Hi list, & esp. Albert, The below was very educational. THANKYOU for sharing all that Albert. Cheers Carolyn > I have learned yesterday that when the migration of Germans to New South > Wales got under way in the 1840s they came from the Rhineland regions > primarily. Those coming from this region had to go down the river by boat > through Holland to Antwerp. From there they could go overland train to > Hamburg or by steamer to London or Hamburg. My information was that Holland > was not happy with this because it had some very nasty experiences with > earlier groups going to America and virtually put in a protest refusing the > intending migrants time in Antwerp. They had to pass through without > stopping. > > Kirchner, who was the agent, overcame this by having them go down the Rhine > and across the sea to London before stopping. As a result almost all the > Germans to New South Wales in the 1840s give or take a decade went direct to > London from the Rhine. From other parts of Germany they went to Hamburg. So > it seems that we can easily establish some information about where in > Germany they came by where they caught the boat. > > According to what I was reading they spent about two weeks in London while > the paperwork was processed and medicals were completed. You could not rush > the public service then either. > > The rules under which he contracted migrants were that they had to be > married prior to departure. In some instances there were hurry up marriages > in Germany but a large number of couples arrived in London not yet married. > To resolve the situation he organised they be married in London and so they > were married before departure because London was their port of departure. > Actually I think Plymouth or Southampton might be the technical place of > departure. > > Some couples still did not marry in London and were on board ship when it > was realised they had to be married. Always one or two stragglers but I find > it difficult to see how the migrant officers who would have been familiar > with the requirements did not pick this up in London. The ship captain > maimed them. There were problems with these when they arrived in Sydney but > somehow Kirchner or his lawyer found a way to confuse the system and they > were accepted. I wonder what would have happened if the system had refused > them entry because they weren't married before boarding the ship. > > Another point is that there were on board a number of teenage sons and > daughter. It was a long three or four months journey with nothing to do and > teenagers in 1840 weren't that much different to teenagers in 1940 or 2005 > for that matter. I owned how many of the ship board marriages came from this > source. > > I might mention that I am learning that there was a steady stream from about > 1817 onwards. > > Still searching > > Albert Grulke in stormy old flooded Melbourne > > > > ==== AUS-GERMAN Mailing List ==== > For your Aus-German resources go to > http://www.ainsleehooper.com/germlinks.htm > > ============================== > Search the US Census Collection. Over 140 million records added in the > last 12 months. Largest online collection in the world. Learn more: http://www.ancestry.com/s13965/rd.ashx >