Annie Jane (Cameron) Clune (abt. 1868 - 1945)

Descendants

Biography

Annie Jane Cameron was born in about 1868 at or about Buninyong in the Colony of Victoria. She was the daughter of Allan Randolph Cameron and his wife Annie (nee Kelly). Allan a miner, had come to the Victorian Goldfields from Canada and Annie was Irish by birth.

Annie Cameron and James Sheedy a baker by trade had the first of their five sons; James (1893- 1916), Charles A (1895-1910) and Frederick A (1897-1917) in Newcastle in the Colony of New South Wales. But In 1900 the family moved to Western Australia and their last two sons; Arthur Francis (1901-1984) and Robert Michael Sheedy (1903-1937) were born in Fremantle.

In 1908, when her first husband, James Sheedy, died at the age of around 48 or 49, Annie Jane Sheedy started a small maternity hospital at her home. She became known as ‘Nurse Sheedy’ and in 1920 opened a private maternity hospital ‘Ocean View’, in a large house at 134 Solomon Street, in Fremantle Western Australia. This larger residence had been a military hospital during World War I. And this is where for several decades, she became Fremantle’s midwife of choice.

In January 1910 her second son, Charles Sheedy died at the age of 15 years. And then during World War I, James junior while serving with the 13th Field Ambulance in the Australian Imperial Force (AIF) died in 1916 in France. Then Frederick, who had joined the Royal Australian Navy drowned at sea, at the age of 20 years. Another of her sons Arthur '‘Barney'’ Sheedy became a celebrated Australian Rules footballer with the East Fremantle Football Club. His son, her grandson John Cameron ‘'Jack’' Sheedy also played for East Fremantle and is considered one of the greatest West Australian footballers. He has been inducted into both the Australian and West Australian Football Halls of Fame. Her youngest son Robert passed away in October 1937 at the age of 34 years.

In 1925 Annie Sheedy married John Hubert Clune in Fremantle. Clune (1875- 1926) had been born at Araluen, in New South Wales, but like the Sheedy family had lived in Western Australia since 1900. He had served 3½ years on active service with the Australian Imperial Force (A.I.F.) in World War I. On return from the war, he acquired and managed a cattle station at Wubin in Western Australia. Unfortunately on the 30 January 1926, John Clune passed away after a short illness, at the age of 51.

Annie Jane Clune, known as Nurse Sheedy passed away in May 1945 at or about East Fremantle in Western Australia. And was laid to rest at the Fremantle Cemetery in Palmyra, Western Australia.

Sources

• Victorian Births, Deaths & Marriages: BIRTH: CAMERON, Annie Jane - event: Birth - mother: Annie KELLY - father: Allan Randolph - place of birth: B'YONG - registration year: 1868 - registration no. 21967/1868. first accessed online on the 4th of March 2024. from the Victorian Family History Search searchable database at: https://www.bdm.vic.gov.au/research-and-family-history/search-your-family-history

• New South Wales Births, Deaths & Marriages: MARRIAGE: registration no. 5000/1892 - groom: SHEEDY, JAMES - bride: CAMERON, ANNIE J. - district: MEREWETHER. first accessed online on the 4th of March 2024 from the NSW Births, Deaths and Marriages search at: https://familyhistory.bdm.nsw.gov.au/lifelink/familyhistory/search/marriages?

• Western Australian Births, Deaths & Marriages: MARRIAGE: Sheedy, Annie Jane - gender: Female - spouse: Clune, John Hubert - gender: Male - place of marriage: Fremantle - marriage year: 1925 - district: Fremantle - registration year: 2700243 - registration year: 1925. from the Western Australian Online Index Search Tool. first accessed online on the 4th of March 2024 at: https://www.wa.gov.au/organisation/department-of-justice/online-index-search-tool

• Western Australian Births, Deaths & Marriages: DEATH: Clune, Annie Jane - gender: F - age at death: 76 - father: Allan Randolph CAMERON - mother: Annie (UNKNOWN) - place of death: East Fremantle - year of death: 1945 - registration district: Fremantle - registration no. 2700154 - registration year: 1945. from the Western Australian Online Index Search Tool. first accessed online on the 4th of March 2024 at: https://www.wa.gov.au/organisation/department-of-justice/online-index-search-tool

• Find a Grave, database and images (accessed March 3, 2024), memorial page for Annie Jane “Nurse Sheedy” Cameron Clune (9 Nov 1868–24 May 1945), Find a Grave Memorial ID Find A Grave: Memorial #212481206, citing Fremantle Cemetery, Palmyra, Melville City, Western Australia, Australia; Maintained by Cobber (contributor 50072026).

• Darbyshire, Jo, 2021 NURSE SHEEDY - (1869-1945), from STREETS OF FREO website, as hosted by the The Museum of Perth. first accessed online on the 3rd of March 2024 at: https://www.streetsoffreo.com.au/nursesheedy

• Gillard, Garry, 2020 'Nurse' Sheedy, from FREMANTLE STUFF website, as hosted on Freotopia first accessed online on the 3rd of March 2024 at: https://freotopia.org/people/sheedyannie.html

• Fremantle Heritage Walk Trail © Government Of Western Australia. as hosted on the Metropolitan Cemeteries Board website. first accessed online on the 3rd of March 2024 at: https://www.mcb.wa.gov.au/our-cemeteries/fremantle-cemetery/fremantle-heritage-walk-trails/fremantle-heritage-walk-trails-points-of-interest/