Myatt Descendants
Thomas MYATT [~1812-1891] and wife Ellen MEGAN/MAGAN/McGANN/McCANN [~1836-1915]
Thomas MYATT [~1812-1891] and wife Ellen MEGAN/MAGAN/McGANN/McCANN [~1836-1915]
Thomas MYATT married Ellen MEGAN (Spelling unknown) on the 10th of April, 1855 in Watervale, SA. The marriage transcription lists the groom's age of 36 and the wife's age at 18 putting Thomas' birth year ~1819 and Ellen's ~1837.
Ellen arrived in Australia aboard the Thomas Gresham in (Ship length Dec 1853 to Mar 1854) from Plymouth to Adelaide. The online transcription of the passenger list includes a 22 year old servant from County Clare, Ireland named Ellen McGraw, but the original document scans look more like McGan/McCan. During this voyage Ellen would have been 17 so likely had to lie about her age to receive passage on her own. She arrives and is married in 13 months.
Thomas MYATT has been difficult to trace. I have only found one Thomas MYATT in Australian records that could be him. A Thomas MYATT was convicted in Stafford Quarter Session on the 4th or 11th (conviction record and shipping record list the conviction date differently) of April in 1832 and sentenced to 7 years transportation. This Thomas MYATT was transported on the Ship 'Surrey 3' which arrived at Van Diemen's Land (Tasmania) on 1833-04-07. In the transportation record, Thomas MYATT has the following description:
This Thomas MYATT also had a convict Conduct Record which lists his conviction as the 4th of April, 1832 and arrival as April 1833. The handwriting is difficult to read.
In a separate document describing convicts, his age, height, complexion, hair, and eyes description agree with the above with the addition of the following descriptions:
In the 'The Hobart Town Courier' newspaper on Friday the 25 of August 1837 on page 2, "Thomas MYATT, Surrey 3" is included in a long list of convicts selected for early release on "the anniversary of His Majesty's Birth Day". This would put his release 3 years early but in the same newspaper on Friday 5 of April 1839 on page 1, Thomas MYATT is included in the list of convicts who have reached their scheduled release, and the paper includes that he was from the ship 'Surrey 3'.
This means that either there was an error in including his name in the early release originally, that his release was counter-ordered by someone in charge, or possibly more likely that he was never informed of his early release. The 1839 date aligns with the 7 years sentence given in April of 1832.
Between his release in 1839 and his Marriage to Ellen MEGAN/McGan/McCAN in 1855 I have not found any records of Thomas MYATT. It is quite possible that my Thomas MYATT is the same Thomas MYATT that was convicted and arrived in Australia in 1833, but not guaranteed.
In Thomas' obituary in 1891, it was stated that he was a "colonist of 58 years" (putting arrival in 1833 matching convict record), and that he "arrived in the ship that brought the first sheep to S.A." and that he was "born Shropshire, England, 1809".
In regard of the 'first sheep brought by ship' claim, the earliest record I have found for sheep brought into SA by ship is within 'THE HISTORY OF SHEEP SCAB IN SOUTH AUSTRALIA' by W. Stephen Smith, B.V.Sc., F.A.C.V.Sc. written in "the mid 70's", digitised and available at http://history.pir.sa.gov.au.
"The first sheep to be landed in the colony consisted of six rams of Merino and Leicester breeds ex the John Pirie in 1836, followed by 70 head from Van Diemen’s Land in the same year."
If Thomas MYATT arrived in SA on a very early ship containing sheep, he would likely have done so from the ship from Van Diemen's Land as that was where he was located and set for release as a convict. However, he would have still been a prisoner in 1836; his early release was in 1837, and proper release in 1839. His convict records do include him being involved with sheep however. It was not unheard of for convicts to escape their imprisonment and live in South Australia. Two early constables in South Australia were found to be escaped convicts. It is possible that Thomas MYATT escaped on board the ship containing sheep in 1836 from Van Diemen's Land to South Australia, but this is not based on any records other than his obituary stating his arrival on the first sheep ship to the state. I have not found any ship passenger record for Thomas MYATT aboard any of these ships.
The convicted Thomas MYATT was 19 in 1832 putting his birth about 1812. So the ages are pretty close and they could be the same person. And while the conviction record is in Stafford and his obituary puts him from Shropshire, the distance from Stafford to Shropshire is 30 miles which isn't so far to be impossible.
Ultimately, due to Ellen MEGAN/McGAN/McCAN's inconsistently written name, and Thomas MYATT's uncertain past, I have not found either of their parents or any siblings. So they are at the top of my MYATT descendants list.