The only information I had about James Hawkins on the Great Victoria's voyage to Moreton Bay in 1865-1866 was that he signed the petition to the Emigration Commissioner on behalf of two people. This indicated he may have been married.
There were three children born to James Hawkins and Eliza nee Luxton in Brisbane in the years soon after arrival. Looking back to English records, James Hawkins and Eliza Luxton's marriage was registered in the September quarter of 1865 in Exeter, Devon. There were quite a few newly-married couples on the ship.
The Hawkins family lived in Mt Gravatt near Brisbane for quite a few years. There are newspaper snippets showing their address was "Devonia" or Logan Road. James appears to have been a farmer and had a least a few sheep . He was proud to have raised a hawthorn tree on his property. He and his children donated various native animal remains to the Queensland Museum.
James Hawkins died in 1907, and was buried at South Brisbane Cemetery.
Eliza Hawkins died in 1922 and was buried in the same cemetery.
It is easy to trace Eliza's early years in England. She was the daughter of John Luxton and Grace Nicholls.
It is not as easy to identify the correct James Hawkins in England. The most likely one seems to be James Mumford Hawkins born in Berry Pomeroy, Devon, about January 1836, the son of James Hawkins (a brush maker) and Mary Ann nee Mumford.
Only one of James and Eliza's daughters married and had children.
An Allan POLONIES attested for the New Zealand Armed Constabulary at Melbourne on 12 December 1868 (the New Zealand Government was actively recruiting for constabulary at this time). He travelled to New Zealand in a draft of recruits per the ss OTAGO, arriving at Wellington on 24 December 1868 (source: Armed Constabulary recruited at Melbourne 1868 and arrived per ALHAMBRA, OTAGO, RANGITOTO, GOTHENBURG and OMEO).
ReplyDeleteHe served in No. 1 Division, New Zealand Armed Constabulary. He appears as Allan PALONIS (sic) in a Nominal Roll of that unit dated 23 July 1869 which was then based in the Bay of Plenty (source: Nominal Roll - Nominal Roll of No. 1 Division, Armed Constabulary as at 23 July 1869).
A different Armed Constabulary Nominal Roll records that Allan
POLONIES was aged 27 and 5’ 5” tall, an engineer born Ayr, Scotland. He had previously served in the Victoria Vol(unteer) Engineers during the years 1866-1868, although the latter was crossed out in the original document so may be incorrect (source: Nominal Roll - Nominal Roll, Divisions 1-9, Armed Constabulary 1867-1869).
A third Armed Constabulary Nominal Roll recorded his discharge: ‘Discharged own request’ on 13 November 1869 at Tauranga (source: Nominal Roll - Armed Constabulary Discharges 1869-1870).
I have no connection to this individual beyond private research on the Armed Constabulary.