______
THE
WORBOYS FAMILY
FROM GROG SHOPS
TO
LAY PREACHING
Compiled by Robyn Hamilton
2004
CONTENTS
INTRODUCTIONp5
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTSp6
GENERATION CHARTSp7
1st Generation William Worboys & Ann Wilmotp11
2nd GenerationWilliam Worboysp15
Edward Worboysp16
James Worboysp17
Sarah Worboysp19
Henry Worboysp19
Thomas Worboysp20
3rd GenerationWilliam Worboysp22
Mary Ann Worboys (nee Tott)p25
Samuel Worboysp27
Hannah Worboysp27
Kitty Ballp28
4th GenerationAnn Gillardp32
Joseph Worboysp34
George Worboysp35
Josiah Worboysp45
Augusta Cumminsp46
David Worboysp51
Martha Worboysp56
Charles Worboysp56
Albert Worboysp57
Ellen Worboys (nee Crampton)p62
Mary Hallp64
5th GenerationMary Worboysp67
William Worboysp68
Ada Wilkinsp69
David Worboysp72
Maud Atkinsonp74
Ethel Hallp76
Albert Worboysp77
Ariel Shanahanp79
Minnie Dohertyp81
Eva Peadep82
CONTENTS
6th GenerationPercy Worboysp85
Phyllis Worboys (nee Carroll)p87
7th GenerationGordon Worboysp92
MarieStevensp95
Desmond Worboysp97
Kenneth Worboysp100
Darcy Worboysp105
Index
INTRODUCTION
Since Worboys was quite an uncommon name in my home town of Lismore, I
foolishly thought it would take no time at all to wrap up the family history, but
how wrong was I! As I gradually found out snippets of information here and
there, before I knew it research had lead to England where I was knee-deep
in families with the surname of Worboys.
Some 260 years ago our name was spelt a variety of ways (just to confuse the issue) such as Warbois, Warboyce and Warboys, but it appears we
were nearly all one and the same. Before the 1700’s records become very
scant, especially for the working class which is the category our ancestors
seem to fall in. Life for our labouring forefathers in rural England was simple
but far from easy. They dealt with poverty, destitution and drudgery and the
Industrial Revolution forced many folk from their homes in search for a better
living elsewhere.
This small history begins with our William Worboys, a man of little notoriety
or position. His way of life would have been repeated by future generations
with no avenue open to them to gain a better foothold in the country. Was
this the reason that enticed William’s grandson to Australia, opting for a
brighter and more prosperous future than what his homeland could offer?
That long sea voyage marked the beginning of our various Worboys
branches, into a young colony full of promise. However, it wasn’t all plain
sailing once the new migrants arrived and our family was no exception. Fatal,
‘addictive habits, remarriage and a step-family were soon to follow which
eventually led to a multitude of descendants.
From William I have attempted to record the Worboys story through his
descendants namely James (b 1781), William (b1807), Albert (b1849),
Ada (b1874), Percy (b1891) and Kenneth (b1920). They share the common
denominator of being hardworking, ordinary people but leading us through
the migration from England to Sydney, then their journey further north within
NSW. William’s descendants were certainly a mixed bunch ranging from farm
workers, bootmakers, lay preachers, housewives and tonsorial artist.
I have recorded a small biography on each family member within the selected
branches, so hopefully this collection will be of interest to future generations
and will encourage them to continue on with the interesting and rewarding
world of family history.
ACKNOWLEGEMENTS
To my good friend, Dianne Morris, whose memory I will always
cherish.
I owe a very big thankyou to all those family members and relatives
who gave up their time to supply information, especially Arnold
Worboys, Merle Kavanagh, Jennifer McLeod, Arthur Hall, Helen
Holtby and Beverly Collins. A special thankyou to my parents,
Ken and Pauline Worboys, who battled through my constant
questioning and whose financial assistance was invaluable.
Last but not least to the Macleay River Historial Society, and
Lorraine Stacker from the Penrith City Library who answered
my research enquiries thoroughly and generously.
GENERATION CHART
1st Generation
William Worboys mar 1776 Ann Wilmot
b 1737/1757 b 1748
d 1812/1825 d 1793
______
2nd Generation
1 William Worboys4 Sarah Worboys
b 1777 b 1784
d 1829 d 1837/1838
m1 Rebecca Heath m Samuel Gentle
m2 Mary Whitehead
2 Edward Worboys5 Henry Worboys
b 1779 b 1786
d 1838 d 1861
m1 Elizabeth Walduck m Sarah Strickland
m2 Harriet Garrett
3 James Worboys6 Thomas Worboys
b 1781 b 1789
d …? d 1870
m Ann Webb m Ruth …?
______
GENERATION CHART
3rd Generation
(Children of James Worboys & Ann Webb)
1 William Worboys3 Hannah Worboys
b 1807 b 1811
d 1851 d 1818
m Mary Ann Tott
2 Samuel Worboys4 Kitty Worboys
b 1809 b 1820
d 1843? d 1887
m William Ball
______
4th Generation
(Children of William Worboys & Mary Ann Tott)
1 Ann Worboys6 David Worboys
b 1829 b 1841
d 1864 d 1913
m James Gillard m Ann Squires
2 Joseph Worboys7 Martha Worboys
b 1831 b 1843
d 1832 d 1843
3 George Worboys8 Charles Worboys
b 1834 b 1845
d 1908 d …..?
m Ann Butler m ….?
4 Josiah Worboys9 Albert Worboys
b 1835 b 1849
d 1854 d 1892
m Ellen Crampton
5 Augusta Worboys10 Mary Worboys
b 1836 b 1851
d 1903 d 1933
m Thomas Cummins m William Hall
______
GENERATION CHART
5th Generation
(Children of Albert Worboys & Ellen Crampton)
1 Mary Worboys6 Ethel Worboys
b 1869 b 1881
d 1885 d …?
M Arthur Hall
2 William Worboys7 Albert Worboys
b 1872 b 1884
d 1894 d 1973
m Ruby Nelson
3 Ada Worboys8 Ariel Worboys
b 1874 b 1887
d 1951 d 1969
m Ernest Wilkins m John Shanahan
4 David Worboys9 Minnie Worboys
b 1877 b 1888
d ….? d 1964
m Elizabeth Connors m Sydney Doherty
5 Maud Worboys10 Eva Worboys
b 1879 b 1891
d 1945 d 1967
m William Atkinson m Patrick Peade
6th Generation
(Child of Ada Worboys)
Percy Worboys mar 1913 Phyllis Carroll
b 1891 b 1895
d 1962 d 1953
______
GENERATION CHART
7th Generation
(Children of Percy Worboys & Phyllis Carroll)
1 Gordon Worboys4 Kenneth Worboys
b 1913 b 1920
d 1994 d 1996
m1 Margaret Healy m Pauline Lovett
m2 Beryl Woodbury
2 Marie Worboys5 Darcy Worboys
b 1914 b 1923
d 1955 d 2001
m Robert Stevens m Kathleen Henley
3 Desmond Worboys
b 1917
d 1996
m Theresa Walsh
______
IST GENERATION
WILLIAM WORBOYS
ANN WILMOT
WILLIAM WORBOYS
b 1737/1757
d 1812/1825
S
tepping on the road that leads us back to our forefathers is a long one indeed. That road that was full of u-turns, steep declines and dead ends begins in the United Kingdom within the counties of Cambridgeshire and Hertfordshire. These districts housed a vast number of Worboys families and next door in the neighbouring county of Huntingdonshire there is a parish, manor house and fen (marshy woodland) that bears our ancestral name! Is this where it all started for the Worboys clan?
The large parish of Warboys covers 8,435 acres, of which nearly three-quarters of the area is arable land, producing corn, beans and potatoes. Warboys Wood and Pingle Wood are now the only remaining pieces of woodland covering about 110 acres. Therefore, not a surprise that the name Warboys is derived from the Old French, meaning a ‘wood guard’ or forester. The manor house has passed down through many titled hands, thought to begin with Sir John Leman in 1622 along to its last known resident of Mr G L Elkins JP.
Our particular branch of the family begins south of Huntingdonshire in the smaller parish of Steeple Morden in Cambridgeshire. Our history rests on the shoulders of a man who spent his life anonymously, without achieving any proven fame or fortune. It is thought our ancient ancestor was from a humble background, like the majority of Englishmen during the 1700s. Little is recorded on their individual way of life, although history has revealed to us the hard struggle that was all too common to the working classes.
The true identity of our William has come down to just two men. It is believed he was born in Steeple Morden, 2 May 1737, son of John and Anna Maria Worboys (nee Brown). However, there is a second William, also born in Steeple Morden, 4 December 1757, the child of John and Sarah Worboys. To date, records haven’t been able to disclose William’s occupation or place of abode in the village. In fact, decades pass before we hear of William again, not until he takes his nuptials. In the neighbouring county of Hertfordshire William married Ann Wilmot, 19 November 1776, in the parish of Ashwell. His wife is believed to be the daughter of Edward and Jane Wilmot (nee Ball), baptised 28 August 1748. She was one of five children with her family mainly consisting of girls. Mary was her eldest sister who preceded William, Elizabeth and Jane.
Ann and William certainly didn’t waste time commencing their own family with their first son, William jnr, arriving in July 1777. More boys followed with Edward in 1779, James 1781 (my 4xg-grandfather), Sarah 1784, Henry 1786 and baby Thomas 1789. Little else is known of this family group, but fortunately, I was able to view the overseers accounts which gives an indication of village life within Ashwell. It covered the period of the early1700s and 1800s and by todays standards these accounts proved both interesting and amusing.
There were a multitude of Worboys folk mentioned on the weekly disbursement lists (a William amongst them) who were paid for a variety of jobs. These included gathering loads of stone; ditching in the common; working in the gravel pits; for supplying wine and mutton to the poor house; as watchman and woodsman and the job of bell-ringer. They were even paid for collecting sparrows (by the dozen), also moles and bundles of faggots (sticks and twigs). I was delighted to see the name of a William and Elizabeth Worboys being nominated as an overseer and church warden!
Occasionally our name appears on the paupers list at the workhouse, mainly the widows and single mothers, along with the aged and infirm. Another interesting piece discovered in the accounts read:-
(1776) – Fifty pounds in the money to be given to 25 poor widows
belonging to the parish at the rate of 40 shillings each which was
done accordingly, the last widow receiving her legacy at this time
… This was given by Mrs Gilley’s charity…
Among those named on the poor widow’s listings were:-
Anna Maria Worboys – widow of John – gardener
Jane Wilmot – widow of Edward – butcher
From this point in time the modest life of William and his kin passes by in an elusive fashion. Even a positive burial entry for William in the church register is unclear, but it is thought our William was laid to rest 29 September 1812. Or if indeed it is the younger William another burial was recorded in Ashwell 26 December 1825. Ann is believed to have died some years before her husband, interred 2 August 1793. Except for sons’ William and Thomas, none of the headstones in the village churchyards were engraved with the family’s names, so obviously the latter years for both William and Ann ended just as they had begun – humble.
After scanning the Bishop’s Transcripts, plus the early census for Ashwell and Guilden Morden, the lives of William’s children can now unfold, although for some,
there is barely a hint of their existence.
______
Source: Parish Registers of Steeple Morden, Camb, Eng, MFLM 0990377,LDS, Isle of Capri, Qld
Bishop’s Transcripts of Ashwell, Hert, Eng MFLM 1040853, LDS
Overseers Accounts (weekly) for Ashwell, Hert, Eng MFLM 1564580 & 1564581, LDS
Monumental Inscriptions for Ashwell, Hert, Eng, MFLM 0091734, LDS
2ND GENERATION
Children of
William Worboys & Ann Wilmot
William
Edward
James
Sarah
Henry
Thomas
This second generation of the Worboys folk begins in the latter half
of the 18th century, when the Industrial Revolution was starting
to make a mark in the country. Old ways of life were slowly being
put to rest. The introduction of the mechanical age effected masses
of people both in the country areas and large towns. The farmers,
and particularly the labourers, found that a steady, paying job was
difficult to maintain as their way of life for decades past was dramat-
ically changing, their muscle and know-how replaced by farm
machinery.
This caused a floating population, labourers and servants leaving the rural
districts in the hope of finding work in the factories and coal industries.
Towns became overcrowded with the starving poor, who relied on parish
relief to be feed and clothed.
Naturally, we will be left ignorant of the fate of William and Ann’s off-
spring, whether they were able to maintain a simple farming existence
or whether they fell victim to hardships and disease, as records can
never disclose life within each small cottage.
Attempts to find a last resting place for most of their children was
unsuccessful, but finding their birth records was, dare I say it – simple.
They were all registered within the parish of Ashwell, arriving at
a steady pace of only two or three years apart. Some were stamped
with the namesake of parents and grandparents, but from that point on,
research was far from being ‘simple’.
______
WILLIAM WORBOYS
b 1777
d1829
W
illiam was the first child who fell into this category. Even though the church register for Ashwell had neatly entered his baptism, 27 July 1777, the son of William and Ann, future research for this particular man was quite daunting, compounded by the numerous ‘Williams’ listed within the parish.
It is believed that when a young man William married Rebecca Heath, 10 March 1796, and soon afterwards baby William arrived. More sons were to follow with Thomas in 1798, Samuel 1800 and daughter Elizabeth in 1802 (died 1802). During these years William’s occupation was noted as a poulterer and higgler, something definitely not heard of in this day and age.
Only a few short weeks after baby Elizabeth’s death, the burial of a Rebecca Worboys was entered in the register, 26 May 1802. If indeed this is our Rebecca it would account for a William Worboys (widower) remarrying a few years later to Mary Whitehead, 23 September 1805.
Brief though it is hopefully the above details relate to our particular William, as nothing more is noted for the family. Years later he was absent from the 1841 and 1851 census for Ashwell, so perhaps it was his death after all that occurred in the village, 11 April 1829 at the age of 52.
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Source: Bishops’s Transcripts of Ashwell, Hert, Eng MFLM 1040853, LDS, Isle of Capri, Qld
EDWARD WORBOYS
b 1779
d 1838
E
dward was the second boyin the family, baptised in the village of Ashwell 2 May 1779. Its evident he followed in his older brothers footsteps, leaving behind a patchy trail to follow, which had long become cold and overgrown with the passing of time.
Fortunately, we know that Edward married, twice in fact. His first wife is thought to have been Elizabeth Walduck, marrying in Ashwell, 2 November 1803. One son, William was born to the couple but he perished as an infant in October 1804. Elizabeth must have shared the same fate as her son (an Elizabeth Worboys buried 17 June 1807), because Edward was discovered marrying again, 3 October 1808, to Harriet Garrett. This second marriage produced Edward jnr baptised 1809, Thomas 1811, Ann 1814, Mary 1818, Jabez 1820, Henry 1823 and Matilda 1827.
It seems Edward and Harriet may have moved from Ashwell to surrounding parishes, namely Newnham, being the place where a number of their children were christened. Perhaps this was in aid to secure work or maybe there were relatives living in the area. Regrettably, little else is noted for the Worboys couple, even an occupation for Edward is uncertain, but probably a farm worker of some discription, like so many others.
It would appear that Edward was the first to pass away, buried at Hitchen during March 1838. Harriet survived him by another nine years, laid to rest in her mid sixties in 1849. During the mid 1850s some of their children, namely Ann (later Seymour), Jabez and Edward jnr, migrated to Australia and created more descendants throughout the Orange district in NSW and later in the northern Richmond River area.
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Source: Bishop’s Transcripts of Ashwell, Hert, Eng, MFLM 1040853, LDS
Information on Edward’s marriages, their issue and migration details, courtesy of
Arnold Worboys, PO Box 754, Tewantin, Qld
JAMES WORBOYS
b 1781
d …. ?
J
ames was discovered living amongst his kin within their home parish of Ashwell in the gentle, rolling countryside of Hertfordshire. It comprised of good farming land so most of the villagers were engaged in agricultural work, James being amongst them. The parish had the additional trade of malt production which of course is an essential ingredient for brewing beer – aahh!, so this is the place where the Worboys men developed their big taste of the ‘amber liquid’!
It certainly took a bit of digging to pinpoint our James as there was an avalanche of Worboys men bearing the same name. However, after endless months of viewing census records, indexes, church registers, marriage banns, plus utilising my arithmetic, it seems James was patiently marking time so he could be added to this family tree.
He was born in the year 1781, baptised 22 July (a date that is significant for two of his descendants, Albert and Kenneth Worboys). He was third child of William and Ann with more brothers and sister to follow.
Living in a farming community James probably started work while still a young lad, as early as four or five years old for some youngsters! The children of the family usually joined their parents who toiled away in the fields from sunrise to sunset. The seasons employment was dealt with at the large ‘Hiring Fairs’ which took place each year on Michaelmas Day (the feast day of St Michael). The farmer and labourer usually made an agreement regarding wages and length of employment, plus the village folk enjoyed the fun and festivities of a big fair.
It appears James didn’t stray too far from home because when a young man in his mid twenties he took his marriage vows in Ashwell. James and his bride, Ann Webb, celebrated their wedding on Christmas Day in 1806. Ann’s background has proved more difficult to piece together. Her marriage details claim she was a resident of Ashwell, but have had no success in finding her baptism. Although, in the next-door parish of Guilden Morden there is a Hannah Webb born in 1781, the right time frame, as a later document of 1841 discloses she was virtually the same age as James.
The young couple had quite a small family of four children being William born 1807 (my 3xg-grandfather), Samuel 1809, Hannah 1811 and after an interval of nine years young Kitty arrived in 1820. The church that recorded all these events was dedicated to St Mary which supported a tower and spire of 125ft high. The vicarage housed four friars and was rated in the King’s books of an annual income of 22 pounds, 3 shillings and 6 and a half pence.