Gadsden Bell Swires families

Maud Alice Gadsden, nee Swires (my grandmother), with her only son, 

my father William Bell Gadsden, aged about 6 months, ca 1910.

William Bell Gadsden was the son of Sydney Bartle Gadsden and

grandson of Thomas Alfred Gadsden who married

Eliza Ann Bell.

Bell Caithness family descendants

Mary Ann Caithness, daughter of James Ramsey Caithness and Ann Scorey, was born at Marchwood, Hampshire, 20 March 1820. She married William Douglas Bell at Port Elizabeth 29 June 1838. Their children were Mary Ann Elizabeth Pamela, Douglas William, Ellen Selwyn Sophia (d in infancy), Ellen Harriet, James Colquhoun, Sarah Scott, Sturges Bourne, Eliza Ann, Jessie MacGregor, George John Head, Alfred Thomas Payne, and Alice Millican Bell.

Mary Ann Elizabeth Pamela, their eldest child, married John James Johnason and they had a boy and a girl. Douglas William did not marry. Ellen Harriet married Edward Abbott Forbes Baxter, producing one son, Alexander. James Colquhoun married Sarah Clark in 1874 and had eight children. Sarah Scott married Charles George Pay; they had 3 children. Sturges Bourne's marital history remains unknown and he is the subject of further research. Eliza Ann married Thomas Alfred Gadsden, the Bluff lighthouse keeper; their children were William, Philip, Sydney Bartle, Faith and Hope. Eliza Ann and Thomas Alfred were my great grandparents.

Jessie McGregor married James Evans Pascoe Martin, engineer of the SS Basuto; no children are recorded. George John Head married Mary Catherine Tonkin. Alfred Thomas Payne Bell died in Whitechapel, London, in 1884 at the youthful age of 24. Alice Millican married Alfred Mathias Tilley and had two children. 

                                                                 Sydney Bartle Gadsden

                                     William Bell Gadsden and his mother Maud Alice nee Swires.

Souvenir Saturday: Gadsden Swires Natal marriage 1909

Maud Alice Swires (1890-1969)
 daughter of James Dudley Swires
and Alice Mary King

Maud Alice Swires married Sydney Bartle Gadsden on 3 November 1909 at St Peter's Church, Pietermaritzburg. Witness were Frank W King and Winifred Emily Swires. 

The couple shown on the marriage record are my grandparents. You may find your own Natal ancestors' marriages if you access the Civil Marriage records 1845-1955 on Family Search. See link at foot of this page*.

Sydney Bartle Gadsden (1880-1953)
 son of Thomas Alfred Gadsden
(Lighthousekeeper at the Bluff Lighthouse)
and Eliza Ann Bell.(daughter of Capt William Bell)

* familysearch.org/search/collection/2063749

Gadsden/Hamilton wedding, Durban, 1939

Gadsden/Hamilton wedding, St Andrew's Presbyterian Church, Durban, 20 May 1939.
Front row: Ann Hamilton, Bill (William Bell) Gadsden, Cathrine Gibson Gadsden nee Hamilton, Joan MacInnes. Second row: Bill (William Finley) Hamilton, Annie Hamilton nee Gibson, Maud Gadsden nee Swires, Rex O'Halloran (best man). Back row: Joe Hamilton, Sime (Sydney Bartle) Gadsden.

Eastern or Ragged Point Lighthouse, Barbados

Ragged Point is located in the parish of St Philip on Barbados and the lighthouse marks the most eastern point on the island.

Built in 1875 (too late for my Barbadian Gadsden ancestors to have known it), the lighthouse is 97 feet tall and is still in operation - one flash in 15 seconds. It is closed to the public, for safety reasons. Its massive structure looks across the beautiful but dangerous and choppy Atlantic Ocean.  Speedy currents make swimming better avoided.

Ragged Point has various coves and bays, and stretches for almost the entire east coast of the island, with breathtaking scenery.

Photo: E Dixon-Smith

Lighthouse keepers at the Bluff Light, Durban

Senior Lightkeepers

1867 - 1880             T A Gadsden
1885                          Moffat
1898                          J Stephenson
1.7.1898                    B Shortt
1918                          G Johnson
1922                           L R P Daly
1927 - 1933              T F Addison
1938                           G A Orchard
20.1.1941 - 1.4.1942 A Gray

Lightkeepers
27.7.1889 - 30.6.1898 F B Shortt
1.7.1898                     John Murphy
18.8.1931 - 16.7.1934 A Spring
16.7.1934 - 1.3.1941   E L Andreason                                              

















molegenealogy.blogspot.com/2014/08/keeper-of-bluff-light-thomas-alfred.html

molegenealogy.blogspot.com/2015/06/my-lighthousekeeper-ancestor.html

Keeper of the Bluff Light: Thomas Alfred Gadsden in Natal

For a new article, Keeper of the Bluff Light, on a permanent page on this blog, follow the link below:

molegenealogy.blogspot.com/p/keeper-of-bluff-light.html

Opening of the Bluff Lighthouse

A rose by any other name ...

A blog reader sent me a list of the latest in Australian baby names:

Number 16 Bus Shelter  (don’t ask)
Benson and Hedges  (twins)
V8 (I’m speechless)
Hula Tulula from Hawaii (the name comprises all those words)
Weekend (can you imagine, ‘Come here, Weekend, you naughty girl!’)

There are other examples which I’ll refrain from repeating. Apple, Blossom, Tulip, Sky and so on must have become old hat. Where are we headed in this naming business? 

The National Records of Scotland website tells us:

For the eighth year running Sophie is the most popular girls' name, and Jack the favourite name for boys. Emily, Olivia, Ava, Lucy and Sophie make up the top five girls' names, while Lewis, Riley, James, Logan and Jack make up the top five names for boys.

Those seem hearteningly conventional. And it's a comfort to know my granddaughter Olivia is in good company. Read more at 
http://www.gro-scotland.gov.uk/statistics/theme/vital-events/births/popular-names/archive/forenames-1900-2000.html 
and http://www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk/content/help/index.aspx?561 where the added dimension of nicknames is explored, as well as interchangeable forenames such as Jane/Jean/Janet: all could apply to one person – and indeed does in my Scottish family tree.  

They left out Helen, which is interchangeable with Ellen and Nell; or perhaps Nell should be regarded as a nickname. My Aunt Agnes was always known as Nancy, another interchangeable Scottish forename. Georgina became Ina and Margaret was usually Peggy. A girl christened Williamina in Scotland became Wilhelmina in South Africa.

Elizabeth might be recorded as Elisabeth, Eliza, Betty, Betsy, Beth, Bessie, Elspeth, Lizzie, and even Elsie. My grandmother taught me the following verse:

Eliza, Elizabeth, Betsy and Beth
Went to the woods to find a birds nest
Found a nest with 5 eggs in it
Took one each and left 4 in it.

In Northumberland, Isabel and Elizabeth were interchangeable in the 19th c, as I found to my cost when researching in that area.

Sol Plaatje

Among Byrne settlers to Natal, children’s names were permanent reminders of the voyage out – Ocea Isabel, Ocean Robert – and Natalia was an obvious choice for daughters. Frederick York St Leger, the Irish born founder of the Cape Times, named his eldest son Frederick Capetown St Leger. Sol Plaatje went one better, naming one of his sons Frederick York St Leger Plaatje, a mouthful for any child. So far I’ve been unable to discover the derivation of the name Sturges Bourne Bell, a son of Captain William Bell. Ideas welcomed.*

Where there’s no apparent family tradition in a forename, there’s always a chance that the baby was named after the doctor or midwife present at delivery; a well-known local personality who might act as sponsor – or godparent – to the child; a famous figure of the time – my grandfather’s middle name was Bartle after Sir Bartle Frere. 

Sir Redvers (pronounced Reevers) Buller

Numerous babies in the early 20th c acquired the name Buller in honour of Sir Redvers Henry Buller, commander of the Natal Field Force during the Anglo-Boer War. Mr & Mrs Willis, residents of Ladysmith during the Siege, named their son Harry Buller Siege Willis. Florence Nightingale was tacked on to various surnames, as was Sherlock Holmes. At least Florence was a historic personage and not a fictional character. Boys were named after battles – Trafalgar, Waterloo, but not, I think, Isandlwana.

Middle names, naturally not gender specific, often give an indication of a mother’s maiden name, as in the case of Cathrine Gibson Hamilton (my mother): her mother was Annie Gibson. Elizabeth Smith Hamilton (my aunt) was named for her grandmother, Elizabeth Smith. This causes confusion as the original Elizabeth Smith married a Hamilton, so we have two people of the same name on the same family tree. Frequently there are many more repetitions of a name through succeeding generations and we have to resort to numbering the ancestors (Thomas Gadsden I, Thomas Gadsden II) or identifying them by occupation as in Thomas Gadsden the Mariner, Thomas Gadsden the Founder et al. A local example is Henry Francis Fynn: there were three of them.

Surnames as forenames are a growing trend today: their success depends on the surname they precede. That goes for traditional forenames, too. Surely the following example must be apocryphal: a family named DOWN who had children named Neil Down, Eileen Down and Ida Down.

*This mystery has now been solved. More anon.

Durban High School group post-1886

W H Nicholas, wearing mortar-board 4th left in back row, was Headmaster from 1886

Stellawood Cemetery, Durban

For family historians seeking Memorial Inscriptions at Stellawood Cemetery, Durban, go to

http://www.eggsa.org/library/main.php?g2_itemId=156220

The mammoth task of photographing all the headstones is not yet complete, but is continuing.

Gadsden family memorial,
 Stellawood Cemetery, Durban

Dating Photographs in Natal: costume and studio

Sydney Bartle Gadsden (1880-1953)

What the well-dressed young man-about-town was wearing in Durban, Natal, in the first decade of the 20th century: the ubiquitous three-piece suit (three buttons to the jacket which has fairly narrow lapels), worn with a white shirt with a stiff collar and almost invisible knotted tie peeping above the high opening of the waistcoat. Not much concession, therefore, to heat and humidity, other than the straw boater (often incorrectly referred to as a 'basher') with wide ribbon trim. This gives a jaunty seaside tang to an otherwise formal appearance. The moustache, brushed neatly to the sides, was virtually obligatory at this period.
The photograph may have been taken just prior to the gentleman's marriage in November 1909. The Bower Studio was run by W Thomas at Smith Street, Durban, from 1905 and continued in existence into at least the late 1940s, when the studio was listed at both Smith and West Streets, Durban. By that time, it was the Bower Studio (Pty.) Ltd. The good quality grey card mount has decorative touches in the Art Nouveau style.

A Voice from the Past

Recently I was lucky enough to find a notebook containing family history notes and a partial narrative written by my mother (Cathrine Gibson Gadsden, nee Hamilton). This had remained hidden among other less interesting documents since her death some years ago. There's no doubt that the writings were intended for me. Reading the pages, which are closely-clovered with her beautiful script, it was as if we were having a chat - and a very informative chat it was, too. My mother lists all her father's siblings (born in Stevenston, Ayrshire, Scotland), mentioning who they married (accompanied by a pithy description if the spouse wasn't all he/she might have been), and what offspring they produced. In conjunction with her 'bible' (her address book), I'm now able to work out who the descendants are and where they might be found - spread from Scotland to England, some in South Africa, others in Canada and US.

I've learnt that an unmarried great-aunt, far from being the guid Scots home-body I'd imagined, was manageress of her department at Rattrays, a huge wholesale company in Glasgow. It was a surprise to find that my Hamilton great grandmother had given birth to 17 children - according to the Census she had only 13 'born alive', and of these 'reared' 12. Still, a full household. I'd never realised that, before he emigrated to South Africa, one of the great-uncles had been in the Merchant Navy during World War I: another avenue to explore. Great Gran apparently used to buy from the mobile fishmonger a 'two-eyed steak '- i.e. herring - and would make 'Tatties with their jackets on' for lunch.

Facts and accurate dates are essential ingredients for any family narrative, but when they come with a pinch of fond memory the flavour is so much sweeter.

Cathrine Gibson Hamilton aged 21

In Remembrance: Swires/Gadsden

Maud Alice SWIRES b 18 April 1890, married Sydney Bartle GADSDEN 3 November 1909 at St. Peter's, Pietermaritzburg, Natal.

Maud GADSDEN nee SWIRES with her only son

William Bell GADSDEN,

great grandchild of Captain William BELL

[See post on this blog: 'Remembering a Mariner']

Natal immigration in the 1860s

After the Byrne settler era, the discovery of gold in Australia lured some Natal immigrants away between 1852 and 1854. A few found pastures no greener there, and returned to Natal. As happened in the Cape, colonists invited family members to follow in their footsteps and government subsidies were an added incentive to do so. This system of aided immigration to Natal was developed further by settler agent Dr R J Mann in the 1860s, who also published a Guide to the Colony of Natal.

Passages were not free, but were inexpensive. Respectable settlers appreciated that they were not accepting charity and could repay the government loan when they prospered. Nevertheless, results were disappointing – in five years only 1 342 immigrants arrived in what was becoming known as the Cinderella Colony.

In the Natal Almanac edition of 1865 details are given of Public Aid to Immigrants in 1865, stating that passage monies could be repaid at the rate of 10 pounds per statute adult, within a year after landing. Assisted immigrants to Natal received grants of 50 acres of land, and conveyance was offered to their allotted property – this was vital as the lands were at a distance from the port.

The voyage from England took about 65 days by sailing ship and 40 days by steamship. Private individuals who were well-heeled enough to travel first class to Natal paid 35 guineas for a berth on a sailing ship, and 52 pounds 10 shillings on a mail-steamer. Note the difference between these sums and the 10 pound passage of the aided immigrant scheme.

My great grandfather Gadsden sailed from England to Natal on the barque Priscilla, in 1863. At 253 tons the ship was far smaller than most of the Byrne settler ships. Priscilla carried a general cargo and seven cabin passengers. There is no surviving list showing steerage passengers on this particular voyage but in September 1860 Priscilla had arrived at Natal with 105 people in steerage; it must have been an uncomfortable and cramped experience, even though the ship was described in contemporary advertisements as a ‘fast-sailing clipper barque’. The term clipper indicated forward-raking bows and aft-raking masts, these attributes lending speed and giving the ship fine lines.

1820 Settlers to the Cape

These emigrants were to be settled at Albany, previously known as the Zuurveld. Described by Lord Charles Somerset as a ‘verdant carpet’ with fertile soil suitable for cultivation, cattle and pasture, 90 000 would-be settlers are said to have made application for their place in this paradise. The statistic is probably exaggerated but does indicate both the overwhelming response and the poor economic conditions in Britain at the time.

The actual number of people to take part in the scheme was eventually about 4000, divided between 60 parties and arriving on 21 ships between 6 April and the end of June 1820. Bitter disappointment followed: crops failed and the frontier remained turbulent. Some settlers managed to adjust to their new environment, but others left their allotments to seek employment in the towns. Whatever their trials, the immigrants' legacy to the Colony was deep and enduring.

If your ancestor was among the 1820 Settlers there is a considerable amount of published literature as well as information easily accessible online. It may therefore be unnecessary – or impractical, especially for family historians at a distance from SA repositories – to have recourse to original records, though these do exist. At Cape Town Archives Repository are Permissions Granted to British Settlers 1820-1824 (CO 6056 vol 2) and a list of immigrants in the year 1820 (CO 6137-6138); also Letters Received from immigrants 1820-1825 (CO 136,158,178,201,223,249).

Correspondence from leaders of the settler parties and others tell of setbacks which began even before embarkation. It was a major undertaking for any family to face a long voyage, in many cases with infant children, and the daunting prospect of a strange destination far from everything they knew. No wonder some of them were indecisive, getting cold feet before their departure, or experiencing unforeseen personal problems which prevented them from embarking as planned. One of my Gadsdens (spelled Gadsdon in this instance) appears on a published roll of the 1820 Settlers but as far as I can discover he never actually left England.



Footnote: there's some confusion as to the use of the terms 'emigrant' and 'immigrant'. One way to remember the distinction is to think of an emigrant as a person exiting from a country while an immigrant is an in-migrant, coming into a country. Each emigrant leaving his home country becomes an immigrant when he lands at his destination.

Genealogy, Family History & Surnames

I’m sometimes asked what the difference is between genealogy and family history. These terms are used as if they’re interchangeable but strictly speaking genealogy refers to the tracing of particular lines of descent. Family history indicates a wider focus of research: uncovering the details of the ancestors’ lives and times. The phrase ‘putting flesh on the bones’ is overworked; nevertheless it’s what the family historian is attempting to achieve. Theoretically it might be possible to be a genealogist without being a family historian – but not vice versa.

Returning to the subject of surname distribution and frequency, the name Swires – my paternal grandmother’s maiden name – is far from commonly-found: only three instances per million people in the UK, the current total number with that surname being 130. At the time of the 1881 Census there were 106 individuals named Swires in Yorkshire, pointing to a concentration of the surname in my grandmother’s family’s county of origin. In comparison with this rarity of occurrence, Gadsden - my father's surname - crops up 12 times per million people in the UK, and is most numerous in Bedfordshire and Buckinghamshire. Gadsdens are very thin on the ground in South Africa, but there are thousands in the US. Variant spellings of Gadsden cause complications: GADSEN, GADSON, GADESDEN etc.

For a specialist’s view of the topic and some remarkable nuggets of information, I recommend Colin D. Rogers’ book, The surname detective: Investigating surname distribution England, 1086-present day.