, born 27 October 1868 at Ipswich; died 23 November 1957 at Ipswich, aged 89; buried Ipswich General Cemetery, Roman Catholic 3A, Row 8, Grave 29. Spouse Mary Jane Phister 1871-1933, married 1896. Eight children.
Historical context
These background articles explain the places, work, and events in this entry.
What Sponsors and Witnesses Can Tell Us
Catholic registers often preserve the people standing just outside a family photograph. A baptism normally names the child, parents, date and sponsors or godparents; a marriage normally names the couple and wit…
The Irish Road to Ipswich, Queensland
Most branches on this site point toward New York or New Jersey. The Hickey–McGreevy–McGuire cluster points in the opposite direction, to Ipswich, Queensland. The Australian evidence is uneven: cemetery records …
What we still don't know
- Whether her full name was Mary Jane Phister
- Whether she was born in 1862 or about 1871
- Whether she married Patrick Hickey in Queensland in 1896
- Whether Sarah Ada and John Thomas Hickey were her children
- Locate the 1896 Queensland marriage and relevant birth registrations. Do not merge the unrelated Mary Phister who was wife of James Phister without direct evidence.
- [CONFLICT] Birth 1862 (this archive) against 1871 (Find a Grave). Both retained. A Queensland birth or marriage registration would settle it.