John WITTER

[borderman]

MERLIN...Thank you...have just looked at the website...very useful...Thanks again

[softly softly]

Hi,
1861 uk census ref rg9 2735 143 38, Father Richard with wife and son Samuel  and siblings.
1871 census ref rg10 3848 75 33

John

[borderman]

SOFTLYSOFTLY...thank you for info....there were three Richard Witters ...one born 1753   the second born 1795  the third married catherine dwerryhouse in 1850...quite why and when john witter went to Australia i don't know...he did come back to take Kate Witter to Australia where she married John Wilson in 1903..he also came back again to marry Robina Critchley of St Helens...how he became wealthy so quickly is another mystery!

[softly softly]

Hi Borderman,
Spent a little time last night trying to establish a relationship between Jojn Witter and John Henry Witter -without so far success. If the John Henry is the 1 that died 1963 (aged 76 according to Ryerson index)then he was born c 1887. His parents are recorded as Henry and Susan. On that basis he was born march q 1889 West Derby 8b 287. His parents, Henry Witter/Susan Ryder married March q 1881 West Derby 8b 750. They appear on 1881 census with a son Thomas. The family including John Henry appear on 1891 uk census ref rg12 2985 99 4 transcribed as "WHITTER" .Susan dies aged 42 in West Derby in 1898. By 1901 Henry is with another"wife" Margaret (cant find a marriage" ref rg13 3463 54 41-John now aged 14. Henry the father was born Sept q 1850 West Derby 20 1116, parents John/Ellen Leigh. The search continues.

John

[borderman]

SOFTLY SOFTLY...sorry for delay in replying...john henry witter has cropped up before and i have no idea how he is related...might have something to do with the witter (loco fireman) who migrated to Austalia and joined the AIF in the first world war and married a french lady..i don't know..i went to West Derby several times after the war..met lots of relatives..none mentioned Australia...although i believe Kate Witter/Wilson visited several times and did die in Liverpool c.1949..John Witter also visited a few times including getting a wife..Robina Critchley..at St Helens...

[twinks]

While researching the details of the property that my grandfather Malcolm McDonald bought at Baradine NSW in 1916, the early Parish Map indicates part of this land was originally owned by John Witter. The earliest record I have found re this land is 1896 in the NSW Govt. Gazettes when it was called Old Barwon, Baradine. Do you have any details about when he purchased this property?
My father was raised on the property that was called Caledonia when purchased in 1916, and I grew up there as well. It seems that John Witter continued to live in the Baradine district and owned eight shops in the town. His first wife Mary Ann Fraser (1860 -1910) was buried at Baradine.

His second wife was Robina Critchley and they were married in Sydney in 1926. The deceased estate files record that John Witter, retired grazier, died at Turramurra in 1949.

Would like to know when he arrived in Australia and any details about the early land purchase.
Thanks.

[borderman]

Hi Twinks....John Witter is a mystery man in many ways...as far as i know he left Liverpool not a wealthy man..but somewhere along the way he seems to have done rather well..my Great Aunt,Kate Witter went to australia in 1900 with John who had revisited the UK...Kate married in Australia to a John Wilson also originally from the UK...descendants of Kate live in NSW...on this chat website are numerous references to the property at Barradine...there are also refs in Nsw stats re the holdings at Barradine..ie number of sheep etc...

[twinks]

Can you please confirm his date of birth and death? Do you have his last census details in the UK which would help to confirm when he arrived here? Children?
He was obviously a successful grazier and appears in the newspapers winning lots of prizes for his sheep at the local agricultural shows. Today I also found him in a newspaper photo in 1907 when he was an alderman at the local council. Details of his properties are recorded in the NSW Sand's Directories between 1901 and 1927, with acres and livestock.
Any dates and details would be much appreciated including parents names. Thanks.

[twinks]

Have put together some details about this family:
John Witter (1868 -1947) was the youngest son of the eight children of Richard Witter (1830 -1893) and Catherine Dwerryhouse (1831 -1906). He probably arrived in Australia in the early 1890s and by 1896 had selected land near Baradine in western NSW that he called Old Barwon. (Barwon was the name of the original Parish) He was a successful grazier and later had several trips back to England.

Several members of the family also came to Australia including his father Richard who died in 1893 and is buried at Baradine NSW. John's first wife Mary Ann Fraser (whom he married in Sydney in 1893), died in 1910 and is also buried at Baradine NSW.

John's niece Kate (daughter of his brother Samuel) arrived in Australia in 1900, accompanied by John on a return trip from England. Kate married John William Wilson in 1903 at Coonamble NSW (a nearby town) and their son, also named John William Wilson, was born at Coonamble in1905.

John Witter's sister Annie Hastie Witter married James Critchley in 1886. Their daughter Alice Critchley came to Australia in 1921 accompanied by John Witter on another return trip from England. Alice married Martin Rahn at Bathurst NSW in 1925.

James Critchley's brother Peter was the father of Robina Critchley (1894 -1968) who married John Witter in Sydney NSW in 1926.