Catherine Oaten

     Catherine Oaten was also known as Kate.¹ NOTE: The information on this page is my research to date and is subject to change as I become better informed. I very much welcome any corrections or additional info you might have - my email address is at the bottom of this page. Whilst historical facts are not copyright, my writing about these facts are. If you wish to use any text from this site on Ancestry or on any other website, please ask me first - Tim Hill.


Her common name was Katie. Catherine was born on Thursday, 8 August 1889 at the Melbourne suburb of Collingwood.^2,3 She was the daughter of Charles Henry Oaten and Catherine Carroll.

In the early 1890's, the family moved a number of times, never staying more than a year or two; to 58 Easey Street Collingwood, then Henderson Street Northcote, then back to Easey Street but this time at number 134 (a small single storey, single-fronted terrace house). By 1896 they finally came to 44 Hilton Street in Clifton Hill - also a single storey, single-fronted terrace house - where their next two children were born.^4,5,6,7,8,9 She presumably lived with her parents at at 105 Spensley Street in the Melbourne suburb of Clifton Hill in December 1897. This house was a wooden house, marked as 103 in the rate book for this year but likley No. 105 (as was same house renumbered in the subsequent year).^10,11

The Oaten family moved house again, firstly to 84 Sackville Street, then to 35 Emma Street Collingwood.^12,13,14

On 23 July 1901 Charles apparently left the family home leaving Catherine and their seven children aged 2 months to 14 years.¹⁵

Her mother died 6 October 1901 at the age of 35. Catherine was aged 12 when this happened.

On Wednesday, 9 October 1901 three days after the death of her mother, Lydia went to live with the nuns in an Abbotsford convent (most likely Sisters of the Good Shepard) in about 1901. Maggie and Kate went to live with the St. Vincent de Paul's Orphanage in Emerald Hill. Their brothers went to a Catholic boys home in South Melbourne (probably St. Vincent de Paul's Boy Orphanage), whilst the youngest daughter Alice initially went to live with neighbours until she was four.^16,17,18,19

On Monday, 23 April 1906 Kate was discharged from the orphanage and apprenticed to a convent in Queenscliffe, Victoria, but these arrangements lasted little more than a year.¹⁹

She was readmitted to the orphanage in mid 1907.¹⁹ On Sunday, 11 August 1907 Catherine was collected by her father.¹⁹

She may have attended the wedding of her brother in the marriage of Albert Edward Oaten and Violet Barbara Cheyne in a Congregational Church ceremony at at the manse 101 Gore Street on Wednesday, 24 November 1909 at the Melbourne suburb of Fitzroy. Violet needed the consent of her father to marry; both Violet and Albert had lost their mothers in their early teens. Violet and Albert went on to have four children together, three of whom lived to their adulthood.^20,21

She married James Edward Growney, son of Own Joseph Growney and Margaret Oakley, in 1911 at Collingwood..²² Catherine's occupation was given as 'home duties' in 1914.²³ Catherine and James lived in 1914 at at 125 Rupert Street in the Melbourne suburb of Collingwood.²³

Her husband James died 28 April 1920, leaving her a widow at age 30.

A year after Albert's death (and just a few short days after her own husband's death), his sister Catherine published a memorial in the paper:

Catherine's occupation was given as 'home duties' in 1924.²⁴ Catherine lived in 1924 at at 105 Rupert Street in the Melbourne suburb of Collingwood.²⁴

Catherine died on 13 September 1930 at the Melbourne suburb of Fitzroy at age 41.^25,19,26 Her body was interred at Coburg Pine Ridge Cemetery on 15 September 1930 at the Melbourne suburb of Coburg. She is buried in the Roman Catholic section, plot CO-RC*D***424, and is buried with her husband and her father Charles..²⁷