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The following article was compiled by Grace Douglass & researched with Laurel Legge and published in
'Along the Windsor Richmond Road' 1985 (ISBN 0 9589831 0 0 and ISBN 0 9589831 3 5) and is subject to copyright. Written permission is held from the late author Grace Douglass for the writer to publish contents via the Internet. However, although this book is in the public domain, it still remains copyrighted material and may not be copied for any reason without permission. I do not have the right to give permission to others to reprint the book. I was only given permission to put it on line. All copyrights stay with Grace Douglass & Laurel Legge and whoever they appointed, for control of the book. Under no circumstances may it be reprinted for profit.
Extractions of parts of the information for personal use with references to the book as the source is encouraged.
It should be noted that since the book was published over twenty years ago, that a lot of the material in the books have been superseeded by later research, some of which can be seen at my Rootsweb database at Amanda Taylor's Genealogy
Thomas Markwell was a convict who arrived in the Colony on the "Scarborough 2" in 1790. He had been tried at Chelmsford Essex on the 12th March 1787 and sentenced to 14 years transportation.
We have found no record of Thomas' movements during the first seventeen years he spent in the Colony, other than that at the time of the 1806 Muster, Thomas was employed by Thomas Spencer who was farming 130 acres at Richmond. Thomas Spencer had also arrived in the Colony on the "Scarborough", however, he had come on the first voyage that the vessel made to the Colony, as a marine with the First Fleet.
On the 5th October 1807 Thomas married Maria Cheshire at St.Phillip's Sydney. The witnesses were Isaac Bartholomew and Susannah Barcroft. (There is some doubt about the surnmame of this second witness) None of the parties were able to sign their name. Although the record of the marriage appears in St. Phillip's Register, it is possible that the marriage took place at the Hawkesbury, as the Register states that both parties were residents of the Hawkesbury.
Maria had been born in the Colony on 1/8/1792 and was the daughter of two convicts, Thomas Cheshire who had arrived on the "Neptune" in 1790 and Ann Teasdale who had come on the "Lady Julianna" the same year.
Thomas and Maria had a Family of six children -- Sophia 11/12/1807, Elizabeth 22/4/1810, (Baptism) Ellen Maria 27/12/1824, George Thomas 27/9/1826, John 205/1828 and Mary Ann 16/6/1830.
There are two 'mysteries' in the life of Thomas Markwell. The first is the gap of more than fourteen years between the birth of his second daughter, Elizabeth in 1810 and the birth of his third daughter, Ellen in 1824. According to both the 1811 and 1814 Musters Thomas and Maria were living together in the Hawkesbury, and yet fourteen years would appear to be a very long time for there not to have been another child born to them.
The second 'mystery' is even stranger, it puzzled T.D.Mutch when he compiled his records many years ago, and even today with far more records catalogued and more readily available, it still defies explanation. Thomas himself died in 1841, however carved on the top of his vault in St. Peter's Churchyard, in addition to his own name and details is the inscription -- "Thomas Markwell died 15/7/1829 aged 37". This second Thomas Markwell would have been born about the year 1792, so could have been a son born to him in the Colony but not one left behind in England. There is no record of his baptism and no record of his burial at St. Peter's on that date. In fact there is no record of any male aged 37 of any name being buried at St. Peter's on that date. It certainly puzzled Mr. Mutch who had evidently read the inscription on the vault in the churchyard and he made a notation in his records to that effect even though he could not make a corresponding entry to say where the second Thomas Markwell had been buried. There is no Thomas Markwell 'dying' in the Colony in 1829 according to the records held by the Registrar General either. The only possible explanation can be that the person concerned was raised under his Mother's name, but Thomas senior nevertheless acknowledged him as his son. Mr. Mutch also comments on the fact that Thomas and Maria also appear to change the name of their eldest son George Thomas, as he appears in the Marriage Register as Thomas George Markwell and continues to appear this way for the remainder of his life. However, the child was listed as Thomas Markwell in the 1828 Census so the death of the other person in 1829 cannot have been the reason for Thomas and Maria changing the name of their son. Perhaps his baptism was wrongly recorded.
In the 1828 Census we find Thomas farming at Richmond. He had 30 acres, all of which were cleared. He had nine horses, 100 cattle and 700 sheep. He had in his employ John Peathon (or Peathcon) and James Whitby, both convicts and neither of whom would explain the mystery person buried in his vault. The farm of Thomas Markwell was located in the area later called Yarramundi.
Maria Markwell would appear to have died as the result of childbirth as she passed away 18th July 1830 only four weeks after the birth of her daughter Mary Ann. Maria was buried in St.Peter's Richmond in the Family Vault. Thomas did not remarry and passed away 18/9/1841 and according to the Register he was aged 70 years. (Row 11. Gr. 82/83. Sec. A)>
N.B. For further details of Maria Markwell (nee Cheshire) see the chapter relating to Thomas Cheshire in 'Along the Windsor Road'.
Refer Thomas Markwell and Maria Cheshire at my Rootsweb database for further information.My complete Rootsweb database can be seen at Amanda Taylor's Genealogy
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