A True Convict Relic

In the Daily Telegraph of 17 October 2013, there appeared the story of centenarian, Ernest Bowden who recently presented a 'convict brick' to the Sydney Harbour Foreshore Authority. It is now on display at The Rocks Discovery Museum.

With the distinctive 'broad arrow', signifying 'government manufacture', it would be a true relic of the convict days of the early Colony.

Convict brick on display at the Rocks Discovery Museum,

 Sydney. Photo taken 21 November 2013.

Thle brick had come into Ernest's possession through his father, Rrobert Bowden, who was the official government photographer covering the construction of the Sydney Harbour Bridge. It had been given to Robert by Dr John Bradfield, Chief Engineer on the Bridge. The brick was found during demolition work on the Dawes Point Battery in The Rocks, Sydney, at the time of the construction of the Bridge. 

The history of Dawes Point, under the southern pylon of Harbour Bridge, is a story in itself. It has many layers dating back to 1789 when it became the site of Sydney's first fortification, through to the construction of the Bridge in 1925-1932, and to today's parkland.

In searching though newspaper articles at the time of construction of the Sydney Harbour Bridge, through the resources of TROVE (online information service of the National Library of Australia) we can piece together the typical finds of convict relics in the vicinity of Dawes Point:

Convicts Bricks and Stones
"To the opulent collection of relics of old Sydney, yielded by excavations for the harbour bridge, there was added yesterday a battered brick, found at Dawes Point, and was made probably more than 100 years ago. It was  in fair condition,[and] bore the broad-arrow imprint.............
Dr Bradfield says the brick probably came from the old water police court at Dawes Point which had to make way for the bridge approaches, and which was built from the materials in the fort and observatory put up at the point from the earliest days of the colony."
[Sydney Morning Herald, Thursday 13 August 1931 page 8].

Was this Ernest's Brick?

"From this building he [Dr Bradfield] had [also] recovered an old sandstone block in which were rudely chiseled the figure 1789, and the initials R.R.- those of Major Robert Ross, the first Lieutenant-Governor, who came out in the first fleet. This stone, which Dr Bradfield gave to the Royal Historical Society, is claimed to be the first quarried for a Sydney building".
[Sydney Morning Herald, Thursday 13 August 1931 page 8]

Stone bearing the imprint of 1789 and the initials 'R R'

on display at the Rocks Discovery Museum, Sydney.

 Photo taken 21 November 2013.

This stone is also on show at The Rocks Discovery Museum now on loan from the Mitchell Collection of the NSW State Library.

A photograph of it and other stones obtained during the excavation work for the Harbour Bridge was published in the Sydney Morning Herald, Saturday, 15 August 1931, page 14.

Sydney Morning Herald, 15 August 1931, page 8.
Photo from Daily Telegraph article 17 October 2013

A Dungeon
"Another link with the past was removed yesterday when employees of the Public Works Department dislodged the stone foundations of the old Dawes Point fortifications. A flight of steps led to three dark, dungeon-like chambers. Ventilation was supplied by means of a six-inch earthenware pipe leading to the surface. It was stated that the basement was one used for confining incorrigible convicts..........." 
[Sydney Morning Herald, Thursday 25 February 1932 page 13].

Wooden Pipes
"Workmen engaged in making excavations near Wynyard-square for the supports for the approaches of the Sydney Harbour Bridge, discovered yesterday some old pipes which are believed to have been made by convicts when Port Jackson was a penal settlement. They were located near a disused well some 30 to 38 feet below the present surface of the street. They appeared to be hollowed from limbs and stems of trees, probably ironbarks, and were in a fair state of preservation...............They created considerable interest, and were inspected by Dr J.J.C. Bradfield , chief engineer of the Sydney Harbour Bridge".
[Sydney Morning Herald, Friday 11 March 1927, page 11].

A Tombstone
"Another relic.....is a tombstone found when workmen were demolishing a row of houses to make way for the northern approaches to the bridge. It was apparently an ordinary paving stone in a yard over which generations of children had scampered. But when  it was turned over it was found to bear the inscription 'Sacred to the memory of Peter Crawford, first officer of the ship Surrey, who died of typhoid fever, 1806'. The Surrey, Dr Bradfield said, was a convict ship".
[Sydney Morning Herald, Thursday 13 August 1931 page 8]

A Pump
" One relic of definite historic value consists of a portion of a pump for a well sunk in 1828 of 1829 by that early pioneer, John Busby, and uncovered at the Wynyard -square excavations. There is a section of a wooden pipe, about nine inches square, and made of ironbark, through the centre of which is bored longitudinally a hole four inched in diameter, and there is is also the lifting bucket, the lifting shaft, and a clack valve of lead and leather...".[Sydney Morning Herald, Thursday 13 August 1931 page 8]

History Services NSW has extensive records of convicts who were assigned to the Dawes Point area.

If you are researching a convict ancestor who was assigned to the Dawes Point, you should go to our website at: http://www.historyservices.com.au/convicts.htm

****************************************************************************

Blog prepared by Mary McGuinness

I refer you to Trove's newspaper collection which includes digitised historic and modern newspapers which are accessible on line, as well as newspapers in microform and paper formats. Go to the website:
http://trove.nla.gov.au/

Photos taken on site at The Rocks Discovery Museum, 21 November 2013.

Nelson Head - Inner Light

View of Nelson Head Light Tower and Lightkeepers cottage
 - view facing north October 2013

" Harbour Light, Nelson Head, Port Stephens. On and after the night of Monday, 1st April, a harbour light will be exhibited on Nelson Head, Port Stephens, visible at a distance of from 8 to 10 miles in clear weather................When Nelson Head is passed the light will again make out bright and be a guide for picking up anchorage or proceeding further into Port Stephens."

So appeared this notice in the Government Gazette of 28th March 1872, issued from the Office of the Superintendent of Pilots, Lights and Harbours in Sydney.

Nelson Head is situated between Shoal Bay and Nelson Bay, New South Wales on the southern shore of Port Stephens.

The need for an 'inner light' became obvious after the commissioning of the 'outer light' on Point Stephens, to guide vessels around the actual entrance to the port which has many close-in islands, rocky reefs and shoals.

The first light in 1872 was beamed from a wooden tower with four kerosene lamps. This was replaced in 1876 by a one storey octagonal tower which was attached to the lightkeepers residence which was completed in that year.

Nelson Head Lighthouse tower attached to cottage
 view looking eastward - October 2013

The light was electrified in June 1948, when externally mounted electric lamps replaced the original lamps. The controls remained inside the Light Room.

In 1984 the lighthouse was fully auotmated with the lights being mounted in a black box on a corner of the roof together with electronic controls.

In 1995, the light was relocated to a masthead atop the radio base which had been built over a Second World War observation bunker situated just below the lighthouse. It was solar powered at this time. The light was decommissioned in 2003.

View of lighthouse rooms and Marine Rescue NSW
Communications Centre - October 2013

Today the lighthouse cottage and reserve are managed by Marine Rescue NSW incorporating the Royal Volunteer Coastal Patrol, which first set up a communication centre on Nelson Head in 1982.

On Sunday, 3 November 2013, Marine Rescue Port Stephens, celebrated the official opening of its refurbished Communications Centre on Nelson Head. The radio and communications hub has undergone a major upgrade from analogue to digital radio capability. 

Today the site boasts the Inner Light Tearooms and Lighthouse Cottage Museum, and is a major tourist attraction in the Port Stephens area, with magnificent views over Shoal Bay, Mts Tomaree and Yacaaba and the entrance to the port. It is definitely worth a visit.

*******************************************************************************
Historyy Services NSW in its Government Contract and Contractors Database has records of eighty-six government contracts awarded for the construction and repair of lighthouse premises NSW up to 1900 including: 

• Erection of Lighthouse Keepers Quarters, Nelson Head Port Stephens -1875 to H McMaster;

If you would like further information, go to our website at:

http://www.historyservices.com.au/govt_contracts.htm

**************************************************************************************

Prepared by Mary McGuinness

All photos taken  October 2013.

Point Stephens - Outer Light

View of Point Stephens Lighthouse from Mt Tomaree at a distance of
4 kilometres - October 2013

View of Fingal Spit from Mt Tomaree - October 2013

Point Stephens Lighthouse (Latitude 32° 44.9'S, Longitude 152° 12.2'E) is located on a rocky headland 4.25 kilometres south east of the entrance to Port Stephens, New South Wales. 

Point Stephens is an island connected by a sand bar (Fingal Spit) to the mainland and encloses the south-facing Fingal Bay. It was first sighted by Captain James Cook on 11 May 1770 on his voyage north.  He named it after Sir Philip Stephens, Secretary of the Admiralty. 

The waterway of Port Stephens (located 190 kilometres north of Sydney and 45 kilometres north-east of Newcastle) was important in the maritime history of the early Colony of New South Wales dating from the visit of the Salamander, a ship from the Third Fleet in 1791. Being a safe anchorage for ships and very navigable, it facilitated the development of a cedar-getting timber industry in the area and the establishment of the Australian Agricultural Company on the northern shore.

However the surrounding coastline was very rocky and the entrance to the port was hazardous. In the period before the lighthouse was built, there were twenty-four shipwrecks in the area with the loss of thirty-seven lives. These included the Dove in 1828 (seven lives) and the Pandora in 1836 (five lives).

The need for a lighthouse was identified in 1850s by local residents and ship owners.

In February 1860, the site on Point Stephens was chosen for a lighthouse as "it will form a good leading mark for ships entering Port Stephens Heads, as it will not be shut in by Tomaree heads.."  [Sydney Morning Herald, Saturday 4 February 1860]. Also because the nearby Fingal Bay (originally  known as False Bay) was often mistaken as the entrance to Port Stephens.

The Lighthouse

View of Port Stephens Lighthouse looking eastward.
Note solar paneling in the right foreground.
Photo taken in June 2007

The Point Stephens Lighthouse came into operation on 1 May 1862. 

It was designed by the Colonial Architect, Alexander Dawson with a Doric tower and a flared base and external stairwell leading up to the entrance on the first floor. This design was unique at the time and makes it one of two similar lighthouses in NSW designed by Dawson. The other is the Hornby Light at Watsons Bay in Sydney Harbour.

The building contract was awarded to James Elphinstone by the Department of Public Works in 1860. The lighthouse is constructed of Hawkesbury sandstone which was brought to the site by ship. The original lantern was a canotropic design manufactured by the London engineering firm of H Wilkins and Co.

The original light was powered by kerosene. On 1 July 1922 it was converted to a Dalen Acetylene light. In 1960 mains power was connected with a backup diesel generator. The light was fully automated in March 1973. It was converted to solar power with battery storage in 1990.

The light today is under the control of NSW Transport Maritime.

The Cottages

To the north of the lighthouse are the ruins of the light keepers' residences. Completed in 1865, they are unique in that they are the only terraced light keepers cottages in NSW, that is all sharing the same roof. 

There were three one storey cottages in all. The building was constructed of the same imported sandstone as the lighthouse. The roof was originally made of slate and later replaced by terracotta tiles, circa 1901. There were five chimneys and bay windows and gables along the front. 

Remains of light  keepers quarters, Point Stephens - front view.
 Photo taken in June 2007

Remains of light  keepers quarters, Point Stephens -rearview.
 Photo taken in June 2007

Originally there were three lightkeepers in residence. The number was reduced to two from 1 July 1922 with the introduction of the Dalen Acetylene light.  A complete withdrawal of personnel took place on 25 June 1973 following automation of the light. The buildings were marked for demolition but a last minute reprieve saw them leased leased to the National Trust in !974. A caretaker stayed in the premises until March 1991.

Vandals destroyed the cottages by fire on 5 September 1991. In early 1992, a fence was erected and the chimneys and gables were stabilised by new brickwork.

The site of the lighthouse and cottages is heritage listed by NSW Environment and Heritage. 

{2 April 1999).

Today it is part of the Tomaree National Park under the  management of the NSW National  Parks and Wildlife Service.

At the time of the construction of the lighthouse, the spit, known as Narrowgut was high and dry and covered in scrub. The telegraph was connected to the lighthouse in the 1880s allowing communication with the outside world. This also provided the only link for the Nelson Bay Post Office. Wires on poles came across the sand spit joining the island to the mainland. However however this link was wiped out during the Maitland gale in 1891 which also swept away the sand spit.

Access to the island today is by boat or on foot possible at low tide. We had the experience of walking across the spit in June 2007 to explore the Point Stephens Lighthouse and the ruined cottages. Of late it has not possible been walk across the spit.

As a footnote, when the light was automated in 1973, the original dome of the lighthouse was replaced and today stands proudly atop the Tourist Information Centre in Nelson Bay.

Original lighthouse dome on the top of
 Tourist Information Centre, Nelson Bay - October 2013

History Services NSW in its Government Contract and Contractors Database has records of eighty-six government contract awarded for the construction and repair of lighthouse premises in NSW up to 1900 including seven for the Port Stephens area from, viz: 

• Erection of a Lighthouse at Port Stephens - 1860 to James B Elphinstone;
• Repairs to Lighthouse Keepers Quarters, Port Stephens - 1873 to James B Elphinstone;
• Erection of Lighthouse Keepers Quarters, Port Stephens - 1874 to William McCrea:
• Erection of Lighthouse Keepers Quarters, Nelson Head Port Stephens -1875 to H McMaster;
• Additions to Lighthouse, Port Stephens - 1887 to Hudson Brothers;
• Erection of a retaining wall at Lighthouse, Port Stephens - 1887 to James Fox and Company; and
• Repairs to Lighthouse, Port Stephens - 1887 to Wilson, Walker and Company.

If you would like further information, go to our website at:
http://www.historyservices.com.au/govt_contracts.htm

**************************************************************************************

Prepared by Mary McGuinness

All photos taken June 2007 and October 2013.

Rouse Hill School House

Site of Rouse Hill School on the right of Old Windsor Road

Another feature of the Rouse Hill historic precinct is the old Rouse Hill School House site atop the old Windsor Road. 

It was built in 1888 just opposite the carriage way of Rouse Hill House. It is of the standard brick and stone construction of its time. It was designed by the architect William Kemp (Department of Public Instruction) and built by the firm of Cranney and Greenway.  

A matching brick and sandstone teacher's residence was built circa 1895, but this was demolished in the 1960s.

There was a long association between the Rouse/Terry families and the school. It appears no coincidence then that both the House and school were painted in the same 'Pompeiian red' for many years from 1909.

Rouse Hill School House - 1888

Early photo and information signage

Typical of its time, the school house includes a large classroom
 in which all grades were taught by the one teacher

View from the back of the schoolhouse 

The Historic Houses Trust of  NSW acquired the Rouse Hill school site in 2002 when the Department of Education built a new school in Rouse Hill.

This was an important acquisition for the Trust as it allowed for negotiation with the Roads and Traffic Authority in the planned upgrading of Windsor Road. In the subsequent roadworks, the RTA agreed to deviate approximately 1.5 kilometres of Windsor Road to the north of the school building in an arc from Second Ponds Creek to Guntawong Road.

History Services NSW in its Government Contract and Contractors Database has five records relating to the Rouse Hill Public School site including the contract for "New Buildings, Rouse Hill" awarded to Cranney and Greenway in 1888 by the Department of Public Instruction.

If you would like further information, go to our website at:
http://www.historyservices.com.au/govt_contracts.htm

**************************************************************************************

Prepared by Mary McGuinness

All photos taken on the Open Day at Rouse Hill House and Farm on 

17 August 2013

Rouse Hill House and Farm - A True Heritage

Rouse Hill House

Rouse Hill House and Farm at Rouse Hill in western Sydney, is managed by Sydney Living Museums under the Historic Houses Trust of NSW

It is indeed a living museum taking us back to the early days of the colony of New South Wales, and telling us the story of six generations of the Rouse family who continuously lived there from its beginnings in 1813 to 1990s.

It is rich in both colonial and convict heritage.

The actual site is the traditional lands of the Darug aboriginal people. After the founding of the colony, it saw the passage of the Hawkesbury Road (1794-1813) and later Governor Macquarie's original Windsor turnpike road of 1813. It was also the scene of the 1804 Viengar Hill convict uprising.

View of Old Windsor (turnpike) Road looking west from
Second Ponds Creek, near the site of the 1813 tollhouse.

View of Old Windsor Road looking west towards
the school house near the site of the vinegar Hill
1804 convict uprising.

Richard Rouse was the Superintendent of Public Works and Convicts. Appointed in 1805, he moved with his family to a house opposite the gates of Government House at Parramatta. Due to his loyalty to Governor William Bligh he lost his position, but in January 1810 he was reinstated by Governor Lachlan Macquarie. He oversaw the construction of many buildings, tollhouses and turnpikes around Parramatta, Windsor and Liverpool.

In 1813, Rouse was contracted by Governor Macquarie to build a tollhouse at the foot of Vinegar Hill on the Windsor turnpike road. He received a 450 acre land grant in the vicinity which at the suggestion of Macquarie was named Rouse Hill.

Although the actual grant was not made official until 8 October 1816, it appears that Rouse had been clearing the land from 1813 and had begun construction of the construction of a Georgian style house.

Convict labour would have been used extensively in the construction of the house and the farm outbuildings, including the stables.   

The House

Front view of Rouse Hill House
Open Day 17 August 2013

Dining Room

Inside Stairs

Exposed area of floor of upper storey showing the work
of convict carpenters

Back Courtyard

View of the back of the House
showing entry to the courtyard area

View of the Summerhouse and pathway

The Farm Outbuildings

Bathhouse  1856

Shearing shed

Piggery

Dairy

Impressive Stables building

Stonework outside of Stables

Inside view of stalls

An interesting early "No smoking allowed " sign

The Convict Database of History Services NSW has records for 31 convicts that were specifically assigned to Richard Rouse at Rouse Hill, upon their arrival in the Colony. The list is as follows:

SURNAME	GIVEN NAME	TRANSPORT SHIP	DATE OF ARRIVAL
BOYLE	John	Bussorah Merchant	14/12/1831
BULLOCK	Benjamin	Waterloo	9/7/1829
COMPSON	James	Staffordshire	16/11/1832
DOOLAN	Patrick	Bussorah Merchant	14/12/1831
FARRELL	James	Sophia	17/1/1829
FARRELLY	Thomas	Calcutta	5/8/1837
FORDE	John	Borodino	12/7/1828
FRESHWATER	Thomas	Manlius	11/8/1827
HARROW	Michael	Larkins	22/11/1817
HEALY	Timothy	Borodino	12/7/1828
HEWITT	Patrick	Borodino	12/7/1828
HITCH	John	Norfolk	12/2/1837
HOLT	Samuel	Florentia	3/1/1828
M'GLINAHY
[M'GLINCHY]
[M'CLINCHY]	Daniel	Sophia	17/1/1829
M'GRATH	Owen	Ferguson	26/3/1829
M'NALLY	Daniel	Sophia	17/1/1829
NICHOLS	William	Sesostris	21/3/1826
ODGERS	Edward	Sophia	17/1/1829
ORPHAN
[OLIPHANT]	Edwin	Parmelia	16/11/1832
PAGE	Edmund	Surrey	26/11/1831
PEACHMAN	John	Florentia	15/12/1830
REEBUCK
[ROEBUCK]	William	Parmelia	16/11/1832
REED	Thomas	Surrey	26/11/1831
RINGROSE	George	Marquis of Huntley	21/8/1830
ROBERTSON	James	America	18/8/1829
ROBINSON	Benjamin	Manlius	11/8/1827
ROBINSON	William	Asia	13/2/1832
ROTHWELL	James	Florentia	15/12/1830
WARREN	William	Vittoria	17/1/1829
WOODISON	Thomas	Marquis of Hastings	31/7/1827

In his capacity as Superintendent of Convicts at Parramatta and the owner of a  a property at Bathurst, History Services NSW has some further 230 records of convicts who had come under the jurisdiction of Richard Rouse.

If you are interested in researching the convict history of the Rouse story, in particular that of Rouse Hill, you should go to the website at:

http://www.historyservices.com.au/convicts.htm

**************************************************************************************
Prepared by Mary McGuinness

All photos taken on the Open Day at Rouse Hill House and Farm on 17 August 2013

Sources:
Richard Rouse (1774-1852) - Australian Dictionary of Biography, Volume 2 (MUP) 1967 - article by Majorie Lenehan.

Convict Database  of History Services NSW

A Rare Piece Of Convict History

Handwritten manuscript of the convict William Noah on display at the State
Library of New South Wales - June 2013

Details about the manuscript above, State Library of New South Wales  -
June 2013

Currently on display in the State Library of New South Wales is a rare piece of convict history. It is a manuscript written by the convict William Noah about "A Voyage to Sydney in New South Wales in 1798 & 1799."

It is part of the AMAZE:The Michael Crouch Gallery exhibition which features 60 rare and quirky items from the collection of Sir William Dixson who was a major benefactor to the State Library. The exhibition celebrates Sir William's major contribution to understanding of the history of Australia, and commemorates the 60th Anniversary of his very generous bequest to the Library on his death in 1952.  

The manuscript of William Noah is a real gem in that is a poignant account of his experiences as a convict transported to New South Wales, and it is in his own handwriting. It is a real piece of early Australian history.

Details of Noah's story can be found can be found on the gallery's Curio website at: http://replay.slnsw.artpro.net.au/exhibit/429/ 

History Services NSW  also has detailed records of William Noah's life in Australia from his arrival at Port Jackson on the Hillsborough on 27 July 1799; his assignment in 1800 to Mr Palmer, Sydney; a Conditional Pardon in 1815; an Absolute Pardon in 1818; his work in the government lumbar yard; and in 1825 being designated as a housekeeper, Sydney.

If you would like further information on William Noah, or if you are researching a convict ancestor  go to our website at :

http://www.historyservices.com.au/convicts.htm

*****************************************

Blog prepared by Mary McGuinness

All photos taken June 2013

Visiting Bar Island

Approaching Bar Island from Berowra Creek

On Tuesday, 30 April 2013,  we visited Bar Island in Broken Bay as part of the bushwalks program of Hornsby Shire Council.

Bar Island  is situated at the mouth of Berowra Creek as it flows into the Hawkesbury River. It is only a small island covering some 3.8 hectacres in area and is located approximately five kilometres west of the Mooney Mooney Bridge. It is uninhabited today but is rich in Aboriginal and European history.

New signage

It was traditionally part of the land of the Dharug and Darkinjung Aboriginal people. An Aboriginal shell midden is found next to the wharf on the island.

Aboriginal shell midden near wharf.

Governor Arthur Phillip is reported to have have visited Bar Island on his second exploration visit to the Hawkesbury area in June 1789.

In the 1870s, Bar Island became a focal point for the local communities of the Hawkesbury with the coming of St John's Church of England, a school and a cemetery.

The Church was built in 1876 by John Crumpton, opening on 20th October that year with services being conducted by Rev Henry Ham Britten. A' half-time' school (in conjunction with the Peats Ferry School) was established on the island in 1875. Classes were held in the church from the following year. A violent storm in 1887 badly damaged the weatherboard church and it was demolished in 1892.

The only remaining part today is the stone fireplace and chimney which had been incorporated into the building using stone from George Peat's home "Fairview" which had fallen into ruin at nearby Mooney Mooney.

Fireplace and chimney remains of St Johns Church of England

Back view of fireplace facing the sun

But it is in the cemetery where we find a testament to the history of the early pioneers of the Hawkesbury district. A list of the known burials in the Bar Island cemetery is given at the foot of the Blog.

View of Cemetery looking up the hill

In 2007, Hornsby Council with funding from the NSW Department of Planning, repaired broken headstones such as those below:

Grave of Robert Milson died 14 September 1886
aged 62 years

Grave of Ann Elizabeth Milson, his wife,
died 9 September 1886
aged 39 years

Grave of Charles F Brown
Master Mariner
died 21 March 1901
aged 41 years

Grave of Harriet Young
died 14 December 1884
aged 75 years

Grave Alexander Bow Wilson
died 3 May 1887
aged 33 Years

Grave of James Cole
Native of Bristol England
died 26 February 1885
aged 71 Years

Grave of Mary Greer, died 18 July 1885
aged 65 year, and her husband,
John Greer, died 30 March 1888 aged 66 years

Grave of Charlotte Burton died 23 July 1890 aged 75 years, and
Marianne Bowles died 26 October 1892 aged 41 years.

Grave of Francis Byrne died 4 May 1887 aged 6 years.

Grave of Cyril Joseph Rose
  died 22 November 1895
aged 2 years and 6 months

The stories behind the people buried on Bar Island are truly fascinating. From unmarked graves, three tales emerge:

• Sarah Lewis Ferdinand who was an Aboriginal woman who married  a German convict, John Ferdinand Lewis. They lived at Marramarra Creek and had seven children. She was known as Biddy and later Granny Lewis as she became the matriarch of a large group of Aboriginal and local pioneers. She died in 1880 and is buried on Bar Island. This is particularly significant as the locations of burial places of tribal aborigines are not widely known. 

• Baby Maude Lloyd who died aged three weeks, and for whose mother Australian poet Henry Kendall wrote  On a Baby Buried by the Hawkesbury.

• James Calvert whom we identified as a convict. History Services NSW records that James arrived on the ship John in Port Jackson on 25 November 1827 from London. On arrival in the Colony, he was assigned as a labourer to Joseph Foulks of Lower Portland. He received a Ticket of Leave in March 1836 at Mangrove Creek, and a Conditional Pardon on 1 October 1842. In 1855, he married Ann (Annie) Jones at the Church of England  at Kincumber .He died at Brisbane Water in 1880 and is buried with his wife who died in 1883, in the Bar Island Cemetery.  

         ****************************************************************************

Known Burials in the Bar Island Cemetery, Hawkesbury River

Mary Ann Absolem                    Rubina Cole                              Maude Lloyd    
1822 - 1887                               Died 1880, aged 17 days           Died 1880, aged 3 weeks

Caroline Mary Banks                 Sarah Ferdinand                        Richard Lloyd
Died 1879, aged 5 months         Circa 1803 - 1880                      1830 - 1894

Marianne Bowles                       James W. Garthon                    Unnamed male child Lyden
1851 - 1892                              1859 - 1898                               Died 1884, aged 1 hour

William John Bowles                  Betsy Goodridge                       Frederick A. McLaughlin
1849 - 1903                               1856 - 1894                              Died 1903, aged 8 months

Charles Frederick Brown             Eva Isabella Green                    Ann Elizabeth Milson
1860 - 1901                               1901 - 1904                              1847 - 1886

Charlotte Burton                        James Kenneth Green                Cyril Joseph Rose
1815 - 1890                               Died 1904, aged 7 months         1893 - 1895

Annie Ellis Butters                     Mary Ann Jane Green                Elizabeth Bessie Rose
1839 - 1898                               1877 - 1897                              1824 - 1897

Joseph Blundell                         William Henry Green                  Mary Elizabeth Scott
Died 1906, aged 2 weeks           1874 - 1906                               Died 1887, aged 6 weeks, 

Albert Byrnes                            John Greer                                Vincent William Seymour
Died 1898, aged 17 days           1822 - 1888                               1824 - 1899

Francis J. Byrnes                      Mary Greer                                Ivy Sutton
1881 - 1887                              1821 - 1886                               1900 - 1901

Joseph Byrnes                          Richard Hibbs                           Lavinia Blanche Thompson
1836 - 1882                              1844 - 1904                               Died 1884, aged 3 months

Maria Byrnes                             Samuel Albert Holland               Frederick H. Underwood
1843 - 1901                               Died 1899, age unknown            1854 - 1902

Annie Calvert                             James Augustus Jessup            Mary Whitley
1816 - 1883                               1840 - 1902                              1847 - 1885

James Calvert                            Ruby Johnson                           Alexander Bow Wilson
1805 - 1880                               Died 1887, aged 11 months       1854 - 1887

James Cole                               Sarah Emily Johnson                 Harriett Young
1814 - 1885                               1859 - 1895                              1810 - 1884

Mary Cole                                 Mary Annie Jones
1820 - 1892                              1853 - 1883

************************************************************************

Blog prepared by Mary McGuinness

All photos taken April 2013

Reference sources:
Lorna Olliff:; There Must Be a River - A History of the Hornsby Shire, Ollif Publishing Co Sydney, 1975.

Tom Richmond: Hawkesbury River Heritage Cruise, September 2011

If you are interested in researching Australian history, go to our website at :
http://www.historyservices.com.au/