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My great-great Grandfather John Michael Crossland was born in York
on 29th. September, 1799 and baptised at St Michael le Belfry on
27th. November, 1799. He was the first of the four children born to
John Crossland and Ann (nee Jefferson).
John Crossland snr., son of John and
Jane Crossland, was a drummer,
sergeant and sergeant major in the 31st. Regiment of Foot and
Lieutenant Adjutant in the City of York Militia. He died in
1813, aged 53. His fellow officers had a plaque made and
placed on the wall of St Michael le Belfry in his memory.
(Click here for service details)
John Michael's mother, Ann, died in
1808 aged only 34, so that after his father's death John, then aged
13, and his surviving sibling(s) were orphans. Nothing is known
about where they lived after their parents' deaths but the second
child, William, died at the York Union Poorhouse in 1845, aged 43.
The youngest child, Charles, died aged 2 1/2
years in 1805 and nothing more is known of the 3rd. child and only
daughter, Diana, who was born in 1804.
Ann Jefferson's father was a tailor
who purchased his right to trade as a Freeman within the city walls
of York. (further details coming) He
married Ann Spence and |
| they
had Ann and 3 other children. At this stage it has not been possible
to identify John Michael's paternal grandparents although a John and
Mary Crossland were advertising their services as "Cleaners of Gold
Lace" in York c1756 to 1760 which was about the time that John snr.
would have been born. At
present nothing more is known of John Michael until he started to
study and exhibit portraits in London at The Royal Academy and The
Royal Society of British Artists in 1832
(References). He is recorded as having
exhibited 5 portraits in 1832, 1833 and 1844 at the Royal Academy
and one in 1845 at The Royal Society of British Artists.. As several
of his paintings of that era are of Italian subjects it may be that
John had at some time in the intervening years travelled and painted
in Europe. (In 1844 a baby son was baptised with the very exotic
name of Jerome Ambrosini - quite out of character with the names of
the other siblings - however he was almost certainly named for
another portraitist who changed his name to Ambrosini Jerome and
who was working in London at the time. The 2 artists were probably
well known to one another. Italian artists were very highly
considered in London at the time and there were good economic
reasons to appear to have Italian connections.
John married Jane Clarke Worledge, the
daughter of Samuel Worledge and Sarah (nee Pool) in London in 1833 and
the couple went on to have 10 children over the next few years, 4 of
whom died in infancy. Over this time they are known to have lived at 77
London Wall, 103 London Wall, 69 Newman Street, Pool Street Shoreditch
and 21 Shaftesbury Terrace. According to details given at the time of
the children's baptisms John additionally worked as an accountant and
clerk.
In 1851 John and Jane and 7 children
arrived in South Australia on the barque "Slains Castle". The story of
this trip and passenger list can be viewed by clicking
here. They lived in Adelaide near the
corner of King William and Waymouth Streets and later in Halifax Street
during which time John gained commissions to paint portraits of notable
South Australians of the time.
Later the family moved to Encounter Bay
(now part of Victor Harbor) where John died in 1858, probably from
tuberculosis. Jane taught at local schools in the area before moving
back to Norwood later in life. John's son, John Michael, purchased land
at Waitpinga and had a contract for supplying fence posts for the new
Encounter Bay Cemetery. Sons William, Henry & George all joined the
Police Force but only William stayed any length of time. Francis and Henry reputedly worked as
surveyor's assistants on the Overland Telegraph Line.
It seems that only 3 of John and Jane's
children married, 2nd son William Walker, my great-grandfather Henry
Barker and Emilie Jane and I believe that no male descendants carried on
the family name beyond the next generation.
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Paintings
attributed to John Michael Crossland
- exhibited at
The Royal Academy 1832
Portrait of a
Gentleman
Bandit Chief
destroying his child, fearing that it's cries might lead to a discovery
of his place of retreat
Italian
Peasants
- exhibited
at The Royal Academy 1833
Medora
- exhibited
at The Royal Academy 1844
E.F. Leeks
Esq., Secretary to the St. Ann's Society
-
exhibited at The Royal
Society of British Artists 1845
Rev. David
Laing, MA FRS, Honorary Chaplain to the St Ann's Society
- reported in
the Adelaide Observer 12.3.1853
Captain Charles Sturt (to hang in the Legislative Council
Chamber of SA - later gifted to the Art Gallery of South Australia)
- National
Portrait Gallery of London
Charles Sturt
- Art Gallery
of South Australia
John Brown
(Emigration Agent - c 1855)
Judge Charles
Cooper
(1853)
Captain
Charles Sturt x 2 paintings
- National
Library of Australia 1854 (on loan to the National Gallery of Australia:
Rex Nankivell Collection)
Portrait Of Samuel
Kandwillan, a pupil of the natives' training institution, Poonindie,
South Australia
Portrait of Nannultera,
a young Poonindie cricketer
-
commissioned for Parliament House, South Australia, December 1854
Portrait of
Sir James Hurtle Fisher
- other
persons known to have sat for J.M. Crossland portraits
Thomas
Gilbert (Colonial Storekeeper)
George Fife
Angas
William Giles
(second manager South Australian Company)
Governor and
Mrs. Young
Reverend
Thomas Quinton Stow
Reverend
James Farrell
-
exhibited at
South Australian
Society of Arts First Exhibition 1857
Captain
Sturt - the hero of Australian Exploration
The Dictionary of
Australian Artists Online gives a good summary of John' s professional
life and mentions additional paintings. See the article at http://www.daao.org.au/main/read/2023
Bibliography
Nancy Benko, Art & Artists of SA,
Lidums, SA, 1969
Algernon Graves, The Royal Academy of
Arts 1769 -1904, London, 1905
C. Wood, Dictionary of Victorian
Painters, Woodbridge Suffolk 1978
R. Ormond, Early Victorian Portraits,
London, 1973
R. Radford, Visions after Light,
AGSA catalogue, Adelaide 1971
Maurice Bradshaw , Royal Society of
British Artists Exhibitors 1824 1962. 5 Vols. F.Lewis Pubn. 1973
1977.
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John
Crossland Senior (1759 - 1813)
John was a
drummer, sergeant and sergeant major in the 31st. Regiment of Foot and
then Lieutenant Adjutant in the City of York Militia. He died in
1813, aged 53. His fellow officers had a plaque made and
placed on the wall of St Michael le Belfry in his memory.
He joined the 31st regiment of Foot when
in his very early teens and for many years served in Quebec, and
probably Ireland, West Indies and France. During the regiment's tour of
duty in the West Indies they lost large numbers due to disease - this
possibly explains John's promotion direct from Drummer to
Searjeant in 1795.
The muster rolls for
the 31st Foot 1774-1797 are monthly but the following serve as
examples:-
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January
1774 - Tynemouth Barracks, Northumberland, England - John Crossland Drummer
August
1775 - Morpeth, Northumberland, England - John Crossland Drummer
February
1778 - St John's - John Crossland Drummer
November
1782 - Quebec - John Crossland Drummer
January
1785 - Quebec - John Crossland
July 1789
- Hilsea Barracks, Portsmouth, England - John Crossland Drummer Recruiting
October
1792 - John Crossland Drummer Recruiting (possibly Ireland)
July 1795
- John Crossland Drummer (No place noted - possibly West Indies)
Apptd
Serjeant - 1st September 1795 -
1796-1797
Serjeant (recruiting)
1802 -
Based in Portsmouth, Hampshire where son William was born then the Channel
Islands
Last
Entry August 1804 - discharged to promotion in City of York Militia. He is
listed as Serjeant Major
There was an overlap where he was on the rolls of both the 31st Foot and
the York City Militia. He appears on the Muster Rolls of the latter from 1803
and does not exit the Muster Rolls of the31st Foot until August 1804. He
transferred to the Militia in a paid position at the level of Lieutenant.
This was unusual as militia were usually volunteers.
1804
Publication War Office List of the Officers of the Gentlemen & Yeomanry
Cavalry & Volunteer Infantry (War Office 1804) Entry York (W Riding - City of
York), Adjutant, John Crossland, Lieutenant, 29/11/1803
1805
Publication War Office List of the Officers of the Gentlemen & Yeomanry
Cavalry & Volunteer Infantry (War Office 1805) Entry York (W Riding - City of
York), Adjutant, John Crossland, Lieutenant, 29/11/1803
1807
Publication War Office List of the Officers of the Gentlemen & Yeomanry
Cavalry & Volunteer Infantry (War Office 1807) Entry York (W Riding - City of
York), Adjutant, John Crossland, Lieutenant, 29/11/1803
1810
Publication - List of the Officers of the Local Militia of Great Britain Entry
York (W Riding - City of York), Adjutant, John Crossland, Lieutenant, 24/09/1808
(an error! see below)
1811
Publication - List of the Officers of the Local Militia of Great Britain Entry
York (W Riding - City of York), Adjutant, JohnCrossland, Lieutenant, 24/09/1808
(an error! see below)
These lists
were published annually - the above years are the only ones in the National
Archives Collection. The date of seniority of 29/11/1803 makes more sense as his
date of commission as it fits in with the muster rolls for both 31st foot and
York City Militia. We have no idea why the date of seniority later changes to
24/09/1808.
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CROSSLAND Voyage to Australia - Slains Castle 1850 1851
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Diana Comley.
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