Gifford White

He is mentioned in a footnote to The Chimes, one of the Christmas Books of Charles Dickens. In the text of the book one of the characters mentions "There'll be a Fire tonight." The footnote explains this is a reference to rick burning, revenge taken by agricultural labourers on farmers who wouldn't pay them a living wage. Offenders were savagely published and Gifford White, a Huntingdonshire labourers, was transported for life - just for threatening to commit arson if he and fellow labourers weren't given work. The footnote adds that it inspired an article Lay of the Labourer by the publisher in his Hood's Magazine of November, 1844.

Huntingdon Gaol Calendar 18/03/1844.

Gifford White was 25 years old on arrival and was transported for “Writing a threatening letter to Mr. Mayer and Isaac Eyelet. Off Norfolk Island per Tory May 1847 Gifford was 5’5 ½” tall, grey eyes, light brown hair, single, can read and write, protestant. 17/10/1854: TOL 22/7/1856: CP Gifford White apparently left Tasmania and then returned. Port of Departure: Hobartown Port of Arrival: Sydney, New South Wales Voyage Arrival Date: 7 Jun 1858 Vessel Name: Tasmania. He married Rebecca Shanks in Huntingdon in 1860. Daughter Laura Selina White was born 1860 Son Thomas was born in Tasmania, in 1865. Parish records show 5 children of Gifford and Rebecca WHITE all baptised at Bluntisham cum Earith, Hunts on 13 Sep 1868. Gifford WHITE, Thomas WHITE, Phoebe WHITE, Selena WHITE and Mary Ann WHITE. No ages given. This appears on the Family History page of Linc Tas. 1865: Married Rebecca Shanks at Bothwell (perhaps they remarried). 26/8/1882: BEST—WHITE.—On Monday, August 14, at Bothwell, by the Rev. A. Beresford, Michael Charles, second son of the late Joseph Best, Hamilton, to LauraSelina, eldest daughter of Gifford White, Bothwell. WHITE, Gifford CD 945937 Death Sex: Male Age at Death: 75 Death Date: 02 May 1898 Reg Year: 1898 Reg State: Tasmania Ref Number: 7 28/5/1898 The Mercury, Hobart: WHITE.-On May 2, 1898, at " Brookdale," Bothwell, Gifford White in the 75th year of his age, after a long and painful illness borne with Christian fortitude.

I have hopefully correctly pulled together all the information available about Gifford White in two blogposts: https://pdfamilyhistory.blogspot.com/2022/09/gifford-white-life-after-transportation.html and https://pdfamilyhistory.blogspot.com/2022/09/transported-for-life-lay-of-labourer.html