Happy birthday Grandma Belshaw

Our great grandmother, Florence Amelia was born on the 2 October 1886. Also known as Florrie, she was the eldest surviving child of hotelkeeper Henry Ponting and his wife, Louisa nee Richey. Born in Temora, in south-western NSW, her siblings were Harry Francis 1888, Alice Maude 1890, Phoebe Louisa 1892 and Lily May in 1893. The eldest child, a daughter, died in 1886.

In the late 1890s her parents parted ways with Henry remaining in Temora operating his hotel, while Louisa left, heading to Sydney. Louisa met Alfred Petty and by 1898 was giving birth to their first child. Henry Ponting died in Temora on 3 April 1903 in Temora, leaving Louisa and Alfred able to marry, which they did, six months later, on 30 October 1903 in Sydney. 

Florence met Robert Belshaw and when she was 20 years, the couple married in Sydney on 27 October 1906. The marriage was witnessed by her step-father Alf Petty and her sister, Maud.

Robert and Florence Belshaw's marriage certificate in 1906

Florence had four younger Petty step-brothers but lost her brother Harry, in June 1908 just before his 20th birthday. Harry was working as a labourer in Mudgee and died with enteric fever at Mudgee Hospital. Just a few weeks later, Louisa Petty died on 18 July 1908 in Sydney Hospital. The cause of death was a malignant gall bladder. She was only 44. 

Her sisters also married in their 20s. Phoebe married John William Nolen in 1912, Maud married John Joseph Moore in 1913 while Lily married chemist, Alfred Hynard in 1915. An interesting incident occurred in 1909, when Robert, and his sister-in-law Maud, were charged with stealing a trunk in Sydney. Read more about this here.

Rob and Florence Belshaw

Sadly Flo and Rob lost their eldest daughter Doris from appendicitis, she died in 1915, she was only 8 years old. Read more about the story of Doris here

A lot of Flo’s life was tragic. She lost two more siblings with Phoebe dying in 1936 while Lily committed suicide in 1946. There is more about Lily’s life here  Two of her stepbrothers died tragically. Syd Petty died in 1943 in what is now known as Thailand and Abe died in 1944 aged 43 as a Prisoner of War in Indonesia. More about her Petty brothers here.

Flo and Rob had eight children, all born in Sydney:

1. Doris May 1907 – 1915 (She died aged 8 from appendicitis and is buried at Rookwood.)

2. Edna May 1908 -1992 married Arthur F. Green.

3. Florence Muriel 1910 - 1979 (my Grandmother) married John William Leach 1933.

4. Phyllis Roberta Maude 1913 - 1994 Married Alfred George Patterson in 1946 & following his death Clarence Chislett Davis in 1949.

5. Lillian Irene 1915-1982 married Tom Ryan.

6. Robert Francis 1919 - 2012 married Jean Emily Caldwell Wearne in 1948. He had also married Norma Alix McClelland in 1943 who died in 1946.

7. Leonard Allen 1921 - 1991 married Olga Merrickley

8. Arthur Maurice 1923 - 1944 Died Borneo, SIN during WW2.

For many years the family lived in Lower Campbell Street in Surry Hills, one of Sydney's inner suburbs. Flo’s youngest son Artie was keen to join up when he was only 16. He had been in the air cadets and was desperate to enlist and eventually enlisted in the RAAF in the 43rd Squadron in July 1942, three months before he was legally allowed. His older brothers Bob and Lenny had already joined up. Artie, a bombadier, died 21 April 1944 when the Catalina he was in, crashed near Borneo, he had only just turned 21. His family were devastated. 

Rob and Flo with their three sons, L to R Len, Artie and Bobby.

In the 1940s after Artie’s death, Flo and Rob moved to Melbourne Road Riverstone. Rob died in 1948, family ascertain from a broken heart after the tragic loss of Artie. Flo continued to live in Melbourne Road with most of her family living closeby.

She died from chronic cardiac failure in 14 June 1969. She was not buried with her husband Rob at Rookwood, but cremated at Pine Grove Memorial Crematorium at Eastern Creek.

Our Great Grandma Belshaw

A carter and his sister-in-law ~ Trove Tuesday

Robert Belshaw 1886-1948

Our family were quite shocked when I located this newspaper article about our great Grandfather, Robert Belshaw charged with stealing a trunk with his sister in law Maud Ponting in Sydney in July 1909. 

POLICE COURTS. A CARTER & HIS SISTER-IN-LAW. Sydney Morning Herald 11 June 1909 p. 11.  

The trunk, with its contents, belonged to Alice Walford and was valued at £14. The trunk was to be delivered from the wharf at Darling Harbour after a journey. Aged in his early 20s, Robert was employed as a carrier and rather than deliver it to the Walford's at Neutral Bay he was encouraged by Maud, aged 19, to keep the trunk. Maud was also known by the name Petty, her step-father's surname. At the time Maud was employed by Alice Walford.

Maud was sentenced to one month's imprisonment however Robert's sentence of three month's imprisonment was suspended as it was his first and apparently only, offence. Due to his good character he was placed on good behaviour bond. Robert had only been married for a few years and was more than likely, pleased with the court's leniency. 

TROVE TUESDAY ~ DORIS MARY BELSHAW 1907-1915

This Trove Tuesday post is about my Nanna's eldest sister who died as a young girl with a disease that is now treatable. Doris Mary Belshaw was born 30 Apr 1907 at home at 4 Little Bourke Street, Sydney. Two nurses were present at the birth Nurse Yarrowick and nurse Verco. She was the first born child of Robert 'Rob' Belshaw and his wife, Florence Amelia nee Ponting. Doris was born six months after their marriage on 27 October 1906.

Four more daughters were born to the couple, Edna May born 1908, my Grandmother Florence Muriel 1910, Phyllis Roberta Maude 1913 and Lillian Irene born early 1915. The girls were treasured by both sides of the family.

Doris with her Aunty Muriel Belshaw, her father's younger sister.
Source: Nichols Family Archives.

In the latter part of 1915, when Australia was in the throes of World War 1, eight year old Doris was struck down with appendicitis. She was taken to Sydney Hospital and attended by Dr Arthur Meehan and would have been in a fair amount of pain with the tenderness, fever and abdominal pain. Unfortunately she succumbed to the infection and passed away on 3 November 1915. The official cause of death was suppurative peritonitis and toxaemia. 

The funeral procession for Doris Mary Belshaw near Central Railway heading for Rookwood.
Rob Belshaw is seated next to the driver on the second wagon.
Source: Nichols Family Archives.

On 5 November, the small girl was buried at Rookwood. The undertaker was T. Dixon

Memoriam card for Doris, eldest daughter of Robert & Florence Belshaw

After the grief and sorrow of losing Doris, the Belshaw family expanded. Three sons were born to Rob and Florence, Robert Francis in 1919, Leonard Allen 1921 and Arthur Maurice completed the family, born in 1923.

Family Notices. Sydney Morning Herald 4 November 1918, p. 6

However the family did not forget Doris. For many years after In Memoriam's were placed in the newspaper. Many notices appear in Trove, historic newspapers. Notices were inserted by her parents and sisters, as well as aunties and friends. Well into the 1930s her parents were still inserting a notice. Her sisters and brothers did not forget her either. Her memory was passed on through several generations.

Family Notices. Sydney Morning Herald 3 November 1931 p. 8

Accidental death of John Belshaw - Trove Tuesday

Fatal railway accident reported in The Maitland Daily Mercury 29 Aug 1902,  p. 3

Last week I attended a conference at the Australian Technology Park (ATP) at Eveleigh. This locality has always interested me due to a family connection. ATP was originally the Eveleigh Locomotive Workshops was the locality of the shocking death of John Belshaw in 1902.

An interior view of the Eveleigh Locomotive Workshops, Redfern
Photo: M. Nichols, 2015

The Belshaw family originated from County Down in Northern Ireland, and travelled on-board the steamer Orizaba departing from London in 1888 via South Australia to Victoria, finally arriving in Sydney in January 1889 with their four children Clara Crawford, born 1883; Georgina Mary, born 1885; Robert, born 1886  and Jane Allen born 1888. (To put it in context, Robert was the father of our maternal Grandmother). 

Sadly eight month old Jane succumbed to bronchitis on the voyage out, just a few days before the boat arrived in Adelaide. They made their home in Sydney and John found work as labourer. Times were tough as it was during the depression of the 1890s.

Shortly after arriving in Sydney, Georgina fell pregnant and gave birth to daughter Muriel Helen, late in 1889. After a large gap (nine years) she fell pregnant again, and had a son, Rodger. By 1898 the family were living in Redfern and John was still recorded as a general labourer.

However tragedy struck the family when John aged 45, was killed on the 29 August 1902. He was run over by a locomotive at the Redfern Railway Station. The Sydney Morning Herald newspaper reported at the time of his death:

The City Coroner…held an inquest on Saturday morning concerning the death of John Allen Belshaw, a truck examiner, who was run over by a locomotive at the Redfern Railway station on the preceding day. Evidence was given to the effect that on Friday morning, deceased was the line behind two cars, when an engine came out from one of the platforms. Someone called out and deceased looked round, seemed to hesitate and was immediately knocked down and run over. The fireman of the engine stated that when deceased was first seen he was only a yard or two from the buffers. The whistle was blown and the brakes applied, the engine being brought up by its own length. A verdict of accidental death was returned. 

The Inquest was held at the Lloyd’s Hotel the following day with J. C. Woore the Coroner.  The Daily Telegraph article was a little more revealing. It stated that the “shocking fatality” happened about 8am and that the body was “fearfully mangled.” It also reported that Belshaw was “picked up in a terrible condition, his head being badly smashed and his right thigh crushed. The Civil Ambulance Brigade was summoned and the man removed to the Sydney Hospital where Dr. Webb pronounced life extinct.”  

Many years ago, and before Trove was conceived, the above articles were consulted from the main Sydney newspapers and the information duly added to then family archives.

More recently I decided to search Trove to see if any additional information could be located. Surprisingly a general search reveals 94 articles for this decade and of the 46 of these were from 1902 the year the accident occurred. Most of the articles were printed in New South Wales papers but the accident was also mentioned in all of the other states, as well. I have corrected some of the text but I do need to ensure that all of the articles are corrected and tagged.

Entries for the accidental death for John Belshaw on Trove in 1902

The point of the story, it pays not to narrow your search to just the locality where an event took place. You may miss out on some treasures.

The accidental death was reported as far away as Western Australia.
This small paragraph appeared in the Kalgoorlie Western Argus 2 Sep 1902, p. 31 

John was employed at the Darling Harbour yards in 1902. At the time of the accident the Belshaw family were residing at 7 Prospect Street, Surry Hills and Roger, the youngest child, was only 4 years old. 

7 Prospect Street, Surry Hills

His wife Georgina did not remarry and it must have been tough raising her family without a breadwinner. Georgina spent much of her remaining years as a volunteer at her local church in Darlinghurst.

Death certificate issued for John Belshaw in 1902
Source: Family archives