John (the first) Sunderland

  General Notes:

source:Keith Shrimpton where it is noted:
Source: - The Pragmatic Pioneers Page 135/136/137

John Sunderland was born c.1757 in Haworth in the West Riding of Yorkshire. He was a cordwainer until c.1779 when he joined the British army. He married Mary Burton, the daughter of William and Elizabeth Burton from Kent.

On January 19 1807, at Hilsea Barracks near Portsmouth, John Sunderland enlisted as a private in The New South Corps. The Description Book of the Corps records that he was of dark complexion, hazel eyes, dark brown hair and long visage. On May 18 1808 he embarked for New South Wales with his detachment of the Corps, on board the convict transport "Speke". Accompanying John was his wife Mary and their children: - George, born 1801, Rebecca, born 1802, Sarah, born 1805 and John, born 1807.

They arrived in the wake of the Rum Rebellion, the conflict between a group of colonists led by John Macarthur on the one hand and Governor William Bligh on the other, a conflict in which the New South Wales Corps played a leading role. The rebellion spelt the end of the Corps as a distinct unit. Official notification was received in Sydney on August 14 1809 that the New South Wales Corps had been redesignated as part of the 102nd Regiment of the Line. Macquarie's own regiment, the 73rd, was ready to take over the task of garrison duty. Soon after taking charge of the government of the colony Macquarie ordered the 102nd Regiment home.

Macquarie also made provision for the great number of old soldiers of the 102nd who had served long in this country (and who wished) to remain in it on account of the connections they have formed with convict women, and by whom they had children. He formed them into an invalid or veteran company for the service of the colony. John Sunderland chose to join the ranks of this company and a list of these veterans made on March 25 1810 notes that he was then aged fifty and had served thirty-one years in the army.

The pay lists of the 102nd Regiment and the Invalids Company indicate that for the first five years of their time in New South Wales the Sunderland family were resident in Sydney. Two daughters were born to John and Mary in Sydney: Mary, born January 5 1810 and Hannah born November 6 1812. John Sunderland junior had died in November 1809.

Page 136

From February/March 1814 the Veterans Company was stationed at Parramatta and from that time until the disbandment of the Company in 1823, John Sunderland appears in the Company's musters at Parramatta. On April 1 1814 he paid two hundred and twenty five Pounds to one George Beldon for property at Parramatta and sold George Beldon a house and premises at no.5 Kent Street in Sydney for two hundred Pounds. Presumably these transactions were simply an exchange.

Another child, John, was born to John and Mary on August 15 1815 and William, their eighth child, was born at
Parramatta on April 18 1819.

In January 1822, the new Governor, Brisbane, wrote to the War Office renewing an earlier request by Macquarie to disband the Veteran's Company. He wrote that there was not one man of them that [he] could consider fit for any service and put the appeal in the strongest terms but there was no response from London. Instead, through either death or, ill health the Veterans Company was allowed to diminish. Finally, on September 24 1823 the Veterans Company was disbanded and, on November 5 1823 Private John Sunderland received a certificate of his entitlement, as a veteran, to a grant of land. In fact, both John Sunderland and his eldest son, George, had already received official notification of grants of land in the district of Parramatta. John received a hundred acres and George sixty acres in adjacent grants in the area that is now Lidcombe, adjoining Rookwood Cemetery.

It is unclear whether John ever resided on this land. In 1822 the Sunderland address was described as the Dog Traps
- The Dog Trap Road ran between Parramatta and Liverpool and John and Mary were still in the Parramatta district on March 28 1824 when eleven-year old Hannah died. Her headstone can still be seen in St.John's churchyard at Parramatta. But by the time of the November 1828 Census the Sunderlands were at Richmond where John had two horses and ten cows.

Writing from Richmond on September 9 1829, John Sunderland petitioned the Governor to be appointed Inspector of Cattle for the Townships of Richmond and North Richmond and Windsor. In his letter he supports his request by explaining that: -

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I have 5 sons in North Richmond and that is the very place where smuggling is carried on - and my sons will let me know their Goins on.

He must have included his sons-in-law in his count; Rebecca's husband - William Townsend, Mary's husband - John Matthew Pitman, and Sarah's husband - William Patrick. He also threw in a request to His Excellency. . to Give, me a Lottment of Ground for there is ten or twelve Lottments Lying Waste. He signed his petition as John Sunderland, an old veteran. His request was refused, a note on the corner of the letter, dated September 11 1829, instructing the clerk to put the letter aside and adding, I hope no inspector will be appointed.

A few months later, on February 22 1830, the old soldier died. He was buried at St.Peter's Richmond on February 24 1830 where the inscription on his headstone reads: -

Affliction Soar Long time I bore
Physicions was in vain
Till God Did Please To Give
Me Ease, And Free me from My Pain

Years after John Sunderland's death a family legend transformed his social status. Grandfather became a surgeon; thus his granddaughter Mary Ann Townsend's marriage announcement in the Sydney Morning Herald on December 1 1842 refers to him as the late Dr. Sunderland, surgeon, of the 102nd Regiment. Again, when his daughter Mary died in 1879, her death certificate stated that she was the daughter of a surgeon of the 70th, retired from service upon being in the colony some time. The information was supplied by Mary's daughter, Frances Ferry. Similarly, when John Sunderland's eldest daughter, Rebecca, died in 1882, her son, Henry Townsend, recorded that his grandfather had been a medical doctor.

Mary Sunderland died at Spring Grove, Cox's River, on April 21 1862, aged ninety. She was buried in the old Bowenfels cemetery where her headstone still stands, alongside other headstones connected to the Sunderland family.


SOURCES. An exact reproduction of an unpublished manuscript written and researched by Megan Martin, June 1991.

Source: - Gosper Connections Page 204/218
Immigrated on the "Speke" on the 16/11/1808.

  Noted events in his life were:

• connection. The connection between Linda Whybrow and myself goes like this:

Linda Whybrow . . .
Is connected in some way to John Sunderland (1757)
He had Rebecca Sunderland (1802) who married William Townsend (1798)
They had Henry Townsend (1831) who married Margaret Gosper (1829)
Her father was John Gosper (1801)
He had Archibald Gosper (1842)
He had Amy Gosper (1872) who married William Shrimpton (1869)
His father was Richard Shrimpton (1826) & he also had Richard 3^rd Shrimpton (1855) who married Susannah Jeffery (1857)
Her father was John Jeffery (1834)
His father was John Jeffery (1808)
His father was James Jeffery (1781) & he also had William Jeffery (1803)
He had James Jeffery (1837)
He had Mary Jeffery (1860) who married William South (1854)
They had Annie South (1891) who married Leslie Rice (1885)
They had Hazel Rice (1913) who married Emmett Whyte (1899)
They had Sandra Whyte (1943) who married Colin Parker (1936)
His father was Arthur Parker (1894)
His father was William Parker (1868) who married Martha Butler (1872)
Her father was Joseph Butler (1844) who married Elizabeth Roser (1844)
Her father was John Roser & he also had John Roser (1838)
He had George Roser (1868)
He had Charles Roser (1897)
He had George Roser (1923) who married Olive Elliot (1924)
Her father was Frank Elliot (1891) who married Doris Emery (1903)
Her father was Jack Emery (1867) who married Phoebe Davies (1876)
Her father was Joseph Davies (1852) & he also had G. A. Davies (1894)
He had Colin Davies (1925)
He had me Robyn Bray (nee Davies) (1950)

Another 2nd connection between Linda Whybrow & Les is:

Linda Whybrow . . .
Is connected in some way to John Sunderland (1757)
He had Rebecca Sunderland (1802) who married William Townsend (1798)
They had Henry Townsend (1831) who married Margaret Gosper (1829)
Her father was John Gosper (1801)
He had Archibald Gosper (1842)
He had Amy Gosper (1872) who married William Shrimpton (1869)
His father was Richard Shrimpton (1826) & he also had Richard 3^rd Shrimpton (1855) who married Susannah Jeffery (1857)
Her father was John Jeffery (1834)
His father was John Jeffery (1808)
His father was James Jeffery (1781) & he also had William Jeffery (1803)
He had James Jeffery (1837) who married Bridget Naughton (1828)
Her father was Edward Naughton (1803) & he also had Catherine Naughton (1831) who married John Broderick (1823)
They had Bridget Broderick (1857) who married Charles McAleer (1850)
His father was Owen MacAleer (c1810) & he also had Rose McAleer (1850) who married John Dooley (1845)
They had Roy Dooley (1896)
He had Gloria Dooley (1928) who married Leslie Peterson (1925)
His father was Levin Peterson (c1890) who married Alice Lillian Hall (1893)
Her father was William Hall (c1870) who married Matilda Darnley (nee Pye) who also married Joseph Keighran (1879)
They had Leslie William Keighran (1904)
He had Mary Keighran (1927) who married Mervyn Collins (1924)
They had Les Collins (1950) who married me Robyn Bray (nee Davies) (1950)

John married Mary Burton, daughter of William Burton and Elizabeth. (Mary Burton was born in 1772, died on 21 Feb 1862 in Spring Grove, Coxs River, NSW Australia and was buried in Old Bowenfels Cemetery, NSW Australia.)