#52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks. Week 44, Prompt: ‘Frightening’ - Historical Fiction

Week 44: ‘Frightening’

One of the writings we had for the University subject - ‘Writing the Family Saga’ was ‘Stranger in a Strange Land’ and I think this week’s Challenge fits well with this story.

Many of our family trees are full of people who travelled far away from the places where they were born: whether that travel was undertaken willingly or unwillingly!

Adjusting to new spaces and places can be very difficult – and it’s something with which many of our ancestors would have had to come to terms. So how would they do this? What challenges would they face? Were their similarities or differences between their old one and the new one? And how would it make them feel? 

So, this is my narrative about a moment in the life of my ancestor, my great-great grandmother Eleanor Wells.  

‘Will you miss England?’

“You ask me: How do I feel leaving my home country of England?

Well ... I have many feelings and many concerns.  

I have to leave three of my children behind.  The three we’ve buried.  I shan’t be able to visit them anymore.  The grief of them dying was hard, but now … to sail the seas so far away … is even harder.

I wish my husband understood how deep my grief is.  He is so excited about starting a new life in a new land he won’t talk about our loss. 

Of the four children with us, Eleanor, my namesake, is just like me.  We understand each other.  At thirteen she misses her older sister the most.  We always visited the graves together.   On our walk, we collected flowers along the way to spread on their beds.

I am so worried for the rest of our children that they may become unwell on the trip and not survive.  I have heard that there are often deaths on board.

Thomas, my husband is a gardener just like his father was.  But will there be work for him in this foreign land?  I can always do housework or serve in tea-rooms, but will there be gardens for Thomas to tend?

I miss my family already, standing here on the wharf.  My mother,  we were close, how she loved to help me with the children, but she will not be here in the future.  I shan’t be able to walk down the road to see her, to share tea and chat together.

My answer to you is – Fearful  - I am terribly fearful of the whole trip.” 

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Whilst looking for reports in the paper on 'Trove', regarding the arrival of the Ann Milne in Victoria, I came across this one and it was quite disturbing to read of the deaths on board during the sea voyage.

Eleanor had every right to be fearful.

There were about 20 deaths on board, of which 17 were infants.  Indeed the young family was very lucky to arrive safely.

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Resources:

PROV:  Index to Assisted British Immigrants 1839-1871. Book 10, p  7. Ann Milne, Jan 1853.

'The Empire', Sydney, NSW; Thursday 20 January 1853, 'Portland Shipping', p. 2