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The Dore sisters sage - Part 2


I continue this week with more “Dores” and stories to tantalize your curiosity of all things past, and try to answer “how did we get here?”

Last week we met Margaret Dore, who was William Dunbar’s second wife and mother to five of his children, living in Pentland Hills until her passing in 1878.

Margaret immigrated from Limerick, Ireland with her sister Mary Dore who worked as a housekeeper at Ingleston Station. Mary married Peter McCluskey, who also worked on the Station in 1859, around the same time as her sister and William Dunbar married. Peter purchased acreage known as “Rosehill” and owned this land for many years.

Things were looking good for the Dore sisters in the new colony, however, things started to become unhinged when Mary’s husband Peter was sentenced to the Yarra Bend Lunatic Asylum in late 1871. After 6 months inside, he reportedly escaped, dressed in standard Asylum attire and headed back to Pentland Hills!

He was soon apprehended and, a few months later, applied to have the charge of lunacy revoked – a charge that arose in the first place as a result of his alcohol indulgence. Mary requested that she should be relieved from the responsibilities of acting as his authority – a condition of his release. The Judge for the case requested affidavits from the medical doctor who had certified Peter’s insanity, requiring it to state that he was now sane. 

Peter rejoined the community, making his social contributions to the district as Justice of the Peace as well as other duties expected of any well-deserving Esquire. However, Mary had to withstand another McClusky mistake-y!

Follow us next week for the strange and intriguing continuation of this tale.

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