Little is known
of Lewis' early years. However, he and his family were frequently afoul of the
game laws. His father and elder brothers were regularly fined or imprisoned for
poaching pheasants, hare and fish.[2]
In 1812, Lewis
(20) joined the navy. Between 15 August 1812 and 11 May 1816, as one of around
300 sailors on board the fifth rate frigate HMS
Narcissus, Lewis sailed across the northern Atlantic and down to the
Caribbean.[3]
By 1818 he was
living back in rural Wiltshire, where on 20 October he had an assault charge
dropped against him.[4] Then
on 29 October 1818, Lewis and five others travelled north to the Faringdon
fair.[5] On
their return, they stole a quantity of hens and a pheasant from a farmer William
Arkell at Ashbury, around 16.5 kilometers from Froxfield.[6]
Apprehended two
days later, they were tried at the Epiphany Berkshire court sessions in
Reading. Lewis, four of his brothers and his cousin were each sentenced to
seven years transportation.[7]
The magistrate described them as "notorious bad characters, desperate and
dangerous men, and a gang that had terrorised the district around
Hungerford".[8]
Soon after, Lewis and his brothers were handcuffed and
chained together, and at two in the morning they were taken from the prison and
marched 75 kilometres from Reading to Portsmouth.[9]
Lewis, his
brothers and cousin were imprisoned on Leviathan
for 98 days. On 20 April 1819, Lewis was transferred to the merchant ship John Barry, built in 1814 in Yorkshire. This
was her maiden voyage to Australia.[13]
As well as
Lewis, 79 other convicts from Leviathan
and 60 convicts from Laurel, the
other prison hulk moored at Portsmouth were brought on board John Barry that day.[14]
Three days after
Lewis came on board, two more convicts were brought onto John Barry from Leviathan,
bringing the total complement of convicts to 142, all men. Over the next few
days, provisions came on board, and on 29 April, a bag of letters and
despatches for Governor Macquarie.[16] Also
on board John Barry was John Thomas
Bigge, the Commissioner of Inquiry into the colony of New South Wales.[17]
During the
voyage, Bigge asked Lewis' brother Decimus about his choice to be transported
to New South Wales, rather than remain on the prison hulk. Decimus said he'd
"heard a good account of it".[18]
On 30 April, after 10 days preparing for the voyage, John Barry finally sailed at noon.[19] It
was the practice of many convict ships to sail direct from England to Australia
without stopping.[20] John Barry passed Madeira, but didn't
anchor there. However on 2 July, she anchored at Rio de Janeiro, where she
stayed for 15 days. They took on a supply of fresh beef, vegetables and fruit
for the convicts, along with casks of water. From Rio, her voyage continued
uneventfully until 6 September 1819, when the ship narrowly escaped being
burned by a smoking candle.[21] However,
John Barry escaped unscathed and at
10 o'clock on 26 September 1819, she anchored in Sydney Cove and was saluted by
13 guns.[22]
There are no online
records regarding Lewis' first assignment on
arrival in New South Wales. His next appearance in online records is at
the general muster in 1822. Three years after arriving in the colony, Lewis was
still assigned to hard physical labour, working on a road building gang for
Cummins at Liverpool.[24]
Just under a month
later, Lewis' assignment changed. On 8 October 1822, Lewis Tarrant was
appointed as the overseer of 22 convicts from the Sydney Convict Barracks to
clear 100 acres of land for George Hall, a free settler at Windsor.[25]
The work had
finished by December 1823, when Lewis was awarded a Ticket of Leave at
Parramatta. In the same week, his brother Decimus received a Ticket of Leave at
Minto.[27]
They had been in the colony for just over four years. In May of 1824, Lewis was
living with Richard Hyde, and apparently his ticket of leave was carried away
by other convicts.[28] A
replacement was issued on 16 September 1824.[29]
On 12 January 1826, along with his brothers George, Decimus,
William and Thomas, and his cousin Thomas Pithouse, Lewis was granted a
Certificate of Freedom.[30] Aged
33, 5'8 1/2 inches tall, with brown hair, hazel eyes and a sallow complexion, labourer
Lewis Tarrant was free to work and live where he chose in the colony of New
South Wales.
On 5 November 1838, at St Peter's
parish in Richmond, Lewis (46), married Jane Jackson (29), who had arrived free
on the female emigrant ship Canton in
1835.[31] They
lived in Kurrajong, 11 kilometers above Richmond in the Blue Mountains.[32]
Lewis and his brother Thomas lived on land owned by William Lawson. The
brothers grew fruit and vegetables. Thomas also operated a licensed premises.[33]
His brother Decimus and cousin Thomas Pithouse also lived at Kurrajong.[34]
Between 1839 and 1849, Lewis and Jane had six
children.[35]
On 23 July 1857, Lewis died as a pauper at the Windsor benevolent asylum.[36] He
was buried at St Matthew's Anglican cemetery.[37]
Bibliography
Barry's
ship owners and shipbuilders of Whitby, Whitby Literary and Philosophical
Society, Yorkshire.
Bennet,
Henry Grey, Letter to Viscount Sidmouth: on the transportation laws, the
state of the hulks and the colonies in New South Wales, J Ridgway, London,
1819.
Bennett,
J.M., 'Bigge, John Thomas (1780–1843)', Australian Dictionary of Biography,
National Centre of Biography, Australian National University,
http://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/bigge-john-thomas-1779/text1999, published
first in hardcopy 1966, accessed online 4 June 2018.
Bowman,
J, Surgeon and Superintendant, John Barry, UK, Royal Naval Medical
Journals, 1817-1857. The National Archives ref ADM 101/38/1, Ancestry, Accessed
4 June 2018.
Burials
in the Parish of St Matthew in the County of Cumberland 1857.
Butts
of Certificates of Freedom. NRS 1165, 1166, 1167, 12208, 12210, reels 601, 602,
604, 982-1027. State Records Authority of New South Wales, Kingswood, New South
Wales. Ancestry. Accessed 4 June 2018.
"Canton"
arrived 8 September 1835, New South Wales Government. Persons on early migrant
ships (Fair Copy). Series 5310, Reel 1286. State Records Authority of New South
Wales, Kingswood, New South Wales. Ancestry. Accessed 4 June 2018.
Copies
of letters sent within the Colony. Series 937, Reels 6004-6016. State Records
Authority of New South Wales. Kingswood, New South Wales, Australia. Ancestry.
Accessed 4 June 2018.
Gallop,
Alan, Six for the Tolpuddle Martyrs, Pen and Sword, 2017.
General
muster, Home Office: Settlers and Convicts, New South Wales and Tasmania; (The
National Archives Microfilm Publication HO10, Pieces 5, 19-20, 32-51); The
National Archives of the UK (TNA), Kew, Surrey, England. Ancestry. Accessed 4
June 2018.
HMS
Narcissus,
British Royal Navy Allotment Declarations 1795-1852. The National Archives, ADM
27/20.
Jackson,
R. V. 2006. "Sickness and Health on Australia's Female Convict Ships,
1821-1840." International Journal Of Maritime History 18, no. 2: 65-84.
Historical Abstracts, EBSCOhost accessed June 4, 2018
Jones,
Eric L., Landed Estates and Rural Inequality in English History,
Palgrave Pivot, Cham, 2018 p85, 89-92. Springer Link ebook.
New
South Wales Government. 1841 Census: Householders’ returns and affidavit forms.
CGS 1281, Reels 2508-2509. State Records Authority of New South Wales.
Kingswood, New South Wales, Australia, Accessed 4 June 2018.
Registry
of Births, Deaths and Marriages New South Wales.
Special
Bundles, 1794-1825. Series 898, Reels 6020-6040, 6070; Fiche 3260-3312. State
Records Authority of New South Wales. Kingswood, New South Wales, Australia.
Ancestry. Accessed 4 June 2018.
State
Archives NSW; Series: NRS 12200; Item: [4/4060]; Fiche: 753. Ancestry. Accessed
4 June 2018.
Sydney Gazette and New South Wales
Advertiser
Tarrant
to Watts, email, 4 June 2018.
'UK,
Prison Hulk Registers and Letter Books, 1802-1849', Home Office: Convict Prison
Hulks: Registers and Letter Books; Microfilm, H09, 5 rolls. The National
Archives, Kew, England. Accessed 6 May 2018.
Wiltshire
Church of England Parish Registers, Wiltshire and Swindon History Centre,
Chippenham, Wiltshire, England.
Windsor & Eton Express.
Windsor and Richmond Gazette
Final
Author's Note.
While researching Lewis Tarrant for this
biographical sketch, I reached out to people via Facebook groups and email
addresses posted on Ancestry boards. At the eleventh hour, I received a wealth
of information from a descendant of Lewis' brother Thomas Tarrant. This
included information about a book recently published by a friend of his,
Professor Eric L Jones from Latrobe University. There is a small reference to
the Tarrant brothers in this book. I was not aware of the existence of this
book until 4 June 2018, and I fear it was too late at that stage to change the
subject of my assignment. I hope that my sketch demonstrates that I have done
my own research, and I have not relied solely on the research of an
accomplished and distinguished author in the compilation of my assignment.
[1] Baptism of Lewis Tarrant.
Wiltshire Church of England Parish Registers, Wiltshire and Swindon History
Centre, Chippenham, Wiltshire, England.
[2] Eric L Jones, Landed Estates and Rural Inequality in
English History, Palgrave Pivot, Cham, 2018 p85, 89-92. Springer Link
ebook.
[3] Registers of allotments and
allotment declarations, HMS Narcissus,
British Royal Navy Allotment Declarations 1795-1852. The National Archives, ADM
27/20
[4] Mike
Tarrant to Jillian Watts, email, 4 June 2018, original held in author's
possession. Contains research conducted jointly between Mike Tarrant and Eric
L. Jones, with reference to Berkshire court records.
[8] Tarrant
to Watts, email, 4 June 2018
[10] Ancestry, Prison Hulk Leviathan
register for Lewis Tarrant, 'UK, Prison Hulk Registers and Letter Books,
1802-1849', Home Office: Convict Prison Hulks: Registers and Letter Books;
Microfilm, H09, 5 rolls. The National Archives, Kew, England. Accessed 6 May
2018.
[12] Henry Grey Bennet, Letter to Viscount Sidmouth: on the
transportation laws, the state of the hulks and the colonies in New South Wales,
J Ridgway, London, 1819 p28
[13] Lewis Tarrant, Prison Hulk Leviathan
register; Records of Barry's ship owners and shipbuilders of Whitby, Whitby
Literary and Philosophical Society, Yorkshire
[14] Ancestry, J Bowman, Surgeon and
Superintendant, John Barry, UK, Royal
Naval Medical Journals, 1817-1857. The National Archives ref ADM 101/38/1,
Accessed 4 June 2018
[17] J. M. Bennett, 'Bigge, John
Thomas (1780–1843)', Australian Dictionary of Biography, National Centre of
Biography, Australian National University,
http://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/bigge-john-thomas-1779/text1999, published
first in hardcopy 1966, accessed online 4 June 2018.
[20] R.V. Jackson,. 2006.
"Sickness and Health on Australia's Female Convict Ships, 1821-1840."
International Journal Of Maritime History 18, no. 2: 65-84. Historical
Abstracts, EBSCOhost accessed June 4, 2018
[24] Ancestry, Lewis Farrant, General
muster, Home Office: Settlers and Convicts, New South Wales and Tasmania; (The
National Archives Microfilm Publication HO10, Pieces 5, 19-20, 32-51); The
National Archives of the UK (TNA), Kew, Surrey, England. Accessed 4 June 2018.
The name Tarrant is often transcribed as Farrant in online records.
[25] Ancestry, New South Wales
Government. p347. Copies of letters sent within the Colony. Series 937, Reels
6004-6016. State Records Authority of New South Wales. Kingswood, New South
Wales, Australia. Accessed 4 June 2018.
[28] Ancestry, p127-128, New South
Wales Government. Special Bundles, 1794-1825. Series 898, Reels 6020-6040,
6070; Fiche 3260-3312. State Records Authority of New South Wales. Kingswood,
New South Wales, Australia. Accessed 4 June 2018.
[29] Ancestry, Ticket of Leave for
Lewis Farrant [Lewis Tarrant], State Archives NSW; Series: NRS 12200; Item:
[4/4060]; Fiche: 753. Accessed 4 June 2018.
[30] Ancestry, Certificate of Freedom
for Lewis Farrant, New South Wales Government. Butts of Certificates of
Freedom. NRS 1165, 1166, 1167, 12208, 12210, reels 601, 602, 604, 982-1027.
State Records Authority of New South Wales, Kingswood, New South Wales.
Accessed 4 June 2018.
[31] Marriage certificate of Lewis
Tarrant and Jane Jackson, married 5 November 1838, Registry of Births, Deaths
and Marriages NSW 614/1838 V1838614 157; Ancestry, "Canton" arrived 8 September 1835, New South Wales Government.
Persons on early migrant ships (Fair Copy). Series 5310, Reel 1286. State
Records Authority of New South Wales, Kingswood, New South Wales. Accessed 4
June 2018.
[33] "Some
Ups and Dows of an old Richmondite, Mr Alfred Smith, Chronicled by Robert
Farlow, Windsor and Richmond Gazette,
6 August 1910, p14
[34] Marriage certificate of Decimus
Tarrant and Martha Mann, married 1838, Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages
NSW 609/138 V1838609 157; Ancestry, Census record for Thomas Pithouse, New
South Wales Government. 1841 Census: Householders’ returns and affidavit forms.
CGS 1281, Reels 2508-2509. State Records Authority of New South Wales. Kingswood,
New South Wales, Australia, accessed 4 June 2018
[35] Birth
Certificate of Lewis Tarrant, born 19 July 1839, Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages NSW 25/1839
V183925 158; Birth Certificate of Thomas Tarrant, born 28 December
1841, Registry of
Births, Deaths and Marriages NSW 1009/1841 V18411009 26A; Birth
Certificate of Esther Tarrant, born 9 March 1844, Registry of Births, Deaths and
Marriages NSW 261/1844 V1844261 158; Birth Certificate of Mary
Tarrant, born 26 March 1845, Registry
of Births, Deaths and Marriages NSW 1331/1844 V18441331 30A; Birth
Certificate of Elizabeth Tarrant, born 19 December 1847, Registry of Births, Deaths and
Marriages NSW 1209/1847 V18471209 33A; Birth
Certificate of Decimus Tarrant, born 26 September 1849, Registry of Births, Deaths and
Marriages NSW 1792/1849 V18491792 34A
[36] Death
Certificate of Louis Tarrant, died 23 July 1857, Registry of Births, Deaths and
Marriages NSW 4701/1857. Note that the first name is spelled incorrectly with
the alternative spelling of Louis instead of Lewis, and age is given as 70
years. The informant was the warden of the Benevolent Asylum, and it appears he
did not have many personal details. Jane Tarrant and her children had relocated
to live near Wollombi at that time, so she was not available to provide more
detail for the death certificate.
[37] Extracted
from "Burials in the Parish of St Matthew in the County of Cumberland in
the year 1857". A copy of this document was supplied to me personally by a
family friend. Parish records are not yet available online, although details of
marked graves at St Matthew's are available, Lewis/Louis Tarrant is not listed.
