Thomas Kenny
Saint Joseph's Catholic Cemetery Forth
Died 29th Apr 1941
Age 81 years
DEATH
KENNY – On April 29th at his residence, Forth, Thomas, beloved husband of Mary Kenny, in his 81st year. Roman Catholic Cemetery, Forth
The Advocate April 30th 1941
OBITUARY
Mr. Thomas Kenny Forth
The funeral of the late Mr. Thomas Kenny took place at Forth on Thursday. The chief mourners the sons Messrs. E. D., J. H., B. T., R. G. and Ray Kenny; daughters Mesdames G. H. Smith and Ern Howard and other relatives. Messrs. Phil Kelly, M.H.A., D. Healy, W. Chellis and J. W. Gardiner were the pallbearers, and Messrs. Jack Howard, James Chilcott, Bernard Neville and Thomas Brooks the carriers. Wreaths from the following organizations were received:- Railway Employers, Devonport; Railway goods shed, Launce ton; Floor Coverings Pty. Ltd., Flinders Lane Melbourne; Post Office staff, Ulverstone; locomotive enginemen, Devonport; flax employees, Ulverstone, and Forth State School pupils. The late Mr. Kenny was born at Port Sorell on June 3rd 1860. Shortly after, his parents moved to Forth, where he spent his childhood, one of his boyhood friends being the late Senator J. J. Long. At the age of seven his father died. At an early age Mr. Kenny set out for Waratah, then in its infancy, and there he worked for some years. He was a prominent athlete. He won the Miner’s Purse, which in those days was the leading Tasmanian footrace, and derived his income from athletics for three years. He married the daughter of the late Mr. Samuel Horton, and settled at Forth, where he resided until his death. He leaves his widow, five sons, Messrs. E. D. and A. C. Kenny (Melbourne), J. H., B. T. and R. G. Kenny (Forth), and two daughters, Mesdames T. H. Smith and Ern Howard. Mr. Kenny was always a keen sporting enthusiast, and till a couple of days before would talk sport with anyone, his shop being a meeting place for the purpose. He was a favourite with the children of the district, with whom he spent a good deal of time.
The Advocate 30th April 1941.
Thomas Kenny
Bluff Pioneer Cemetery Devonport
Died 8 Dec 1891
Age 25 years
Church of England Burial Records
FATAL ACCIDENT AT THE DON
A sad fatality occurred at the railway bridge in course of erection for the Don-Barrington line on Tuesday afternoon. It seems that a gang of men were employed in the erection of the bridge and two, named Thos. Kenny and W. Hutchins were engaged in shifting a staging when the former missed his footing and fell. Hutchins noticed him clinging on to a piece of staging for a few seconds and then drop into the water. As Kenny was seen to strike out and had previously stated he could swim, and the water was only about 4ft. deep, not much notice was taken for a few seconds of the affair; but as he was seen to be in distress, and was carried down the stream, a man named Alfred Laycock (j) impel in to his rescue, and brought him to the shore. Life was not then extinct, but several ineffectual remedies were applied for the apparently drowned, and Mr. G. Davis, chemist, of East Devonport, was telegraphed for. On his arrival, however, life was extinct. Constable Burke, of the Don, was apprised of the fatality, and had the body removed to the Don Hotel. The deceased, who was a fine, stalwart young man, was a resident of West Devonport, and was well-known throughout the district and leaves a wife and three children to mourn their loss.
A coronial enquiry was held at the late residence of the deceased, in George Street West Devonport, yesterday afternoon before Mr. Coroner Aikenhead. The following jury were empanelled: Messrs. W.J. Westrop (foreman) C. Hawkins, J. Laycock, R. Masterman, J.E. Harrison, L. Molloy and W.W. Bentley. – Sub-inspector Cole conducted the proceedings – William Hutchens, laborer, of the Don, deposed that he was employed by Messrs. Barker and Brown at the railway bridge at the Don Heads. About 3 o’clock on the previous day witness and deceased were engaged in carrying some timber. His attention was drawn away for a minute and, hearing a scuffle, he looked around and saw deceased holding on to the crosshead with hands. Witness thought deceased must have slipped over, ran to his assistance, but before witness could get hold of him he dropped into the water. The water was about 6ft. deep, but he had only to go a few feet before it was shallow. The deceased swam towards the shore, but the tide carried him up the river. Not much importance was attached to his falling over, as he always stated he was a good swimmer. When about 20ft. away, deceased suddenly called out “help” and witness then threw over a handle, but it did not reach him. Witness then ran down and launched a pontoon, but as it was jammed against the edge he could not get it closer. As soon as he heard the deceased call out, witness called out to Alfred Laycock, who immediately stripped and sprang in to the water, and witness and Barker managed to get the pontoon clear, and followed Laycock up the river, he then having the deceased in a shallow place, and was holding his head up. Deceased did not sink, but his face and part of his head were in the water. That was when Laycock reached him. They placed him on the pontoon, and he seemed to breathe. They endeavoured to restore animation according to the rules of the Royal Humane Society, but their efforts had no effect. They sent for Mr. W. L. Wells and he arrived promptly and treated him according to the rules. Telegrams were sent to Dr. Payne and Mr. Davis, but life was extinct. Had previous experience in bridge work and thought that all reasonable precautions had been taken to ensure the safety of the employees. To the foreman: Deceased kept on swimming after he called for assistance. To the coroner: It was about 8ft. from where the deceased fell to the water. There was a slight scar on deceased’s chin, but witness did not think he sustained it in the fall. Alfred Laycock deposed that when he reached the deceased he appeared to be standing, his face hanging downwards, and he was quite still. When witness lifted him up he gave a gasp. George Barker, the contractor for the bridge, corroborated the first witness. Dr. John W. Payne deposed that he had examined the body and was of the opinion that death was caused by drowning. The jury returned a verdict in accordance with the medical testimony.
The North West Post 10th December 1891.
Thomas Kenny(Snr)
Bluff Pioneer Cemetery Devonport
Died 31st May 1906
DEATH OF MR. T. KENNY
Another old resident of the district passed away early yesterday in the person of Mr. Thomas Kenny. He had obtained the patriarchal age of 85 years and had lived in the vicinity of the town for fully half a century, having been in the employ of the late Mr. S. Kelcey at the Spreyton saw mills for about 30 years. Latterly he had been incapacitated from work and lived with his son Steve at West Devonport. His other surviving son, William is an employee of Mr. John Luck. Another son, Thomas, was accidentally drowned at the Don Heads about 15 years ago.
The Advocate 1st June 1906