John Hole Duffield

John Hole Duffield (1797-1859) was a builder and publican. He sailed from England at the age of 33, arriving in Fremantle on the Warrior in March 1830 [Erickson]. He was joined by his wife, Charlotte [nee Foss], and four children [including John Hole Duffield Jnr] in December 1831 on the Egyptian.

Duffield received considerable grants of land from the colonial authorities, including 500 acres at Bicton and 926 acres in the Murray district. He later owned 2,640 acres at Harvey and over the years purchased several lots in the Fremantle district. One lot, 416, on which the National Hotel now stands purchased in 1832 for his son Charles. According to City Library records Charles continued to own it until the record runs out in 1879, and that M. Higham (Mary?) owned half of the lot from 1876. Charles and his elder brother, John, built their first shop on the site - a general store. Charles left for South Australia in 1867. By 1869 the shop was occupied by Abraham Moise Josephson (see below). In the early 1880s it was the site of the National Bank - which gave the later hotel its name, when the Highams owned it from 1886.

John Duffield was an energetic and resourceful man who worked as a building contractor, carpenter and cooper. He was the proprietor of the Albion Inn [not the Albion Hotel], where he developed his talents as brewer and winemaker.

John Duffield died in April 1859 and was interred in the Alma Street cemetery Fremantle. His remains were later exhumed and transferred to the Skinner Street cemetery; later again his headstone was transferred to Karrakatta: Anglican ANFC 93. MCB. >

The hostelry maintained by John Duffield, perhaps from 1839 to 1844, was not called the Albion Hotel, as the MCB notes (above) have it (which caused me, for one, confusion with the Albion Hotel in Stirling Highway Cottesloe). (Rica Erickson's Dictionary also has Albion Hotel.) It was a house at Lot 117 Pakenham St (third lot from the end on the western side), and was called the Albion Inn in this advertisement in the Perth Gazette, 28 September 1839.

TO BE SOLD
B Y P U B L I C A U C T I O N,
by Messrs. L. & W. Samson,
On Thursday, the 3d day of October, the property of a person about to leave
the Colony,
A HOUSE at Fremantle, formerly called the Albion Inn, in fee-simple, being Allotment No. 117 ...

The Perth Gazette for 23 Jan 1836 refers to the names of six licensees of hotels in Fremantle and eight in Perth. The Albion was under the proprietorship of Mary F. Crisp.

John Duffield received Licenses for sale of Liquor at the Albion, advertised 6 Feb 1841 and 3 Feb 1844, and he advertised to sell goods which travellers had left at the Albion and not reclaimed, on 17 Aug 1842.

The first John Hole Duffield had eleven children. One of them, Emily Catherine, married Philip Webster and was buried 21 June 1868 by George Bostock, having died aged 23 of 'typhoid fever'.

John Hole Duffield's second child was given the identical name:

The second John H. Duffield (b. 28 July 1819), the second child (of eleven) of the first, died 22 May 1894 aged 75 - as a memorial on Fremantle Cemetery Heritage Trail shows (above). His wife Sarah Glyde died 11 April 1908. The memorial would have been brought from the Skinner St Cemetery. A stained glass window in St John's Church (the second church was opened 1882) commemorates John Hole Duffield (2nd) and Sarah.

[[img/duffield2.jpg|]]J.H. Duffield Jnr was a Town Councillor 1879-80 and Duffield Avenue Beaconsfield is named after him. His children were John (1843-44), an un-named son (1844-44), Emily Caroline (1845-68), Edwin Foss (1846-1922). >

A third John Hole Duffield (son of the second) died 17 October 1844, aged 1, of 'scalding', and was buried by Rev. George King in the Fremantle Cemetery of that time, in Alma St.

John William Duffield died December 1850 of 'atrophy' aged 6 months and was buried by R. Postlethwaite, probably in Skinner St Cemetery. His father is recorded to have been a 'schoolmaster to Aborigines'. It's presently unknown what relationship these two had with JHD1.

Charles Hole Duffield (son of the first John) married Emma Cleaver and then her sister Jane Cleaver (21Dec1834-10Jan1865, seven children), both of whom died of consumption (tuberculosis). They were the children of John and Mary Cleaver who arrived in 1843 on the Success. Jane Duffield was buried 11 January 1865 (aged 'over 21') and was buried by Rev. George Bostock (presumably in Skinner St Cemetery). In a second record in the same spreadsheet, Jane Duffield was buried 10 January 1865, aged 29, of 'consumption', by Rev. Bostock. One of Charles's children, Jeannette, was buried 21 September 1964 by Rev. Bostock, aged 15 months, having died of 'atrophy'. Charles and Jane were married in the Perth Wesley Chapel.

J.H. Duffield's faithful servant Charles Jacob was given his own tombstone by the family in 1869. The stone is to be found on the Heritage Trail in the middle of Fremantle Cemetery and would have been brought from the Skinner St cemetery (which closed 1899) in 1931. >

Two men, J. H. Duffield and John Luff, were smothered in 1860 when the sides of a well which they were sinking (on the property of Mr. Easton in East Fremantle) caved in. (Hitchcock: 43.)

DUFFIELD, John Hole, b. 2.1797, d. 5.4.1859 (Frem), arr. 12.3.1830 per Warrior, followed by wife & 4 chd. 28.1.2.1831 per Egyptian. m. 13.9.1816 (England) Charlotte FOSS b. 16.9.1798 d. 8.11.1865 (Frem). Chd. Edwin Foss b. 1817 d. 1831 (Eng.), John Hole b. 1819 d. 1894, Charles Hole b. 1821 d. 1822 (Eng), Charles Hole b. 1823 d. 1891, Samuel Bidgood b. 1825 d. 1901, Mary Hole b. 1827 d. 1829 (Eng.), Lydia Charlotte b. 1829 d. 1915, Caroline Hole b. 1833 d. 1919, William Hole b. 1834 d. 1875, Clara Foss b. 1837, James Hole b. 1639 d. 1860. To Sydney 9.4.1833 per Jolly Rambler, returned 1.1.1834 per Australian. Granted 500 acres "Bicton" & 926 acres in Murray district. Later owned 2640 acres at Harvey, & several lots at Frem. Contractor, carpenter, cooper "Bicton" Fremantle. Prop. "Albion Hotel" [Albion Inn, Lot 117 Pakenham Street] brewer & wine merchant. Sent the first cask of wine overseas from WA as a gift to a friend in England. (Erickson)

DUFFIELD, John Hole, b. 28.7.1819, d. 22.5.1894, son of John Hole & Charlotte (nee Foss), arr. 28.12.1831 per Egyptian with mother, m. 5.1842 Sarah GLYDE b. 1824 d. 11.4.1908, dtr. of William, she arr. per Rockingham 14.5.1830. Chd. John b. 1843 d. 1844, son d. infancy 1844, Emily Caroline b. 1845 d. 1868, Edwin Foss b. 1846 d. 1922, John b. 1850 d. 1850. Fremantle. Bt. Town Lot 1854. Schoolmaster to Aborigines 1850. Jack of all Trades. Mail Contractor Frem-Claremont 1856 & General Dealer. Inherited half of father's "Bicton Estate". Qualified as a juror having real estate of £50. Employed a T/L labourer 1879. Educ. Prem. C/E. (Erickson)

DUFFIELD, Charles Hole, b. 6.4.1823 (England), d. 24.7.1891 (Geraldton), son of John Hole & Charlotte, arr. 28.12.1831 per Egyptian with mother, m. 1st 1846 Emma CLEAVER b. 1828 d. 1849. dtr. of John, m. 2nd 24.12.1851 Jane CLEAVER b. 1835 d. 1865, m. 3rd (S.A.) Elba EDWARDS (widow) d. 7.4.1877, m. 4th 23.10.1881 (Geraldton) Mary Elizabeth CRESWICK. Chd. 1st wife, Charles b. 1847, George b. 1848, 2nd wife, Philip Henry b. 1853 d. 1919, Emma b. 1854 d. 1928, Ruth b. 1856 d. 1935, Mira b. 1858 d. 1926, Joseph W.H. b. 1859, Eleanor b. 1861 d. 1946, Jeanette b. 1863 d. 1864, 4th wife, Sydney Guy b. 1883 d. 1952, Alan Foss b. 1888 d. 1963, Frederick. b. 1890 d. 1895. Perth. Cooper & wheelwright in 1840s. Owned a Town Lot 1856 at Fremantle. Butcher. Member of Frem. Town Trust 1861. With £50 real estate qualified as a juror. He employed 4 T/L men 1864-1866. Son Charles to S.A. 20.11.1866 & the family followed 31.8.1867 per Emily Small. Duffield set up as a cooper in S.A. but returned to Perth after death of 3rd wife, arr. per Sea Ripple 11.4.1880 & joined a married son Philip at Geraldton. Educ. Frem. Govt. School. C/E. (Erickson)

DUFFIELD, Samuel Bidgood, b. 15.4.1825 (England), d. 16.6.1901 (Frem), son of John Hole D. & Charlotte, arr. 28.12.1831 per Egyptian with mother, m. 3.2.1846 Eliza BACKSHALL b. 1825 d. 3.7.1906, dtr. of William & Lydia, she arr. 20.8.1842 per Simon Taylor. Chd. Lydia b. 1847. Charlotte Frances Mary b. 1849. Alice b. 1851, Elizabeth b. 1854 d. 1922, Joseph William b. 1856 d. 1902, Lucy Sarah b. 1858 (Frem) d. 1884 (drowned), Harriet b. 1862, Caroline Cecilia b. 1864, Annie Eliza b. 1865 (Frem) d. 1952. Fremantle 1840s firewood contractor with brother Charles, sawyer. Innkeeper & Rottnest Lightbouse keeper for 28 years (1854-1882). Employed 2 T/L men 1878. Listed as a civil pensioner 1883. (Erickson)

References and Links

Cooper, W.S. [William] & G. [Gil] McDonald 1989, A City for All Seasons: The Story of Melville, City of Melville.

Duffield, Oliver E., Bicton: A History of the Duffield Family, Battye Library of West Australian History, WA, ISBN 0 9594692 0.

Duffield, Oliver E., The Duffields of Bicton 1776-1974, Lutheran Publishing House, Adelaide.

Erickson, Rica 1987, Bicentennial Dictionary of Western Australians, UWAP.

MCB Karrakatta Heritage Trail, from which the main article above is taken

Many thanks to Philip Pope, descendant of J.H. Duffield, who has provided some of the information above, including the photos of the Karrakatta grave and plaque.

Tuckfield, Trevor 1971, 'Early colonial inns and taverns', Early Days: Journal and proceeedings of the Royal Western Australian Historical Society, 7, 3: 65-82; Part 2, Early Days: Journal and proceeedings of the Royal Western Australian Historical Society, 7, 7: 98-106.

Philip Pope:
Oliver Duffield, a descendant of the original John Hole, wrote a history of the Duffields, in three volumes, thus;
1. Duffields of Bicton 1776-1974
2. Duffields of Bicton 1776-1979 Volume 2.
3. Duffields of Bicton 1776-1986. Volume 3. This volume was published by Oliver's wife after Oliver had died.
In each volume of the work, Oliver adds new information gained since the publication of the preceding volume, and there are extensive family trees of all branches of the family.

See also St John's Church for information about a window dedicated to members of the family.

Freotopia

This page incorporates material from Garry Gillard's Freotopia website, that he started in 2014 and the contents of which he donated to Wikimedia Australia in 2024. The content was originally created on 11 February, 2016 and hosted at freotopia.org/people/duffield.html (it was last updated on 2 August, 2023), and has been edited since it was imported here (see page history). The donated data is also preserved in the Internet Archive's collection.