Author Topic: James Lewis b1814 St Davids Pembs and d1891 Balaklava, S Australia  (Read 7900 times)

Offline Essie

  • RootsChat Veteran
  • *****
  • Posts: 995
  • Census information Crown Copyright, from www.nationalarchives.gov.uk
    • View Profile
Re: James Lewis b1814 St Davids Pembs and d1891 Balaklava, S Australia
« Reply #18 on: Wednesday 28 May 14 23:03 BST (UK) »
Trying again to post this attachment.

Only a seaman would sail so often in those years?  The RAPID was a coastal ship from Sydney and Kingscote in 1837.

Essie

Offline trystan

  • Administrator
  • RootsChat Marquessate
  • ********
  • Posts: 14,148
  • RootsChat Co-founder
    • View Profile
Re: James Lewis b1814 St Davids Pembs and d1891 Balaklava, S Australia
« Reply #19 on: Wednesday 28 May 14 23:22 BST (UK) »
Essie,

That's an incredibly clear gravestone considering its age.

Trystan
Send RootsChat a postcard:
RootsChat.com, Europa House, Barcroft Street, Bury, Lancashire, BL9 5BT
Admin Tip: Forgotten your Username or Password and would like to reply to one of these messages?  CLICK HERE to get a reminder.
AOL Users: You may need to 'cut and paste' any links you get in emails for them to work.

Offline mrs.family

  • RootsChat Extra
  • **
  • Posts: 70
  • Census information Crown Copyright, from www.nationalarchives.gov.uk
    • View Profile
Re: James Lewis b1814 St Davids Pembs and d1891 Balaklava, S Australia
« Reply #20 on: Wednesday 28 May 14 23:55 BST (UK) »
Thank you, Essie

Offline judb

  • RootsChat Marquessate
  • *******
  • Posts: 6,977
    • View Profile
Re: James Lewis b1814 St Davids Pembs and d1891 Balaklava, S Australia
« Reply #21 on: Thursday 29 May 14 08:40 BST (UK) »
Ok, here's some TROVE mentions of the Rapid in South Australia.

3 May 1836 - Rapid sailed with passengers fro the new settlement of South Australia
http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/fh/passengerlists/1836Vansittart.jpg

June 1837 - an interesting letter from a disgruntled farmer re the lack of surveying being done in S A.  He mentions a Mr Kingston returning in the Rapid.
http://trove.nla.gov.au/ndp/del/article/31749643

3 June 1837
Rapid had arrived safely with the Surveyor General, Colonel Light.  Three other ships also arrived at the time and seemed also to carry surveyors 'including a strong party of labourers'.  The article reads (to me) as though these ships travelled together and appear to have been all involved in Government or Commissioners exploits.
http://trove.nla.gov.au/ndp/del/article/31749635

July 1837
Comment re the Rapid being sent back to England
http://trove.nla.gov.au/ndp/del/article/31749665

November 1837
Political comment that the Rapid had been sent 'home' with a cargo of oil when it should have stayed in S A as a survey vessel.
http://trove.nla.gov.au/ndp/del/article/31749732



19 June 1838
Arrived the Commissioners brig Rapid, Lieutenant F FIELD RN, Commander, from England 26 February.
http://trove.nla.gov.au/ndp/del/article/71684596

August 1838 - Rapid still in harbour
http://trove.nla.gov.au/ndp/del/article/31750094

June 1838
The Rapid carried passengers and cargo - nothing specified
http://trove.nla.gov.au/ndp/del/article/31749976

September 1839
mention of a "whaling brig Rapid" - I'm assuming this is not the same ship
http://trove.nla.gov.au/ndp/del/article/71685528

Arrived 22 November 1838 - Commissioners' brig Rapid from the wreck of the Parsee with the passengers and their luggage
http://trove.nla.gov.au/ndp/del/article/71684920
The Parsee was travelling between Hobart and S A

July 1838
In harbour: Brigs: Rapid, from London 130 tons, a surveying vessel.
http://trove.nla.gov.au/ndp/del/article/71684662

8 September - mentioned again as in harbour - surveying vessel
http://trove.nla.gov.au/ndp/del/article/71684769

8 Dec
Rapid is "surveying the harbour"
http://trove.nla.gov.au/ndp/del/article/71684952

Sorry this is a bit long but it would seem to me that the brig Rapid was being used by the Colonization Commissioners for South Australia, which group had been set up by Act of Parliament in UK.  The Rapid certainly seems to have been back and forth 1836-1837, and was commanded by an officer RN, so it is possible that James LEWIS was aboard for any or all of the voyages.

There's a model of the Rapid in SA.
http://historysa.com.au/collections/port-adelaide-collection/model-brig-rapid

This article does not include a James LEWIS on the 1836 voyage.
http://boundforsouthaustralia.net.au/ships/passenger-lists/rapid-passenger-list.html

None of which helps us find a connection - such a long way from St David's

Judith
DYER - Wilts, London, Somerset, MIDLANE - Hants, Wilts, SONE - Hants, WRIGHT - London, Hants, SEAGER - Deptford, DWYER, FERGUSON - Victoria, MASON - Woodford Vic, BALLARD - South Wales, GOULDBY - Lowestoft
"Time present and time past are both perhaps present in time future..." T S Eliot

UK Census information Crown Copyrightt, from www.nationalarchives.gov.uk


Offline mrs.family

  • RootsChat Extra
  • **
  • Posts: 70
  • Census information Crown Copyright, from www.nationalarchives.gov.uk
    • View Profile
Re: James Lewis b1814 St Davids Pembs and d1891 Balaklava, S Australia
« Reply #22 on: Thursday 29 May 14 09:48 BST (UK) »
Judith, thanks for all this - Australian records seem impressive - looking more likely that James Lewis was part of the crew, do you think? And stayed aboard Rapid til 1838? Who knows....

I have emailed the GeogSoc of S Australia to ask for an image of the flyleaf of the Lewis 'Welsh Bible' they hold - fingers crossed it has James's date of birth, or a dedication from his parents, or summat anyway.

I have an address and a phone number for a Mr * of Adelaide who is a descendant and seems to have supplied info, to BISA - wish I had his email, it's a cheaper option from here in the UK! But i will contact him and keep my fingers crossed.

Elaine

Name of living person removed as per RC policy.

Offline mrs.family

  • RootsChat Extra
  • **
  • Posts: 70
  • Census information Crown Copyright, from www.nationalarchives.gov.uk
    • View Profile
Re: James Lewis b1814 St Davids Pembs and d1891 Balaklava, S Australia
« Reply #23 on: Thursday 12 June 14 19:01 BST (UK) »
Thanks to the help I've received on this thread, I contacted the S Aus. Geography Society about James Lewis's Bible, and they sent me images of the inscriptions in it.
These writings included the names and dobs of James' siblings - who match the siblings of James Lewis of St Davids Pembrokeshire ...BINGO....RESULT.
The connection is now PROVED.

But without the pointers from you kind Australians, I would never have found this Bible - and without the co-operation of the staff at the GeogSoc, I would not have seen the writings in it.
So a real 'crowd-source' effort, for which I am immensely grateful.
I've asked whether the GeogSoc can leave my email address with the Bible, in case anyone wants to contact me, since I have family info going back to James's gt-grandparents, and also for the descendants of his siblings. Nobody in Australia seems to have this, as far as I've been able to ascertain so far.

Goes to show that so often there IS a piece of paper which breaks through your brick wall, if  the right people come up with the right questions!

with thanks, Elaine

Offline cando

  • RootsChat Marquessate
  • *******
  • Posts: 22,332
    • View Profile
Re: James Lewis b1814 St Davids Pembs and d1891 Balaklava, S Australia
« Reply #24 on: Friday 13 June 14 02:23 BST (UK) »
Pleased the link was useful.


Cheers  :)
Cando
Census Information is Crown Copyright, from www.nationalarchives.gov.uk

Offline judb

  • RootsChat Marquessate
  • *******
  • Posts: 6,977
    • View Profile
Re: James Lewis b1814 St Davids Pembs and d1891 Balaklava, S Australia
« Reply #25 on: Friday 13 June 14 06:50 BST (UK) »
Newyddion da!

Good news - so pleased it has worked out.

There's a little more information on the Pembrokeshire board for anyone who may be following this thread.

http://www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php?topic=687950.new;topicseen#new

Judith

DYER - Wilts, London, Somerset, MIDLANE - Hants, Wilts, SONE - Hants, WRIGHT - London, Hants, SEAGER - Deptford, DWYER, FERGUSON - Victoria, MASON - Woodford Vic, BALLARD - South Wales, GOULDBY - Lowestoft
"Time present and time past are both perhaps present in time future..." T S Eliot

UK Census information Crown Copyrightt, from www.nationalarchives.gov.uk

Offline mrs.family

  • RootsChat Extra
  • **
  • Posts: 70
  • Census information Crown Copyright, from www.nationalarchives.gov.uk
    • View Profile
Re: James Lewis b1814 St Davids Pembs and d1891 Balaklava, S Australia
« Reply #26 on: Wednesday 23 July 14 01:26 BST (UK) »
Just a coda to this thread.
I've found James Lewis returning to Liverpool on a ship (Ocean Queen) in Nov 1836, then leaving Liverpool on the Dorothea and being discharged at Calcutta in the summer of 1837. I'm assuming he either was taken on board the Rapid in 1838 at Calcutta, or he got back to UK on another ship and joined the Rapid when it left London in 1838.
I've been looking for the Rapid's 1838 voyage at The National Archives in Kew, London, but since Rapid never seems to have returned to Home Waters, the paper trail in the UK has dried up. Hey ho.
HOWEVER, I've found the 1836/7 Crew List for the Rapid's voyage from London to S Australia. If anyone wants a copy, I'll gladly pass it on. I've sent a copy to 'familyhistorysa'. Fascinating stuff to anyone interested in the pioneers of S Australia. And the Crew Lists of the other ships of the 1836/7 'fleet' should also be at Kew, waiting for somebody to photograph them....