William and Kate (nee Forrest) Butterworth.pdf - Founders and ...

4.3.4 John's Great Great GrandparentsWilliam and Janet (Forrest) ButterworthJohnBurrowsPARENTSErn and Florence(Bourke) BurrowsGRAND-PARENTSJohn C andEllen (Lumby)BurrowsAncestors of JosephGraysonRalph GraysonHenry Graysonb: c 1724 YorkshireUK d: 1805 Bolsterstone YKSUKMaryShawJosephGrayson b: c 1756 YKSUK m: 1781 Penistone YKSUK d: 1816 Penistone YKSUKSusanna Haighb: c 1720 YorkshireUK d: 1797 YorkshireUKJosephGrayson b: 1784 Bolsterstone YKSUK m: 1804 Sheffield YKS UKd: 1844 Bolsterstone YKSUKWilliamMarlin b: c 1730 YorkshireUKElizabethMurlin b: c 1756 YorkshireUK d: 1809 Penistone YKSUKElizabethHaran b: c 1730 YorkshireUKG GRAND-PARENTSFrederick and Kate(Butterworth)BurrowsGG GRAND-PARENTSAncestors of JanetForrestRobertForrest b: c 1715ScotlandJohnForrest b: 1757 HamiltonLanark SCT d: 1825 OrchardLanarch SCTJanetMillar b: c 1715ScotlandSamuelForrest b: 1785 Lanarkshirem: SCT 1813Gibraltar d: 1831 EdinburghSCTWilliam and Janet(Forrest)ButterworthRobertNimmo b: c 1711ScotlandJanetNimmo b: 1751 CarnwathLanark SCT d: 1841 OrchardLanarch SCTElizabethMelvin b: Bet. 1711 - 1731ScotlandJanetForrest b: 1816m: Gibraltar 1843 Hobartd: TAS 1857 HobartTAS Ship: 1836(Convict Westmoreland)Maryb: c1790 d: c 1826 EdinburghSCTWilliam Butterworth and Janet Forrest, Kate’s parents, were both transported to the Colonyof Tasmania (Van Diemens Land). William Butterworth was from Bolsterstone Yorkshire,

England and arrived on the Mary 11 (2) on 10 April 1830. 1 Janet Forrest was fromEdinburgh, Scotland and she arrived on the Westmoreland on 3 December 1836. 2William Butterworth’s real name was John Grayson. He adopted the alias of WilliamButterworth in an endeavour to reduce the shame his misdemeanour bought on his family. 3John Grayson, alias William Butterworth, was the son of Joseph, a labourer of Eldercliffe,and Elizabeth Grayson. He was baptized on 4 November 1804 in Bolsterstone, in the Parishof Penistone near Sheffield, West Yorkshire. 4 Penistone is a market and parish-town notedchiefly for moor sheep and is about 6 miles north-west of Sheffield in West Yorkshire. 5EdinburghJohn Grayson married Sarah Crawshaw from Midhope, on28 January 1828, at the Church in the village of Bradfield.Midhope and Bradfield are both about one mile south ofBolsterstone. 6 John, who was literate and considered tohave married quite well, and Sarah had a son James on 15July 1828. Sarah ran a dame school with her sister Hannahat the Oak Farms near Midhope. Midhope, Penistone andBradfield are small villages about 8 miles north west ofSheffield. 7BolsterstonenearSheffieldTowards the end of 1828 something must have gone verywrong in the Grayson household and on 5 December 1828John Grayson was found on the premises of Messrs.Percival's banking house in Northampton about onehundred miles south of Bolsterstone. The bank was one ofthe principal banks in Northampton at that time and theNorthampton Mercury reported the incident on 13December 1828 and giving details of John Grayson’s trail and the guilty sentence the nextday. 8 It appears that John Grayson had become involved in a fight and injured a man runningafter away from home and abandoning his wife and child. 9 Why he was in Northampton isnot known nor why he appeared to have made such a mess of his attempted break-in to thebank premises. The crime was reported, in the Midland Circuit Minute Book as; Lent Circuit1829, Northampton commencing 9 March 1829 Tuesday 10 March William Butterworth,burglary at the dwelling house of Jno. Percival, 5 Dec. 5 GEO. 1V with intent to steal goods.Guilty. Judgment recorded (not stated). 10The following report appeared in the Northampton Mercury, 14th March, 1829.Wm. Butterworth, aged 23, was indicted for burglarioüsly breaking into the banking-house ofMessrs. Percival in this town, with intent to steal. The prosecutor, on the night of the 5th ofDecember last, was awoke by a noise proceeding from his banking-room chimney; and uponexamining it he perceived a man a little way up in the flue, upon which he called out to him tocome down or he would shoot him. The man begged for mercy, and the prosecutor sent forassistance.Ultimately the fellow was taken out of the chimney and proved to be the prisoner. Upon beingasked what brought him there he said ‘he did not know’. He was then asked if he had got upthe chimney. ‘No’, he replied very coolly, ‘I came down the chimney.’ He afterwards saidthat he had clambered over the roofs of three or four other homes before he got at the one inquestion.—Guilty.

The learned Judge ordered the sentence of death to be recorded, telling the prisonerat the same he would in this instance recommend that his life be spared. But he wished it tobe understood that if such offences were repeated after this warning the law would beallowed to take its course. The robbery of a bank, his Lordship added, was calculated,beyond all others, to produce disastrous consequences, from the number of persons it mightentail ruin. 11William Butterworth was transported to Hobart Tasmania on the Mary 11 (2). The vesselcarried 168 male convicts and was the thirty seventh convict ship to convey convicts toTasmania. 12 The vessel, smallish at 361 tons, took 113 days for the journey having departedLondon on 18 December 1829 and arriving in Hobart Town on the 10 April. 13 The ship’smaster was Alex. Jamieson and the surgeon Rbt. Espie. In the Surgeons Report of the Mary11 (2) there is mention that on 10 January; Mr. Butterworth, aged 23, convict, and was seenby the ship's surgeon, the nature of the disease being plegmontis(?) and inflammation beingcaused by a burn. He was discharged from the sickbay, cured, on the 28 January. 14The Convict Indent for William Butterworth (the surname of Butterworth was usedthroughout the rest of his life after his arrest and conviction in 1829) states his native placewas Penistone Yorkshire, a miller and farming man, 5'7 ¾ " tall, aged twenty four. He wasmarried with one child, he could read and write and his religion was Protestant. His crimewas housebreaking and he had no other offence in England against him. 15 More detail wasfound in another set of convict records indicating that his behavior on the ship was good andthat his wife Sarah was living with his father at Penistone. 16 His physical description wasdefined in the VDL Convict Records as; 24, no body marks, light brown eyes, brown hair andhis height 5’ 7 ¾ inches. 17William Butterworth wrote a number of letters to friends and family in England and some ofthese have survived. They give a real insight into William's life as a convict and then as a freecitizen in Hobart Town. 18 The first letter was written around 1832/33 when he indicates hehad been assigned to Mr. Richard Downward of Pittswater, near Hobart Town. Williamappeared to be content with this assignment and was given a fair amount of latitude inrunning the mill and he even suggests that Mr. Downward had limited farming experienceleaving a lot of the responsibility to William and that he was 'quite fond of me'. In the sameletter he talks of life in Tasmania and pleads forgiveness for his crime. He also mentions hisbrother George and of his running away from home and being 'an undutiful son to his father'.Finally he suggests that any reply be directed to William Butterworth at Mr. RichardDownward Pittswater near Hobart Town but signs the letter 'I remain your unfortunate sonJohn Grayson'. During his assignment to Mr. Downward there were some indiscretions and itwas noted that in 1834 he was accused of two misdemeanours for which he was punished. On14 January he was charged with neglect of duty and reprimanded and on 4 March, he wassentenced to twenty-five lashes for 'insolence to his master and willfully destroying hisproperty'. 19The next letter is dated 1841 and William acknowledges he is enjoying life in Hobart Townfor the last three years living with, John Walker, a gentleman, a large miller and generalmerchant. He also says that he has been free for over three years and it is likely that hereceived his TOL in 1838 although no record has been found of this document. 20 Again hemakes mention of his brother and of his continuing remorse for his crime. In another letter,dated September 1842, William acknowledges a recent and obviously very welcome letter

from his father, and learning that his brother George has married and that his English wifeSarah is 'living with some gentleman'. So it appears in spite of distances and communicationdeficiencies he is reasonably up to date with news from home. He also refers to the financialdifficulties beginning to develop throughout the Colony of Tasmania whereas previously hehad seen great opportunity. In another letter, dated October 1842, he says he is in partnership,with a Mr. Davidson of Derwent Foundry Macquarie St. Hobart Town, and doing well forhimself. This association with Mr. Davidson lasted some eight years. Importantly in this letterhe seems to be reconciled to the fact that he will never return to England. In 1846 Williamresponds to a letter advising of the death of his father again expressing his remorse and thenoutlining some business difficulties of the past two years where he has lost 'a deal of money'.In his father's will 1844 an amount of ten pounds was set aside for James Grayson, hisgrandson and son of John (alias William) who was then living with his mother's parents atnearby Langley Brook. 21The final letter is dated December 1848 and in that letter William signals a serious illness thathas been afflicting him. His business situation, however, appears to have improved and thereis mention of him 'having a corn mill in Hobart Town'. Importantly he makes mention of himhaving a small family in Hobart Town and it is clear that he will never return to Englandparticularly as family ties diminish. 22The major theme that persists throughout these letters is his preoccupation with freedom. Ineach letter William tells of his gradual progress towards freedom. In 1841 he indicates he hasbeen free for three years, in his reply to his father’s letter in 1842 he suggests he has had hisliberty for four years and by 1846 he has had 'his freedom' about two years. This was in theform of a conditional pardon, 27 September 1842 and he received his first class pardon on 25February 1846, making him a free citizen in every sense. 23 A copy of these Spencer’s Papersis included in the appendices, John Grayson, Alias William Butterworth.William Butterworth probably met Janet Forrest when they were both assigned to JohnWalker about 1840. 24 John Walker came from Kelso, Scotland in September 1822 in anendeavour to retrieve his family’s fortune. John Walker enjoyed almost immediate successand one of his acquisitions was The Old Mill in Macquarie St., which he purchased from theGovernment in 1831. The Old Mill was apparently the oldest mill in Hobart Town, operatingfrom 1806 when Mr. Collins saw a demand for a water mill and decided that the fine rivulet,on which Hobart Town was founded, would be the ideal situation for a water mill. 25 This millwent through a number of changes until John Walker took over the lease and WilliamButterworth, through his previous association with John Walker was managing the facilitywhen he died in 1850. John Walker also opened a corn mill and a brewery along witherecting numerous buildings in Hobart and it appears that the Butterworth family had a longrelationship with him lasting well into the late 1850s. 26Janet Forrest was also transported and she arrived in Hobart in 1836 on the Westmoreland in1836 after being sentenced to seven years for stealing from her employer, Alexander Duff, inEdinburgh, Scotland. 27 The court summary makes mention of Janet Forrest, aged 18,appearing in the High Court in Edinburgh, Scotland on 8 January 1836, accused of the crimeof theft by housebreaking, and pleaded guilty. She denied she had a child. 28The following statement was madeThe Lord Justice Clerk and Lords Commissioners of Justiciary in respect of the aboveconfession decern and adjudge the said Janet Forrest, Pannel* to be transported beyond seas

for seven years from this date and that under the provisions and certifications contained inthe Acts of Parliament made here anent and ordain her to be detained in the TolboothBridewell of Edinburgh till removed for transportation. 29*Pannel= accusedJanet Forrest admitted to stealing goods from her employer, Alexander Duff, on the 15th and30th of October 1835 and of passing items in the name of Mrs. Smith. She was employed byMr. Alexander Duff and had disposed of some of the goods through the pawnbroker, SouthBridge Pawnbroking Company of Edinburgh. Janet Forrest stated 'that she is eighteen yearsof age, and born abroad, servant to Mr. Alexander Duff, haberdasher since Martinmas 1834'.Though the trial transcript is a comprehensive document there is little personal detail of Janetalthough she stated ‘she had given the flannel petticoat (which was allegedly stolen) she wasmaking it for her sister’ and there was a friend Janet Gibson, who gave evidence. 30 A searchof the Edinburgh church registers did not provide any evidence of a child to Janet about1833/5. 31Janet Forrest was born in Gibraltar to Samuel and Mary in 6 January 1816 whilst her fatherwas serving there as a Sergeant in the 26 th (Cameronians) Regiment of Infantry. She wasbaptized 14 January in the same year.Gibraltar is a self-governing British overseas territory located on the southern end of theIberian Peninsula and Europe at the entrance of the Mediterranean overlooking the Strait ofGibraltar. The territory covers 6.843 square kilometres (2.642 sq. mi.) and shares a landborder with Spain to the north. Gibraltar has historically been an important base for theBritish Armed Forces and is the site of a Royal Navy base.The sovereignty of Gibraltar has been a major point of contention in Anglo-Spanish relations.Gibraltar was ceded by Spain to the Crown of Great Britain in perpetuity, under the 1713Treaty of Utrecht, though Spain asserts a claim to the territory and seeks its return. Theoverwhelming majority of Gibraltarians strongly oppose this, along with any proposal ofshared sovereignty. The British government has stated that it is committed to respecting theGibraltarians' wishes.The Cameronians were a unique part of Scottish history for over three hundred years. Theirorigins lie in the turbulent period of religious and political strife of the 1680's. The originalCameronians were zealous Covenanters. Their devotion to the National Covenant (1638) andthe Solemn League and Covenant (1643) meant that they would even do battle to defend theirfreedom to worship as they chose. Their heartland was in south west Scotland, in Galloway,Ayrshire, and in Clydesdale in particular. The Regiment was formed in 14 May 1689. 32

There was possibly one more child, a boy, born to Janet Forrest. This step-brother could havebeen born in Edinburgh Scotland to Janet Forrest before she was transported to Hobart in1836 although at her trial in 1835 she denied having a child. 76 The Edinburgh child could beRobert Forrest. Robert Forrest was the husband of a Helena Forrest who was living in thesame house in Wangaratta where Fred and Kate Burrows had lived in the 1870s. In 1887/8the house which was then owned by Fred’s brother John was tenanted by Helena Forrest, awidow, laundress and nurse. 77 A Robert Forrest, aged 24 i.e. born c1834, migrated toMelbourne from Edinburgh on the Royal Charter in December 1858. 78 He married HelenaKeating in 1859 79 and they had at least three children, Susan in 1869, Amelia in 1872 andHelena in 1875 born in Wangaratta. 80 A Robert Forrest, aged 44 and born EdinburghScotland, died in 1873 (too early?) Wangaratta Victoria 81 Helena Forrest appears to have diedin 1916 at Port Melbourne. 82 The overall theory that Robert Forrest was a son that JanetForrest left behind in Edinburgh SCT in 1836 when she was transported to Hobart has notbeen proven at this time.