Person:Griffith Joseph (1)

GRIFFITH JOSEPH and ELEANOR AUBREY and RACHEL HUGH by Carolyn Turner:

"Griffith Joseph aged 30, his wife Rachel aged 30, and his daughter Margaret aged 3, sailed from Liverpool on 28 May 1859 on the "Commodore Perry" and arrived in Melbourne on 25 August 1859 to go on their own account to Castlemaine. (Assisted Immigration, Book 13, Page 371).

"Griffith Joseph, aged 28, occupation Miner, and Eleanor Aubrey, aged 28, spinster, both from Brynamman, District of Llandilofawr, Carmarthenshire, Wales, were married on 3 November 1855, in Christ Church, District of Cwmamman, County of Carmarthen. On their marriage certificate their fathers'’ names and occupations were listed as David Joseph, labourer, and John Aubrey, labourer.

"Their parents were David Joseph and Sarah, and John Aubrey and Catharine. Griffith was born about 1827 in Llanedy, Carmarthenshire, Wales. His brothers and sisters were John born 1812, David born 1816, Anne born 1818, John born 1819, and William born 1821. There could be more siblings, as there are gaps between John and David, and William and Griffith.

"Eleanor was born in 1827 and had nine brothers and sisters. Elizabeth born 1817, Gwenllian born 1820, Maria born 1821, Jane born 1824, Elizabeth born 1826, twins David and Tobias born 1829, Daniel born 1831 and Jonah born 1834.

"Griffith and Eleanor’'s first child, a girl named Margaret was born on 24 March 1856 on Gwtterfawr, County of Glamorganshire, where Griffith was an iron miner. Eleanor died on 17 March 1858, aged 29, from childbirth hemorrhage, at Cwmgarw, Llangadock, Llandovery, County of Carmarthen, South Wales. It seems that the child also died as only one child, Margaret, came to Australia with Griffith and Rachel.

"Griffith went back to Gwtterfawr, Glamorganshire where he met and married his second wife Rachel Hugh. Her father was a Collier named David Hugh and her mother's name was Ellionor. Apparently they created some opposition to the marriage, perhaps because Griffith was only a miner. Maybe that was the reason for their emigration to Australia, because soon after the marriage they sailed from Liverpool on the “Commodore Perry” on 28 May 1859 and arrived in Melbourne on 25 August 1859 to go on their own account to Castlemaine, bringing with them his daughter Margaret aged 3.

"They settled at Sailors Gully near Eaglehawk where Griffith was a gold miner. They had four more children: David born 1860 (R/N 4628), Sarah born 1863 (R/N 1323), and twins John and William born 1865 (R/N's 10568 & 10567 respectively). John died on 6 May 1865 aged 1 day and William died on 6 February 1866 aged 9 months. Rachel died on 25 January 1866 aged 37 from Typhus Fever. They are all buried in the Eaglehawk Cemetery, grave number A23.

"Griffith moved the rest of his family into Eaglehawk where he had a business, possibly a Bootmaker. Some years later he moved to Melbourne where he again had a Bootmakers shop, in Bridge Road, Richmond. Margaret helped her father raise the younger children until she was old enough to be apprenticed to a Jewish tailor in Sandhurst (Bendigo) and became a good tailoress herself. She married Edward Henry Coleman. David grew up and went away to be a Missionary, possibly in Western Australia, but his fate is unknown after he left Melbourne.

"Sarah went to Western Australia some years later, presumably to look for him, though with no success, and settled in Kalgoorlie, a gold mining town, where she had a boarding house for sick miners. She made one trip back to Melbourne to see her sister but returned to Kalgoorlie and again her fate is not known. Apparently in about 1910 a Typhoid epidemic raged through the area and so many died in such a short time that some deaths were not registered.

"I have been unable to find a record of Griffiths’ death. I have searched from 1869 to 1913 in Victoria with no luck and to 1888 in Western Australia with the same lack of result. Maybe he went back to Wales and died there, but who knows."