#52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks. Week 32, Prompt: ‘Youngest'

Week 32 :   'Youngest'

This week I am concentrating on the ‘youngest’ child of James and Eliza Cottam.  I have written a few stories about James, including telling of his early accidental death 01 May 1873.   (I seem to be drawn to this family 😊)  
His wife Eliza was left with her young family of six children and pregnant, near term.  

She delivered her baby girl   

Agnes McLeod COTTAM

between May-Jul 1873,

in Chintin, Mernda, Victoria, a short time after her husband died.  I feel very sad for Agnes who never saw her father, and then to see a pattern continuing on, touches my heart.

Agnes joined the family of siblings: Mary Anne, Elizabeth, Martha, James, George, and Joseph (My maternal grandfather). 

On 08 October 1903, Agnes was 29, she married Alfred George HOLT,  35, and son of William HOLT and Ellen GIDDENS.  At the time Alf was a carpenter working out at Jindivick where Agnes lived. However once married they moved into Kew where Alf's family lived.

Alfred and Agnes had the following children, all born in Kew, Victoria:

 1. Gordon Ernest HOLT, born in 1905.  Died on 17 Mar 1964 in Parkville, Melbourne.

 2. Elizabeth Beryl HOLT, born in 1906.  Died in 1992.

 3. Harold Lindsay HOLT, born on 03 Sep 1908.  Died on 28 Oct  1996.

 4. George McLeod HOLT born in 1912.  Died on 07 Jul 1971 in Bendigo, Victoria.

43 Kent Street, Kew in 2018.

Agnes and Alf stayed in Kew for her short 9 years of married life.  She was only 39 years old when she died suddenly on 09 July 1912 in their home "Wahroonga", 43 Kent St, Kew.   
Her Death Certificate lists causes of death as Influenza, premature confinement, and heart failure.  

Death Certificate crop for Agnes Holt.

She left four young children - aged  7, 5, 3 and her newborn baby only 2 days old and not yet named.
What a shock this must have been for Alf, the excitement of a new baby and the grief of his wife's sudden death.

    Agnes was buried in Boroondara Cemetery, Victoria, (Baptist “B”  Grave 71/72. 

Agnes’ sister Mary Anne Cottam was 11 years older than her sister and single and I believe moved in to help Alf with his young family.  And similar to what happened in some families in those days, they became a couple and reared the children.  I imagine this would have been a challenging task for Mary Anne at her age with a brand new baby and 3 youngsters to mother.

Mary Anne and Alf then married one year or so later in 1913-14, Mary Anne was 51 years old and Alf by now, 45 years old. 

They had one child - Irene Holt born in 1914 also in Kew.

Mary Anne died 30 January 1935,  age 71. 

Alf died on 16 September 1945 in Kew, age 77 .

Alf and Mary Ann were buried with Agnes at Boorandoora cemetery, Kew.

________________________________________________________________________

Kew.

Kew is an inner suburb of Melbourne,  5 km east from Melbourne's Central Business District.  In the 1850s, the area quickly became a sought-after suburb for the well-to-do in Melbourne and quite a few private schools were established there.   It was proclaimed a town on 08 December 1910, and a city on 10 March 1921. The population of the area tripled between 1910 and World War II.  It is still cited as one of the most prestigious suburbs in Melbourne today.

#52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks. Week 27 - Prompt: ‘Independence'

Week 27   'Independence' - Historical Fiction

Independence - I have chosen to go with a young male ancestor seeking independence and bravely moving across the globe to find it.

  

'Brothers Farewell'

“Oh, James I will miss you so,” John says. “To think my brother will be on the other side of the world and I won’t see you, it grieves my heart.”  

“I feel the same,” James says.  “But remember ‘tis my big opportunity.  I shall have my own land and farm without father’s and Elizabeth’s ridicule.” 

“ ‘tis hard for me to understand your love of the soil, we are so different,” John says.

James is quiet for a moment thinking about John and his passion for trains and the railways compared to his own bent for growing and harvesting.  

James lowers his voice, 

“Nothing can come between us. We have a special bond, being of the one mother.  Not like Mary Ann who shares our father only.”

“True,” John says, handing James a package. “Here is some writing paper.  Promise to send news as soon as you arrive.  I want to picture where you are and what you’re doing. There is also a Bible to remember your God with comfort.  Our daily prayers will always include you, dear brother. Once you are established, Rebecca and I hope you meet a good woman, ‘tis pure enjoyment to chat by your fireside with the woman you love.”

James agrees in his mind that he would be overjoyed to experience that same love, but replies –– 

“I think my hours will be taken up settling in and working.” 

As the brothers share a final hug, James wonders, ‘will we ever be together again?’

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Reflective Statement

My Great Grandfather, James Cottam laboured on his father’s farms in Lancashire. His younger brother John was a railways worker at Sheffield. They never met up again. Both died in accidents.  James was forty-four when killed in a rockslide. He arrived in Victoria in 1852 and married eight years later. He left a wife in-child and six children.

John, twenty-nine, was killed in a shunting accident. He left Rebecca and five young children.

I wish I’d known them and that they’d come together again.  I decided to bring them to life in my story. 

#52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks. Week 4: 'Invite to Dinner'

Week 4 Prompt: 'Invite to Dinner'

There are two men I would like to invite to dinner. They were brothers.  John Cottam and James Cottam. They both had their lives cut short in horrible accidents at work, one in England and one in Australia. 

James was my maternal Great Grandfather. They were sons of Joseph Cottam and Elizabeth Johnson and both boys were born in Warrington, Lancashire, England. James in 1829 and John in 1831 with Elizabeth dying shortly after the last childbirth.  Joseph married another Elizabeth (Smith) in 1837 and they had a daughter that year.

In 1852 James as a 23 year old, emigrated to Victoria Australia, and married Eliza Shanks a Northern Ireland girl from Co Down on 23 August 1860.  They had seven children, three girls, then three boys with the last being my Grandfather Joseph Cottam, then one more girl.

I have copies of two letters John wrote to James from England in 1856 and 1858 telling his brother about his job working in the railways.  He was missing his brother and looking forward to James coming back to England. John had married Rebecca Pashley in 1852, the daughter 'of the house' he was boarding in.  In one letter he told James of his two children. Altogether they had four boys and one girl.  John died 10 September 1860 due to a terribly tragic train shunting accident in the early morning at Nottingham Meadows, Nottinghamshire, England. He was only 29. (NB: This would have been only 18 days after James' wedding in Australia.)

I don't know when James heard the bad news, but I believe he would have been devastated as they were very close brothers. 


James was a farmer who also did some road cutting work for the local council around Lancefield.  In 1873 he was struck down by a boulder and soil from a cutting and suffered internal injuries, broken legs and paralysis. He was rushed to hopital in Melbourne where he died a week later. He had just turned 44 years old. His wife Eliza was pregnant and had her last baby (girl) a month later.
My heart goes out to these two brothers who suffered horrific deaths.  James never made it back to England.  

I would love for the two men to come together and share their stories, not just with me but with each other.

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REFERENCES:

James birth - Ancestry.com. 1829, Lancashire England Church of England Births & Baptisms, 1820 - 1829, Drl/2/541, Bishops Transcripts. No 952, Page 123.

John birth - Ancestry.com. 1831, Lancashire England Church of England Births & Baptisms, 1813 - 1911, Drl/2/541,Bishops Transcripts. No 1126, Page 141.

Joseph & Elizabeth Johnson Marr. - Ancestry.com. 1831, Lancashire England Church of England Marr. & Banns, 1754 - 1936, No 1274, Page 426.

Elizabeth (Johnson) death -  Burial Record, Church of St Oswald , Parish of Winwick, England,  Register1831-1833, Page 392, Entry 3128. Source: LDS Film 1885711.

Elizabeth (Smith) marriage  - Lancashire Online Parish Clerks: Register of Marriages 1833-1837, Page 116, Entry 347.  Source: LDS Film 1562962.

Mary Ann birth - Ancestry.com. Free BMD. England & Wales, Civil Registration Death Index, 1837-1915. 1909, Q1 - L.

James emigration - Date unknown, estimated from correspondence letters.

James marriage - Victoria, Australia, Certificate of Marriage.

Grandfather Joseph birth - Australian BDM Register, No 15588, Copy of Entry.

Two Letters:  John to brother James Cottam - Copies in my personal possession.

John marriage - Family Search.org.England and Wales marriage Reg. Index, 1837-2005. Q1 - 1852 Sheffield, Yorkshire, England; Vol9C, Page 338, Line 33.

John death - British Library Newspapers; Article: Nottinghamshire Guardian on line, Fatal accident on Midland Railway. 11 Oct. 1860.

James death - Digger Pioneer Index, Victoria, 1836 - 1888.  Death Entry No: 4795, Rec. 17.

James - newspaper reports - "Lancefield Examiner" May 01 and May 08, 1873, Victoria, Australia.

Agnes birth - Ancestry.com. Australian Birth Index 1788-1922. 1873 Darraweit Guim, Victoria, No: 8759.

'Reminiscence - John Cottam' - FICTION based on GENEALOGICAL FACT, Walking In Their Shoes - First Person Narrative:

A last dab of powder on her nose and in the mirror Elizabeth sees him again. Her joy turns to sorrow. She hears mother’s words, “You carry the looks of your father and ’tis your young brother James who carries his ways.“

Twenty-three years gone yet we still miss him so. I think the suddenness of it broke Mother’s heart.


Father loved working for the Railway. They say he was a hard worker who learned quickly and lived by God’s law. A strong man for his height. Little schooling yet moved right up to engine driver at only 29 years and carried his pride inside.

That last morning he left with lunch package and thick coat for the Nottingham/Toton run. Mother always rose early to see him off and as usual he gave her extra kisses for us when we stirred.

If only he hadn’t got out to check the brakes … if only the other shunting hadn’t happened…

Thomas the fireman said father was always careful and checked things ‘proper’. They didn’t know eight other wagons were being shunted nearby. It was so dark and foggy at five o’clock that morning. With God’s help, he may not have seen anything. But I know he would have heard it. Too late. I shiver and cry … all those carriages going over him.



Not the time to dwell though. I will go now to the church to be wed. I know father would be happy for us. I must keep my thoughts to that.

_____________________________________________



RESOURCES:

John Cottam: 28 Aug 1831 Winwick, Lancashire, England – 09 Oct 1860 Nottingham Meadows,
Nottinghamshire, England. (My Great Great Grand Uncle – Mum’s Father’s Father’s brother)

Elizabeth Pashley Cottam: 1854 – 1890, daughter of John Cottam and Rebecca Pashley (1831-1869). Elizabeth married David Rankin Apr-Jun Qtr, 1883 at Warrington Lancs, England.

Newspaper articles:

Nottinghamshire Guardian, 11 October 1860, “Fatal Accident on the Midland Railway”
Derbyshire Advertiser and Journal, 12 October 1860. “Fatal Accident at the Nottingham Station”

‘A Tragic Ending’ - FICTION based on GENEALOGICAL FACT

May 8 1873, the Lancefield Examiner describes the shocking accidental death of Mr. James Cottam: “killed when a large mass of earth collapsed on him crushing against the cart, whilst doing roadworks at Chintin.  Conveyed to Melbourne hospital paralysed in both legs and with internal injuries, he passed a week later, on 1st May aged 44 years.  His funeral was attended by 60 horsemen and many friends at the pretty little township of Darraweit Guim on 3rd May 1873.”

James Cottam had a good freehold farm and stock but work for the Springfield Shire Council assisting John McCarty with road building would help a lot, providing more savings now they had 6 children and his wife Eliza in child again.

The two men worked hard undermining the face of a large hill cutting until time for ‘smoko’.  After discussing the grass crop for stock feed and state of the dairy cows this year, James shared his concerns for Eliza who was unwell and his pride in his oldest daughters for their housework and efforts at butter and cheese making.  He reminisced about his brother John back in England with 4 grown up lads and a daughter. 

“I wish they were here with us working this land together, but I do thank the Lord for my strong body and the opportunities in this new country.  Twenty years now I have been here and 12 with my dear Eliza – altogether we have been so blessed.”

Returning to work, with their backs to the cart they began pitching the pile of earth over their shoulders.  Sweating heavily and muscles straining they heard a thunderous rumble above.

Resources:

‘Lancefield Examiner’, 08 May 1873

James Cottam b 20 Mar 1829. Croft, Winwick, Lancs. UK. (Lancashire England Birth & Baptisms 1813-1911)  d 01 May 1873 Certificate of Death Schedule B, Died Gipps Ward, Melbourne Hospital.  (My GG Grandfather – Mum’s father’s father)

Married 23 Aug 1860. Certificate of Marriage. Kilmore, Victoria, Australia. To Eliza Shanks (b 1829 according to marriage and death certificate, Poyntzpass, Co. Down, N.Ireland

Address of farm: Cottam’s Road, Chintin

James and Eliza Cottam’s children: Mary Ann 1862-1935, Elizabeth 1864-1846, Martha 1866-1902, James 1868-1923, George 1869-1960, Joseph 1871-1953 and Agnes McLeod born after her father’s death.1873-1912.

Brother John Cottam b.28 Aug 1831 Winwick, Lancs. UK. d. 09 Oct 1860 Nottingham Meadows, Nottinghamshire, UK.

John Cottam’s children: Joseph 1853-1926, Elizabeth 1854-1890, James 1856 – 1929 (?), John 1857-1905 and Jack  b.1859.