Brief family history of Alfred Curtis Tuckett (1833-1904) and his
descendants.
15 June 2018
Alfred Curtis (AC) Tuckett was born
into a Quaker family in Mangotsfield, Gloucester. His family was originally
from the village of Frenchay, near Bristol. His father, also Alfred Tuckett
Esq, was a bit of a black sheep - he had married a cousin and ran various
businesses including a brewery, which was very much out of line with the Quaker
way of doing things. One of AC Tuckett's paternal uncles, Frederick Tuckett, was involved in the very early settlement of
New Zealand.
Whether inspired by the adventures of
his uncle or not, young AC Tuckett at 16 enroled in the merchant navy. At 24,
he left Bristol for Australia on 6 May 1857 on the Starlight, a medium clipper, arriving in Melbourne on 19 August
1857. I expect, based on various other records I have found, that he came with
the romantic notion of going to the goldfields.
By 1860, he was in the Wellington
district near Dubbo in New South Wales, and there are a couple of newspaper and
gazette advertisements trying to track him down.
The next sign of AC Tuckett was in
1867 at Skipton in central Victoria, where he, aged 34 married his wife, a 24
year old Irishwoman named Maria Bryans who had arrived as an assisted migrant
on the Gresham in 1863. At the time
of their marriage on 13 May 1867 at the manse in Skipton, she was working as a
domestic servant at the Terrinallum sheep station, and he was working as a fencer
on the neighbouring Stoneleigh
sheep station.
By 1868 the couple had moved around 30km north
to Beaufort, where their first daughter Helen was born. She was named after
Alfred's mother, Helen Curtis. In 1869, another daughter Lillian was born, and
their first son Curtis Alfred Tuckett was born in 1871. Two more sons followed,
Frederick William in 1873 and Francis John (Jack) in 1875, followed by another
daughter Maria Maud in 1877. The only record in newspapers of the Tuckett
family is a mention by AC Tuckett at the Riponshire Council meeting requesting
a drain be cut at the rear of his allotment on Main Lead road. It's possible he
was involved in cutting timber as he went on to do that at Violet Town.
At some point between 1877 when Maria
Maud was born, and 1879 when their next son Lewis Alan Tuckett was born, AC
Tuckett, his wife Maria and their six children aged under 12 moved around 275km
across Victoria from Beaufort to Marraweeney in the Strathbogies, where AC
Tuckett selected a 248 acre block of land, at a location near what is currently
the intersection of Horse Gully Rd and Harrys Creek Rd.
On that land he
built a "Good 6-Roomed House, and kitchen
detached, both built of Soft-wood, with Shingle Roof. 25 Acres have been Cultivated,
Good Garden of 2 acres, planted with Fruit and Ornamental Trees, Slab Fenced.
State School at one corner of the Land." They added another two sons -
Alexander born in 1883 and Philip Samuel Tuckett was the youngest of the family
of nine, born in 1885. When Philip was born, his oldest sister Helen was 17,
his father AC Tuckett was 52 and his mother Maria 42.
It seems that they had moved into
Violet Town at some point before Alexander and Philip were born, and certainly
records show that AC Tuckett had a colonial wine licence, and his wife Maria
was prioprioteress of a temperance hotel which was associated with the Violet
Town railway station.
Most of the Tuckett children attended
Violet Town school. The two eldest daughters went on to marry - Helen in
Albury, and Lillian in Benalla. Frederick and Jack both worked in the post
office at Violet Town, Fred also worked as a telegraph operator at Euroa post
office. He was the first of the Tuckett sons to venture a long way from home -
at 18 he sailed down the Murray on a paddle steamer to the new inland farming
settlement Mildura, where he worked in the makeshift post office there. He also
met his future wife at Mildura. In 1895, Frederick left for Western Australia,
he was quickly followed there by Jack. Fred went to Broome, Jack to Coolgardie
to work for the postal service. Later Lewis, Alexander and Philip would also
join the postal service and travel over to Western Australia.
AC and Maria Tuckett continued
operating their hostels and bars in Violet Town. AC Tuckett seems the sort of
man to have had several irons in the fire - he did some road
building, some timber contracting, book
selling and various other professions. He is
described in electoral rolls as being 'of independent means'. He had received
an inheritance from his father, but he had also been bankrupted in Benalla and
had various other financial straits during his time in Violet Town. There is no
record of his own estate being left after his death, so the truth of his
finances is not really clear.
AC Tuckett seemed very pleased with
his home in the Strathbogies. As early as 1880, he had written to the Leader newspaper in Melbourne stating
that the Kelly gang had never been in Strathbogie, and that there was not a more
honest place in the colony than
Strathbogie. He certainly enjoyed spending time out in the bush, as there are a
couple of references to his finding Aboriginal artefacts, some of which were
donated to a museum at Wangaratta.
AC Tuckett was instrumental in setting
up a rifle club
at Violet Town, being elected chaiman in 1885. He was also one of the people
who moved a motion to set up a separate shire
council for Violet Town.
In addition to the Tucketts, several
of his wife's family had come to live in the region. Her mother, Elizabeth
Bryans, her sister Margaret and her brother Samuel who married Elizabeth
Ann Block of Violet Town and had around 10
children. They lived in Euroa, and I believe descendants of the family still
live there - primarily with the family name Mawson.
On 1 January 1900, after a previous
narrow escape from fire in 1895, the Tuckett's property attached to
the railway station was destroyed
by fire. The property was described as being
wooden, and built by Mr Tuckett in around 1885. A piano was destroyed in the
fire, and the insurance of 300 pounds was nowhere near enough to cover the
loss.
The
Tucketts were still living in Violet Town for a couple of years. There was a
piece of land on the eastern side of the railway which AC Tuckett had been
renting on a garden licence. There seems to have been some administrative
trouble, about which he wrote a letter
to the editor of the Argus in December 1903. There is
currently an older style home built on that land, but I am unsure of the age of
the building. There is an article in the Euroa Advertiser talking about his
discovery of Aboriginal artefacts on that piece of land. This also mentions a
trunk plate belonging to the Hon Gilbert Kennedy, who was grandson of a Scottish nobleman and
had been injured in the area in around 1840.
The Tucketts donated money to the Boer
War memorial fountain, and I believe they may have had some involvement in
building of the Presbyterian church, although I can't be sure.
Just before his death, AC and Maria
Tuckett relocated from Violet Town to Caulfield. He died at a home in Mansfield
Grove, Caulfield in Melbourne, in July 1904 aged 70, and was buried in the
Presbyterian section of Kew cemetery. I believe that the property in Caulfield
may have been owned by a distant Tuckett relative.
Shortly after this death, Maria and
her daughter Maria Maud relocated to Western Australia, where her five youngest
sons were already living. She built a house in a part of Perth now known as
Carlisle, but which at the time was referred to as Steinway, near Welshpool. It
is possible that her niece, Helen Stanley, was living with Maria at that time.
On
the land at Rutland Avenue Carlisle, Maria raised goats and poultry. Her son
Jack and his wife had moved to live at Subiaco, and her sons Alexander, Lewis
and Philip left Kalgoorlie and were living with her. Alexander died at home
from either suicide or misadventure in 1912, then in 1914 Lewis enlisted in the
AIF and went to war. Jack and his eldest son also enlisted, and Philip did too.
Only Lewis returned from the war. She lost another son, Frederick, to bowel
cancer in early 1922 before she died in December of that year aged 79. Maria
Tuckett is buried at Karrakatta cemetery in Western Australia. The street
behind Rutland Avenue is named Tuckett Street after Maria and her family.
Tuckett children
Helen Tuckett (Stanley) 1868 - 1896
Born at Beaufort. Came to Marraweeney
/ Violet Town aged about 12. Married Frederick Stanley in 1891 at Wagga Wagga,
and died at Albury in 1896 aged . Two children William Gordon Stanley (1892)
and Helen Debelle Stanley (1896). I believe Helen may have lived with the
Tuckett family, and went to Western Australia with them as she married in
Fremantle in 1921.
Lillian Victoria Tuckett (McFarlane) 1869 - 1935
Born at Beaufort. Came to Marraweeney
/ Violet Town aged around 11. Married William McFarlane at Benalla in 1886. At
least 8 children, some born at Violet Town, some at Benalla.
Curtis Alfred Tuckett 1871 - 1948
Born at Beaufort. Came to Marraweeney
/ Violet Town aged around 8. Married Mildred McPherson at Broadford in 1903. At
least 6 children. Buried at Box Hill cemetery.
Frederick William Tuckett 1873 - 1922
Born at Beaufort. Came to Marraweeney
/ Violet Town aged around 7. Work as a post master and telegraph operator.
Moved to Broome WA and Lagrange Bay before marrying Annie Haworth, born at
Digby, school teacher in Mildura, who was 5 years older than him and travelled
up to Broome for their wedding in 1900. They travelled back to Violet Town for
the birth of their eldest daughter Marie Jean Pearl Tuckett in 1901. Their
second daughter (my grandmother) was born in Perth in 1904, although they were
still living at Lagrange Bay at the time. They later moved to Kanowna, near
Kalgoorlie, and then Halls Creek in the Kimberley. Fred was quite well known in
the postal community, he also performed quite a famous operation on an injured
stockman, getting instructions over the telegraph from a doctor based in Perth.
The incident inspired the Rev John Flynn to establish the Royal Flying Doctor
Service. Fred died quite young. His eldest daughter had died as a child, and
they had another daughter who died at birth, so their only surviving child was
their daughter Freda, my grandmother.
Francis John Tuckett 1875 - 1917
Born at Beaufort. Came to Marraweeney /
Violet Town aged around 4. Worked at the post office at Violet Town before
heading over to Kalgoorlie WA in 1895. May have worked at the Eucla telegraph
station also. Married Elspeth Morrison, who had been born at Beechworth, in
Kalgoorlie in 1898. Had six children, the eldest of whom Francis Curtis Tuckett
enlisted with him in the AIF for WW1. He was an accomplished sportsman and was
noted as playing in many tennis and cricket matches. During the war he was very
popular, and was presented with a cricket bat by his comrades which is now in
the WACA museum. Known as Jack, he was killed in action in Flanders in October
1917. His brother Lewis and son Francis were at the funeral service on the
front. His family settled in the south west of Western Australia. https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/R1670894
Maria Maud Tuckett 1877 - 1937
Born at Beaufort. Came to Marraweeney
/ Violet Town as an infant. I believe she was a musician, as in Western
Australia she was giving piano lessons to students. She didn't marry until
1930, when she was 53. She had no children.
Lewis Allen Tuckett 1879 - 1960
Born at Marraweeney. Lewis is recorded
in Violet Town newspaper records as a labourer, but he ended up in Western
Australia working for the postal service. He lived for several years in
Kalgoorlie, where he was captain of the postal workers cricket and football
teams and is often mentioned in the newspapers. He was married in August 1914
in Perth to Edith Keedwell, whose family were also from Gloucestershire near
Bristol. Shortly after he left to enlist
in the AIF, and was involved in the Gallipoli
landing as a signals officer. He was very
well regarded and promoted to Captain by the end of the war, as well as being
awarded bravery medals. He had one son, and was a prominent member of the RSL
in Western Australia.
Alexander Tuckett 1883 - 1912
Born at Violet Town. Alexander was in
Kalgoorlie working for the postal service from around 1900. He is mostly
recorded as a musician and accompanist. He is often mentioned in Kalgoorlie
papers in relation to musical pursuits. When his mother came to Western
Australia, Alexander got a job with the Department of Defence in Perth. In
1912, he was apparently untwell with fever like symptoms, either flu or
typhoid. While ill, he supposedly took
some hydrochloric acid in error.
This caused an almost immediate and painful death. Alexander was only 29 when
he died, he had no spouse or children.
Philip Samuel Tuckett 1885 - 1916
Born at Violet Town. Worked in the
post offices at Violet Town and Euroa. Philip was also working in Kalgoorlie,
playing cricket with his brother Lewis and perhaps breeding or racing dogs. He
also moved to the city when his family relocated to Western Australia. He
enlisted in 1916 in Victoria, and was killed in France in November of that
year. His brother Lewis had seen him at the front, and was
at the funeral. Philip was 31
when he died, and had not married. He had no children. https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/P10679392
Most of the photographs I have are
from public collections. Some I do not know the provenance - they simply came
from Ancestry. I have included what information I can.
I believe this shows - front Lillian, Curtis, Maria , Maria Maud, and rear Jack, Lewis and Alexander Tuckett
This is Maria, Philip, AC and Maria Maud Tuckett.
Letter carriers cricket team in WA, shows Philip the tall man in the centre back, Lewis in the centre front.
This is a group of Tucketts taken in Western Australia. The only one I can be sure of is Fred, back right, but I believe that Maria Tuckett may be centre front.
A cricket photo with Jack Tuckett
Lewis and Francis Curtis Tuckett
I believe this may be a photo of Maria Tuckett with her daughter Maud, daughter in law Elspeth and some grandchildren. It may not be them, no names are given.
Fred Tuckett, his daughter Pearlie (born at VT), Freda and Annie.
Memorial plaques on trees in Kings Park, Western Australia
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