Hi all I agree this is an interesting article but do know there would have been many white children born in the colony between Jan 1788 and Sept 1789 - eg 6 children named James were registered in 1788 and 5 more in 1789! Best wishes Lyn Sydney ----- Original Message ----- From: <patientgenie@yahoo.com.au> To: <aus-nsw-surnames@rootsweb.com>; <aus-surnames@rootsweb.com>; <aus-nsw-sydney@rootsweb.com>; <aus-nsw@rootsweb.com> Sent: Friday, January 19, 2007 10:37 AM Subject: [ANS] (Fwd) [NZ-HB-PB] HBH 1892 March 22 William SMALL.Aus > Saw this in an NZ mailing list, so asked the poster for permission to > forward it to relevant Australian list... > > Hope this transcription from the New Zealand newspaper, "Hawkes Bay > Herald" of March 22 1892, is of interest... > > ------- Forwarded message follows ------- > Date sent: Thu, 18 Jan 2007 07:41:33 +1300 > From: Elaine Mattsen <mattsen@paradise.net.nz> > To: nz-hawkes-bay-n-poverty-bay@rootsweb.com > Subject: [NZ-HB-PB] HBH 1892 March 22 William SMALL.Aus > Send reply to: nz-hawkes-bay-n-poverty-bay@rootsweb.com > > HBH 1892 March 22 William SMALL. Oldest Australian > Australia > > Australia has just lost its "oldest inhabitant." Mr William SMALL, of > Ryde, New South Wales, who, according to the SYDNEY DAILY TELEGRAPH, > at the time of his death was the oldest living Australian in the > colonies, has just succumbed to influenza at the age of ninety-six > years. > > He was born, according to our contemporary, in a farmhouse at Ryde on > December 14th, 1796, a few years after the arrival of the first > fleet, his father having reached the colony with the first batch of > convicts as a gaol warder. > > In his youth he was taught boot making, but his health being bad he > was advised to seek some other occupation. He, therefore, entered the > Police Force, and after ten years' service during which time he rose > to the rank of Inspector, he again changed his occupation and sought > to earn his livelihood as a tiller of the soil. > > He had a wonderfully retentive memory, and could remember distinctly > events which occurred almost a century ago. > > Speaking of the old convict days, the Telegraph tells us, he more > than once was known to say that the excessive brutality of the > officers towards the convicts was the cause of the greater number of > the crimes committed in the early days of the colony. > > The law allowed of 999 lashes being administered in the presence of a > medical man, and frequently each lash was administered with a minute > interval. > > Mr SMALL leaves many sons and grandsons, and in 1888 he had living no > less than 268 lineal descendants. > > Mr SMALL'S sister Rebecca (Mrs OAKES) was the first white person born > in AUSTRALIA, having been born on September 22nd, 1789. > > Some of the old gentleman's reminiscences must have been valuable as > well as interesting, and it is to be hoped some of them have been > placed on record. > > > ------------------------------- > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to > NZ-HAWKES-BAY-N-POVERTY-BAY-request@rootsweb.com with the word > 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the > message > > ------- End of forwarded message ------- > BFN > OOROO > Michelle > ============== > http://au.geocities.com/patientgenie/ > > > ------------------------------- > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to > AUS-NSW-SYDNEY-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without > the quotes in the subject and the body of the message >

I also wondered about the fact that he says his father came out as a gaol warder. I looked at the list of convicts on the First Fleet and saw that there was a John SMALL. I don't have access to a list of other persons (military etc) that came out so can't be certain of this, but from what I have read, quite a few of the better behaved convicts very soon became warders. If this was the case, it would not be something you would want known in 1892. These days a convict is almost a badge of honour! Regards Louise Melbourne ----- Original Message ----- From: "Lyn Mealey" <lmealey@bigpond.com> To: <aus-nsw-sydney@rootsweb.com> Sent: Friday, January 19, 2007 4:00 PM Subject: Re: [ANS] (Fwd) [NZ-HB-PB] HBH 1892 March 22 William SMALL.Aus > Hi all > > I agree this is an interesting article but do know there would have been > many white children born in the colony between Jan 1788 and Sept 1789 - eg > 6 > children named James were registered in 1788 and 5 more in 1789! > > Best wishes > Lyn > Sydney > ----- Original Message ----- > From: <patientgenie@yahoo.com.au> > To: <aus-nsw-surnames@rootsweb.com>; <aus-surnames@rootsweb.com>; > <aus-nsw-sydney@rootsweb.com>; <aus-nsw@rootsweb.com> > Sent: Friday, January 19, 2007 10:37 AM > Subject: [ANS] (Fwd) [NZ-HB-PB] HBH 1892 March 22 William SMALL.Aus > > >> Saw this in an NZ mailing list, so asked the poster for permission to >> forward it to relevant Australian list... >> >> Hope this transcription from the New Zealand newspaper, "Hawkes Bay >> Herald" of March 22 1892, is of interest... >> >> ------- Forwarded message follows ------- >> Date sent: Thu, 18 Jan 2007 07:41:33 +1300 >> From: Elaine Mattsen <mattsen@paradise.net.nz> >> To: nz-hawkes-bay-n-poverty-bay@rootsweb.com >> Subject: [NZ-HB-PB] HBH 1892 March 22 William SMALL.Aus >> Send reply to: nz-hawkes-bay-n-poverty-bay@rootsweb.com >> >> HBH 1892 March 22 William SMALL. Oldest Australian >> Australia >> >> Australia has just lost its "oldest inhabitant." Mr William SMALL, of >> Ryde, New South Wales, who, according to the SYDNEY DAILY TELEGRAPH, >> at the time of his death was the oldest living Australian in the >> colonies, has just succumbed to influenza at the age of ninety-six >> years. >> >> He was born, according to our contemporary, in a farmhouse at Ryde on >> December 14th, 1796, a few years after the arrival of the first >> fleet, his father having reached the colony with the first batch of >> convicts as a gaol warder. >> >> In his youth he was taught boot making, but his health being bad he >> was advised to seek some other occupation. He, therefore, entered the >> Police Force, and after ten years' service during which time he rose >> to the rank of Inspector, he again changed his occupation and sought >> to earn his livelihood as a tiller of the soil. >> >> He had a wonderfully retentive memory, and could remember distinctly >> events which occurred almost a century ago. >> >> Speaking of the old convict days, the Telegraph tells us, he more >> than once was known to say that the excessive brutality of the >> officers towards the convicts was the cause of the greater number of >> the crimes committed in the early days of the colony. >> >> The law allowed of 999 lashes being administered in the presence of a >> medical man, and frequently each lash was administered with a minute >> interval. >> >> Mr SMALL leaves many sons and grandsons, and in 1888 he had living no >> less than 268 lineal descendants. >> >> Mr SMALL'S sister Rebecca (Mrs OAKES) was the first white person born >> in AUSTRALIA, having been born on September 22nd, 1789. >> >> Some of the old gentleman's reminiscences must have been valuable as >> well as interesting, and it is to be hoped some of them have been >> placed on record. >> >> >> ------------------------------- >> To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to >> NZ-HAWKES-BAY-N-POVERTY-BAY-request@rootsweb.com with the word >> 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the >> message >> >> ------- End of forwarded message ------- >> BFN >> OOROO >> Michelle >> ============== >> http://au.geocities.com/patientgenie/ >> >> >> ------------------------------- >> To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to >> AUS-NSW-SYDNEY-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without >> the quotes in the subject and the body of the message >> > > > > ------------------------------- > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to > AUS-NSW-SYDNEY-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without > the quotes in the subject and the body of the message