The Story of Joseph Edward Browning / Memories ... February 14

This post tells the story of my paternal 2x Great Grand Uncle, Joseph Edward Browning  (1845 - 1919).

Our common ancestors are: William Henry Browning and Anne (Nancy) Littlejohns.

I'm publishing this post on the anniversary of his birth.

 Anniversary of a Birthday 

(For my 'Family Anniversaries' page)

Today is the anniversary of the birth date of the only family tree member I know for certain was born on February 14.  

• Joseph Edward (known as Joe in his adult years) was born on February 14, 1845 to father William Henry Browning and mother Anne (known as Nancy) Littlejohns.  

• Joseph's parents (my 3x great grandparents) were English immigrants who had landed in Australia in 1840 as bounty immigrants.  They already had seven children who had been born in England.  Sadly, one of their daughters had passed away before they emigrated, so they arrived in Port Jackson as a family of eight.

• Five years later, according to the Browning family bible, Joseph Edward was born at 4.00am in the morning, while the family was living in the Richmond River District.  Father William and wife Anne (Nancy) were employed by Ward Stephens as shepherds on his sheep station.  Joseph Edward would be the second of the four children born in Australia.

• The Browning family moved around quite a lot, working as shepherds or labourers on various properties in the northern areas of New South Wales, and so it was that Joseph Edward's baptism didn't occur until three months after his birth.

• Joseph was baptised on May 31st, 1845 according to the Church of England rites.  By this time, the family were in the Clarence River District.

• Most of Joseph's childhood and teenage years were spent living a nomadic life, as his father and mother worked as shepherds throughout that time.  

• By 1861 however, the family were living near Lismore on the north coast of New South Wales and both Joseph Edward and his father William were appearing before the Lismore Court!

As excerpt from the research of Esme Smith in her 2001 publication 'The Browning Story: Tracings From The Past'.

"On February 1861, William appeared before the Lismore Court to answer a summons lodged by Alexander Campbell of Tunstall Station, that he trespassed on the Tunstall run and drove cattle from the property.  The complaint was not proven and therefore dismissed by the magistrate.  On that date Joseph Browning also appeared before the same court and made a plea of guilty to trespassing and and driving a bullock from the Tunstall run.  He was fined twenty shillings and costs were awarded against him, in default of forty-eight hours imprisonment."  

(information sourced from the State Records of NSW, Deposition Book for Lismore for period 11 October 1860 to 12 December 1874)

 

• It sounds like father and son were up to no good, but Joseph Edward (aged 16) took the fall!  Cattle stealing from the large cattle stations (runs) was rife at this time, and was obviously a practice of the poor stealing from the rich for the sake of family survival.  Whilst not to be condoned, it can certainly be understand.

• When Joseph was just 18 years old (not 22 as recorded on the marriage certificate) he married Eliza Wilson who was aged 17.  They married in March of 1863 at Casino, New South Wales.  

• They began their married life at Rosehill, a logging settlement outside Lismore.  

• Rosehill was in the vicinity of Tunstall Station and while Joseph had previously been employed at Tunstall as a stockman, he was working as a sawyer, cutting cedar, at the time of his marriage.

• Joseph Edward and his wife Eliza went on to have 12 children over a period of 28 years.

          - Henry Joseph was born in 1864

          - Mary was born in 1866, but died not long after birth

          - Susanna came along in 1867

          - Joseph was born in 1870, but sadly died in 1876

          - William was born in 1873

          - Amelia came along in 1875

          - Sarah Ann came along in 1878

          - James was born in 1881

          - Samuel was born in 1883

          - Francis was born in 1889

          - Jack came along in 1890

          - then Robert was born in 1892.

• Just two years after his marriage, Joseph Edward was back in court once more, in 1865, when he was 20 years old.

• This time it was a dispute about the ownership of cut timber.  The settlement of Rosehill was near a river and once the cedar trees were cut down and trimmed, they were rolled down a chute into the river and they would then float to the mill.  Unfortunately, many disputes arose about just owned the logs once they were in the river.  Sometimes sawyers would brand their logs, but perhaps helped themselves to quite a few that weren't actually theirs!!!

• Joseph Edward went to court, taking action against a William Holman Berry, for theft.

• During the hearing, Joseph gave the following evidence:

"I am a conditional purchaser residing on Terrania Creek.  On, or about, the 1st of June a black named Jimmy Woolgary and his gin were at Rosehill wharf.  He told me he was putting on cedar for Mr. Berry.  I had the cedar planks on the wharf and I missed them.  I saw the black with the raft of Mr. Berry. 

 

I went to Mr. Berry when I missed the two planks (about a week after) and I said he had got them and had sent them to Mr. Breckenridge's sawmill.  He said he would allow my father for them.  I told him the planks had nothing to do with my father and after went to him and wanted him to settle with me for them but he would not listen to me. 

 

I served a notice on him and he called me back and said he would allow me a pound for them now and would send the stuff to Sydney and what it fetched he would give me back."

          (information sourced from the State Records of NSW, Deposition Books for Lismore, for period             11 October `860 to 12 December 1874). 

• Berry agreed to pay Joseph the cost of the cedar planks.  Joseph however was still out of pocket because of the cost of the court action. 

• At some point (I have yet to discover exactly when) Joseph ceased working as a sawyer.  He went on to work as a teamster and became a land owner. 

• By the time Joseph was 40 years old, he and Eliza were running cattle on 184 acres that they held at Rosehill.  According to the Parliamentary Return of Landholders 1885, they had 5 horses and 45 head of cattle. 

• An interesting newspaper item, written by a woman named Mrs. Mary Graham, appeared in a Lismore newspaper in 1936.  She had lived at Tunstall Station many years before and had known many of the early residents of the Lismore district very well.  The item mentions her visit to the Browning family at Rosehill in the early 1900s and talks about Joseph (who would have been in his 50s at the time):

Pencil & Wash Drawing titled 'Australian Bullock Driver' by William Strutt
Created c. 1851
Out of copyright
Held by the National Library of Australia

So ... he was a brilliant stockman who could make a fine stockwhip and wield it with expertise.

He wore snowy moleskin trousers, a Crimean shirt and finely plaited cabbage tree hats!

He would have looked something like the man depicted in this drawing done by artist William Strutt around 1851.

The distinctive cabbage tree hat was an Australian invention and very popular during the 19th century.

It was named the 'cabbage tree hat' because it was made from the leaves of the Cabbage Tree Palm.

• Joseph lived through the years of WW1 and sadly saw two of his sons march off to war, Jack and Robert.  Thankfully Robert returned, but unfortunately Jack never did.  

• Joseph and wife Eliza had received a telegram stating that their son Jack had been wounded in action in February 1917, but by the time that telegram had arrived, Jack had been killed in action in France, in March of 1917.  Such a cruel blow!

• Then tragically, in early 1919, the last of Joseph's siblings died.  By this time Joseph had experienced the passing of both his parents, all of his six sisters and three of his brothers.  Joseph must have felt the loss of his youngest brother very keenly.

• Joseph himself then passed away just a few months later in November of 1919, aged 74.

• An obituary was published in the Northern Star, the tone of which implies the respect that was held for this "old sterling type of bushman" who "was a man of unassuming nature ... always prepared to help those in distress." 

• Joseph was buried at the East Lismore General Cemetery

• He was survived by his wife Eliza and nine children.

• Joseph and his wife Eliza had been married for 56 years and upon his death, Eliza had a lovely tribute inscribed on his tomb.  I think it's fitting to read her words on the day this post is to be published - Valentine's Day.

"You are always in my thoughts dear husband. 

Tis sweet to breathe your name.  

In life I loved you dearly.  

In death I do the same."