Thomas Jackson
New Member
Dear Sir or Madam,
Allow me to introduce myself and tell my story of a long, long time ago.
I am Thomas JACKSON, a baker by trade, who may have been born in Bristol, or perhaps London, between 1826 and 1830 or thereabouts. I died in 1888 in Victoria, Australia, so my memory isn't too good now. My gt-gt-gt-granddau is trying to find my baptism record and she's been working, on and off, on tracing my life for over 32 years now. I think it's time to help her and bring her some luck for a change. Perhaps you know something or can help fill the gaps in my memory?
What I can recall and have made available to my 3xgt gdau is this:-
I arrived in Melbourne, Victoria, on 3rd Jan 1862 on the "Chariot of Fame", having left Liverpool, Lancashire, on the 7th Oct, 1861. I said I was 31, and that may or may not have been correct, when I was recorded on-board. No other JACKSONs were on board.
I don't remember when I arrived in Liverpool, nor from where.
I married in Melbourne on 20 Jun 1863 to an Irish lass, in a Catholic Church. The marriage certificate says I was 33, born in Bristol to Charles (a haymaker, or staymaker ?) and Anne JACKSON (no maiden surname for my mother was recorded). I said I was a widower with no children and that my first wife had died in 1854. To my eternal shame, I don't remember her name nor when or where my late wife and I married, nor precisely when, where and why she died.
My new wife and I moved to New Zealand within a few months of our marriage, and our first child, a daughter, was born there in 1864. Her birth was not registered, but she was baptised. We returned to Melbourne by mid-1866 when our first son was born. He was followed by three more girls. Two of my baby girls died in infancy and tragically my wife died in early 1874.
I was the informant for all but one of my Victoria-born children, and I said on all of the certificates that my birthplace was Bristol, England. My age seems to vary a bit, so here's a summary of what my ggg-gdau has seen:-
Event Date of Event Date of Reg Age Approx Birth Year Remarks
Passenger list ?? Oct 1861 ?? Oct 1861 31 1829-1830
Birth of son 28 Jun 1866 24 July 1866 36 1829-1830
Birth of dau 02 Mar 1868 ?? Mar 1868 40 1827-1828 My mother-in-law was the informant this time
Birth of dau 11 Jan 1871 09 Feb 1871 42 1828-1829
Birth of dau 05 Aug 1873 22 Sep 1873 48 1824-1825
My death 30 Oct 1888 [tba] 62 1825-1826
I moved from Melbourne to Williamstown by 1877 after a little bother with flour substitution in my bread - I had to compensate myself for the burial of my wife and two girls somehow - and I remained there until my death in late 1888.
My son said on my death certificate that I was born in London, but the only places I remember in England are Bristol and Liverpool.
My son also gave me the middle name Rasmus upon my death. I'm not sure where he got that from, because I've never used it, but he gave that name to one of his sons as a middle name.
Another puzzle is that he said my parents were Thomas Charles JACKSON and Anne nee BROWN. I really am no longer sure about that, but anything is possible.
No notices of my death or funeral were placed in 'The Argus' newspaper. My children were still young, aged only 24, 22 and 17, and had no spare money to spend on such luxuries. I do wish, though, that I'd placed notices for my late wife. She had a large family in Melbourne, her mother, two sisters and some cousins of sorts had all come out from Ireland, and a notice about her life and background would have solved some mysteries for our descendants.
I was buried in the Independent section of the Williamstown Cemetery. No headstone is on my grave, just a marker.
Foolishly, I did not leave a Will, and no grant of Probate, naturally, nor of Letters of Administration were taken out in my estate. No notices of my intestacy were published in the Victoria Government Gazette in late 1888 or early 1889.
My religious affiliation has been varied, to say the least. Here's a summary of what denominations the family has been recorded under:-
Year Event Denomination Remarks
1863 Marriage Roman Catholic I said I was a member of the R/C Church, but I think I may have fibbed so my wife and I could marry
1864 Baptism Roman Catholic Eldest daughter
1870 Burial Roman Catholic Son
1873 Burial Roman Catholic Second daughter
1874 Burial Roman Catholic Third daughter
1882 Marriage Roman Catholic Eldest daughter Like her mother, she married a non-Catholic
1888 Burial Independent Mine, can't remember who chose the plot & denomination
1906 Burial Independent More on that, below
1923 Burial Roman Catholic Eldest daughter
1937 Burial Methodist Son
1950 Burial Presbyterian Third daughter
My 3xgt granddaughter discovered today that there is someone else in my grave; Caroline Clara JACKSON, who died in mid-1906, aged 82. Her parents' names are said to be Unknown, but the people in the Cemetery Office confirmed she was my sister! Now I know why I chose the name Caroline for my first daughter.
My g-g-g-gdau tried to order that death certificate today, but the payment process was playing up, so neither of us currently know if the order went through or if she will have to try again. I will have to leave it with her to resolve; I don't understand these computer devices...
Caroline Clara might have been born in 1823 or 1824, but given she had not married and the informant did not know her parents' names, my sister may have been born anywhere between 1818 and 1830.
My sister left a partly illegible signature on my wedding certificate, so she too was in Victoria by mid-1863. Either she arrived after me or a while beforehand, which I don't recall, but I know she wasn't on the ship with me. I arrived as an Unassisted migrant and my 3xgt gdau has not yet found her in either the Unassisted or Assisted Passenger lists.
The 1841, 1851 and 1861 Census records of England and Wales are steadily being worked through, as access to the indexes and records at the local library and LDS FHC allow, but I haven't yet been positively identified in any of them.
The GRO BDM Indexes in FreeBMD have been thoroughly combed, looking for my marriage and my first wife's death, but the indexes aren't detailed enough to make this really possible.
FamilySearch has snippets of useful information, but the parish register coverage is still very patchy for London, Gloucestershire and Somerset, amongst other UK Counties.
So, has anyone come across any records mentioning a Thomas JACKSON, baker, born circa 1824-1830, possibly in Bristol, but possibly in London, who had a sister named Caroline and whose father may be Charles or Thomas and his mother Ann, or Anne, or Anna, or Hannah or Annie?
Any clues will help me to rest in peace, and will help my poor g-g-g-granddau get over this major hurdle in researching my origins. I'm as keen as she is to know.
Looking forward to hearing from you if you can help,
Yours faithfully,
Thomas JACKSON, baker
b. ca 1824-1830, d. 1888
Allow me to introduce myself and tell my story of a long, long time ago.
I am Thomas JACKSON, a baker by trade, who may have been born in Bristol, or perhaps London, between 1826 and 1830 or thereabouts. I died in 1888 in Victoria, Australia, so my memory isn't too good now. My gt-gt-gt-granddau is trying to find my baptism record and she's been working, on and off, on tracing my life for over 32 years now. I think it's time to help her and bring her some luck for a change. Perhaps you know something or can help fill the gaps in my memory?
What I can recall and have made available to my 3xgt gdau is this:-
I arrived in Melbourne, Victoria, on 3rd Jan 1862 on the "Chariot of Fame", having left Liverpool, Lancashire, on the 7th Oct, 1861. I said I was 31, and that may or may not have been correct, when I was recorded on-board. No other JACKSONs were on board.
I don't remember when I arrived in Liverpool, nor from where.
I married in Melbourne on 20 Jun 1863 to an Irish lass, in a Catholic Church. The marriage certificate says I was 33, born in Bristol to Charles (a haymaker, or staymaker ?) and Anne JACKSON (no maiden surname for my mother was recorded). I said I was a widower with no children and that my first wife had died in 1854. To my eternal shame, I don't remember her name nor when or where my late wife and I married, nor precisely when, where and why she died.
My new wife and I moved to New Zealand within a few months of our marriage, and our first child, a daughter, was born there in 1864. Her birth was not registered, but she was baptised. We returned to Melbourne by mid-1866 when our first son was born. He was followed by three more girls. Two of my baby girls died in infancy and tragically my wife died in early 1874.
I was the informant for all but one of my Victoria-born children, and I said on all of the certificates that my birthplace was Bristol, England. My age seems to vary a bit, so here's a summary of what my ggg-gdau has seen:-
Event Date of Event Date of Reg Age Approx Birth Year Remarks
Passenger list ?? Oct 1861 ?? Oct 1861 31 1829-1830
Birth of son 28 Jun 1866 24 July 1866 36 1829-1830
Birth of dau 02 Mar 1868 ?? Mar 1868 40 1827-1828 My mother-in-law was the informant this time
Birth of dau 11 Jan 1871 09 Feb 1871 42 1828-1829
Birth of dau 05 Aug 1873 22 Sep 1873 48 1824-1825
My death 30 Oct 1888 [tba] 62 1825-1826
I moved from Melbourne to Williamstown by 1877 after a little bother with flour substitution in my bread - I had to compensate myself for the burial of my wife and two girls somehow - and I remained there until my death in late 1888.
My son said on my death certificate that I was born in London, but the only places I remember in England are Bristol and Liverpool.
My son also gave me the middle name Rasmus upon my death. I'm not sure where he got that from, because I've never used it, but he gave that name to one of his sons as a middle name.
Another puzzle is that he said my parents were Thomas Charles JACKSON and Anne nee BROWN. I really am no longer sure about that, but anything is possible.
No notices of my death or funeral were placed in 'The Argus' newspaper. My children were still young, aged only 24, 22 and 17, and had no spare money to spend on such luxuries. I do wish, though, that I'd placed notices for my late wife. She had a large family in Melbourne, her mother, two sisters and some cousins of sorts had all come out from Ireland, and a notice about her life and background would have solved some mysteries for our descendants.
I was buried in the Independent section of the Williamstown Cemetery. No headstone is on my grave, just a marker.
Foolishly, I did not leave a Will, and no grant of Probate, naturally, nor of Letters of Administration were taken out in my estate. No notices of my intestacy were published in the Victoria Government Gazette in late 1888 or early 1889.
My religious affiliation has been varied, to say the least. Here's a summary of what denominations the family has been recorded under:-
Year Event Denomination Remarks
1863 Marriage Roman Catholic I said I was a member of the R/C Church, but I think I may have fibbed so my wife and I could marry
1864 Baptism Roman Catholic Eldest daughter
1870 Burial Roman Catholic Son
1873 Burial Roman Catholic Second daughter
1874 Burial Roman Catholic Third daughter
1882 Marriage Roman Catholic Eldest daughter Like her mother, she married a non-Catholic
1888 Burial Independent Mine, can't remember who chose the plot & denomination
1906 Burial Independent More on that, below
1923 Burial Roman Catholic Eldest daughter
1937 Burial Methodist Son
1950 Burial Presbyterian Third daughter
My 3xgt granddaughter discovered today that there is someone else in my grave; Caroline Clara JACKSON, who died in mid-1906, aged 82. Her parents' names are said to be Unknown, but the people in the Cemetery Office confirmed she was my sister! Now I know why I chose the name Caroline for my first daughter.
My g-g-g-gdau tried to order that death certificate today, but the payment process was playing up, so neither of us currently know if the order went through or if she will have to try again. I will have to leave it with her to resolve; I don't understand these computer devices...
Caroline Clara might have been born in 1823 or 1824, but given she had not married and the informant did not know her parents' names, my sister may have been born anywhere between 1818 and 1830.
My sister left a partly illegible signature on my wedding certificate, so she too was in Victoria by mid-1863. Either she arrived after me or a while beforehand, which I don't recall, but I know she wasn't on the ship with me. I arrived as an Unassisted migrant and my 3xgt gdau has not yet found her in either the Unassisted or Assisted Passenger lists.
The 1841, 1851 and 1861 Census records of England and Wales are steadily being worked through, as access to the indexes and records at the local library and LDS FHC allow, but I haven't yet been positively identified in any of them.
The GRO BDM Indexes in FreeBMD have been thoroughly combed, looking for my marriage and my first wife's death, but the indexes aren't detailed enough to make this really possible.
FamilySearch has snippets of useful information, but the parish register coverage is still very patchy for London, Gloucestershire and Somerset, amongst other UK Counties.
So, has anyone come across any records mentioning a Thomas JACKSON, baker, born circa 1824-1830, possibly in Bristol, but possibly in London, who had a sister named Caroline and whose father may be Charles or Thomas and his mother Ann, or Anne, or Anna, or Hannah or Annie?
Any clues will help me to rest in peace, and will help my poor g-g-g-granddau get over this major hurdle in researching my origins. I'm as keen as she is to know.
Looking forward to hearing from you if you can help,
Yours faithfully,
Thomas JACKSON, baker
b. ca 1824-1830, d. 1888
I too have Jacksons in my tree but sadly not the Jacksons you are looking for.There are quite a few trees on Ancestry they seem to list what you have recorded but are fairly vague in detail with my non favourite word of about!