Dear Nigel,

Thanks for replying quickly and with the basic info I needed to kick-start my enquiries again. I thought I would contact you to give you some extra data that you may be able to use (or at least have available) on 14th May, tomorrow!

My great grandfather, William Quine was the youngest of six: Anne (Apr 1828) John (Apr 1832) Thomas (Nov 1834) Elizabeth (Jan 1837) Robert (May 1839) and my William (Dec 1842) all b Onchan.

His father Thomas was married to Esther Corrin, (Jan 1827 in Malew,Castletown) She survived him but as I think you say, John (Apr 1832) was the heir. Thomas died intestate on 20th Sept 1844, the Admin was dated 30th Oct 1844 but took until 16th March 1849 to settle - I have those documents. I obtained the following info last summer from the Woods Map/Plan:-

Treen : Intack
Name of Quarterland or no. of Intack : 81/109
No. on Plan : 156t
Proprietor : Thomas Quine
Est. in Statute measure : 23a 1r 25p

The farm was known as (Little) Conrhenny, but there was another farm known as Conrhenny next door with Tithe no 157.

Thomas' wife, Esther, did not inherit, but kept the farm as at 1851, with all the family, but they had gone by 1861. John, born 1832, was the eldest son and would I believe have inherited, but only when of full age(?). However, he married on 2nd May 1854 and promptly emigrated to Melbourne on 9th June. William was born in 1842. All records are Onchan, not Lonan.

We understood from Rotha (nee Quine, and only recently deceased) that the farm was sold because the older brother had emigrated, did not want the farm, and ordered it to be sold. We also now know that the farm was purchased by Douglas Corp.(?) because of the Clypse and Kerrowdhoo in the 1870s.

I have since traced John Quine, the heir and it is very interesting and surprising in many ways:

He married Catherine Cain 2nd May 1854 and emigrated within a month. They travelled from Liverpool on the 'John and Lucy' arriving in Melbourne. They ended up in Maryborough Victoria where Catherine died 16th Feb 1863. They had four children, Esther (Feb 1856 b Raglan) Walter (1857) John (May 1859) and Herbert Livingston (1861) b Maryborough. John died after 14 days and there was an inquest and they were found negligent!
When Catherine died she was buried there then the family returned to the IOM on the SS Great Britain. Somehow, John immediately remarried, a Mary Ann Kelly on 29 Oct 1863 and died 17 months later on 8 Apr 1865. Mary brought up the 3 step-children. Their stone is in Onchan cemetary (W28), naming Catherine, John and Mary - but none of the children. Thomas and Esther's stone is just in front of it (V27).
Anyway, Walter married Pauline Brandt in Chorlton Lancs but had no children. Herbert goes missing after 1881. However Esther is the interesting one!
Esther married John Thomas Cowell abt 1877. He went on to become the IOM Receiver General, MHK and an IOMSP Co Director, etc, etc. He died 3 Dec 1919 and his obituary is in Manx Tales. I have yet to locate his grave. Esther launched the Ben-my-chree III in 1908. Included in the launch party were a Mr and Mrs Barkla.
John & Esther's 3 children were John Herbert (1879, died 1904), Mary Esther (Minnie) (1882) and Catherine (1886) (she married Arthur Hosegood and I know nothing more..)
Mary Esther Cowell married Charles Glover Barkla in 1907 (details not found yet). He was born in Widnes (but the family came from St Agnes Cornwall - there is a website www.barkla.com, featuring other descendants living in Canada, Australia and New Zealand) and he went on to win the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1917 and eventually died in Edinburgh in 1944.

I find the above 'new' info fascinating and cannot believe that my family apparently knew nothing of it. I suspect that it all stems from John Quine inheriting Conrhenny farm and then selling it to emigrate and thus 'evicting' his own, widowed mother and William. (I do not yet know what happened to William's brother Thomas and the sisters. I do know from my research that other Quines settled in Victoria at the same time (I have some detail, but do not know where they fit in). I assume that as John returned to the IOM immediately after Catherine's death, then there were no other immediate family members to hand.

Sorry to hit you with this data at the eleventh hour, but if it interests you or any of the other attendees I would be delighted and of course any additional info would be gratefully received!