Lily Hawthorne Cheyne

     NOTE: The information on this page is my research to date and is subject to change as I become better informed. I very much welcome any corrections or additional info you might have - my email address is at the bottom of this page. Whilst historical facts are not copyright, my writing about these facts are. If you wish to use any text from this site on Ancestry or on any other website, please ask me first - Tim Hill.


Lily was born at St. Andrew Street on Wednesday, 23 July 1884 at Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand.^1,2,3 She was the daughter of Robert Cheyne and Agnethe Evensdatter Sørum. Lily Hawthorne Cheyne was also known as Lillian.² She presumably lived with her parents at Castle Street, Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand, in 1887.⁴

Lily emigrated from New Zealand circa March 1888 with her parents and siblings.² Lily arrived at Melbourne circa March 1888.²


The family lived in three houses in quick succession; in 1891 they were firstly at 63 Flemington Road, North Melbourne; then at 16 Gardner street in Richmond, then at 10 James Street Fitzroy where they settled and stayed until the turn of the century. This was a 5 room house owned by a Henry Wernberg.^5,6,7,8 She was confirmed on Sunday, 11 July 1897 at St. Peter's Eastern Hill, in Melbourne.⁹ She presumably lived with her parents at at 116 Fitzroy Street in the Melbourne suburb of Fitzroy in July 1901.^10,11

Her mother died 19 July 1901 at the age of 51 at the approximate age of 50. Lily was aged 16 when this happened.¹⁰

Her brother Albert Robert Cheyne was arrested at his home at at 307 Young Street in the Melbourne suburb of Fitzroy for theft, and the house searched.^12,13 She presumably lived with her father at at 121 Kerr Street in the Melbourne suburb of Fitzroy in 1905.¹⁴

She married Henry John Barrett, in 1906 at the Melbourne suburb of Fitzroy.. Brothers and sisters who may have attended include Albert Robert Cheyne, Violet Barbara Cheyne, Arthur Alfred Cheyne and Daisy Agnnete Cheyne. Henry and Lily went on to have two known children together.¹⁵

On 14 May 1907 her brother Arthur died at the approximate age of 19.

She may have attended the wedding of her sister in the marriage of Albert Edward Oaten and Violet Barbara Cheyne in a Congregational Church ceremony at at the manse 101 Gore Street on Wednesday, 24 November 1909 at the Melbourne suburb of Fitzroy. Violet needed the consent of her father to marry; both Violet and Albert had lost their mothers in their early teens. Violet and Albert went on to have four children together, three of whom lived to their adulthood.^16,17

Her father died 1 March 1913 at the approximate age of 60.. Lily was aged 28 when this happened.

In another cruel blow, the fourth death in 18 years, their other brother Albert died at the age of 33 on Saturday, 3 May 1919. Lily was 34 when this happened.

One year after Albert's death his sister-in-law Lily Hawthorne Cheyne published a memorial in the paper:



She may have attended the wedding of her niece in the marriage of Hubert Nicholson and Mavis Lily Oaten in a Church of England ceremony at All Saints on Saturday, 17 February 1934 at the Melbourne suburb of Kooyong. Mavis married with the consent of her mother. They went on to have some eight children together, only two of whom reached adulthood.^19,20

She may have attended the wedding of her niece in the marriage of Harold John Neill and Violet Agnette Oaten at St. John's Church of England on Saturday, 20 January 1940 at the Melbourne suburb of Camberwell. The marriage was featured on the 'Weddings and Engagements' page of The Age and included a photo. Harold and Violet went on to have two children together.^21,22

Her niece recalls her as being a forbidding person, dressed all in black, tucked away in a corner on formal occasions.²³

Christmas for the extended family would take place at a different house each year, with each family bringing meals to contribute to the affair. There would be sing-a-longs of Christmas Carols and a big traditional roast of ham and turkey.²⁴

Lily died in August 1948 at the Melbourne suburb of Richmond at age 64.³