Some Letters from Bedfordshire Pioneers in Australia, 1842-86

Summary

Introduction

Bedfordshire has great connections with America. In the days of the New World’s development as a British Colony, Richard Nicolls of Ampthill captured the Dutch settlement of Nieu Amsterdam which he renamed New York. Sir George Carteret of Haynes Park founded the neighbouring State of New Jersey. Sir Danvers Osborn of Chicksands was made Governor of New York in 1753. True, he only held office for a week, but these Bedfordshire men were helping to build a great and powerful nation.

Just over a century later another great nation and British Colony was being established. Some sixty years after Captain Cook had first sighted “Terra Australis” a Millbrook man found himself in severe trouble with the Ampthill magistrates. His name was Charles Cartwright, and together with others he was accused of a felonious assault against Daniel Tingay of Campton, as a result of which the latter was relieved of a halfsovereign and two half-crowns. Cartwright was transported for life in 1837 and shipped to Australia, leaving his wife and children behind to fare as best they could.

There are two letters from Cartwright to his wife and family preserved in the County Record Office. Both are included in this article. The earlier of the two letters was written in 1842 on Cartwright’s behalf, as the style of handwriting and composition clearly show. The second letter, dated 1844, is Cartwright’s own work; this combines messages to his wife and other relations at Millbrook.

The third letter in this collection was written by one John Feazey at Melbourne, to his mother at Wilden in 1844. Very little is known of the origin of this letter which came to light during the Biggleswade book drive in the war. It appears that John, being difficult to manage at home, was sent to Australia by his parents in the hope that he would learn to stand on his own feet! It would be interesting to know whether John Feazey did become manager of a sheep station as he expected to.

In 1851 Thomas Barnard of the famous Bedford banking family received a letter from his friend George Witt at Sydney.