Hackney Street Scene in the 1800’s
3rd Great-Grandfather – Maternal father’s line of Morris Family
Henry Smith, a stone mason and builder, was born in Edmonton, Middlesex, in about 1808. Henry’s parents were Henry and Sarah Smith. He married Jane Price on 15 April 1833, in Islington, Middlesex. They had nine children in 20 years. He died from paralysis on 29 July 1864, at Wallaga Lake, New South Wales, aged 56 and was buried there.
Henry was born in 1808 at Edmonton, Middlesex, England to Henry Smith and Sarah Neal.
Henry Smith married Jane Price on 15 April 1833, in the Parish of St James, Clerkenwell at Islington, Middlesex, when he was 24 years old.
The new church of St James, Clerkenwell, drawn in 1806
Children of Henry Smith and Jane Price
In 1835 Henry and Jane were living at the Islington City Gardens in Middlesex where Henry worked as a mason.
On the 6 June 1841 Henry Smith, aged 33, was working as a stonemason. He and his family were living at 5 Tylsen Road, Hackney, Middlesex, England in the Parish of St John.
Our direct ancestor was Clarissa Fanny Smith, who was born on 4 October 1846 in West Hackney, Middlesex
Ten years later, the 1851 census recorded Henry’s occupation as Master Stone Mason at Sandford Lane, Hackney. At this time, Henry and his family were living in Hackney during the construction of the Elizabeth Tower and Big Ben in 1851 .
New Ship Landing Stage at Liverpool from the Illustrated London News of June 12, 1847
In 1857, Henry and his wife Jane together with their younger children emigrated from Liverpool, Lancashire to Sydney, New South Wales. They left Liverpool on the 28 January 1857 and arrived in Australia aboard the vessel “John and Lucy” on 6 May 1857. The children accompanying Henry and Jane Smith on the 98 days voyage were: Mark, Isaac, Joseph, Clarissa, Frank, Grace and David. Further investigation is needed to verify the birth of a new born baby Emma Smith in about 1857.
His son, Henry Lancelot Smith married Jane Gidley Goodman on 16 October 1862 at St Peters Cooks River, New South Wales, in accordance with the rites and ceremonies of the Church of England. Both Henry and Jane declared before the officiating Minister A.H Bull that they were Members of the Wesleyan Denomination. Click here for further comments.
The Sands Directory in 1861 showed that the occupation of Henry Smith was now builder, living at 128 Palmer Street. In October 1862 at the marriage of his son Henry Lancelot Smith to Jane Gidley Goodman, Henry Smith is also referred to as a Builder.
Just nine years after arriving in Australia, on the 29 July 1864 Henry Smith died at Wallaga Lake, New South Wales, Australia. Henry was buried at Wallaga Lake on 30 July 1864.
The cause of his death, was paralysis. According to his wife Jane, he suffered from paralysis for at least 10½ years. Henry was not seen by any medical attendant immediately prior to or after his death.
The term “Paralysis” is a vague and difficult to understand reason for death. It may refer a condition known as “General Paralysis”. However, paralysis is most often caused by damage in the nervous system, especially the spinal cord. Other major causes are stroke, trauma with nerve injury, poliomyelitis, cerebral palsy, peripheral neuropathy, Parkinson’s disease, ALS (motor neurone disease), botulism, spina bifida, multiple sclerosis, myasthenia gravis and Guillain–Barré syndrome. Further investigation to identify the actual cause of his death, in the absence of medical records, is unlikely to be successful.
Note: His Death Certificate, certified by Jane Smith, indicated that children of the marriage included ten males and three females, all living and one male dead.