Thomas Lansdown (1817-1885)

Thomas Lansdown the enigma
Thomas Lansdown was a man who was hiding his true identity. It is therefore not known what his true surname was, where he was born, or who his parents were.

Thomas is known to have used 2 names in Australia, the name of Thomas Digby, and the name of Thomas Lansdown.

When he married in 1873 Thomas Lansdown claimed that he was 54 years old (born 1818/1819) born at Yeovil, Somerset, the son of Thomas Lansdown and Mary Spenser. It is not known if this is true, or if he made this up. There is an entry on the International Genelogical Index that states that Thomas Lansdown was born at Yeovil on 17 December 1817 to Thomas Lansdown and Mary Spenser but there is no record of a baptism in the parish register for Yeovil, nothing to substantiate the entry on the IGI.

When their daughter Martha was born in 1857 his wife Jane Kelly recorded that Thomas was born in 1819/1820 at Southampton, Hampshire, and that his name was Thomas Digby. Nothing has been found for a birth under the name of Digby or Lansdown at Southhampton in that period. If this information originally came from Thomas Lansdown there is no reason to believe that it is correct.

What is known is that Thomas Lansdown was living as Thomas Digby in Yass in the period 1850 to 1851, and working there in his own business as a baker, confectioner (baker of cakes), and brewer. His wife Ann gave birth to a son born there in May 1850, Thomas Digby Jnr, who only lived for 6 weeks. His wife Ann has to have died as on 4 November 1850 he married 20 year old Jane Kelly at the Presbyterian Church at Yass. The name he was using was Thomas Digby. By September 1851 he had moved to Sydney with his new bride, but had changed his name to Landstone(sic). Thomas Lansdown next went gold-mining near Braidwood in 1852 during the New South Wales gold-rush while he left his family in Sydney, and then Thomas Lansdown moved his family to Goulburn where he became a farmer. For the rest of his life he went by the name of Thomas Lansdown.

That Thomas Digby, the baker from Yass, and his new identity Thomas Lansdown, the farmer from Goulburn are the same man is revealed in a court case in Goulburn on 29 December 1857.

Immigration to Australia
When Thomas died in 1885 his wife Rebecca Best claimed that he arrived in Australia in about 1847/48 (death certificate). This has not been able to be confirmed.

Not the convict from Essex
Thomas is not the convict Thomas Digby (1795-1855) born about 1795 in Essex who arrived in New South Wales aboard the "Fortune" in 1813. The convict was sent to the Maitland district near Newcastle north of Sydney, where he had to stay under the terms of his ticket of leave, and was never in the district of Yass or Goulburn. The convict's dead in 1855 at Liverpool, New South Wales also precludes him.

Not the convict sent to Tasmania in 1848
For a long time it was believed that Thomas Lansdown who married Jane Kelly and Rebecca Best, had arrived in Hobart, Tasmania, Australia on 14 July 1848 as a convict aboard the ship "Bangalore". It is now known, from new research undertaken in 2013, that the convict Thomas Lansdown (1821-) is a different man. Records kept in Tasmania, English census documents, and parish records reveal that Thomas Lansdown the convict was born in 1821 the son of William Lansdown (1792-1875) and Anne Fussell (1788-1872) in the small village of Stoke Lane, Shepton Mallet, Somerset. Records in Tasmania show that he received a Conditional Pardon on 29 August meaning that he could leave Tasmania as long as he stayed in the Australian Colonies or New Zealand. From 13 March 1851 when his sentence expired he was free to travel anywhere. When his brother William Lansdown (1828-1905) arrived as a convict in Tasmania on 19 September 1851 the records in Tasmania recorded that the convict Thomas Lansdown was "at sea". The records held in Tasmania also reveal that the convict was illiterate, and Thomas Lansdown who married Jane Kelly and Rebecca Best, could read and write (court records, marriage registration).

Possibly employed as a cook at Tarban Creek Lunatic Asylum
There is a story in the family that Thomas told one of his sons that he helped with the cooking on the voyage out from England to Australia.

On 15 May 1847 a Thomas Lansdown was employed as a cook at Tarban Creek Lunatic Asylum (Gladesville, Sydney) by the then superintendent Joseph Thomas Digby (1812-1899) (superintendent 1838-1847, steward 1848-1850). A letter written to the Colonial Secretary of New South Wales shows that this Thomas Lansdown arrived in the Colony of New South Wales as a free man, and was to receive a salary of £20 per annum. Further research needs to be undertaken to establish if this is Thomas Lansdown who married Jane Kelly and Rebecca Best, or another different Thomas Lansdown.

Did not marry Sophia Todd in 1850
For a long time it was believed that on 25 November 1850 Thomas Lansdown was in Sydney marrying Sophia Todd (1831-1916) and that either Sophia had died shortly after the wedding with her death being unrecorded, or that the marriage had broken down as Thomas had a child with another woman, Jane Kelly (c1830-1872), in September 1851. It is now known, from new research undertaken in 2013, that Sophia did not die shortly after her wedding but moved to Victoria and lived until 1916. It is also now known that Thomas Lansdown who married Jane Kelly and Rebecca Best, did not marry Sophia Todd but that Sophia married another different man by the name of Thomas Lansdown. Thomas Lansdown who married Jane Kelly and Rebecca Best, was literate (as proved by a court case in 1857, and his marriage to Rebecca Best (1834-1921) in 1873 where he signed the marriage register with his signature), and Sophia Todd and her husband Thomas Lansdown were both illiterate (as proved by the marriage register which they both signed with their mark, that is a cross).

Thomas Digby in 1850 & 1851 at Yass
In 1850 and 1851 Thomas, as Thomas Digby, is shown in the newspapers to be a brewer (Sydney Morning Herald 6 Nov 1850), confectioner (baker of cakes) (The Goulburn Herald and County of Argyll Advertiser 22 March 1851), and baker (Sydney Morning Herald 25 March 1851) at Yass. In April 1850 he signed a letter to the newspaper as one of the "inhabitants of the town and district of Yass".

Thomas, as Thomas Digby, married Jane Kelly at Yass on 4 November 1850. Jane conceived their daughter Isabella about 6 weeks later in mid-December 1850. Both Thomas and Jane were still living at Yass in March 1851 when a court case was held in Yass about property of Thomas's that had been stolen at Yass. Jane was mentioned in evidence, and Thomas was a witness. Before 4 September 1851, when Isabella was born, Thomas and Jane were living in Sydney, and the newspapers show that uncollected mail for Thomas Digby was being returned from Yass to the central post office for New South Wales in Sydney. With the move to Sydney Thomas had changed the family surname from Digby to Lansdown.

From a court case held in Sydney in January 1863 it was known that Thomas Lansdown and Jane Kelly were married. A marriage also explained why Thomas Lansdown and Rebecca Best (1834-1921), in an era when divorce was the prerogative of the rich, were not able to marry until after Jane's death, and why Thomas stated that he was a widower. It also explained why Jane never married the widower William Garner (1809-1868). Until it was discovered from the records of the court case held in Goulburn on 29 December 1857 that Thomas had married Jane Kelly under the name of Thomas Digby, it had not been known where or when. It had been believed, incorrectly, that Thomas Digby and Thomas Lansdown had been different people, and that Thomas Digby must have died allowing Jane Kelly to marry Thomas Lansdown at a time and place that were unknown.

It is not known why Thomas changed his name from Digby to Lansdown in 1851, or why he stopped being a baker. It is also not known why he subsequently settled with his family at Goulburn, especially as Goulburn is only 80km (50m) from Yass, with people regularly travelling between the two towns, Goulburn lying on the route from Yass to Sydney, and Yass lying on the route from Goulburn to Melbourne. It makes no sense for a man who had changed his name for whatever reason to live in an area where he would be recognised, but this is what he did.

First confirmed record in Australia of Thomas using the name of Thomas Lansdown
The first confirmed record in Australia of Thomas using the name of Thomas Lansdown is at the christening of his daughter Isabella Lydia Lansdown (1851-1911) at St Mary's Catholic Cathedral in Sydney. (It is not known why Isabella was baptised at the Catholic Cathedral as both parents were protestant, and this is the only record of either parent being associated with the Catholic church.) Isabella Landstone(sic) was born on 4 September 1851 and christened on 6 October 1851. Isabella was baptised as the daughter of Thomas Landstone(sic) (about 33 years old) and Jane Kelly (c1830-1872) (about 21 years old). The christening register records Isabella's date of birth and that Thomas and Jane were living at Hunter Street, Sydney. It also records both Thomas Landstone(sic) and Jane Kelly by those names. (Isabella was also christened for a second time on 27 November 1857 confirming her date of birth, that her mother was Jane Kelly, and that her father was Thomas Lansdown. That she was born in Sydney is also confirmed at her marriage in 1900, and at her death in 1911.)

The Lansdown-Digby connection

 * Thomas Lansdown (1817-1885) (Part 1)
 * Possibly arrived in NSW in about 1847
 * Family stories that he worked as a cook aboard the ship to Australia
 * Possibly working as a cook at Tarban Creek in May 1847 for Joseph Thomas Digby (1812-1899)


 * Thomas Lansdown (1817-1885) as Thomas Digby, baker, confectioner (nbaker of cakes), and brewer at Yass (Part 2)
 * Had a son born with his wife Ann Digby born in Yass in May 1850. This baby died 6 weeks later
 * Married Jane Kelly in November 1850 in Yass
 * Court records show that he is still living in Yass in March 1851
 * Left Yass with Jane before September 1851
 * Uncollected mail returned from Yass to main post office In Sydney in September 1851


 * Thomas Lansdown (1817-1885), farmer of Boxers Creek, Goulburn (Part 3)
 * Moves to Sydney before September 1851 and changes his surname from Digby to Lansdown
 * Birth of his daughter Isabella in Sydney in September 1851
 * Isabella baptised in Sydney in October 1851 as daughter of Jane Kelly and Thomas Landstone(sic)
 * Prospected for gold at Braidwood in 1852, family left in Sydney
 * Moved family to near Goulburn at the end of 1852 and commenced work on the farm/estate of William Pitt Faithfull (1806-1896)
 * Purchased first land at Boxers Creek near Goulburn in April 1856
 * Break-up of relationship with his pregnant wife Jane in September 1856. His wife Jane reverts to their former surname of Digby
 * Is described by his wife Jane when their baby is born in May 1857 as Thomas Digby, baker
 * Began relationship with Rebecca Best by July 1857
 * Is sued for maintenance by his wife Jane in Goulburn in December 1857. For the court case Jane uses the name of Jane Lansdown to sue him in the name he is known by in Goulburn which is Thomas Lansdown
 * Married Rebecca Best in 1873 after the death of his wife Jane in 1872
 * Died 1885 near Goulburn
 * Daughter Isabella Lansdown lists his occupation as baker at her marriage in 1900


 * Jane Kelly (c1830-1872)
 * Alternative names: Jane Lansdown, Jane Digby, Martha Digby, Jane Garner/Gardiner
 * Arrived in NSW in April 1849 aboard the "Digby"
 * Married in November 1850 in Yass to Thomas Digby, baker of Yass
 * Daughter Isabella conceived in December 1850
 * Record that she is still living in Yass with Thomas Digby in March 1851
 * Left Yass with Thomas Digby before September 1851
 * Birth of daughter Isabella in Sydney in September 1851. Thomas has changed their surname from Digby to Lansdown and Isabella is baptised as Isabella Landstone(sic) the daughter of Jane Kelly and Thomas Landstone(sic)
 * Relationship with her husband Thomas breaks down in September 1856 while Jane is pregnant
 * Jane reverts to their former surname of Digby
 * Jane's and Thomas's daughter Martha is born in Goulburn in May 1857 and her birth is registered as Martha Digby. Her father is named as Thomas Digby, baker
 * By August 1857 had begun a relationship with William Garner/Gardiner
 * Jane sued her husband Thomas for maintenance in Goulburn in December 1857. For the court case Jane uses the name of Jane Lansdown to sue Thomas in the name he is known by in Goulburn which is Thomas Lansdown
 * Died 1872 in Sydney as Jane Digby


 * Isabella Lydia Lansdown (1851-1911), daughter of Thomas Lansdown and Jane Kelly, born September 1851 in Sydney. Married Henry Conquit in 1900
 * Alternative names: Anne Maidman, Anne Lansdown, Isabella Digby, Isabella Conquit
 * Raised from the age of 5 by her father after her mother and Thomas Lansdown split in September 1856
 * In records for the death of her eldest son in 1891 she is shown as both Isabella Digby and Isabella Lansdown
 * When her youngest son died in 1932 the informant listed his mother’s name as Isabella Digby
 * When she married in 1900 she listed her father as Thomas Lansdown, baker


 * Rebecca Jane Lansdown (1852-1923), daughter of Thomas Lansdown and Jane Kelly, born December 1852 near Goulburn. Married David Forrester in 1880
 * Alternative names: Rebecca Digby, Rebecca Forrester
 * Raised from the age of 3 by her father after her parents split in September 1856
 * When one of her sons married he listed his mother’s name as Rebecca Digby


 * Mary Anne Lansdown (1854-1921), daughter of Thomas Lansdown and Jane Kelly, born January 1854 near Goulburn. Married David Lamb Sutherland in 1894
 * Alternative names: Mary Anne Sutherland
 * Raised from the age of 2 by her father after her parents split in September 1856
 * When she died in 1921 Martha Jager nee Digby, her younger sister, was a witness to her death


 * Thomas Lansdown (1855-), son of Thomas Lansdown and Jane Kelly, born January 1855 near Goulburn
 * Alternative names: Frederick Davis
 * Raised from the age of 1 by his father after his parents split in September 1856


 * Ellen Henrietta Lansdown (1856-1932), daughter of Thomas Lansdown and Jane Kelly, born January 1856 near Goulburn. Married Walter Hardy in 1886
 * Alternative names: Ellen Hardy
 * Raised from the age of 7 months by her father after her parents split in September 1856


 * Martha Digby (1857-1926), daughter of Thomas Lansdown and Jane Kelly, born May 1857 near Goulburn. Married William Hugh Rabbits Craddock in 1876 and George Jager in 1896
 * Alternative names: Martha Craddock, Martha Jager
 * Conceived when her mother Jane Kelly was still in a relationship with Thomas Lansdown
 * Her mother, using the name of Jane Digby, registered her birth as Martha Digby. Her mother stated that Martha’s father was her husband Thomas Digby, baker
 * Raised by her mother from birth until the age of 7 when she was placed into care in Sydney
 * Witness to the death in 1921 of Mary Ann Sutherland nee Lansdown, her older sister


 * Ann Jane Digby (1858-1943), daughter of Jane Kelly and William Garner/Gardiner, born May 1858 near Goulburn. Married John Poulter in 1879
 * Alternative names: Ann Jane Poulter
 * Raised by her mother from birth until the age of 5 when she was placed into care in Sydney


 * William Digby Garner (1860-1861), son of Jane Kelly and William Garner/Gardiner, born November 1860 near Goulburn. Died April 1861 near Goulburn


 * Cecilia Digby (1862-1862), daughter of Jane Kelly and William Garner/Gardiner, born March 1862 near Goulburn. Died December 1862 in Sydney


 * Cecilia Digby (1863-1864), daughter of Jane Kelly and William Garner/Gardiner, born April 1863 in Sydney. Died April 1864 in Sydney

Prospecting for gold near Braidwood in 1852
By 1852 Thomas Lansdown had joined in the New South Wales gold-rush and gone to the gold-fields at Bell's Creek to try his luck. Bell's Creek, which is about 100 miles south of Goulburn on the Braidwood side of Araluen, was first pegged out for gold prospecting in September 1851. Thomas had some success in his gold prospecting as a newspaper report in the Sydney Morning Herald of 21 September 1852 lists that Thomas Lansdown sent 134oz of gold that he had found at Bell's Creek to the Colonial Secretary in Sydney.

For a long time it has been believed that Thomas Lansdown when he joined in the gold-rush had taken Jane and baby Isabella with him. Court records from December 1857 instead establish that he left Jane and Isabella in Sydney while he went to the gold-fields on his own, and that he would travel from the gold-fields back to Sydney to visit his family.

For a long time it has also been believed that Thomas and Jane's next child, Rebecca Jane, was born on 25 December 1852 near Braidwood. No birth registration exists for Rebecca, her place of birth was not recorded when she married, and her death registration, filled in by her son Herbert, shows that Rebecca told her family that her place of birth was Goulburn. Her elder sister Isabella, in repeating information that she had been told by her father, informed the family that she, Isabella, had been born in Sydney, something which has been substantiated by official documentation. When Rebecca said that she was born in Goulburn she was only repeated what she had been told by her father, and this information was probably correct. It therefore appears that Thomas moved his family to Goulburn after September 1852 and before Rebecca was born on 25 December 1852.

To confuse matters in 1855 there was another different Thomas Lansdown in the gold-mining area of Major's Creek, nearby to Bell's Creek. "The Goulburn Herald and County of Argyle Advertiser" in February 1855 shows a different Thomas Lansdown, of Major's Creek, advertising in regard to a horse that had strayed. (Major's Creek was 100km from Goulburn and covered by the Goulburn newspaper as the largest settlement in that area). At the same time Thomas Lansdown who married Jane Kelly and Rebecca Best, was working and living at "Springfield", Tirrannaville, Goulburn in 1855 with Jane Kelly (c1830-1872) and their then 4 children, with their youngest child, baby Thomas, having been born there as recently as January 1855. The "Sydney Morning Herald" in April 1855 lists people who had subscribed to the Patriotic Fund. Listed among those identified as living at "Springfield" was Thomas Lansdown who subscribed 5s. This clearly shows that in 1855 there were 2 different men by the name of Thomas Lansdown both living within about 100km of Goulburn.

In 1868-1876 there was a Thomas Lansdown living at Larbert near Braidwood. He is mentioned in the "Empire" newspaper of 17 September 1868 as a (gold-)digger and farmer who had found some diamonds whilst digging for gold, is listed in the Grenville's Post Office Directory as a miner living at Larbert, Braidwood in 1872, and is burying his daughters in the Braidwood Cemetary in 1873 and 1876. At the same time Thomas Lansdown who married Jane Kelly and Rebecca Best, was living closer to Goulburn with his family at Quialigo and then Boxers Creek. This clearly shows that in 1868-1876 there were 2 different men by the name of Thomas Lansdown both living within about 100km of Goulburn.

The Thomas Lansdown living at Larbert, Braidwood in 1872 was Isaiah Thomas Lansdown (1823-1900) who was also known as Thomas Lansdown. Isaiah Thomas Lansdown, also known as Thomas Lansdown, married in Sydney in 1852, and his first child was born in Sydney on 27 June 1853. As he moved his family away from Sydney after the birth of his first child, birth registrations do not exist for his subsequent children to confirm where he was during the period from 1853 to 1867. It is possible that he was the gold-miner at Major's Creek in 1855. He is known to be the gold-miner at Braidwood in 1868-1876 as he had 2 daughters buried at the Braidwood Cemetery in the period. There was Louisa in 1873, with her parent's names given as Thomas Lansdown and Catherine McAra, and Eliza in 1876, with her parent's names given as Isaiah Thomas Lansdown and Catherine McAra. After Eliza's death Isaiah Thomas Lansdown moved his family to Goulburn. His eldest daughter married at Goulburn in 1877, and he is described in the marriage notice in December 1881 for his son Thomas William Lansdown as "Thomas Lansdown, late of Goulburn". Catherine Lansdown nee McAra died at Leichardt in 1896, where their son Thomas William Lansdown was living with his wife and family. Isaiah Thomas Lansdown, who had been born in 1823 in Crickdale, Wiltshire as the son of Richard and Susan Lansdown, died in Parramatta in 1900, and his death is registered under the name of Thomas Lansdown.

There were therefore 2 known Thomas Lansdowns living within about 100km of Goulburn in the period 1855 to about 1881.
 * (1) Thomas Lansdown who married Jane Kelly and Rebecca Best, who was gold-mining at Bells Creek near Braidwood in September 1852 and who was living at "Springfield" and Boxers Creek near Goulburn from late 1852 to 1885.
 * (2) Isaiah Thomas Lansdown known as Thomas Lansdown who was gold-mining and farming at Braidwood in 1868-1876, and possibly as early as 1855. After 1876 he moved his family to Goulburn, but had left the district by 1881.

The many Thomas Lansdowns
A number of Thomas Lansdowns have been identified as in Australia in the period 1847-1855. Allowing for possible overlaps in the records, this identifies between 3 and 6 different Thomas Lansdowns in Australia at the same time. Immigration records only exist for 1 of these men. Death records exist for only 2 of these men.
 * (1) Thomas Lansdown (1821-), illiterate, the convict, the son of William Lansdown and Anne Fussell, who was transfered to Tasmania aboard the Bangalore from Bermuda in 1848, and who in 1849 is recorded as in holding a Conditional Pardon. The terms of his Conditonal Pardon restricted him to the Australian Colonies and New Zealand until his 7 year sentence expired on 13 March 1851. When his brother William Lansdown (1828-1905) arrived in Tasmania as a convict on 19 September 1851 the Tasmanian authorities recorded this Thomas Lansdown as "at sea". May have learnt to swim during his 5 years as a convict in the British penal colony in Bermuda.
 * (2) Thomas Lansdown the seaman who was working as a member of the crew on the Irish built ship Emma on a trip from Hobart to Sydney (Sydney Morning Herald, 7 January 1850). The Emma was working in Australian waters and regularly sailed between Sydney and Hobart. He was a good swimmer as he dived into the sea to save a drowning man. It is possible that this man was (1) above.
 * (3) Thomas Lansdown, illiterate, who married Sophia Todd in Sydney in November 1850 and then moved with her to Melbourne. Found in the records from 1850 (Sydney) to 1858 (Melbourne). It is possible, however, that this man was (1) and/or (2) above. He could nonly have been (2) above, however, if he could swim.
 * (4) Thomas Lansdown, literate, the farmer of Goulburn, NSW, who married Jane Kelly and Rebecca Best. Went by the name of Thomas Digby at Yass in 1850-1851. Found in records in September 1852 as a gold-prospector at Bells Creek near Braidwood, NSW, substantiated by court records of December 1857. Death registration of 1885 states he immigrated about 1847. Found in records from 1850 (Yass) to 1885 (Goulburn). If he could swim it is possible that he is (2) above.
 * (5) Isaiah Thomas Lansdown (1823-1900), also known as Thomas Lansdown, the gold-miner and farmer of Larbert, Braidwood, NSW. Believed to have been the gold-miner of Majors Creek near Braidwood, NSW found in records in 1855. Death registration in 1900 in the name of Thomas Lansdown. Found in the records marrying in Sydney in 1852, and having his first child in Sydney in June 1853. He is also found in the records living in Braidwood in the period 1868 to 1876. He then moved his family to Goulburn. His eldest daughter married in Goulburn in 1877, and he is described in the marriage notice for his son Thomas William Lansdown in December 1881 as "Thomas Lansdown, late of Goulburn". It is possible that this man is (2) above, but not likely as the seaman could swim, and swim well enough to jump into the water to try to save a drowning man, and this Thomas Lansdown was not raised near the sea.
 * (6) Thomas Lansdown who worked as a cook at Tarban Creek Asylum, NSW, in 1847 after arriving in the Colony of NSW as a free man. It is possible, however, that this man was one of the men (2)-(5) above.

Moved to Goulburn
Thomas who married Jane Kelly and Rebecca Best, moved with his family to Goulburn. There he had obtained, probably from one of the employment agents in Sydney, work from William Pitt Faithfull (1806-1896) on his property "Springfield" at Tirrannaville, 20 kilometres south of Goulburn. It was there that Thomas and Jane's second daughter, Rebecca Jane Lansdown, was born on 25 December 1852. It was there that their daughter, Mary Anne Lansdown, was born on on 21 January 1854. Their son Thomas followed on 11 January 1855, and their daughter Ellen Henrietta followed on 26 January 1856 (place of birth as Springfield, Goulburn confirmed by her death record). Birth records do not exist for these children, but their dates of birth are recorded at their baptism at the Presbyterian church in Goulburn on 27 November 1857.

First Parcel Of Land Purchased at Boxers Creek
Thomas Lansdown who married Jane Kelly and Rebecca Best, at about the age of 38 purchased his first land at Boxers Creek. He purchased 55 acres (22 hectares), block no. 119 at Boxers Creek in the parish of Towrang, on 3 April 1856, for the cost of £1 per acre. The purchase was made from the Government. Even though he owned and farmed land at Boxers Creek from 1856, Thomas did not live there for quite some time. He continued to live on his farm on land that he already owned at Quialigo. Unfortunatley no record of the purchase of the land at Quialigo has been found. It is assumed that the money that he used to purchase his land came from the proceeds of the sale of the gold that he found at Bell's Creek.

Break-down of one relationship, and beginning of another
In September 1856 the relationship between Thomas (about 38 years old) and Jane (about 26 years old) broke down (court documents). At that time Thomas had "brutally beaten her (Jane's) naked body with a whip" on a day when Thomas "had detected an improper intimacy between her and a man (Mr Burns) in his employ". (In September 1856 Jane was probably unaware that she was newly pregnant, having conceived near the end of August 1856. Thomas never accepted paternity for this child, Martha.) Jane was compelled, whether by force or by circumstance, to leave without her 5 young children who at that time ranged in age from 7 months to 5 years.

Thomas (about 38 years old) needed to hire outside help to care for his children, and he hired  Rebecca Best (1834-1921) (21 years old). Rebecca had arrived in Sydney on 18 October 1855 on the Gilmore as a single female immigrant at the age of 21. The ship indent shows her to be illiterate, a general servant, from Compton Dundon in Somerset. Thomas and Rebecca were soon living in a domestic relationship.

Caring for Thomas's children and household was more than a full-time job, and Thomas allowed Rebecca to hire outside help. On 25 June 1857 Rebecca, 22 years old, entered into a written agreement to hire an 82 year old woman, Sarah Ash (c1775-1860), "to look after the children and make herself generally useful for the term of three months" for a remuneration of 2s 6d per week (court documents). The three month agreement was to terminate on 25 September 1857. As Rebecca was illiterate she had to receive help to have the agreement drafted, and it is possible that Thomas, who was literate, was the help that she sought.

In mid-July 1857 Thomas and Rebecca's first child was conceived.

On 14 November 1857, 22 year old Rebecca was before the courts being sued for wages by 82 yeat old Sarah Ash (c1775-1860), the help that she had hired to look after Thomas's children. Rebecca was sued for £1 12s 6d in unpaid wages, which was the entire wages for the 3 months that the written agreement covered. In other words during the time that Sarah Ash had been employed she had received no wages. The court contrasted the 2 women before the bench as "a decent old woman", and a woman who "has lately been several times in the police court". Rebecca swore that Sarah Ash had only been engaged by the month (and therefore by implication she only owed 1 months wages and not 3), but her evidence was contradicted by the written agreement. In lieu of payment of the outstanding £1 12s 6d in unpaid wages Jane offered goods instead of cash, goods that were brought to the court "by a man named Lansdowne with whom she lives". These goods were accepted, but Rebecca was still ordered to pay Sarah Ash's legal costs of 18s 6d.

On 27 November 1857 Thomas's children Isabella, Rebecca, Mary Ann, Thomas and Ellen, were baptised at the Presbyterian Church in Goulburn. Isabella who had been previously baptised as Catholic was rebaptised as Presbyterian. From this baptism record we learn that Thomas was a settler (that is farmer) at Gulaga(sic) near Goulburn (he was living at Quialigo). In the parish register the minister records the name of the childrens' mother as Jane Kelly for Isabella and Rebecca, but in error as Mary Kelly for Mary Ann, Thomas, and Ellen. Due to the acrimosity between Thomas and Jane Kelly (c1830-1872) at that time it is unlikely that Jane was invited to the ceremony.

In December 1857 Thomas was sued for maintenance by Jane Kelly (c1830-1872). It is this court case that establishes that Thomas could read and write. Thomas, however, never taught his and Jane's children to read and write, and their children were illiterate. In December 1857 Jane was pregnant with her first child by her new partner and former employer William Garner (1809-1868). Jane, however, had begun this court action at most a few months earlier at a time when she had a young baby, Martha, to care for, and when her only means of support was any wages that she could earn. Jane only sought maintenance for herself, and not for baby Martha who may have been Thomas's child. Jane was awarded spousal maintenance of 8s a week to be paid by Thomas to the Chief Constable each week. Thomas was also ordered to pay to the Chief Constable Jane's professional costs of 3 guineas (£3 3s) and the costs of court.

Thomas Landown and Rebecca Best's first child Henry Thomas Best Lansdown was born on 12 April 1858, followed by Frances Mary Best Lansdown on 7 April 1860, Susan Best Lansdown on 10 May 1862, and Robert Best Lansdown on 1 August 1864. Three more children were to follow: Emma Best Lansdown on 1 June 1866, Frederick Best Lansdown on 27 September 1868 (he died in 1869), and Edith Best Lansdown on 17 March 1870. Thomas and Rebecca did not marry until 1873.

Residence at "Springfield" and Quialigo near Goulburn, 1852 to 1872
A story that has survived in the family is that Thomas worked a stock overseer at "Springfield" stud for about 20 years which would extend from about 1852 to about 1872.

The seat of the "Springfield" stud, the homestead and its adjoining acres, was in the parish of Mangamore, about 20 kilometres south of Goulburn, adjoining the road from Goulburn to Braidwood, and in the modern day suburb of Tirrannaville. The farm, however, also extended over large tracts of land that were owned by William Pitt Faithfull (1806-1896) in the adjoining parishes of Terranna, Gundary and Quialigo (The Goulburn Herald and Chronicle, 9 January 1867, 1900 map by Department of Lands of NSW Government).

Newspapers of the day show that Thomas Lansdown did live at "Springfield" by 1855 and to be living at the stud he had to be working there. His time working at the "Springfield" stud, however, was much shorter than 20 years, and there is no evidence that he ever worked there as a stock overseer.

By September 1856 Thomas Lansdown was farming on land he owned at Quialigo near "Springfield". He was described in a court case in December 1857 as Thomas Lansdown of Goalago(sic) and described by his wife Jane in the same court case as "a splitter; he has a farm, and carts and horses, and cattle, and is altogether well to do", evidence that Thomas Lansdown did not dispute. This same court case showed that Thomas was aquainted with senior employees of the "Springfield" stud again confirming that he had previously worked there. Thomas was to call Mr Huggart, Superintendent for the Faithfull family property "Springfield", as a witness at the court case.

In 1862 Thomas supplemented his farming income by accepting a job as ranger on the "Springfield" stud. It is not known for how long Thomas held this position.

Newspapers of the period provid the following information:-
 * In Aug 1860 Thomas Lansdown described himself as Thomas Lansdown, Quialigo
 * In May 1862 Thomas Lansdown was appointed ranger of Springfield "with orders to prosecute all trespassers, and impound all stock found upon my lands" by William Pitt Faithfull, Springfield.
 * In Apr 1863 Thomas Lansdown, who found 1 small brown mare "on the run at Quialigo", describes himself as Thomas Lansdown, Quialigo
 * In May 1863 Thomas Lansdown was fined for illegally impounding 3 head of horses
 * In Sep 1865 Thomas Lansdown from Quialigo impounded 2 horses "out of grass paddock"
 * In Aug 1866 Thomas Lansdown impounded 20 cattle for "trespass in his grass paddock" at Quialigo
 * In Apr 1871 Thomas Lansdown of Quialigo is selling 2 horses and some small pigs

Marriage to Rebecca Best
On 10 April 1873, at the Weslyan Parsonage in Goulburn, 55 year old Thomas Lansdown married 38 year old Rebecca Best (1834-1921). They were both residing at Boxers Creek. The details that Thomas provided included his age (stated age 54), place of birth and parent's names. The details Rebecca provided included her age (stated age 40), place of birth and parent's names. Thomas signed the marriage register with his signature, and Rebecca signed the marriage register with her mark (that is a cross). They married after the death of Jane Kelly (c1830-1872) in 1872, and Thomas recorded his martital status as widower. Rebecca's marital status was single.

Residence at Boxers Creek
Their marriage certificate from 1873, and newspapers of the day reveal that Thomas and Rebecca were living at Boxers Creek, 6 kilometres east of Goulburn in the latter years of Thomas' life.
 * In 1873 Thomas Lansdown and Rebecca Best both give their place of residence as Boxers Creek
 * In 1875 Thomas Lansdown placed an advertisement warning trespassers to stay of his purchased and leased land at Boxers Creek
 * In 1876 Thomas Lansdown of Boxers Creek advertised to sell a horse
 * In 1879 Thomas Lansdown of Boxers Creek won a tender to plant trees for the local government
 * In 1882 Thomas Lansdown of Boxers Creek received a license to slaughter
 * In 1884 Thomas Lansdown of Boxers Creek posted a reward for the return of a dog.

More Land Purchased at Boxers Creek


In October 1876 Thomas is known to have purchased, at the cost of £1 an acre, an additional 40 acres (16 hectares) from the Government which was described in the newspapers as being at Towrang. The land was block no. 199 at Boxers Creek which was in the parish of Towrang. This block did not adjoin Thomas's original 55 acres, but was just to the east. This block also had a small creek on its southern boundary.

Thomas had continued to purchase land by private sale after his initial purchase of 55 acres (22 hectares) at Boxers Creek in 1856. Before his death in 1885 he even subdivided some of his land and sold off smaller lots. In The "Goulburn Eveing Penny Post" of 26 August 1882 is an advertisement for Lots 7 & 8 of Section 2 of the Lansdowne Subdivivion fronting Boxers Creek Road.

At the time of his wife Rebecca's death in 1921 the farm, then known as "Shaws Creek", comprised of 255 acres (103 hectares), all at Boxers Creek, Goulburn.

WOOD & CO.

''HAVE received instructions from the Executor in the Estate of the late Mrs. Lansdowne Vaughan, to sell by auction, on Saturday, 21st May at 12 o'clock sharp, at the Town Hall, Goulburn, that Snug Little Grazing Property known as Shaw's Creek, at Boxer's Creek, 4 miles from Goulburn, comprising 255 Acres of Good Grazing Land, which will be submitted in two lots; viz., 224 Acres Homestead and 31 Acres which does not join the homestead. This property has all conveniences for carrying on a dairy or trading depot, in easy distance of factory and market, and can be a suburban home, half mile from school; mail passes every other day; very sound country; well watered, and richly pastured; has been used chiefly for dairying for the past thirty years.''

Terms and full particulars at sale.

(Goulburn Evening Penny Post, 14 May 1921, emphasis added)

Death
At the age of 67 (stated age 66) Thomas died on 24 August 1885 at Towrang, just 2 months after the death of his youngest daughter Edith at Boxers Creek. Towrang is 15 kilomtres north-east of Goulburn, and about 10 kilomtres north of Thomas's land at Boxers Creek (in the parish of Towrang). There is a story in the family that Thomas died at the Towrang Hotel. It is interesting that Thomas was described in the marriage notice for his son Robert in January 1886 as “the late Thomas Lansdown of Towrang”, describing him by the parish that he had lived in, rather than the place.

Thomas is buried at Goulburn. His stated age at death was 66 years.

After Thomas' death his wife Rebecca continued to farm Thomas's land at Boxers Creek. Rebecca had been left use of the land and its profits for the term of her life, after which the land was to pass to his at that time unmarried son Robert, and then on Robert's death to any children that Robert may have. Thomas's will was written before his daughter Edith died in June 1885, and under the terms of the will Edith was to inherit if Robert died without issue. Executors of the will were Richard Styles of Bullamalite, Grazier and James Worrall of Goulburn, Miller. When probate was granted on 22 September 1898, James Worrall was living at "Cargo near Orange", and Thomas's place of death was stated to be Boxers Creek.

Nearly 20 years after Thomas's death Rebecca married Michael Vaughan on 21 Septemeber 1903 at Moss Vale.

Rebecca died on 20 January 1921 at Towrang, Goulburn. When Rebecca died the then 255 Acre (103 hectare) farm at Boxer's Creek was placed up for auction by her estate.

Frederick Thomas Lansdown (1849-1910)
Two of the Thomas Lansdown's grandsons, the sons of his son Robert Best Lansdowne (1864-1945), married two of the granddaughters of Frederick Thomas Lansdown (1849-1910), the daughters of his son Henry Thomas Lansdowne (1878-1959), in Murwillumbah in 1934. From that time onwards these two Lansdowne families became intertwined. This then provides an explanation for the origin of the following stories.

Frederick Thomas Lansdown (1849-1910) is not the natural-born son of Thomas Lansdown of Boxers Creek. For a long time in both families, however, it has been believed that he may have been. This was because it was believed that Thomas Lansdown had married Sophia Todd (1831-1916) in 1850 after which it was believed that she must have died, possibly in childbirth, and it was believed that Frederick may have been her son.

There is also a story that has become folklore within the family. In this story Thomas Lansdown had an adopted son by the name of Frederick, and his birth surname was either Day or Faithfull. It is known that Thomas Lansdown worked on the "Springfield" Stud of pastoralist William Pitt Faithfull (1806-1896) at Tirrannaville near Goulburn, the only Faithfull family associated with the Goulburn district in that period. William Pitt Faithfull (1806-1896) had been granted land in the district in 1828, and married in 1844. One version of the story states that Frederick was the son of a Miss Faithfull and an employee by the name of Day who became scared of what her family would do to him and absconded. Thomas was then given some land as consideration for adopting this child who was an embarassment to the Faithfull family. There was, however, no Miss Faithfull of child-bearing age in the Faithfull family in that period. Neither has a record of transfer of ownership of a piece of land been found. In 1838 William Pitt Faithfull (1806-1896) did himself father an illegitimate son, Henry Pitt Faithfull (1838-1896), with a female employee working on his farm. This child was raised by his mother and given the Faithfull surname which he retained even after his mother married. He then married one of his Faithfull cousins. This is the exact opposite of a precedent of adopting out illegitimate children of the Faithfull family, or of being ashamed of them. There also appears to be no truth in the story that Frederick was adopted by Thomas Lansdown. Thomas had all of his children, except for his youngest Martha who was with her mother, baptised together at Goulburn in November 1857 including his eldest child who was rebaptised. There was no child by the name of Frederick baptised among these children. Also in the court case of December 1857 it was stated that Thomas was the father of 6 children who have all been accounted for (Isabella, Rebecca, Mary Anne, Thomas, Ellen, and Martha), and who do not include Frederick.