Thomas Matthews

5

Phil Smailes on 31st August 2013

Married 10 July 1852 to Mary Boyle, Irish orphan in St Francis Church, Lived in the Tallangatta areas of Victoria until he drowned in the Tallangatta Creek 15 Sep 1875, buried in Tallangatta cemetery. Left 12 children & Mary was expecting when Thomas died. Attached is the research of Tony Cocks © B.A. Cocks 16/09/2010 Hampshire SO53 1FN, UK Log 1844 (i) which describes, in the extract below, not only details of his sentencing to transportation but also his family and criminal history. This particular document is supported by entries in the Parkhurst Prison Register:(ii) Name: Thomas Matthews Reg. No: 484 Ward: C Age: 15 Occupation: Labourer & rough Tailor Date of conviction: July 12 1844 Where convicted: Bath Sessions Offence: Stealing a watch & other articles Sentence: Ten Years Transportation When received: August 17 1844 Where from: Millbank Prison Character: Convicted of felony before Name & residence of father, mother and friends: An Orphan I Information about prisoner: Parents both dead. Father had been a soldier, lived at Bath after his discharge, died in 1836. Mother died in 1838.She left some money for a neighbour of hers to support Prisoner & his Brother. This person sent them to school and treated them kindly as long as the money lasted. Then she put them into the Union Workhouse. Prisoner remained there about 4 years. Ran away with some other boys, went to work on the railroad for nearly 3 years, earned 5/- a week, remained there till the work was finished, after which he was taken into the Bath Union again, was employed to work in the garden there. Had been at the National School and could read pretty well at the time. Was twice in prison for running away from the Workhouse. After his release the second time he was employed at a dairy for nearly 18 months. Had also been imprisoned 7 days for stealing a pair of books during which time the Chaplain of the Gaol became acquainted with him & employed him as a servant. After his release from Prison, remained in Mr Osbourn’s service twelve months the robbed his Master of a Watch and other articles was apprehended and tried at the Sessions, convicted & sentenced to 10 years Transportation. (See Endnote) Remarks on prisoner’s conduct: May 25 1847 - Embarked on board the ship “Joseph Somes” for Port Phillip. -3- Thomas Matthews eventually sailed from Spithead, Portsmouth, on 09/06/1847 for the Port Phillip District of New South Wales, finally disembarking at Point Henry, Geelong on 24/09/1847. Records indicate that he had been taught the carpentry trade and could both read and write, skills that would stand him in good stead in a frontier society. He was immediately granted a Conditional Pardon and employed as a General Servant by McMillan & Wilson, Geelong, for 12 months at £18 p.a.(iii) There then follows an interval of nearly 5 years before further information on his life becomes available. This is not uncommon. Quite a few of the Parkhurst “Exiles”, such as Thomas Matthews, became Shepherds, Domestic Servants on outback properties or went gold prospecting and as there were no prescriptive “monitoring” arrangements requiring records once a Conditional Pardon had been granted, invariably a marriage, birth or death certificate was a normal point of re-emergence in tracing terms. In the case of Thomas Matthews it was his marriage to Mary O’Boyle, and his biography from this point onwards has been documented by his descendants:(iv)