The Great Hunger is a much-discussed period in Irish history and one remembered annually, but there are still aspects of the famine history that have been overlooked. Among them, the tragic Australian “Potato Orphans.” The “Potato Orphans” were young Irish women, some as young as 14, who were brought from their homes in Ireland far away to Australia to be married to convicts.
Australian woman Gail Newman recently discovered the sad secret of her ancestors and the journey her great-great-great-grandmother Jane McDonald made as a “Potato Orphan.” Newman, greatly interested in discovering more about her family’s heritage, spent over a year searching for information about her ancestors online before coming across a photo of Jane that opened up a dark tale from her family’s history.
http://www.irishcentral.com/roots/history/Orphans-of-Irelands-Great-Hunger-married-off-to-Australian-convicts-.html
Australian woman Gail Newman recently discovered the sad secret of her ancestors and the journey her great-great-great-grandmother Jane McDonald made as a “Potato Orphan.” Newman, greatly interested in discovering more about her family’s heritage, spent over a year searching for information about her ancestors online before coming across a photo of Jane that opened up a dark tale from her family’s history.
http://www.irishcentral.com/roots/history/Orphans-of-Irelands-Great-Hunger-married-off-to-Australian-convicts-.html