Day 21 - Family History Writing Challenge

This post may not look like much but it took a great deal of head space to put together
How did John Ebbott acquire this wealth of Mining knowledge?  and is an effort to understand home John arrived at being a mine manager after beginning a career as a butcher, still alot more reading and work to be done!

Day 16 - Family History Writing Challenge

Understanding the environment someone lives is essential to understand why they got involved in something and what opportunities were available.  How did John move from butcher to mine manager if only we knew!  I've written up what I think might have been motivating forces and environment circumstances hope it all makes sense  Understanding John Ebbott's foray in the world of mining, its certainly taken me quite sometime to understand what's going on!

Photo 14 - Workers at the Garfield Mine

When I first started studying mining in relation to my mining ancestors who include both maternal lines (John Bassett) & my paternal Lines (John Ebbott) I heard about how the miners were sent over to Australia to set up English mining companies however those back in England were slow in getting organised so the miners took things into their own hands and pushed so that it would be more difficult for large companies/monopolies to come in and push the little miners out.
It  made for a great story but it wasn't until today that I found a reference to the events in the newspaper talking about the surveys taken in 1845, 25 years earlier.

"SURVEY - A few days ago we extracted from one of our country contemporaries an account of intended operations to develop resources of the estate known as the Tungkillo Special Survey, purchased by an English company in 1845" (1870 'THE INDUSTRIAL SCHOOLS OF VICTORIA.', South Australian Register (Adelaide, SA : 1839 - 1900), 29 June, p. 5, viewed 14 February, 2013, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article39195123)

and later in the same article refers to a similar report commissioned from the Argus Reef that was sent to Messrs.  Johnson & Matthey, assayers, of London.

Argus REff is in Chewton, Victoria, Australia and is where the very profitable Garfield Mine was built and the one, amongst other mines, that John Ebbott was heavily involved in.

Workers at Garfield mine

Note John Ebbott standing in amongst the men near the middle

The above photo was given to me by Silas Ellery, one of John Ebbott's decendants when I went to Chewton to visit him many years ago, Silas has now passed away.

Day 14 - Family History Writing Challenge

It has taken me a few days but I finally have some sort of coherent Time Line for John Ebbott it still needs some tweaking but it is well on its way.
I've colour coded the events in his life 
Blue lettering - births of children
Red Lettering - death of family members
Yellow shading - indicates activities involving mining - this can be misleading as there needs to be some contextual notes added to explain why some of the events in mining happened as they did eg changes in legislation etc.

Photo 11 - new beginings Forest Creek Victoria Australia

http://www.slv.vic.gov.au/pictoria/gid/slv-pic-aab69234

Daintree, Richard, 1832-1878, photographer.

The Ebbott family have travelled through rough terrain to get to their new home, I wonder what John's mother thought as she entered the town, prices were exorbitant.  The biggest building in the picture is the a in the upper left -  , the Mount Alexander Hotel and not a church steeple to be seen for as far as the eye can see.

Day 11 - Family History Writing Challenge

I have tired to set up the context for the activities that were going on around them when the Ebbott family first came to Australia A town without structure  still lots more to do but at least it is a beginning.

Photo 10 from Adelaide to Victoria

Forest Creek from road to Castlemaine 1857 

The Ebbott's cam to Australia in 1852 and family legend has it that they travelled across land to Victoria where they settle, other than family oral history I don't have any more evidence of how they travelled.  It always seemed more likely to me that they would have come by sea  if I review what was being advertised at the time in the newspapers

Advertisement for passage SA to Melbourne Saturday 4 September 1852

but then I am reminded of the words written in John Ebbott's obituary that said

"A long illness, however had proved very prejudicial to his temporal interests; and with a view to the improvement of his circumstances, and providing for his young family, he immigrated to Australia." The Wesleyan chronicle. (Publisher/Date: Melbourne : Shaw, Harnett & Co., 1857- ;  Location: Microfiche ; LTMF; Call Number: 131' Volume/Item: 1857:Oct. 1- 1875:Apr. 20;), 1867 page 8 Fiche 30.  

so there wasn't any money for the entire family to travel in such comfort particularly if the goal was to purchase a farm, all money must be set aside for that goal.

Land sales in The Argus Thursday 13 March 1856

There is a very interesting site from the Cornish Association of Victoria that deals with Overland from South Australia to the Victorian goldfields 1851-52; routes taken, modes of travel, conditions experienced which is fascinating and I am hoping one day to follow one of their guides and retrace the steps that my ancestors may have taken.  Now all I need is a travelling companion and money, camping on the side of the road doesn't really appeal to me.