George Webb

Level 18

Blondie on 5th October 2012

George Webb was born 7 April 1805 (Christened 8 May 1805 at St Marys Church Stockport) in Stockport, Cheshire England. Sentenced to Death for housebreaking at the Chester Assizes* at the Shire Hall 23 March 1833. Before Mr Justice Patterson and Mr Baron Bayley. "George Webb, late of the parish of Great Budworth in the County of Cheshire, Labourer, was charged that on 3rd November 1832 he was guilty of housebreaking at the house of Richard Willat and stole a silver watch and £23.7.0 in coin". George Webb pleaded not guilty. "The jurors say guilty". The jurors were William Andrew, Saml. Barron, David Clarke, Saml. Handford, Wm. Kay, Thomas Leigh, William Minshall, James Ogden, George Pointon, Samuel Stratch, Willm. Semister, John Tongue. Judgement : Death. His sentence was commuted "transport for life". Sailed from Portsmouth on 3 July 1833 and arrived in Sydney on the "Aurora 1 (1)" (ie: the 1st transport by the name of 'Aurora' on her first voyage as a convict transport) on 3 November 1833 after 122 days. 300 Male convicts embarked and 300 landed in Sydney. The 'Aurora' was ship-rigged, 550 tons and was built in Chittagong, Bangladesh in 1817, Class E1. The Master was Dalrymple Dawson and the Surgeon was Alexander Stewart. Assigned to (Howell) William Grose Jnr**. George Webb did not set foot in Australia until a year and one day after the robbery. He was first held at Mobberley. On 7th November, four days after the robbery, he was tranferred to Chester Castle to await the arrival of the Circuit Judge. One hundred and thirty-six days later, on 23 March 1833 at the Chester Assizes he was charged and found guilty. The Home Secretary in London, Lord Melbourne, was notified of the convictions at Chester. On 10 April 1833, he sent and order to the Constable of the Castle at Chester, directing him to remove ten named prisoners, including George Webb, "with all convenient speed" to the hulk "York" at Gosport, after first ensuring that they were "free from any putrid or infectious distempers". On 16 May 1833, the ten men left Chester Castle. Two days later they were at Gosport. The speed of the journey suggests that they were taken by ship. The ten men from Chester were received on board the hulk "York" on 18 May 1833, and a receipt was given by I. Nicholson, First Mate. George Held a Ticket of Leave, No: 42/135 Dated: 10 January 1842 Prisoner's No: 33/2639 Name: George Webb Ship: Aurora Master: Dawson Year: 1833 Native Place: Blank Trade or Calling: Blank Offence: Blank Place of Trial: Chester Assises Date of Trial: 23 March 1833 Sentence: Life Year of Birth: Blank Height: Blank Complexion: Blank Hair: Blank Eyes: Blank General Remarks: Blank Allowed to remain in District of Bungonia On recommendation of 'do' Bench Dated: September 1841 Written across the above Ticket Of Leave: "Ticket of Leave torn up Webb having obtained a Conditional Pardon No: 49/331 Dated: 20 December 1848 State Records Ref: 4/4158 Film: 942 Remarks: District: Bungonia Tried: Chester ass. George was Pardoned in 1847 - Conditional Pardon No: 1799. George was landowner at Bungonia, then at Little River (now Mongarlowe). Died at Little River (near Braidwood) NSW on 19 Aug 1891, aged 86, after an illness lasting one day. Cause of death was shown as 'old age', but was possibly a heart attack or stroke. He was buried at the boundary of his farm in the property of his son George on 21 Aug 1891 at Fegan's Creek/Charleys Forest (Near Braidwood) NSW. The officiating Minister was the Reverend J. Dobson, and the undertaker was Edward Webb, George's son. George's death registered with NSW Births, Deaths & Marriages - Registration No: 3884/1891 - Braidwood District NSW - No Fathers details shown - Mother shown as 'Mary A'. George's Will left everything to his wife, Mary Ann for her lifetime, and then the land went to Edward, and the stock was divided between sons George and Edward. Mary was Executrix. George married Mary Ann Grose (nee Bates) (widow of (Howell) William Grose) on 18 Oct 1842 at St Saviour's Church in Goulburn NSW - Marriage registered NSW Births Deaths & Marriages Registration No: V1842624 26C/1842 - MC District = Early Church Record Code = Church of England, Bungonia, Goulburn, St Saviour's (Co. Argyle), Goulburn Plains, Lake Bathurst, Marulan - Bride's name registered as 'Marian'. In November 1833, William Grose went to the convict barracks at Parramatta, paid forty shillings and took back to the farm the two men assigned to him. One of these men - the farm servant - was George Webb, who had experience in agriculture and who would soon be running the farm. William Grose continued as manager of the 56 acre farm until his death in January 1835. (Howell) William Grose Jnr died aged 34 years and was buried on 22 January 1835 at St Johns Church Parramatta by the Rev. Samuel Marsden. H.W. Grose (William) - Death Registered with NSW Births, Deaths & Marriages, Registration No: V18351523 19/1835 - No Parents details are shown. Joseph Hickey Grose (a convict)cared for his widowed sister-in-law by leaving her family in residence at the farm, with her as manager of the property, and having George Webb assigned to her. The number of unattached women in the Colony was far less than the number of men who were seeking a wife. The "widow Grose" as a free emigrant would have been pursued incessantly by a succession of men. Mary chose her assigned servant, George Webb. George and Mary Ann lived as man and wife, George would not be eligible until at least 1841 to even apply for permission to marry. When the chance came, they left the Parramatta district and sometime after the 1837 convict muster, George and Mary Ann moved from Seven Hills to the Bungonia district to take over the County Argyle property that Major John Grose (3rd son of (Howell)William Grose and Mary Ann had been unsuccessful at developing - he had returned to England. Mary Ann survived George by almost two years. She died 3 March 1893, aged 83, of "senile decay" and was placed alongside her husband two days later. Mary's death registered with NSW Births, Deaths & Marriages - Registration No: 3651/1893 Vol.6, Informant - son, Edward. Her parents names are shown as UNKNOWN. Age at Death registered as being 88 years. The deaths passed unnoticed by the Braidwood newspapers.

Born Stockport Chehire, assigned to Joseph Hickey Grose Parramatta, married Mary Anne Bates the widow of William Grose. settled in Windellama NSW,