Person:George Jackson (107)

On the 6th of April 1841 the ship Herald, a vessel of 9011 tons sailed from Greenwich bound for New South Wales . Ninety nine days later it dropped anchor in Sydney harbour; not having touched land en route.

           Included in the passenger list was Joseph Jackson aged 30, his wife aged 25 and with them were three children, Thomas, 5 ¾ , John 3 and William 1 ½ .  Another son George, my Grandfather, was born at Lane Cove on October 16, 1844. By way of occupation he carted sandstone by dray for many notable buildings in Sydney .
           He moved to Gulgong after several stops and took up a grant of 100 acres.  This property was left to his son George who settled there and raised six children, among them my father George William and five sisters.  George William inherited the property at his fathers death in 1920.  The family moved to Gunnedah where he attended school.  George went on to share-farm a wheat and dairy farm, at Werris Creek.
            Dominic Sonsi was born in Venice Italy in 1818.  He came to Australia and settled in Geelong .  In 1845 he married Catherine English, from Tipperary Ireland .  They moved to Creswick in the 1850’s and he worked as a gold miner.  John William Sonsie was born in Creswick on July 13, 1862, one of six children.  He married Louisa Betts whose parents were from England .

My mother Dorothea, born June 25, 1904, was one of twelve children born around the Creswick and Ballarat areas.

           Dorothea “Doris” as she was known, then in her early twenties, was working at the Federal Match factory in Richmond .  Inside a matchbox she placed her name and address.  This box found its way to Werris Creek to my father George.  He wrote back and correspondence ensued.  Eventually meeting and marrying in 1930.  He at 29 years and she at 25.  On April the 14th they had a son Eric  (me).  George died in 1934, three weeks before my sister Doris was born at Werris Creek.