I have told you about the original Harmans of Byaduk and their time in Cambridgeshire, their journey to Australia, and their life beyond. What I haven’t told you about is the family members that were left in England.
Yes, Joseph and Sarah Harman had children that did not make the voyage to Australia, thus never getting the opportunity to live the long and prosperous lives of their siblings.
For most of the children, it was death that robbed them of the life-changing experience. For Mary Ann, the eldest living daughter, it seems marriage and children sealed her fate.
The children of Joseph and Sarah that did not travel to Australia were:
James: Born 1827, Cambridgeshire, Died 1827, Cambridgeshire
Mary Ann: Born 1829, Melbourn, Cambridgeshire; Died 1873, Poplar, London.
Alfred: Born 1833, Melbourn, Cambridgeshire; Died 1851, Melbourn, Cambridgeshire
Arthur: Born 1842, Melbourn, Cambridgeshire; Died ?
Ann: Born 1847, Melbourn, Cambridgeshire; Died ?
Betsy/Elizabeth: Born 1849, Melbourn, Cambridgeshire; Died ?
James was first born of Joseph and Sarah but he died as a baby. Alfred was the fourth born child and he appears on the 1841 England Census. His death was registered in January 1851 thus missing the 1851 England Census.
It was that census in 1851 that Arthur, Ann and Betsy appeared, all born after the 1841 England Census. The question is, what happened to them between 1851 and 1854 when Joseph and Sarah and three children sailed for Sydney? I have not found death or marriage records for these three children.
Second born child and eldest daughter, Mary Ann was married in 1847. Her husband was James Loats, who was living with his family in the same street as the Harmans, Drury Lane, Melbourn. After their marriage, they continued to live in Drury Lane in their own house.
At the time, none of the family would have even heard of Australia let alone considered making it their home. However, on three occasions from 1852, Mary-Ann said goodbye to family members beginning their journeys to Australia. It began with James and his new wife Susan sailing on the Duke of Richmond in 1852. Then the three boys, George, Jonathan, and Reuben.
In 1854, the last goodbyes came when her parents sailed. Around this time Mary Ann was living in London. Maybe she was at the docks.
Mary Ann and James had 10 children that I can match on the various census and vital records. The first three children were born in Melbourn, with the remaining seven born in London. James was working as a labourer at a coke oven. Mary Ann died in 1871 at just 43 leaving four children under 10. Aside from her brother Reuben, all the siblings that immigrated to Australia lived to around double that age.
Recognition of the Harman family is clear with the names of the Loats children. Julia again proves a popular Harman name, possibly the earliest record of that name in the family.
Betsy/Elizabeth: Born 1849, Melbourn, Cambridgeshire
Julia: Born 1851, Melbourn, Cambridgeshire; Died 1856
Harriet Sarah: Born 1852, Melbourn, Cambridgeshire; Marriage: Charles George Hazell, 1874 West Ham, London; Died:
Mary Ann Harman: Born 1854, Camberwell, London
Wilfred: Born 1857, Camberwell, London; Died 1857 Camberwell, London
Julia Mary Ann: Born 1858, Rotherhite, Surrey; Died 1900 Holburn, London
Laura: Born 1861, Bromley Middlesex
Grace: Born 1864, Bromley Middlesex
Joseph Harman: Born 1867, Poplar, London
Jesse: Born 1868, Bromley, Middlesex
I had always hoped I might find an Australian link through the Loats line, especially as I know of the name from the Hamilton area. I have found two links.
Firstly, aboard the Duke of Richmond with Susan and James Harman was Thomas Loats, the brother of James. Thomas settled in the Western District. It makes me wonder how close James and Mary Ann may have come themselves to settle in Australia. What stopped them?
Secondly, thanks to the granddaughter of Joseph and Sarah Harman, Harriet Sarah Loats, I have found a link taking a Harman descendant where none have gone before. However, this post has gone on long enough and I will need to dedicate a whole post to my exciting find. Stay Tuned! (That might be a clue).
Western District Families 
I’m looking forward to reading about your exciting find Merron
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Thanks for your quick response Kerryn. Yes it was happy dance stuff when I found it.
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Great great grand dad on the Duke of Richmond. His name was Sam Cornford, he arrived with wife and family. Just started tracing family histort
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Hi Kevin
Thank you for your comment. You are the first “Duke of Richmond” descendant to contact me.
I have Samuel Cornford and Mary Shoebridge on my database. I have done a little bit of research on them but some time ago. I found information about Samuel’s will at Trove http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article10733168
I am sure you will enjoy tracing your family history. Let me know if you get stuck or need some places to search as I may be able to help.
Regards
Merron
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Hi Merron & Kevin,
I don’t know if you will receive this. I have been researching my family for years. Caleb Cornford (Samuel) and Mary Shoebridge are my direct ancestors. being my gg-grandparents their son James was my great grandfather and James son William James was my grandfather.
Regards Rita
ritakb@westnet.com.au
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Hi Rita
Yes I have been retracing my family for years. I get to a stage then leave it and sometimes gets too hard to start up again. I seem to know a lot about the Cornford family once they arrived on the Duke of Richmond but very little prior to leaving the motherland. Which state do you live and maybe do the catch. I have difficulty formalising our tree.
Cheers
Kevin Perkins
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Hi Kevin,
Thank you, gosh your response was quick. I was at a CFA meeting last night and and did not see your reply till this morning. Caleb Samuel did marry Mary Shoebridge,I have their marriage details. I also have copies of the English census reports for a couple of census’s that give an insite into their lives in the UK, I have been to Herstmonceux and Warbelton and taken photos of the church in Warbelton, I was blown away by the amount of Cornfords buried at the Warbelton church. I am happy to send you copies of all the informatio that I have collected over the years. I have to thank a few distant cousins for much of the stuff I have. I have purchased copies of many certificates as well to verify information.
Regards Rita
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Hi Merron
Thanks for the offer that’s great. My descendants arrived on The Duke of Richmond as free settlers and agricultural workers (farmers). They seem to have spent little time in Portland. The family spent time at Merino, Digby and Henty, Samuel Caleb obviously working his trade. They eventually (somehow) ended up at Dunbulbalan, that now no longer exists. This temporary home in northern Victoria near Numurak and just north of Shepparton they were allocated a parcel of land.
My grandfather of the same name, Samuel Caleb, ended up in Wonthaggi Victoria to work the coal mines around 1905. Sometime during the late 1920s early 1930s they again relocated to Coburg a suburb of Melbourne. I only just revisited their old home in Linda Street where they spent the rest of their lives, Nana died aged 92.
My grandfather and grandmother (Annie Ellen née Martin) had 2 boys and 3 girls one of which was my mother, Alma May. The only survivor of this family is the youngest Betty Laidlaw née Cornford whose husband John passed away last week. Betty now lives with daughter Pam in Allansford just east of Warrnambool and not far from where our descendants originally set foot on Australian soil.
My next step is to formalize all the information I have and then investigate the Cornford and Shoebridge families prior to the departure of The Duke of Richmond
Regards
Kevin
PS. Thanks for that info on Trove did not know the site existed. Any other site details would be fantastic.
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Hi Kevin
Have you tried the Glenelg & Wannon Settlers site? http://www.swvic.org/index.html There are several entries about the Cornfords including contact details for another person researching the family. The easiest way is to enter the name in the search box on the main page. Also a couple of Shoebridge mentions.
Also the Public Records of Victoria has online indexes such as wills http://www.prov.vic.gov.au. Trove is a fantastic site and you are sure to find something of interest. There are papers from the West Gippsland area that cover Wonthaggi (my grandmother was born in Wonthaggi in 1920).
There are a couple of Cornfords at the SW Cemetery site too http://home.vicnet.net.au/~marr/CEMINDEX.HTML
This is the GENUKI link for Surrey. http://homepages.gold.ac.uk/genuki/SRY/ You may find some places to search once your research moves to England.
I picked up an info sheet on the Duke of Richmond while I was at Portland’s History House and I will post something about it soon.
Regards
Merron
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hi Kevin I am searching the Cornford family starting with Caleb Samuel Cornford and Mary Ann Shoobridge . Asking if you can help with the names of James and Jabina’s children .
Appreciate any help you can offer.—–Elaine Sammut
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Hi will contact you next week. My grand father was named after his grandfather, Caleb Samuel.9
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Hi Elaine again
sorry however my mother Alma May Cornford, born 1914 to Caleb Samuel and Annie Ellen (née Martin)Cornford. Her younger sister Alice Jabina was obviously named after this same person. I am interstate at moment so hopefully I can dig some info for you
Kevin
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Hi Kevin , Thank you for answering have a good trip ——-Elaine.
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Sorry for delay however the more I spend on this hunt re Cornford Family the more confused and frustrated I get.
the following records were sent to me from a long lost Aunt. The children of James Cornford and Jabina Agnes Gilbert
Cornford Ada Florence b1903 Rutherglen
Cornford Jabina b 1913 Powlett River
Cornford James b1905 Rutherglen
Cornford Robert b 1902 Dunbulbalane
Cornford James b 1891 Merino
Cornford Caleb Samuel b 1892 b Dunbulbalane
I cannot substanciate this as fact however Caleb was my grandfather and sure that his details are correct. I do not know whether there were more children. My mother Alma May Cornford was born Powlett River 1914, who was the 1st daughter of Caleb Samuel and Ellen Annie Martin b 1894 Clemetston Vic.
Lots more work needs to be done.
Kevin
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Hi Kevin ,Thank you for the names they might help find out a little more .
This is not my family a friend had the 2 shoobridge families mixed up I sorted thate bit out Caleb and MaryCornford { Shoobridge } hail from Herstmonceux in Sussex U K .
Caleb changed his name several times after leaving Mary with 5 children in the depression he died some where on the Murray useing the name white. Thanks Elaine Sammut.
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And I thought my family respectable????????
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Hi Kevin ,
I dont know how true this is == Caleb Samuel Cornford 1829-1909.Tricked Mary Shoobridge 1830- 1913. into thinking they were married by asking a friend to pretend to be a minister she was only 15== this seems to be a family story .
Elaine.
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Respectability gone right out the door.
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Enjoyed reading the comments re Caleb Samuel Cornford and Mary Shoobridge who are my husband Russell’s Great Great Grandparents. Their son James Cornford married Jabina Agnes Gilbert and one of their sons William James born in 1897 in Dunbulbalane Victoria is Russell’s Grandfather who actually had 2 families. The first wife Russell’s Grandmother name is Gertrude Ethel Sutcliffe and the second wife from the Robinvale area was Annie White.
Look forward to hearing more comments.
Pam
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HI Pam ,
Your family is the same as the the lady I was helping . her gran was Gertrude E Sutcliffe .
I have not heard from her as she is away will pass this on when I can.
Elaine.
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The Lady above is married to my cousin Russell, I can validate her information as correct
Rita
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