Complex sentence: They mortgaged their property to rebuild the home and the business, but this put Peter McCourt deeply in debt, and at that time the family was forced to live on what amounted to little more than a clerk's salary.
Split into simpler sentences: They mortgaged their property to rebuild the home and the business, but this put Peter McCourt deeply in debt. The family was forced to live on what amounted to little more than a clerk's salary.