John Cross

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Ron Garbutt on 11th March 2020

THE FIRST FLEET Part 2 Part two of this story deals with the arrival of the Fleet at Botany Bay, the landing at Sydney Cove and some members of the Fleet, both bonded and free and some of their descendants. Sources for this talk were taken from.. "The Historical Records of Australia Vol 1" "The Founders of Australia" by Mollie Gillen AM FF John Small and Mary Parker. "Sydney Cove 1788" by John Cobley." Sydney Cove 1791-1793" by John Cobley. "Australia the First 12 Years" by Peter Taylor. "The People of the First Fleet" by Don Chapman. Archives of the Fellowship of First Fleeters. "Where First Fleeters Lie" Joyce Cowell and Rod Best Leaving Cape Town 0n 12th November, Phillip decided to divide the fleet in two, in the hope that the faster ships would reach Botany Bay to prepare for disembarkation. He transferred his pennant to the Supply and left Captain John Hunter in charge of the Sirius. The ships, however, arrived at their destination within two days of each other, Phillip having anchored on the 18th January. A magnificent piece of navigation.!! Immediately Phillip went ashore and we are told that, on making contact with the original inhabitants, he ordered all weapons to be laid down and the Aborigines responded in like manner, accepting beads and trinkets albeit in a suspicious manner. We are also told that on the following day a large band of natives assembled at Cape Solander waving their spears above their heads. Many of the newcomers could not think otherwise that they were not welcome. After visiting Port Jackson, on 21st January, Phillip decided to prepare a settlement at Sydney Cove. On the 25th January, in the afternoon, he sailed the "Supply" to Port Jackson with orders for Hunter to follow with the 10 remaining ships later that day. Phillip anchored in Sydney Cove prior to dusk. Thea Stanley Hughes puts it so well in her book on Phillip… "Now there was a slight pause-one night- between the sense of urgency about getting the Fleet to its destination, a a new sense of urgency about the fulfilling of his destiny" The 26th January in the year of Our Lord, 1788 was a Saturday, clear weather, a light sou-sou east breeze and a temperature of 70 degrees Fahrenheit. They had, indeed, been transported to Paradise, unknowingly and unwillingly.!! To the utter astonishment of Captain Hunter , leading the Fleet to Port Jackson, there appeared two French ships preparing to anchor in Botany Bay. In the meantime Phillip and his party began clearing ground near a run of fresh water, later known as the Tank Stream, a flagstaff was erected close to the landing site, the Queen Ann jack was raised and possession was taking for His Majesty King George the Third. A toast was proposed, not only to the Royal Family, but also to the success of the colony. At about 6 pm on that day the ten remaining ships anchored in Sydney Cove. Arthur Phillip had accomplished an incredible feat of endurance - undaunted by unknown dangers, navigating some 15000 miles of distance with nearly 1500 souls in his care he found a safe haven. Twenty-two babies were born en-route and 55 souls were lost during the voyage. The only outbreak of fever occurred on the Alexander where 16 convicts died - the ship was fumigated and cleansed which fact seemed to have abated the epidemic. On arrival the male convicts were landed together with most of the marines - more land was cleared - a tent hospital was set up on the western side of the cove now known as the rocks, a site for barracks was laid out nearby, and Phillip chose the site of his Government House slightly uphill south east of the cove. On 3rd February the first Religious service was held be the Rev .Richard Johnson, Chaplain. His text was taken from Psalm 116, verse 12…"What shall I render unto the Lord for all his benefits towards me". One wonders what the convicts may have thought about that text.!! Little would most of them have known that those promised benefits would come their way in future years. On Wednesday 6th February, the convict women from the Lady Penrhyn were disembarked [one might say- LET LOOSE] Arthur Bowes-Smyth noted in his diary and I quote.. "We had long wished for the pleasure of seeing the last of them leave the ship. They were dressed, in general, very clean and some few amongst them might have been said to be well dressed." He went on to record a night of debauchery which ensued, and in the midst of which there occurred a most violent thunderstorm! The next day all were assembled to hear the Governor's commission read by the Judge-Advocate, Captain Collins. Phillips's authority was well defined in this Commission, by Act of Parliament establishing the colony and, in Letters Patent, constituting the Courts of Law, from the very genesis of our Nation. Amongst instructions, the Governor was enjoined thus….."to endeavor by all possible means to open an intercourse with the natives and conciliate their affections, enjoining all to live in amity and kindness with them". [Something went astray there.!!!] He was also given power to emancipate convicts for good behaviour and industry but more importantly, much more importantly, Governor Phillip was given the power to grant them land. This was to be a salvation for many of the convicts who had, indeed, for the want of circumstances and upbringing, had never had a chance in life, and, for past misdeeds, no matter how petty, had been jettisoned from one hostile environment to another. On the 14th February 1788, under the command of Phillip Gidley King, the Supply sailed for Norfolk Island with a party of marines and some 15 convicts. The idea of settlement was threefold - to harvest flax for yarn and investigate the Norfolk Island pine trees for shipbuilding. Both eventually being found unsuitable. The 3rd reason was, that the authorities in Britain were rather nervous re French exploration in this region. A foreign settlement so close to the new British acquisition was unthinkable. More convicts and Marines were later sent there to alleviate victualling problems at Port Jackson, supplies were sent to the island by the "Sirius" which was wrecked at Sydney Bay on the 19th March 1790, adding to the problems of both settlements. In 1791, Phillip in a letter to Lord Sydney reported…… "I can still say with great truth and satisfaction that the convicts, in general, behave better than every could have been expected and that their crimes, with very few exceptions, have been confined to the procuring for themselves, the common necessaries of life" In 1797 the second Governor, John Hunter reported to Lord Sydney -" The vast number of women for whom we have had little work are a heavy weight on the stores of Government - if we estimate their merits by the charming children with which they have filled the colony, then, they deserve our care." This was one of the most telling reports emanating from the infant settlement. At this time there was estimated some 400 young children of varying ages, descended, not only from First Fleet convict men and women and Marines, but also 2nd and 3rd Fleet arrivals. And bearing these sentiments in mind, two centuries later, Dr Portia Robinson of the History Department at the Macquarie University, observed in her book "The Hatch and Brood of Time" that these children - the so called currency lads and lasses of these First Fleeters, were a most law abiding generation. The first generation of First Fleeters came into their own - Dr Craig Smee in his book "First Fleet Families of Australia" says, and I quote… "whatever the circumstances of their arrival the First Fleeters planted a seed of native born, who soon acquired a character which is both different in nature from their origins in England, and similar to each other in their newly adopted land. A character with characteristics such as self-reliance, initiative and a sense of fair play. Over succeeding generations and with an influx of migration, we are still integrating those qualities handed down by our first arrivals. Also from these early days, our distinct Australian accent evolved. Contrary to opinion that the First Fleet was made up entirely of Anglo-Celtic people is wrong. There were 235 Non English First Fleeters There were, for instance, 141 persons known to have been born in Ireland, either born in Ireland, or whose surnames suggested the they may have been Irish or of Irish Extraction mostly convicts convicted in England for petty crimes. It is interesting that the so called Irish rebels arrived at a later date. In addition there were 2 from the Channel Islands, and 33- Scottish- although No First Fleet Convict was convicted in Scotland fleet and, of these, only one convict, John Ramsay, the rest being marines and seamen. The Scots certainly looked after their own!!!! The Welsh weren't left out – 9 in number including four convicts. Also were at least 12 black Africans, Americans or West Indians plus 14 North Americans, and 15 Other Nationalities ,comprising convicts from Madagascar, West Indies, Holland, France, Germany, Norway, Portugal, Jamaica, Sweden, Bengal India, and Scandinavia At least 9 Jewish folk, in the main convicts, were also on the Fleet. It is of interest to note that these Jewish folk were mostly Sephardim… during the Diaspora or the dispersion of the Jews from Israel one tribe moved across the Northern African continent and settled in Spain. During the Inquisition in the 16th Century, they scattered north to Holland, France and England and most of those convicts from England were Sephardim. Some of us in the Fellowship of First Fleeters have this blood in our veins. Some 732 convicts were landed on these shores on that January day, about one third female, together with 245 Marines, some 20% of these stayed, married or co-habited with convict women and thereby formed dynasties which are still with us to-day. About 35 Marines brought with them a wife and children. Most returned to England but 3 families of Marines remained. Again within the Fellowship of First Fleeters, we count some descendants of these as members. There are many success stories in our historical records from both fettered and free. It seems to be the fashion in this day and age with some in our community to be politically correct, as opposed to being historically correct. The history of the early efforts of the Friends of First Government House site bears this out only too well.!!! Let me give some examples taken from the pages of The Sydney Morning Herald in 1988. 1] Governor Phillip and his hoard of Georgian louts invaded the shores of Botany Bay. 2]The convicts of the First Fleet did not amount to much, nor contributed anything of value to the colony 3]We must be careful to play down the part of the first European arrivals for fear of upsetting some members of the community. What utter rubbish…. History is founded on facts and the history of European settlement of our nation is well and truly documented. We have with us to-day volumes of "The Historical Records of New South Wales" giving a day to day record of the colony under the Governorships of Phillip to Macquarie. We also have the diaries of some of those First Fleeters who were literate. http://www.fellowshipfirstfleeters.org.au/storie6.html

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Ron Garbutt on 11th March 2020

THE FIRST FLEET Part 1 A Publication of talks given by the President of the Fellowship of First Fleeters Peter G Christian, a descendant of William Tunks, Marine, "Sirius" and Sarah Lyons a Second Fleet Jewish Convict In 1786 Thomas Townsend, Lord Sydney, announced that His Majesty, George the Third authorised the establishment of a settlement at Botany Bay. The Admiralty and Treasury were ordered, and I quote' you do forthwith take such measures as may be necessary for providing a proper number of vessels for the conveyance of 750 convicts to Botany Bay, together with such provisions, necessaries and implements for agriculture as may be necessary for their use after arrival'. The first Act in England, authorising the transport of felons was passed in 1597 being..'An Act for the Punishment of Rogues, Vagabonds and Sturdy Beggars… to be banished out of this Realm, and all other Dominions thereof…' Further Acts were passed in 1664,1666, and 1718, permitting transport to the American Colonies. The American War of Independence had put a sudden halt to the passage of convicts across the Atlantic. From 1718 some 50,000 of Briton's felons had been sent to the American colonies as indentured servants, which, in effect, condemned them to slavery, so, after several attempts at a solution to rid the colony of convicts, which included a trial run to the West coast of Africa, resulting in the loss of many lives, it was Botany Bay that was chosen. The British Treasury arranged eleven ships to be prepared for the journey consisting of two naval ships, Sirius and Supply, six transports, Alexander, Lady Penrhyn, Scarborough, Charlotte, Prince of Wales, Friendship and three storeships - Fishburn, Borrowdale and Golden Grove. For some months stores were loaded, in addition to guns and ammunition. In the quaint language of the day the following were listed on the ships' indents----- Barrels of Flour - Firkins of Butter - Tierces of Beef - Casks of Water and Beer - Pipes of Rum and Brandy- Chords of Wood - Cauldrons of Coal - Baggs of Bread - Portable Soup -(one would hope that it was potable!!)- Hogs heads of Seeds - in addition the usual Pease, Cheese Rice and Pork. A fair amount of livestock was carried, much having to be replaced at CapeTown, in addition to seedlings and seeds for agriculture in the new colony. There were, of course, Tools and Agricultural implements, medical supplies, surgical instruments, handcuffs, leg irons, looking glasses and other trinkets for any natives encountered; also carried was a prefabricated tent for the Governor, 5,000 bricks and the piece de resistance was a piano stored on the Sirius and belonging to Surgeon George Worgan. On Worgan's departure from the colony some years later, the piano was given to Mrs Elizabeth Macarthur. The Fleet eventually set sail from Motherbank, Portsmouth, on Sunday 13th May 1787 so aptly put by our pianist, Surgeon Worgan ,aboard HMS Sirius in his diary 'Thus equipped each ship like another Noah's Ark, away we steered for Botany Bay' I say eventually because of a strike by the crews of the Fishburn and Alexander, who mutinied over wages and conditions. This strike, a portent of so many to come in the land we now know was only short-lived due to the lack of Public interest, no one in Britain would have been in the least interested that a fleet of some 1500 souls was sailing into the unknown. The news of the day, for those who were literate was the secret marriage of the Prince of Wales to Mrs Fitzherbert and the impeachment of Warren Hastings for alleged imperial crimes in India! This successful voyage was due in no small part to the navigational skills of Arthur Phillip. Phillip was born in London of an English mother and German father. He had served in the British navy during the seven-year war with France, had also served with permission from the Admiralty with the Portuguese Navy. In 1781 he was promoted to the rank of Captain and again saw action against France in 1782 and 1783. In 1786 he was handed his commission to lead the expedition to Botany Bay and was given the daunting task of the setting up of an administration of the settlement that would lay the foundations to be built upon for years to come. Thea Stanley Hughes in her book "Arthur Phillip" writes' so in 1788 the destinies of Cook, Phillip, Britain and Australia were brought into close association' The voyage of the eleven ships continued, The Canary Islands were reached on 3rd June 1787, and at the port of Teneriffe stores were taken on board. On the 6th August Rio de Janiero was reached and the fleet stayed here for nearly a month, more stores were taken on board, the ships were caulked and Phillip and his officers were made most welcome by the Portuguese colonists. Phillip, writing to his friend, Evan Nepean of the Home Office said 'with respect to the convicts, they have all been allowed the liberty of the deck in the day and many during the night, which has kept them much healthier than could have been expected' The Fleet arrived in Cape Town on 13 October after an uneventful trip of 39 days. I might add that there was a hiccup in Cape Town Harbour when one of the convicts, by name Phoebe Norton, [definitely a lady of quality] fell into the harbour whilst using the outside latrine of one of the transports. She was fished out by one of the sailors, none the worse for wear!! It was at CapeTown that Phillip was involved in long and tedious negotiations with the Dutch to purchase provisions that eventually were provided. Midshipman Newton Fowell, whose letters now repose in our NSW State Library, writing to his father said…'Honoured father, before we sailed we took in a great quantity of stock such as oxen, six cows, sheep and hogs…. All the people thoroughly clear of scurvy as the Dutch supplied us with mutton, vegetables and all other things for the preservation of men's lives on so long a voyage' Lieutenant Ralph Clark, marine on the Friendship, noted in his diary, with regard to the 30 sheep taken on board into quarters vacated by the female convicts 'I think we will find them more agreeable shipmates than the women were'!!! The Fleet sailed from Cape Town on Monday 12th November 1787 on the last leg of its voyage to Botany Bay. This was the dangerous part of the voyage, as Phillip had to sail deep into the Southern Ocean to make full use of the Trade Winds, there was also the threat of icebergs in this region. The storeship of the Second Fleet, the "Guardian" came to grief after leaving CapeTown, jettisoning its vital cargo for the new colony, and just limping back to Table Bay. http://www.fellowshipfirstfleeters.org.au/storie5.html

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Ron Garbutt on 11th March 2020

JOHN CROSS John Cross was born in Wiltshire in 1757. He was 29 years old when arrested for stealing a sheep worth 20 shillings, He was found guilty and received a death sentence which was commuted to seven years transportation. He was kept on a hulk for two years before sailing aboard Alexander. He worked on the farm of James Furzer and is mentioned several times in the early records — for the offence of exchanging rations for clothes and for selling stock to John Palmer. John Cross met Mary Davidson (Davison), a convict who arrived on Lady Juliana in 1790. Their first child, Elizabeth, was baptised on 29 June 1794. They had a family of nine children during their life together. John worked on several farms in Sydney, Parramatta and the Hawkesbury, where he had received a grant of 100 acres on 4 June 1804. There the family survived floods and hostile natives, and he asked for Government help to overcome flood damage. The peak of his achievement as a farmer was in 1806 when he was recorded with crops, an orchard and vegetable garden and some livestock. But he got into difficulties after that time, and gradually sold off his assets to pay off debts. He was a poor man when he died and was buried at St Matthew's, Windsor, on 27 December 1824, at the age of 68 years. John's son, David, built the Victoria Inn, which still stands at Cross Park at Wiseman's Ferry, and for a time he operated the ferry. John's children married into such well-known families as the Cobcrofts, Cavanoughs, Herps, Douglas, Stallards and Doughertys. Reference. http://www.fellowshipfirstfleeters.org.au/johncross.htm

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Ron Garbutt on 11th March 2020

5 Mar 1785. Trial and Conviction. Salisbury, Wiltshire Gaol Delivery, England Crimes - Stealing livestock (a sheep). Value of crimes - 20 shillings. Original sentence - Death. Transported for - 7 years. Sources. Source Citation Class: HO 11; Piece: 1 Source Information Ancestry.com. Australian Convict Transportation Registers – First Fleet, 1787-1788 [database on-line]. Citation Information Detail State Library of Queensland; South Brisbane, Queensland, Australia; Cross: His Mark. Author Lorraine Prothero Source Information Title Web: Australia, Convict Records Index, 1787-1867 Author Ancestry.com

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Ron Garbutt on 11th March 2020

WYONG FAMILY HISTORY GROUP INC John Cross My 4th great grandfather John Cross was born in 1757 in East Knoyle, Wiltshire, England. At the age of 28 he was convicted at the New Sarum Assizes held at Salisbury, Wiltshire on 5th March 1785 with stealing one wether sheep to the value of 20 shillings, the goods of William Hacker. He was sentenced to be hanged but was reprieved, then being sentenced to transportation for 7 years. At the time he left England on the 'Alexander', as part of the first fleet, he may well have had a wife in England. It would appear that he could read and write, as records exist showing his signature. John was still living close to his point of landing when his first child Elizabeth was born on April 1st 1794, to his partner Mary Davison a second fleet convict who may have been his assignee. Shortly after this they moved to a locality known as 'The Ponds' at Rydalmere where John is shown on August 27, 1798 as being in debt to Thomas Cottrell for £37.15.00 for rent, grain and a promissory note. John and Mary had 6 children when in 1804 Governor Philip Gidley King granted John 100 acres on the banks of the Hawkesbury River at Sussex Reach. This he called "Cross Farm". At this time there would have only been 100 or so other men and women of similar background, with little or no experience of farming or trades perched at the outpost of this fledgling colony. Life would have been difficult for John and Mary and their five sons, (Elizabeth died in infancy), who would have lived in a one roomed slab and bark hut, with earthen floor, an outside fireplace, few utensils and tools and the barest necessities. Nevertheless, they succeeded in providing much needed grain, mostly corn, and vegetables for the very hungry population. The Hawkesbury Valley was very fertile due to its regular flooding. This caused heartache and ruin to many of the pioneer settlers, who time and again saw their almost ripe crops being swept away. As a result John was one of thirty-six landholders on the banks of the Hawkesbury whose effects were put up for public auction by the Provost Marshall on January 28, 1805. He would have been struggling to get back on his feet after this setback, when on March 23, 1806 the Hawkesbury broke its banks recording the highest flood to that date. John picked up again after this flood and in the General Muster of 1806 he is shown as no longer being victualled and had in his employ a free man. He had under cultivation 12 acres of wheat, 6 acres of maize, 1 acre barley, ½ acre of potatoes and 1 acre of orchard. He had 8 hogs. Mary is still on this muster as 'Mary Davison' living with John Cross and their 4 children. Two more children were born after this date being Ann and Sarah. John and Mary had a total of 9 children, the last born being Sarah in 1812. The children to survived to adulthood were: William, Davis, Alexander, Mary-Ann, Ann and Sarah. By the beginning of 1812 John, now 55 was experiencing financial difficulties. He was forced to sell by public auction some of his pigs and a quantity of wheat. By the end of the year John was again forced to sell a quantity of growing wheat to cover some of his debts. Four more years of lean times were to follow, until on February 9,1816 John sold 30 acres of the eastern part of his land to Andrew Doyle for £100. This amount appears to have been sufficient to put John on his feet again together with the help of his sons William 14 and David 12 years old. Alexander, aged eight would have been assigned to farmyard chores. At the age of 59 and after 24 years in the colony as a free man John and another 116 ex-convicts were required to produce written confirmation of their freedom or risk being recalled to government work as convicts. Many of the members of this group were Hawkesbury settlers who had time after time lost a good deal more than their certificates of freedom in the floods.This matter must have been resolved as John died a free man at the age of 67 in 1824. Submitted by : Jean Macleay, Member WFHG, 17 February 2012 http://sites.rootsweb.com/~nswwfhg/articles/convicts/0359_cross_john.html

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Ron Garbutt on 1st February 2020

The Life of John Cross. A more detailed account of John's life, written by Jean Macleay, Member Wyong Family History Group, 17 February 2012 can be read at: http://sites.rootsweb.com/~nswwfhg/articles/convicts/0359_cross_john.html

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Ron Garbutt on 1st February 2020

27 December 1824. Burial. Windsor, Hawkesbury, New South Wales, Australia Sources: Gillen, Mollie. The Founders of Australia: a biographical dictionary of the First Fleet. North Sydney: Library of Australian History, 1989 Ancestry.com. Australia and New Zealand, Find A Grave Index, 1800s-Current [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2012. Original data: Find A Grave. Find A Grave. http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi.

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Ron Garbutt on 1st February 2020

25 Dec 1824. Death. First Branch, Hawkesbury River, New South Wales, Australia Sources. Ancestry.com. Australia, Death Index, 1787-1985 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2010. Original data: Compiled from publicly available sources. State Library of Queensland; South Brisbane, Queensland, Australia; Cross: His Mark. Author Lorraine Prothero Source Information Ancestry.com. Web: Australia, Convict Records Index, 1787-1867 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2018. Original data: Australia Convict Records Index, 1787-1867. State Library of Queensland, South Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. https://convictrecords.com.au/: accessed Sep 2017

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Ron Garbutt on 1st February 2020

1790. Marriage? to Mary Davison No record of marriage found. In some records she is referred to as his partner or common-law wife. John Cross met Mary Davidson (Davison), a convict who arrived on Lady Juliana in 1790. Their first child, Elizabeth, was baptised on 29 June 1794. They had nine children 1794 and 1812 (not all surviving infancy) Children: Elizabeth (1794-1806) James Thomas (1796-) William (1797-1845) David (1799-1869) John (1801-) Alexander (1803-1886) Mary Ann (1806-1873) Ann (1808-1880) Sarah (1812-1929)

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Ron Garbutt on 1st February 2020

Convict Ship - Alexander Alexander (Barque) – Convict Transport – 452 Tons, 114 ft. (34.75m.) long and 31 ft.(9.5m) beam. Deptford survey in October 1786 recorded her measurements of 7'3" between decks afore, 6'11" midships and abaft. Carried 30 Crew plus 41 Marines. Arrived with 177 male Convicts (14dv). Skippered by: Master Duncan Sinclair. Owner: William Walton & Co. Built as a 3 master-square rig, 1 quarter deck ± 114 x 31ft and 2 decks without galleries or figurehead, and was registered at Hull in 1783. The longest ship of the fleet, and little is known after her return to England and disappeared from records in 1808. Reference. http://www.fellowshipfirstfleeters.org.au/ship_alexander.htm