Henry Taylor, a Port Phillip Pilot who guided ships through the Heads into Port Phillip Bay, was my great grand uncle, an older half-brother of my great grandmother, Emma Taylor (1847-1931). Henry was born in Boston, Lincolnshire, England in 1823 to Jeremiah Taylor and Hannah Padlay. Family stories abound that his father Jeremiah was also a seaman, perhaps a ship’s captain, certainly an ‘East India Man’. Henry had three siblings, and a half-sister, my grandmother, Emma Taylor, whose mother Emma Jane Jackson, was buried in Boston on the day of Emma’s christening in 1847. Henry appears to have been an adventurous, risk-taking young man, arriving in Melbourne in his twenties if not before. In the 1941 NSW census for Port Phillip/Bourke, a Henry Taylor, ‘Twenty one and under’, is listed as having arrived in the colony ‘free’, religion ‘Church of England’. Henry married boatman’s daughter Mary Colina Cannon in 1852. They had five children, James Henry (1850–1934), Eliza Colina (1851–1907), Charles (1853–1922), Hannah Esther (1853–1891) and Mary (1856–1918). 1856 records list Henry as “Occupation Pilot, living in Queenscliff”. Henry and Mary played a role in bringing up my great grandmother, Emma Taylor, who Jeremiah brought out to Australia before his death in 1853. Emma was only six years old when Jeremiah died. Evidence of Henry’s involvement as a ship’s pilot guiding vessels through the Heads into Port Phillip Bay is recorded many places including in the Port Phillip Government Gazette in 1851. There are many articles relating to his experiences and capacity as a ship’s pilot in Trove, including one featuring his report on the Wreck of the ship Sea in 1853. Rapid tidal currents meet an underwater reef at Port Phillip Heads causing complex turbulence and eddies. Sailing ships required smaller pilot boats with experienced crews to navigate the narrow channels, which were especially dangerous at ebb tide when many wrecks occurred. The 1850’s were also the ‘Gold Rush’ years in Victoria, with many people arriving through Port Phillip Heads in search of gold. Henry died on the 21 November 1858, at 35 years of age, when the wheel of the carriage he was driving hit a rock or rut and he was thrown out, hitting his head and dying instantly. His adventurous nature and bravery is clearly reflected in this letter to the Editor of the Argus newspaper on Thursday 25 November 1858. ‘The Late Captain Henry Taylor’. Sir,—I regretted much to read in your issue of today (November 23) the sudden death, by accident, of Captain Henry Taylor, pilot of Queenscliff. His loss must not only be severely felt by his immediate family and friends, but his memory must he held in grateful remembrance by a large number whom he on more times than one risked his life to serve. I for one cannot forget how gallantly Captain Taylor, in 1852, swam the river Barwon twice unsuccessfully, and a third time only reaching the shore nearly exhausted, to assist the 450 unfortunately shipwrecked passengers and crew of the Earl of Charlemont…. WM. ED. COOK, M.D., Late Surgeon of the Earl of Charlemont. Captain Henry Taylor (1823 - 1858) is buried in the Queenscliff Cemetery. Postscript - 'This was written for the topic 'Obituary' presented at a Family Research class in late May 2022 - it caused lots of discussion,, particularly as one of this group had ancestors who were shipwrecked on the Earl of Charlemont! There were lots of questions relating to what happened to the family after his death - something for another time!' BL
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The Journey ...An 'occasional blog' recording elements of my renewed family history journey. This is the second wave in my 'family history' journey. The first lasted from 2010 to 2014. with intermittent bursts since then. It's time to revisit, to share more stories, to edit, to tackle uncertainties... Categories
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