Discovering my own family history

The record I have chosen is about a discovery in my own family history. It proved to open quite the can of genealogical worms. It also confirmed a link to another record in which you can almost hear the voice of a dying man from 1869.

Joseph Lawrance and Willmett Huxtable Tilke

Joseph Lawrance (Lawrence/ Laurence), a servant from Cornwall, and Willmett Huxtable Tilke, a teacher from Devon, married in Wellington, New Zealand in 1841. They moved to Adelaide in the early decades of colonial settlement in South Australia.

Our family’s research focus had been on the mystery of Willmett’s teaching career. We knew little about Joseph except that he died in Mount Gambier on 29 May 1869. His death was registered as Joseph Laurence, indexed with the symbol “H” meaning he died in a hospital or other institution.

Mount Gambier Hospital Admission Registers

In March 2010, State Records received 38 volumes of the Mount Gambier Hospital Admission Registers (GRS 13096 ), dating from 1869-1980. The first volume coincided with the year of Joseph’s death, so it was worth a shot to look him up. That shot paid off - he appeared on page 2 of the first volume!

There were a few discrepancies with the information known about Joseph in the record, including his age and birthplace. These can be explained if he was admitted by his son or son-in-law, who may not have known all the facts. The record confirmed that he was a carter from Port MacDonnell.

Cause of death, noted as “Cirrhosis Icterus”

The biggest surprise was his cause of death, noted as “Cirrhosis Icterus”.

Looking back through the generations of teetotal Salvation Army soldiers amongst his descendants, I was surprised to find someone dying of a condition so closely associated with alcoholism.

I maintained a healthy scepticism about whether it was “my” Joseph who met his end in Mount Gambier until finding his Will, transcribed in the Probate and administration books (GRS 16377), which named his wife, son and son-in-law.

Original documents in his Probate file

I was also able to view the original documents in his Probate file (GRS 1334/1) as his death was more than 100 years ago.

In those probate records, likely written by a clerk at his deathbed in the Mount Gambier Hospital, is a haunting misspelling of his wife’s name as “Whilmot Uxtable”. With the vowel shift from “e” to “o”, and the dropped “h” from her middle name, it’s almost possible to hear his Cornish accent through the 150 years that followed.

The discovery led to other records

This discovery was bitter-sweet. It led me to other records about his interactions with the court system both in Adelaide and at Port MacDonnell.

It painted a rare and rich picture of the lives led by Joseph and Willmett, and of those who followed.

References:

1. GRS 13096/1/1 – Admission registers Mount Gambier Hospital 1869 – 1891 – Page 2 containing admission for Joseph LAURENCE, 23 April 1869.
2. GRG5/153/7/1 – Port MacDonnell (MacDonnell Bay) Police Station Records, Bail Book – page 14, Joseph LAWRANCE, 5 Feb 1865.
3. GRS 1334/1/23 - Probate files (wills) - Testamentary Causes Jurisdiction, Supreme Court of South Australia, File 1934 Joseph LAWRANCE.