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James & Elizabeth DAVIES Letters
Wales to Ballarat, 1855
Transcripts of letters from James & Elizabeth DAVIES on the Ballarat goldfields,
to his father David DAVIES in Wales.
Letter transcripts contributed by Jacqui Cunningham. EMAIL - jaccham@origin.net.au
Family Background
Letter from James DAVIES written to his father David DAVIES in Wales. James was the son of David DAVIES and Mary JONES, born about 1820 in Abergaveny, Monmouthshire Wales. He and wife Elizabeth, and four young children, sailed from Plymouth on the 22nd November, 1854, on the Marchiioness of Salisbury, arriving at Geelong on 21st February, 1855. They eventually settled at Napoleons, near Ballarat.
Ballarat April 23rd, 1855.
Dear Father,
It is with the greatest pleasure that I take opportunity of writing a few lines to you hoping they will find you in good health, as it leaves us all well at present. Thank God for it. I will now give you a short sketch of our voyage. We left Plymouth on the 22nd Nov- with a fair wind until we crossed the Bay of Biscay. We sighted the island of Palinas on the 10th Dec., crossed the equator on the 20th. We now saw a great many whales and many large & curious birds, & hundreds of flying fish. We rounded the Cape of Good Hope on the fifty fourth day after leaving Plymouth. I helped to saw a log of wood into boards here on the mighty deep, a thing I used to grunt at sometimes on land, but this was the awkwardest job I ever did in my life owing to the roll of the ship. We sighted Cape Otway on Feb 25th about 5 o’clock in the evening, got in the heads the following morning with wind right ahead of us, so that we were forced to anchor within 2 miles of our destination. We got into Hobson’s Bay the following morning just 59 days from the time we left Plymouth after a most pleasant & good passage never had us deaths or serious illness at all on board. We had two births - we remained on board two days after we cast anchor & then went in a steamer to land. When first we landed we were in very low spirits for we saw a great many who were in desperate circumstances owing to the depression of trade. I started myself to Melbourne the nest day & delivered all parcels with which I was entrusted. I did not see Josiah Thomas, he was gone to the diggings, but I left the parcel with David Davies, mason late of Tallyview who was living in Mr Thomas’ house. I saw Mr J. Pearer who was quite well & likewise Jas. Michael & Mrs Evans & Family & old Powell the sailor of Llanellan, & Joe Buckle of the Garn. They are all quite well & also Mrs. Deakin & little Henry. I gave Alexanders’ parcel to William. I believe that Mr Deakin is going very well, he appeared to be very cheerful & contented. On the morning following I went back to Geelong where I now remain. When first I got there my first inquiry was for accommodation but there being so many there people did not know where to send me. At last I met with one who told me partly where Isaac Godfrey worked, this was all I wanted, as I could then ... find others, among these my brother Edward & a place to rest myself of which I was sadly in want. I rested here a day or two & then went back to Geelong so for my family which is with me except my sister Ann who has a situation at œ30 per annum & my eldest daughter Mary Ann who get 6/- a week. We intend getting them to us very shortly as people are doing far better here than they are in town where they are crowded so many, one on the other as they are with you. While I was in Melbourne ...(missing page we think) & also all the family. You will please give my love to Mr & Mrs Vipond, Mr Hookey, D. Morris Jas. Morgan, Thos Doughan, Thos Magee Jas. Burroughs & Mr Jones. Ben Jones & Henry Richards & accept the same yourself with my brothers & sisters from your affectionate son & daughter.
James & Elizabeth Davies.
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Report written by their son, James about their trip to Ballarat and the early times there, the Mary Ann mentioned is my gggrandmother. Jacqui.
Statement by James DAVIES (jnr) Longhand, undated
I was born at Llanover, Monmouthshire, South Wales on the 16th November 1846. My father was foreman sawyer at the Varteg Ironworks. In 1854 when the gold fever was at its height the family consisting of my parents three daughters & one son sailed for Australia in the sailing ship “Marchioness of Salisbury” We had a good passage & uneventful except when Neptune came aboard when crossing the Line. We landed at Geelong on the 1st March 1855 & proceeded to Ballarat forthwith. Our trip to Ballarat on a two horse dray was something to be remembered. The wayside water supply was of a very inferior quality & most repulsive in looks & taste. But there was no other so had to be accepted under protest. At the end of a three days journey we came in sight of the diggings, about what was known as Newchum & Canadian gullies. Here we had our first view of a Chinaman. Numbers of them were fossicking the abandoned workings of the diggers who had sought fresh fields, of which at this time there were plenty. As the Chinamen wore their umbrella-shaped hats made of reeds they look somewhat grotesque to the new arrivals. We camped at Golden Point among relatives & acquaintances from the home country. Ballarat at this time was a hive of industry. Looking north from Golden Point there appeared a sea of canvas, stores, tents, flies & windsails all intermingled, for no streets were laid out then. The traffic followed winding roads & the business places were erected on either side. Very few buildings were located west of the Yarrowee Creek. My father with a mate (Mr. PRATER) went to work in the forest near Warrenheip & erected a sawpit just where the distillery is at present, they used to supply timber for building & light wood for the windlasses. The advent of sawmills & the allurement of the goldfields induced them to abandon the sawing & try their chance at the digging. I and my sister Mary Ann attended the Mt. Pleasant school for a short time. It was about this times that I witnessed the regiment that fought at Eureka marching out of Ballarat on their way to Melbourne peace having been restored. I had formed a friendship with a boy named MAGINNIS who owned a billygoat team & we used a lot of our time carting dry grass-trees for firewood which were abundant on the Canadian ranges. ETTERSHANK’s slaughter-yards were not far from our camp where might be seen a heap of bullock’s heads in various stages of decomposition as big as a haystack. No value being placed on the offal of a bullock at that time. Yet the slaughterman would charge a digger a 1/- if he wanted a fresh one for his dogs. Among the many fresh fields that were being opened about this time & they were numerous, was Magpie Gully about two miles south of Ballarat in the spring of 1855. This gutter, below its junction with the Chinaman’s Lead, proved to be the richest alluvial wash in Victoria, many of the claims washing up with an average of 8 to 10 oz to the tub. One claim that I knew went over a pound weight to the tub all through the claim. A town sprang up here in three or four days with a main street over a mile ling consisting of business places, hotels, theatres and restaurants, among the latter was one kept by the renowned John Ah Loo, whose table was appreciated by the diggers on many fields. The first hotel was opened by Teddy BRADSHAW, later a business man in Buninyong for many years, & partner at the crossing in the gully & did a roaring trade while the rush lasted. The theatre proprietors introduced an attraction in the shape of a tightrope walker named Madam De La Cass who used to walk a rope fastened at the height of 15 to 20 feet
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