Travel Tuesday - Fleming Family from Scotland to Australia

FLEMING

Andrew and Ellen/Helen Fleming (nee Finlay) and their six children traveled to Australia from Scotland in 1848 on the barque "William Stewart"  Their son William Finlay Fleming was my great great grandfather.  He and his wife, Ann (Jane) Knight  moved to Whitfield in 1901 but before that spent many years at  Kotupna (near Nathalia).


"Pioneers of Nathalia and District"

FLEMING
The Chairman of the immigration board at Port Phillip, was not overly impressed with the appearance of the immigrants who had arrived after a voyage of 111 days, on board the "William Stewart", on 15th May 1848.
"Although three young children have died, the remainder of the passengers have remained remarkably healthy", he wrote "but the description and general appearance of the passengers appears to be amongst the most miserable that have here-to-fore reached the district".
Not a wonderful description of the Fleming Family who were amongst the 233 passengers on board.  Andrew and Ellen Fleming, both aged 38, and their six children, William Finlay 17,  Annie 12,  Ellen 11,  Mary Ann 7, James 6 and Andrew 4, had left their home in Galloway shire, Wigton, Scotland, to make a new life in Australia.
William had travelled in the "unmarried males" quarters and was hired immediately upon arrival while still on board, by David Anderson, to work as a waiter at his hotel at Burbank (Lexton).
The remainder of the family were sent to the Government Depot before they could find employment.
Ellen was the daughter of William and Marion Finley, nee Bride, and this name Finley/Finlay, is carried through later generations as a forename.
It is not known what became of Andrew Snr, but his wife Ellen died at Nhill in 1885, where she had been living with her granddaughter Mary Connary. (sic)  ...(Convary)
William spent some years in the Clunes area working as a shepherd, farm hand and miner.  He later purchased a team and worked for some years in the carrying business, before moving to Melbourne where he was employed as the the town Herdsman.
Before coming to Kotupna where he selected Allotment 22, he was a butcher at Creswick.
By 1897 he and his family were living in a four roomed weatherboard house, lined inside with deal and measuring 25 x 21 feet.  His land was well fenced, some four acres were sown with wheat, 22 acres of trees had been rung with the dead wood cleared, and he had established an orchard containing 60 fruit trees.
William had married Ann Jane Knight in 1852 with their family of thirteen children, Anne Jane, William James, Ellen,  Sarah, Donald, Alice, Finlay, Moses, Ruth, Matilda, Christina, John Knight and Selina, all being born before the family moved to Kotupna.  Three of these sons, William James, Finlay and Moses also farmed at Kotupna before most of the family moved to the Wangaratta area in the early 1900's.
William Finley died in 1911 at Whitfield, with his wife living another nine years before she passed away at Wangaratta in 1920.
A great grand daughter of William Finley Fleming, Mrs Joe Waite, still lives at Nathalia and her great grandchildren make the 7th generation of this family to live in the Nathalia Shire.

Travel Tuesday - Crusader to New Zealand

In December 1874, Captain Renaut sailed his ship The Crusader into Lyttleton Harbour, New Zealand with 374 passengers on board.

Photo A Large Sailor's Woolie of the Clipper Ship The Crusader at Anchor in New Zealand
Circa 1875-85courtesy of Paul Vandekar  
 http://www.vandekar.com/archives/details.asp?inventoryNumber=NY07221

The Crusader departed from Plymouth on the 25th of September and made the passage in 97 days with very little illness reported.  The surgeon superintendent was Dr. John Guthrie who settled in Christchurch.  On the voyage Dr Guthrie found it necessary to appoint two nurses, Mrs Cleaver and Mrs Lindon.


My great great grandparents, Robert Forsyth and his wife Jessie nee Farquhar were on board the Crusader with their little son Alexander.  

Robert and Jessie Forsyth went on to have a large family once they settled in New Zealand

The Press newspaper reported the Arrival of the Crusader in its edition on the 1st of January 1875.

Everyone spoke most highly of the Captain  "The passengers and Immigrants alike testifying to his unwearying care and devotion during the passage".


Click here to read a story, recorded in the "Lyttelton Times" of February 3rd 1925.  It is the recollection of John Henry Timms who, in 1874 at the age of 8, sailed to New Zealand on board Crusader with his parents John and Caroline and two sisters Ann and Mary.


The Crusader developed a hole and the well was taking in water.
The water was successfully pumped out throughout the voyage but the pump kept breaking down and not too much water continued to come in.  It is said that on arrival at Lyttleton harbour a fish skeleton was found in the well and so it was thought that the fish body had blocked the hole thus stopping the ship taking on more water and sinking!

Travel Tuesday - Farewell to Dear Old England

In tracing the lives of my ancestors I've had some interesting and educational "virtual" journeys.  

My one dream in life is to visit their homelands. Maybe one day ................

Meanwhile I love to read about their travels and as their stories are often long gone it's major a excitement to me when any written stories are found.   

They all came to Australia in the days when travel by sea was the only option and often a very uncomfortable and dangerous one at that.

The travel story below is one written by my 3rd Great Grand Uncle, Edward Hulme in his little book "A settlers 35 Years Experience in Victoria, Australia 1856-1891"

FAREWELL TO DEAR OLD ENGLAND

We did intend taking our passage in the new ship "Schomberg" just launched, owned by the "White Star Company". On enquiring at the London office, they informed me that I could send our goods on at Liverpool, but they would not be put on any ship until our passage money was paid, and that I could find them in the company warehouse at Liverpool, consequently, I sent the goods on. We could not however get ready to go by  the "Schomberg". On arrival at Liverpool, and enquiring for our luggage, I found it had been sent on in that vessel.

Now the fate of that fine new ship, I presume is generally known. The captain had a bet with the captain of the ship "Kent", a well known clipper, and declared "if he did not beat the "Kent" he would knock the "Schombergs" bows in". On hearing that the "Kent" had made the passage before him, the "Schomberg" was wilfully run on shore just a little way from Cape Otway. Luckily it was fair weather and the passengers and crew were taken off, but with only the luggage they could carry in their hands, there being only just standing room on board the rescuing steamboat. The "Schomberg" became a total wreck.

This I suppose, is one of the most wicked and shameful incidents that ever happened on the shores of Australia. We took our passage in the next ship, the good ship "SULTANA" from Liverpool, on the 2Ist October, I855.

I remember, as we weighed anchor, being some distance out in the stream, and out of hearing of any friendly cheer, a serious calm appeared to pervade the ship, all appeared absorbed with their own thoughts, when we found the ship was under way, more by the apparent moving of the receding shore, she being a sailing vessel. I dont know the feelings of the other passengers, possibly many were like our own, at departing from the good 'Old Land'. Hitherto, we had borne up well in parting from kindred and friends. We said 'Good Bye' in London, but now, in those few calm moments, seated upon the ships deck, with wife, six sons, and a baby girl around us, we felt the necessity of faith in that good Providence on Whom we had cast the future. Our feelings, however, would have vent in a few hot tears, but these had to be brushed quickly on one side.

I do not think it necessary in this little sketch to give a long account of our voyage, or the various incidents that happened. There was nothing very sensational, our worst experience was our first night out. The ship was so crowded that there were not berths enough, and, as we came late on board, ours had to be erected, so that we had to huddle down between decks, as best we could. The children being our great care, there was no rest for wife or self. We had fearful weather in the channel, and everything being loose on board, the din was fearful, the heavy iron cable on deck rolling from side to side, and the ships bell tolling at every roll of the ship, and the carpenters working all night fitting up berths, and the state of the passengers...one can guess the confusion!

And what added to it more...just as we reached the most dangerous part of the channel, off the coast of Ireland, the tug-hawser parted but, when pulled on board, it evidently had been cut adrift with an axe, a most shameful act. The contract was to take us clear of the channel. this then made further trouble, as all hands had now to set to and work the ship, and there was great danger in working her out of the difficult position she was left in, and anxiously did all wait for the morning.

It may be imagined that the whole of the voyage was no pleasure trip for wife or self, in a crowded ship, and seven children (under I2 years of age) to look after. Neither do I think the children liked it, they were too young, and they did not thrive at all on the rough ships fare, particularly the hard ships biscuits...they could not manage them at all. After a time, though we got on better, I had a carpenters plane with my goods, and we shaved the biscuits down on that, and made it into puddings, and so managed to get rid of them in this way. The plane went the round of the ship after this, particularly among the old people. We had however, on arriving in Melbourne, an American cask full, unconsumed, these we took ashore with us, and they went fine in soups etc with good Australian beef at 3d a pound.