Major Contributor: Sherry Morris

Reprinted with permission from original website, at:

http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~nuttall/family/daggwilliamsarah.htm

Sarah Mary McGill was born in about 1850 or 1851, probably in the Goulburn area. Sarah is thought to have been the youngest child born to her parents, Simon McGill and Sarah Lynch. Simon and Sarah had immigrated to New South Wales in 1837, just a year after their marriage in Bonhill, Scotland.

Sarah had five older siblings (that we know of). They were Mary Anne, Annie, James, William and Peter. The family had lived in Sydney until between about 1845-48 when they moved to the Goulburn area. This is where Peter, and probably Sarah, were born.

Sarah's father, Simon died in 1850, when Sarah was still very young, and possibly before she was even born. This left Sarah's mother, also Sarah with a family of young children to provide for. Circumstances changed for the family when in 1854, Sarah remarried to John Sullivan. At that time the McGill family was living at Tiranna, near Goulburn. Later that year Sarah's baby brother, John Sullivan was born. It seems that after Sarah and John' s marriage the McGill children moved, with their mother to Tarlo, where John worked as a shepherd.

We know little more of Sarah's early life. But on the 19th of June, 1870, Sarah married William Dagg at St. Peter & Paul's Catholic Church, Goulburn. At the time of their marriage Sarah was aged eighteen, and William twenty-one. Sarah was working as a domestic in Goulburn, and William had been working in the Goulburn district as a labourer. The witnesses of the marriage were Austin Molloy and Annie Magner (Sarah's older sister).

William Dagg was born on the 28th of July, 1848 at Paterson, New South Wales. He was baptised nearly a year later, on the 12th of April, 1849, possibly at Colston. William was the third child, and first son of William Dagg and Honora "Nora" Wilkinson. William and Nora were both residents of Paterson, in the Hunter Valley of New South Wales when they married at West Maitland in 1844. William and Nora's other children (siblings of William jnr) were Mary, Adelaide, Maria, Frederick, Eliza and James.

As mentioned before, William had gone to work as a labourer in the Goulburn district where he met and married Sarah McGill. Their first child, Mary was born in the Goulburn area in 1872. The following year, when baby Annie Elizabeth arrived, William had returned with his family to the Paterson area. William, like his father, and brothers Frederick and James, was a farmer, and had property at Trevallyn and Mitchell's Flat in the Hunter Valley.

Sarah and William went on to have eight more children, Sarah Cecily, Frederick Joseph, Veronica Augustus, Ethel, William, Charles, James Campsie and Joseph Patrick, born between 1876 and 1890.

In 1894 William suffered a severe case of sunstroke and was admitted to the Maitland Hospital where he died on the 9th of January, 1894. He was 45 years of age. William was buried at the Gresford Cemetery by a Catholic Minister.

Sarah, found herself widowed with eight children (aged between three and twenty years), and was pregnant with another child. Myrtle Dagg was born later that year.

Sarah lived at East Gresford where she raised the children on her own. Her youngest son, Joseph Patrick, went off to the First World War in 1916, and was killed the following year on the 28th of June, 1917 on the battlefields of Belgium. His Army File is available for viewing online at the National Archives of Australia's website.

Sarah, as Joseph's next of kin, was informed of her son's death on the 10th of July, 1917. On the 19th of March, 1918 Sarah received a parcel containing Joe's personal effects. This included a wallet, photos, letter and prayer book. On the advice of her friends Sarah applied for a war pension and was granted £2 per fortnight from the 10th of September, 1917. In 1920 Sarah was informed that Joseph had been reburied in the Messines Ridge British Cemetery. The army was placing Joeseph's name, regimental details and date of death on the headstone, and Sarah was request to send words for an inscription (of no more than 66 letters, including spaces). Sarah's wording for the headstone inscription was:

In Loving Memory of my darling son Private Joseph Dagg.
May his soul rest in peace.
His proud Mother.

As this was too long, Sarah submitted an amended version :

In Memory of the dearly loved son of Mrs Dagg of E Gresford. age 27
May he rest in peace.

Before the following was finally settled upon :

In Loving Memory of the loved son of Mrs Dagg of E Gresford aged 27
RIP

Sarah received a photograph of Joseph's grave (she requested and was sent four more copies), three medals, the 1914-15 Star, the British War Medal & the Victory Medal, along with a copy of Joseph's War Record.

In 1922 she received a Memorial Scroll, and on the 2nd of March, 1922 Sarah wrote in thanks for this, signing the letter off...

also thanking you der[sic] sir for all kindness shewn to all Broken Hearted Mothers
I am yours faithfully
Sarah Dagg

Sarah herself died a little over a month after she had penned these words, on the 7th of April, 1922.

A plaque, issued by the government to commemorate all those who had made the supreme sacrifice was sent to Sarah in August, 1922. But the plaque was returned to the War Office, Sarah having died four months previous to this.

William & Sarah's children:

Mary Dagg was born in 1872 when her birth was registered in Goulburn. She died in 1884 and her death was registered at Paterson.

Annie Elizabeth Dagg was born in 1873 and her birth was registered at Paterson. Annie married John Patrick Hoffman at St Patrick's Church, Singleton in 1895. The marriage was witnessed by Annie's sister, Cecily, and her uncle, James Dagg. John Hoffman was a younger brother of Mary Ann "Annie" Hoffman who was married to Frederick Dagg - Annie Elizabeth's uncle. Annie and John had seven children.
Sarah Cecily/Cecilia "Cecily" Dagg was born in 1876, and her birth was registered in Paterson. In 1895 Cecily was a witness to her sister Annie's marriage to John Hoffman. The following year Cecily herself married, to Hugh Gallagher in Singleton. Cecily and Hugh had at least four children.
Frederick Joseph Dagg was born on the 17th of April, 1878 at Gresford. On the 7th of March, 1905, Frederick married, Emma Sidney at St Michael's Catholic Church, Quipolly, NSW. At the time of their marriage both Frederick and Emma were living and working in Quipolly, Frederick as a labourer, and Emma as a housemaid. Frederick and Emma had nine children.

Veronica Augustus Dagg (a boy) was born in 1880 and his birth was registered in Paterson. Nothing further is known of Veronica's life at present.
Ethel A. Dagg was born in 1883 and died the following year in 1884. Both Ethel's birth and death were registered in Paterson.
William S. A. "Billy" Dagg was born in 1886 and his birth was registered at Paterson. Billy married Annie P. J. Gippel in 1915 in Paterson. Billy and Annie had a farm at Elms Hall, Trevallyn, and together they had five children.

· Charles S. G. Dagg was born in 1887, and his birth was registered in Paterson. Charles never married and died in 1924 in the Sydney suburb of Drummoyne.

James Campsie "Campsie" Dagg was born in 1889 and his birth was registered in Paterson. In 1910 Campsie married Delia Conway who had met Campsie while holidaying in the Hunter Valley from Victoria. Campsie and Delia had four children.

Joseph Patrick Dagg was born in 1890 at Trevallyn, near Gresford, NSW. Joseph was aged 24 and 2 months when he enlisted in the Army on the 26th of November, 1915 at West Maitland. Joseph did not have a happy time in the army, and spent a good deal of time in army hospitals with a variety of illnesses (including VD, appendicitis and sore feet). Joseph was killed in action in Belgium on the 28th of June, 1917. His final resting place was the Messine Ridge British Cemetery in France. An excellent, more detailed overview of Joseph's time in the Army has been compiled by Sherry Morris.
Myrtle W. P. Dagg was born after the death of her father in 1894. Her birth was registered at Paterson. Nothing further of Myrtle's life is known at this time.