James Morrisby / Ann Brooks
In the July 1791 muster James was recorded as living in Sydney Town (present day Kingston), sharing a sow with Ann Lavender Brooks and her son William. On 5 November 1791 James & Ann were among a group of about 100 couples who were married on the island by the Rev. Richard Johnson.
In December 1791 James had 12 acres of land on the Mount Pitt Path, Queenborough (Lot 57) - by 1793 he had cleared and planted 7 acres of it. In the June 1794 muster the family consisted of James & Ann, William (Brooks), Richard (Brooks/Lavender/ Larsom) and their first child, George James, born on 25 November 1793. By 1796 James' landholdings had increased to 34 acres - he had acquired a Norfolk Island Land Grant (Lot 61). As well as farming his land, he spent about a month as a crewman on the ‘Reliance’ in the late 1790s, and in 1802 became a constable.
William Brooks was recorded on the 1794 and 1796 victualling lists and the 1805 muster of Norfolk Island - Richard was also listed on this muster. There is no record of how or when William or Richard left the island - neither travelled with their mother when she left Norfolk with James Morrisby and their five children in 1807.
Richard did, however, arrive in Van Diemens Land in 1812 under the name Larsom - he married Ann Kidner, the daughter of Thomas Kidner & Jane (Whiting) in St. David's Church in Hobart.
When they arrived in Hobart Town James established his farm at Clarence Plains (present day Rokeby), named Belmont Lawn. The Morrisby family flourished, with two sons and a daughter settling on farms in the district.
Ann died in Feb 1813.
On 18 Nov 1816 James married Eleanor (Alice) Murphy, an Irish convict who arrived at Port Jackson on the ‘Catherine’ in May 1814 and was later transferred to the ‘Kangaroo’ and sent to Van Diemen’s Land. She died in Feb 1821 and was buried in St. David's Cemetery – they had no children.
He sold salt in Hobart, became a constable and in 1817 helped to capture bushrangers.
James petitioned Governor Arthur in 1828 requesting extra and, James stated that all his children were married and he was not so young any more, he wished to spend the rest of his days at Clarence Plains where he now resided on an 80 acre lot. His holdings on his property consisted of 6 working bullocks, one plough, 2 harrows and one bullock cart bringing his assets to 500 pounds. He told the Governor he had arrived on the "Scarborough" and was of good character having never been charged with improper conduct and that his family now numbered 50. The petition was not satisfactory to the Governor but as he had checked the history and the circumstances of James' good character and good behaviour over many years, he granted him 320 acres at Clarence Plains.
James Morrisby was born in Cawood, Yorkshire (near Leeds) in 1756 (chr. 23 Jan 1757) though his family
origins seem to be from nearby Kippax.
He became a blacksmith by trade and enlisted in the Scots Guards on 3 April 1776 (aged 19).
A James Morrisby married Mary Eaves at St. Sepulchre, Holborn, London, on 25 Nov 1782. A child, Catherine Dorcas Morrisby, was born on 11 Mar 1784 (chr. 30 Mar 1784, also at St. Sepulchre). A Mary Duke Eaves was born in Holborn in 1759 - could 'Dorcas' and 'Duke' have become mixed up/entered incorrectly in various records?
Some reports show James Morrisby married a Mary Donaldson on 20 Nov 1782 - can't find any records to verify this. Also seen references to a Mary Eaves Donaldson (b.1760 London; d.1813 Hobart) - again, no records to confirm these reports.
In August 1784 he was taken from Newgate Gaol to the Hulk 'Censor', moored at Woolwich, and in Feb 1787 was sent to Portsmouth by wagon in readiness for embarkation on the 430 ton transport ‘Scarborough’, one of the 11 ships of the First Fleet.
On 7 July 1784 he was convicted at the Old Bailey of stealing a 10 pound iron bar valued at 10 pence, forcibly removing it from a window it secured. He was sentenced to 7 years transportation (documents indicate this was initially supposed to be to America).
Censor Hulk
Scarborough
The First Fleet left Portsmouth on 13 May 1787, under the command of Captain Arthur Philip, and carried 717 convicts, travelling via Tenerife, Rio de Janeiro and Cape Town. Scarborough arrived at Botany Bay on 19 Jan 1788. The land there was considered unsuitable for settlement, so they headed for Port Jackson, a little further north.
After 2 years in Port Jackson James was transferred on 1 March 1790 to Norfolk Island aboard the HMS 'Sirius', arriving 13 March 1790.
In 1783 and 1785 Ann Brooks was found guilty of 'feloniously stealing' and on both occasions was sentenced to be confined to hard labour for 12 months in a house of correction.
Ann had a son William, born around 1786. Could he have been the William Brooks christened at St. Mary's, Whitechapel on 2 July 1786 - parents William Brooks and Ann? Could Ann have been Ann Gresham, who married a William Brooks at St. James, Westminster, on 4 July 1780? An Ann 'Greysham' was christened at St. Mary's, Whitechapel, on 7 Oct 1764.
Ann was tried for the burglary of a quantity of clothes from a room in Drury Lane in April 1787. She was described as living in a court off Parker Lane and supporting a small child by dealing in old clothes at the Rag Fair. The arresting constables took her to the court where she lived and allowed her to call out to some women who brought the child to her. She was released from custody the same night 'through humanity, she having a child'. The jury found her not guilty and she was discharged. However, on 2 Dec. 1787 she was found guilty of stealing 2 linen sheets valued at 5 shillings and sentenced to 7 years transportation.
Some reports have Ann as aged 25 at her 1787 trial, hence born around 1762. Maybe she was unmarried and Brooks was her own name?
She and her son William spent 15 months in Newgate Gaol before boarding the ‘Lady Juliana’ at Woolwich on
12 March 1789. As part of the Second Fleet, the 'Lady Juliana' left Plymouth on 29 July 1789 and arrived at Port Jackson on 3 June 1790 (conditions were much worse for the Second Fleet – 278 deaths at sea, as compared to only 48 for the First Fleet).
It appears that Ann had a de-facto relationship with Simon Lavender while at Port Jackson.
In Feb 1788 Simon, a seaman, had been found guilty of feloniously stealing a woollen 'hammer-cloth' and was transported on the 'Surprize', also part of the Second Fleet, leaving Portsmouth in Jan 1790, arriving at Port Jackson in June 1790.
Two months later Ann (with William) was sent to Norfolk Island aboard the 'Surprize', arriving 7 August 1790. On 25 April 1791 she gave birth to Richard (Brooks) - he was often recorded under the name of Lavender but he later used the surname Larsom.
Simon was also sent to Norfolk Island in late 1791 and remained there until March 1795, returning to Sydney on the 'Fancy'.
The settlement in Norfolk Island was being wound down and James was forced to accept the Governor’s offer of exchange for 80 acres of virgin land in Van Diemen’s Land after almost 18 years of hard work. He left behind a 26' x 12' shingled house, plus two barns and one out-house, valued at 90 pounds.
His landholdings at that stage consisted of 55 acres - 14 acres in grain, ten in pasture and the rest in fallow, seven hogs and 200 bushels of maize in hand.
The family left Norfolk Island in December 1807 on board the ‘Porpoise’ - James had lived on Norfolk Island for 17 years and had become a model settler.
James died on 27 May 1839, aged 83.
He was buried on 29 May 1839 at
St Mathew's Church, Rokeby.
