As mentioned earlier, Uncle Charlie was finally discharged 19th February 1920 “no longer physically fit for war service on accounts of wounds received in action”. In recognition of his service and injuries, he was paid a War Pension by the N.Z. Government.
At first Uncle Charlie took up residence at 23 Sarfield St, Ponsonby in Auckland and later at 235 Symonds St, Auckland. Ponsonby was where his good friend, Alfred Sherrer Bullen* lived.
In 1920 he and Alfred applied for a patent which was subsequently granted in November for their Feeding Mechanism for printing machines. We would all know this mechanism today – it is the way that photocopiers and printers suck the paper from the paper tray and feed it through the machine for printing.
Uncle Charlie apparently took out Patents in many countries for his invention. Returning to Australia aboard Manuka, he arrived in Sydney on 25 May 1923 and began trying to get funding to commercialise his invention but to no avail. His USA Patent expired in 1940 and the others probably did too. He could not afford to renew them and so as soon as they lapsed Miele in the USA, Gestetner and possibly other companies started using his idea.
He wrote to many people about how he was wronged by these companies but mostly to the Commonwealth Legal Service Bureau in Sydney that helped soldiers with legal matters, pensions etc. Whilst he did receive their sympathy, they could not help him with any legal action especially in other countries, and he could not afford to employ Patent Attorneys to pursue his case.
The story of how his invention came to be is best left to Uncle Charlie himself. It’s a story which he told in his numerous lengthy letters to the Commonwealth Legal Services Bureau in Sydney in the 1960’s but also in a letter to the President of the United States which I have transcribed below:
BOX 1905 GPO
SYDNEY N.S.W.
AUSTRALIA
MAY 31, 1958
THE SECRETARY TO
THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
WASHINGTON U.S.A.
Dear Sir,
I am the original inventor and Patentee of the Suction Feed Principle which has been applied to all makes of modern high-speed automatic Printing Presses. Prior to my invention of this suction principle as the feeding mechanism the sheets of paper were laboriously fed into the jobbing printing machines BY HAND, which was an extremely slow and often dangerous process, as there was the ever-present possibility of the operator’s hands being caught in the closing platen of the machine. The sheets of paper were then removed by hand, and then stacked by hand. This slow and antiquated method prevailed for well over a century, and though the need for a quicker method of feeding was apparent to everybody engaged in the industry nobody appeared to be capable of solving this most elusive problem. This problem became the nightmare of printers right throughout the world as the demands of Industry and Commerce mounted for their printed requirements, but one and all of these highly skilled and intelligent printers failed miserably to solve the “Printer’s Headache”, as it was frequently termed. It reached the stage where the problem was deemed to be insoluble.
During the 1914-18 War I served with the New Zealand Infantry and saw considerable front-line service in France and Belgium. I was gravely wounded whilst in action towards the end of the fighting and was returned to New Zealand a shattered wreck of humanity, with no apparent prospect that I would ever again be able to work and earn a living at my trade of linotype operator. My right arm was completely paralysed, and my left arm was amputated through the shoulder socket, and there were extensive bodily injuries to my chest, back and stomach. The only part of my body which escaped unscathed was my right leg. Ever since I have been forced to exist on a meagre Army pension and am frequently called on to pay my own medical expenses because I insist on my right to remain in Australia, where I was born. More fortunate folk have shared handsomely in the generally increased prosperity brought about by higher wages and modern living conditions. Seeing my helpless predicament on my return to New Zealand, and knowing that I was gifted mechanically, an old friend of mine, Alfred Sherrar Bullen, suggested to me that as a means of keeping my mind usefully occupied I should give intensive thought to the age-old problem of printers mentioned above and endeavour to find a quicker method of feeding the sheets of paper into the jobbing printing machines.
I accepted his advice, and after much deep thought and cogitation I finally decided that the Principle of Suction appeared to offer the best chance of success, mainly because of the possibly damaging effects if the paper were handled by mechanical methods. My friend, Mr Bullen, who is a practical printer, concurred with my suggestion, and therefore I set about having a model printing machine constructed, to which we fitted a suction Apparatus for feeding purposes. It was crude, but it succeeded beyond our.expectations, and therefore I engaged Messrs Baldwin & Rayward, Patent Attorneys, of Auckland, New Zealand, to draw the plans and prepare the tracings and take out Letters Patent for me. As Mr Bullen was a married man with a family he had no cash available for investing in the patents, I later purchased his minor share when I was leaving New Zealand to proceed to Sydney, Australia, to try to raise capital for development. Mr Bullen’s only interest in the patents nowadays is that the New Zealand Patent is his own personal property. He has no interest whatever in the United States Patent (1,396,622) or the Canadian Patent (223,605), or any other overseas patent.
The necessary capital for development being unavailable in New Zealand I went across to Sydney, Australia, (where I was born) in 1922. I had no success in raising the needed capital in Sydney and decided to make my way to the United States in an endeavour to interest printers and others in my Model Suction Feed Printing Machine. Before leaving I decided it would be best for me to get in touch with the New Zealand Army Medical Authorities, as I was having considerable pain internally. By their reply I was astounded to realise that owing to my departure from New Zealand they had “wiped” me for any further medical assistance for my war injuries unless I returned to New Zealand. This “pressure” to return me to New Zealand has continued right down through the years AND HAS BEEN A MAJOR FACTOR IN NULLIFYING MY POSSESSION OF MY UNITED STATES PATENT 1,396,622 for “Feeding Mechanism for Printing Machines” and all others which I possess.
My Suction Feed Principle which is embodied in the Letters Patent referred to has had the effect of revolutionising the Art an Practice of Modern Printing. In place of the antiquated Hand Fed Methods which were in common use right up to the time when my Suction Feed Principle became available for use in the Printing industry throughout the world, we now have High-Speed Automatic Jobbing Printing Presses in common use universally, and in place of the former Hand-Fed output of 500 (or less) impressions per hour these modern automatic jobbing printing machines fitted with my Suction Feed Principle attain outputs varying from 5,000 impressions per hour for high-class work, and up to 20,000 impressions per hour for other work.
It can therefore be accepted that were it not for the unfair restrictions imposed on me by the New Zealand Army Medical Authorities in denying me the Common Right to travel as I wished in pursuit of my own business concerns (and which Common Right is embodied in the Charter if the United Nations), I would to-day be numbered among the World’s Multi-Millionaires by reason of the substantial ROYALTIES which would have been payable to me by the numerous firms who manufacture Automatic Jobbing Printing Presses which embody my Suction Feed Principle. Not one of these opulent business firms has had the Common Decency to offer to make good even my Out-Of-Pocket expenses, which were considerable, and was money which I could ill-afford to lose, as it consisted of my War Gratuity and Army Deferred Pay, plus a meagre War Pension of 8 dollars per week to live on, and no other income.
Printers the world over are agreed that the Suction Fee is a peerless piece of mechanism, and that it is so perfect in operation that there is little likelihood that it will ever be bettered or superseded.
From the foregoing you will realise that I have suffered a grevious financial loss running into probably many millions of dollars by reason of my inability to proceed to the U.S.A. to develop my patents in a normal manner, such as would be open to any law-abiding citizen of any civilised country. The whole Commercial World and Industry generally have reaped enormous benefit – not to say Profit- by my invention of the Suction Feed. I would go so far as to say that were it not for my invention of the Suction Principle for Feeding Jobbing Printing Machines Industry and Commerce in this Modern Age would stagnate and clog up by reason of their inability to obtain the huge quantities of printed matter which modern business demands. And there is NO GUARANTEE that any other person would have provided the world with a similar device, as for very many years THE PRINTING TRADE ITSELF WAS BEING THROTTLED by the non-arrival of the much-wished for Speedy Feeding Device!
I claim that in the SPECIAL CIRCUMSTANCES as presented to you herewith a very considerable MORAL OBLIGATION exists to compensate the Inventor of this BRILLIANT COMMERCIAL PATENT, and I respectfully ask that you give my pleas your earnest consideration, and that you might accept that a Special Fund for my benefit be inaugurated to which interested parties could contribute, or such other methods as you may devise. It
appears to be a Travesty of Justice that a former Member of the Allied Forces should be called upon to bear such an intolerable double burden – his multiple war disabilities which totally destroyed his wage earning capacity, and then to be stripped of his Basic Human Rights, which had the effect of nullifying his outstanding inventive capacity and rendered worthless the Patents which represented his brain-child. Truly a scandalous situation!
I have no hesitation in claiming that my Suction Feed Invention has been a tremendous boon to the world’s Printing Fraternity – to Mankind generally – and to POSTERITY!!
I enclose herewith my Membership Card of the New Zealand War Amputees Association as a guarantee of good-faith herein, also a photocopy of my United States Patent (Title Page)
1,396,622.
Thanking you for your attention,
Yours respectfully,
Charles Jeayes
He did receive a reply, but he seems to have mistakenly or perhaps deliberately misinterpreted the reply which enclosed a booklet on patents and advised the appropriate procedure, which was to initiate a suit in the US Federal Court and how to obtain a list of Patent Attorneys and Agents.
In 1924 he was a member of the Printing Industry Employees Union of Australia so it appears he must have been employed in the Printing Industry in some capacity, perhaps only on a part-time basis due to his pension. In 1926 he terminated his employment with S Bennett Limited in Sydney, publishers of “Evening News”, “Sunday News” and “Womans Budget”.
Sometime after this it is believed he moved to Kilcare north of Sydney. He had a female companion, Marjorie who lived with him there who had a son, Eric. Although he was not Uncle Charlie’s son he was known as Eric Jeayes and would have been born about 1910. Marjorie is listed on the 1930 Australian Electoral Roll as resident “Killcare, Woy Woy, home duties while Uncle Charlie is listed as at the same place, Linotype Operator. They don’t appear to have kept the relationship going.
Despite his handicap as an amputee, Uncle Charlie remained very self-sufficient fashioning himself many “gadgets” to enable himself to be productive and independent including nailing a scrubbing brush to the shower wall so he could scrub his elbow on his remaining arm. He also fashioned other things for family including a seat rocker for his great niece Terri that he made from timber and painted up as “Terri’s taxi”. He also made an oval mirror with an intricate sailing ship design on it in silver and black that is held in care by his great nephew Neil. He taught another great niece, Jennifer, to draw and generally took an interest in all his extended family and helped them out financially. He would go past the James family home and if the children were outside, he would throw two-shilling pieces at them from the bus window as it went by. It seems a little eccentric, but the children didn’t mind. All his letters were typed in duplicate on his old manual typewriter, obviously one handed.
My family has a souvenir picture of the ship HMASHobart done in a similar fashion to the mirror, mentioned previously. It is on a black background with gold and red colours used for the design. The mirror and ship both appear to have been done with coloured foil. Another copy of the ship souvenir has been located at the Australian War Memorial in Canberra but with the addition of the anniversary date of the surrender in Tokyo. This gives me the impression that it might have been a kit that was put together. Perhaps the mirror was too but I haven’t been able to find anything to confirm this theory so far. Uncle Charlie did seem to be quite proud of my father who was in the Navy and, while he served mostly on a Corvette, he finished his WW2 Navy career on HMAS Hobart. Uncle Charlie also bought a colour picture of the ship for my father which I still have. Along with the bits and pieces he kept from the war, I also have Uncle Charlie’s telescope, although the glass is missing from the end.
HMAS Hobart Souvenir
Uncle Charlie never married but the idea apparently did cross his mind in 1952 when he was living at Lane Cove. He inquired of the NZ Repatriation Department of the pension rate applicable. I don’t know who would have been his intended – perhaps Marjorie mentioned earlier. He also used to live in his boatshed at Greenwich and as this was illegal, he used his brother, Wilfred’s address of 4 Warsaw St, Homebush in Sydney as his mailing address or sometimes a GPO Box. He had a safe deposit box at one of the banks in Sydney and the code was Chile – my father had access to it, but I never asked what was in it.
I don’t think Uncle Charlie ever spoke much about the war itself, but in 1954 he wrote to the Daily Telegraph about an experience he and his battalion witnessed. This was in reply to an article the newspaper had previously published and is transcribed below:
Army execution
SIR, — Your article, “He Was The First G.I. Shot Since 1864,” brings to mind a disgraceful occurrence in France and Belgium during the months of August and September, 1917.
It concerns the execution by a firing squad of a young Australian lad by order of a New Zealand Military Court.
The soldier concerned had no right of appeal. He just had to “take it” — brutal though the decision obviously was.
He was, like myself a member of 12th (Nelson) Company, 1st Canterbury Battalion, of the New Zealand Expeditionary Force, then serving in France and Belgium.
The Battalion was “holding the line” in the Ploegsteert sector when it first came to my ears that “Aussie” (as we will call him) was missing.
Later we heard that the military police had picked him up “dead drunk” in Armentieres.
We all guessed immediately what had happened. All of that area of the Front was alive with spies, and if any soldier was so misguided as to go to an estaminet alone, he became fair game for them to ply him with wine and endeavor to extract information from him.
The sector of the front which we were alternating in holding with the Australians was known as a “quiet” sector, because it had a river right across its front dividing us from Jerry.
The fact that it was “quiet” meant that this lad’s presence or otherwise in the line was unimportant.
So the absence of Aussie “on a bender” didn’t really matter, and the charge they put up against him, “Desertion in the face of the enemy,” was completely farcical.
We were all amazed later on when, just before dismissing the parade one day in late September, 1917, the Company Sergeant-Major called the names of a number of men from No. 9 Platoon (Aussie’s own platoon).
They were told to report “For Special Duty.” None of us asked where they went — we all guessed.
We realised that the same fate could quite easily have overtaken any one of us. Aussie was the unlucky one.
He did a very foolish thing in going to the estaminet alone. But it cost him his life — just because he got drunk!
— C. JEAYES . c/o G.P.O., Sydney.
At least “Aussie” wasn’t forgotten, not by Uncle Charlie and probably not by anyone there at the time. War is a terrible thing and no wonder my father’s parents tried desperately to stop him signing up for WW2.
In conversations he had with my father, Uncle Charlie gave the impression that in his younger days he had been the “Playboy” type and said that he had spent two years sailing around the world. This would make sense with his previously mentioned Mercantile Marine Service. Perhaps he had a girl in every port as they say. He also would say “George Jeayes was the only British Navy Captain to mutineer during the Crimean War”. The Crimean War was in the 1850s and as he did not really know his father it seems this is probably a product of a vivid imagination, but why let truth get in the way of a good story.
Uncle Charlie out sailing. At first I thought this was pre-war but it can be seen his arm is missing, so he obviously used to sail one handed too. Photographer unknown. My collection.
In his later years Uncle Charlie liked to be addressed as Sir Charles including by family and he believed the Queen had knighted him. This may have had something to do with his disappointment in the lack of recognition and remuneration for his invention. In the letters he wrote to the Commonwealth Legal Service Bureau, his frustration and disappointment was sadly very evident. By 1962 his signature on those letters changed to Sir Charles Jeayes and then Sir Charles Jeayes K.C.V.O. (Knight Commander of the Royal Victorian Order). In 1962 an Antecedent Report was requested by the Crown Solicitor at the Attorney General’s Department and was undertaken by the Commonwealth Police Force into Uncle Charlie. In the covering letter it is noted that Uncle Charlie was either “eccentric or senile”. The report makes interesting reading and shows that they did try to help him as much as they could.
Antecedent Report – Charles Jeayes by Commonwealth Police Force, National Archives of Australia A432/79 1962/2436
Uncle Charlie passed away in September 1965 at his residence at 13 Caroline St Earlwood and was buried at Rookwood Anglican Cemetery on 27th September 1965. The N.Z. Defence Department supplied a bronze memorial plaque that was installed in 1998 after I made application. Until then his grave was unmarked. We were away on holiday when he died at Foster in northern NSW with Dad’s sister Elva and her family and we went home early so Dad could look after the arrangements. When Dad had organised probate and everything, we went and cleared out the house. I had a dog who was, unfortunately at that particular time, called Charlie. We took him to the house and me being 10 years old, I played in the yard with the dog. Apparently, I was giving Dad the heebie-jeebies as I kept calling out to Charlie (the dog) and Mum had to come out and ask me to stop. Mum and I saw the funny side of it later.
In the 1990s I was studying at UNE and I heard about a Museum of Printing being set up there. Not knowing what to do with Uncle Charlie’s printing memorabilia and copies of his patent. I donated them to the Museum. My hope was to keep them safe and allow anyone from the family to see them. The museum staff set up a special display cabinet for him which I hope, in some way, gives him some recognition for his initiative and invention. It’s a shame he never really received any at all in his lifetime.
Rest in Peace Uncle Charlie, Lest We Forget.
*Note: Alfred Sherrar Bullen was born 20 August 1886 and died in New Zealand in 1978 (NZ BDMS 1978/34768) His parents were Edward Sherrar Bullen, Police Constable, and Charlotte.
Charles Jeayes as a young boy. Date and Photographer unknown.Held in my personal archive.
My great Uncle, Charles Jeayes (Uncle Charlie as we all called him) was a rather legendary character in my family. He was born in Balmain a suburb of Sydney Australia on 9th December 1890 and he was the second of the three sons of Charles Jeayes and Mary Ellen Walker. In 1895 their mother had placed him and his older brother, George, in state care as their father had deserted them and she was terminally ill. His older brother George was six years old while Wilfred, my grandfather, was two years old and he had been placed with a maternal uncle and his wife. George and Charles were fostered out to a couple who lived at 32 Union St in Pyrmont in about 1898. They were Susan Drennan (nee McLarin) and William Barrie (a shipwright) who in that year had just married albeit later in life. They were keen sailors and were quite wealthy and, according to my father, the boys had quite a privileged life until they were at least sixteen years old when they were discharged from state care. (See my previous post Mary Ellen) Uncle Charlie turned sixteen in 1908. Both boys had become quite proficient sailors and competed in races in Middle Harbour. Other than this scant information, we don’t know much about Uncle Charlie’s early life.
As a little girl of three or maybe four years old, Uncle Charlie was a bit of an enigma to me. I have a vivid memory of him coming to visit us and, being shy, I hid in another room but I peeked around the corner. I’d never see anyone with one arm before and I was fascinated, but apparently not enough to come out of hiding. He came to visit a couple of other times and overcoming my shyness a little, I remember him bringing us large pink rose stickers which my brother and I shared. We stuck one each on the end of the Arthur Mee encyclopedia set and I stuck one on the back of the front door. I’m not sure if there were any more.
A set of Arthur Mee Encyclopedia in a very similar bookcase to ours. Photographer unknown.
Sadly that’s about the limit of my memory of Uncle Charlie except for when he passed away and we had to clear out his house but I heard a lot about him as I grew up. I wish I had got to know him better, at least as much as my older brother and my older cousins did, but perhaps that’s what has inspired me to research him so much now.
He and his brother George both signed up for WW1. While Uncle George had joined the AIF, Uncle Charlie was living in New Zealand and so he joined the New Zealand Expeditionary Force (N.Z.E.F.) at Taihape in the North Island on 4th October 1916. He was enlisted in the 22nd Reinforcement Draft Infantry Section and at that time had been living in New Zealand for about 18 months working as a linotype mechanic for The Taihape Daily News. While living in Taihape, he boarded with Mrs Amy Knox of Huia St, Taihape. Mrs Knox’s son, William John Bertram Knox who was a printer, also enlisted and they were in “F” Company together. The Taihape Daily News of 14th September 1916 on page 5 reported the following:-
Uncle Charlie was almost 26 years old at the time and he stated he had previously served in the Australian Naval Reserve for three years, though it seems no record of this service has survived. In a letter he wrote in 1961 he stated that he had served for 2 1/2 years with the Naval reserve at Rushcutter’s Bay 1907 – 1909 which, he said, was accepted by the Repatriation Department as service with Australian Forces. In other correspondence about him regarding a Commonwealth Police investigation, it was stated that he also served in the Mercantile Marine for a period from 1909 and that at the outbreak of war he was not accepted for Australian Forces. He then went to New Zealand in December 1914 and was subsequently accepted there..
Uncle Charlie had been fostered by a sailing family and according to oral tradition he spent two years sailing around the world when he was 16 years old so it would make sense especially being in the Mercantile Marine although in 1909 he was actually 19 years old.
His military papers show that he was 5 feet 4 ½ inches tall, weighed 112 pounds with a dark complexion, dark hair and brown eyes and his religion was Anglican. He was much shorter than his older brother, George and this may have been one reason why he did not enlist earlier as there were height restrictions. These restrictions were gradually lowered as the War progressed and thousands lost their lives. Suitable recruits had become scarcer as time went on and also a new Act of Parliament was brought in. Under the terms of the Military Services Act of March 1916, all eligible men between the age of 20 and 45 years of age were required to enlist, with those not called for active service held in reserve. Charles gave his next of kin as his Aunt, Esther Oliver (nee Walker) who lived at 207 Karangahape Rd, Auckland at that time.
New Zealand service records for him are quite detailed. His service began as a Private on 16th October 1916 and he received three inoculations for typhoid during his elementary training before he began his Foreign Service on 12th February 1917. It was then that he was transferred to 21st Battalion “F” Company. His Service Number being 37823 and he was in the 1st Canterbury Infantry Regiment, though he seemed to change Battalions and Company often as he was one of the Reinforcements. He sailed on 13th February aboard the Troopship Mokoia to Plymouth in England arriving there on 3rd May 1917.
While in England he was given leave from 24th May until 27th May for the purpose of travelling to London. It is known that Uncle Charlie used his leave, in part, to search for his missing father who he thought had returned to England.
Original Leave Pass for Charles Jeayes held in my personal archive.
Unfortunately, Uncle Charlie did not know where in England his father came from and didn’t know where to look. If he had, he may have been able to visit his grandmother, Matilda, who was still alive then, living in Nuneaton as was his Uncle Henry Jeayes. The whereabouts of his father has, so far, never been found.
If Uncle Charlie took up the offered accommodation by the army and had known, he could have also visited a distant cousin, Isaac Jeayes who was a Greek Scholar and worked at the British Museum. Uncle Charlie said he did see coal trucks with the name, Jeayes on the side in London. If so, these probably had something to do with Isaac’s father, Luke, the coal merchant in Rugby. Sadly, these coal trucks were the only evidence Charles found. I have found a coal company called Jeayes Kasner which seems to be connected to Luke, so I strongly suspect this is the company name he saw.
I was most surprised to find a model of the wagon he probably saw and so I bought one.
The wagon I purchased showing the Jeayes Kasner & Co logo. Photographer unknown.
It is not known when or where but sometime during the War a photo was taken of Charles and others in his unit. Included in the photo are Ted (Edward Benjamin?) Corbett, Arthur (Arthur Ernest) Lyall, Jack Edgley (who was also in “F” Company), Jack (James?) Hopwood, Doug (William Douglas) Elworthy (another from “F” Company and later killed in action), Joe (Joel) Trebilcock (also mentioned in the previous newspaper article) and Bert (William John Bertram) Knox (his friend from Taihape). Uncle Charlie is standing on the end RHS without a hat. In the background tents are pitched and it possibly may have been when “F” Company were receiving their training, some of which Charles did at this time at Sling Camp in England. He passed his musketry, Lewis Gun training and live bombing in which he threw three bombs during May 1917. He then went on leave. His pay rate at this time was five Shillings per day.
This photo has been reconstructed from two damaged copies found in Charles’ possessions. The top half of one was damaged and the bottom half of the other was damaged. Held in my personal archive. Some of them look so very young.
The New Zealand Expeditionary Force began building Sling Barracks, Bulford, Salisbury Plain, Wiltshire in 1914, before moving to Alexandria to train for Gallipoli. Bulford became the base for the 4th New Zealand Infantry Brigade Reserve Camp and after Gallipoli New Zealanders trained there before leaving for France and Flanders for usually between six and eight weeks. There were four camps in all including Sling and Larkhill some four miles away. Codford was the Command Depot. According to his army service records, Charles seemed to go to Larkhill after spending time in Sling and went once or twice to Codford. Sicknesses including measles and flu was rife in the camps, particularly at Sling which had been condemned during the 1917 winter and many soldiers died there before even making it to France.
When they weren’t on sick parade their days were spent training in weaponry use, trench warfare, prevention of gas poisoning, marching with full pack, polishing brass, and drill. The Battalions also had sports meetings when they held tug-o-wars and track and field events with prizes for the winners. Mail arrived every few weeks while in England and France to update the soldiers on events of friends and family. Parcels were sent by those at home to the soldiers containing little luxuries like cake & necessities, like socks and soap. All members of the community at home, including schoolchildren made up these parcels as part of the war effort and many soldiers would correspond with the donors.
On 6th June 1917 Uncle Charlie left for France, arriving at camp at Etaples on the 9th and rejoining his Battalion in the field on 30th June 1917 in the Messines to River Lys Sector of the Western Front. In July he had contracted influenza and was sent to hospital, rejoining his Unit again on 12th August 1917 on the Western Front and spending five to six days on the front line.
Usually after four days on the front line each battalion was relieved by another, which had been held in reserve back from the front line or had just returned from leave. Sometimes the changeover was not possible, and the battalion had to endure up to eight days of constant trench warfare before they could get a break.
In December his Platoon, No.10 (1st Battalion) was involved in action and took part in a battle lost at Polderhoek Chateau near Ypres, France on 3rd December, 1917. Several men were killed, including his Sergeant, Sgt Charles Walter Clarry and two men from his own No. 2 Section. Charles recorded a full list of dead and wounded from his Platoon.
Original document completed by Charles Jeayes regarding 10 Platoon (1st Battalion) at Polderhoek Chateau 3rd December 1917. Held in my personal archive.
During my research I found a very interesting transcription of Joe Morton’s Letters now on Wikitree. Joe was also in the same Battalion as Uncle Charlie and his letters home survive, however, sadly, he did not and was he was killed during this battle.
There was an account of the battle in the Hawera & Normanby Star :
POLDERHOEK CHATEAU.
AN ATTACK THAT FAILED
STIFF FIGHTING AGAINST STRONG POSITIONS.
(From Malcolm Ross, War Correspondent with N.Z. Forces in the Field.)
Before the war Polderhoek Chateau was one of those pleasant Belgian country houses situated in the midst of beautiful woods and cultivated fields, But some time since the chateau and its contents went the way of all such things in the German war zone. The trees were whittled bare of branch and leaf, and the fields were no longer good; to look upon, in all this region the Germans had made what, in the language of the soldiers, are known as “strong points.” Gravel and cement and iron had been brought up, and out or these materials, some of which we suspect came from England, strong, dug-outs and “pill-boxes,” that could withstand heavy shelling, had been fashioned. In these the German machine gunners, bombers and riflemen sheltered, ready to repel any onslaught that might be projected. It fell to the lot of the New Zealanders to attempt the capture of the position. The attack was on a narrow front of about only five hundred yards, and, consequently, only a limited number of troops were employed. They were men from Canterbury and Otago – the latter on the right, the Canterburys on the left fronting the chateau. Some were seasoned troops with experience in this kind of warfare, but there was also a sprinkling of the later reinforcements, whose training and experience of strenuous battle was, naturally, more limited.
THE ATTACK AT NOON
The attack had been timed for the unusual hour of noon, and as there had been no immediate, preliminary bombardment it was thought that the enemy would be taken by surprise. And so he was. There had on preceding days, been some bombardment, but as most frequently happens in such circumstances, though it had wrought a certain amount of destruction, it had not succeeded in smashing the big shelter at the chateau and some of the stronger “pill-boxes” that commanded the ground over which we had to attack.
Our men had assembled beforehand, with only one or two casualties, and at noon the drum-fire of the barrage broke loose, with a smoke barrage from bursting shells by way of screen on the flanks. The eight was a picturesque one, the smoke shells bursting in the air and trailing down in long fleecy whitish grey columns, expanding as they reached the ground into one thick cloud. Shielded to some extent by these smoke screens from observation, and under cover of the protecting barrage from the artillery and the machine guns, our men went forward. Except for the short fire of one battery the barrage was excellent. As one officer described it afterwards, it went like a set piece. The short fire of this battery, however, undoubtedly caused some casualties in our attacking waves, but that is one of the recognised fortunes, or rather misfortunes, of modern war.
For the first hundred yards all went well. Officers and “men strode forward’ with plan across the open ground towards the chateau and the tree trunks of what had been Polderhoek wood. Meantime the enemy had sent his S.O.S. soaring heavenward, and in six minutes his stopping barrage had come down, while his machine guns were spitting venomously from the chateau and the adjacent “pill-boxes.” The German gunners on the Ghelevelt- ridge added their streams of machine bullets to those already sweeping the position, and officers and men began to fall. One officer, with an n.c.o. from a company that was suffering severely from machine gun fire directed from a “pill-box” in front, went gallantly forward, rushed the position and captured the machine gun and eight of the crew. His bravery enabled the advance at this spot to continue, and throughout all the fighting this officer continued to send valuable information back to headquarters. Twice he was bruised by fragments of bursting shells, yet he came back through heavy machine gun fire to report to his commanding officer, and afterwards superintended the work of consolidation.
THE ADVANCE HELD UP
Meantime the Otago’s had been suffering rather severely. The chateau and one particularly well-placed “pill box” were instrumental in stopping their advance. But their officers gallantly strove against the odds, setting a brave example to their men, till two of them were killed and no fewer than six wounded. Some of them got within thirty or forty yards of the chateau and were attempting to envelop it on the right and left, but the back entrance was commanded by cunningly placed “pill-boxes” farther back, from which cross machine gun fire could be brought to bear on it. There was a withering fire from these strong points, and also from some concealed machine guns protected by steel plates in positions slightly in advance. The German scheme of defence is so arranged that soon after a strong point or “pill-box” is captured by our men the enemy is ready to shell it, and also to pour machine gun fire from positions still farther back on to the entrances, which are at the “back and so face his guns. There are no front entrances, so that the enemy has protection whilst he is being attacked, but is enabled, when the position is captured, to fire into it. So long as the “pill-box” is held by his men they keep sending up flares in indication of their tenancy. When the. flares no longer go up he knows that we have either knocked it out or captured it and directs his fire I accordingly.
Three Otago officers were killed or wounded in an endeavour to take the chateau, and several of their men fell gallantly fighting by their side. One strong point that had been practically untouched by our shell fire sheltered about eighty of the enemy with four machine guns, and this proved an insuperable obstacle in the advance.
While the attack was held up, more especially on the left, the Canterbury’s, according to plan, formed a defensive flank on the right facing the Ghelevelt position. But all attempts were in vain, and by 1.40 p.m., despite the most gallant individual efforts on the part of certain officers and men, it seemed as if little further ground could be won. Reinforcements failed to make the necessary impression, and the chateau remained in German hands. The New Zealanders then settled down to consolidate the little ground they had won.
INCIDENTS IN THE FIGHTING.
In such fighting there are no doubt gallant deeds done that never see the light of day. There are unknown heroes who lie in nameless graves. Others, more fortunate, come through and get their reward. Whilst the attack was at his height, a private, followed by some of his machine gun section, rushed forward towards an enemy strong point that had held up the advance of two companies. He shot the German officer in charge, and then threw two Mills bombs, which inflicted casualties among the garrison. Following up this daring success, he entered the stronghold, and with German grenades that he picked up, and with the bayonet, he accounted for the rest of the enemy except four men, whom he took Prisoner. There were in all fifteen men and the officer in the position. His action prevented many casualties and enabled the advance in this quarter to proceed. With his section he occupied the strong point for a few minutes, and then advanced with the rest of the attacking line. When the advance had reached its limit, there was a shortage of bombs and ammunition, and this man went back and collected and brought up supplies, though the whole area at the time was being swept by heavy machine gun and rifle fire.
Amongst the stretcher-bearers there were men who did their usual brave work risking all to save the lives of the wounded. One such, under heavy and sustained shell fire, went out and dressed the wounds of six men of a ration party who were lying in an exposed position. Later, under terrific fire, he went out and bandaged the wounds of another man.
The wires, as usual, were broken in places by shell fire. At one spot a forward artillery exchange dug-out was blown out with a direct shell hit, and an artillery officer, going to investigate, found a sapper still on duty answering calls, although suffering from wounds on the head and face, and badly shaken as well. Both his companions were knocked out by the explosion, but this man remained at his post-and succeeded in maintaining telephonic communication with the guns.
GERMAN LOSSES.
All this time the Germans were of course, not escaping scathless. They too, had their tale of killed and wounded and later in the day the New Zealanders had their revenge. At half-past two in the afternoon the enemy were seen massing for a counterattack. The news was conveyed to our light trench mortar batteries, which got busy with rapid fire. Severe casualties were inflicted, and the intending attackers soon began to disperse. Then the Lewis gunners and the riflemen got their opportunity, and, firing right into the field-grey brought man after man down. The trench-mortar fellows are a fine lot, and keen on their job. During the attack one of their emplacements was seen to be on fire. One of the mortar men, rushing to the spot, found no personnel there, but, unaided, he tore down all the inflammable material and extinguished the fire. There were between 300 and 400 rounds of three-inch mortar smoke and high explosive shells in the emplacement at the time. By his plucky action he prevented a serious explosion, which must have resulted in loss of life to the troops in the vicinity. While one mortar was being fired one of the rounds missed. It was removed from the barrel and placed on the ground, A Private noticed that it was still fizzing, and, with great promptitude and presence of mind, he picked it up and threw it over the parapet. As soon as it hit the ground it exploded. This action saved the gun’s crew, and the mortar and ammunition as well.
When it was seen that no further advance was practicable without still greater losses, it was decided to consolidate the gains made and a gap between the battalions was filled up in the night. A communication trench was dug and sixty men of the Maori Battalion, under command of a former member of the New Zealand Parliament, did excellent work in digging a communication trench.
The Lewis gunners had the time of their lives. The sergeant of one gun team from an isolated trench drove off a party of fifty attacking Germans when the latter tried to raid his trench His platoon decimated, the invaders. At another spot a non-commissioned officer in command of a post with two men and a Lewis gun fired the gun until it jammed. This small party then threw all the available bombs at the enemy and retired to a neighboring trench. The enemy entered the trench. Thereupon the New Zealanders borrowed another Lewis gun and rushed the trench. They killed the Gorman sentry who had been left there while his comrades went back for reinforcements and, using their gun vigorously, bluffed the enemv into thinking that the trench was still held in force.
A member of a battalion signal section followed the advancing troops through a deadly fusilade from enemy machine guns and laid a telephone wire right forward. He took complete control of the battalion signal communications; the leader of the section having been sniped. He organised a new forward party, collected wire and instruments, and led his party over the top of the old front line and forward to the centre of the attacking company. In this way he established communication across an area in which it was almost impossible for runners to live. At night he laid an alternative cable along the communication trench, and for the next two days he maintained these two lines as well as a visual station.
Next morning the enemy were again seen assembling, apparently for counterattack. They were dispersed by artillery fire quickly brought to bear on them. As they dispersed our snipers got to work with deadly effect. In the later phases of the fighting our men had a fine object lesson, in the value of rifle fire. Towards the end of the operations, when the enemy came at them again, our riflemen and Lewis gunners simply mopped them up. The Germans were caught in the open, and all and sundry in the New Zealand ranks were sniping with rifles and Lewis guns for all they were worth They became quite elated with their success. One German sniper was tumbled from a tree like a dead rook at a range of fully a thousand yards—a pretty shot. So interested and excited were the New Zealanders at this unwanted opportunity that had presented itself that they omitted to send up the S.O.S. signal that an attack was pending. Asked afterwards why he had not sent up the S.0.S., a corporal replied: “I forgot all about it; we were so busy killing Huns!” During this time one company shot eleven and another fourteen of the enemy. During the few days they were in the line, one industrious rifleman had a tale of 25, duly counted, to his credit. Out of 80 Germans that were coming on for an attack at dawn at this time, between 30 and 40 were put out of action. It was a day out for the riflemen and the Lewis gunners. At other times they dealt with parties coming up the Menin Road. and with working parties near Ghelevolt. Once some snipers watched two Germans coming up across the Sherebeek Valley. For half an hour the New. Zealanders lay doggo and marked their oncoming. Like the good deer stalker, they wanted to make sure of their game. Not till the Germans were within two hundred yards did they fire. Then, with two unerring shots, they dropped them both.
According to my father and Uncle Charlie’s nephew, Ted Jeayes, when Uncle Charlie was on leave in Paris, he did what most of the young men there did and “chased the girls” and also participated in the pranks they got up to including running a stick along the nurse’s toilet doors when they were occupied. New Zealand soldiers were just as irreverent to pomp and ceremony and resistant to overzealous authority as their Aussie counterparts. Their superiors also had to earn their respect, but once they did their men would follow them anywhere. The slaughter and conditions in the trenches were so terrible that like most of the Aussie and New Zealand soldiers in France, Uncle Charlie also hoped for a “Blighty wound” so that he could be sent away from the war and back to England (also nicknamed Blighty) or even better, home. He spent another period in hospital during January 1918 with bronchitis and was sent back to England in February to the Military Hospital at Tooting. The photo below was among his possessions. It isn’t very clear but is obviously a hospital ward. Although I don’t think he is in the picture he may have taken the photo on one of his hospital trips.
Hospital ward photo found in the possessions of Charles Jeayes and believed to have been taken during WW1Held in my personal archive.
Wounded in Action – The Second Battle of Cambrai
Uncle Charlie had leave granted in March and then went to Sling Camp in July for more training. It was customary to be sent for “refresher” training, chiefly in musketry and trench warfare so this may have been why as afterward he then returned to France in September 1918 rejoining the 1st Battalion, 2nd Coy on 7th October ready for a planned advance on the 8th October.
Two days later on 9th October 1918 Uncle Charlie was seriously wounded with shrapnel wounds to the shoulder and right knee in this advance, called the Battle of Cambrai, near the Hindenburg Line. The Auckland Evening Post listed him as dangerously ill in their issue dated 22nd October 1918.
The Commonwealth War Graves provide the following information regarding the battle:
The Battle of Cambrai, 8 – 9 October 1918
Early October 1918 saw a slow-down in the pace of the combined Allied offenses. In the Argonne, on the Aisne and, far to the north, in Flanders, logistical difficulties and the onset of autumn rains seriously impeded communications, transportation of supplies and the forward movement of heavy artillery. Haig, however, seized on recent British successes, notably Fourth Army’s breaking of the Beaurevoir Line, and sought further to exploit events and reinvigorate the impetus of Allied attacks, by initiating a major joint army assault on a 17 mile front, south of Cambrai . The attack, scheduled for 8 October, aimed seriously to imperil the retreating Germans and threaten a decisive breakthrough of their rapidly improvised defensive line.
At 1am on 8 October, in darkness and rain, the first of a series of carefully phased attacks was led off, by Third Army’s V Corps’ attempt to seize a northward extension of the Beaurevoir Line, still in German hands. Though supported by tanks, infantry progress was much slowed by uncut enemy barbed-wire and intense machine gun fire. The main Third Army attack (by IV, VI and XVII Corps) was launched at 4.30am behind a protective artillery bombardment. Although VI Corps experienced serious mishaps, the day saw significant advances despite German counter-attacks, some involving the use of captured British tanks. The New Zealnders (IV Corps) and 63rd Division (XVII Corps) achieved notable successes.
On the right, Fourth Army’s attack (from south to north, IX Corps, II American Corps and XIII Corps), supported by an immense artillery barrage and tanks, commenced at 5.10am. Despite subdued French assistance, hard fighting gained much ground and many prisoners were taken.
By evening British advances had rendered Cambrai untenable; enemy forces evacuated the city early next morning and, in a general withdrawal, sought shelter behind the line of the River Selle.
The photo below shows the ruins of Cambrai after the battle.
A patrol from the 3rd Canadian Division I the ruins of Cambrai 9 Oct 1918 Imperial War Museum CO 3369 Rider-Rider, W (Lt) Canadian Official Photographer – Canadian First World War Official Exchange collection
Many lives were lost and soldiers injured in this battle. Uncle Charlie said he lay on the battlefield for a couple of days before being helped and that he kept his head pressed to his shoulder to stem the bleeding. This might explain why it wasn’t until the 13th October that he was actually placed on the dangerously ill list. It must have been a very scary time for them all, especially ones like him laying there waiting for their fate. More detail on this and other battles can be found in the Unit’s Official History.
Once found, Uncle Charlie was transported back to London to Millbank Hospital where he was still listed as dangerously ill until the end of October. Peace was just around the corner when the Armistice was signed a few weeks later on 11th November 1918. As a result of his wounds, his arm was amputated and he was admitted to Walton Hospital on 21st Jan 1919. He took two weeks furlough from 24th April and he eventually returned to New Zealand on the ship “Marama” on 9th June 1919. As well as telling the story of holding his head against his shoulder, he later also credited the mouldy bread he had to eat as helping him by providing penicillin to stop infection. Penicillin had not been discovered then but I am sure once it was and he heard about it, he thought it was a possibility and maybe it was.
Original Discharge Certificate – Charles Jeayes dated 19 February 1920.Held in my personal archive.
Uncle Charlie was finally discharged 19th February 1920 “ no longer physically fit for war service on accounts of wounds received in action”. He received the British War Medal and the Victory Medal and was paid a War Pension by the N.Z. Government. These medals are currently in my possession.
Henry Richard (Dick) Nunn and Mamie Mary (sometimes Mary Mamie) Capel
Ron’s parents were Henry Richard Nunn and Mamie Mary Capel. Henry was born at Broadwater, Holland Park on 19 May 1886 and he was usually called Dick. I think Broadwater means the road not a property, but it may be. He was the sixth of eight children.
Mamie was born in San Francisco in about 1886 and her parents were George James Capel and Harriet Jacqueline Cregoe. No actual record of her birth has been found. In 1906, there was an earthquake in San Francisco that destroyed over 80% of the city and many records were lost. The information we do have comes from other certificates where she gave this information. It is believed she had a sister who died young, and she had half siblings back in England. There are many stories about George in other posts on this blog.
Henry and Mamie were married on Saturday 5 August 1911 at the Kangaroo Point Methodist Church in Linton St.
Photo: Kangaroo Point Methodist Church. State Library of Qld and John Oxley Library #189796
This Church had was opened in 1903 and is of Gothic style red brick construction in what was at the time a typical working-class suburb and replaced an earlier wooden church. Henry’s brother, George Nunn and Elizabeth Jones were witnesses. The relationship of Elizabeth to either Henry or Mamie is not known but perhaps she was a friend of Mamie’s.
Henry and Mamie settled in the Holland Park/Upper Mt Gravatt area and together had five children:
Emily Josephine in 1912 – 1995
Henry Richard in 1914 – 1974
Jessie 1916 – 1998
and the twins:
Ronald 1918 – 1994 and Florence 1918 – 1977
In 1929 residents of Upper Mt Gravatt were informed that a new State School was to be built.Two acres of ground needed to be cleared before building could commence. Each Saturday and sometimes on Sunday men in the area gathered and voluntarily cleared the large tree and thick undergrowth. Henry (Dick) and his brother George both helped with this task. Many of the wives belonged to the Ladies committee and they brought afternoon tea for the workers. Other men who are linked with the Nunn family in later times were also involved with the school in the early years. They were Charlie Rackley (he married Dick and Mamie’s daughter Emily) and Ernie Potter (he later married Mamie). At the time, both worked at the wool scour at the intersection of Newnham and Logan Roads.
Photo: Henry Richard and Mamie Mary Nunn. Mt Gravatt. Date and photographer unknown. This photo has been incorrectly identified as Henry’s brother George and his wife – refer Coleman, Robyn & Upper Mount Gravatt State School Jubilee Committee 1979, Upper Mount Gravatt State School no. 030128 jubilee, 1929-1979: a history of the district and school, Upper Mount Gravatt State School Jubilee Committee, Mount Gravatt, Qld
The school opened on 1 October 1929 and had two classrooms to accommodate forty three boys and nineteen girls. Ron and his twin sister Flo were both in these first classes as were their cousins, Robert and Lesley Nunn, the sons of Dick’s brother George. Pat Valentine was also in that first year. He was a cousin of Ron’s future wife Gloria. Mamie was first cleaner at the Upper Mt Gravatt School, and she kept the job for many years.
Henry mostly worked in labouring jobs or as a timber getter, but he unfortunately succumbed to tetanus on 30 June 1933 when he was only 46 years old thereby leaving Mamie to finish raising their children on her own. Henry was very much admired and respected within the family and in the Upper Mt Gravatt community.
After Henry passed away, he was buried in the Mt Gravatt Cemetery where many of the Nunn family are buried. The following Memorial Notices appeared in the Courier Mail in 1934 and 1936 respectively:
NUNN In loving memory of my dear Husband and our Father, Henry Richard Nunn, who departed this life June 30th, 1933.
A better father never lived,
Nor none so true and kind,
His equal in this weary world
We very seldom find.
His heart was always in his home,
He toiled and did his best.
Until there came the sudden call,
God called him home to rest.
Inserted by his loving Wife and Family.
NUNN. In loving memory of my dear Husband and our Father, Henry Richard Nunn, who passed away 30th June, 1933
Three years ago you passed away
From those who loved you dear;
Still memory lasts the same to-day
As though you still were here.
Inserted by his loving Wife and Family
James Nunn and Louisa Selina Easy
James and Louisa were the parents of Henry Richard (Dick) Nunn and grandparents of Ron. They had emigrated from England aboard the ship Darling Downs shortly after they were married and arrived in Brisbane on 5 November 1874 with their eldest child, Emily, who would have been around about eighteen months old. In 1871 James was lodging at the residence of Charles Dilly at Granchester in Cambridgeshire and an hour walk to the city of Cambridge. In the census at that time James’ occupation was described as a labourer.
In his travels, probably in search of work, he met his future wife, Louisa Selina Easy, the daughter of John Easy and Harriet Hicks. Louisa was born in Milton, Cambridgeshire, England in 1851 the fourth of nine children in the family. James and Louisa were married in the Chesterton Registry Office on 20 November 1872. They were 21 and 22 years old respectively and both were, at this time, resident in Milton where James was employed as a fossil digger and Louisa’s family had always lived. James signed his name but Louisa signed with her mark.
Fossil digging is not quite what we today may think. Coprolite is fossilised dinosaur dung and it was used as a fertiliser as it is a kind of superphosphate. The industry started in Cambridge in the 1850s and the supply was pretty much exhausted by 1890.
Milton is a village just north of the city of Cambridge and in 1871 the population was 576. Most of the residents had mixed farms and sheep and dairy cattle. Indeed Louisa’s father was a butcher and according to The Story of Milton, “the chief farming families of Easy, Hall and Pearson for many years produced the village milk supply”.[1]
The voyage on the Darling Downs was, it seemed, at times quite eventful. James and Louisa were assisted passengers, meaning that their fare was subsidised. Australia needed farm labourers and domestic workers at this time and the various Governments had schemes to attract immigrants to the country. James and Louisa took advantage of the offer to try and make a better life for themselves in Australia. They departed from London on 25 July 1874 and arrived in Brisbane on 5 November 1874. Their journey is the subject of a separate story.
James was born in Dalham Suffolk England on 18 August 1850. It was a Sunday so perhaps that is why he was baptised the same day or, perhaps, it indicates that he may have been sickly or premature. Obviously though he grew into a strong and healthy man.
Despite his marriage and other records showing his father as being James Nunn and his mother as Emily Nunn, his mother was in fact Eliza Nunn a single woman and who, later, had two other illegitimate children, Susan and George. Their baptisms can be found in the parish registers of St Mary Dalham. James was baptised there on 18 August 1850. Louisa Selina Easy, his wife, was born in 1851 in Milton Cambridgeshire. She was one of nine children born to John Easy and Harriet Easy nee Hicks.
Soon after arriving in Brisbane, James and Louisa settled at Mt Gravatt in Brisbane where they built a house that still stands today at 59 Lumley Street. This street was formerly known as Nunn’s Road.
Photo: The house of James and Louisa Nunn at 59 Lumley St (formerly Nunn’s Rd) Mt Gravatt. Lyn Nunn c. 1996
Eight more children were born to James and Louisa in Mt Gravatt. James passed away at the Goodna Hospital for the Insane from gangrene, exhaustion, and syncope (fainting) on 14 September 1919 at the age of 66 years. Asylums were often used for the chronically ill and from his causes of death it doesn’t appear James was suffering from insanity.
However, we have yet to access his records which would have become available in September 2019 until then access was restricted for privacy reasons. Louisa passed away at their home in Nunn’s Road on 15 March 1928 from breast cancer when she was 75 years old. Both are buried in the Mt Gravatt cemetery where many other family members are buried.
James and Louisa’s children were:
Emily Kate 1873 – 1952 married 1. William Henry Painter 2. Nicholas A. Nichols. Her children lived in Dalby.
Eliza Ann 1875 – 1878 died young.
William 1877 – 1891 died young.
James 1881 – 1949 married Mabel McKenzie
Robert Henry 1883 – 1915 married Bertha Amelia Caroline Wetzig
Henry Richard 1886 -1933 married Mamie Mary Capel
Louisa Mary 1888 – 1971 (Aunty Lou as Ron called her) married David John Williams. She lived in the house after James and Louisa died.
George 1890 – 1965 married Hilda Emily Rackley
Eliza Nunn
James’ mother and Ron’s Great Grandmother, Eliza was the daughter of Robert Nunn and Sarah Norton. She was born in Dalham in Suffolk England on 27 February 1828 and baptised in the local medieval church of St Mary’s on 20 April 1828. Eliza worked as a servant and although she never married, she was mother to three children all baptised in St Mary’s, in Dalham:
James 1850-1919 married Louisa Selina Easy
Emily 1855 – 1933 She married William Drake.
George 1858 – ? I’ve not been able to positively identify George in any records after 1871 census
Eliza’s children, James and Emily were, according to the 1861 census, born in Dalham but George was born in Newmarket on the Cambridge border with Suffolk. I cannot find any of the family in 1851 including Eliza’s parents. The census for Dalham in 1851 is said to be missing which means they were probably living there then, we just have no record. In 1861 they are all living with Robert and Sarah in Dalham Village.
Sadly, Eliza died of Phthisis (TB) on 19 March 1862 leaving the children without any parent to look after them. However, it seems that their grandparents, Robert and Sarah continued to raise them as in 1871 George is still living with them.
Dalham is a rural village between Newmarket and Bury St Edmunds in Suffolk and in 1855 there were about 583 people living in the parish. It is renowned for the number of intact thatched houses in the village. Newmarket is on the Suffolk and Cambridgeshire border and this town is considered the birthplace and global centre of thoroughbred horse racing. Racing began there in 1174 and has continued ever since. When I visited there a few years ago it was very much a horse racing place with large well fenced horse paddocks everywhere. I thought to myself at the time that horse racing was obviously in Ron’s blood.
Robert Nunn and Sarah Norton
Eliza’s parents and Ron’s Great, Great Grandparents were Robert Nunn and his wife Sarah Norton. The Nunn surname is very common in Suffolk and Cambridgeshire, almost like Smith anywhere else. However, I believe Robert Nunn was born at Hargrave in Suffolk England on 4 April 1805 and privately baptised three days later on 7 April. He, like his grandson James, may have been premature or weak to have been privately baptised. He was received into the church on 31 August 1806. This is a ceremony similar to a baptism and is part of the baptism ceremony but you can only be baptised once so that part would not have been performed again.
Sarah was born about 1806 in Dalham but to date I have been unable to find a baptism for her. A witness at their wedding on Christmas Day 1826 at Dalham was Fanny Norton. Both Robert and Sarah signed with their mark but curiously Fanny signed her name indicating she was, at least, somewhat literate. There was a Fanny Norton baptised in Barrow Suffolk, the daughter of Michael Norton and Fanny Norton. Michael and Fanny had quite a number of children including one called Susan in 1809 but no Sarah. Barrow is very close to Hargrave and Dalham. It is possible Susan is an incorrect transcription of Sarah. Fanny Norton married Robert Swann in Dalham in 1828 and the family was living two doors away from Robert and Sarah in 1861, so it seems feasible that Sarah was a sister to Fanny but it is only a guess. Fanny, the witness, may have been mother or daughter.
The further we go back in the family history the more difficult it is to find stories about life back then. Hargrave was a small village in the 19th century. Most people were engaged in agriculture and Robert worked as an agricultural labourer. Presently the village has 120 houses and a population of about 350 people, which is roughly about the same number of people as in Robert’s day. It was once home to about 490 people in its peak in 1851 and, at one time, had three pubs, a shop and a post office but all are now closed.
Above is the symbol of the village, the Hare, which features on the village sign has its origins way back and either means ‘Hare (hara) Grove’ or ‘Grey/Hoar (har) Grove’ where the word har relates to things marking boundaries so maybe ‘Boundary Grove’ may have been an earlier name.[2]
Some of the events that Robert may have witnessed or had influence his life in Hargrave were:
1780 circa Windmill exists at rear of Mill House. Taken down by 1914.
1800 Methodists meet in barn at Hargrave Green.
1818 One private school with 23 scholars.
1823 Day school established with 24 fee paying pupils.
1829 Day school for 8 pupils paid for by vicar
1831 Glebe House recorded as unfit for occupation.
1840 Public elementary school built. Enlarged in 1878 and 1910. 55 pupils attended in 1912.
1859 General restorations to the church.
Cock Inn became a public House – name changed later.[3]
Robert may have had some education at a Sunday School but it would mostly have been only in reading the Bible.
After their marriage Robert and Sarah settled in Dalham and had eight children:
Eliza 1828 – 1862
William 1830 – 1859
Robert 1831 – ?
Emily 1834 – 1870
Jane 1836 – 1837
John 1837 – 1867
George 1840 – ?
Susan 1842 – ?
Robert and Sarah lived in Dalham all their lives together. Robert worked as an agricultural labourer on the farms in the area until 1871 when at the age of 66 he was probably too old or ill to work very much and he was recorded as a pauper, while at the same time Sarah was working as a washerwoman. It would have been a hard life and difficult to make a living. They were also still supporting their grandson, George, who was aged thirteen.
Unfortunately, Robert passed away the next year from apoplexy and is buried in St Mary’s Church in Dalham. The informant was Mary Lofts of Dalham. Mary was a nurse in Dalham and may have been the remarried widow of his brother Thomas. I have not been able to find what became of Sarah – with no birth or death records, she may have moved away after Robert’s death, but she is very much a mystery woman!
Robert’s ancestry is believed to be as follows:
Parents
Thomas Nunn, was baptised on 21 July 1776 in Hargrave Suffolk England. He married (1) Mary Turner, 5 November 1796 in Hargrave. Mary was born in 1775 and died and was buried 23 October 1816 in Dalham Suffolk England. Thomas is then believed to have married (2) Mary Lofts on 10 August 1817 in Dalham (see above). It is not known where he is buried.
Grandparents
Robert Nunn was baptised on 25 August 1745 in Hargrave Suffolk England. He married Mary Bridges on 26 October 1767 in Rede Suffolk England. Mary was baptised on 1 May 1748 in Cavendish Suffolk England, and she was buried 4 July 1792 in St Edmund Hargrave. Robert was buried 3 January 1820 also in St Edmund Hargrave.
Great-Grandparents
Holden Nunn was baptised 10 January 1714 in Hargrave Suffolk England. He married Sarah Death on 28 December 1738 in Barrow Suffolk England. Sarah was born about 1718, possibly in Barrow since they were married there and she died in Hargrave where she was buried 8 May 1804. Holden was buried 16 February 1809, and both have graves in St Edmund Hargrave.
Great-Great-Grandparents
John Nunn was born about 1687 probably in Hargrave but possibly Barrow. with such common names it is sometimes hard to identify them in the records. He married Sarah Holden on 16 October 1707 in Barrow Suffolk England. Sarah was baptised 10 September 1682 in Barrow. John was buried 17 Jan 1764 in St Edmund Hargrave Suffolk England. Barrow is only a couple of miles from Hargrave and not far from Bury St Edmund’s, the historic market and cathedral town in west Suffolk.
Life for a Family in the 17th and 18th Centuries.
It is hard to know what kind of life the family lead back in those times. We have gone back to Ron’s paternal sixth great grandfather John Nunn who was born at the end of the 17th century. Life in a rural village was very different to what it is today. For much of rural labouring class society, the whole family as one unit usually contributed to the economy of the household. Wives and children were often involved in the manufacture of goods or took on work as servants in other households. Another important and valuable source of income was obtained by women and children making good use of common rights. The incomes of many households were supplemented in this way through gathering fuel, gleaning after the harvest, and caring for livestock.
The length of the working day in a village would depend on the task or tasks to be done and the length of daylight hours. Labour on a farm, for instance, would last from dawn to dusk making for long summer working days, further intensifying during harvest time, while shorter days were worked in the briefer winter daylight hours. Manufacturing, such as weaving, remained on a small scale either in the home or a small workshop. There would have been days off for fairs and holidays throughout the year and probably the customary Harvest Festival once the harvest was done. Time itself was of less importance in the eighteenth century community than it was in the nineteenth century or than it is today. Most labouring people did not own or need watches or clocks. Time was still task orientated and social life was intermingled with their work. Men were in control of their own lives and their patterns of work alternated between times of intense labour and extreme idleness and there was no clear distinction between work time and leisure.
In the village, regular or even full-time work at one single occupation, even for men, was a rarity. Weavers often had small farms, Cornish miners went fishing in the pilchard season, domestic servants helped in the fields at harvest time and even the village labourer sometimes owned a cow or two grazing on the common.
Villagers made use of local hiring fairs to obtain employment. Farm workers, labourers, servants, and some craftsmen would attend the fairs in the Sunday best clothes and, if they managed to find work, they would usually work for their employer from October to October when, once again, they would attend the fair.
At the fairs, employers would move amongst them discussing experience and terms, and once agreement was reached the employer would give the employee a small token of money and the employee would remove the item signifying their trade and wear bright ribbons to indicate they had been hired. They would then spend the token amongst the stalls set up at the fair which would be selling food and drink and offering games to play.
It is possible that this search for work is what made the family spread from Hargrave to Dalham and previously from Barrow where the family roots probably lie.
The parish community in which the family lived would have been a very closely knit one, very much regulated by custom and common right. The vestry was the customary village governing body and, with the parish officers, was expected to deal with ecclesiastical law and all matters concerning local government, under the supervision of the justices in quarter and petty sessions. The overseers cared for the poor, the churchwardens looked after church business and buildings, the constable or headborough enforced the law and the surveyor was responsible for maintaining the highways. The parish priest was responsible for the moral supervision of the whole village community, and he used the churchwardens as his main officers.
The office of churchwarden was a very ancient one and the churchwarden role was, in the main, to take care of the church and its contents. They would also perform moral supervision of the community on behalf of the parish priest ensuring that the parishioners came to church on Sunday, as well as to monitor and control behaviour within the church and church grounds. Quarreling in the church or the churchyard was prohibited, as was other behaviour considered indecent, such as sitting in church without removing one’s hat. The churchwardens also made sure that everyone behaved themselves in an orderly manner, kneeling and standing when appropriate and chastising disorderly children. It was their duty to see that ‘the Lord’s Day be duly observed’ and they were to check the ale houses during Sunday service and fine anyone found in them for being absent from church along, with a larger fine for the owner.
All these things would have been a familiar part of everyday life for the family.
I find it useful to keep a research diary when working on my family tree, not just keep a list of sources but to write down my thinking at the time and put together all the clues into some sort of logical order. Hence some of this blog will be familiar from others I have written. This diary was written up in 2012 and I have discovered more since then, but I feel it is important to record my journey in case my physical records don’t survive but also as an example of how it often takes years and years to piece together stories of the past.
The first ever family story that I heard was that we had an authoress in the family who fell off the back of the boat on the way out to Australia and that there was a Welsh connection. After sending for various Australian certificates for my paternal Grandparents and not seeing anything to confirm this story, I then ordered the birth certificate of my Great Grandmother Amy Bastable nee Beavan who was born in Kilmore, Victoria in 1856.
If, when you are ordering a certificate from Victoria, you tell them it is for family history they will send you a copy of the whole page from the book rather than a typed or handwritten certificate. As I had done this, I was sent a copy of the full page of registrations including Amy’s and it gave me lots of information, some of which I may not have picked up from a certificate –
Amy’s father was Frederick Williams Cadwalleder BEAVAN Surgeon, aged 47 born in Glamorganshire and her mother was Emily Elizabeth SHAW aged 35 born in Belfast Ireland. They were married in St John New Brunswick North America in 1838 and that they already had several children. I also noticed that he was the Registrar for Kilmore.
I had, at about that time, established contact with another unrelated researcher in Ontario Canada. I asked him how to go about finding the marriage of Amy’s parents and he took an immediate interest in my family and spent hours researching them in the archives on my behalf. He discovered a reference to Amy’s mother and my Great, Great Grandmother Emily Beavan as an author in the Dictionary of Canadian Biography Vol VII 1836-1850. All volumes now online http://www.biographi.ca/index-e.html and the relevant part of the entry was:
On 19 June 1838 she married Frederick William Cadwallader Beavan, who is listed in the New-Brunswick Almanack of that year as surgeon to the Queens County militia. He also appears in school records as a teacher. After marriage, the couple lived at English Settlement, near Long Creek, in Queens County.
The reference for this information wasEarly marriage records of New Brunswick: Saint John City and County from the British conquest to 1839, ed. B. Wood-Holt (Saint John, 1986). New BrunswickAlmanack, 1838. I also found a marriage notice in the Belfast Newsletter by using the Gale database through National Library of Australia.
Lots of clues there just in that small paragraph and they proved very fruitful both for Emily and Frederick. I had found my author and she hadn’t fallen off the back of the boat! Research into passenger lists revealed though, that one of the crew did fall overboard on the voyage out but that it was on a different voyage that Frederick did on his own. Frederick was actually the Welsh connection so one story was proved and another disproved but it does show there is always a little bit of truth in every family story.
Meanwhile, because Frederick was the registrar in Kilmore, I looked for anhistorical society in Kilmore and wrote to them as I thought they might have some records. The President at the time sent me quite a lot of information on Frederick’s life in Kilmore and referred me to some local history books about the town with references to him. He also sent me a copy of Frederick’s obituary from the local paper.
Co-incidentally, about the same time someone else contacted the historian when he called to visit the grave of Frederick in the local cemetery and discovered it had been restored. The historian put us in touch and long story short, this person was the late Peter Foard, a 4th cousin and who was also descended from the Doctor and his wife. Peter was very helpful and supportive even though he had given up tracing family to pursue other interests and he was still keen to know everything I learned. He gave me loads more information and copies of notes he had and, as well, told me the stories and gave me copies of the notes that were also passed down in his family about the Beavans.
I sent for Frederick W C Beavan’s death certificate which was recorded in 1867 in Kilmore and it told me he was 59 years old, his parents were Frederick Beavan, Surgeon and Barbara Beavan formerly Leyson. He was born in Llansamlet Glamorganshire married in St John New Brunswick at 29 years of age, his children’s names and ages and that he had been in Victoria 16 years.
His obituary gave me more information on his life and history:
His family resided in Northumberland where he was educated. He commenced the practice of his profession at the age of eighteen years when he was appointed surgeon in the harbour works at Seaim. Shortly afterwards he emigrated to America.He took a diploma in medicine at the University of Hartford, New Brunswick. He served for some time as surgeon in the United States army, and proceeded with the expedition against Black Hawk, the Indian Chief. After leaving the army he travelled through the greater portion of America, and visited nearly every state in the Union. After spending 12 years in America he returned to England and became member of the Royal College of Surgeons, London, and practised in Northumberland, Wales and London. In 1852 he came out to this country and settled immediately in Kilmore.
To date I have not been able to find anything about the “University of Hartford, New Brunswick”. It took a long time to find evidence that he was in the expedition against Black Hawk but I did recently find his enlistment in the US Army on ancestry and I was able to research his regiment’s movements using Google. He was indeed in the area of the Black Hawk Wars at the relevant time but it seems they did not actually engage in combat.
My friend in Ontario was able to find diaries of contemporaries and one also said he left North America to take over the practice of his father upon his father’s death. Emily mentioned that they returned to England in 1844/45 in a book she had written. This proved to be true as I found the death and burial of Frederick Senior in Blanchland, Northumberland in 1844.
My 4th cousin arranged for me to have copies of the Certificates from the Royal College of Surgeons for both Frederick, the father, and Frederick W C. Around about this time, through Ian Nicholson’s Log of Logs I found that various items existed regarding the voyage of the ship Kate, the ship on which Dr FWC Beavan made his second voyage to Australia. It turned out that a grandson of the Doctor, Frank Cleveland Beavan thought he had no relatives alive and he donated a lot of the Doctor’s memorabilia to the AMA Museum, including these original certificates. The file eventually found its way to the Brownless Medical Library at the University in Melbourne. They also hold the watch given to him by the residents when he left Blanchland. An article appeared in the medical magazine, The Lancetin London on Saturday 20 April 1850 regarding the admittance of Frederick W C (the younger surgeon) and practice at Blanchland. A copy of the Lancet is also held in the Brownless Library. The family also appears in Blanchland in the 1851 census.
I wrote to the Royal College of Surgeons and got some useful information from them including a list of the Royal Navy 1808 listing Assistant Surgeons and an entry for Frederic Bevan. Another branch of the family, in England, firmly believes that Frederick (the elder surgeon) was with Nelson at Trafalgar, and they have even said as much on a family headstone, but the crew list at the National Archives has no entry for Frederick, so perhaps the story is a little embellished or, although he may have been on a ship with Nelson, he was not actually at Trafalgar. [see the Horatio Mysteries blog posts]
By far most of my research though has centred on written family tradition given to me by my cousin, and that is that my 2 x great grandfather Frederick Williams Cadwalleder Beavan (the younger surgeon born 1808) benefited under the Will of Serjeant Edward Williams of Middle Templeand it was for him that he was named.
However, I have worked out using time frames and life dates of the people involved that, at least in the beginning, it must have been Frederick’s father and my 3 x Great Grandfather, Frederick Beavan (the elder surgeon born c 1786) who was the beneficiary. According to the same tradition Lord Alvanly, Sir Charles Edmonston & Mrs Scurrah were guardians under the Will & Frederick (the elder surgeon) and his brothers (Henry & John), spent the holidays with the Miss’ Hardins, sisters of Lord Alvanly who lived near Beverly in Yorkshire. My cousin told me he had researched Edward Williams of Middle Temple and that he had died in Totteridge near London, but he couldn’t tell me where he had found this out as he had stopped researching many years before and memory failed him.
An appeal for help to a Monmouth mailing list led me to Bradney’s A history of Monmouthshireand his research which showed a tree linking the Williams and Beavan family and recorded some of the sources as being in Chancery.
I followed the clues given in family tradition and researched Lord Alvanly, Sir Charles Edmonston and the sisters looking for a family connection to no avail, but I had never found out who Mrs Scurrah was until recently. One of the avenues I took was to check through theCatalogue at the PRO [now TNA] in Kew and there I discovered many items of interest in the Chancery Records, including the ones used by Bradney.
Over a period of time I gradually ordered legal documents regarding the Williams estate and the Beavan family from the PRO and purchased relevant Willsfrom the National Library of Wales as well as the PRO. From these items and the time frames involved the evidence suggests that it was actually John Beavan, the father of the elder Frederick who was the original benefactor, He was the father of brothers John, Henry and Frederick Beavan all born c 1780-1786 named in the documents and great grandson of Edward Williams, the Vicar.
I have established that the estate was originally that of Edward Williams, Vicar of Chepstow who died in 1692 in Chepstow and left a Will. It passed to his son, Edward Williams and then to his son, also Edward Williams, who was of Middle Temple and died in Totteridge in 1759 without issue. This was the end of the male Williams line. His death and burial is recorded in a book A Short History of Totteridge. I also wrote to the Church and the present day Vicar very kindly sent me a transcription of the vault inscription including the arms of both Edward and his wife, Elizabeth Capper. I have not been able to find which Williams’ family owns those arms but the Capper family is well documented. [see An Exemplary Widowhood blog post]
Using Wills and other court documents I discovered that the estate remained in the possession of Edward Williams’ wife in Totteridge until she died in 1793. By this time the father, John Beavan had also died, estimated to be between 1785 and 1789. His sons John, Henry and Frederick legally represented by their Uncle Edward Beavan therefore inherited. As the boys were minors this would explain why Guardians were appointed, although I still have not found evidence of any “Guardians”. Later research indicates that young Henry Beavan was either given or adopted the middle name of Williams himself, perhaps in anticipation. Their claim to all this money came through the marriage of the Vicar, Edward William’s daughter, Elizabeth to another ancestor, yet another John Beavan who was also a Vicar and his son Henry (the soap boiler mentioned in the postscript along with John the Vicar) This Henry was the grandfather of the children inheriting. A child was baptised in Chepstow in 1691 and died in 1695 and another in 1695 also said to have died young, but I have not been able to find the other Beavan children’s baptisms ie John. Henry and Frederick.
Meanwhile, I was also researching the Beavan line trying to find out where in Wales they originated. I used theIGIto discover the baptism of Frederick (the younger surgeon) in Llansamlet Glamorganshire and got a copy of the original parish records on film and photocopied it through the LDS Family History Centre. An archivist at the record office commented that the family must have been influential for so much detail to be recorded in the baptism. I also used the IGI to find the siblings of Frederick (the younger surgeon) and also his children after he returned to Blanchland following the death of his father. I also knew some children were born in Blanchland as my cousin had the family Bible. The IGI on microfiche was my favourite form of the IGI as it was easier to see relationships and spot spelling variations than using the computer version. They are all on familysearch.org now and were later confirmed through the original parish registers on film. Having a set of usual family forenames like Williams, Cadwalleder. Llewellyn and Leyson for their children made it easy for me to spot them. These names carried down to the next generation too. Later on various census returns also confirmed most of my research into the various family groups.
I also found details in theLondon Gazettehttp://www.london-gazette.co.uk/ of the previously mentioned Chancery cases including the ancestry of the Beavan’s back to Edward Williams the Vicar and the real estate of Edward Williams when the properties were being sold. It was in these notices that I discovered that he had properties in many counties including Durham and Northumberland as well as Wales. Given this information and the fact that I knew Frederick (the younger surgeon) had gone back to Blanchland and that he had siblings there, I started looking in record office catalogues in Northumberland and Durham and surrounds for any reference to not only Beavan, but also to Edward Williams.
I found various letters in the record offices, some of which have given me some very interesting life history, but I also found a handwritten tree that appears to have been written out around the 1850s for my Beavan/Williams family. It apparently still had something to do with the estate claim. It has been very useful and I am slowly proving the entries on it as correct despite it lacking many vital details like places on most entries. I suspect that, because the finalisation of the estate did take so long, that it was Frederick (the younger surgeon) and his surviving brother, Henry Williams who did eventually receive a share of the estate in the end, which means that it took about 150 years to be finalised. Even their Uncle Edward had passed away by then. Perhaps the story of how Frederick Williams Cadwalleder Beavan got his name is actually true in that he received the name in anticipation of the inheritance like his Uncle Henry.
To confuse matters further, in the family heirlooms was a book on digestion given to Frederick (the younger surgeon) inscribed to him by his cousin Florinda in 1846. She had drawn a shield and a motto supposedly belonging to the family. Burke’s peerage gave me some information on the family that owned it. This book along with Frederick’s pocket watch is held in the Brownless Medical Museum in Melbourne.
Frederick the younger’s wife, Emily was an author and while I checked out the British Library cataloguelooking for her novels, I was surprised to discover a tree in the British Library catalogue which I duly sent for and it very much seems to disprove the claim to that shield and motto. Another story pretty much dismissed. However, knowing about Florinda was very handy and using this knowledge of her I was eventually able to prove that her father, Henry Williams Beavan was a bigamist and had another family in London – a story yet to be told.
In my research I also backtracked some of the Beavans to Swansea, mainly the brothers John and Henry Williams Beavan. Although later, Frederick the elder surgeon turns up there for a short time too. I had found them in the newspapers using the Cambrian Online Indexwww.swansea.gov.uk By using the newspaper I was able to get a kind of timeline using real estate sale notices and other advertisements of who was where and when. While I suspected that their older brother John might have died, I was not sure until I worked out that must have died between 1804 and 1809 using the various notices about game keepers and rentals and sales of property. It is a common name but by checking the micro fiche of the parish records of St Mary’s Swansea, and looking for a burial of John Beavan in the suspected time frame, I found a suitable one. It was for a Mr John Beavan aged 25 buried in 1806. So I went back to the Cambrian index, hoping to get some more information and found this entry-
Cambrian C10 DEATHS, DEATH NOTICES 05 July 1806 JOHN BEVAN ESQ., AGED 25, FORMERLY OF CWMGWYN & HENDREVOYLAN, LATTERLY OF SWANSEA. P3.
This advertisement looked very promising as I knew the one I wanted was from Cwmgwyn. Looking further on I found this one
Cambrian C40 DEATHS, WILLS, ESTATES, ETC. 12 July 1806 P2. CREDITORS OF JOHN BEVAN OF CWMGWYN – MRS. SCURRAH, MOTHER & ADMINISTRATIX OF INTESTATE.
There was the Scurrah connection I had been looking for! I knew from the family notes that his mother was Mary Thurston/Beavan born 1759 so she must have remarried. I have no idea why they were in Swansea, there is an influential Beavan family there but, as yet, I have no idea if there is a connection. I have since bought a copy of the intestate file from the National Library of Wales and it confirmed that he was the brother I thought he was. Soon after this, the two remaining brothers dispersed, Frederick to Llansamlet and then Northumberland and Henry Williams to Neath and later to London.
Periodically I check http://www.ancestry.com as I still have no idea where the Beavan family originated. It was during one of these checks of what was new that I found the rest of the Scurrah story. One of the legal documents I had said that the three boys were from St George’s Bloomsbury and I had another document which said their father was a Gent of Chelsea so I knew there was an earlier London connection. On ancestry I discovered the marriage of Mary Beavan to Robert Scurrahin St George’s Bloomsbury in 1797 confirming the connection.
As mentioned earlier, there is a further written family note from my 4th cousin’s collection to say that Frederick (the elder surgeon) was theson of John Beavan and Mary Thurston and some information about Mary’s family too. These notes have been very handy.
Much to my surprise while researching the Scurrah marriage I also found the first marriage of Mary. There is a marriage entry of John Beavan to Mary Thurston (who was born in Tirley, Gloucestershire) also at St George’s in 1779. This entry told me John was from the parish of Newbury in Berkshire while Mary was of the parish. John is said to have been born in Buckland Dinham Gloucestershire according to the family tree I have and I have found where his brother was baptised there. Interestingly his nephew and grandnephews have been traced moving between London and Berkshire at various times, so I suspect there is something more there to be found. The second marriage of Mary in 1797 confirms other evidence that John Beavan had died when his sons were quite young and I have now come the full circle.
The one thing I have learnt from all this is that one should not confine research to just the repositories or parishes near where you think your family came from, always think outside the box, you never know what will turn up in unexpected places.
Lyn Nunn
July 2012
Postscript 2024
In another unexpected place, information came about through belonging to many Facebook Family History Groups and other similar groups and mailing lists. In one of those resources I was pointed to the Freemen of Hereford partial list that was online and there I found the father of the above-mentioned John Beavan the Vicar. He was Henry Beavan a glover and I have found a little about him too now. A Herefordshire researcher, Jean Dobson, had researched the Freemen and her biographical notes on Henry were that in 1664 Henry was twice present for driving a trade in the City of Hereford but being no Freeman (Tourn and Lawday in May 1664). He was also assessed to have 2 non-chargeable hearths in Eign Ward. Exemptions for this were not paying Poor or Church Rates, Inhabiting a house, tenement or land worth less than 20 shillings (£1) rent per annum, Assets worth less than £10 ,Private ovens, furnaces, kilns and blowing houses, and Hospitals and almshouses where revenue less than £100 per annum. It turned out that Henry the glover, and on the basis of paternity, his son John, the Vicar and his son Henry, a soap boiler, were all Freeman of the city of Hereford. Thus verifying my working theory of who was John’s father and most importantly telling where he came from. As usual though the story doesn’t end there as I now want to know who Henry’s ancestors were.
Colonial Ship representative of Lord Sidmouth, the ship that brought the Connelly’s to Sydney Cove in 1821[1]
The first of my Australian Roots began with Mathew Connelly from County Wexford in Ireland. He was born 8th October 1797 according to the monumental inscription at his gravesite, although his age does vary slightly on some documents.[2] He was sentenced to transportation for life at the age of 28 in July 1820. He had been convicted of burglary & robbery and arrived in Sydney Cove aboard the convict transport Lord Sidmouth (2). Seven other prisoners from County Wexford were also aboard to keep him company, including his brother, Timothy aged 29 who had been found guilty of stealing a pig and sentenced to seven years transportation.[3]
It was the second voyage of the Lord Sidmouth, a 411t convict transport ship built at Shields in 1817. The ship was captained by James Muddle leaving Cork, Ireland on 4th November 1820 and arriving in Sydney Cove 19th February 1821 with 161 male convicts. The Surgeon Superintendent was T E Royliance and, to his credit, no deaths were recorded. The voyage lasted 107 days and was one of the fastest recorded of the times.[4]
Western View of Sydney Cove Old Sydney 1819 as it probably still looked when Mathew and Timothy arrived[5]
The Surgeon’s journal of Tuesday 27th January 1821 records that the irons on several prisoners, including and Mathew Connelly and John Doyle, be wholly removed. John Doyle may be the same one that appears later in this story. Confusingly though, there were two men called John Doyle on Lord Sidmouth – one was a man aged 22 years from Tipperary and the other, a man aged 37 years from Wexford, so I am unsure which one. I have read where chains were removed from convicts once the ship was underway for some time, but I haven’t been able to determine if the chains were on them the whole time until then or were removed and then put back on at a later stage in the journey. However, Mathew and Timothy did get into some trouble at least once on the voyage as on Monday 13th February, the surgeon records that Michael Conelly, Timothy Conelly and another were handcuffed until 5pm for quarrelling in the Prison.[6]
On arrival in Sydney Cove, convicts were usually assigned to work. It seems the Connellys were sent to the Nepean River area, but I don’t think they were on the farm at Emu Plains like a lot were. In September 1821, both brothers were working in Johnson’s Road party and appear in the weekly statement for Men at Longbottom farm.[7]
In the 1822 Muster taken in September that year, Mathew appears as Michael Connelly along with his brother Timothy as servants of Major Druitt at Parramatta.[8] Major George Druitt assumed the duties of Civil Engineer from JM Gill in 1817 and he supervised many public works including roads and bridges. He was a strong supporter of convict transportation and Macquarie’s emancipist policy. He had been granted 2000 acres for his extra services and this would be most likely the property where Mathew and Timothy worked. Major Druitt at that time had 39 convicts assigned to him on his farm, which had stock of 10 horses, 165 horned cattle, 483 sheep and 41 hogs.[9] The Head of the Colony at this time was Sir Thomas Brisbane.
Although Major Druitt listed him on his 1828 census return, Mathew, again as Michael, also appears as a labourer at Nandowrie Plains (now Uarbry near Coolah) in the District of Melville. His religion was recorded as Catholic and his age as 30.[10] Mathew was probably assigned to, or at least working for, Richard Fitzpatrick on his property there. Richard Fitzpatrick was an emancipist that showed promise in agricultural fields and was superintendent at many of the colonies agricultural establishments and works. In 1819 Governor Macquarie had appointed him as the first Superintendent of agriculture at Emu Plains Government farm. He resigned in 1822 so he was still there when Mathew and Timothy arrived in 1821 and would have been known to the Connellys and possibly they to him. He was well regarded by his assigned servants and by John Macarthur and Governor Macquarie.[11]
Mathew was described as a labourer, aged 28, 5’5 ¾” tall with a dark, ruddy complexion, dark hair, and dark eyes on the convict indent for Lord Sidmouth.[12] It appears he served his sentence without trouble as he was recommended for a Ticket of Leave to remain in the Melville District on 31st May 1829 and this was granted 24th August 1829. TOL 29/670. On 26th February 1834 his Ticket of Leave must have been showing wear and tear as he was issued with a replacement TOL 34/82 as the first had been returned ‘Mutilated’ and had been cancelled. On this Ticket of Leave his eyes were described as hazel and he was 5’7” tall. Perhaps he had grown a bit.[13]
A Ticket of Leave allowed a convict to live, work and own property in a certain area and although his occupation was later given as ‘Farmer’ and ‘Settler’ no ownership of property has yet been established. Perhaps this was to hide convict origins, or he leased someone else’s land.
ELLEN ARRIVES
Meanwhile, in October 1836, another convict of importance to the story had arrived at Sydney Cove. Ellen Dawson was born in Liverpool around 1812 according to the Convict Indent for the 392t barque Elizabeth (5). This ship had arrived in Sydney Cove, New South Wales on 12th October 1836. It was a voyage that lasted 108 days from when the Elizabeth had sailed from London on 26th of June 1836. The Master was John Austin and Surgeon Superintendent Robert Espie was in charge of the welfare of the 161 female convicts and crew aboard. As no deaths were recorded on the voyage, conditions must have been better than on a lot of other convict transports of the time. Ellen’s Prisoner Number was 427/36 Convict Number 6902.[14]
However, the journey must have been especially difficult for Robert Espie, who resorted to using a stout piece of rope to whip the women over the arms, legs and back when more lenient punishment failed, including solitary confinement.[15] He made the following report to the Admiralty regarding the conduct of the women aboard the ship in his general remarks:
What I have got to say must be brief, unless I do as some others are in the habit of doing who think to force their way to great notice at the Admiralty by writing a mass of silly trash, that no man could or would read were it his time was paid for at 3d an hour. I know a tall fellow in this service who employed these convict clerks writing while he dictated and who when his journal was full spliced on to it at [?] a quire of foolscap – this word comes in [?] here – now this commencement looks a little pettish not to say savouring of scurrility – but mark me I was only in play for all the abuse I [?] to hurl at any one must be of myself – I, like a fine dotthead asked Sir William [B?] to get one appointed to a woman ship and I had the appointment by Sir Williams means- I had very nearly suffered stabbing by one of the females before the ship left Woolwich. I had vainly imagined I knew how to manage convict women having had two ships of that sort before, but from some cause or other I most decidedly did not succeed to my own satisfaction in this last ship, named the Elizabeth. I commenced to giving up my whole time and attention to the service I was employed on, but I had imbibed (and have still a strong prejudice) against corporal punishment and I tried all I could by other means such as solitary confinement cutting their hair lest these trifles only incited them to go greater lengths to bid me utter defiance with a thousand threatening of what they would do when they got to Sydney, here now let any man show me what is to be done from the master of the ship down to the lowest boy are all opposed to the Doctor if he has done his duty by preventing prostitution. I [f?] and saw clearly I had committed an error by being too lenient, I therefore prepared myself with a good stout piece of rope and when I thought they deserved it I whipped them most soundly over the arms legs and back and this was continued (whatever the saints may think) till I had conquered every refactory spirit among them and my certificates will testify that the government of New South Wales was perfectly satisfied with my conduct in every particular – so much for the discipline of a female convict ship, but some people might reverse it and say so little- no matter I hate a tedious fool-now, a word sir as to the doctoring of them that required little or no trouble and the cases I have detailed in the foregoing part of this journal are the only ones I could possibly put together, for I have no genius at furbishing up a mess of disgusting egotism and pompous inanity making a mountain where there was hardly a wart, here then I sum up this sketch by saying that the whole of the persons under my charge on board the Elizabeth female convict ship landed at Sydney N.S.W in a much better state of health than when they embarked on board of her at Woolwich and when I know that this statement will be overlooked by so enlightened a judge of these matters as the present head of the medical department of the navy I cannot believe that a verbose and labour’d summary would have gained his favour a bit more than this one which is so easily got through. [Signed] Robert Espie, Surgeon, R.N, 26 October 1836, Sydney, N.S.W.[16]
Ellen was 25 years of age, unmarried and a Roman Catholic when she was tried at the London Central Criminal Court (Old Bailey) on 4th April 1836 for stealing while a servant on the 16th March two sheets, value 6s.; four knives, value 2s.; four forks, value 2s.; one candlestick, value 1s.; and one tumbler glass, value 6d.; the goods of Mari Susanne Quantin, her mistress.[17] Maria Quantin was a spinster who had been born in Paris in 1797 and was naturalised according to the 1861 census, Maria was still living at Lyon Tce, St Marylebone where Ellen had been her servant and it appears she died in 1863.[18]
The Old Bailey aka Central Criminal Court photographer Lyn Nunn 2023. “Defend the children of the Poor and punish the Wrongdoer” I wonder if Ellen even read that as she entered.
Ellen was held at Newgate Prison awaiting her transportation and the entry on the Calendar of Prisons has recorded her with the alias of Doyle.[19] Newgate Prison was closed in 1902 and demolished in 1903 but looking at the sketch below, Ellen must have been held in the K Wards in the right-hand quadrangle.
There is also a note on the Register of Persons charged with Indictable Offences …1836 for this offence that has the words ‘aka Doyle’ under her name of Ellen Dawson.[21]
With this alias in mind, subsequent research revealed that, under the name Ellen Doyle, she had previously been convicted on 15th June 1835 for the offence of theft – simple larceny which meant without any assault or violence, while she was employed as a general servant. It was alleged that she stole:
on the 1st of December, 1 trunk, value 2s.; 13 yards of silk, value 2l.; 12 yards of muslin, value 1l.; I shawl, value 10s.; 4 gowns, value 4l, 6s.; 2 caps. value 5s.; 6 yards of lace, value 6s.; 6 handkerchiefs, value 18s.; 6 shifts, value. 30s.; 1 petticoat, value 1s.; 2 night-gowns, value 5s.; 1 scarf. value 6s.; 1 inkstand, value 1s,; 1 snuff-box, Value 18d.; and 12 pieces of linen cloth, value 1s.; the goods of Anne Boff’: also, 3 frocks, value 12s.; 1 cloak, value 14s.; 1 book, value 3s.; I scent-bottle, value 18d.; 2 towels, value 4s.; 1 sponge-stand, value 1s.; 1 soap-stand, value 1s.; 1 brush-stand, value 1s.; 1 glass bottle, value 2s. 6d.; and 3 tumblerglasses, value 3s.; the goods of Samuel Crawley, her master, in his dwelling-house.
The goods were determined to have a value of less than five shillings. Luckily for her, this time her sentence had been respited with no punishment. She had been a servant at the Crawley family home since 1824. [22] The Crawley family were quite high up in the social scale and one wonders whether they were disappointed in her or whether she felt unappreciated.
Although the date of 1824 has been taken from the Old Bailey records, various newspaper reports record that Ellen was only in service nine or ten months at the Crawley’s house and refers to her previous employment recommendation.
The Reformer and Herts, Beds, Bucks, Essex, Cambridge and Middlesex Advertiser (Hertford, Hertfordshire, England) · Tue, May 26, 1835 p.3 https://www.newspapers.com/image/793273644
Ellen’s transportation records tell us that she was able to read and write and that her occupation was given as laundress and housemaid, and that she had previously served 3 months for another felony. This disagrees with the Old Bailey records but perhaps it was that even though the sentence was respited, it remained on her record, or there’s yet another offence to find but I don’t think so. Ellen was described on the convict indent as 4’11 ½” tall with a ruddy and freckled complexion, light brown hair and brown eyes with a scar on the back of the top of the little finger of the left hand as her only distinguishing feature. [23]
The following usual type of Government notice appeared a few days after the Elizabeth arrived in October 1836:
NOTICE is hereby given, that families who are in want of female servants, may be supplied from the prisoners arrived by the ship Elizabeth, from England, provided they apply according to the established forms, on or before Twelve o’clock, on Saturday, the 22d instant.
The assignees will be required to enter into the usual engagement under a penalty of 40s. to keep their servants for one month, unless removed in due course of law.
Printed forms of application may be obtained at the Office of the Principal Superintendent of Convicts.
On arrival in Sydney, Ellen was assigned and during the 1837 muster her Master was Mrs D Richardson.[25] That soon changed though as according to the parish marriage banns record in 1837 when she was married, Ellen was bonded to a Master, Thomas Appledore.[26] He was a former convict and had originally been granted 50 acres of land in the district of Evan and near the Nepean River which expanded over the years to 100 acres. [27]
MARRIAGE AND FREEDOM
By living in the same general locality, Mathew and Ellen had obviously met and within a year they were married by Reverend Henry Fulton at Castlereagh in the Church of England at Castlereagh. The ceremony was held on 9th October 1837 after the Banns had been called. At the time, Ellen was 26 and Mathew 41 years old. Ellen is said, in the typed copy of the original register, to have signed her name as Ellenor Dawson. The witnesses were Jacob and Sarah Russell of Evan near Castlereagh. [28]
Matthew had previously, and apparently unsuccessfully, applied to marry Eliza Page aged 25 per Palembam from Cork in 1831 when he was 34 and Margaret McMahon alias Bradshaw aged 26 per Southwark (3) in 1834 when he was 37. The applications were refused because both women were already married and had children or a child. [29] The application for Mathew Connelly and Ellen to marry was granted in July 1837 both had stated they were unmarried.[30]
Mathew obtained his Conditional Pardon No 37/10960 dated 1st Nov 1837 and another 39/198 dated 1st February 1838. I am not sure why the duplication, perhaps the first was, like his ticket of leave, lost or mutilated. Generally, this meant he was a free man but not allowed to return to his native country.[31]
On 3rd December 1840 after 4 years’ service of her sentence, Ellen was granted a Ticket of Leave no 40/2662 and allowed to remain in the Penrith District. Assignment of convicts had officially ended in that year. The recommendation that she be granted a ticket of leave had been made in the August. Her Certificate of Freedom was granted 11th July 1843, G43/2184.[32] This meant she was free to return home if she wished.
At this time, Ellen Dawson also began to use the name Ellen Doyle as her maiden name in Australia. The use of Doyle was at first rather perplexing until it was discovered that the original books show a cross reference to Ellen Doyle from Ellen Dawson and her trial as Ellen Doyle was discovered. It appears then that she also used both names in England perhaps to hide her previous dishonesty. I don’t know where the name Dawson came from and wonder if it is a maternal family name. There is a baptism of Ellen Dawson, daughter of John and Ellen Dawson on 11 Dec 1806 born Nov 18, 1806. John is a mariner [her death certificate states he was a Captain in the Army – that could be mistaken for a sea Captain] but this makes her about 3 or 4 years older than her records indicate, so should be treated with caution.[33]
FAMILY
It is known from various baptism and birth registrations, that Mathew and Ellen had at least seven children.[34] Although Michael was baptised at Castlereagh and some children were registered at Penrith, I believe though that they were all probably born at Emu Plains or thereabouts –
Michael born 17th August 1838 at Castlereagh. He later moved to Qld and used the name James Conley. He died in Toowoomba 30 June 1927.
Timothy born 8th September 1840 at Emu Plains. Sadly, Timothy died 29th June 1855 at Emu Plains aged 14 years.
John born 1 November 1842 registered at Penrith. He appears to have used the Christian names John Joseph, particularly later in life. He had a relationship with Annie O’Shea and may have had several children with her but does not appear to have ever married.
Mary Ann born c 1845 at Emu Plains (no baptism found) married Alfred Walker in St Mary’s Cathedral Sydney in 1866. Died 29 December 1880. Referred to as Miriam on her mother’s death certificate.
Peter born 28 June 1846 registered at Penrith married Elizabeth Chapman at Millie near Narrabri NSW in 1877 and he died in Mackay in 1903.
Thomas born c 1849 at Emu Plains. Sadly, Thomas also died young on 3 Nov 1862 registered at Penrith aged 13 years.
Ellen born 17th April 1852 at Emu Plains baptised 15th June 1852. She had one illegitimate son with Walter Charles Clifford in 1868 in Rockhampton and later married Richard William Griffith in Queensland 4th October 1879. Ellen joined the Salvation Army in Mackay and died in Brisbane 4th Nov 1938.[35]
Not much is known of exactly how Mathew earned his living, but it appears from various certificates that he farmed in the area. In 1852 he described himself as a settler.
In 1854 a Michael Connelly appears in a list of residents of the Nepean area who made donations towards the liquidation of the debt due on St Nicholas’ Church, Penrith.[36] Between 1st July and 31st December 1855 there was a Michael Connely that was issued a license to cut timber on Crown Lands in the Police District of Penrith.[37] It does appear from the records that there was at least one other Michael Connelly in the area in earlier times and the above-mentioned is not necessarily our man.
Tragically for the family, when he was 59 years old, Mathew died on 28th Jan 1857 after an illness of five days and was buried with their son, Timothy on 30th Jan 1857. Timothy had passed away in 1855. Their eldest son, Michael was the informant. The Minister attending was the Roman Catholic Priest, Michael Brennan.[38] Another son, Thomas was also buried in the same grave in 1862 and a tombstone still survives in McCarthy’s Catholic Cemetery at Cranebrook near Penrith, as a memorial to them.
Connelly Head and Footstone McCarthy’s Cemetery, Cranebrook near Penrith NSW. Courtesy Nepean family History Society.
The Inscription reads – IHS In memory of Michael Connelly born October 8 1797 died January 29 185,7 Timothy Connelly born September 3 1840 died June 29 1855, Thomas Connelly died November 3 1862 aged 13 years
McCarthy’s Cemetery was closed in 1810 when the Anglican Cemetery was marked out. However, it appears the Catholic population disregarded this dictate and continued to bury their loved ones at McCarthy’s secretly as indicated by the Connelly burials and others. [39]
MOVING ON
It seems Ellen moved into Queensland a few years after the death of Mathew, first to Rockhampton arriving by about 1865 until 1875 when they moved to Mackay. Her youngest daughter, Ellen came with her. They may have first been in northern NSW for a while as Peter, her youngest surviving son, married Eliza Chapman in Millie near Narrabri in 1877 but the witnesses were not Connelly family members.[40] Peter and Eliza later followed the two Ellens to Mackay, coming overland from NSW in 1882 where Peter had a ‘homestead selection’ at Plane Creek.[41]
Life was certainly tough for the Connelly family in Queensland. The younger Ellen got herself into trouble quite a bit in her teenage years, especially in Rockhampton. This trouble is probably the reason they left.[42] Living in Mackay the family must have struggled to survive on their selections as son Peter and son-in-law Richard Griffiths were both convicted of cattle stealing and sentenced to three years at St Helena. The women had to then fend for themselves. However, they all seemed to redeem themselves and became contributing members of society in the Mackay region. The younger Ellen later joined the Salvation Army.
Ellen, the family matriarch, sadly passed away at the age of 68 years in Mackay on New Year’s Day, 1st January 1881 from general debility. She was buried that same day at the Mackay Cemetery. The informant was her son-in-law Richard Griffith of Mackay. Her husband was stated to be Michael Connelly and her father as John Doyle, a Captain in the army while her mother was Ellen surname unknown. Her place of birth was Wexford, but this is obviously confused with Michael’s place of birth.[43]
Once again, the Doyle name appears but a search of the NSW marriage indexes online, CD and microfiche failed to find any marriage of an Ellen Doyle to a Michael Connelly or anyone by the name of Connelly or a variant. Official records show the interchange of Michael and Mathew, and the marriage of Ellen Dawson and Mathew Connelly records their convict status. I am therefore convinced that Ellen Dawson and Ellen Doyle is one and the same person as is Mathew and Michael Connelly.
TIMOTHY AND MARY
Timothy, Mathew’s brother who was transported with him was described as a labourer 5’ 6 ½ “, pale to sallow skin with dark hair and hazel eyes and he too was a native of Wexford. In November 1825 Timothy applied and, it appears, was given permission to marry Mary McNamara per Grenada 3 in the Roman Catholic Church but there is no record located to say that it ever took place.[44] Research has shown that Mary McNamara was previously married to a soldier and her maiden name was Aiken/Egan/Aigan in various records. Mary McNamara was tried in Manchester England. She was born in 1789, a soldier’s widow and a native of Ballynnarth [sic] She was 5 feet 1 ¼ inches tall had grey eyes, brown hair, little brown freckles and was very well. She was convicted on 3rd May 1824 and received a fourteen-year sentence. The Grenada left London 2nd October 1824 arriving in Sydney on 23rd Jan 1825. 82 Convicts were onboard, and the journey took 113 days. Accompanying Mary were three daughters, Ellen, Mary and Bridget . Mary and Bridget were only eight and six years old and being young were placed in the orphan school until 1829.[45] It is believed that Bridget married John Carney in 1832 Sydney but sadly passed away in 1840. I don’t know what happened to the other two girls.
A Mary McNamara did marry someone else in St Mary’s in Sydney in 1829 but it is unlikely she is the same person as Timothy and Mary were linked together in Court records up until at least 1834. There is a permission to marry request for Mary in 1829 to Edward Connelly but there’s no details about him – might he really be Timothy? There has been no record found of any marriage at all for Timothy, however, a child Margaret was born 4th August and baptised 8th August 1827 under the Church of England in the Parish of Kelso, County of Roxburg to Timothy Connolly and Mary McNamara. She was also baptised again 19th April 1828 at St Mary’s Roman Catholic Cathedral in Sydney. The second would not have been a true baptism but a welcoming into the Roman Catholic Church as a member of the congregation, as there was probably no Catholic Priest around at the time of her birth.[46] At the time, Timothy was a ploughman for Mr Hawkins and lived at Bathurst Plains. This was probably Thomas Hawkins who owned the 2000-acre Blackdown Estate and house built for him in 1823. He had been the first settler to receive a crown land grant under Governor Brisbane.[47]
It is also possible that the Michael Connolly born 11th April 1830 and baptised 5th May 1830 at St Mary’s Roman Catholic Cathedral, son of Timothy Connolly is also another child of the couple.[48] Unfortunately, as a mother is not mentioned, and a residence of Castlereagh St is stated there is some doubt. However, one of the sponsors was John Doyle and as mentioned previously, it so happens there was a John Doyle from Wexford and another from Tipperary transported aboard Lord Sidmouth at the same time as the Connellys. Also, Anne Burnside, the other sponsor, appears to have been related to the Burnside family at Windsor. So perhaps they made a special trip to have the baptism performed in a Roman Catholic Church rather than in a Church of England Church.
For Timothy, Ticket of Leave no. 25/488[49] was issued for the Melville district in October 1825 and on 1st April 1830, he was granted his Certificate of Freedom no.30/0169. His Certificate of Freedom describes him as born 1792, 5ft 7in, complexion as dark pale freckles, dark brown hair, and hazel eyes with a scar on his upper lip and small finger of right hand contracted, jawbone left side broken. He had been tried at Wexford in July 1820 for pig stealing and sentenced to seven years transportation. [50] To date I have not found either document for Mary. Her behaviour record might have meant she was required to serve her full term without receiving any ticket of leave etc.
WORKING UNDER THE CONVICT SYSTEM
Mathew and Timothy served their sentences together until Timothy was granted his Ticket of Leave. It appears that they spent the first few months of their time working on Longbottom’s Farm until 14th September 1821, when they were discharged to Johnson’s Road Party forming roads under the supervision of James Johnson, overseer. From there they were discharged to Major Druitt on 17th November 1821. Major Druitt was accused of employing Government convicts on his farm around the time he was given his grant and also during Government time. Evidence given before the Board of Enquiry into the Engineer’s Department (Major Druitt) between Feb 23rd and March 4th, 1822, has fortuitously given us a few insights into the type of work Mathew and Timothy were undertaking that we may not have normally had an opportunity to see.[51]
John Johnston, a member of Johnson’s Road Party said at the enquiry that most of the members of the party were in fact employed on Major Druitt’s farm. He also said that the two brothers Connelly, while being victualled by the Government, were out fencing. William Cain used to share the same hut as the Connelly’s until they were employed by Major Druitt on his farm, whereupon they were moved to a different hut but still drew Government rations. James Johnson, who was in charge of both Government and Major Druitt’s rations, admitted he had given them Government rations in error. In his evidence, he said that Mathew and Timothy were ‘employed fencing but that they did not make a continual line of fence but rather 90 pannels [sic] at the different passes along the creek’. They were required to cut and split their own logs. While Richard Stewart, in his evidence, said they were ‘fencing along the Creek that bounds Nobby’s Island from April 1821.[52]
“TWO DRUNKEN AND DISORDERLY CHARACTERS”
A sad description from the Superintendent of Police but, unfortunately, Timothy and Mary’s relationship seemed to be an unhappy and violent relationship. It is known that Mary spent at least two periods in the 3rd class of the Female Factory for being drunk and disorderly. She was still under her original sentence of 14 years at this time and so her punishment might have been harsher than if she were free.
On 6th November 1828 the Superintendent of Police in Sydney wrote to the Colonial Secretary:
Sir,
Herewith I have the honor to transmit to you in order to its being submitted to His Excellency The Governor the Copy of a deposition taken this day against Timothy CONNELLY a Free Man and his Wife Mary AIKEN now CONNELLY per Grenada (1) for 14 years two drunken disorderly characters – you will perceive by the deposition that she has two Children both females which have recently been taken out of the Orphan School by her. The woman has been sentenced 3 months to the 3rd class Factory and the Bench therefore recommend that His Excellency will be pleased to order those Children to be again sent to the Orphan School…
In the same file was this deposition from Richard Hill dated 3rd November:
Cumberland Court
The Reverend Richard HILL being sworn deposeth that on Sunday Evening the 2nd of November at about ¼ before Seven o’clock as he was proceeding from his House thro’ park Street to St. James’s Church his attention was directed to the residence of a Man named Timothy CONNOLLY by his Step Daughter in consequence of his violence to her Mother whom on his entering the House he saw in an inner Room the man beating the woman in the Face, that both were in a disfigured state from Blood and appeared to be intoxicated That the deponent had on former occasions had to interfere in consequence of their Drunkenness and disorderly conduct – that her Children have appealed to him for protection she having recently succeeded in getting two, both girls, from the Female Orphan School…
For this offence, Timothy CONNOLLY had been found guilty of drunkenness and assaulting his wife and was to give Sureties of the Peace. ‘Mary AIKEN now CONNOLLY’ was sentenced to 3 months in the 3rd class Factory. Hence the request for the children to be sent back to the orphan school.
Then again, at the end of June 1834 Timothy Connolly petitioned the Governor, General Richard Bourke, regarding his wife’s sentence on 4th June for two months, once again in the 3rd class Factory, for her disorderly conduct as he had:
been labouring under a lingering disease now nearly four years, and in consequence is unable to exert himself to obtain a sustenance for himself and helpless children…
Your Petitioner has a wife who has (unfortunately for your Petitioner) violated a trivial particle of the laws of the land, and for which offence she was sentenced to 2 months in the 3rd class in the Female Factory, the 4th instant.
That your Petitioner since his wife’s calamity has endured severe hardships owing to the separation of himself and unfortunate wife, and had it not being taken into the consideration of the compassionate community your Petitioner and helpless children would linger under a state of starvation and perfect nudity, for she was the only support your poor Petitioner had…
You Poor Petitioner therefore must earnestly beg implore and pray your Excellency will be humanely pleased to remit the remainder of the sentence of Mary CONNOLLY the wife of poor Petitioner, and for such act of charity poor Petitioner as in duty bound will ever pray.
Included was a recommendation dated 17th June 1834, from sentencing Magistrate J Wighton [sic] that the petition be favourably considered, and it appears this was granted 2nd July 1834.[53]
FOR THE FUTURE
After 1834 nothing more has been learned of Timothy, although I think he was in and out of Darlinghurst gaol quite often, sometimes giving a different ship of arrival, but other details fitting including coming from Wexford. He was charged mostly for being drunk and disorderly and I don’t know if Mary was still with him then.[54] It is believed Timothy died at Carcoar hospital on 22nd July,1861. At that time, he was described as a hutkeeper, 60 years old, born in Ireland and although married, the details were unknown by the surgeon, who was the informant. He was buried at Carcoar 23rd July 1861.[55] While Mary may have been the widow Mary Connelly aged 75 years who died 4 April 1866 in Windsor Hospital after a long illness. Unfortunately, no parents or much other detail were listed on the record. Forty years in the colony does, however, fit with what we do know of her. [56]
I have not been able to locate details of either of the Connelly’s trials and I doubt they have survived, but newspapers might be a possibility if they can be located for that time and place. The alternate names used by Ellen and Mathew and by their children for them caused quite a problem at first in tracing my convict ancestry.
This is rather a long story, but being able to piece together so much of a family who lived in colonial Australia has been interesting and rewarding. It is nice to be able to pay tribute to them this way. The children of both Mathew and Timothy also have stories of their own that need to be shared, but that’s for another blog or two.
Mathew and Ellen’s daughter Mary Ann is my paternal Great, great, grandmother.
[2] Nepean family History Society Inc, McCarthy’s Catholic Cemetery Cranebrook Heritage Photograph Collection with Monumental Inscriptions, Record series No: 47, Vol. 2, 1994. Grave no. 104 Michael Connelly1857, Timothy Connelly1855, Thomas Connelly 1862.
[3] New South Wales, Australia Convict Ship Muster Rolls and Related Records, 1790-1849, Lord Sidmouth (2) 1821, Mathew Connelly, Timothy Connelly and John Doyle, Ancestry.com, 2008., Original data: New South Wales Government. Musters and other papers relating to convict ships. Series CGS 1155, Reels 2417-2428. State Records Authority of New South Wales. Kingswood, New South Wales, Australia and
New South Wales Government. Bound manuscript indents, 1788–1842. NRS 12188, microfiche 614–619,626–657, 660–695. State Records Authority of New South Wales, Kingswood, New South Wales, Australia, Lord Sidmouth (2)
[4] Bateson, Charles, The Convict Ships 1787 – 1868, Brown, Son & Ferguson Ltd, Glasgow, 1985, p.344. and
Nicholson, Ian, Log of Logs, Australian Association for Maritime History Inc. and the author, Vol. 1, 1990, p.311 and New South Wales Government. Bound manuscript indents, 1788–1842. NRS 12188, microfiche 614–619,626–657, 660–695. State Records Authority of New South Wales, Kingswood, New South Wales, Australia.
[5] “Western view of Sydney Cove – Old Sydney – 1819” by Aussie~mobs is marked with Public Domain Mark 1.0.
[6] The National Archives of the UK (TNA); Reference Number: ADM 101/44/9, UK, Royal Navy Medical Journals, 1817-1857, Ship Lord Sidmouth 1820-1821, Ancestry.com, 2011
[7] unknown, ‘statement of the men at Long Bottom farm from 8 to 14 September 1821; papers re charges against Major Druitt’, NSW Colonial Secretary Correspondence, (Reel 6053; 4/1755 p.106,
[8] Ancestry.com. New South Wales and Tasmania, Australia Convict Musters, 1806-1849 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2007. Original data: Home Office: Settlers and Convicts, New South Wales and Tasmania; (The National Archives Microfilm Publication HO10, Pieces 5, 19-20, 32-51); The National Archives of the UK (TNA), Kew, Surrey, England.
[9] NSW 1822 Muster, B00605 Major Druitt. Parramatta
[12] New South Wales Government. Bound manuscript indents, 1788–1842. NRS 12188, microfiche 614–619,626–657, 660–695. State Records Authority of New South Wales, Kingswood, New South Wales, Australia, Lord Sidmouth (2)
[13] Ancestry.com. New South Wales and Tasmania, Australia, Convict Pardons and Tickets of Leave, 1834-1859. Tickets of Leave Butts Oct 1833 – April 1834, Mathew Connelly, Lord Sidmouth. 34/82 26 February 1834 and 29/670 31 May 1829. Microfilm HO10, Pieces 31, 52-64); The National Archives of the UK (TNA), Kew, Surrey, England. State Archives NSW; Series: NRS 12202; Items: [4/4072 and 4/4092]
[14] New South Wales Government. Annotated printed indents (i.e., office copies). NRS 12189, microfiche 696–730, 732–744. State Records Authority of New South Wales, Kingswood, New South Wales, Australia. Elizabeth (5th), p.231 and Nicholson, Ian, Log of Logs, Australian Association for Maritime History Inc. and the author, Vol. 1, 1990, p.165.
[18] National Archives, England and Wales Census, 1861, RG09 87/70 p.3
[19] The National Archives; Kew, London, England; HO 77: Newgate Prison Calendar; Piece Number: 43, Ellen Dawson, Ancestry.com
[20] “Newgate prison.” is licensed under CC BY 4.0.
[21]The County of Middlesex Register of all Persons charged with Indictable Offences at the Assizes and Sessions held within the County during the Year 1836, ‘England & Wales, Criminal Registers, 1791-1892’, Ancestry.com The National Archives, Kew, HO26 Piece Number 42, 1836 p. 62 Ellen Dawson and refer also HO 26 Piece Number 41 p. 59 Ellen Doyle.
[23]New South Wales Australia Convict Indents 1788-1842, Annotated Printed Indentures, 1836, ‘List of Female convicts by the Ship Elizabeth (5th) … arrived from England, October 12th, 1836’, State Archives NSW; Series: NRS 12189; Item: [X639]; Microfiche: 725 Ellen Dawson.
[24] Colonial Secretary’s Office Sydney, NSW Government Gazette 1836, ‘FEMALE SERVANTS’, dated 18thOctober 1836, pub. Sydney 1836, p 810.
[25] Home Office: Settlers and Convicts, New South Wales and Tasmania; New South Wales Muster, 1837, pp.43-44, Microfilm Publication Class: HO 10; Piece: 33, The National Archives, Kew, London, England, Ancestry.com
[26] Church of England in Australia, Parish Church of Castlereagh NSW, Marriages 1815 – 1857, Mathew Connelly Ellen Dawson, October 1837.
[28] Marilyn Rowan, NSW Marriage Transcription (Early Church Records), NSW Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages, Vol 21 No 1612, 9 October 1837. Copy held by author
[30] Registers of Convicts’ Applications to Marry 1826-1851, State Archives of NSW, Series: 12212, Item 4/4509; p.168, Mathew Connelly per Lord Sidmouth (2) Ellen Dawson per Elizabeth (5), 1837, Ancestry.com
[31] State Archives of NSW, Convict Registers of Conditional and Absolute Pardons, 1788-1870 ‘Recommendations for Conditional Pardons’ Mathew Connelly, Lord Sidmouth, No. 198, 1 Feb and No. 10960/323, 1837 and Conditional Pardons Reel 777, image 230, no. 39/198, Ancestry.
[32] New South Wales and Tasmania, Australia, Convict Pardons and Tickets of Leave, 1834-1859,No. 40/2662, 3 December 1840, and New South Wales Certificates of Freedom, 1810 -1814, 1827-1867, no. 43/2184 18 Dec 1844, Ellen Dawson, Elizabeth 5, Ancestry.com
[33]Bishops Transcripts of the Register, St James, Walton near Liverpool, Lancashire England, 1806, Ancestry.com
[34] Various certificates and transcriptions held by the author and available on the NSW births, deaths and marriages registry.
[36] Nepean Family History Society, Timespan, No. 33 December 1988, p. 137.
[37] Colonial Secretary’s Office, Government Gazette, “Return of Persons who have obtained licences to cut timber on Crown Lands 1 July to 31st December 1855 dated 12 May 1856, Vol. 1, 1856, pp. 1399 – 14009 Research from Nepean Family History Society).
[38] Marilyn Rowan, NSW Death Registration Transcription, 1857/4126 Michael [aka Mathew] Connelly.
[39] Nepean family History Society Inc, McCarthy’s Catholic Cemetery Cranebrook Heritage Photograph Collection with Monumental Inscriptions, Record series No: 47, Vol. 2, 1994.
[40] Marilyn Rowan, NSW Marriage Transcription, NSW Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages, Peter Conley and Eliza Chapman, 1877/3729, 4 July 1877. Copy held by author.
[41] Qld State Archives Land Grants film Z7319 Selection no. 1252 LAN/AG553, 19695 C Sec, and film Z 2040 St HelenaDescription of Prisoners, Z 2038 and film St Helena Record of all Prisoners Admitted in Her Majesty’s Hulk, no. 2448 Peter Connolly 1 August 1883.
[43] Qld Births, Deaths and Marriages, Death Certificate, 1881/001282 Ellen Connelly 1 Jan 1881, copy held by author
[44] Colonial Secretary’s Correspondence NSW, Letters dated 9 Nov 1825, Archives of NSW, Reel 6015; 4/3515, pp. 624-627.
[45] State Records NSW, Convict Indent “Grenada 3”, Reel 2662 Mary McNamara and State Archives NSW; Series: NRS 793; Item: [4/351]; Roll: 2777; Page: 12 Ancestry.com
[46] Marilyn Rowan, Transcription of Baptism NSW Early Church Records, Vol 11 No 548 8 Aug 1827 Margaret Connolly and GRO NSW Birth Certificate, 989 Vol 127, 19 April 1828 Margaret Connolly.
[48] Marilyn Rowan, Transcription of Baptism NSW Early Church Records, Vol 127 No 1467 5 May 1830 Michael Connolly
[49] NSW Convict Ticket of Leave no. 24/488, October 1825, NSW State Records Shelf 4/4060 Reel 890.
[50] State Archives NSW; New South Wales, Australia, Tickets of Leave, Series: NRS 12200; Item: [4/4060]; Fiche: 754 and State Records Authority of New South Wales; Kingswood, New South Wales, Australia; Series Name: Butts of Certificates of Freedom; Series Number: NRS 12210; Archive Roll: 986 and Ancestry.com. New South Wales and Tasmania, Australia, Convict Pardons and Tickets of Leave, 1834-1859 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2007.
Original data: Home Office: Settlers and Convicts, New South Wales and Tasmania; (The National Archives Microfilm Publication HO10, Pieces 31, 52-64); The National Archives of the UK (TNA), Kew, Surrey, England.
[51] Colonial Secretary’s Correspondence NSW, List of persons forming roads under the direction of James Johnson overseer from 21 Oct 1818 to 2 Mar 1822, Archives of NSW, Reel 6053; 4/1754, p. 415.
[52] ibid, Deposition of John Johnson, 1822, Reel 6053; 4/1755 p.249.
[53] State Records of NSW, Colonial Secretary’s Correspondence, 28/8957 6 Nov 1828 and Reel 2002 793/34 28 June 1834. Copies held by the author.
[54] Refer Ancestry.com. New South Wales, Australia, Gaol Description and Entrance Books, 1818-1930 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2012.
[55] Marilyn Rowan, NSW Death Registration Transcription, NSW State Records, 1861/2668 Timothy Connolly 22 July 1861.
[56] NSW Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages, Deaths Index, 3442/1864
This story has been published a couple of times already but I feel it is time it was published here on my blog for future researchers and my family:
Emily Elizabeth Beavan (née Shaw) is my great-great-grandmother.
Oral tradition said we had an authoress in the family, and once I started researching my family, I soon discovered it was Emily. She was born in Belfast, Ireland, about 1818.
As well as being a wife, mother, and teacher, Emily was also an author of novels and poems; and she kept an album, rather like the autograph album of my day, in which she drew and wrote some of her poems and short stories. I discovered this album in the belongings of a fourth cousin I met through the course of my research. He was also descended from Emily. Amongst Emily’s own writings, there are also poetry contributions from a few others, including her husband, and keepsakes like pieces of lacework, dried flowers, and all kinds of other fascinating things. The album was begun in 1835 in Belfast and travelled with her wherever she went until she passed away in Sydney, Australia in 1897. It has remained in the family ever since and became an integral part of my research and my other blog “Emily’s Quill Pen” https://emilysquillpen.wordpress.com/
The story that follows is one of quite a dance all over the world in search of clues about her family and the identity of her parents. I believe they perfected the art of the cryptic clue!
First Stop – Australia
My story starts with the birth certificate of Emily’s daughter and my great-grandmother Amy Bastable (née Beavan). The entry in the Victorian BMD microfiche indexes themselves took a bit of finding because I was a real novice then, and unbeknownst to me, Amy had been registered without a name. As a consequence, the indexes had recorded her as “F Beavan”. It wasn’t until later, when I noticed a “M Beavan” with the same parents that I thought I was looking for, that the penny dropped, and I realised “F” was for female and “M” was for male!
Amy’s birth certificate showed she was born in 1856 in Kilmore, Victoria, Australia, and stated that her parents’ full names were Frederick Williams Cadwalleder Beavan and Emily Elizabeth Shaw. The certificate also gave me the extra information that they had been married in Saint John, New Brunswick, Canada. The registration had been completed by her father who was the local registrar at the time and I often wonder if he knew I was going to come looking and so filled in more information than was normal.
Knowing that Amy had lived most of her life in Sydney, Australia, I searched through the New South Wales (NSW) indexes for Emily’s death, and I discovered that Emily had died in Sydney. By purchasing her death certificate from the NSW Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages in Sydney,[1] I found that her eldest son, Alfred Beavan, was the informant. He stated that Emily’s father was Samuel Shaw, Master Mariner, and that her mother was Isabella Pringle.
Onward to New Brunswick Canada
Through extremely generous and kind archivists at the University of New Brunswick and fellow genealogists in Canada, I was able to find a record of the marriage of Emily and Frederick which took place on 19 June 1838 in Norton, Kings County, New Brunswick. The marriage was recorded in a book written by B. Wood-Holt (1986).[2] However, I also found the marriage in the Belfast Newsletter dated some six months later and with a slightly different date for the marriage in the Belfast Newsletter, 1 January 1839:
“June 20, at Norton, near St. John’s N.B. Surgeon Bevan to Emily Elizabeth Shaw, eldest daughter of Mr. Samuel Shaw, late of Belfast.”
With the help I received in Canada, I was able to piece together quite a long story of Emily’s life in that country. This included one period that she wrote about in a book about life in the “the backwoods of New Brunswick” at Long Creek where she lived with her husband and growing family for seven years. Journals and newspapers of the time also carried her stories and poems, which gave me a unique insight into small windows of her life and her contemporaries. Her stories and poems were often based on her own experiences or those of people or events she knew, even if they were somewhat embellished for the sake of a good story. Militia lists and other people’s diaries and memoirs, much to my surprise, also held snippets of information about her husband, Frederick.
As well as Emily’s own teaching career, I found some details about the lives of some possible siblings—Frances, Pringle, and Samuel Shaw. Friends had managed to find, at the National Archives in Ottawa, their petitions for a licence to teach. From these petitions, I was able to obtain various details about their religion, places of birth, and education levels, as well as estimate how long they had been in New Brunswick. They were teachers in the same area of New Brunswick and appeared to be connected to Emily because her husband provided references for some of their petitions. I sailed along quite happily for a couple of years finding all sorts of wonderful things about Emily, her husband and, in particular, her brother Pringle Shaw.
Next Stop – Ontario, Canada
Pringle Shaw was a teacher, writer, and a very community-spirited person who made small appearances in newspapers and is mentioned in local histories in the area around Kettleby, a small community in King Township, Ontario, that I learned about by using Google to search the Internet for his name. An unusual name is always a bonus in family history research!
Ancestry.com has recently added merchant navy records to their online databases. From these, I discovered that Pringle had returned to Ireland where he was trying his hand as a sailor from 1843 until 1845, when he was paid off in Quebec. He then apparently went to the United States as he authored a book, Ramblings in California that was published about 1850, in which he describes his travels through California during the gold rush. He next turns up in the 1851 Ontario (Canada West) census as a school teacher once again.
At one stage, I joined an Irish Yahoo group on the Internet when they were using a chat room to get to know each other. I was chatting one afternoon to a lady from Canada and, as you often do, I asked where she lived in Canada. What a moment of serendipity it was when she replied that she came from Tilbury—the same township in Essex County, Ontario, that Pringle had finally settled in! On her bookshelf was a local history of this township, and it was to be a very late night while she sent me transcribed excerpts and photos from the book about Pringle, his wife, family and especially his eldest son, William Shaw, who had been a Mayor of the township. The next week she was out taking photos of their headstones for me and managed to get me a copy of the book for my library as well. This family was fast becoming a family historian’s dream.
Conflicting Information
Then a setback in my research quickly dissipated the euphoria. I had sent for, and received, the registration of the death of Pringle in Tilbury, Ontario, which was dated 1 March1915. The registration had been made by Pringle’s son, William Shaw. William had stated, in agreement with Emily’s death registration, and as I expected, that Pringle’s father was Samuel Shaw, Master Mariner. The pinch, however, was reading his statement that said Pringle’s mother’s name was Isabel Adelaide McMoran and not Isabella Pringle as Emily’s son had stated on her death certificate!
This very unexpected development was especially perplexing as it had always seemed to me that Pringle had been named with his mother’s maiden name—the name given on Emily’s death certificate. The use of a mother’s maiden name as a forename was something I had seen quite a few times before, and I had thought it was a perfectly logical scenario. What now? Could there be an error on Pringle’s certificate? Perhaps Samuel had married two Isabellas? How was I ever going to solve such a conundrum, especially in those reputed difficult and missing Irish records that I heard so much about and was rather reluctant to go near?
Time went on and I continued to research by following Emily and the other “siblings”, although I was always never quite sure I was on the right track. I felt that if I researched sideways, I just might uncover more evidence one way or the other.
The Search Resumes… Ireland
So it was that my research eventually took me to Ireland in search of Emily’s parents. Little did I know that, despite my reservations, I would end up learning so much more about her life and that of her family.
My first success with Irish research came about as a result of a very kind and generous fellow family historian who lives in Belfast. He had discovered the obituaries for Samuel and Isabella Shaw in the Belfast Newsletter. I found that they had both died in their eighties and were buried in the same grave at Clifton Street by searching the Clifton Street Cemetery burial registers and cemetery records which I found were online.[3]
After writing to the General Register Office (GRO),[4] I obtained the death registration certificates for Samuel and Isabella Shaw. The informant was identified as “O’Connell Shaw” on both death registrations, and Isabella had been residing with him at the time of her death. I had not come across this name before and suspecting he was probably a son, one of the things I set out to do then was find out who he was and whether records about his life would help.
Eventually, the opportunity arose to take a trip to Ireland to see if I could unlock the secret of my Shaw family in that difficult arena of Irish research.
It was on a visit to the Linen Hall Library in Belfast, where there are card indexes of the Belfast Newsletter, that I discovered the marriage of Samuel Shaw and Isabella McMorran at St George’s Chapel in Belfast on 20 September 1817; and to be sure, as one should always do, I checked the original newspaper and later the parish registers on film through a local Family History Centre[5] and found it to be correct. To my disappointment, however, this information had confirmed that the parents on Pringle’s death registration were correct and therefore added still more weight to my ever-increasing doubt about Emily’s connection to Pringle and the other Shaw family members.
One thing I was quite certain about, however, was that if Emily and Pringle were brother and sister, they could not have had different mothers. Various sources had narrowed Emily’s birth year to about 1818, while Pringle had given a birth date of 2 January 1825 in the 1901 Canada census.[6] As Emily was older than Pringle, there was no way her father could have married a second time after she was born to an Isabella Pringle when he had married Isabella McMorran in 1817. So that put paid to that theory.
Normally, I would have decided that they were from a different family and I was probably on the wrong track, but there was something nagging in my mind. For one thing, Pringle had written a poem in Emily’s album, suggesting there had to be some sort of connection. It seemed unlikely they could be cousins as their fathers had the same name and occupations. I felt there just had to be a logical explanation somewhere, and I set out to find it, starting with O’Connell Shaw, the informant on Samuel and Isabella’s death registration.
A visit with the friendly staff at the GRO while I was in Belfast gave me a clue that O’Connell had passed away before 1922 as he wasn’t on their computerised indexes that started in that year. Armed with this knowledge and by using the Public Record Office of Northern Ireland (PRONI) Will Calendar indexes,[7] I was very fortunate to find a copy of O’Connell’s will which gave me his death date of 5 June 1918. If you have never seen an Irish will from this time, it can be an amazing resource full of information about parents, children, siblings etc. Once again, using the information from the will, the Belfast Newsletter came to the rescue with a death notice that announced his burial was to take place at Dundonald Cemetery in Belfast:
“SHAW – June 5, 1918 at his residence, Woodlea, Shandon Park, Knock O’Connell Shaw (late of Belfast Harbour Office). Funeral (private) to Dundonald Cemetery to-day (Friday), at 11 a.m. No flowers“ – Belfast Newsletter, 7 June 1918
Clues from the Crypt
Back home in Australia, I wrote to Dundonald Cemetery to confirm the burial information for O’Connell Shaw. I learnt from them that buried in the same grave as O’Connell were his sisters Matilda Shaw and Adelaide Shaw, and one of his nieces, Maud Wilson. Three of his children and a sister-in-law, Emily Shaw, were buried in the adjoining grave.
The identity of his sister-in-law in the grave was confirmed by her death certificate that I subsequently sent for from the GRO in Ireland. This Emily Shaw was another person I had not heard of before. I knew that she couldn’t be my great-great-grandmother as she was married and had died in Sydney. From the certificate, I learnt that this Emily was the widow of Thomas Shaw, a Captain, and that she was born about 1857 and therefore probably belonged to the same generation as O’Connell. Most importantly, I learnt from this record that O’Connell had a brother named Thomas.
Following up old Research
Determined to leave no stone unturned, and because I am very curious by nature, I then decided to follow someone who I suspected was one of O’Connell’s children to see where that might lead. Her name was Edith, and I was fairly certain she was another daughter as other newspaper research had led to the Brooklyn Eagle (New York) with a legal notice regarding an estate. The notice listed, in addition to other apparent relatives of the deceased, the sons and daughters already known to me as those of O’Connell Shaw. Amongst the list of those particular children was an Edith Sibley. This indicated to me that if Edith was a daughter of O’Connell, then she had probably married someone with the surname Sibley. So, using the Cheshire parish registers at FamilySearch[8], I discovered an Edith Shaw who had been married to Osbert Carden Sibley in1906 in Cheshire, England!
Armed with another irresistible unusual first name of Osbert, I was able to find his birth registration in the GRO indexes at FreeBMD[9] and his baptism in the Cheshire parish registers index at FamilySearch, revealing that his father was Septimus Sibley. Always curious, I searched their names using Google and found out they were surgeons and that Osbert’s father was quite famous. So I decided to check TheTimes newspaper (London) and some of the 19th century Gale newspaper databases which are available online through my National Library of Australia membership, as I thought there might be something newsy about it since they were obviously “society”.
The newspaper search came up with a description of Edith Shaw’s wedding in the Liverpool Mercury (29 September 1894)—what she wore, the bridesmaids, and so on—and they mentioned that the bride was the niece and adopted daughter of Thomas Shaw, who gave her away. The guests included O’Connell Shaw, Miss Isabel Shaw, and Miss Susie Shaw. Researching Isabel and Susie I discovered that they were the daughters of William McNeice Shaw and his wife, Mary. Was he another brother of O’Connell?
A search of the Irish civil registration indexes[10] enabled me to order Edith’s birth registration and this confirmed that her father was O’Connell Shaw, even though it wasn’t mentioned in the newspaper article. Therefore, because Thomas was mentioned as uncle as well as adopted father in the newspaper, Thomas and O’Connell must be brothers.
I wondered…Was this Thomas Shaw, who was the uncle and adopted father of Edith, also the husband of Emily Shaw buried at Dundonald Cemetery? So I decided to check FamilySearch again and found a marriage of Thomas Shaw and Emily Connor in Lancashire in 1872.[11] Using this information, I was able to get the references from the civil registration indexes at FreeBMD and order a certificate from the GRO in England which confirmed it was the right entry by his father’s name, Samuel Shaw. The witnesses were William McNeice Shaw and Mary Brown. Through using the various England and Wales censuses, it subsequently turned out that both Thomas and William were Master Mariners and lived in the Liverpool area from at least 1871.
Tying Things Together
When I was in Ireland, I had also taken the opportunity in Dublin to check the 1911 Irish census which showed O’Connell, a widower, living with his sister Adelaide and two daughters, Ada and Sara Campbell Shaw. Both the 1901 census and the 1911 census were available at that time if you visited the National Archives in Dublin and knew the address. I only had an idea of the 1911 address, and this census gave me their places of birth and the presence of a hitherto unknown niece, Maud Wilson. I have since located them in the 1901 census as the census for both years are now online at the National Archives of Ireland website.[12]
Interestingly, the census said Maude Wilson had been born in Hong Kong in 1866. This sure was a family of travellers! As Maude had also been buried in one of the plots in Dundonald Cemetery, I sent for her death certificate from the GRO. Her death certificate revealed she was the daughter of Thomas Wilson, and the abstract of his will from PRONI revealed his wife’s name was Maria and that he was a Master Mariner who had died at sea in 1867. FamilySearch[13] confirmed that Maria Caroline Shaw married Thomas Wilson in 1856 in Belfast, and the details were confirmed by using the Ireland civil registration indexes available at FamilySearch[14] and purchasing a certificate from the GRO.
The certificate also revealed that one of the witnesses at Maria’s marriage was William Shaw—the same name recorded as a witness in the marriage of Thomas Shaw and Emily O’Connor. This gave me evidence of a familial relationship between Maria, Thomas, and William.
Another name that was of particular interest to me was Matilda Shaw as I had found her signature in my great-great-grandmother Emily’s album. A Matilda Shaw was also buried in the same grave as O’Connell Shaw at Dundonald but had died prior to him. Therefore, she was not listed as a sibling in his will, unlike his sister Adelaide who was still alive at the time. Using the Irish Family History Foundation website,[15] I discovered that Matilda Ann Shaw was baptised in St Anne’s Church, Belfast, on 26 January 1828, the daughter of Samuel Shaw and Isabella McMurran.
So, I now had two children born to Samuel Shaw—Matilda in Belfast and Pringle in Canada—with a mother named Isabella McMorran/McMurran, and another, my great-great-grandmother Emily, with a mother named Isabella Pringle. I also had a record of the marriage of Samuel Shaw to Isabella McMorran; confirmation that Samuel was the father’s name of both Maria and Thomas Shaw; and proof that Thomas was a brother to Maria. Moreover, I am fairly certain Thomas was also a brother to William Shaw.
Further research on O’Connell himself also proved to be rewarding. While the Public Record Office of Northern Ireland (PRONI) indexes, FamilySearch, and his will obtained from PRONI gave me O’Connell’s children’s names, it was a search at ScotlandsPeople [16] that confirmed to me the identity of his parents. I had no particular reason to look in Scotland, except that I couldn’t find anything in Ireland, and I know there are sometimes close links between Ireland and Scotland. The records showed his marriage to Margaret Trimble on 27 September 1867 in Glasgow and revealed the names of his parents as Samuel Shaw and Isabella Shaw, nee McMoran—the same people whose death records identified O’Connell as the informant. I now had full parental confirmation for three children.
It seems that family members followed certain career choices with the men being seafarers, sometimes working later on for the Belfast Harbour Commission, and/or teaching. The women all seemed to choose teaching. According to the 1911 census of Belfast, Adelaide Shaw, the previously mentioned sister of O’Connell, was a teacher; and O’Connell, like his father when he retired from the sea, had worked for the Harbour Commissioners.
Once again, I searched the indexes of British Newspapers through the Gale newspaper online databases, and I was fortunate to find an article in the Belfast Newsletter about Adelaide’s career when she retired from teaching in 1892. The dream family returns!
As can be seen, newspapers would have to be one of my favourite areas of research, no matter what country I am researching in. They are an invaluable resource for finding out something about the lives of your family. Sometimes you have to be creative with your search terms, but the rewards can be plenty.
Thinking a little laterally … who is Isabella Pringle?
I have never found a marriage of a Samuel Shaw and Isabella Pringle. I did, however, locate an interesting reference to a marriage of William McMorran and Eliza Pringle on 11 December 1785 in Saul Parish, Downpatrick, Co. Down on the International Genealogical Index (IGI) database at FamilySearch.[17] Downpatrick is not far from Belfast, and this marriage would fit with the birth year of Samuel Shaw’s wife, Isabella Adelaide McMorran, which, from information on her death certificate and burial, would be about 1797. Although this is twelve years after the marriage of William McMorran and Eliza Pringle, I thought they could very well be her parents.
I decided to follow up this lead by checking the source, which is a transcript by Rev. Edward Rea, when I was researching at PRONI on a second trip to Belfast. I found yet one more little piece of evidence that my hunch was correct. The transcript notes that William McMorran was of Belfast, while Eliza Pringle was of Downpatrick. Isabella was a native of Belfast according to her burial record, although on a Canadian census, her son Pringle stated she was born in Scotland. So, perhaps she was actually born in Scotland but spent most of her life in Belfast, and hence was considered a native of Belfast. It is certainly possible that William and Eliza could have lived in Belfast after their marriage and also that they may just as easily have lived in Scotland as well for some of the time. Directories do show a William McMorran in Belfast in the early 1800s. I cannot be totally certain that these are Isabella’s parents as I have yet to discover her baptism. However, there seems to be some kind of link to Scotland in the family since Isabella’s son O’Connell had gone there just to be married and then returned with his wife to live in Belfast. If William and Eliza are Isabella’s parents, it seemed to me to be a feasible explanation that Pringle was actually named after his maternal grandmother rather than his mother.
Seeking more evidence, I then decided to recheck the Clifton St Burial Ground Registry, searching by grave number as it is not indexed, to see who else might be buried in the grave of Samuel and Isabella Shaw. Lo and behold, I found the burial of Elizabeth McMorran on 15 February 1843 who was entered in the record as
“…relict of the late William McMorran, Great Patrick St. Born at and came from Downpatrick. One daughter in Belfast and one in America.“
Also, there was an Eliza Moran, daughter of E. Moran, Patrick Street, buried in 1847 at the age of 52 years and so born about 1795. They are both buried in the same grave as Samuel and Isabella which, after further research, appears to have been purchased as a McMorran burial plot. Isabella was quite likely the daughter “in America” as research into her husband, Samuel Shaw, shows she must have been back in Belfast by the end of 1844 and so, in 1843, was probably still in Canada, which is sometimes referred to as America. Eliza, daughter of E. Moran, would be the “One daughter in Belfast”.
In the alphabetical section of Martin’sBelfast Directory for 1841-2[18] is the following entry
“McMorran, teacher of needlework, 18 Tomb Street.”
My great-great-grandmother Emily Shaw lived on Tomb Street before the family went to live in Canada. I know this from one of the stories she wrote and also because her father, Samuel Shaw, is recorded as living there in the Belfast directories of 1831-32 and 1835-36 online at PRONI. Henderson’s New Belfast Directory and Northern Repository for 1843-44 has the following entry
“Mrs McMorran, teacher, seminary 64 Great Patrick St.”
I think these listings all relate to Eliza Pringle, wife of William McMorran, who died in 1843.
Conclusion
My theory has taken many years to formulate. An examination and research of all the possible avenues that I can think of in a wide and sometimes obscure variety of resources in archives, record offices, libraries, historical societies. and on the internet has brought me to my conclusion. I have researched sideways, not only backwards and forwards, and by doing this I have discovered a huge amount of information about this family and their lives. I have constantly reviewed, revisited, and reassessed my research whenever something new came to light. The evidence I have uncovered seems to me to overwhelmingly tie them all in together.
The names Elizabeth, Isabella, Adelaide, and William are all names used throughout the family, especially Emily’s family; and combined with all the other evidence, I believe that there is an error and it is on Emily’s death registration. I am now certain that her mother’s name was in fact Isabella Adelaide McMorran and that William McMorran and Eliza Pringle/McMorran are Emily’s grandparents. Perhaps the explanation for this lies in the fact that death is a very stressful time for relatives of the deceased and the informant on a death certificate is not always fully aware of all the facts when giving the information. It is possible that either informant on the two death certificates in my case could have been mistaken. As it turns out, however, it appears to be the informant on Emily’s death certificate, her son Alfred Beavan, who was confused. Isabella Pringle did not exist. I guess I was lucky her son did make that error because otherwise I probably would not have found out half of what I know about them or even that some of them ever existed.
I do consider myself incredibly fortunate to have been able to build up a very good picture of Emily and her family. The search, however, does still continue, especially for the baptism of Emily and the rest of her siblings which will hopefully provide a maiden surname to prove once and for all who her parents were, or perhaps it may yet turn into another conundrum! Only time will tell.
APPENDIX
The Family of Samuel Shaw and Isabella Adelaide McMorran
Emily’s father, Samuel Shaw, was a Master Mariner and various records show that he and the family travelled back and forth between Belfast, Ireland, and Saint John, New Brunswick, Canada, throughout their lives. From about 1835 until about 1842, Samuel is not mentioned in Irish newspapers or directories during this time, and this travel is also evidenced in some of the births, marriages, and deaths of their children:
Emily Elizabeth Shaw – born ca.1818 in Belfast, Ireland; died 6 August 1897 in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia; married Frederick Williams Cadwalleder Beavan on 9 June 1838 in Norton, King Co., New Brunswick.
*Frances Shaw (a probable daughter) – born ca.1819 in Sligo, Ireland(?); died 18 May1898 in New Brunswick, Canada [see Note].
*Samuel Shaw (a probable son) – born ca.1821 in Belfast, Ireland(?); died before 1918 [see Note].
Pringle Shaw – born 2 January 1825 in Belfast, Ireland; died 1 March 1915 in Tilbury Centre, Kent, Ontario, Canada.
Matilda Ann Shaw – baptized 26 January 1828 in Belfast, Ireland; died 17 February1906 in Belfast Ireland.
William McNiece Shaw – born 27 December 1831 in Belfast, Ireland; died 25 August 1897 in Egremont, Cheshire, England.
Maria Caroline Shaw – born ca. 1831 in Belfast, Ireland(?); died before 1918.
Thomas Wilkie Shaw – born 16 January 1832 in Belfast, Ireland; died 30 October 1917 in Liscard, Lancashire, England.
O’Connell Shaw – born ca. 1837 in New Brunswick, Canada; died 5 June 1918 in Belfast, Ireland.
Adelaide Shaw – born ca.1838 in New Brunswick, Canada; died 14 December 1925 in Belfast, Ireland.
One other male child was buried as an infant at sea in about the year 1836 or 1837. Emily described him in the prologue to a very touching poem about him in her album:
x”… he was a child remarkable for infantile [sic] intelligence and extreme beauty – the deep lustre of his clear blue eyes, beautiful curls of his sunny hair waving over his lovely forehead always brought to my mind the forms of those bright thousands who sing the holy song before the eternal throne in the blest place where I hope once more to meet him. A few days after leaving Ireland his spirit took its flight and his body was committed to the deep waves of the Atlantic there to repose till the mighty voice that shakes Heaven and Earth shall say: Give up thy dead thou Sea.”
* Note:
It is believed that Samuel and Isabella were the parents of Frances Shaw and Samuel Shaw who were teachers at the same time and in the same area of New Brunswick as Emily and Pringle. Further research is needed to positively confirm these probable siblings. Descendants of Frances say that, according to oral tradition, her father was Samuel and her mother had the maiden name of Irwin. Perhaps, however, this is another case like Emily where the mother has been misidentified. Frances was also said to have been born in Sligo. However, no records have yielded any information on her birth or parents, so this link remains a little tenuous. Very little information has been found about the younger Samuel except for his teacher’s licence in New Brunswick and a link back to a Belfast address used by Samuel and Isabella and another used by their son William McNiece Shaw.
[2] B. Wood-Holt, Early marriage records of New Brunswick: Saint John City and County from the British conquest to 1839 (St. John , New Brunswick: Holland House, 1986).
My mother was born 100 years ago today 27th May 2021. I always remember her saying she felt like she was 100 and well, now she would be there. We talked a lot about family as I grew up and I used to love to go through her photo album asking about the people in them. I would help with the Xmas card writing and displaying as I got older and that was another source for conversation. Some of her story below is from my research but much is my memories from life with her and those conversations.
My mother was born Joan Scott in Uralla NSW, the eldest daughter of Harry James Scott and Mabel Alice Scott (nee Tincknell). She was fourth in an eventual family of eight children. Her two eldest brothers were her half-siblings, the sons of my Grandmother Mabel Alice Tincknell and Bevan Clifford Harkas Lloyd and at the time, she had another older full brother, Bill.
When Mum was born in 1921, the population of Uralla was 972 and with the help of my grandparents, it increased to 1120 in 1937.[1] Mum and all her siblings were all close as there wasn’t much of an age gap between the first five Scott children – five years to be exact! Mum and her next youngest sister, Betty, were particularly close all their lives.
At first the family lived in a rented house in Uralla close to town in an unnamed street in Woodville but later they moved to King Street, 2nd house from the corner at the end of the street on the left-hand side walking up from town. According to oral tradition it was preferable because it actually had electricity. This house still stands today but has been greatly renovated and has little resemblance to how it was in those days. According to Mum, Cooper Ryan lived on one side and Mrs Anderson on the other. [2] Mr Cooper was another neighbour and often, the children would hitch a ride to town on the running boards of Mr Cooper’s car.[3] Mr Cooper was most likely JG (Joe) Cooper the licensee of the Royal Hotel until the licence lapsed and also my grandfather’s boss.
I haven’t been able to find Cooper Ryan in any of the electoral rolls. The 1930, 1934 and 1935 Electoral Roll show Harry and Mabel living at Woodville along with quite a few Ryans. In 1931, for some reason, they appear to be absent from the roll. Mrs Anderson could be either Eliza or Sarah Eliza in 1932 and 1934 roll at Woodville. In 1913 Sarah Eliza Anderson was living in King St with Betsey Anderson. The NSW Birth Index has a Sarah born 1884 Uralla mother Betsey father Robert. Unfortunately, the rolls don’t have street numbers. I suspect Woodville is where there were no street names at the time.
The children shared beds as well as bedrooms sleeping one up and one down. Their brother, Bill used to scare the others telling ghost stories at night. Although Church of England was their religion, according to my mother and Aunty Betty, the children frequented just about every denomination’s Sunday School on a Sunday. They particularly liked the Salvation Army service because they were the most entertaining.[4]
Scott children at Uralla – Back row Betty, Joan, Bill. Front row Henry and Zelle and their pet dog 1927
From time to time, my grandmother would send a child off to a relative for holidays. My mother recalled being taken to her Aunt Annie’s, the sister of her mother, on a train to Glen Innes by her eldest brother Bert when she was about four years old. She cried so much that Bert had to come back and get her. Annie and her husband Jim Smith never had any children of their own, although I do believe Annie had a child and he was adopted before she was married. Mum said she loved children. Sadly, she died from rheumatic fever when still a young woman. The children called her Aunty Narna.
SCHOOL LIFE
They all attended the local primary school at Uralla and Mum and Aunty Betty used to play hooky from sports at school and visit the cemetery opposite the school. There was an Arnott’s tin on the bushranger Thunderbolt’s grave in which tourists used to leave notes. They would spend their sports afternoons reading the notes. In 1938 Council removed the tin and at some stage, much to my Aunty Betty’s disgust because he was a criminal, they moved Thunderbolt’s grave to prime position near the front gate. Apparently, Aunty Betty was not the only one upset as there was an uproar about it from other residents as other graves were damaged in the process.[5]
In 1928, the Uralla Times recorded that Mum was in 1st class and Aunty Betty in Kindergarten. They were both their respective class champions. [6] My mother’s second and third toes were webbed up to the top joint on both feet and she used to sit on them in school as she was self-conscious about them – no doubt the other kids teased her. She didn’t feel totally different though as her Uncle Tom Tincknell had webbed fingers.
In 1931 Mum was in fifth class and came second in the half-yearly exams while in 1932, Mum and her brother Bill were both amongst 34 candidates for their final primary school examinations which they passed.[7]
Moving on to high school, in 1933 the Uralla Times recorded that Domestic Science examinations had been held in cookery and laundry and Mum was a 1st year candidate.[8]
While at school, Mum also turned her hand to sports reporting. The following article appeared in the local paper in 1934 concerning an inter-house vigaro match:
DRUMMOND HOUSE v. TRICKETT HOUSE
By Joan Scott
The second match in the Junior Vigaro House competitions took place last Friday. A light shower early in the afternoon laid the dust and conditions were perfect.
Drummond House won the toss and the innings was opened by Fay Willard. Vera Meridith was batting well when she was bowled by Roma Muir for 6 runs. Zelle Scott and Roma Muir did all the damage with the ball for their respective sides. Zelle hit well also, but she bowls much better. Beth Cameron is another good bowler. The best all round player on the field was Gladys Dixon who dismissed Jan Dixon a very promising batsman, for the total of 7 runs.
The end of the match witnessed scenes of intense enthusiasm. Drummond House had scored 21 runs in their innings and Trickett House slowly but surely wiped off the deficit until only one run was needed for victory. Before this could be gained, however, the last wicket fell and the match ended in a draw of 21 each.[9]
While attending to her studies, Mum was often not at school. Being the eldest girl, she often had to stay home and help with the household chores. She told me that it always fell to her as Aunty Betty used to break things. Later in life Mum thought that Aunty Betty might have been deliberately clumsy so that their mother would not want her to help and was annoyed at her own naivety.[10]
GROWING UP
Mum seemed to have mostly good memories of growing up in Uralla. I know it wasn’t all roses as they didn’t have much money once the Great Depression hit and there were mouths to feed but they seemed to do OK. There were rabbits around and the boys went with their father shooting them. There were also a lot of fruit trees from which they would pick fruit. Despite these hard times, the Uralla Times carried mentions of food donations from the Scott children for the hospital and other appeals organized by the school.
Mum told me that she didn’t get a real doll until she was 12 or 13 years old and that her two younger sisters got one too at the same time. It was a porcelain doll but Mum said she was actually past dolls by then. Even so she thought it was nice she was included. Prior to that Mum had always carried around a brick wrapped in a piece of cloth as her doll.
The family had pets, two dogs that I know of by the name of Snow and Towser that belonged to them in 1936. I don’t know if they had a cat as well but probably not as my grandmother was not fond of them.
Scott family dogs Snow and Towser, Uralla. 25 September 1936
Nicknames were part of life in the Scott family. Joan acquired the nickname of Domie in which the “o” sound is the same as that in woman. It came about because her father referred to her as “little woman”. Elder brother, Bill, could not pronounce “w” and he used to call her “little doman”. It stuck. Also, the interchange of names – Harry, their father, being called Henry and son, Henry being called Harry could be confusing and this trend continued down to some in the next generation.
These are Mum’s siblings:
Bertram Harkas Lloyd (19/3/1914 – 9 June 1969 ) Bert took the name Scott as Pop Scott raised him.
Harkas Francis (known as Jack) Lloyd (28/5/1917 – 23/7/1948) who remained Lloyd
William Arthur (Bill) (6/3/1920 – Nov 1972)
Betty (18/4/1922 – 9 Feb 2009)
Zelle (aka Tiny) (11/3/1924 – 17 Sept 1976)
Henry James (aka Harry or Young’un or Binti) (21/3/1925 – 22 Jan 1990)
George Albert (7/1930). Sadly George died in September 1930 at a few months of age from Pneumonia.
When the children were in their late teens and early twenties, the ones remaining at home and their mother moved to Sydney, living at Kogarah. My grandfather remained in Uralla until he had a stroke and then he moved into the home at Kogarah so that my Grandmother could look after him.
Mum’s father, Pop Scott (Harry James Scott), Zelle, Mum and Henry Xmas 1940 Garden St Kogarah. Aunty Betty quipped on the back “Pop looks as if he owns Australia & not only Sydney”
Mum told me she was not allowed out to dances and the like until she was 19 and then her two younger sisters were allowed to go too but they had to take Henry with them as well to chaperone. Mum told me how unfair she thought this was that her sisters didn’t have to wait until they were 19 and also that it was unfair that when she did get married, it had to be a dry wedding at the instruction of her mother but that restriction did not apply to her sister, Betty, who married not long after.
Mum with her brother Henry and sister Betty in August 1941 when Mum was 20.
Betty and Joan Scottdate unknown“Alf, Ray, Joan & myself [Betty] taken all night dance in Hurstville on New Years Eve 1940”
Once Mum was allowed out though she seemed to have a great time and she had a large group of friends. There are many photos of her out and about having fun. A lot of the men road motorbikes and the girls would ride pillion on their outings. Mum and Aunty Betty seemed to mix with the same crowd and she kept in touch with some of them after she married my father. I remember Laurie (Laurel Pearl Hodgson nee Goodman) was her best friend in those days and her husband was Frederick (Freddo as he was known). Also, Vic Moreton and his wife were another couple that Mum kept in touch with over the years.
Photos above: Mum obviously pretending that she was going to lift. Out on a picnic with friends – Mum shading her eyes, next to her Vic Moreton and behind is her future sister-in-law Elva Hay (nee Jeayes) and Ted Hay. Bicycling – siblings Henry and Betty, Mum and Max Kleindiest who lived at Hurstville but they also knew from Uralla.
In January 1943, when Mum was 21 years old, the Uralla Times announced Mum’s engagement to Norman Wolgast of Sans Souci. [11] Norman would have been 22 years old at the time and he was in the RAAF. In 1944 he was a Leading Aircraftman (L.A.C.) when he was awarded the British Empire Medal for courage in saving the life of a pilot, despite great personal risk, by rescuing him from a burning plane.[12] Their engagement did not last though and I don’t think Mum was still engaged to him then. Mum said that she soon realised that, in her opinion, Norman just wanted a decoration for his arm so she broke it off. Many years later my Aunty Gwen put them back in touch and Mum seemed to enjoy the reminiscing but she did not keep in touch after that. Norman didn’t marry until quite late in life and he had a son called the same name as one of her Grandsons, Sadly, that marriage did not last and he was on his own again.
On the left is my mother, Joan Scott and Norman Wolgast her fiance at the time and my Aunty Elva and her first husband Ted Hay on the right.Date unknown.
The family were all into fairly harmless practical jokes. A few months after Mum’s engagement, her brother Henry enlisted in the army. He had not long before turned 18 and Mum and her sister, Betty helped pack his bag but, unbeknown to him, they had sewed pretty lace to the legs of his underpants. He did not discover this until he was in the barracks unpacking his bag and of course he was extremely embarrassed and their joke paid off.
Mum was a tailoress during the War and she worked making uniforms for the soldiers. It was during this time she met Elva Adeline Hay (nee Jeayes) who worked at the same place. It was through Aunty Elva that Mum met her future husband, my father, Ted (Edward Walker) Jeayes. I suspect many of Mum’s friends also worked in the same factory.
MARRIED LIFE
Mum and Dad married on Tuesday 28 August 1945. It was the day the Allied Occupation of Japan began after the atomic bomb had been dropped on Hiroshima and then another on Nagasaki in early August. Mum wore a blue suit with a dark brown trim and Aunty Betty was her bridesmaid in a similar style pink suit. Mum’s brother Bert gave her away. I am not sure why – perhaps Pop Scott was too frail.
Theirs was a quick honeymoon of a few days in a flat at Manly Beach and then Dad had to return to the Navy to continue his war service
Honeymoon photos at Manly Wharf and on Manly Beach August 1945. I can’t help but notice the lack of luggage. My mother certainly changed in that department over the years.Thank goodness for street photographers who took many of our family photos.
Not long after, in September 1945, Dad was posted to HMAS Hobart. He left for Japan in November and they would not have seen each other again until his return a couple of months later and his final discharge in February 1946. Dad brought home many silk tablecloths and other silk items. Unfortunately, when they moved to Queensland Dad threw them all out with other things when he cleaned up my Nana’s (Jeayes) garage that they had been using for storage. I have vague memories of seeing them there too. Mum was not impressed! The only item left is this handkerchief which, sadly, has a tear in it.
A silk handkerchief my father bought for my mother in Japan 1946.
When they were first married Mum told me they lived in a tent for a couple of months – perhaps that was until Dad went to Japan when she would have moved back with her mother. They then rented a flat and the landlord lived next door. The walls were thin so in order to have a conversation about him they nicknamed him Popeye. Later they built their own house which I think was at Caringbah but they had to sell it as they could not afford the mortgage at the time.
After the war Mum worked from home still tailoring. My grandmother had minded my brother for her for three months while she earned enough money to buy her own sewing machine – a Singer electric treadle machine. I remember Mum could make anything and she drew free hand patterns for clothes for me. Her sewing machine was off limits to me as she said it sewed too fast and she was frightened I would sew my fingers – it did go fast!
I am pretty sure that when they moved to Queensland the sewing machine was either given away or sold to a shoemaker – someone who sewed leather as an ordinary sewing machine would not be able to handle the work. That would have been in about 1972 or 1973. It was replaced with an ordinary singer sewing machine but Mum kept her cottons and other sewing supplies. I have inherited the two cotton reels below and whenever I see them they always remind me of her.
My father finished off his carpentry apprenticeship after the war and Mum used to write up his technical college notes for him. This served her in good stead for when they renovated future houses and helping out her children at times with their home projects.
Mum’s older brother Bill was a Sergeant in the army during World War 2 and later had many occupations including Ice Cream Vendor. Mum and Dad occasionally helped out with this, mainly so they could finish the run and go to the pub for a beer on the odd Saturday. Uncle Bill didn’t do particularly well in this business as he felt sorry for the kids who had no money to buy ice cream and gave them free ones. He had a huge following but, unfortunately, not many paying customers.
Mum’s brother, myUncle Bill and Aunty Gwen probably taken at the Tarren Point Bowls Club
When I was born, we were living at Davistown near Gosford. Dad had bought a milk run and Mum helped him out by driving the truck. This had been a real revelation to me as I had never known her to drive at all. I don’t think she had a licence. She probably looked after other things as well like the accounts and I think she did some of the delivering too, even when pregnant with me.
When I was still a baby, we moved to 1 Undercliff Road Harbord. It had a flat that was rented out to another small family. We had chooks in the back yard and a rabbit called Whimpy. The chook house caught fire one night and the firemen knocked on the door to tell us. I caught whooping cough as I hadn’t had all my vaccinations and we think Mum did too as she developed that same whooping a few weeks later. I think my brother had to quarantine but he would have been vaccinated and did not catch it. We moved from there when I was about 4 years old. Mum and dad moved quite a lot – buying houses, doing them up and selling them.
A modern day photo of our house at Undercliff Road.
From time to time my Granny (Scott) used to visit and she would take me down to Harbord shops when I was two or three years old. There we would go to the green grocers and Granny would buy a stack of vegetables for Mum and an ice cream cone for me. Mum told me that she had to go and see him to ask him not to sell Granny so much as we could never eat it all. Granny was used to buying enough to feed her brood of children and as she now received a pension, she thought she was rich. All the Scott children took turns of a few months to look after Granny in her old age until she needed more care than what they could provide. She would come and stay for a few months at a time and I am sure it was over a number of years.
Mum’s mother,Granny Scott (Mabel Alice Tincknell) as I remember her.
We often took Granny on picnics. They were a big part of our family social life, usually on Sundays and always with family – either Mum’s or Dad’s or both. We often went with Uncle Bill and Aunty Gwen and when I was little Uncle Bill would take me “rock climbing”. It wasn’t up huge steep cliffs but there was some climbing up and over the rocks and they seemed high to me. A picnic with Uncle Bill was always a pic a pic.
Later on in life, an interest in squash saw Mum managing the Squash Courts in Queenscliff Sydney. It had been a Picture Theatre and I believe it was bought by Mr and Mrs Swain. The Swains then turned it in to squash courts. Mum worked there pretty much full-time I think. I remember that I used to spend a lot of time there and I have a vague memory of her working nights.
The Queenscliff Picture Theatre. The small white house, No. 133, tucked in beside the building was where we lived a few years after this photo would have been taken.Photographer and date unknown
By this time, we lived next door at 133 Crown Road so I would come in after school and probably Kindy before that, but I was also left at home or I played in the street a lot too like all the other kids in those days. My older brother was probably around too playing with his friends. I was always pretty self-sufficient and independent and Mum was not far away. She was also a tough love mother so we didn’t get away with much and soon knew the boundaries. I loved to help look after the children of the mothers who were playing squash and also help Mum fill drink machines and do other small jobs for her. Amongst a lot of kids, I remember a little boy called Darren and another little girl called Verity that used to be in my unofficial charge. It was at that time I decided I would like to call a future son Darren but the name morphed a little as it was a very popular name when he was born.
I also remember we had to go to Canberra once when I was about six or seven years old as there was some kind of squash championship on and Mum had to be interviewed for the radio. We stayed in a hotel (my first time ever) and I spent most of my days going up and down in the elevator. I remember being at dinner and seeing a menu and thinking of what I was going to have only to be told I was having spaghetti bolognaise, as it as the cheapest. Mum would have scrimped and saved for that holiday as she did for all our holidays.
The Swain’s sold the squash courts to John and Joan Nancarrow. Their son Cam was an up-and-coming squash player at the time and later went on to be a World Champion player with a highest ranking of 2. After Nancarrows bought the courts and Mrs Nancarrow took over receptionist duties, Mum worked as a shop assistant at Woolworths in Manly four days a week but still worked one day a week (Wednesdays) at the squash courts for many years. Somewhere along the line Mum gave up playing squash as I don’t remember her playing when we had moved up the road a bit further to 30 Crown Rd and that was when I was about eight years old. I do remember though that she used to play with Dad and I think she won more games than she lost. She hit him a couple of times with the ball, not deliberately but when he complained she would say that Dad was just too slow to move. I suspect that might be when they gave it up.
Mum knew all the great squash players of the time through working at the squash courts. I remember them too – Ken Hiscoe, Geoff Hunt, Heather McKay were often around or topics of conversation in our house. Mum kept in touch with the Nancarrow family for many years and she had many friends from those days.
Family holidays were always organised by Mum and she paid for them out of her wages. Sometimes we went to the Blue Mountains in winter but at Xmas it was Avoca Beach and later Terrigal where we used to camp at the Skillion. They liked it there so much Dad bought a caravan and left it there permanently for weekends and holidays so he could go fishing whenever he liked. He had a small trawler moored in the bay as well called Lynette J after me.
We went to Tuncurry and Foster a couple of years too with Dad’s sister, my Aunty Elva and Uncle Ron and my cousins. First year we camped in a tent but a storm came and pretty much blew it away so we had to move to a holiday house and that’s where we went the next year too. When the storm came up everyone was out fishing except Aunty Elva and Mum – we arrived back to find them hanging on the centre pole and the tent flapping around them as all the ropes and pegs had broken. Dad and Uncle Ron weren’t too popular. They used to come to Terrigal with us sometimes too.
While working at Woolworths, Mum formed some long friendships there too. She kept in touch with them all when she and Dad moved to Mooloolaba in about 1973 and again to Woodgate in about 1983. I knew them too as I used to work at Woolworths after school and in school holidays when I was at high school. Audrey Risk was probably the closest. She and her husband, Neville visited at Woodgate and sent many family photos and postcards from their travels. Others were Mrs Hazel Creighton. “Wally” Walpole and Norma Cavanagh (later Appleton). On one of Mum’s trips to Sydney they had a Woolies reunion pictured below.
“Wally” Walpole, Norma Cavanagh, Mum, Hazel Ceighton and Audrey Risk – Woolies reunion, Sydney. Date unknown.
RETIREMENT
About 1973 Mum and Dad retired to Mooloolaba. It was to be the first of many “retirements” for my father. I remember Mum being a little reluctant to leave Sydney, her job and her friends but Mum made the most of it.
At Mooloolaba, Mum was very good friends with Mary James who lived across the road in Ulmarra Crescent and her husband Col. Their daughter Kate was only little and she won the hearts of both Mum and Dad. Mary was a nurse and Col a carpenter and they had met when both worked in PNG. Mary and Mum also kept in touch until Mum passed and it was Mary who, with Col, moved up to Woodgate with their caravan in Mum and Dad’s yard so that Mary could nurse Mum in her last few months. Mary is a wonderful lady and we have always been very grateful for her kindness and help at that time.
House atUlmarra Crescent Mooloolaba
Dad’s next “retirement” was at Woodgate where Mum made more new friends. Betty lived next door with Dallas and Beryl lived a few streets away. Betty and Mum would spend time on the beach and Mum used to walk with her or on her own up to Walkers point and back every day along the sand. This was how Mum came to collect shells. She had a huge collection including many balers that covered the whole sideboard and beyond.
Mum’s shelll collection at Woodgate
While living the retirement life at Woodgate, Mum used to get tired of the isolation as there was only a Post Office/general store, a caravan park and another shop up towards Walker’s Point and that closed not long after they moved there. They had to go to Childers or Bundaberg for groceries, other shopping and banking and Mum didn’t drive. So, Mum started to travel by McCafferty’s coaches or the XPT train to Sydney and visit her brother, Harry and sister Betty at Attunga or my brother at Crescent Head or friends in Sydney. She would also come and stay with me in Brisbane on her travels. She would be away for probably four to six weeks at a time, sometimes longer. Other times, especially in school holidays she would have one or two of my children come and stay for a while and she would take them for walks and show them all the natural wonders that the average tourist to Woodgate might not see. They would go fishing with my Dad as well. This was a great help to me as well as their father and I were both working. During this time, we also had a regular supply of mackerel and sand crabs that Dad caught and Mum would freeze for us.
78 The Esplanade Woodgate.
In July 1985 Mum and my Aunty Vi (Mum’s sister-in-law Violet Scott) decided to take a round trip holiday on the grand old lady of the skies, the Gooney Bird (Douglas DC-3). They convened at my house in Woody Point ready to catch the flight the next day when we heard the news of a siege at the airport. They thought we were making it up at first.
Fortunately, all was well the next day and they were able to take their holiday.
Mum and Aunty Vi on their Gooney Bird Holiday 1985
It was supposed to be the Gooney Bird’s last flight and it took them north from Brisbane to Charters Towers, Cairns, across to Darwin, down to Alice Springs, Ayers Rock and back home to Brisbane again. They stopped at many places along the way and had a great time seeing the sights and the history of the places they visited. Mum had a map of Australia on the wall at Woodgate where she traced out their journey.
Mum at Woodgate with her map of Australia in the background
In about 1986 Mum was diagnosed with breast cancer. From memory, she had been in Sydney where she had been given a face lift courtesy of Medicare at the time. Mum had lost a lot of weight and she used to watch Beauty and the Beast on TV where the topic often came up. The panelist, Dita Cobb had them regularly and Mum used her same surgeon. He did do a very good job too. Apparently, lots of people wrote and asked for Dita’s surgeon’s name. I think Mum had been back for a check-up and she had noticed a lump. Anyway, Mum had a mastectomy in Sydney and although she looked into chemotherapy and radiation treatment, she decided against it. Mum made a good recovery.
Once she was well again, Mum continued her travels by coach and train and her visits to family and friends. My family and that of my brother would also spend enjoyable holidays at their place on the Esplanade at Woodgate. Mum loved having her family visit and she particularly enjoyed spending time with her grandchildren.
A few years later a spot was noticed on her lungs and it was watched for a few years before it began to grow. This was metastatic cancer and eventually Mum became very ill and that was when her long-time friend Mary, mentioned earlier, stepped in to give her palliative care at home. Sadly, Mum passed away on 3 February 1996 in Childers hospital where she had been admitted a few days before. Aunty Betty was her only remaining sibling still alive and I remember Mum once saying to her that she didn’t want to be the last. As were her wishes, Mum was cremated and her ashes were spread by Dad at the rose garden at the Bundaberg Crematorium. A memorial to her is on the plaque where my father was buried at Pinaroo Cemetery in Brisbane as were his wishes. Mum was 74 years old. Rest in Peace Mum, I miss you.
.
[1] Ian Handley, The Land of the McCrossins, A History of Uralla, Ian Handley, 197?
[2] Conversation with my cousin, John Scott son of William Arthur Scott at his house 17 Maitland St Uralla in approx., 2004/2005
Above “Flora” 1852 by Artist Lorenz Petersen (1803 – 1870)
As mentioned in my previous post, in 1854 the Bastable family decided to leave Ireland to seek a better life in Australia. These are some notes about the voyage and arrival of the passengers aboard the Flora.
Embarking at Birkenhead Docks, the passengers sailed to Australia aboard a 728-ton ship called Flora that left Liverpool on 28th December 1854 . The Flora was built of hackmatack, birch and pine in Saint John, New Brunswick, Canada in 1837 and underwent some repairs in 1852 when yellow metal was used to sheath it to improve her speed. The Flora could carry 300 emigrants in uncrowded accommodation and was advertised as a first class and fast sailing ship.[1] Arriving in Adelaide on Saturday 7th April 1855, 310 passengers had embarked on the voyage to begin a new life under the command of Captain James Withers.
Upon arrival, the Flora was anchored in stream and the passengers were put ashore by lighter. The vessel remained in stream until it was brought to Prince’s Wharf on 10 May to unload cargo. It returned to stream on 23rd May and sailed for Calcutta on 24th May with no passengers.
During the voyage there were seven births and seven deaths, including that of three children who were already in an advanced state of disease when they boarded the ship. Two other children passed away, one who had been born aboard ship, and one adult who died of pneumonia. A note beside his name says that he had ‘a constitution considerably impaired by drunkenness’. The Surgeon Superintendent reported that there was diarrhoea among the children in the first and middle parts of the journey. Catarrh, Fever and Influenza appeared as they advanced from the warm weather to the higher latitudes with Southerly winds being prevalent.[2]
The owners, John Bonus and Son, were paid by the Emigration Commissioners the sum of seventeen pounds, four shillings and nine pence for each passenger 14 or over and half that amount for each passenger under 14.[3]
The Emigration Agent, on arrival of the ship, commented:
that the ship was well adapted for the conveyance of immigrants, that the immigrants had no complaints and their conduct was satisfactory with no corporal punishment necessary.
He also stated:
that they were in generally good health and that they appeared a generally eligible class for the Colony except for the single women who are too exclusively Irish.[4]
Obviously the women were judged solely by their nationality, as seemed common at the time.
Among the passengers were various tradesmen needed in the Colony including Carpenters, Blacksmiths, Joiners, Sawyers, Bricklayers, Miners, Masons, a Cartwright, a Quarryman and many Labourers with female Domestic Servants, Farm Servants, Seamstresses, Laundresses and one Dairy Maid.[5]
Some of the passengers were employed on board the ship in various roles including Schoolmaster, Matron and Sub-matron, Nurse, Constables, Cook and assistant Cook and Baker. The Baker was to supply the Emigrants twice a week with soft bread on Wednesdays and Fridays in lieu of 4 days allowance of flour. This bread was to be baked on Tuesday and Thursday, as it was not to be eaten new. On every other day of the week the oven was to be heated for baking food, which the Emigrants may have themselves prepared, for any three consecutive hours as fixed by the Surgeon Superintendent. This food was to be baked by the Baker. When the Bakehouse and Oven were not in use they were to be left thoroughly clean and locked up with the key kept in the Baker’s possession. Remuneration for this position consisted of a free steerage passage and a gratuity of three pounds payable in the Colony, provided his duties were discharged to the satisfaction of the Surgeon Superintendent and the Local Authorities. Failure to do so required that no gratuity would be paid and repayment of the cost of passage, which was nineteen pounds, from the Bond which had been given to the Crown.[6]
The day after their arrival was noted in the newspaper, the following article appeared referring to the new arrivals:
By the arrival of the Flora, the Lady McDonald, and the Northern Light above one thousand souls were on Saturday last added to the population of this province. Most, it not all, of these new arrivals left their native country in search of brighter fortunes on these shores. Most, if not all, of this multitude surveyed with beating hearts and rising hopes the long-desired country then outspread before them. We bid them all a hearty welcome, and wish them every success in life.
Our new fellow-colonists will not, however, feel themselves annoyed, or think any less favourably of the land of their adoption, if we admonish them that at the outset of their colonial life, they must hold themselves prepared for a certain measure of disappointment. The circumstances of their arrival will necessarily entail temporary inconvenience. To many, however, this will be no disappointment at all, because they will have come hither fully prepared to encounter a little jostling and roughing to begin with. They heard before leaving Eng-land that South Australia presented a remunerative market for the labour of the working man; but they also heard that it might demand the exercise of forbearance, moderation, and firm perseverance in order to gain a footing. That footing once secured, the rest is easy. We are anxious, therefore, that the new arrivals should summon all their courage and prepare themselves manfully to grapple with whatever present difficulties may surround them, not doubting that they will soon take root in the soil, and draw from the resources of the colony a steady, adequate, and independent living.
The first few months will be the hardest, both on account of ordinary and extraordinary causes. Ordinarily the influx of a thousand people into a city of less than twenty thousand must produce a temporary derangement. If all Birmingham were to be poured into London — men, women, and children — all entering at once, all at once demanding food, house-room, employment, and wages, it would not be greater in proportion than the present influx to Adelaide. Our new friends will therefore see at a glance that their arrival in such force must necessitate arrangement before they can all be comfortably settled, and the more so as other large influxes of immigrants have preceded at brief intervals.
We say again, the colony is large enough for all; but settlement is not effected simultaneously with arrival. Adelaide is the port of disembarkation for the whole colony, and it is not one part, but every part of the colony that offers a home to the immigrant. Therefore, al-though landed, the new comer must consider himself as having yet one other stage of his preliminary business to fulfil — he must find his location. And to do this will require good heart, patience, and enterprise.
We said that just now there were not only ordinary, but extraordinary causes of passing difficulty. The new arrivals may not all have learned as yet that the past twelve months have been the most remarkable in respect of weather of any recorded in the history of the province. A winter of unprecedented drought has been followed by a summer of unusual and protracted warmth, which has only just left us, although we have been already favoured with copious and invaluable showers of rain. The result of the combined drought and heat of the past year has been to reduce our harvest to far below average, in many districts destroying it altogether, so that trade is somewhat depressed by the failure of the cropland, the price of meat is enhanced by the drying up of the pasturage.
There are other reasons affecting the high price of provisions, but all this our new friends will find out in due course. Our present object is to show them that they have landed just after a bad season, creating, with over-importation and other causes, mercantile depression, and necessarily rendering their first experience of colonial life less cheering than it would have been under more auspicious antecedents. Our position, however, is thoroughly sound, financially and socially. We have already the prospect of an abundant and early harvest, so far as a most favourable seed time gives hope to the reaper.
Even now there are symptoms of improvement in general trade; and the markets of Melbourne and Sydney, by the tone of which our own is very sensibly affected, are steadily improving. We have passed through a trying time, though we have had no panic. Our new citizens must therefore do them-selves and the colony the justice to bear all these things in mind, and to remember also that a more hopeful complexion is gradually being assumed by the various interests of the province.
New comers frequently manifest a preference to remain in or about town; but the result of our own observation and experience clearly proves that very many, now indifferently off in Adelaide, would have been worth money had they gone up the country. If an immigrant fails to obtain suitable employment in the city, let him at once try the country. In the country many of our wealthiest colonists have amassed all their property; and the life of the country is the only true colonial life.
It has never been said that Adelaide could absorb all the surplus labour of England, but that Australia could. We have an immense territory only needing to be developed, and the wealth of the colony consists in the development of its soil. In respect of the current rate of wages, it is to be hoped that new arrivals will not feel themselves unwilling to engage for such rates of remuneration as circumstances allow of being paid, and that any difficulty felt in consequence of the present high cost of living may be endured man-fully, until the advancing season shall increase our command over the various necessaries of life.
At the present moment we trust the Government will see the desirableness of prosecuting with energy those public works for which the votes of the Legislature have been taken. Every effort is needed to provide temporary employment for the people; and in the formation of our roads and great public undertakings a legitimate and profitable field of employment is presented. Old colonists may do much to advise and encourage young ones; and we trust the new arrivals of the past few days may fall into the hands of judicious and useful friends.
The colony may not, after all, realize all the sanguine expectations of home ; but those who have left England in search of a land where ‘ labour stands on golden feet,’ and ‘ a fair day’s wage’ is given for ‘ a fair day’s work,’ will not regret the day of their arrival in south Australia. We have thought it desirable to hazard these few remarks for the encouragement of those who, recently arrived amongst us, may be harassed by the contemplation of imaginary or temporary difficulties ; but whose prospects in this land are in reality ten times brighter than they could have been in the land which they have left. [7]
I wonder if this was the first the passengers knew or were they informed before they left that there was a considerable effort required on their part. My family quickly moved on to another State and so quickly that I suspect that may have been their intention from the start. Perhaps many others did too.
[1] F. Chuck, The Somerset Years, The Book Printer, Maryborough, Victoria, 1987, p. 178.
[2] Various papers and reports regarding voyage per ship Flora arriving Adelaide S.A. 8 April 1855, Public Record Office, Adelaide, S.A. GRG 35/48/1855.
My ancestors came from many walks of life and many counties of Ireland and the United Kingdom. Several of my ancestral families came to Australia but not all did by their own choice. One family that did come by choice was the Bastable family and their story, while not complete, begins with my Great, Great Grandfather Arthur Bastable.
Arthur was variously described as a carpenter or pattern maker from County Cork in Ireland. He was the son of George Bastable and Jane Bourke who were married at Mourne Abbey on 8th January 1811[1]. Arthur was baptised there in 1812, as was his sister, Jane in 1814[2]. Mourne Abbey is situated about 5 miles south of the village of Mallow where Arthur was born.[3]
The surname Bastable is interesting in itself. Obviously of English origin it is said to be a corruption of the town of Barnstaple in Devonshire. There is also a Bastable pot or oven which is a three-legged cooking pot, that looks rather like a Dutch oven. It is placed over the fire in the hearth and is used to make stews and roasts, but also to bake a Bastable loaf or as it is sometimes called, a Bastable cake. I wonder how it came to be called a Bastable – did one of my ancestors make them?
Getting back to Arthur, as is the case with most people’s ancestors, there has been no information come to light on Arthur’s childhood nor his early adulthood. It does appear that he was reasonably well educated though and he certainly could read and write. So, we know nothing from the time of his baptism until he was about 30 years old and marrying in the Parish Church of Ballyclough. I can confidently speculate though that he would have been learning his trade and that would have probably taken seven years.
Arthur was married by license on 19th Feb 1842 to Catherine Ludgate.[4] Catherine had been baptised in Kilshannig by Mallow on 28th Dec 1817 and was the daughter of Michael Ludgate and his wife Elizabeth.[5] From the marriage of Catherine and Arthur three surviving children were born in Kilshannig, two daughters Jane in 1844, Kate in 1846 and a son, my Great Grandfather, George Ludgate Bastable born in 1847.[6]
These were the years of the Irish famine and Mallow was one area hit particularly hard. People were clamouring at the workhouse doors for food and the dead and dying lay about in the ditches. Typhus was also rife in some places. The winter of 1846/7 was the worst ever and soup kitchens were started to help feed the starving masses. The workhouses also raged with fever. In 1848 Cholera was taking its toll.
In 1849 another child, Charles Arthur was born. The Bastables lived through this horror until unfortunately Catherine and her infant son Charles succumbed, probably either to starvation or fever or both. Catherine was buried 5th Sept 1849 and Charles, aged just 6 months was buried 12 days later on 17th September 1849.[7] Sadly, one wonders whether baby Charles died from starvation after his mother died as there was probably no wet nurse to feed him.
Arthur was then left as a widower with several small children to care for three until three years later when he married Mary Ann Burchill on 14th September 1852 in Fermoy Ireland. Who helped him until then? Perhaps his family helped out. Mary Ann was born in 1823 at Desert Serges, Bandon the daughter of Thomas Burchill, a farmer. She had previously been a lady’s maid. [8] Arthur and Mary Ann’s son, Arthur was born in Ireland in about 1853.[9]
Above “Flora” 1852 by Artist Lorenz Petersen (1803 – 1870)[10]
In 1854 the family decided to leave Ireland, perhaps to seek a better life in Australia. They journeyed from Liverpool on 28th December 1854 embarking at Birkenhead Docks aboard a 728-ton ship called Flora pictured above. Arriving in Adelaide on Saturday 7th April 1855, they and another 300 or so passengers had embarked on this voyage, under the command of Captain James Withers. [11]
Arthur had worked as the Hospital Assistant to Surgeon Superintendent, Herbert W Swayne on the voyage. It is assumed that, like other passengers employed on the journey, he was also entitled to free steerage passage as well as the sum of three pounds that he was paid upon satisfactory attention to his duties.[12] This sum no doubt helped to pay their steerage passage aboard the Swordfish departing on 25th April and arriving in Melbourne on 10th May 1855.[13] They then boarded another ship believed to be the Hellespont, another regular on the coastal run that departed Melbourne 23rd May and arrived in Sydney on Friday 8th June 1855.[14] Mary Ann must have found the travelling difficult, not only with 4 children to care for but also as she would have been very pregnant, for on 9th July 1855 in Sydney there was the birth of another son, Charles.[15] I have to say that finding them arriving in South Australia was a big surprise. I knew they were in Sydney in 1855 and so I only looked in NSW and Victoria for their arrival. It was by accident, thumbing through the index, that I found them in the Biographical Index of South Australians1836 – 1885. Figuring out how they got to Sydney also took a bit of time to research too, painstakingly searching through shipping notices in newspapers.
Why they did not stay in Adelaide is not clear. Perhaps they were so desperate to get out of Ireland they took the first ship heading this way. The Gold Rush was on at that time and so passages were in demand as people flocked to the goldfields of Australia. Perhaps they arrived in Adelaide, which was a very young settlement at the time, and conditions were not as they had expected. Food would have been expensive and comforts scarce. They may have also realised that they were not going to make their fortune on the goldfields and headed to Sydney the best way they could. Cities were experiencing an extreme shortage of labour due to the mass exodus to the goldfields and Arthur’s skills as a carpenter would probably have been in demand in the growing city. Whatever the reason, Sydney seems to have suited them.
The family settled in the Sydney suburb of Ashfield, which at that time was very much a rural area with small farms and market gardens and still had some areas of virgin bush. Here several more children were born to them, though not all survived. Arthur’s occupation was described as a fitter at the time of his death in 1875, however in the first Ashfield Rate Book of 1872 and the one for 1873 he is shown as owning and occupying a brickyard on his land.[16] The claypit that he used to make his bricks would have been on the nearby creek bank. Birch Villa was the family home and it appears from the rate books to have been built in 1873, most probably from bricks Arthur made himself.[17]Birch Villa was a two-storey house of ‘six (main) rooms and attics, built of brick and roofed with slates containing about 4 ½ acres of grounds.’[18]
When I was doing my research it was speculated that the house was most likely ‘built in the Victorian Rustic Gothic Style, with a steeply pitched roof with dormer windows, and two tall chimneys on the western end gable wall.’[19] However, the house that is there now and advertised by real estate at 18A Frederick Street as Birch Villa built 1890 is quite different.[20] I tend to think it may be the original house built 1873, not 1890 and although it has an attic, I don’t believe it was built quite as speculated or else there is a possibility it is not the original Birch Villa at all. There has been a lot of development in the area and street names have changed. A few streets away is a street named Bastable Street.
The assessable annual value of this property was 30 pounds in 1874 but there is no mention of the brickyard so it is unclear what his source of income was after that.[21] Perhaps he used his skills in carpentry and patternmaking to earn his income. He quite possibly had a tool chest like this one.
Above and below a 19th century Patternmakers Tool chest owned by C A Jewett. Photos Patrick Leach, 1995 with permission. [22]
Arthur bought the four lots that were part of the Ashfield Estate, which made up the grounds of Birch Villa on 4th October 1872.[23] He also mentions in his Will two other properties, some land of 31 ¼ perches in South Kingston and a house in Denison Street, North Kingston.[24] So it appears Arthur & Mary had done very well financially.
Arthur passed away 31st January 1875 at Birch Villa aged 62 years and he is buried in St John’s Church of England Cemetery at Ashfield.[25] Mary Ann, his wife passed away 4th December 1913 aged 80 years. She was still living at Birch Villa at the time and is also buried at St John’s Church Cemetery.[26]
[1] Ancestry.com – Online Genealogy, Irish Records Index, 1500-1920, 596422 2627, p. 24 6 of 8 (accessed 2 Feb. 2000). http://www.ancestry.com/
[3] Marilyn Rowan, Transcription Agent, Death Registration Transcription of Arthur Bastable, died 31 January 1875, Register Births Deaths and Marriages NSW, 1875/2905
[4] Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, Parish Registers of the Church of Ireland, Ballyclough, County Cork, Ireland, Marriage of Arthur Bastable and Catherine Ludgate, married 19 Feb 1842, Film Number 597159.
[5] Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, International Genealogical Index, 1994 Edition Version 3.04, Batch & Sheet C700351
[6] South Australian Genealogy and Heraldry Society Inc., Biographical Index of South Australians 1836-1885, South Australian Genealogy and Heraldry Society Inc., Adelaide, SA 1986, entry under Bastable.
[7] Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, Parish Registers of the Church of Ireland, Ballyclough, County Cork, Ireland, Marriage of Arthur Bastable and Catherine Ludgate, married 19 Feb 1842, Film Number 597159.
[8] Mallow Parish Centre, Parish Database Records, Parish Registers of the Church of Ireland, Kilworth, County Cork, Ireland, Marriage of Arthur Bastable and Mary Anne Burchill, married 14 September, 1852, p. 7.
[9] South Australian Genealogy and Heraldry Society Inc., loc. cit.
[11] South Australian Genealogy and Heraldry Society Inc., loc. cit.
[11] Various papers and reports regarding voyage per ship Flora arriving Adelaide S.A. 8 April 1855, Public Record Office, Adelaide, S.A. GRG 35/48/1855.
[13] Shipping Intelligence Column, The Age – Melbourne, Friday 11 May 1855, p 4.
[14] Shipping Intelligence Column, The Sydney Morning Herald, 8 June 1855.
[15] Marilyn Rowan Transcription Agent, Baptism (Early Church Records) Transcription of Charles Bastable born 9 July 1855 baptised 5 Aug 1855, Registrar of Births Deaths and Marriages NSW, Vol 42B No 4209.
[16] Chris Pratten, Secretary Ashfield & District Historical Society, pers. comm., 4 March 2000.
[25] Marilyn Rowan, Transcription Agent, Death Registration Transcription of Arthur Bastable, died 31 January 1875, Registrar of Births Deaths and Marriages NSW, 1875/2905.
[26] Marilyn Rowan Transcription Agent, Death Registration Transcription of Mary Ann Bastable, died 4 December 1913, Registrar of Births Deaths and Marriages NSW, 1913/16146.
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