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| Winchester Cathedral where Henry and Robert's father, Daniel, was a verger |
Henry and Robert left their parents, Daniel and Charlotte Titheridge,
and their six year old brother Daniel in Winchester. On 5 September 1856 at 3 o’clock they sailed
off from Liverpool aboard the Marco Polo to their new life 10,500 miles away in
Australia. They arrived in Melbourne after 3 months at sea, arriving on 6 December 1856. We do not know if they stayed in Melbourne,
where brother Alfred was living, but by 1860 there is record of Robert in Ballarat,
Victoria and by 1863 records show that Henry was in Ballarat too.
Ballarat was a town in Victoria, Australia situated 60 miles from Melbourne on the Yarrowee
River. The area was first settled by
sheep herders in 1838 but the area developed rapidly after rich alluvial gold
was discovered in 1851, within days of the announcement of gold the gold rush
began. As news of the gold reached the world Ballarat experienced a huge influx
of immigrants, as the gold ran dry many settlers moved on to other fields. The city earnt the nickname the golden city
in the 1880s. Ballarat grew from its founding in 1852 to a city by 1870 and it is
the largest inland city in Australia.
Although the alluvial gold was soon exhausted underground mining
continued until 1918. This was city where both Henry and Robert settled.
Henry’s Story
On the 1851 census in Winchester Henry’s trade was an apprentice tailor,
an occupation he pursued in Ballarat. On
29 June 1863 Henry married Louisa Bush in Ballarat. They went on to have seven children, 5 boys
and two girls between the years 1864 and 1874.
One boy and one girl died in childhood. The children were:
Rhoda Maria
Titheridge born 1864 died 1893
Walter Titheridge
born 1865 died 1934
Daniel Carey
Titheridge born 1867 died 1944
Frederick Titheridge
born 1869 died 1903
Edward Titheridge
born 1871 died 1878
William Titheridge
born 1872 died 1952
Ann Titheridge
born 1874 died 1875
Of the surviving five children all married. Rhoda married John Patrick Tierney; Walter
married Agnes Smyth and had two daughters
and one son; Daniel married Jessie Mill and had one daughter and two sons; Frederick married Rachel Homewood and had one
son and two daughters; William married Lavinia Luke Hammer and had two sons and
one daughter.
From newspaper records we have been able to follow the tragedy that hit
Henry’s family in 1875 and the subsequent consequences.
On 18 January 1875 Henry and Louisa’s youngest daughter, 6 month old
Ann, died. A week later Henry’s wife
Louisa died leaving Henry with six children aged 11 to 3 to look after. The death of Louisa was reported in the local
newspaper.
27 January 1875 Ballarat Courier
Funeral Notice: - The Friends of
Mr Henry Titheridge are respectfully invited to follow the remains of his late
wife to the place of interment, the Ballarat New Cemetery. The funeral
procession to move from his residence. No. 3 Kipon Street South, this Day
(Wednesday, the 27th instant), at half-past four o'clock. W. B. KING, Undertaker, Start Street, near
the Hospital.
Five months later Henry was in financial trouble and appeared in the
list of insolvents in the newspaper.
19 June 1875 The Australasian Melbourne
Henry Titheridge, tailor,
Ballarat. Causes of insolvency—Sickness
and death in family, and pressure of creditors. Liabilities, £82 8 shillings
assets £27 deficiency £55 8s.
Obviously the deaths in the family, money problems and six young
children to look after took its toll on Henry and in 1877 he was in trouble for
drinking to excess.
13 January 1877 The Ballarat
Star
Neglected Children — Five boys
named Titheridge were charged, by Senior-Constable Crowley with being
neglected. It appeared that for some
considerable time the father, a tailor, able to earn £3 a week, had been
drinking heavily. No one looked after
the boys, who were allowed to run wild about the streets and get what meals
they could from the people of Ascot Street, where their father lived. Mr Gaunt asked Titheridge, who was in court, if
he would amend his ways, and upon his promising to do so discharged the boys.
In 1878 a further tragedy hit the family when the youngest child
Edward, aged 7 died.
Two years later Henry met an untimely death as reported in the papers
of the time
7 January 1880 The Age Melbourne
Our Ballarat correspondent writes under yesterday's date Henry
Tetheridge, who was locked up at the City police station on Monday, on a charge
of drunkenness, died of epilepsy in the cells during the evening. The police paid every possible attention to the
unfortunate man, and his death was as sudden as unexpected.
7 January 1880 Geelong Advetiser
A tailor named Henry Titheridge,
43 years of age, died in the Ballarat City lock up on Monday in a fit, shortly
after having been locked up for drunkenness
7 January 1880 Melbourne
A magisterial inquiry was held to
day before Mr Budden into the cause of death of a man named Henry Tetheridge, a
tailor, who died rather suddenly last evening in the lock up, where he had been
incarcerated on a charge of drunkenness.
He had been attacked while there with epileptic convulsions, and was
ordered to be removed to the gaol hospital, but before this could be done he
expired. A verdict of died from epilepsy
was returned.
This left the five remaining children orphans Rhoda 16, Walter 15,
Daniel 13, Frederick 11 and William 8. We
do not know what happened to the children were they taken into care? were the children looked after by 16 year old Rhoda? or were
they looked after by their uncle Robert who also resided in Ballarat but had 5 children of his own?
Robert’s Story
Robert travelled to Australia with his brother Henry and his trade was a
carpenter. On 24 September 1868 he married
Alice Middleton in Ballarat. Between 1869 and 1884 Robert and Alice had nine
children, three boys and six girls. The
children were
Alfred born 1869
died 1941
Charlotte Ann born
1871 died 1909
Sarah Jane born
1874 died 1946
Agnes born 1875
died 1915
Robert born 1877
died 1946
Alice born 1879
died 1879
Albert born 1880
died 1886
Alice born 1883
died 1885
Ettie Edith born
1884 died 1885
Between 1879 and 1886 the four youngest children died, Baby Alice died in 1879, the second child
called Alice died in 1885 aged 2 and in the same year Ettie died aged under 1,
then Albert died in 1886 aged 6. Of the
remaining children the two boys never married while the three girls married Charlotte married David Woodhead, Sarah married Richard Davenport and Agnes married William Pryor. Hence there are no Titheridge offspring from
the marriage of Robert and Alice.
Robert managed to get his name in the local papers on several occasions
4 June 1860 The Star Ballarat
Dray Offence.- Robt. Tetheridge,
for being away from his horse and cart, was fined 5s.
August 1863 The Star Ballarat
Damaging Property - Robert
Tetheridge was charged with having broken a square of glass in the shop-window of Mr Blair, valued
at 20s. Fined ls and 20s damages.
Leader in Melbourne on 10, 17
and 24 December 1864 and 7 January 1865
Advertisement section Robert Titheridge — Please write to your
brother Alfred, at Williamstown, immediately.
Important news from home
This advert would have been in response to the boys’ mother Charlotte dying
in Winchester on 13 June 1864. The
interesting thing is that the advert is only for Robert and not for Henry who as
was also living in Ballarat.
28 January 1873 The Ballarat Star
Deserting his Wife— Robert
Tetheridge was charged with deserting his wife and two children, and
leaving them without any support
on the 17th instant. On the application
of his wife the prisoner was discharged.
The court then adjourned.
Obviously relations improved as Robert and Alice went on to have 7 more
children
Robert died in 1899 in Musk Vale in Ballarat aged 61, while his wife,
Alice, went on to live until 1926 when
she died in Ballarat.
If you are related to Henry or Robert please get in touch, especially
if you can tell us more about the new life in Australia for these two immigrants. Today there is still quite a few Titheridges
in Ballarat – if that is you we would love to hear from you.
