Hello Everyone! Continuing my Family History Month content, this week I'm sharing more stories from my family tree! In my last post, I talked about murder and manslaughter. This time, I'm toning it down just a little and talking about just a few of my ancestors who've journeyed from their homeland to Australia - one of their own accord, and two at the hand of the law. These stories are not unique, and the chances are you've got a very similar story lurking in your own family trees, but they're still stories worth telling. shipped off... We start our story in London, England with the trial of Thomas Roker Alexander Gosper in April 1787. Born on 10 May 1768 to parents Thomas Gosper and Jane Worton, Thomas grew up in Rotherhithe, a hamlet on the river Thames and part of the London's docklands. In 1787 Thomas, along with Thomas Gaskin and William Stewart, were indicted for 'feloniously cutting, damaging, and spoiling at Rotherhithe, a headfast affixed to a certain vessel, called a lighter... the property of Edward Thorne and James Ogle.' Put simply, they cut three pieces of rope to the value of twenty shillings. While not an unusual crime for the time, the punishment was still a hefty one - transportation for seven years to Australia. Our second story is a very similar one, and their connection you'll soon discover. Mary Ann Hipwell was born c. 1765 in England, with her name hitting London newspapers in 1790 when she was tried for larceny. She was accused of stealing silver and jewellery from Elizabeth Tyndale, alongside a Benjamin Colburn. Benjamin was found not guilty (although would eventually be bound for Botany Bay as a convict), Mary was found 'guilty of stealing goods to the value of one shilling". She was sentenced to transportation for seven years to Australia. Thomas' transportation was aboard Suprize, one of the ships to make up the Second Fleet. Transportation was horrendous. The smallest ship in the fleet, the Surprize suffered badly in rough seas and heavy gales, with the 256 male convicts enduring poor living conditions for 158 days before arriving at Port Jackson in June 1790. Mary's journey aboard Mary Ann was very similar. Mary Ann, part of the Third Fleet, carried 150 female convicts, spending 143 days at sea, arriving at Port Jackson in July 1791. Although carrying fewer convicts, they still suffered in cramped and unhygienic conditions, surviving on less than minimum rations. Neither would have been prepared for the land they disembarked onto. Thomas took up farming, becoming one of the first men to settle on the fertile land along the Hawkesbury River. In November 1794, he was granted 30 acres on the heavily timbered land on the river's western bank. By 1801, he had cleared nearly all his land, 21 acres of which were growing wheat and maize. He also acquired a goat and eight hogs. Meanwhile, Mary became involved with fellow Third Fleet convict Richard Reynolds, the couple having a son Edward in 1794. It's at this point that Thomas and Mary's paths crossed - Mary deserted Richard for Thomas, bringing her son with her. Richard eventually married and had eleven children, one of whom went on to marry one of Thomas and Mary's sons. Thomas and Mary went on to have four children - Thomas jnr in 1789, John in 1801, Joseph in 1804 (whom I am descended from), and James in 1805. In August 1803, Thomas was granted 100 acres and it is assumed the family made their home at Freeman's Reach. The 1822 Convict Muster indicated that Thomas was farming 86.5 acres, had four horses, 30 cattle, 50 pigs, and a convict servant. All his sons were still living on the property, with the youngest two still helping their father, while the older two were farming on their own account. Thomas received a Certificate of Freedom on 29 September 1810, and just seven weeks later, on 9 November, Thomas and Mary were officially married at St. Matthew's Church of England in Windsor. It seems that Thomas may have wanted to be a free man before he married. In 1827, Thomas sold his original 30-acre property, and in 1833 he sold his Freeman's Reach property, severing all ties with the Hawkesbury. By this time, all his sons were settles on the Colo. At the age of 72, Mary passed away on 23 August 1837. A widowed Thomas would live another decade before passing away on 21 September 1847 at the age of 79. Both were buried in the Colo Valley, but the site is no longer known as it was never marked before the landscape had been altered. From growing up in the slums of London, surviving the horrors of transportation and the hardships of the early days of the colony, the Gosper family went on to become pioneers of the Hawkesbury region. According to 'Gosper Connections: A Genealogy of Thomas Roker Alexander Gosper and Mary Ann Hipwell', published in 1998, Thomas and Mary have at least 14,787 known descendants, a number that's definitely grown in the last twenty years. a new beginning... Jumping over a couple of branches and to the end of the nineteenth century we meet William Hamson, my great-grandfather, born 20 October 1892 in Hoby, England. William was the fifth of seven children born to William Hamson and Sarah Mayfield, two of whom would eventually make a new life in Australia. In July 1912, William and his older brother George boarded the ship 'Rangatira' in London, bound for Sydney, Australia. On his journey, William kept a diary, writing the following about his departure from London and his arrival in Sydney: Boarded the "Rangale" [sic] Royal Albert Docks, London on the 26th day of July in the year 1912, bound for Australia. Landed at Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, on the 11th day of September after a voyage of six weeks and five days. Having farmed in England, William and George headed south, towards the Victorian border, to take up farming pursuits. William writes in his diary: Left Sydney on the 13th of September and arrived at Hopefield, Corowa on the 14th, started to work for Messrs A. & J. Willis, Greenbank, Hopefield. Left there on the 5th day of April 1914 after a stay of 81 weeks. Wages drawn £99 7s. Started to work for Mr P. Cameron, Shannanvale, Corowa on the 6th day of April 1914. During World War One, when many young men enlisted in the war, like George did, William stayed on the land. In 1917, the Great Strike struck, which saw around 100,000 men across New South Wales, Victoria and Queensland walk off the job in protest of the new labour costing system. Initially among railway men, it wasn't long before miners, wharf-labourers, coal-lumpers, seamen and marine stewards, carters, trolley and daymen, ship painters and dockers, and meatworkers joined the fight. To counter this, the state and federal governments organised strikebreakers - middle class men who were described as 'volunteers' and mainly from rural areas - to ensure the ship, rail and mine operations could continue. William, along with several farmers from the region, enlisted their services, helping to unload ships during the strike. In 1921, William purchased 501 acres at Balldale, near Corowa, the property eventually known as 'Angelside'. It was during this time that he became involved with Violet Johns, the youngest daughter of Richard and Fanny Johns, who resided in the Oaklands district. In August 1924, William wrote a letter to his youngest brother, Harold, back in England, writing: I don't suppose you will ever come out here. The only thing out here as is any good is farm work, all the other class of work is over supplied with men at present and they are always on strike or something it wrong with them. He also mentioned he was working eight horses in a four-furrow plough but able to sit on it. William and Violet were married in Balldale in September 1923. Together, they had two children - Kenneth in November 1925 and Keith in November 1926. Sadly, a month later, Violet died as a result of appendicitis and peritonitis, leaving William with two children under 14 months. Violet's mother, Fanny, and sister May were on hand to help William raise his boys while also tending to his farm. In 1928, William sold his Balldale property, moving to 'Strathallan' in Urangeline, near Lockhart. Two years later, he married May, with the two welcoming a son, William, in 1933. William was an active member of the Urangeline district, becoming heavily involved in the Farmers & Settlers' Association, Peace Hall committee, and the Wheatgrower's Union, all the while continuing to farm on Strathallan and raise his three boys. William, May and William Jnr eventually moved south to 'Carlyle' near Mulwala in the early 1950s, with William remaining there until his passing in 1968 at the age 76. Thomas, Mary and William are just three of my ancestors who've made the journey to Australia. Thanks to transportation and immigration, by ancestral roots lie in England, Scotland, Ireland, Italy and Span, and that's just what I know about so far - there's still plenty to uncover! With more stories to tell, there's sure to be another installment in this series, so stay tuned! See You Soon! Victoria :) |
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