The Story of Anne (Nancy) Littlejohns

This is the story of my paternal Great Great Great Grandmother, Anne (known as Nancy) Littlejohns (1801 - 1875).

My 3x great grandmother was baptised Anne, but was known as Nancy for most of her life.  This is apparently quite a common tradition for those of Irish heritage.

Huh???

The many peculiarities in Christian names in Ireland can apparently be divided into five different classes:
- names that can apply to both sexes
- names that are usually given to one sex, but are applied to the other
- diminutives that differ substantially from the original given name
- names which are different but for varied reasons are used interchangeably
- Irish equivalents for English names and English equivalents for Irish names


In the case of my 3x great grandmother, it seems that a common variation used for the given name of Anne, is 'Nancy'!  I just can't see the logic in it, and it seems that 'Nancy' was often used for the given name of Hannah as well!!!  It's confusing, and it certainly didn't help my research efforts.  For many years, I felt as though I had hit a brick wall, until a distant family member enlightened me about the use of 'Nancy' for those actually christened Anne.

For the purposes of this post, I shall refer to my 3x great grandmother as Anne (Nancy), using both names so it's clear for all who might be reading this story.

Anne (Nancy) was born in November of 1801.  Her father John Littlejohns was aged 29 at the time, and her mother Mary Ayears was aged 31.

St Sidwell's Parish Register - Baptisms and Burials 1772-1804

Anne (Nancy) was baptised at the same church where her father and mother had married in Exeter, Devon, England.

page from St. Sidwell's Parish Register - last entry

She was baptised at St. Sidwell's Church in Exeter on the 29th of November, 1801.

So far my research has only produced records showing six other children born to Anne's parents, John and Mary.

A boy named Henry was born in 1794, but died a month before his first birthday.
Frances (known as Fanny, which makes a whole lot more sense!) was born in 1795.
Mary Anne came along in 1797.
Jane was born in 1800 but died the same year.
John was born in early 1803, when Anne was only 1 year old.  Sadly, he died the following year, in 1804.
John Edwin was born in 1807, when Anne was 5 years old.

With the deaths of three of the Littlejohns children before Anne (Nancy) had turned 6,  Fanny, Mary Anne and John Edwin were to be Anne's (Nancy's) only siblings as she grew from a young child to an adult.  It appears that the family were quite poor and lived in impoverished circumstances for most of Anne's (Nancy's) childhood.  Father John worked as a fuller in the woollen cloth-making industry, which was not a well-paying job.

By the time Anne (Nancy) was born, in 1801, Exeter had a population of around 20,000 and was considered an important town in England.  This however changed very quickly as the industrial revolution more or less passed Exeter by, and other towns grew enormously in terms of size and economic importance.

Exeter decreased in size over the following sixty years and dwindled to becoming just a market town.  This coincided with the decline in its wool manufacture and tanning industries.  As a result, it ceased to be an important manufacturing centre and rates of unemployment grew, along with the numbers of impoverished people.

I imagine Anne (Nancy) and her siblings would have been sent out to work at a very early age.  Most likely my 3x great grandmother would have worked in one of the woollen manufacturing factories or worked as a servant / household staff.

When she was 20 years old, Anne (Nancy) married William Henry Browning in Exeter, Devon on the 28th of July 1822. On this record her name was recorded as Nancy.

You can see that Anne (Nancy) had not learned how to write her own name, as she signed her marriage record with a mark - an X.  My 3x great grandmother had not benefited from an education during her childhood, which would indicate her family was indeed very poor and most likely had no fixed address for any great period of time.  It was probably a tough childhood for Anne (Nancy).

The obligatory banns had been posted three times previous to her date of marriage, on three consecutive Sundays.  Obviously there were no objections made, so their marriage was solemnized in the presence of a James Legitt and John Marwood in 1822.



Anne (Nancy) and William Browning went on to have 11 children over the next 24 years.  The first seven of their children were all born in England, and the records of their births indicate that Anne (Nancy) and William moved quite often between Exeter in Devon, Anne's (Nancy's) home town, and Launceston in Cornwall, William's home town.  It's possible that this was the result of a constant search for work and the means to support their growing family, hence the constant moving between Anne's birthplace and William's.

Daughter Susannah was born in 1823.  She was born in Exeter.
Hannah was born in 1825, but the family had moved by then as she was born in Launceston, Cornwall.
John Thomas was born two years later in 1827, but the family was back in Exeter by then.
Caroline Penelope (my great great grandmother) was born in 1830, when Anne (Nancy) was 28 years old.

The family had fallen on really tough times by then though, as Caroline was born in the Poor House, and the family were once again back in Launceston, Cornwall.  The next three children were all born in Launceston, so it seems the family stopped moving for a while as they were likely dependent on parish relief.

William Henry was born in 1832.
Dinah was born in 1835.
Mary Anne was born in 1837.

Sadly, daughter Dinah was to pass away the following year, in 1838, when she was only aged 3.  Anne (Nancy) at the time was 37, and it appears that the family was once again living in the work house.  The living conditions they had to endure at this time might have contributed to the decline in the health of daughter Dinah, and ultimately caused her death.  I can imagine the heartache that Anne (Nancy) endured during these years as she and her husband tried to find work wherever they could, and when they couldn't, were forced to rely on parish relief and life in the poor house.

The workhouse that was in operation at this time in Launceston housed up to 40 inmates.  It was a building that had originally been a prison and the day-to-day life of the workhouse inmates would have been harsh, to say the least.

A mere 30 years previously the Quaker and prison reformer James Neild visited the workhouse in Launceston and reported that there was:

"a scene of filth, rags and wretchedness ... The large room below stairs has a mud floor; and whole families, men, women and children, pig together.  The upper room had several bedsteads in it, with the most ragged and dirty bedding I ever saw; the windows were small and close, the want of ventilation and decent cleanliness produced a stench almost insupportable.  I was in the room but a few minutes before I was seized with sickness, which obliged me to withdraw."

Nothing would have changed much by the time Anne (Nancy) and her family were living in that same workhouse.  It wasn't until 1838 that a new workhouse was built on acreage just outside Launceston.  The Browning family would not have known this newer, much larger and cleaner workhouse.

By early 1840, Anne (Nancy) and her husband William, had made the decision to take the opportunity to emigrate under what was known as the 'Bounty Scheme', leaving their country of birth to face the challenges of a new life in the far-off colony of Australia.

Anne (Nancy) and her husband were both in their late 30s when they made the decision to leave home and family and travel to the other side of the world.

I've been fortunate enough to have benefited from a lot of family tree research compiled and published by Esme Smith in her book: The Browning Story: Tracings From The Past, published in 2001.


Esme is a descendant of Anne's (Nancy's) daughter Mary Anne, whilst I am a descendant of Anne's (Nancy's) daughter Caroline Penelope.

According to Esme's book, Chapter 1 p.1 "It may have been the prevailing adversity of being poor that drove them to leave England.  Perhaps the conditions in the Poor Houses, where they had spent a number of years, were so difficult for the family that the parents were prepared to forego the known for the unknown.  The harshness of their circumstances may have caused them to believe that there was nothing to be lost in taking this journey."

Bounty Immigrant List showing William and Anne Browning and four of their children. 
 Their eldest daughters were listed separately under 'single females'.

The Browning family were members of a party of 158 assisted immigrants on board the ship 'Premier' which set sail from Plymouth, England on the 2nd of April, arriving at Port Jackson on the 1st of July 1840.  Assisted immigrants were individuals who were paid for or subsidized by another person or through an agency working on behalf of an employer in the colony.

At the time of their journey to Australia, Anne's (Nancy's) six children would have been aged between 16 and 3 years of age.  What strength of resolve and fierce willpower would a mother need to ensure the health and happiness of her children while undertaking such a voyage?

The ship did not touch land at any point on the journey, so the family would have endured a tedious three-month long trip on a crowded ship, with little food to eat and very cramped living conditions, although this would not have been a totally new experience for any member of the family really, given the time they spent living in the workhouse.  Sickness and disease were rife as well.  There was an outbreak of measles one week into the journey and the epidemic lasted for five weeks!

I can imagine the worries Anne (Nancy) must have had about whether or not her children would succumb to the disease.  Four babies did die on the journey, so Anne (Nancy) would no doubt have been particularly concerned about the health of her youngest, Mary Ann, who was aged 3 at the time.  Given that Anne (Nancy) had already lost a daughter when she was three years old, it must have weighted on Anne's (Nancy's) mind a great deal.

View of Sydney Cove - 1838, by Conrad Martens

Thankfully all of the Browning family survived the trip and landed safely in Port Jackson on the 1st of July, 1840.

Although both Anne (Nancy) and her husband William were really close to the cut-off age for eligibility for assisted migration (40 years of age), they had a family which included four daughters, two of whom were close to a marriageable age.  This was considered an asset, as the colony had very large numbers of young men looking for brides!  No surprise then that Anne (Nancy) and her husband were accepted for the assisted immigrant scheme, despite their ages.

Map from Esme Smith's book: 
The Browning Story: Tracings From The Past p.17

Even after three months of sailing, the travelling continued for the family after they had arrived in the colony.  The Browning family were all employed by the Australian Agricultural Company on the company's holding at Carrington, Port Jackson.  

This was a fifteen hour journey on another smaller ship further north.  It was here that William began working as a shepherd.

Map showing some of the sheep stations
the Brownings worked on as shepherds - including Carrington

Anne (Nancy), and the younger children, would have worked alongside William while it's likely the two older daughters were employed as servants in one of the large property houses at either Carrington or Stroud.

While at Carrington, another son was born to Anne (Nancy) and William.

Francis came along in August of 1841, just over a year after Anne (Nancy) and her family had arrived in Australia.  My 3x great grandmother was aged 39.

During the next month, September 1841, Anne (Nancy) saw her eldest daughter Susannah married to Joshua Craven, a convict assigned to the AA Company.

Just four months later, in January of 1842, the second eldest daughter Hannah was also married. She wed Thomas Norton, also a convict who had been assigned to the AA Company.

It seems that Anne (Nancy), her husband and the rest of the family left the AA Company and Carrington sometime after the weddings of the two eldest daughters.  By the end of 1842 her son John Thomas would have been 15 years old; daughter  Caroline Penelope (my 2x great grandmother) would have been 12; son William Henry would have been 9 years old; daughter Mary Anne would have been aged 5; and baby James Francis would have been 1 year old.

Over the next few years, Anne (Nancy), husband William, and the children that were still living with them, moved around a lot.

George Bishop, Surveyor-General's Office, New South Wales 1872 [Public domain]

According to the information in Esme Smith's book, "it's likely that the Brownings moved, initially to Ward Stephen's holdings in the Hunter River District (marked in red), and then to the New England area (marked in green) and finally to the Richmond River District. (marked in yellow)" (p. 22)


By June of 1842 Anne (Nancy) and husband William were employed as part of a family team of shepherds who drove Ward Stephen's flock down from the highlands of New England, to the rich plains of the Richmond Valley on the coast (later to become known as the Lismore area).

Ward Stephen's station 'Runnymede' highlighted on map

It was here that Ward Stephens moved to Runnymede where he built his homestead, and the Brownings went there as employees.  Sadly, whilst Anne (Nancy) was working alongside her husband at Runnymede, her daughter Susannah passed away back up on the highlands of New England, in Stroud.  Susannah was only aged 20 at the time and had been married for just two years.

It appears that Anne (Nancy), William and their younger children remained working for Ward Stephens for at least another five to six years.  During this time in the Richmond River district Anne (Nancy) and William had another three children.

Joseph was born in 1845.
Elizabeth was born the following year, in 1846, but died just a few weeks later.
Matthew came along in early 1848.  Anne (Nancy) was aged 45.

By this time however, Ward Stephens, their employer, had sold his property Runnymede and the Brownings had moved on once more.  They had taken another shepherding job, together with members of their family, at Maryland Station back up on the New England Tablelands.  Maryland, then owned by Matthew Henry Marsh, was in the Darling Downs area, which was still part of New South Wales at that time.

According to Esme Smith's 'The Browning Story: Tracings From The Past:

"The family's employment at Maryland commenced on 4 May 1848." (p. 30)  ...
"When William and Nancy arrived at Maryland Station, they had with them their children, John, William, Mary Ann, Francis, Joseph and Matthew.  There they worked as shepherds and watchmen at a wage of  £70 per annum.  This is a rather large annual wage given the times. ...so it probably meant that it included the work of the other members of the family."  (p. 31)

By 1848, their daughter Caroline Penelope (my 2x great grandmother) had married.  She was aged 15 when she wed Henry Brown in 1846, and was now a mother herself.  It appears Anne (Nancy), her husband William and six of their children, had followed their daughter Caroline and her husband Henry to Maryland Station, as Henry had started work there in March of 1848.

1848 was also the year that the second eldest daughter, Hannah, re-married.  She had been widowed around 1846, when she was aged just 21, and soon after becoming a mother for the first time.  It's likely that Hannah, with her daughter Mary Ann, had also joined the family soon after the death of her first husband and had moved onto Runnymede Station when the family had been working there.  Hannah then followed the family to Maryland Station where she met her second husband.

Anne (Nancy) and her husband William left Maryland Station sometime between 1851 and 1853.  When their daughter Mary Ann married in late 1853, when aged 16, the family were living in the Armidale area.  It's possible Anne (Nancy) and William were working on one of the other properties owned by March, either Salisbury Court or Booralong, which were both in the Armidale district.

By early 1855, Anne (Nancy) and William were living in the Tamworth area, on Goonoo Goonoo Station, a property owned by the A. A. Company.  This is where their son William Henry married.  Their daughter Mary Ann and her husband were also living and working on Goonoo Goonoo, and were witnesses at the wedding.  As Esme Smith stated on p. 38 of her book "It is likely that various members of the family were again working for the A. A. Company at that time."

Sometime between 1858 and 1859, the family appears to have moved back to the Richmond River District / Lismore area.  Then in mid-1864 Anne's (Nancy's) husband William made an application for the purchase of some land, a block of 40 acres, on the western back of Terrania Creek.  This is where Anne (Nancy) and William built their own home and where they finally settled.  Their property was known as 'Rosehill'.

Their son Francis bought a block of 40 acres right next door to his mother's and father's block, and both William and son Francis, along with the other younger sons Joseph and Matthew, began working as timber-getters.

Anne's (Nancy's) husband William died at Rose Hill a mere 3 years later, in 1867.  He was buried at the Rosehill burying grounds.  Anne (Nancy) remained living at Rosehill until her death in 1875, when aged 74.

The years between 1840, when the family arrived in Australia, and 1864, when the family finally had their own home, would have been years of back-breaking hard work with quite austere and challenging living conditions for Anne (Nancy), as the wife of a shepherd.

Information gleamed from an article titled:  Shepherding in Colonial Australia, written by John Pickard in the 2008 edition of 'Rural History' indicates that there was no idyllic life for a shepherd,  "the reality in colonial Australia was brutally different.  ...  They worked in isolation, with poor accommodation and rations, exposed to a range of diseases, and were relatively poorly paid."  (pp. 55-56)

Replica of a bark gunyah

Living conditions would have been quite primitive (by our standards!)  It's likely that the first type of accommodation for Anne (Nancy) and her family would have been a tent or a bark gunyah - a temporary structure made with bark and tree branches - until a proper shepherd's hut was erected.  They may have even lived out in the open for a time.

Shepherding was a nomadic lifestyle and Anne (Nancy) went with William wherever work could be found; living, working and raising their family in temporary homes quite a long way away from towns and settlements.  They would have lived quite an isolated existence, apart from the day-to-day presence of their own family and perhaps the occasional meeting with other shepherds and their families.

"The logistics of shepherding in the Australian colonies varied somewhat, but most often ... shepherds were based at an outstation which consisted of a hut with a set of yards made of moveable hurdles for each shepherd (where the sheep were penned at night).  Some outstations had fixed yards made of brush or logs.  These outstations were five to twenty-four kilometres from the head station." (Shepherding in Colonial Australia p. 56-57)

"A well-established outstation had a pole-frame hut, perhaps eleven feet wide by twelve or fifteen feet long, covered with bark stripped off suitable Eucalyptus trees, or shingles.  The bark roof would be held down with a framework of logs pegged together.  The fireplace would be lined with stones and clay, and smoke dissipated up a bark chimney."

The artist impression shown here was an idealised version of a well-established outstation.  It's highly likely the artist never ever saw one for himself!

A more commonplace hut would have been "slabs with bark roofs about twenty-four by ten feet, with two rooms ... and there would be a slab fireplace for cooking, a three-legged pot and a bucket would be all the household business.  The floor was just the ground."  (Shepherding in Colonial Australia p. 65)  This is likely to have been the home that Anne (Nancy) would have been familiar with.

It was usual that when married couples were employed, the husband shepherded and the wife was the hut-keeper.  Children were expected to look after sheep from an early age as well. It's likely that Anne (Nancy) and the younger children would have slept in the hut at night; whereas her husband William and the older boys most likely slept in a watch-box or even in the open near the yarded flocks of sheep, keeping guard against predators such as the native dogs, the dingoes.


There would have been the constant dangers of snake bites and accidents, and no chance of  prompt medical assistance.  There is likely to have been the constant fear of Aborigines as well, as relationships between the white settlers/squatters and the indigenous people were strained, to say the least.


The diet would have been extremely monotonous, based essentially on meat, damper and tea.  "Shepherd's wages included rations which would most likely have been:  ten a half pounds of meat, ten and a half pounds of flour, seven ounces of sugar, three and a half ounces of soap, two ounces of salt per man per week.  (Shepherding in Colonial Australia p. 66)


Throughout all of this it would have fallen upon Anne's (Nancy's) shoulders to keep the family together and to keep her family fed, housed and healthy.  Given that the entire family remained close-knit and close-by for her entire life (and onwards with the following generations), it seems Anne (Nancy) was the rock on which this family built their lives.

When Anne (Nancy) left her homeland and her own family far, far behind, I have no doubt she would have had some trepidation about the future.  I can't imagine what it would have been like to leave everything behind, including your own mother, father and siblings, to travel so very far away.  Did she keep in contact with her family back in England?  I doubt that very much, given the life she experienced as the wife of a shepherd and the fact that she never learned to write.

It's unlikely she would have known about the deaths of her father and her mother.  It's unlikely she would have known much about the lives of her sisters Fanny and Mary Ann, her brother John Edwin.

Anne (Nancy) passed away in early 1875.  The details on Anne's (Nancy's) death certificate were recorded by son Matthew, but are not all correct - Anne's (Nancy's) father's name was listed as Thomas, whilst her mother's name was listed as Martha Killark.   Neither of these pieces of information are supported by the details provided by Anne (Nancy) herself upon emigration to Australia.

New South Wales Assisted Immigrant Passenger Lists - 1828-1896
- Anne Browning (nee Littlejohns) 1840

The assisted immigration passenger list for those arriving on board the ship Premier in 1840 shows Anne's (Nancy's) parents listed as John and Mary.  Perhaps an explanation of the mismatch between the details on these records can be found in the fact that it's unlikely there was much communication between Anne (Nancy) and her English family, so therefore it's unlikely her son Matthew would have been in possession of the true facts.

At the time of her death, Anne's (Nancy's) family was quite large.  Eight of her children were still alive, and there were around 44 grandchildren living at that time ... with many more to come!

Her daughter Hannnah had married twice and still had 8 surviving children.
Her son John Thomas had married and had 8 children by then.
Her daughter Caroline Penelope (my 2x great grandmother) had married twice by this time, and still had 10 surviving children.
Her son William Henry (known as Bill) had married and had 5 surviving children.
Her daughter Mary Ann had married and had 10 children.
Her son James Francis had married, but had no children at that time.
Her son Joseph Edward had married and had 3 children by then.
Her son Matthew had married just the year before.

The Browning (Littlejohns) dynasty had been well and truly established in the land downunder!


Some of Anne's (Nancy's) children or grandchildren:

Top row:  granddaughter Caroline Maris Kean nee Browning with her children
Middle row L to R:  granddaughter Harriett Thomas nee Wright, granddaughter Sarah Ann Smith nee Bustard, and grandson John Thomas Brown.
Bottom row L to R:  grandson James Irving Stevenson Brown, granddaughter Eliza Stevenson Duncan Brown and grandson William Edward Wright.

Top row L to R:  grandson Thomas Charles Bustard and wife, grandson Arthur John Browning and wife
Middle row L to R:  grandson Richard Joseph Brown ( my great grandfather), his brother Richard Brown, and grandson William Henry Browning Jnr. with his mother Sarah.
Bottom row L to R: daughter Mary Ann Bustard nee Browning with her husband, granddaughter Martha Ann Reeves nee Bustard, grandson William Francis Browning.

Top row L to R:  grandson Joseph W Browning and family, and son Matthew Browning.
Bottom row L to R:  granddaughter Margaret Alice White nee Browning, and grandson Alexander Johnson Brown.


Special Note to any family members:  If you have memories to add, photos or information to share, can I graciously ask that you do so.  Please use the comments box below or email me.  It may prove to be invaluable to the story and provide future generations with something to truly treasure.

The Story of James Hickey

This is the story of my paternal Great Great Great Grandfather, James Hickey (1798 - 1879).

The details of my 3x great grandfather's birth and early life are rather scant, but it's been a fascinating research journey trying to find clues.  From the few records I have ended up with, which really only includes the immigrant passenger list, the baptism records for two of his children, and his death certificate, there appears to be a difference in his supposed place of origin.  It appeared that James hailed from both County Limerick and County Clare.  So, which was correct?

From what I've been able to glean so far, it seems that both are most likely correct.  Why?  Well, that needs an explanation.

James was probably born and definitely lived in the Coonagh area (not to be confused with the Coonagh Barony!).

Coonagh was comprised of two townlands, Coonagh East and Coongah West.


The area was part of the Civil Parish of Killeely.

The Civil Parish of Killeely was part of the Roman Catholic Parish of Parteen-Meelick-Coonagh in the Diocese of Limerick.


Both the Civil Parish of Killeely and the Diocese of Limerick straddled two counties, County Limerick and County Clare. Indeed, the majority of the Limerick Diocese was in fact within the borders of County Clare, as was most of the Parish of Parteen-Meelick-Coonagh. 

The area of Coonagh (which included Coonagh East and Coonagh West) sat on the banks of the Shannon River, and was at different points in time considered to be part of both counties, although when James was growing up it was most definitely considered part of County Limerick.

Sunset on the Shannon, taken from Coonagh
By ThadysLamp - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0,
https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=44392588

I have not yet uncovered a definitive date of birth, but the year 1798 is an educated guess, based on the age recorded on James's immigration passenger list.  His death certificate contradicts this date though, and indicates that he was born a lot earlier, in 1793.  I do think that 1793 was in fact the date of birth for one of James's brothers.

James was the son of Patrick Hickey and Mary Price.  He had at least two older brothers.  I think that it was Patrick who was born in 1793, and then Denis came along in 1795.  James was the youngest of the boys.  It's likely other siblings were born to his parents, but it seems they did not survive into adulthood.

My 3x great grandfather James married Margaret McNamara sometime around 1820, when he would have been aged 22.  On James's death certificate it is recorded that he married in County Clare, and that would be correct if they married in the Catholic Church in the Parish of Parteen, which was part of the Diocese of Limerick!

After their marriage, James and Margaret went on to have at least 8 children whilst living in Ireland.
Their eldest son Dennis was born in 1822.
Patrick came along in 1824.
Twins, John and Thomas were born in 1827.
Bridget was born in 1829.
Ellen (my Great Great Grandmother) came along in 1832.  At that time James was 34 years old.
James (Jnr.) was born in 1835.
William was born in 1837, but it seems he died as a very young infant.

Sadly, back in 1833, James's father Patrick had died.

Tithe Applotment Book 1833 Townland of Coonagh

At that time, in a valuation undertaken on May 30th 1833, recorded in the Tithe Applotment Books, the inhabitants of Coonagh were listed under three main family groupings - Coonagh Hickey, Coonagh Sexton and Coonagh Calcutt.  The townland of Coonagh itself was owned by the Earl of Thomand and leased to these families, who would have in turn probably subleased portions to others.

Tithe Applotment Book 1833 - Coonagh Hickey

The 1833 record showed that the Hickey brothers Patrick, Denis and James, along with a Widow Hickey (likely to be their mother Mary) were all working farmland in Coonagh, totaling 18 acres.

Patrick, being the eldest brother would have been left the lease of the large 15 acre farm after the death of his father that year.  That was in accordance with the inheritance traditions at the time.  The younger brothers, including my 3x great grandfather James, would have worked the land together as well as their own small 1 acre plots.  Apparently it was fairly common for each fully fit man to work 5 acres with a spade at this time.  Hard, back-breaking work!

Both James and Denis, the younger brothers, would have been deprived of property rights, and that would have been the reality for their own sons as well. My 3x great grandfather James already had 5 sons by this time (1833) and his brother Denis had 4.  Whilst James and Denis remained working the farmland as tenants for several more years after 1833, they were to make a life-changing decision in the hope of changing their futures.

Upon the death of their mother Mary, which happened sometime between 1833 and 1839, the two younger brothers decided to emigrate, in the belief they could build a better life for their families elsewhere and perhaps end up as landowners themselves.

In November of 1839, James Hickey and his family of 8, as well as his brother Denis and his family of 6, boarded the ship Adam Lodge, along with what is highly likely to be a number of other Hickey relatives.  In all, there were 28 people with the surname of Hickey from either County Limerick or County Clare who departed Cove Cork in Ireland on the 11th of November 1839.

The Adam Lodge was a 576-ton ship carrying 273 government immigrants.  According to the journal kept by the Surgeon Superintendent Alex Stewart:

"The immigrants included 54 Protestants and 219 Catholics.  A crew member and two children died on the voyage, one child was born.  A school was established and 37 regularly attended.  The schoolmaster was very attentive and many of the scholars improved considerably. The chief amusements were dancing and leap frog and were always encourage in the evenings until 9 o'clock.  Divine Service was performed five times during the voyage, the unfavourable state of the weather, the rolling of the ship and their indisposition prevented its being done oftener."

 The Sydney Gazette and New South Wales Advertiser Sat 15 Feb 1840 p2

The Adam Lodge arrived in Sydney on February 14th, 1840, after a voyage that lasted for 95 days.  The ship had taken a course from the Cape of Good Hope, across the Southern Ocean, and then up the Eastern seaboard of Australia.  The ship had 'spoken' with the Mary Ridgway whilst passing through Bass Strait, on the 10th of February 1840.

Upon arrival in Sydney all the immigrants would have resided in the government barracks on Bent Street, where an immigration muster was completed detailing information about James and his family.

It was noted that James had been 41 years old upon embarkation, but was 42 years old by the time he had arrived in the Colonies.

His previous occupation had been 'farmer'.

He was Roman Catholic and could both read and write.

James's wife Margaret was recorded as being 38 years of age and her occupation was listed as 'farm servant'.  She could neither read nor write.

Children Patrick, Thomas, John, James, Bridget and Ellen were all listed with Margaret.  Son Dennis was listed separately as a Single Male.

Dispersal List for assisted immigrants on Adam Lodge 1840 p.3 - James Hickey and family

James and his family had been bought out as part of the Assisted Immigration Scheme, which means their passage had been paid for by either the government of the colonies or a wealthy private individual.  In James's case, his passage was paid for by the government as the Dispersal List (shown above) lists his prospective employer as "unknown".

Dispersal List for assisted immigrants on Adam Lodge 1840 p.2 - Denis Hickey and family

His brother Denis and his son Dennis, on the other hand, had been sponsored by a Mr. Hunt of Sydney for 1 year at wages of 90 pounds plus rations.  It's likely that James stayed in Sydney for a while, close to his brother and son, anxiously awaiting employment prospects.

I'm not entirely sure just how long after landing in Sydney, James and his family moved north to the Hunter River District, and in particular the Maitland; but within two years of disembarkation, as another son was born in the Maitland area in 1842.

Son Michael was born in October of 1842, when James was 44 years old.

James was to reside in the Hunter River District, around Maitland, for the remainder of his life, as did his brother Denis and most of the extended Hickey family.  It seems that they were a close-knit clan.

Article in the Empire Newspaper Wed 5 Aug 1857 p2

There is mention of a "Hickey's Farm" in an article published in the Empire newspaper dated 5th of August 1857.


The article told of the effects of significant flooding in the Narrowgut / Morpeth / Phoenix Park area of the Hunter River District in New South Wales that year.


In the last paragraph there is mention that:

"Below Hinton the river broke over at several places, and poured a deluge of water into the adjacent hollows.  This was the case at Berry Park, Duckenfield, Hickey's Farm, Nelson's Plains, and Miller's Forest - all the low lands in these localities were covered with water."

Was this my 3x great grandfather's farm?

Map of Hunter River District around Maitland -
shows location of Wallalong, Phoenix Park and Narrowgut.

Oral family stories mention that James originally tenanted a farm at Wallalong sometime in the 1850s, moved across the river to Phoenix Park, and at some time tenanted farmland in Cooley Camp (later known as Bolwarra).

Given that James's brother Denis had died in 1852, then perhaps the "Hickey's Farm" mentioned in that 1857 newspaper was indeed the farm of James Hickey.  The death of his brother Denis would have been a terrible blow to James, considering they had made the journey out to Australia together and spent their lives in the colony living in the same places.

I have little knowledge of the life of James during his years spent farming in the Hunter River District.  Did he end up owning his own land, or did he spend his life as a tenant farmer?

Maitland Mercury and Hunter River General Advertiser Sat 21 Jun 1879 p16

James Hickey died on the 14th of June, 1879 and the death notice published on Saturday the 21st of June states:

"Mr. James Hickey, senior, died on Saturday night, the 14th inst., at his late residence, Narrowgut."

The article also mentions that he was an "old and respected resident of the district" who had been a "native of Ireland, but has spent thirty-nine years in this colony, always located in the Hunter River  district."  It was wonderful to see that he was described as "of a remarkably active temperament, and possessed a warm-hearted, genial disposition, which served to endear him to a large circle of friends."  The death notice also mentions that James died "with his children all around him", which seems to indicate the closeness of the family unit.

James's death certificate stated that he died of "senile debility" and that he was survived by 7 of his children - Patrick was 46, the twins John and Thomas were 44, Bridget was 40, Ellen (my great great grandmother) was 38 and Michael was 35.  That means his eldest son Dennis was deceased by that time.

The death certificate also lists 1 other male as deceased, and 1 female.  I know that James and Margaret had lost a son named William before they left Ireland, but I have not yet found any record of a third daughter born to them, either in Ireland or Australia.  These details were given by son Michael, so I'm assuming he would have known the true facts and I now have some more researching to do!

Special Note to any family members:  If you have memories to add, photos or information to share, can I graciously ask that you do so.  Please use the comments box below or email me.  It may prove to be invaluable to the story and provide future generations with something to truly treasure.

The Story of James Hukins

This week's post tells the story of my paternal Great Great Great Grandfather, James Hukins  (1792 - 1871).

When James was born in July of 1792, his father John Hukins was 33 years old and his mother, Elizabeth Crittenden was 38.  James was the seventh child and the second son born to John and Elizabeth, according to the records I've managed to track down so far.


His eldest sister Sarah had been born in 1777.
Brother Richard came along in 1779.
Sister Mary had been born in 1781.
Sister Elizabeth had come along in 1782.
Sister Charlotte had been born in 1785.
Sister Ann came along in 1788.

It does seem a little odd that John and Elizabeth had not named a son after his father, given they had named one of their daughters after her mother.  Perhaps there had been another little one born at some stage, but had died quite soon afterwards and had been named John.  I have not found a record to back up this assumption though.

James, 3x great grandfather, was born in Woodchurch, Kent, England where the Hukins family had been farming the land for two generations up to that point.

Map showing the location of the Susan's Hill area

James' great grandfather, John Hukins (c. 1701-1763) had first come to Woodchurch around 1730 and farmed at 'Susan's Hill', on the outskirts of the village of Woodchurch.  That was the beginning of the history of the Hukins family in this area.

Map showing the location of Hukins Farm on the outskirts of Woodchurch

My 3x great grandfather James would have grown up on the land farmed by his father, John Hukins (1759-1819).

This is still known as 'Hukins Farm' and is located on Redbrook Street, half a mile north of Susan's Hill, and overlooking the land farmed by his great grandfather.

(This information is sourced from an article titled 'James & Susannah Hukins', written by Josie Mackie in the book named 'Leaving Woodchurch - Emigration from Woodchurch since the Seventeenth Century'.  I'm fortunate enough to have copy of this book and it has been invaluable for my research on James.  It has certainly made the job of digging up my 3x great grandfather's past a little easier).

The farmhouse on Hukins Farm

The house that still stands on Hukins Farm is likely to be the house where my 3x great grandfather spent his childhood.


James obviously had a great love for the place where he grew up and was to pay respect to his childhood home later in his life, as will be mentioned a little further on in this post.



Sadly, when James was aged 16 his mother Elizabeth passed away.  James' father was now a widow but James' siblings were aged between 20 and 31 so it's likely most of them were helping out on the farm, or had begun lives of their own.  James remained living with his father for a number of years after the death of his mother.

At the age of 22, my 3x great grandfather James married Susannah Fullagar.

Banns were posted in December of 1814 and early January of 1815,

They were married in the All Saint's Church in Woodchurch on the 12th of January 1815.

The two families, the Hukins and the Fullagars, had been friends for three generations.

Susannah was the great granddaughter of John Fullagar (1700-1746) who had settled in Woodchurch in 1734 and ran the Bonny Cravat Inn till his death 12 years later.  Susannah's father, John Fullagar, had also run the Bonny Cravat for 20 years.  Susannah's mother Elizabeth took over after the death of her husband John.  Susannah's brother Thomas had then taken over from his mother and ran the inn for 4 years.

James (my 3x great grandfather) was the grandson of John Hukins (1730-1803) who had run the Bonny Cravat Inn for seventeen years.   James' Great Uncle (his grandfather's brother) James Hukins (1741-1823) had taken over as innkeeper in 1775 as well.

The running of the Bonny Cravat Inn had basically been passed between Fullagars and Hukins for nearly a century between 1734 and 1820.

As mentioned previously, my 3x great grandfather James continued working as a farm labourer on his father's farm until he started his own working life as Innkeeper at the Bonny Cravat in 1824.  He took over the license along with his wife Susannah, and they ran the inn for 13 years.  Inn-keeping was in their blood!

During the time that James was innkeeper, the Bonny Cravat Inn was often used as a courtroom and several smugglers were sentenced to death inside the inn before being hung on gallows that were erected outside!

After James married Susannah, they went on to have nine children over a period of sixteen years.

Daughter Elizabeth (known as Betsy) was born only seven months after James and Susannah had married, in July of 1815.
Son John was born in 1817.

James' father, John Hukins, died two years later in 1819.  James was now aged 27.

Son James was born in 1820.
Son Crittenden came along in 1821.
Son Adolphus was born in 1823.

It was during the following year that my 3x great grandfather began his career as an innkeeper.

Daughter Sabina was born at the beginning of 1825.

Sadly, James lost his sister Elizabeth at the end of 1825.  She was survived by her husband and four children.

In 1828, son Norman was born, but sadly only survived for a couple of weeks.

Daughter Cassandra was born in 1829.
Daughter Adelaide came along in 1832.  By this time James was 39 years old.

James and wife Susannah were still innkeepers at this time, but this was not to last.  By 1837 James had found himself in dire circumstances.  He was by now in severe financial trouble, evidenced in the listing that appeared in the London Gazette of late 1837.

London Gazette Nov 1837

James was petitioning the Court for Relief of Insolvent Debtors.  Interestingly, the article lists James as "formerly of Woodchurch", so it seems he had left the village, had given up running the inn, and appeared to be living in Maidstone, Kent at this time.


He must have moved back to Woodchurch though because a mere two years later James and his family were preparing to emigrate, and were being assisted by Parish funds.


Minutes of the Woodchurch Parish meeting of the 30th of March 1839 lists items provided by the parish to assist the Hukins family for emigration to Australia aboard the ship Cornwall.

The minutes show that James Hukins was provided with:
"2 pairs duck trousers, 1 smock frock, 8 shirts, 2 flannel jackets, 1 flannel drawers, 1 cotton drawers stout, 5 pairs woollen hose, 1 hat, 2 pair shirts."

Given that James was provided with a "stout" pair of cotton drawers, I think it's safe to assume that he was a large man!

As for 'duck trousers', I had to look that one up!

Apparently it refers to trousers made of cotton duck material - heavy, plain woven cotton fabric and would have looked something like this:

Gravesend, on the River Thames,
was the major port of departure for emigrants

James, aged 47, his wife Susannah, aged 48, their seven unmarried children, John aged 22, James aged 19, Crittenden aged 18, Adolphus (my great great grandfather) aged 16, Sabina aged 13, Cassandra aged 10 and Adelaide aged 7 all travelled to Gravesend to board the ship that would take them to Australia.

Accompanying them was their married daughter, Elizabeth aged 24, her husband Edward Daw and young son Edward, aged 1; as well as Elizabeth's brother-in-law Philp Daw, his wife Sarah and their four children.

James, his wife Susannah and their four youngest children were listed together as a family on the immigrant passenger record, whilst the three older boys were listed under 'unmarried males' and their eldest daughter was listed with her husband and child as a separate family.

The ship Cornwall departed Gravesend on the 12th of May 1839 and arrived in Sydney, Australia on the 1st of September 1839.  The voyage lasted for 114 days and covered 15, 682 miles.  In anyone's mind's eye this sounds like a challenging experience, especially given the time period.

At no point during the long journey were the emigrants able to disembark and stretch their legs.  They would have seen the Isle of Wight three days into the voyage, then on day 71 the ship have passed the Cape of Good Hope, after which it would have entered the Indian Ocean.  After a further 16 days and 2,650 miles, the ship would have arrived at Ile St. Paul, midway between the Cape of Good Hope and the west coast of Australia.  The Cornwall 'hove to' for the day near this uninhabited volcanic island, and the opportunity was taken to catch and eat fresh fish.

On day 107 of the journey, the emigrants first sighted their new home when their ship entered Bass Strait, between the southern coast of mainland Australia and the island of Van Diemen's Land (as it was known then).  Three days later, Cornwall rounded Cape Howe, where the coast of New South Wales began; then on day 114 at 2 a.m. the light on South Head was seen and the Cornwall 'hove to' until daylight.  At 6.30 a.m. on September 2nd, with the pilot aboard, the ship passed through Sydney Heads and entered Port Jackson.  The emigrants were allowed to disembark the following day, September 3rd, after several gentlemen boarded the ship to inspect the emigrants and select servants for their estates.

I have spoken in previous posts about the journeys of many of my immigrant ancestors and have covered things like - the sights seen on the journey, the living conditions experienced, the length of the voyages and some of the more significant events along the way.  The reason I've been able to find out this type of information is that the colonial government required that each immigrant ship sail with a medical officer (after the disastrous voyage of the Second Fleet in 1789 - known afterwards as the Death Fleet - arriving in New South Wales with a mortality rate of 40%), and these men often kept quite detailed records.

Dr. Gilbert King was appointed Surgeon Superintendent on the immigrant ship Cornwall from London to Sydney in 1839, and his report gives a few extra details about the journey undertaken by 3x great grandfather and his family.

"When the weather permitted Divine Service was performed by reading the Prayers and a sermon afterwards every Sunday performed on the quarter deck, but if unfavourable that important duty was performed between decks, to the emigrants.  In the afternoon, and every evening during the voyage we had a short religious service on the main deck.  ----  A school was established shortly after we sailed, and from forty to sixty children attended with decided benefit.  The regulations established for the preservation of health under cleanliness and ventilation.  The beds were stowed on deck every morning unless the weather was very boisterous and wet.  The emigrants washed themselves every morning, and having appointed two washing days weekly, every facility was thus afforded them of keeping their linen clean.  Once a week their beds were opened out and aired on deck.  ---- The greater part of the day was occupied performing the service connected with the above arrangements and in attending to their own personal and family caring; and in fine weather they had singing and dancing on the quarter deck every lawful day.

        Signed, Gilbert King M D Surgeon."


After arriving in Sydney, my 3x great grandfather James found work as a farm labourer with a Thomas Croft Esq. at Wollongong, about 50 miles to the south of Sydney.   My 3x great grandmother, James' wife Susannah was also employed as a farm labourer, and all the younger children would have worked alongside their parents.

The three older sons found work in Sydney and remained there.  The eldest son John and second eldest James both found work with Bishop Broughton (the first Anglican bishop in Australia) as a gardener and coachman, respectively.  The third eldest son, Crittenden, found work with a Mr. Foster as a groom.

Tragedy struck the family almost immediately after their arrival however.  Within four months, Crittenden was killed in an accident with horses.  He died in January of 1840 at the age of 18.  That would have been a terrible blow for James, having already lost a son about eleven years earlier.

By mid-1840 James had attained the position of convict overseer on the Berry Estate.  At that time was estate around 32,000 acres in size held by Alexander Berry, located north of the Shoalhaven River.  Over time though the Berry Estate was enlarged by grant and purchase to 80,000 acres in size, stretching from Gerringong in the north to Wollumboola in the south, and from the coast to beyond Broughton Creek (later re-named Berry) in the west.

This was a position of some standing and importance.  It does seem however, that James had empathy towards the convicts.  A tale shared by his 3x great granddaughter and recorded in the book 'Leaving Woodchurch - Emigration from Woodchurch since the Seventeenth Century' states that:

"James' convict master realised that his sugar, which was a valuable and scarce resource at that time, was going missing.  He told James that he believed the convicts in James' charge were responsible, a thing which James denied absolutely.  

A trap was set to prove this one or another and who should fall into that trap but the sister-in-law of the convict master himself, who wanted the sugar for her cooking!  

It may well be that James had some sympathy for the convicts under his charge as he would have known at least one who was transported for seven years, William Hampton, brother of Benjamin Hampton, one of his fellow travellers on the Cornwall."

       
In recognition of his services as a convict overseer, James was offered a grant of land some miles south of Wollongong, but he declined this offer as he considered the land impoverished and not worthy of his time and labour!

James worked as a tenant farmer for landowners such as Captain Steven Addison Esq., who had a property of considerable size known as the Peterborough Estate in the Shellharbour area.



As a matter of fact, Steven Addison made particular mention of my 3x great grandfather during his speech at his farewell dinner held in 1848.




Part of this speech was published in an article in the Sydney Morning Herald as follows:

Sydney Morning Herald - Wed 20 Sept 1848 p2

"Captain Addison rose to return thanks ... he had come to this district and had settled on what all thought a wilderness.  He had greatly improved it ... but if he had not been blessed with such tenants as Mr. James Hukins and family, and ably supported by good neighbours, all he could have done would have availed to nothing."



The life of a tenant farmer would have been one of daily toil from sun-up to sunset. 


Landowners would let out plots of land and grant "clearing leases".  The tenant farmer was required to clear trees, fence plots and erect habitable structures within the period of the lease, which was usually two to five years.




Plots of land for clearing leases were mostly around ten or twelve acres, but if a tenant farmer was industrious and could prove his worth, he might be allowed as many acres as he could manage.  If a tenant farmer had strong hard-working family members to help, then a clearing lease might be granted for plots as large as twenty or thirty acres.

Once cleared, the land was "let" on the halves principle - the landowner provided the land, seed, animals and tools and then took half the produce as a form of rent payment.  This was the life of James Hukins for around ten years, beginning when we would have been around 52 years of age.

Historical Electoral Rolls for Kiama, New South Wales 1855-1856

In 1854, at the ripe old age of 62, James then became a landowner himself.  He bought 464 acres of land on Curramore Estate in Jamberoo.  A year after that he sold 114 of these acres to each of his three sons - John, James and Adolphus - and kept 114 acres for himself.  He named this patch of land 'Susan's Hill' which you may recall had been the name of a tract of land back in Devon, England where he had spent his childhood years.

James was to live out the remainder of his life at 'Susan's Hill'.

Sadly, in 1861 two of his sisters died, and then in 1862 his wife, Susannah, passed away.  They had been married for 47 years and James was 69 years of age.

James himself passed away in 1871, at the age of 79.

Death Notice - Empire, Friday 20 January 1871, page 1

The death notice posted in the Empire newspaper on the 20th of January stated:

"DEATHS.  On Saturday, 14th January, at his residence Susan's Hill, Jamberoo, suddenly Mr. James Hukins sen., native of Woodchurch, Kent, England, aged 78 years."

Armidale Express and New England General Advertiser Sat 28 Jan 1871

Another newspaper article stated that James had suffered an apoplectic attack whilst walking on the verandah at his house and had collapsed and died.

Special Note to any family members:  If you have memories to add, photos or information to share, can I graciously ask that you do so.  Please use the comments box below or email me.  It may prove to be invaluable to the story and provide future generations with something to truly treasure.