Hi everyone, An interesting article. It would be interesting to know who really was the first white child born in Australia. I have heard this claim from a few people now. Louise Melbourne ----- 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