Looking for more info on John Bonnett

[majm]

Grevilles PO Directory 1875 GRENFELL
John BENNETT, George St, Blacksmith

NSW Electoral Roll 1878 THE LACHLAN, Grenfell Police District
John J BENNETT, residence, Emu Creek Gold Field
NONE with a surname BONNETT (or variations after the 'BON')

NSW ER 1870, Forbes PD (so Grenfell was hived off the Forbes Police District)
John J BENNETT, residence Emu Creek Gold Field
Alfred James BONNETT, residence, Emu Creek Gold Field
James BONNETT, residence, Emu Creek Gold Field

I checked, re-checked the spelling, definitely John as BENNETT and Alfred James and James as BONNETT.  These rolls were recorded by the local police under instructions from the local Police Magistrate.  The police asked VERBALLY and knowing how to spell was not a requirement of employment in the police.   

JM

[rosball]

A little about the John BONNETT who was shot at Grenfell (under heading Shooting with Intent)
http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article135806208 and http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article13242678

He was a tinsmith and had since moved to live at  Gulgong

Ros

[majm]

Hi

I have NOT found John BONNETT at Gulgong in my hardcopy of the NSW Electoral Rolls covering Gulgong in the 1870s, nor in the 1875 Grevilles Post Office Directory covering Gulgong.  Perhaps he did not stay there long, for there was already a local tinsmith even in the free to search online 1872 Grevilles PO Directory. 

http://www.family.joint.net.au/index.php?mid=1&cid=11

I have posted this link to the NSW Resources Board just now.

ADD,  here's the link to the fantastic NSW Resources Board: http://www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php?topic=369703.0

It is a child board of the Australia Resources Board:
http://www.rootschat.com/forum/australia-resources-offers/

JM

[majm]

Earlier I mention if it is possible there’s both a John BONNETT and a John BENNETT on the Adelaide arriving 1849.  I think there's at least one reliable online resource that shows there's possibly two different chaps.   It notes its source as the Australian Joint Copying Project.  I am sure the AJCP is still available for free access in England, probably at TNA and not just at various public libraries and public archives throughout Australia and New Zealand.

Here it is: https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/adelaide/1849

https://convictrecords.com.au/convicts/bennett/john/32628
John Bennett, tried Stafford Assizes,  7 years
Sourced AJCP roll 92, HO11/16, page 96.

https://convictrecords.com.au/convicts/bonnett/john/34219
John Bonnett, Isle of Ely Quarter Sessions, Wisbech, Cams., 10 years.
Sourced AJCP roll 92, HO11/16, page 85 (44) 

JM mentions that HO is abbreviation for Home Office, so that’s an O (the letter) and NOT an 0 (the number).

Australian Joint Copying Project info:
https://www.nla.gov.au/microform-australian-joint-copying-project  (11 handbooks etc with live links to them)
https://www.nla.gov.au/research-guides/australian-joint-copying-project-handbook-1  (here’s handbook 1 live link as it is the General Intro
http://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-396880406/view?partId=nla.obj-396998862 Page 1 of many for Part I digitised.

The rolls themselves that the handbooks refer - try: 
http://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/

JM

[Taylor94]

Thank you very much for your replies.
John was a Farm Labourer before he was sent to Australia so im not sure if picking up the trade of a tinsmith would be easy although if this is him he has been there since 1849 so time to learn.
It says in the paper article that the John Bonnett here was a resident of Gulgong before coming to Grenfell, Seems like a long journey. There doesn't seem to be any burials that I can see as I've ruled out the 1877 Burial for John Bonnitt in Newcastle. So unless he had been listed as Bennett he may have returned to England.
There is an 1871 Census for a John Bonnett born 1811 Australia living in London as a Visitor. I cant see any birth which fits this but could this possibly be John returned? I assume if he went back by boat it would dock at London and maybe this is him after it docked, Been in Australia 20years and just put Australia as his birth place...Perhaps?

I did see that there was a John Bonnett and a Bennett which made it abit confusing as wasn't sure if it was a transcript error as I've seen Bonnett as Bennett a few times.

[majm]

I am now convinced there’s two separate chaps…  Note the images have the HO ref and the page # to match my earlier post.

From the actual digitised images with PRO reference HO 11/16  ie the list of 300 Male convicts embarked on the Adelaide, 1849, paperwork shows for delivery as: 261 Port Phillip, 39 VDL.   (By alphabetical list of counties,)

Page 85  44
Cambridge  (headings on the pages are:  Names, Where convicted, When, Term of Years)
John BONNETT,  Isle of Ely Quarter Sessions at Wisbech,  6 January 1847,  Ten years

Page 96
Stafford   
John BENNETT, Stafford Assizes, 16 March 1847, Seven years.  (bracketed with a John Pearson, John Richards, Henry Ball).



JM

[Aussie1947]

Hi,

Have we found a Certificate of Freedom for John BONNETT?

Gerry

[Taylor94]

No I just have his Ticket of Leave when he arrived to allow him to travel in Illawarra district.
I think that passport ticket might be for John BENNETT as lists trial place as Staffordshire.

[majm]

I have looked for a Certificate of Freedom, but not found one.

I even tried the Index to convict exiles 1846-50 at NSW Archives.    I found John BONNETT, aged 42, per Adelaide 24 December 1849.  Tried Isle of Ely Wisbeck (sic !) Cambridgeshire, 6 Jan 1847, ten years,  TL District Illawarra...

https://www.records.nsw.gov.au/search_form?id=20
and
https://www.records.nsw.gov.au/archives/collections-and-research/guides-and-indexes/convict-exiles-index

I have also tried all my usual offline resources,  he is elusive.  I am convinced there's the two chaps, and that our OP is after the one with the ten year sentence.  That ten years may be the sticking point for the early issuing of any Cert of Freedom. 

JM