Less than 18 months after burying her infant son Esther had another child, but this time the father was a man called
Thomas STUBBS.
Thomas too was a convict, having been tried on 26 May 1790 at the Old Bailey,
“THOMAS STUBBS was indicted for stealing, on the 8th of March, a cloth coat, value 42 s. a pair of velvet breeches, value 16 s. two shirts, value 6 s. a pair of silver knee-buckles, value 3 s. the property of William Cook; two coats, value 4 l. a waistcoat, value 10 s. a pair of breeches, value 10 s. the property of John Weyman, in the dwelling house of the said John Weyman”.
John Weyman provided interesting information about the purchase of one of the stolen garments:
“I went to a club burying; they said the person died of a putrid fever; and I got a bit of rue, which I tucked in”. Presumably there was a practice of selling off clothing of people recently deceased.
Several men, including two pawnbrokers, attested to ownership of the various garments and to their condition and likely value. One of the pawnbrokers operated a pawn shop in Chandler's-street, Grosvenor-square, and stated that he had known Thomas and his mother “ten or a dozen years” and that Thomas “always bore a good character”.
Although Thomas called seven witnesses all of whom attested to his good character the Jury found him guilty, and he was sentenced to be transported for seven years.
After only 6 months or so in prison Thomas left Plymouth on 27 March 1791, one of about 275 convicts on the Albemarle, including half a dozen women. During the voyage the convicts attempted to seize the ship, but were unsuccessful. Two convicts were executed for their part in the attempt,and to deter the remainder from any further attempts. After a voyage of 200 days,The Albemarle finally arrived in Port Jackson on 13 October 1791. Twenty three soldiers with one woman, one free woman (a convict's wife) and one child also arrived on the Albemarle.
The Albemarle was one of 11 ships that formed the Third Fleet which arrived in Port Jackson between July & October 1791. There were 1,879 male convicts, and 178 women convicts on board the ships of the Fleet, along with military personnel and notable people sent to fill high positions in the colony. More important for the fledgling colony was that the ships also carried provisions, which were in short supply for those who had arrived in the First and Second Fleets.
No record has been found of a marriage between Esther and Thomas, though this was not unusual in the circumstances in NSW at the time. The settlement was still in a somewhat precarious state and record keeping was not as thorough as it later became when resources were more readily available.
Thomas and Esther’s first child, Mary Anne (known as Marion) was born on the 28th May 1801. Eight more children were born in rapid and regular succession:
Thomas is said to have a builder, a skill for which there would have been great demand. Esther and Thomas were also known as “dealers” which involved selling goods from arriving ships. There are some reports in the newspapers of the time of them being involved in a few court cases, in one of which Thomas allegedly threatened to strike a man who was stealing quinces from their tree with a branch of said quince tree.
By August 1806, as indicated in the NSW General Muster, it seems that Esther had been granted a pardon at the discretion of the Governor, and her official status had become “Free By Servitude” . This ties in with information from the State Records of New South Wales website on Pardons: “Convicts with life sentences generally received pardons. In the formative years of the colony the Governor possessed the discretion to grant free pardons and conditional pardons as rewards for good behaviour, for special skills or for undertaking special responsibilities. Governor Macquarie introduced new regulations setting minimum periods to be served for both pardons and tickets of leave.” No record of a Ticket of Leave or Conditional Pardon have ever been found for Esther, so it is assumed that her pardon was one of these indulgences by Governor Macquarie. (research conducted by Janelle Collins, descendant of Marion STUBBS http://janellestree.blogspot.co.nz/)
Three months after their ninth child, Godfrey, was born Thomas died, on 11 January 1815, aged 41. He was buried in the Old Sydney Burial Ground, where his two infants Sophia and Godfrey had previously also been interred, along with Esther's son by John Fitz.
Esther was now a single mother to 11 children, the oldest of whom was only 17 and probably having to fend for herself or assist her mother with the upbringing of the younger children.
Esther though seems to have continued to be an enterprising woman. Less than a week after Thomas’s death she was awarded a grant of 80 acres of land, for which she was recommended by a Mr Oxley, who was a noted explorer and surveyor in the early period of British colonisation in Australia. It was noted in the records that she was a widow with a large family. The record doesn’t though reveal where the land so awarded was, though her name was recorded as Hester Stubbs.
Thomas STUBBS.
Thomas too was a convict, having been tried on 26 May 1790 at the Old Bailey,
“THOMAS STUBBS was indicted for stealing, on the 8th of March, a cloth coat, value 42 s. a pair of velvet breeches, value 16 s. two shirts, value 6 s. a pair of silver knee-buckles, value 3 s. the property of William Cook; two coats, value 4 l. a waistcoat, value 10 s. a pair of breeches, value 10 s. the property of John Weyman, in the dwelling house of the said John Weyman”.
John Weyman provided interesting information about the purchase of one of the stolen garments:
“I went to a club burying; they said the person died of a putrid fever; and I got a bit of rue, which I tucked in”. Presumably there was a practice of selling off clothing of people recently deceased.
Several men, including two pawnbrokers, attested to ownership of the various garments and to their condition and likely value. One of the pawnbrokers operated a pawn shop in Chandler's-street, Grosvenor-square, and stated that he had known Thomas and his mother “ten or a dozen years” and that Thomas “always bore a good character”.
Although Thomas called seven witnesses all of whom attested to his good character the Jury found him guilty, and he was sentenced to be transported for seven years.
After only 6 months or so in prison Thomas left Plymouth on 27 March 1791, one of about 275 convicts on the Albemarle, including half a dozen women. During the voyage the convicts attempted to seize the ship, but were unsuccessful. Two convicts were executed for their part in the attempt,and to deter the remainder from any further attempts. After a voyage of 200 days,The Albemarle finally arrived in Port Jackson on 13 October 1791. Twenty three soldiers with one woman, one free woman (a convict's wife) and one child also arrived on the Albemarle.
The Albemarle was one of 11 ships that formed the Third Fleet which arrived in Port Jackson between July & October 1791. There were 1,879 male convicts, and 178 women convicts on board the ships of the Fleet, along with military personnel and notable people sent to fill high positions in the colony. More important for the fledgling colony was that the ships also carried provisions, which were in short supply for those who had arrived in the First and Second Fleets.
No record has been found of a marriage between Esther and Thomas, though this was not unusual in the circumstances in NSW at the time. The settlement was still in a somewhat precarious state and record keeping was not as thorough as it later became when resources were more readily available.
Thomas and Esther’s first child, Mary Anne (known as Marion) was born on the 28th May 1801. Eight more children were born in rapid and regular succession:
- Mary Anne (Marion) 28 May 1801
- Thomas 18 May 1802
- Sophia 18 June 1803 (died September 1803)
- Celia (Cecilia) 13 March 1805
- Elizabeth 15 March 1807
- Ann 14 June 1809
- George 22 April 1811 (died in New Zealand in 1838)
- John Emery 5 July 1812 (died 1836)
- Godfrey 9 October 1814 (died November 1814)
Thomas is said to have a builder, a skill for which there would have been great demand. Esther and Thomas were also known as “dealers” which involved selling goods from arriving ships. There are some reports in the newspapers of the time of them being involved in a few court cases, in one of which Thomas allegedly threatened to strike a man who was stealing quinces from their tree with a branch of said quince tree.
By August 1806, as indicated in the NSW General Muster, it seems that Esther had been granted a pardon at the discretion of the Governor, and her official status had become “Free By Servitude” . This ties in with information from the State Records of New South Wales website on Pardons: “Convicts with life sentences generally received pardons. In the formative years of the colony the Governor possessed the discretion to grant free pardons and conditional pardons as rewards for good behaviour, for special skills or for undertaking special responsibilities. Governor Macquarie introduced new regulations setting minimum periods to be served for both pardons and tickets of leave.” No record of a Ticket of Leave or Conditional Pardon have ever been found for Esther, so it is assumed that her pardon was one of these indulgences by Governor Macquarie. (research conducted by Janelle Collins, descendant of Marion STUBBS http://janellestree.blogspot.co.nz/)
Three months after their ninth child, Godfrey, was born Thomas died, on 11 January 1815, aged 41. He was buried in the Old Sydney Burial Ground, where his two infants Sophia and Godfrey had previously also been interred, along with Esther's son by John Fitz.
Esther was now a single mother to 11 children, the oldest of whom was only 17 and probably having to fend for herself or assist her mother with the upbringing of the younger children.
Esther though seems to have continued to be an enterprising woman. Less than a week after Thomas’s death she was awarded a grant of 80 acres of land, for which she was recommended by a Mr Oxley, who was a noted explorer and surveyor in the early period of British colonisation in Australia. It was noted in the records that she was a widow with a large family. The record doesn’t though reveal where the land so awarded was, though her name was recorded as Hester Stubbs.