Born: 1920
Mother: Bridget "Tess" Hayes Father: Robert (Wong) Gye
Married: Dudley Owen, 1940
Lived: 42 Cumberland Place and now in Parkville

Marie was born at 42 Cumberland Place in 1920. She is the daughter of Tess Hayes and Robert Gye. This makes her the half sister of Robert Gye (jnr), John Gye and David Gye. Like David's mother, Lillian, Tess wasn't married to Robert when Marie was conceived and Marie believes that she resulted from a brief consoling liaison between Tess and Robert following the death of Robert's wife, Katie in 1919.

Marie was placed into foster care - it would have been a very difficult time for a single unmarried Catholic woman to raise a child alone - with the Foletta family in Coburg until she was five. Tess visited her every Sunday and when she was two or three Marie also began to spend time in the city with her mother. She moved back to Cumberland place when she was five to attend school. Marie's only memories of her father are of the times when she went with her mother to Robert's cafe at 229 Exhibition Street to collect her one pound per week maintainance. She has stronger and fonder memories of her half brothers Robert and John who lived nearby at their grandmother's house in Cumberland Place after their mother Kate had died.

Marie's early life has been documented extensively. The Museum of Victoria, following an archeological dig of the Little Lonsdale Street area before its demolition and excavation, has developed an archive of material which focuses on life in the area and drew on Marie's recollections to mount an exhibition called Life in Little Lon'.