Projects
Snippets of interest from some family history projects.
Victorian Alehouses
Thomas Noble, an Irishman born in 1845 in Tipperary, became a publican in Bristol, taking over the licence from his father-in-law. Using census and parish records, local Quarter Session minutes, and contemporary press articles, we managed to uncover a wealth of information enabling us to paint a picture of the life of a publican in Victorian England. On the right is an extract from the Bristol Mercury, Thursday 28th August 1890, detailing a court hearing regarding an objection to Thomas' licence renewal on the grounds of allegedly receiving stolen goods.
Transported Convicts
William Hollis, born 1757, was caught and sentenced in 1787 for "unlawfully and feloniously beating and wounding four of the keepers of Whaddon Chase" while trying to steal a deer. He was transported to Australia on board Salamander, a ship in the 3rd Fleet, arriving in Australia in 1791. He left behind his wife and young son John and served his sentence on the other side of the world. He was eventually freed and went on to become a constable. His son back in England, my 4x great-grandfather, went on to have 9 children. The youngest son Newman, who was receiving poor relief from the parish, emigrated to Australia with his family in 1844, supposedly in search of his grandfather.
A Tragic End
Henry Hawkins was born in 1858 in London. The son of John Hawkins, a French Polisher, in 1873 he went to the Royal Naval school, HMS Ganges in Harwich. In 1876, aged 18, he joined the crew of HMS Wolverene. On the 29th August 1876, the Wolverene sailed for Australia, to become the Commodore's flagship. Henry arrived back in England on the 8th January 1881 having been away for four and a half years.
In 1897, aged 39, Henry left the Navy after serving in Australia, New Zealand, the Falkland Islands and in the Mediterranean. He settled in Sheerness, Kent, where he worked in the Cement Works as a sack mender. He died in 1906, from blood poisoning after pricking his finger with a needle at work.
In the account of his inquest from a newspaper of the time, his daughter Ethel said that he "did not take much notice of it, and did not poultice it or seek medical attention".
In 1897, aged 39, Henry left the Navy after serving in Australia, New Zealand, the Falkland Islands and in the Mediterranean. He settled in Sheerness, Kent, where he worked in the Cement Works as a sack mender. He died in 1906, from blood poisoning after pricking his finger with a needle at work.
In the account of his inquest from a newspaper of the time, his daughter Ethel said that he "did not take much notice of it, and did not poultice it or seek medical attention".