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Berryman: Notes on the Deaths
Berryman, Ian 1979 ed., A Colony Detailed: The First Census of Western Australia 1832, Creative Research, Perth: 'Notes on the Deaths', 165-174.
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1. John Parsons: erroneously recorded in Stirling’s despatch as an unnamed sailor from HMS Success. The exact date of his death is not known but is thought to be about June 1829.
2. John Godfrey: place of birth given as Bury St Edmunds.
3. Charles Garrett: is the first civilian known to have died in the colony. The date of his death is not known, but it occurred between 10 November 1829 and 15 January 1830. Garrett was recorded on the Muster Roll as aged 24, and born at Thorpe Malsor, which is a village near Kettering, in Northamptonshire; a note on the Muster Roll states that he had been drowned. On the list of deaths sent by Stirling to the Colonial Office, Garrett is recorded as ‘M.D.’.
An account of Garrett’s death is to be found in a book entitled Excursions in New South Wales, Western Australia and Van Diemen's Land, by Lieutenant William Breton, R.N. (London, 1833). Breton, a fellow-passenger of Garrett’s who went on to Sydney in the Lotus, does not name the man whose death he describes but there is little doubt that he was referring to Garrett. Describing the Swan River where it is now bridged by the Causeway, Breton wrote:
The river, at this part, is about half a mile wide, or rather more, but it is so shallow that it may sometimes be forded. I have heard, however, that the doctor who came out with us, in attempting to ford it, stuck in a hole and was drowned. He was short and stout, and was found, a day or two after, if my information is correct, standing upright, with his head only a few inches below the surface; his companion got safely across.
Of Garrett himself, Breton went on to say:
The former unfortunate young man was a proof how little dependence is sometimes to be placed in the advertisements in the London papers, with respect to vessels bound to New Holland. The agent advertised the L[otus], conformably to established custom, concluding with—‘This vessel will carry an experienced Surgeon’. This ‘experienced Surgeon’—(the doctor of the L[otus])—was a shop-boy in the employment of a chemist and druggist; and he told me, without hesitation, that so far from being acquainted with medical matters, he did not even know how to bleed! He was one day about to perform the operation of phlebotomy on one of the crew; and commenced by fastening a bandage round the man’s wrist! He was, of course, told that he was doing wrong. He tried to bleed a horse, and, after several attempts, failed entirely—the horse died!
4. John Mitchell: place of birth given as Colne, Huntingdonshire.
5. Andrew Barnett: place of birth given as Macclesfield, Cheshire.
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6. Thomas Putt: place of birth given as Plymouth. His name is not on the passenger list of the Parmelia since he was a member of the crew.
7. Francis Burke: place of birth given as County Mayo, Ireland.
8. — Gamble: illegitimate child of Eliza Gamble (152), who came out in the Parmelia as a servant of James Drummond. The child, an infant whose name is not known, was burnt to death early in February 1830 (inquest at CSR 5/65).
9. Thomas Tomsett (name spelt variously as Thomsett, Tompsett, etc.): was a farm labourer who came out in the Caroline with Alfred Stone and was drowned in the Canning River near Stone’s grant; his death was reported by Stone in a letter to the Colonial Secretary (CSR 5/113).
10. Mary Ann Skipsey: came out as a servant of John Morgan (392). Her place of birth was given as North Mimms, Hertfordshire.
11. William Milligan: son of Dr William Milligan (338), the surgeon of the 63rd Regiment.
12. James Norcop: see notes on Ann Norcop (died 2 June 1830).
13. Sarah Ann Lockyer: daughter of James Lockyer (568).
14. Henry Sutherland: son of H.C. Sutherland (346). He was born on 5 October 1829 and is the second recorded birth in the colony to civilian parents.
15. James Woodward: husband of Sarah Woodward (1013). His place of birth was given as Pershore, Worcestershire. His widow and five of their seven children are recorded on the census.
16. John Hart: place of birth given as Ireland.
17. Jane Thomas: wife of John Thomas (739). Their son Clarence died on 2 May 1830. Her place of birth was given as Wallagan (?), Cornwall.
18. Robert Leishman: place of birth given as Perth, Scotland.
19. Henry King: son of David King, who died on 7 December 1830. Henry was drowned at Colonel Lautour’s grant on the Upper Swan, and his death was reported in a letter from Edward Barrett Lennard to the Colonial Secretary (CSR 6/71).
20. Patrick McDermott: place of birth given as Drogheda, Ireland.
21,23. Richard and Lydia Edgcumbe: children of Henry Edgcumbe (occupation given as ‘joiner’) who departed for Van Diemen’s Land with his wife and two surviving children aboard the Kate in February 1831.
22, 33. Selina and Fanny Byrne: daughters of Captain Francis Byrne (67).
24. Clarence Gilmore Thomas: son of John Thomas (739) and his wife Jane (died 13 April 1830). There is some ambiguity about his name: he was born on 16 February 1830 and baptised on 4 March 1830 as Charles Joshua Clarence
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Thomas, but buried as Clarence Gilmore Thomas.
25. Charles Larkin: came out with his nephew George Dunnage, who left the colony in April 1831.
26. Henry Edward Bond: son of Henry Rice Bond (765).
28. Richard Bambrick: came to the colony in partnership with Peter Shadwell and William Gurden, both of whom departed for Van Diemen’s Land in August 1830 aboard the Eagle. His occupation on the burial record is given as ‘servant’ but as ‘agriculturist’ on the schedule (CSR 5/161).
29. William Cooper: age given as 29 on the passenger list of the Hooghly.
30. Thomas O’Brien: presumed to be identical with ‘Thomas Brien’, recorded on the passenger list of the Hooghly as a gardener, aged 30.
31. James Cooper: presumed to be identical with James Cooper, recorded on the passenger list of the Hooghly as a gardener, aged 35.
32. Mary Bamber: daughter of Captain John Bamber, who left the colony in July 1830, and sister of Catherine Eyre (389). She was burnt to death when her clothing caught fire from an open stove; her death was reported by Bamber on 28 May 1830 (CSR 6/198).
33. Fanny Byrne: see notes on Selina Byrne (died 22 April 1830).
34. 35, 12. Ann, Harriet and James Norcop: wife and children of Samuel Norcop or Norcope, a mason who came out as one of Levey’s indentured servants. Samuel and his other daughter Sarah are not recorded on the census (see ‘Missing Persons’). The name is also recorded as Norcoss or Norcuss, the final ‘p’ being mistaken for ‘ss’ (as with Thomas Bateup, whose name was misspelt ‘Battrass’ on the passenger list of the Rockingham). Samuel Norcop should not be confused with Samuel Norcott who is recorded on the census (200). James Norcop’s place of birth was given as Hassan, Staffordshire.
36. James Edwards: died from the combined effect of dysentery and burns received from an explosion of gunpowder (see inquest at CSR 7/1).
37. Isaac Doel (or Dole): at an inquest (CSR 7/32) it was found that Doel’s death was due to ‘illtreatment’ from Samuel Jackson who was suspected of murder but not brought to trial due to legal difficulties. Doel, a cooper, had come out as an indentured servant of Colonel Lautour.
39. Elizabeth Betts: wife of Richard Betts (58). Their son John died on 8 July 1830.
40. Elizabeth Eacott: wife of Thomas Eacott, who was not recorded on the census but who may have been at Mandurah with Thomas Peel in July 1832.
43. Joseph Barry: birthplace given as Wales.
44. William Sheppard: ship of arrival not traced. He may have been a son of John Sheppard who came out in the Hooghly with his wife and five children
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whose Christian names are not recorded, or he may have been a son of a Mr Sheppard who came out in the Minstrel but departed for Van Diemen’s Land in May 1831 aboard the Eagle with his wife and several children.
46. Alice Ward: wife of William Ward (697).
47. Christian: recorded as ‘servant to Mr Koller’ (John Thurstan Koller, a passenger from the Warrior, had left the colony before July 1832).
48. Thomas Burgess: son of Henry Burgess (588). His place of birth was given as Shepton Mallet, Somerset.
49. William Meadows: described himself as a wheelwright on his schedule (CSR 6/207).
50. George Rawlins: son of Charles Rawlins (no age or occupation recorded) who departed for Van Diemen’s Land in January 1831 aboard the Eagle with the rest of his family.
51. Zebulon Shorter: ship of arrival not traced. He may be identical with, or a relative of, Thomas Shorter, a labourer aged 18 who was a passenger on the Hooghly and who has not been accounted for.
53. Thomas Walsh: possibly identical with Thomas Welch, a passenger on the Parmelia for whom no age or occupation was recorded.
54. John Betts: son of Richard Betts (58). His mother died on 9 June 1830.
56. Benjamin Joice: place of birth given as Somerset.
57. Elizabeth Oakley: Mrs Oakley, her husband William E. Oakley and one child were cabin passengers on the Hooghly. William Oakley is not recorded on the census as he was then with Peel at Mandurah.
58. Abraham Morgan: husband of Mary Morgan (658).
59. Rebecca Marten: ship of arrival not traced. She may have come out in the Rockingham, the passenger list of which contains the names of ‘Mr & Mrs Martin and 3 children’ (Christian names, ages and occupations not recorded) who have not been accounted for.
61. Richard Evans: presumed to be the person of that name who is recorded on the Muster Roll as a servant of Peter Brown; no age was given, while his place of birth was recorded as Cork, Ireland.
62. George Mackenzie: he died at the Murray River, and is the first settler known to have been killed by the natives. In October 1831 his father George Mackenzie, of Sydenham in Kent, a retired Major in the British Army, wrote to the Colonial Office to inquire about his son’s death and to ask whether any proceeds from his son’s estate could be returned to him (CO 18/9 p.340). He was writing to the Colonial Office because, he wrote: ‘I understand none of Mr Peel’s agents in England have ever heard from him since he left England’.
The circumstances described in Mackenzie’s letter to the Colonial Office are
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the only known account of his son’s death:
In the year 1829 my late son George Mackenzie embarked with Mr Thomas Peel for the new formed colony of the Swan River where he obtained a grant of 50 Acres of land on the Murray River ... and with the small balance of his venture equal to £80 he proceeded to build a hut which he was employed in thatching, when 8 Natives approached him who attacked him when the chief native darted a spear at him, which penetrated his heart, and he instantly fell dead.
This was on 17th July 1830.
His Excellency Governor Stirling very kindly communicated the melancholy circumstances in a letter to me, in which he mentioned my son’s name with terms of the highest applause, and added that on making enquiry into it, it appears that the Natives were actuated by Caprice, but by a letter I rec’d at the same time from a Settler I was informed that they had been beaten a few days before by some party of Settlers.
63. Eliza Meredith: daughter of William Meredith, a labourer who came out in the Hooghly with his wife and four children and who applied for permission to go to Van Diemen’s Land in May 1831 (CSR 15/51).
64. Lawrence Cocinsaw: was a Goanese servant employed by C.D. Ridley on his grant on the Swan. His death was reported by Ridley in a letter to the Colonial Secretary (CSR 8/58).
65. Ann Bailey: wife of Thomas Bailey (1173).
66. James Birkett: husband of Josephine Birkett (351). The date of his death is not known with certainty but he died before his son Edward (died 2 October 1830); see the census notes on his wife.
67. Thomas Padbury: see notes in ‘Missing Persons’.
68. Patrick (or John) Murphy: at an inquest (CSR 8/154) it was found that ‘John Murphy’, said to have been an habitual drinker, had died of apoplexy whilst in a state of intoxication. He is probably identical with Patrick Murphy, listed on the Muster Roll as a servant, aged 49, of Dr Tully Daly.
69. John Whatley: husband of the diarist Ann Whatley, a copy of whose diary is in the Battye Library (WAA 326A). His place of birth was given as Oakingham, Berkshire. He and John Stroyen were drowned when their punt, carrying a cow, capsized near the mouth of the Swan River. His widow left the colony aboard the Cleopatra in November 1830 and after spending some time in Van Diemen’s Land returned to England.
70. John Stroyen: was captain of the brig Skerne and had recently returned from Cape Town in that ship. He and John Whatley were drowned together.
72. John Phew: ship of arrival not known. He may be identical with John Pugh, aged 40, a labourer who came to the colony from Van Diemen’s Land in July 1830 aboard the William. At an inquest (CSR 9/1) it was found that Phew
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had been shot in the face on 26 September 1830 and died on 30 September. Titus Ware, a passenger in the Rockingham, was committed on a charge of murder but was not brought to trial.
73. Edward Birkett: son of James Birkett (died in August or September 1830) and Josephine Birkett (351). At an inquest (CSR £/63) it was found that Birkett had been drowned after he had fallen out of boat near the bar at the mouth of the Swan River.
74. John Ferres: husband of Jessy Ferres (146) and brother of Robert Ferres (481). His death is not mentioned in any of the colony’s burial records but the date of his death was given as 3 October 1830 when his will was proved several years later.
75. Thomas Dorset: listed as a sawyer, aged 38, on James Walcott’s schedule (CSR 6/32).
76. George Bourne: age given as 26 on M.C. Friend’s schedule (CSR 5/53).
77. John Patten: place of birth given as Lassinden (?) in Scotland. He was drowned near Perth while learning to swim (inquest at CSR 9/118).
78. Jacob Summerland; son of Abraham Summerland (786). His death was reported by his father in a letter to the Colonial Secretary (CSR 9/155).
79. John Nye: recorded on the Muster Roll as a fisherman, aged 23, born at West Tarring, Sussex. He was drowned when a boat capsized in Freshwater Bay (inquest at CSR 9/159).
80. James Phelan: recorded on the Muster Roll as a servant, aged 24, of Captain Peter Pegus.
81. Thomas Chaffinch: steward of the ship Rockingham, which was wrecked in May 1830 and never salvaged. He was drowned in Perth Water (inquest at CSR 11/34).
82. David King: father of Henry King, who was drowned in April 1830. His place of birth was given as Downton, Wiltshire. His widow, Harriet, married John Stanton of the 63rd Regiment and is consequently not recorded on the census. A daughter, Sophia, born to David and Harriet King on 17 September 1829, is the first birth to civilian parents recorded in the colony.
84, 85. Charles and Frederick Shaw: sons of William and Eliza Shaw. They were drowned at Belvoir, the Shaw’s property on the Upper Swan, and there is no record of their death apart from Eliza Shaw’s letters to her friends in England.
86. William Fotheringham: drowned at Fremantle when a boat going from the shore to the Orelia was capsized (inquest at CSR 11/40).
87. —: W.T. Graham, the Coroner at Fremantle, when forwarding the report on the inquest on William Fotheringham stated that another man was
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drowned in the same incident, but that the body was not found. Graham did not mention the man’s name.
88. Louisa Jones: wife of Richard Jones (357).
89, 90. John and Sophia Hester: son and wife of Captain Thomas Hester (1249).
91-94. William and Emily Gawler, Anne and Henry Budden: all drowned when when their boat capsized in Melville Water. Emily and Ann were William Gawler’s daughters. William’s widow married William Short and is recorded on the census at number 501. William had previously been employed in the naval dockyard at Portsea; he had agreed to go out with Stirling but did not have sufficient time to embark on the Parmelia and on 18 February 1829 he wrote to the Colonial Office and asked for a passage on another ship. He gave his age as 37, that of his wife as 34, and said that he had three daughters aged 17, 14 and 11 (CO 18/4 p.132). Anne was the wife of Robert Budden, a sawyer from Portsea who came out in the Lotus in October 1829; before leaving England he wrote to the Colonial Office in March 1829 from 55 Cross Street, Portsea, asking if he could have a passage to the Swan River Colony as he wished to join his father-in-law, William Gawler, but could not afford the passage money (CO 18/5 p.152). Anne Budden is not recorded on the passenger list of the Lotus but was in the colony by 27 December 1829 when her son Henry was baptised at Perth (date of birth given as 30 July 1829). Robert Budden left the colony in HMS Cruiser in September 1831.
95. Mosedang: his death was reported by W.T. Graham on 4 January 1831 (CSR 12/28). He was a Lascar seaman from the Faith and had been ill for some time.
96. Frederick Friend: came out as Henry Camfield’s farm labourer. He was drowned in the Swan River (inquest at CSR 12/73). His widow married Richard Barnden and is recorded on the census at number 1167.
98. Edward Sale: drowned in the sea near Fremantle when attempting to swim ashore (inquest at CSR 13/37).
99. Selina Inkpen: daughter of James Inkpen (549).
100. Anne Hunt: daughter of Thomas Hunt (613). She was drowned when she fell into a well (inquest at CSR 13/160).
102. — Cook: presumably one of Levey’s emigrants but not identified; there are several persons with the surname of Cook who have not been accounted for.
103. William Stirling: was a cousin of James Stirling and had held several positions in the colony’s civil service, notably as one of the auditors responsible for assessing the settlers’ applications for grants of land.
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104. —: the death from scurvy of a black seaman (not named) from the Faith was reported by Thomas Bannister on 21 April 1831 (CSR 14/94).
105. Charles Heal: husband of Sarah Heal (165). His burial is not recorded as he died at Guildford. He died intestate and the date of his death was given as 23 April 1831 when the administration of his estate was granted.
106. Walter Burke: his death was reported on 24 April 1831 by W.T. Dance, the commander of HMS Sulphur (CSR 14/110). Burke had made several attempts at suicide while at Augusta and when put aboard HMS Sulphur had been put into a straitjacket, but he escaped and threw himself overboard.
107. — Cornish: presumed to be a passenger of that name from the Eliza for whom no Christian name, age or occupation was recorded.
108. William Sadler: his burial record states that he was ‘late of Newark on Trent, Notts’. On his schedule (CSR 6/180) he described himself as a tallow-chandler, aged 28.
109. Edward Maloney: at an inquest on his death (CSR 15/5), Maloney, described as an habitual drinker, was found to have died from apoplexy and suffocation whilst in a state of intoxication.
110. William Stirling: infant son of James and Ellen Stirling, born on 27 February 1831.
111. Henry Clinton: was part owner and captain of the ketch Emilia & Ellen, of 83 tons, in which he and James Somers Rae, an army captain, had come to the colony from Bombay in March 1830. There is no record of Clinton’s death apart from a letter from W.H. Mackie, dated 18 May 1831 (CSR 15/104), giving his opinion of the legality of the sale of the Emilia & Ellen. Rae and Clinton were the joint owners of the ketch, Clinton was dead and Rae wished to dispose of his share before leaving the colony. Rae and his family left for Mauritius in the Resolution on 24 June 1831, while Clinton’s widow and their daughter left for Van Diemen’s Land in the Nimrod on 2 July 1831.
112. Topman (?): Francis Whitfield, the Government Resident at Guildford, mentioned the death of ‘Topman’ (name not legible) in a letter dated 23 May 1831 (CSR 15/123).
113. — Glover: no Christian name recorded. He or she may have been a child of William Glover (693).
115. Walter Gee: son of Charles Gee, a carpenter who came out as an indentured servant of James Henty; see notes on Joseph Gee (153).
117. George Cox: possibly a son of John Burtenshaw Cox, who was living at Fremantle in July 1832 (857).
118. Elizabeth Christmas: daughter of George Christmas (103). Her mother died on 4 November 1831.
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119. John Hall: presumed to be the passenger on the Parmelia recorded on the Muster Roll as a painter, aged 31, born in London.
121. Daniel McGee: at an inquest on McGee (CSR 16/25) it was found that he had died from exposure and apoplexy combined with the effects of alcohol. He was arrested on a charge of burglary and was put into Fremantle gaol, where he died soon after admission. He was said to have been an habitual drinker and when arrested he was totally destitute and had been sleeping in the bush.
122. John Dunford: his death was reported by Francis Whitfield in 16 June 1831 (CSR 16/46). Dunford described himself as a farmer, aged 30, on his schedule (CSR 11/25).
123. —: in a letter dated 29 June 1831 (CSR 16/102) Adam Elmslie, then living at Clarence, asked for protection from the natives and said that a young man at Rockingham had recently been killed by the natives, but he did not give the dead man’s name.
125. Thomas Backs: place of birth given as Portsmouth.
126. John McDonald: at an inquest at Point Walter on 12 July 1831 it was found that McDonald had died from ‘the Visitation of God’ (CSR 16/170).
127. Susan Bailey: possibly a daughter of Thomas Bailey (1173) whose wife Ann died in childbirth on 16 August 1830.
129. John Lyons: place of birth given as Ireland.
130. Thomas Dunn: at an inquest on Dunn, who was described as ‘a man of colour’ and resident in Fremantle gaol, he was found to have died from ‘the Visitation of God’ (CSR 17/4).
132. David Rogers: arrived in the colony on 22 September 1830 as supercargo and only passenger aboard the Thistle, from Calcutta via Penang. The Thistle returned to Swan River from Sydney, via Timor, arriving on 17 July 1831 with a cargo consigned to Rogers but he had died a fortnight earlier. The Thistle was subsequently sold to James Henty.
133. Anion Entwhistle: see notes on his son Ralph (783).
134. Mary Fandam: wife of Alexander Fandam (670). Her death was reported by John Morgan in a letter to the Colonial Secretary (CSR 17/51).
135. Momorac (or Morac): died from scurvy while in Fremantle gaol (inquest at CSR 17/110).
137. Ruth Christmas: daughter of George Christmas (103) and his wife Elizabeth (died 4 November 1831).
138. Charles Simmonds: place of birth given on the Muster Roll as Beverley, Yorkshire.
139. William Carpenter: died in Fremantle gaol where he had been
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committed on a charge of leaving his master (inquest at CSR 18/181).
140. Thomas Kelly: husband of Ellen Kelly (959).
141. Elizabeth Christmas: wife of George Christmas (103) and mother of Elizabeth (died 2 June 1831) and Ruth (died 11 September 1831).
142. John Dyer: came out as a servant of William Tanner; see notes on Francis Hegan (1281) who married Dyer’s widow.
143. 144. William Hokin, Charles Vines: drowned together in the Swan River (inquest at CSR 19/40). William’s widow and children are recorded on the census at numbers 502 to 508.
145. Edward Webb: age given as 35 on C.D. Ridley’s schedule (CSR 6/31), and his occupation as farm labourer. His widow (526) married Joseph Berks (57).
146. George (? John) Gregory: became insane and committed suicide by throwing himself into the sea near Fremantle (inquest at CSR 20/14).
148. Reuben Beecham: son of William Beecham (561). He was speared by the natives when he and John Chipper were driving Charles Leroux’s cart from Guildford to York (inquest at CSR 20/93).
149. Thomas Farmer: see notes on William Watson (256) who married Farmer’s widow.
150. John Robertson: husband of Christiana Robertson (478).
151. William Owers: probably identical with William Owens, a carpenter and cooper who came out in the Bombay.
153. Susannah Maydwell: wife of Robert Maydwell (1034).
154. William Gaze: described by T.T. Ellis as ‘a very industrious and well conducted settler’ (CSR 22/149), Gaze was speared at Kelmscott and died soon afterwards (inquest at CSR 22/135).
155. —: This person (not named) was said to have drowned opposite C.D. Ridley’s grant near Guildford.
156. John Wilkinson: committed suicide by hanging himself.
157. John Jones: date of death not known, but was before 18 August 1832 and was presumably before July 1832, since Jones was not recorded on the census. His death is mentioned in a letter from C.D. Ridley, dated 18 August 1832, which was published in the Times of 7 January 1833. Jones was a member of a party of settlers from Guildford which raided a native camp in reprisal for some cattle speared by the natives, and he was accidentally shot during the raid. He had come out in the Wanstead and on James Walcott’s schedule was listed as a house and farm servant, aged 21; he may have been a brother of William Jones (1097).
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