Samuel Hurst 1794-1886
Just occasionally whilst typing endless dates into a family history
database, you are presented with a fact or two that instantly has the effect of
‘putting flesh on the bones’ of the character that you are recording. When this
fact states, “transported for life for Highway robbery” and that the individual
is also a distant blood relative, curiosity takes command.
There is something romantic about the thought of a highwayman, with his
shiny black horse, mask, long cloak, three-pointed hat, brandishing a pair of
handsome pistols, menacingly but politely, requesting the rich traveler to “
hand over your money or your life!” I was disappointed to find that this was
not the case with this particular event. It was just, what we would call today,
a sordid mugging. However, in those days it was a capital offence, to be
punished by public hanging if tried and found guilty, which he was.
See note 1.
“ A Report from the Warwick Advertiser, 12th April 1817.”
Samuel was fortunate to have his sentence commuted to
transportation for life. The new Colony of New South Wales was desperate for
manpower at that time and the judiciary was being encouraged to transport
rather than despatch by the rope. By this time America, having won her
independence was refusing to take Britain’s unwanted criminals.
It was from this point on that my interest in Samuel
was aroused. I knew that he had survived the long and arduous sea crossing to
Australia, on the other side of the world and that he had prospered and raised
a large family. What I didn’t know and what came as a total surprise, was the
amount of interest that had already been shown in him and his family by so many
of his descendants. In this regard, I have been very fortunate to borrow Roy Hurst’s “Samuel” file which
contains contributions from several of Samuel’s descendants. It is these living
descendants and others who I have personally been in touch with, who I have to
thank for generously handing over to me their years of research. Also, for the
family trees and photographs of their ancestors and in some instances even their burial sites and gravestones. In
several cases the information, not surprisingly, has been duplicated, without
the cousins being aware of each other’s research or even existence. Thanks then
to Maureen Baskin, Christine Baxter, Brian Coulton, Roy Hurst, Sharon Knight,
Carol Merrick, Jacky Meyers, Trish Willmott, Tom Wynne and others unknown for
their valuable contributions.
It has been my intention, to
create a database of the descendants of Samuel Hurst and Elizabeth nee Berwick
(Barwick), by consolidating the various family trees and research previously
mentioned and my own research using the Indexes of the NSW Registry of Births,
Deaths and Marriages which can be freely accessed on line, with some
limitations. In this respect I have been fortunate in the fact that up until
very recent times, most of their descendants have lived and died in NSW. I have
also been able to confirm and in some instances correct, most of my research,
with the records contributed by the individuals previously mentioned.
It is hoped that this database and the following short narrative of
Samuel’s life in Australia will serve as a useful research tool for future
generations and will be of some help and interest to the present generation.
Having seen none of the original documents referred to myself, I cannot
accept responsibility for the accuracy or verity of them or statements
attributed to others. To quote an ancient journalistic phrase, “We look to our
Readers for their customary indulgence in our inadequacies.”
The early years.
We can only assume that young Samuel was sent from the father-less home at a very young age, to fend for himself as best he could. In the evidence given at Court, it was stated that he had been living at Charwelton, Northants, many hours walk from his home village. Perhaps he spent his life roaming the neighboring Counties as a servant or day labourer. There is no record of an apprenticeship. This unsettled life no doubt brought him to the path of crime which almost led to his downfall but which perversely took him to a new life, a new start and a fulfilled future.
Life after Life.
After having spent some nine months in prison, possibly in a hulk, he
was shipped to Australia from Spithead, situated on the eastern part of the
English Channel, between Portsmouth and the Isle of Wight, aboard the convict
transport "OCEAN 11" on 10
January 1818. It took 142 days to journey to Australia, carrying 180 male
convicts. Surprisingly, unlike the early sailings, when the conditions were
appalling, no deaths occurred at sea. By this time ship’s Masters were earning
a bonus for the safe delivery of their live cargo. The OCEAN was a transport ship,
built in Whitby, weighing 437 tons and was on her second trip to Australia. Her
Master was Samuel Ramsay and the Surgeon and Superintendent, Mr Fairfowl. Her
journey took her via St. Helena. Samuel Hurst listed as not married in 1817,
was on a list of convicts disembarked from the OCEAN on 16th January 1818 and transported to Parramatta
for assessment and to be assigned to a free settler or emancipated convict.
Ultimately, he was sent to Windsor District and worked on a farm at North
Richmond. In the 1828 Census for New South Wales, he is recorded as being age
31, a Protestant and employed by Robert Hill as a labourer at North Richmond.
Either by accident or design, Samuel was never sure of his beginnings or his
true age and neither was we, researching his life. We must also bear in mind that
Samuel was illiterate and had to rely solely on what he had been told by
others, probably equally as illiterate. The only evidence that we have of his
probable age is the baptism entry in the parish records of Whittlebury and that
assumes that the custom of the time to baptize soon after birth, was followed.
Samuel must have made a very favorable impression with his overseers, see Note 2 Ticket of Leave, because from entries drawn from early colonial papers it is known that from about 1823 he was filling the position of constable in the Windsor area of NSW. On the 5th July 1825 he was appointed District Constable at Lower Pitt Town and is listed on a Return of Constables in the town of Windsor and the Districts of the Hawkesbury. A classic example of poacher turned gamekeeper! No doubt Samuel, like many others covered his tracks as best as he could, playing down his past exploits. Family legend had it that he was transported for stealing rabbits belonging to the Lord of the Manor. No doubt his many children and grandchildren were happy to promulgate this story to sympathetic ears.
Samuel married Elizabeth Berwick on 1st May 1837 at St Peters, Church
of England, Richmond, NSW. He was 41 and she, barely 16 years of age, some
records show her as being under 15 . He was listed as a farmer at the time of
his marriage. It is not known why Samuel married so late in life by the
standards of the day, or if there were previous de facto relationships. It is
stated on the Marriage certificate that they were married by “consent of the
Governor and parents of the woman.” So
despite Samuel’s responsible position in the community, he had not been fully
pardoned. He was also still not able to sign his name, making his mark instead.
Elizabeth’s father John Barwick, was also a convict, given a life
sentence for house breaking. He was granted a Conditional Pardon, 1st
January 1816. Elizabeth’s maternal grandmother, Elizabeth Rogers nee Celey was
also a convict, given 7 years for stealing in 1795 and arriving 18th
July 1798.
Samuel and Elizabeth, despite their age difference, produced twelve
children. The first when she was sixteen and the last when he was sixty- seven!
Samuel was obviously industrious and hard working, as he would need to
be with a family that size and was granted his Ticket of Leave, 13th
April 1826. This allowed a convict to work freely within a delimited area but
not to leave that area without the permission of the authorities. No evidence
has been forthcoming that Samuel was ever given a Conditional Pardon which
would have been granted by the Governor, on condition that the convict remained
in the Colony where he would have the status of a free man but would not be
allowed to return to Britain. Despite this, it is known from entries drawn from
earl Colonial Papers, that from about 1823, he was filling the position of
Constable in the Windsor area of NSW. On the 5th July 1825, he was
appointed District Constable at Lower Pitt Town and is listed on a Return of
Constables in the town of Windsor and the Districts of the Hawkesbury.
Apparently less than five foot six inches in height, he couldn’t have presented
a very imposing figure.
Samuel appears to have prospered locally and has been recorded as being
a farmer and fruit grower. No doubt he produced sufficient basic crop to
provide for his ever- growing family and probably had some livestock for their
daily needs. His Will states that he had 22 acres, not really large enough to
be described as a farmer. Probably what we would describe as a smallholder
today. An early listing shows him recorded as a timber and shingle cutter. The
timber dwellings in those days were roofed with shingle tiles and were no match
for the bush fires that ravaged the area from time to time. It is not known if
Samuel obtained his land by grant or purchase but he died owning twenty two
acres, the grower of fine fruit, with a well known dwelling in Kurrajong, named
“Fernhurst”in Mill Road.
Samuel died on 24th September 1886, age 91 and is buried
alongside his adored wife Elizabeth in a lovely well kept grave in St.Stephen’s
Church, Kurrajong, overlooking a valley so typical of the countryside around
Kurrajong, Grose Vale and North Richmond on the Hawkesbury River. The Blue
Mountains home of so many early pioneering families. Some arrived in irons and
some as freemen but most contributed to the development and future prosperity
of New South Wales.
Author’s note
On 2nd November 2001, I received a letter written by
Margaret Barnas and forwarded to me by Tom Wynne, that Samuel was in fact
granted his Pardon but failed to collect it. Details of this and no doubt many
others, can be found in “Uncollected Convict Pardons”- Compiled by Pamela
Sheldon 1993. It is a listing of Uncollected Pardons that was published in the
Sydney Morning Herald, 22 June 1850.
.
Note 1 A report from the Warwick Advertiser 12th April 1817
HIGHWAY ROBBERY
On Wednesday, Samuel Hurst, alias Hust, was capitally indicted for assaulting Thomas Hawtin, on the King's Highway, and putting him in bodily fear, and taking from his person three five pound notes, a purse containing 30 shillings in silver, and a variety of articles, his property. (Samuel Webb, an accomplice, by his own desire, had his trial put off till the next Assizes.)
Thomas Hawtin stated that he was a farmer and a seedsman, living at Honington. He was at Warwick Market on the 15th March last. He left Warwick about half past five in the evening and set off on foot to Lillington to visit some relations. About two miles from Warwick he saw two men at a little distance before him; and thinking they were people going from the market, he hurried on to catch them; when he came near them they turned round upon him, and one of them presented a pistol at him and demanded his money or his life. He told them he would give them his money if they would not use him ill. The tallest man held the pistol, while the other rifled his pockets of three five pound notes, one of Whitehead & Co's of Warwick, two of Beck & Adam's of Coventry and a one pound Stourbridge Bank Note and between 30 s and 40s in silver. They also took from him a pocket-book, a knife with an ivory ruler on the handle, a small jappaned box, containing a sample of white clover seed, a pair of spectacles, a silver pencil case and a pocket-handkerchief. The Prisoner (Hurst) was the man who presented the pistol at him, he was dressed in a great coat. Witness lost a Nankeen Purse with the initials T.H. on it, and two keys. He saw the two men in the gaol at Northampton, and was quite confident that the Prisoner at the bar was one of them.
Thomas Court, farmer, of Lillington, went to Warwick Market, on Saturday, the 15th of March. On his road there he saw the Prisoner and another man, of the name of Webb, going towards Lillington. It was then about half past eleven o'clock in the morning. They were both of them dressed in smock-frocks.
Michael Bromich said he lived at Milverton; he remembered the evening Mr Hawtin was robbed; he was in a hovel that stands in a close by the side of the road. He saw two men get over the gate; one of them came into the hovel with a bundle in his hand, and drew out a coat which was concealed under some stubble that lay in one corner of the hovel; he was the biggest man of the two who remained at the gate. Witness then saw them go towards Lillington; it was at the time about half-past six o'clock.
Hannah Clarke stated that her husband kept the Roebuck public house, at Prior's Marsten, about 15 miles from Warwick. The Prisoner and Webb came to their house about 9 o'clock in the morning of Sunday the 16th of March. They eat and drank together, and their reconning came to 5s. The Prisoner gave a bill into Witness's hand and asked her for change. Witness, on coming out of the room, finding it to be a five pound bill, returned and asked the Prisoner if he had no other. Prisoner said he had not. Her husband then went out for change, and when he returned, she laid it upon the table before the Prisoner. It consisted of four one pound notes and one pound in silver. Prisoner paid his reconning with a 5s piece.
Geo. Clarke, husband to the last witness, deposed that he got the five pound bill he had received from his wife at Mr Coling's (changed).
Wm. Coling stated that he was a shopkeeper at Priors Marston. He changed the five pound bill for the last witness on the 16th March last, he afterwards delivered it to Mr Griffin the constable. He remembered noticing "I or T Handley" and the figures 88 written in red ink on the back of the bill.
William Griffin stated that he had received the five pound bill from Coling, and had had it in his possession ever since the 16th of March.
Richard Pebody, lives at Charwelton, about two miles from Priors Marston; he saw the Prisoner and Webb there on Sunday 16th of March; he knew both of them very well. One of them lived with Clarke, at Charwelton, the last year, and the other a year or two before. He followed them into the Roebuck, at Priors Marston. He heard Mrs Clarke enquire of Hurst, if he had not a less bill. He saw Hurst bring in a basket with him into the house, he observed a coat in it. Hurst gave Thomas Checkley some white clover seed in his presence; he told him he had found it, but that he did not know what it was.
John Ward stated that he lived at Charwelton; he saw the Prisoner and Webb in custody at the Fox public house, there on Sunday the 16th March; Hurst sat next to him.. He found a powder flask in his pocket while he was there; he did not know it came there; he had no such thing in his pockets when he entered the house, he gave the flask afterwards to the constable.
Richard Noon was at the Fox on the 16th of March and saw the Prisoner take the powder flask from his own pocket, and put it into that of the last witness.
Martha Gibbs who lives at Charwelton washed occasionally for the Prisoner. She knew him and Webb very well. They came to her house on Sunday the 16th March; they had both called on her the Tuesday before. They were taken into custody at her house. Hurst had a short smock-frock on, buttoned down before; Webb was dressed in an open frock. One of her sons brought her some money from the Prisoner, but she did not know the amount.
William Kench, son of the last witness, went down to the Fox when Hurst and Webb were in custody. They changed their dress there. He observed the Prisoner put a spoon into one of his shoes. They gave him two or three shirts a piece to take to his mother; Hurst put a little box into one of his shirt sleeves; and gave witness a ruler in his hand. Webb gave him a purse with notes in it, and told him to tell his mother to take care of all the things. Hurst sent word by Witness soon after to return him the money; she sent it by a younger brother of his.
Martha Gibbs corroborated the statement made by the last witness.
John Upton, constable of Charwelton, took charge of the Prisoner and Webb at the Fox, he remembered seeing Martha Gibb's son place something in Webb's hand; he asked what it was. Webb said it was money. Witness examined it and found that it was a purse within a purse. "Witness said there is seven pounds in it, a two pound note. Webb said that's right it's mine. I don't know what's in the other." Witness examined the other purse and said "Why Hurst, here's seven pounds in this, a five pound note and a two pound note, is it right?" The Prisoner said it was. Witness received the powder horn from Ward, and required of the Prisoner how he came by it. He told him he had found it. There were the letters T.H. on one of the purses. Prisoner was questioned before the magistrate concerning this purse. He told the Magistrate he had exchanged it with another servant the year before, by giving him two pence in exchange.
The purse and the ruler were then produced by the last witness which Mr Hawtin stated were both taken from him on the night of the robbery. Here three five pound notes and a Stourbridge one pound note, answering the description of those the Prosecutor had lost, were next produced, which Mr Hawtin said, although he could not swear to, he had not the least doubt were the same he had been robbed of.
The Prisoner in his defence said that he had received the money off Webb, at Southam, on Shrove Tuesday, for a debt he owed him.
His Lordship then summed up the evidence, and the Jury almost immediately returned a verdict of - GUILTY.
Warwick, April 19,1817
Warwick Assizes
Previous to Mr. Barron Richards leaving town, he was pleased to reprieve all the prisoners upon whom he had passed sentence of the law on Monday last; etc
Note 2 Ticket of Leave 105/2241
Samuel Hurst – “ Ocean 11 “, 1818, Warwick Assize, 1st April 1817, Life, Native place, Buckinghamshire; Occupation Labour; Born 1797; Height 5’5 &3/4”, Complexion, Sallow; Hair, Brown; Eyes, Hazel.
13th April, 1826, Windsor
Granted the same as the proceedings.