Our Bell Family in Australia – Emma Bell, 1859, Picton.

My  2x Great Grandfather, George Bell was born in East Farleigh, Kent, England in 1817.

In 1837 he and his brother, James emigrated to Australia as sailors on a convict ship.

George Bell married Sarah Sargent at Sutton Forest, New South Wales in 1844.

See Our Bell Family in Australia- George Bell’s Marriage 1844

This couple settled in Picton, New South Wales, and had a family.

Their children were all born in Picton, New South Wales.

George Bell Jr was born in 1845 and baptized in 1846.

See  Our Bell Family in Australia – George Bell, 1846, Picton.

James Bell was born and baptized in 1847.

See Our Bell Family in Australia – James Bell,1847, Picton.

Thomas Bell was born in 1849.

See Our Bell Family in Australia – Thomas Bell, 1849, Picton.

According to the Bell Family Bible, I have, after three sons, George and Sarah Bell had a daughter. She was called Harriet, after George Bell’s, sister who had died in East Farleigh, Kent, when George was six years of age.

Harriet Bell was born in 1852.

See Our Bell Family in Australia – Harriet Bell, 1852, Picton.

Henry Bell was born in 1854.

See Our Bell Family in Australia – Henry Bell, 1854, Picton.

John Bell was born in 1856.

See Our Bell Family in Australia – John Bell, 1856, Picton.

The next child listed in the Family Bible I inherited was another daughter, who was named Emma.

I checked for her baptism. I found an entry on the Ancestry.com website which was for St Marks Anglican Church, Picton. Sourced from the Anglican registers for the Sydney Diocese. This I was able to download to add to my records.

I have made a transcription of this record. See below

I checked for references in the online index of the Registrar of Births Deaths and Marriages in New South Wales in Sydney at https://bdm.nsw.gov.au/.

BELL EMMA

11569/1859 

GEORGE

SARAH

PICTON

History of St Mark’s Picton.

The foundation stone of – St Mark’s Church, Picton – was laid by the Rev Edward Rogers – Minister of the Parish – on the 16th day of July AD 1850 – J M Antill, J Templeton, T Larkin, J Crispe ~ Building Committee.   A heritage plaque displayed on the grounds records that the original church was opened in 1856. The first Anglican services were held in 1825 at the home of Major Antill, one of the first European settlers in the Picton area. When a small court house was built on the Major’s property (he was the Police Magistrate, and the family served the local court for three generations), services were held there. – The local rector was the Reverend Thomas Hassell of Denbigh, Cobbity, and his parish stretched to Goulburn, across to Wollongong, and south to Mulgoa. In 1839 the Reverend Frederick Wilkinson had a smaller area to cover, from his house at the Hermitage, The Oaks. Next came the Reverend Edward Rogers from 1848, and by now money was being raised to build a church on land donated by the Antill family, in Menangle Street West. The foundation stone was laid in July 1850, the church being designed by Edmund Blacket, with Thomas Smith, G Wandess, and Barnsdale as masons. T Cashman and John Iceton as carpenters. Whitfield doing the ironwork, painting by W Brown, and fencing by Abel Sant and Rosette. Unfortunately, the work went very slowly, as the gold rushes affected the supply of labour, and it was not completed until 1856. – The original church was tiny, and as the town grew in the 1860s with the arrival of the railway line, so the nave was extended 12 feet, and a vestry was added. Then in 1886 Blacket’s sons, Cyril and Arthur designed the transepts which provided even more room. The original wooden shingles were replaced with slate in 1904, and then by tiles in 1930. Oil lamps were used for lighting until 1922 when electricity was connected. – The earliest burials in the graveyard date from 1858, though severe flooding in the 1860s and later has affected those graves closest to Stonequarry Creek, as well as the church. Although levy banks provide some protection now, severe flooding can still occur. The building, its furnishings, and the organ were badly impacted by the 2016 floods, together with the pioneer cemetery. It has now been restored. [1]     [1] Sourced From <https://www.churchesaustralia.org/list-of-churches/locations/new-south-wales/n-s-towns/directory/8327-picton-anglican-church> by Nola Mackey, 15 August 2022

Advertisement

Our Bell Family in Australia – John Bell, 1856, Picton.

My  2x Great Grandfather, George Bell was born in East Farleigh, Kent, England in 1817.

In 1837 he and his brother, James, emigrated to Australia as sailors on a convict ship.

George Bell married Sarah Sargent at Sutton Forest, New South Wales in 1844.

See    Our Bell Family in Australia- George Bell’s Marriage 1844

This couple settled in Picton, New South Wales, and had a family.

Their children were all born in Picton, New South Wales.

George Bell Jr was born in 1845 and baptized in 1846.

See   Our Bell Family in Australia – George Bell, 1846, Picton.

James Bell was born in 1847.

See  Our Bell Family in Australia – James Bell,1847, Picton.

Thomas Bell was born in 1849.

See  Our Bell Family in Australia – Thomas Bell, 1849, Picton.

Harriet Bell was born in 1852

See  Our Bell Family in Australia – Harriet Bell, 1852, Picton.

Henry Bell was born in 1854

See  Our Bell Family in Australia – Henry Bell, 1854, Picton.

According to the Bell family bible I have inherited, the next child was a son named John, who was born on 6 September  1856.

See   Family Heirloom-Bell Family Bible

 As this was the year Civil Registration began in New South Wales I checked for references in the online index of the Registrar of Births Deaths and Marriages in New South Wales in Sydney at https://bdm.nsw.gov.au/.

It should be noted that the date of the start of the registration of Births was 1 March 1856.

The search of this online index found that there was a reference to the baptism of John Bell, son of George and Sarah Bell, but no reference to a registration of a birth.

Remember the Registrar of Births, Deaths, and Marriages had called in the early baptism records prior to 1856 as State Records. These baptism records often had the birth and baptism date on those records.

 Also note at this point in history it was up to the parents to make sure the child’s birth was registered with the registrar of Births, Deaths, and Marriages in New South Wales. In John Bell’s case, had his parents neglected to register this birth? The law only came in that year and not all families were conversant with this new law. Perhaps John was only baptized.

BELL JOHN, registration number 5955/1856 V18565955 121C, son of GEORGE and SARAH of IN

Using this reference I was able to search for entries in the Archives Authority of New South Wales (now State Records) Genealogical Kit (1988) for baptisms 1788-1855.

The early colonial baptism, marriage, and burial records of some 164 volumes cover the time before civil registration in New South Wales. This includes Victoria and Queensland which was part of New South Wales at that time. These are held as Government records by the Registrar of Births Deaths and Marriages for New South Wales in Sydney.

Many of these records were microfilmed and released to the public in the Archives Authority of New South Wales Genealogical Kit in 1988. Of the 164 volumes copied, only 123 volumes were released in the kit covering the time frame 1788-1855. Volumes 124-164 were not included in the kit.

This was because some of the records contained in the volumes were after 1855 so fell outside the parameters of the historical project and were subject to state privacy laws. Other volumes were not included because they were so fragile and the handling of those volumes would have destroyed them.

Returning to our Bell research, I found Volume 121 in the above-mentioned records, and I was able to view a microfilm copy of the original record on AO Reel  5046. [You will notice there is some crossover with baptism and birth registrations for 1856.]

Although you can view these records at your library you cannot make a printout as it is a condition of use of these records and is stated at the beginning of each film. The copyright belongs to the Registrar of Births Deaths and Marriages.  I was able to make a transcription and add appropriate notes.

As parents were responsible for registering a birth from 1856, sometimes they just didn’t get around to it. In that case, you may not find the birth reference you were looking for. Another reason you may not find it is that you are not using the spelling which was used at the registration, or the child was registered without a Christian name, so it may be registered as an unnamed male or female.

This was the case in John’s birth registration.

BELL (MALE) Registration number 4010/1856 son of GEORGE and SARAH, registered at CAMDEN

I was then able to get his full birth certificate from the Registrar of Births, Deaths, and Marriages in Sydney using this reference.

This is my transcription of this document.

You will note the above mention baptism of John Bell was at the Wesleyan Church, Picton.

The Wesleyan Church, Picton

“On the 4th April 1849, the Colonial Secretary advised that the Governor of N.S.W. had given approval to allotments of land which had been granted to the Wesleyans in Picton on 4th January 1849. Shortly after, James Rogers began to build the chapel using convict labour. The original building was 26 feet by 16 feet, the stone being hewn from Stonequarry Creek. The roof was of shingles. The chapel was opened shortly after, in July 1849, but by 1865, because of the influx of population, especially railway men associated with terminal railway activities the little Wesleyan chapel was enlarged, again James Rogers carrying out the work: adding an extra 10 feet on to the back of the church. The early ministers who conducted services at the chapel were George Pickering (1849), J. Bowe (1852), J. Fillingham (1855), C.W. Rigg (1856), W. Clark (1859), S. Wilkinson (1861), J. Watkins (1864) and Richard Amos (1865). ” [1]

This church was not very far from the Bell home at Upper Picton, also known as Redbank.

I also checked in the newspapers to see if there was a birth notice or report but found none.

[1] Picton and District Historical and Family History Society Facebook page -Wesleyan Church

From <https://www.facebook.com/878976525498739/posts/redbank-uniting-church-picton-formerly-wesleyan-chapelon-the-4th-april-1849-the-/918616788201379/ downloaded by Nola Mackey, 3 September 2021

Our Hodgetts Family Saga- Henrietta Hodgetts,1820,Tasmania-Part 3

Henrietta Hodgetts-Piper the illegitimate daughter of Sarah Hodgetts was born in northern Tasmania on 30 May 1820. There have always been questions about her paternity.

See Our Hodgetts Family Saga- Henrietta Hodgetts,1820, Tasmania-Part 1

Our Hodgetts Family Saga- Henrietta Hodgetts,1820, Tasmania-Part 2

 I now continue with Henrietta’s story.

Many family historians following the Hodgett line have indicated that as nothing could be found in the records of Henrietta Hodgetts-Piper after infancy, she must have died young. This is not so.

Sarah Hodgetts, (Henrietta’s mother) married Richard Lawson on 22 August 1825 at St John’s Church of England, Launceston. [1]

Henrietta Hodgetts-Piper remained with her mother and came to be known as Henrietta or Harriet Lawson. She grew up with her Lawson half-siblings in the Norfolk Plains area, including Elizabeth, born 1826 [2]; Thomas, born 1827[3]; Richard, born 1829 [4]; Daniel, born 1830 [5]; William, born 1832 [6]; Henry, born 1835 [7]and George Hatton, born 1837.[8]

The foundations of St. John’s Launceston, as a parish, date from the arrival of the Revd. John
Youl in 1819, in Port Dalrymple. Divine Service (as Sunday services were called) was held under the trees or in a blacksmith’s shop (John Hodgett’s); when wet. Youl called his congregation together by striking an iron barrel with a mallet, walking through the settlement in his “canonical dress”. When it first opened its doors in 1825, the parish church existed under the Diocese of Madras, Calcutta in India. [9]

On 19 December 1843 at St John’s Launceston, Harriet Lawson (AKA Henrietta Hodgetts-Piper), married Robert Symmons of Moat Farm, near Westbury.[10]

They had a number of children including- Henrietta Symmons, born 1846[11]; Elizabeth Symmons, born 1848 [12]; John Symmons, born 1849 [13]: Robert Henry Symmons, born 1851[14]; Jessie Symmons, born 1853 [15]; Thomas Richard Symmons, born 1854 [16]; Eleanor Symmons, born 1856 [17]; Blanche Symmons, born 1858 [18]; Alfred William Symmons, born 1859 [19] and Osborne Frank Symmons, born 1863.[20]

The family farmed at Moat Farm for some time and several of the children were born there.

They later bought property near Deloraine, which was known as West Park.

The family farmed at West Park for over thirty years until Robert Symmon’s death on 1 December 1890. [21]Henrietta Symmons died on 3 February 1892.[22]

I have been encouraging all our family historians, and my students, to gather as much information as they can for three events in our ancestors’ lives- that is their birth, marriage, and death records. Consequently, Robert Symmons and Henrietta (Harriet) Piper-Hodgetts-Symmons marriage and death records can be found in the State Library of Tasmanian archives.[23][24]

However, an online search in Trove through the National Library of Australia gives us so much information about the lives of our ancestors as the following newspaper items illustrate. A careful study of these gives us clues to research other branches of this family.

Fire Report for House of  Robert Symmons [25]

House Sale Advertisement [26]

Property Sale Advertisement [27]

Death and Funeral Notice for Robert Symmons [28]

Death Report of Robert Symmons [29]

Death Report of Robert Symmonds[30]

Death Report of Robert Symmons [31]

Probate Notice for Robert Symmons [32]

Property sale for Robert Symmons [33]

Death Notice of Henrietta Symmonds [34]

Funeral Notice of Henrietta Symmons[35]

Probate Notice of Henrietta Symmons [36]

A list of my references is available to family members and interested researchers on application. Please leave a request in the comments box below indicating your interest.

Our Bell Family in Australia-George and Sarah Bell in the 1840s.

When we are researching our family history, most of our energy goes into finding the documents that show the events of birth, marriage, and death of our ancestors. However, to build a picture of the lives of our ancestors we need to research the time, place, and the people involved in these events.

In a former blog, I wrote about the marriage of my ancestors, George Bell and Sarah Sargent at Sutton Forest in 1844. [See blog Our Bell Family in Australia-George Bell’s Marriage 1844‘ posted 9 August 2020].

Now I needed to research the place, Sutton Forest; the church, All Saints Church of England; the Minister, Rev William Stone and the witnesses, Robert Wallace and Mary Thomas as well as George and Sarah themselves.

The graveyard and All Saints Anglican Church (1861).

Sutton Forest

Sutton Forest was named by Commissioner Bigge when he traveled through the area in 1820 with Governor Macquarie. It was on the edge of ‘settlement’  on the Great South Road. It was named after the Speaker of the House of Commons in England. Political motives were always in mind when naming places in New South Wales in our early history.

A private village grew up here in the late 1820s when the land was made available for a church and cemetery in 1828. By the following year, a weatherboard chapel had been erected and was in use. This was where George Bell and Sarah Sargent’s wedding took place in 1844. [See blog  Our Bell Family in Australia- George Bell’s Marriage 1844′ posted on 9 August 2020).

The neat stone building standing today was built in 1861 to the plans of the Colonial Architect, Edmund Becket.

More information can be found at https://www.aussietowns.com.au/town/sutton-forest-ns

Rev William Stone

The Rev William Stone was appointed to Sutton Forest in 1843 to replace, Rev George Vidal.  He served there many years until he retired in 1858. He remained living at Sutton Forest and died there in 1870. He was buried in the churchyard and has a headstone.

The first school at Sutton Forest was opened in late 1830 with 18 pupils, under the instruction of John Eyre, a convict who had arrived that year. It had been built adjacent to the church. It was a church school and the local families continued to support it and it stayed in use until 1880 when the public school was opened.

A small cottage near the school was where the teacher and his family resided.

Robert Wallace

In the early 1840s, Robert Wallace was appointed as a teacher. He is believed to have been a friend of the Sargent family and that is how he became a witness at the wedding of George Bell and Sarah Sargent.

Mary Thomas

The other witness to the wedding was Mary Thomas the wife of James Thomas. They too were farming in the area and believed to be friends of the Sargent family. They later moved to The Oaks area near Picton, and in 1849 two of their sons were baptized at St Marks Church of England, Picton.

Sargents

The Sargent family, Thomas, his wife Alice (also spelled as Ellis in many records), and their four children emigrated on the Woodbridge in 1838. [See blog  ‘Immigration -“Woodbridge” Voyage-1838 posted 28 July 2017.]

They settled in the area soon after arrival. Four more children were born there and were baptized in All Saints. Sarah was the second daughter and had been born in Beckley, Sussex in 1827.

Bells

James and George Bell emigrated as sailors on the convict ship Asia in 1837. [See blogs

See “A Window in Time-My Bell Family in East Farleigh, Kent, England“, posted 30 April 2014 and,” My Bell Family Ancestors-George Bell (1817-1894)-Sorting Red Herrings“, posted 3 July 2014.

A Jack and Jill Sussex Mill

Found at http://www.windmillworld.com/millid/2614.htm

After marriage George and Sarah Bell moved to Picton. In those days nearly fifty miles away over a rough and dangerous track. It is believed that Thomas Sargent was employed to help build a windmill on what was known for many years as Windmill Hill, which overlooked Picton. This was for the Larkin family, who were also of Sutton Forest. George and his brother James assisted him. It was built in wood and was in the ‘Sussex Style’. It was not successful as it was too far from the village and the wind was unreliable. George and James Bell made bricks and later assisted in building a steam-powered mill down on Stonequarry creek.

George and Sarah Bell’s children were all born at Picton. They were baptized there too. However, although George and Sarah were married in the Church of England at Sutton Forrest when it came to baptize their children, they took advantage of whichever minister was visiting the village at the time.  Their children’s baptisms can be found in the Church of England, Presbyterian, and Wesleyan records.

More information on the Picton Windmills can be found at

https://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/heritageap/ViewHeritageItemDetails.aspx?ID=2690285

Information on the time period can be found at

https://myplace.edu.au/decades_timeline/1840/decade_landing_16_1.html

Most of all have fun with your research.

The Case of the Missing Bride- Arthur Baxter and Harriet May Bell

In former blogs, I told the story of my maternal grandparents, Arthur Baxter and Harriet May Bell’s romance, long engagement, and finally their marriage.

Harriet May was known by her friends and family by her second name, May. May’s father, John Bell had instructed  Arthur that his new bride had been raised as a lady, and she should not be expected to live in a bush camp as Arthur and his mates had done for the four previous years.

When the couple reached Murwillumbah, Arthur decided to ride out to Chillingham to visit friends from Camden, the Doust family. Several members of the Doust family had moved to the Richmond River just after the turn of the 20th century. Young Bert and Edwin Doust, who were about Arthur’s age, had taken up land at Chillingham, on the Tweed. They had cleared a few acres and built a slab hut. Two of their sisters, Emily and Olive, also lived with them. Arthur thought  May might be able to stay with the Doust girls until he could find a suitable house to rent.  Consequently, Arthur left May at the Murwillumbah hotel while he went on his mission.

However, in the hotel dining room that night, May met Mr. Harry Grant, who had just brought his wife, who was very ill,  to Murwillumbah, to have their sixth child. He had called at the hotel, because of a terrible storm, but he informed May that he had to leave early in the morning for his farm at Mt Burrell, about twenty miles away in the bush. He had left the five young children at home with a friend, who not only was keeping an eye on the children, but had nearly 100 cows to milk by hand. He was worried about their safety, as although neighbours had promised to keep an eye on them too, a couple of young aboriginal men in the district had proved troublesome.

May was very concerned, particularly for the young children, the youngest not yet two years of age, should be left so. She insisted that she should go with him to care for the children until their mother’s return.

The falls on the South Arm near Grants Farm- Original owned by Nola Mackey

 

The Grant selection was on the Rous or South Arm of the Tweed River. The selectors in the area were clearing the scrub to plant pastures for dairy farming.

The Grant home at that stage was little more than a bush slab hut with added rooms as the family grew. (It was further around the hill and closer to the creek than the Grant homes today. Years ago you could see the house stumps under a big old Moreton Bay fig. The old road wound around the hills rather than following the creek as it does today).

May had to learn to cook in a camp oven over an open fire, which she had never done before. She never had the cooking duty at home. Her sister Ollie did that.

She had to make her own yeast for the bread for the family and ‘workers’. These were young men clearing the scrub on Grant’s Selection.

Years later she would entertain her granddaughters with stories about her many cooking disasters during that time.

Water was heated for bathing the children and washing the clothes, in buckets made from 4-gallon kerosene tins precariously slung over the coals. The water was hauled from the creek in those same buckets. Wash days were an all-day affair with that sized family.

It was at the Grant home, Arthur found his bride a week later. Although Arthur had made the arrangements for May to live at the Doust’s at Chillingham, as planned, she refused to leave the Grant children in such circumstances. So the couple stayed with the Grants for several weeks, and May undertook the duties of caring for the children, cooking, and other household chores until Mrs. Grant’s return home.

Arthur, who had been brought up on a dairy farm was able to milk and could assist Harry Grant with other farming duties.

Rous or South Arm of the Tweed River near Grant’s Farm-

Original owned by Nola Mackey

 

There were times when the men were late returning to milk the cows in the evening, and May was required to help milk, although she had no experience. Much to the amusement of the menfolk, not only at Grant’s but other farms in the district, she arrived at the milking bails in full dress, including a clean and freshly starched kitchen apron, stockings, court shoes, and make-up.

Years later some of these men admitted to May that they had bets amongst themselves that she wouldn’t last a month farming and would return to Picton.

In fact, she adjusted over time and outlasted them all. She went on to farm with Arthur in that area for nearly fifty years despite floods, droughts, fire, and wartime restrictions.

They were still living on the farm when Arthur died in 1959.

Family History Class Notes, Marriages in NSW – Transcription Agents

In our class about the Marriage Index for New South Wales Registrar of Births, Deaths, and Marriages, I solved a little problem of the place and date for the marriage for my Great-Uncle, Henry William Bell, by finding an article about this marriage in a newspaper.

Should I leave further research and be content with these two references for this marriage? Remember newspapers may not be correct for an event either.

I need more references to enter onto my datasheet of the marriage event for this individual.

In this case, I decided to seek a more solid reference for information by using a transcription agent for the Registrar of Births, Deaths, and Marriages for New South Wales. If you consult the web page for this office you will see there are three such licensed agents.

 

• Marilyn Rowan
  Phone: 61(2) 4658 1206
  Email: marilynr@nswtranscriptions.com.au or visit nswtranscriptions.com.au
• Joy Murrin
  Phone: 61(2) 9585 1187
  Email: joy@joymurrin.com.au or visit joymurrin.com.au
• Laurie Turtle
  Phone: 61(2) 4573 1559
  Email: lturtle@iprimus.com.au or visit home.iprimus.com.au/lturtle

I have used each of these agents from time to time and have been happy with all of their services. I used a transcription agent because  a transcription is about half the cost of obtaining a certified copy of this certificate from the Registrar of Births, Deaths, and Marriages Office. All family historians know just how quickly these costs can add up when you are seeking documentation of your family tree.

This transcription is not a certified copy and cannot be used in any legal transactions. This is stated in the transcribed document supplied by the agent.

 

The transcription agent actually looks at the official copy of the marriage certificate held by the Registrar of Births, Deaths, and Marriages and carefully extracts all the information into a transcription form. Although there is a possibility of errors in transcribing I have found none to date.

We family historians can be a generous lot when it comes to sharing information and we might be tempted to photocopy or scan one of these transcriptions and share it with family and friends.

Legally we should not do this. That document is copyright to the agent who produced it. You actually purchased the information on this transcription not the copying rights of the document.

When I want to share this information I transcribe the information onto my own marriage transcription form clearly giving full credit for where I got the information and adding any notes I wish to add. Here are my sharing documents for this marriage.

 

 A pdf download of this marriage transcription document can be found on this website under the Resources and Examples Tab.

 

My transcription copy of the marriage report in the newspaper.

 

A pdf download of this marriage newspaper report transcription document can be found on this website under the Resources and Examples Tab.

By doing my copying in this format there is no confusion about the source of the information and when I obtained it.

Over time when collecting information it becomes difficult to remember who gave you the actual information and when. If you get into good habits early on in your research you have fewer problems on this front.

 

World War II on the Home Front with More Bushfires

There may not have been any serious bushfires in northern New South Wales in 1941, but by the end of the following year the local authorities were gearing up for another big fire season.

Bush Fire Prevention

Police, Shire Council to Form Bush Brigades

Members of Murwillumbah police force and Tweed Shire Council were appointed at a public meeting at Murwillumbah yesterday as a central bush fire brigade control committee to organize the formation of bush fire brigades at all country centres throughout the Murwillumbah police patrol. It was emphasized that it was intended that the organization should be permanent and not merely for the duration of the war.

 

Tweed Daily (Murwillumbah, NSW : 1914 – 1949) Sat 21 Nov 1942 Page 2

Bush Fire Prevention

The Winter of 1943 was very cold and dry on the northern rivers of New South Wales and the farmers knew it would be an early start to the fire season. By the middle of September, their fears had been realized.

Fires in the South Arm Area

Several bushfires were burning last night in the Kunghur, Terragon and Midginbjl districts.

So far they have not caused any serious damage, the burnt country being mostly bladey grass and rubbish. but it was stated last right that if a strong wind sprang up today the fires would be likely to menace valuable property. After recent rain, a number of farmers lit fires to burn off rubbish on their properties and some of these got out of control when fanned by a strong wind.

The strongest gale for nine years blew at Kunghur last Saturday, causing the fires to leap from tree to tree. One big fire burning from Byrrill Creek towards Blue Knob was reported last night to be only two miles from Kunghur village in the direction of Kyogle. A number of men were fighting this blaze last night in an effort to prevent it from getting out of hand if a strong wind rises today.

Tweed Daily (Murwillumbah, NSW : 1914 – 1949) Wed 22 Sep 1943 Page 2 FIRES IN SOUTH ARM AREA

 

South Arm Fires Out of Control

Driven by the worst gale experienced for years, bushfires raging throughout the Upper South Arm area were out of control last night, stated a late report from Kunghur.

Two farm homesteads on the Kunghur-Mount Burrell Road, those of Mr. Arthur Baxter and Mr. C. McMahon, were being menaced and firefighters were standing by to put out sparks and bits of burning timber whirled on to the buildings by the strong wind.

No injury to persons or stock losses were reported.

At Mr. McMahon’s property cattle were herded for safety into a small paddock near the home.

A fire also was burning fiercely on Mr. C. T. Grant’s Mt. Burrell farm. Practically the whole of Mt, Burrell was alight and fires were raging along the Kyogle Road. Another fire was racing towards the Nimbin Road, while a fire at Byrrill Creek was sweeping towards Kunghur and was expected to link with the fire in McMahon’s farm. A new fire broke out yesterday at Kunghur Creek, and at the top of Perch Creek last night a big fire was sweeping through the back of a number of properties, including

those of Messrs R. A. Clark, E. W. Roberts, and W H Smith. A fire also appeared to be burning at Terragon, the report added.

60 Miles an Hour Gusts

Efforts made on Tuesday night to minimize the danger of the fires breaking out again were reduced to naught when a terrific gale sprang up about. 3 o’clock yesterday afternoon. Old residents said it was the worst they could remember, some of the gusts being estimated at 60 miles an hour.

The wind fanned the smouldering fires and they quickly began to sweep onward, burning valuable grassland.

Last night, it was stated, the glow of fires lit the countryside at Kunghur as brightly as moonlight.

If the weather does not change: it is expected that thousands of acres of grassland will be burnt.

A later report at midnight stated that fresh fires were springing up in many directions, apparently as the wind whipped smouldering logs into flame. The wind was still as fierce as ever. Some telephone lines were out of commission, apparently due to the wires having been crossed by the wind or being broken down by falling limbs.

The countryside in the district is extremely dry. The rainfall so far this year has amounted to only 21.55 inches, the lowest for 20 years.

Tweed Daily (Murwillumbah, NSW : 1914 – 1949) Thu 23 Sep 1943 Page 2

SOUTH ARM FIRES OUT OF CONTROL

South Arm fires Under Control

All the Bushfires in the Upper South Arm area were under control early last night, according to a report from the Kunghur correspondent of the Tweed Daily.

The strong gale which blew on Wednesday night dropped about 2 a.m. yesterday the gangs of firefighters were able to burn breaks. Women and children assisted the men in the early morning to get the job done quickly in case the gale sprang up again. The day was comparatively calm and the opinion was expressed that unless a further heavy gale occurred the position was safe.

Mr. C. McMahon. a farmer on the Kunghur-Mount Burrell road, was the heaviest sufferer, losing about 400 acres of’ grassland including 300 acres of a 316-acre block and 100 acres of a 640-acre block and 100 acres of a 640-acre in the same vicinity, also had a fairly large area of grassland burnt

So far as is known, the fires at Perch Creek did not cause a great deal of damage.

Tweed Daily (Murwillumbah, NSW : 1914 – 1949) Fri 24 Sep 1943 Page 2

SOUTH ARM FIRES UNDER CONTROL

Google Images-Australian Rural Firefighters-2020

The following November 1944 saw everyone on edge over bushfires and it looked as if it was going to be serious.

Destruction By Bushfire at Kunghur

A bushfire at Kunghur, started when a tree was struck by lightning nearly a fortnight ago, has caused some trouble for a week, and during the weekend many men were busy controlling it. About 100 acres of grass and valuable fences and gates have been destroyed.

The tree which started the fire was struck on Mr. C. M. McMahon’s property and spread through bladey grass and shrubbery along the Nimbin road.

Losses have not been heavy, and the work of the fire-fighters of the area has been directed towards confining the fire to Mc Mahon’s property. Some standing timber was burnt, and the dead trees caused blazes that lit up the countryside for miles each night.

The flames had died down largely by last night, though the smoke nuisance was unpleasant.

Yesterday the thermometer at Kunghur post office reached 103 degrees but it is doubtful whether the fires contributed towards this degree of heat. On Sunday, when the fire was a little worse, the temperature reached only 100 degrees.

Tweed Daily (Murwillumbah, NSW : 1914 – 1949) Tue 21 Nov 1944 Page 2

Destruction By Bushfire at Kunghur

By the end of 1945, the war had ended and all the young men returned home to take up farming again. However, they had hardly set foot on home soil when the fires broke out early.

Grass Fire Spreads at Byrrill Ck.

A grass and brush fire’ started at Byrrill Creek yesterday afternoon and

last night was reported to be spreading rapidly.

The area, particularly involved was that leased by Mr. Arthur Baxter from

Mr. Harry Solomon.

If the fire was not brought under control by this morning approximately

 3000 acres of grassland in the Byrrill Creek-Kunghur area would be threatened, stated the Kunghur correspondent of The Tweed Daily.

Many cattle agisted in the area would be in danger if the fire was not controlled today and the owners of the cattle were advised to check up, in their own interests, early this morning, to ensure removal of their cattle from any area immediately threatened.

A small party of volunteers went to the outbreak,, but due to the dryness of the country and the wind then blowing it would be practically impossible to control the fire last night, added the correspondent.

Tweed Daily (Murwillumbah, NSW : 1914 – 1949) Fri 2 Aug 1946 Page 2

Grass Fire Spreads at Byrrill Ck.

 

The Upper South Arm farmers believed it was now time they banded together to have their own brigade and equipment close by when needed. Accordingly, a meeting was held in the Kunghur Hall on the 17th of August.

There was good support and Arthur Baxter was elected as President of the Fire Brigade Committee. A neighbour, Richard Jarrett was elected as Secretary with another neighbour, George Walters elected as Fire Captain. The McMahon’s who had been burned out on previous occasions during the war had sold up and retired to Murwillumbah. George Walters had purchased their farm on the Upper South Arm at Kunghur.

The farmers on the Upper South Arm felt more secure now that they had their own brigade and equipment close by. James Arthur (Jim) Baxter, Arthur’s only son also joined the brigade, when he returned from war service. He was a member for over fifty years, many of which he served as Fire Captain.

World War II Experiences on the Home Front- Bushfires

Halfway through 2019, the topic of conversation among friends, family, and neighbours was ‘the drought’ and how it’s protracted nature was bringing so many close to ruin. Everyone was looking for those Spring showers and early storms. However, they didn’t arrive and within days there was only one thing on everyone’s mind – ‘the fires’.

For us, the fires began in August. A farmer several kilometres away was burning off when gale-force winds sprung up and drove the fire directly towards us. Within the hour the fire had raced through several kilometres of bushland and was threatening several homes near us. Fortunately, we had the Rural Fire Brigades, water-bombing planes and many friends and neighbours with fire- fighting equipment all throwing everything at the raging fire. They were finally successful in defending our homes and properties and brought it under control. We were the lucky ones. Over the next weeks and months, others to the north and south of us lost everything- homes, businesses and even lives.

We had bushfires through the area in 1993 when several neighbours  lost sheds and outbuildings as well as pastures, but none of us could compare that fire to what we faced in August.

That week in August was a defining moment in our lives which changed everything.

 

Our bushfire scare brought to mind my maternal grandparents, Arthur and Harriet May Baxter, who were farmers on the South Arm of the Tweed River in northern New South Wales. I had heard family stories and I knew they had come close to losing their home to bushfires in the 1940s.

I talked to the only living member of the family, my mother’s youngest sister, who was only a child at the time, but she could still recall the frightening experience. She could not recall how many times but knew it was more than once and it was during World War II when all the young men of the district, including her brother, were away at war. That left the older men, women, and children to fight the fires.

A search of the local newspapers on Trove on the National Library of Australia website gave me more details of these fires. The first was in 1940.

 

Fires Rage In South Arm Area – Pastures Burnt Over Wide Area

The period of extremely dry weather experienced by the Tweed and Richmond districts for the past six months culminated yesterday in a serious outbreak of fire which destroyed valuable pastures over a wide area between Uki and Nimbin.

Tweed Daily (Murwillumbah, NSW : 1914 – 1949) ,Tue 5 Nov 1940 Page 2 , Fires Rage In South Arm Area

Extensive Damage from Fires

Grassland and Timber Destroyed at South Arm

Considerable damage was caused to grassland, fencing, timber, and roads from the grass and bushfires which raged through sections of the South Arm district on Monday and yesterday. Last night, while sections were still burning, it was stated that they were being watched carefully, and were under control. The southerly wind yesterday assisted the firefighters, who had been kept hard at work for many hours. Women helped the men at the arduous work.

The Tweed district has been enveloped in smoke since Monday, and the nearby hills have been practically obscured from view. The fires ravaged an area from Lilian Rock on the Kyogle Road to Uki, a distance of about 15 miles, and spread for varying distances from the road, through valuable pastures and timber. Some homesteads were endangered, but all were saved.

On Monday, after a report from the burning area, First-Class Constable McDonald and Constable  Fullwood, of Murwillumbah, and the Shire Engineer (Mr. A. L. Hornman) motored to Nimbin and Lillian Rock, where they met Constable Griffen, of Nimbin.

The trip to Lillian Rock and back to Murwillumbah by the police party was most uncomfortable, and at times hazardous, as the fire raged on both sides of the road and big trees were falling.

Clearing Roads

The party was expected back in Murwillumbah shortly after 1 o’clock yesterday morning, but it was not until after 5 o’clock that it was able to get through. The members were compelled ‘to clear the ‘road of fallen timber at frequent intervals, and at one point a large bloodwood, three feet in diameter, blocked their progress for some hours.

While some members walked through the blackened country for about three miles for a saw, one of the police officers set to work to cut through the big log.

Shire employees with a caterpillar tractor were sought to haul the timber off the road, and the gang was kept busy for many hours clearing a path for many other cars that were held up on various parts of the road.

With timber burning on both sides of the road throughout yesterday, many other trees fell and gangs will be employed to-day clearing the road. In places, the heat of the fires, which encroached to the sides of the road and the burning timber caused extensive damage to the bitumen surfacing.

Valuable Grassland Destroyed

It was estimated last night the fires had swept through at least 500 acres of grassland, and unless early rain falls the position in the South Arm district will be serious. Already there has been considerable movement of stock to the reaches of the river where more feed is available, while some owners have sought agistment in other parts of the Tweed district.

There were further outbreaks of fire yesterday and a close watch had to be maintained by owners, but it was stated last night that the position was well in hand. The fires raged throughout the day on Monday and many homesteads in the South Arm area were menaced.

The fire even encroached to within a short distance of the Church of England building at Kunghur, but was kept in check before any damage was done.

Traffic on the road between Uki and  Nimbin was dislocated on Monday through burning trees falling across, but little difficulty was experienced yesterday in getting through. No reports of serious damage to property have yet been received, although, fencing on many farms has been burnt. It was earlier reported that a house and outbuildings owned by Mr. C. Way at Byrrill Creek had been destroyed, but this was contradicted last night. It was stated that the fire got to within a short distance of the buildings but the firefighters managed to get it under control in time.

Fires in Forest

A thick, smoke haze could be seen over the Mebbin forestry area, but it has not been ascertained whether there has been any serious damage. Firefighters battled for six hours in the Whian forestry area on Monday night to get a big blaze under control.

It was stated last night that there were many blackened areas in the Midginbil, Kunghur and Mt. Burrell areas. where practically every available man helped to fight the fires on Monday.

A number of farm buildings was endangered when the fires, aided by a strong wind, ran swiftly through the pastures. In the Kunghur area, the blaze had to be fought to save the properties of Messrs. A. Baxter, C. McMahon and W. H. Taylor.

Tweed Daily (Murwillumbah, NSW : 1914 – 1949) Tue 12 Nov 1940 Page 2 Destruction Of 3,000 Acres

A young man was charged with arson under the Careless Use of Fire Act (1912). When all the evidence was laid out, none of the farmers chose to prosecute him.

The full story can be found here.

Tweed Daily (Murwillumbah, NSW : 1914 – 1949) Thu 14 Nov 1940 Page 8 Youth Fined £52 On Careless Use of Fire Act Charges

That was the first but not the last of the fires on the Home Front during World War II.

 

 

 

Framing History- Elizabeth McArthur, Descendant of Devonshire Landed Gentry-3.

Here we continue the story of Elizabeth Veale, born 1766, and a descendant of Devonshire Gentry. She later married John McArthur and emigrated to Australia on the Second Fleet in 1790.

Elizabeth Veale was about 12 years of age when her mother remarried and moved away from Bridgerule.

It is believed that it was at this time, she moved into the household of the Rev John Kingdon. Although John and Jane Kingdon had several sons, they only had one daughter at this time.

The Rev John Kingdon was also from a landed family of Holsworthy. He was born in 1735, the eldest son of  Roger and Judith Kingdon. He began his education at Holsworthy and later is believed to have attended a Grammar School in Exeter, before going to Exeter College, at Oxford University. In later years, he was well known for his great scholarship.

John Kingdon was appointed Vicar of Bridgerule in 1765 but lived at nearby Holsworthy.

On 25 June 1766, the Rev John Kingdon married, Jane Hockin, of Okehampton, Devonshire.

Bridget Kingdon, their eldest child was born at Holsworthy in 1767 and was baptized there on 21 July.  The family moved into the Bridgerule vicarage, known as East Park, soon afterward. All their subsequent children were born there and baptized at St Bridget’s.

Elizabeth Veale had grown up in the village with Bridget Kingdon, and she was welcomed into the household as a suitable companion.

St Bridget’s Bridgerule, Devon

John Kingdon also believed that girls should be well educated to run the family estates, while their husbands were absent, and so privately tutored his daughter, Bridget, and Elizabeth Veale. Not only to read and write well but also to study literature and sciences. She lived there several years before returning to the Hatherly home.

John Hatherly, Elizabeth Veale’s grandfather is known to have doted on his granddaughter and was preparing her for a ‘good’ marriage. Although Lodgeworthy in Bridgerule, was now in the hands of Edmund Leach, it had prospered and was intended for Elizabeth Veale’s dowry. Life was good on those Devonshire farms as Elizabeth Veale grew into womanhood.

Meanwhile down in Stoke Climsland, Edmund and Grace Leach had also prospered and they had had a daughter, Mary Isabella. She had been born in late 1780 and was baptized at All Saints Parish Church, Stoke Climsland on 14 January 1781.

However, when the American War of Independence ended in 1782, it changed life everywhere including those farming communities in Devon. Depression hit Britain quickly and severely with few markets, failing crops and increasing population by migration and immigration. Over the next five years disaster was to slowly engulf many families in that part of the country.

The result was that Edmund Leach gradually sank into bankruptcy, and had to sell all his property, including Lodgeworthy at Bridgerule, leaving Elizabeth Veale without any means for a dowry.

Elizabeth’s mother, Grace Leach, along with her youngest daughter Mary Isabella, returned to her father, John Hatherly’s home at Bridgerule, on the death of her mother, Grace Hatherly, in 1785. Her husband Edmund Leach remained at Stoke Climsland, where he died a pauper and was buried in All Saints Churchyard on 1 April 1791. His grave is unmarked.

In 1787, Elizabeth Veale was just 21 years of age when she met the dashing John McArthur. He was a tutor at the school where the young Thomas Hockin, a son of the Rev John and Jane Kingdon, was a pupil. He was invited by Thomas’s parents, to visit them at the Bridgerule vicarage. Thomas’s sister, Bridget was a close friend of Elizabeth Veale, and she too was invited to the vicarage to meet the charming young man.

Elizabeth Veale married John McArthur the following year at St Bridget’s, Bridgerule. The McArthurs left the parish soon afterward, and within a short time emigrated to the other side of the world.

Bridgerule, Devon. St Bridget’s on the hill with Vicarage.

In 1792,  shortly before her father’s death, Grace Leach married on 27 March, John Bond, a friend of her father, who had known Grace all her life.  Her father was ill and wanted someone, who could take care of her after he died. He died at Bridgerule and was buried in St Bridget’s Churchyard on 16 August 1792.

Elizabeth McArthur, when she heard her mother had married him, made a comment that leads us to believe that she thought him not socially acceptable, and her mother had married beneath her. Something Elizabeth’s mother thought Elizabeth had done when she married John McArthur.

Elizabeth, by this time, was in New South Wales far away, and no comfort or help to her mother.

Grace Bond’s youngest daughter Mary Isabella Leach, was only eleven years of age when her mother remarried. John Bond died on 16 July 1824 and Grace Bond died 22 June 1836 aged 89 years.

Mary Isabella Leach married Thomas Hacker on 22 January 1801 at Poundstock (Cornwall) and had a family of seven daughters. She later emigrated with some of her children and their families in 1852, to Prince Edward Island, Canada, where she died in 1858.

Family Heirloom – The Chain-mail Purse

My mother, the fifth child and fourth daughter of Arthur and Harriet May Baxter was to be named ‘Margaret Alice’ in honour of her two grandmothers. Arthur’s mother had been, ‘Margaret Jane’, born 1858 to Gilbert and Ann Kennedy, and Harriet May’s mother ‘Alice’, was born in 1854 to Robert and Margaretta Sherwood.

 However, when my grandmother, Harriet May went to register the birth of her new daughter, at the Murwillumbah Court House, she gave her the name ‘Margaret Nola’.

 Having grown up with the story of how my mother was to be named for her grandmothers, but only received the name of her paternal grandmother, I asked my grandmother, Harriet May, why the change?

 She explained to me that she and Arthur had originally decided to name their fourth daughter after the grandmothers because although by this time Arthur’s mother had eight granddaughters, only one had been given the first name ‘Margaret’ and that granddaughter had died in an accident as an infant. One other had Margaret, as a second name.

 Harriet May’s mother had eleven granddaughters by this time. Only one had been given the name ‘Alice’, but it was used as a second name. The maternal grandmother wanted the ‘new’ grandchild given the name ‘Alice’ as an only name, like herself. However, my grandparents had privately decided to use it as a second name.

 My grandmother called at the Murwillumbah Court house to register her new daughter, shortly after being released from the Newbrae Private Hospital. However, when it came to the actual registration my grandmother used ‘Nola’ as the second name. My grandmother had two nieces, one on each side of the family named ‘Nola’, and she liked the name.

 I asked my grandmother, Harriet May, again, why the change?

Her reply was that she and Arthur had been engaged shortly before her seventeenth birthday, but her mother was set against the marriage and would never give her consent and blessings.

Arthur and Harriet May were married a week after ‘Harriet May’s’ twenty-first birthday.

Although her relationship with her mother was quite cordial in most ways, she could never quite forgive her for withholding consent and blessings for the marriage.

 My mother first met her grandparents in 1928 when she, her mother and baby sister, Joan, travelled by train to Sydney for Harriet May’s parents’ Golden Wedding Anniversary at Thirroul, on the South Coast of New South Wales.

Afterward, they went to Picton to visit Arthur’s parents, who had also celebrated their Golden Wedding Anniversary earlier in the year.

Left: My mother ‘Margaret Nola’ (left) with her Aunt Milly and cousins Phyllis and Heather, in the front garden of her paternal grandparent’s home, at Picton, October 1928

 

It was on this visit that Arthur’s mother,’ Margaret Jane’ gave her namesake granddaughter, ‘Margaret Nola’ a gift, in honour of the name. This was a small Victorian chain-mail purse, ‘to take her pennies to church in’. It was always one of my most mother’s prized possessions, and my sisters and I, when children, were never allowed to use it to carry our pennies to Sunday School and Church.

My mother didn’t know if her grandmother Margaret, had purchased it as a special gift, or if it had originally been her prized possession as a child. I have not been able to solve this question either.

 By the way, there are thirty grandchildren on my maternal side. Seventeen are female and not one was named ‘Margaret’ or ‘Alice’, which was most unusual for the time.

PS: The ‘sixpences’ in the above photograph were used by my family for many years as the ‘pudding’ money at Christmas. They were kept in a little cigarette tin and wrapped in the calico cloth used to make the ‘boiled’ pudding for Christmas Day.

Oh! The funny stories and laughter those coins evoke each time I look at them.