Countess Eileen Marie Freehill (1858–1942)
The death occurred yesterday, at the age of 84 years, of Countess Eileen Marie Freehill, who was made a Papal Countess by Pope Pius XI, following her active participation in the Sydney Eucharistic Congress in 1928.
Countess Freehill, who died at Lewisham private hospital was the widow of the late Francis Bede Freehill, founder of the Sydney legal firm, Freehill, Hollingdale, and Co. She was a generous benefactor of Catholic institutions and charities, and took a special interest in the Westmead Boys Home.
Among buildings which she endowed were the tower of St John's College, Sydney University, of which her husband had been a Fellow, and the Seretti Memorial Chapel at the Catholic Seminary, Manly.
The funeral will leave for Waverley Cemetery to-day, after a requiem mass at St Mary's Cathedral at 9 a.m.
Original publication
Additional Resources
- marriage notice, Freeman's Journal (Sydney), 14 May 1887, p 10
- sets off on an overseas tour with her husband, Catholic Press (NSW), 7 March 1907, p 19
- is to spend two years touring the world, Catholic Press (NSW), 26 February 1925, p 12
- the Pope bestows on her the title of Countess, Sydney Morning Herald, 16 February 1929, p 16
- donated 10,000 pds for a Catholic seminary in Manly, Catholic Press (NSW), 12 April 1934, p 14
Related Entries in NCB Sites
- Freehill, Francis Bede (husband)
- Freehill, Margaret (mother-in-law)
- Freehill, Patrick (father-in-law)
- Mann, Millie Eustace (sister)
- Hollingdale, Mary Josephine (sister-in-law)
- Freehill, Margaret Elizabeth (sister-in-law)
- Freehill, John P. (brother-in-law)
- Mann, Thomas (brother-in-law)
- Freehill, Bernard Austin (brother-in-law)
- Freehill, Thomas Joseph (brother-in-law)
- Freehill, Joseph (brother-in-law)
- Hollingdale, Edward John (brother-in-law)
- Freehill, Patrick Clement (brother-in-law)
- Gaffney, Anne (aunt by marriage)
- Cosgrove, Thomas (uncle by marriage)
- Cosgrove, Terence (uncle by marriage)
- Cosgrove, Patrick (uncle by marriage)
- Mann, Eileen De Courcy (niece)
- Hollingdale, Lena K. (niece by marriage)
- Hollingdale, Eustace Thomas (nephew by marriage)
Citation details
'Freehill, Countess Eileen Marie (1858–1942)', Obituaries Australia, National Centre of Biography, Australian National University, https://oa.anu.edu.au/obituary/freehill-countess-eileen-marie-16941/text28825, accessed 21 September 2024.
Life Summary [details]
Alternative Names
- Molony, Eileen Marie
Birth
1858
Ballarat,
Victoria,
Australia
Death
12 June,
1942
(aged ~ 84)
Sydney,
New South Wales,
Australia
Religious Influence
Includes the religion in which subjects were raised, have chosen themselves, attendance at religious schools and/or religious funeral rites; Atheism and Agnosticism have been included.