John Burrell

   Cause of his death was senility.

  Research Notes:

Marilyn Terlich notes:
Trial in Bristol of John's mother - 12 Jan 1796.

After sentencing, Martha Burrell was sent to hulk 'Britannia' (Fiche 614) where her son John was born, he was baptised c.1797. Both left London on 'Speedy' on 24 Nov 1799 and arrived in Port Jackson on 15 Apr 1800.
He arrived in the colony free and after his mother married Thomas Sharp he used the Sharp surname until 21.

Also transported on the 'Speedy' was Elizabeth Smith who became David Horton's second wife. Mary was a daughter who John married in 1820 when she was 15 years old.
1820: Transcript of a letter sent to Governor Macquarie by John requesting a land grant.
"60 acres
To His Excellency Governor Macquarie
The Humble Memorial of John Burrell of Pitt Town Most respectively herewith -
That Memorialist arrived free in the Colony with his Mother with Transport Ship Speedy in 1800.
That Memorialist is 22 years of age, and lately married to a Daughter of David Horton a Native young woman, he therefore humble solicits Your Excellency for the indulgence of a Grant of Land, which it is his intention to improve and cultivate.
And Memorialist will ever pray WIndsor 30th June, 1820 John Burrell
We certify to His Excellency the Governor that we consider Petitioner as coming within the meaning of the General Order of 20th May last and recommend him accordingly.
Signatures: unreadable & John Crofts (Chap?)"

In 1820 John married Mary Horton who was 15 years old, the daughter of former convicts David Horton and Elizabeth Smith. Elizabeth Smith travelled on the 'Speedy' in 1800 with John's mother, Martha.
1822 Muster:
John Burrell CF 'Speedy' Landholder - Windsor.

1823: Granted 55 acres at Pitt Town near Windsor. Later he bought land at Agnes Banks between Richmond and Penrith, north-east of Sydney.

1828 Census:
John Burrell, came free on ship 'Speedy', farmer at Evan, with 57 acres all cleared and 20 under cultivation, 2 horses, no cattle or sheep. Age 30.
Mary (wife nee Horton) age 22, born colony.
Ann - aged 8 BC.
James - age 3 BC.
Joseph - age 9m BC.

1831: Court papers lists Mary as being in a shop with her father, David Horton of Pitt Town when the offence occurred and sentenced to 6 months imprisonment in Windsor . At the time their eldest child Ann was 11, James-6, Joseph-3 and Elizabeth-3 mths.

1832: Newspaper Article -" John mortgaged his Pitt Town property in 1832 to borrow 40 pounds from Abraham Elias, inn-keeper of Sydney, a large sum in those days. It was believed he raised money to purchase the property at Agnes Banks."

John and Mary had 13 children, 8 surviving daughters and 3 surviving sons - James, Joseph and William Thomas.

The eldest son James, having married young, left home and had various labouring jobs at Penrith and across the mountains and further west to Wellington. The other boys, Joseph and William Thomas stayed on the farm with their wives and families.
James died in 1858 and in about 1870 his widow Emma moved to Wellington settling on the land with several children from her previous marriage to Rossiter and 6 Burrell children. There is no record of her remarrying.
Very late in life, around 1875, John moved to Spring Hill near Orange with their sons Joseph and William Thomas. It is recorded that they moved after being wiped out by floods on the Hawkesbury.
John never owned land again after selling up and moving to Orange and it seems the family fortune subsided as neither of the sons ever owned property although they worked on the land all their lives. Joseph settled at Spring Terrace but William Thomas moved further west to Wellington.
By this stage all of John mary's other children were married and leading lives of their own."

Extract from "A History Springs to Mind" by Kerrin Cook P98
"John and his wife Mary went to Spring Hill about 1875, after having lived all their lives in the Windsor, Pitt Town Area. John's mother, Martha, was a convict, having been charged with stealing some clothing, and he had been born in prison in 1798 before his mother had left for Australia. They arrived in NSW on the 'Speedy' on 11 April 1800. He was therefore, a free man. In 1820 he married 15 year old Mary Horton, who was the daughter of two convicts, and whose mother had come out on the same convict ship as John and his mother. John was granted land at Richmond and later purchased land at Agnes Banks where their 13 children were born and raised. Two of their sons, Joseph and William Thomas, stayed on the Agnes Banks property after marrying. After being wiped out by severe flooding of the Hawkesbury, the three families decided to move to Spring Hill. John never owned and land in the area, but Joseph took up 50 acres at Huntley and William purchased 50 acres at Spring Terrace.
Mary survived only 12 months in Spring Hill, dying in 1876 aged 70. She is buried in Orange Cemetery. John died in 1884, aged 87, and is buried in the Church of England cemetery at Spring Terrace."

Burrell Reunion Newspaper Article:
"Martha Burrell, a convict, arrived in Australia in April 1800 on the ship 'Speedy' with her two and a half son, John.
He had been conceived and born in prison in the UK where she was held for nearly 4 years awaiting transportation having been convicted in January 1796 at the age of 18 for 'feloniously taking and carrying away a quantity of wearing apparel,'the property os one Thomas Nichols. She had pleaded not guilty.
Martha is described in the court records at St.Mary's Newington Surrey as 'Martha Burrell of Newington, spinster'
although there is speculation that she came from further west at Alverstoke, Hampshire.
Presumably, Martha was unmarried but is believed to have told John that his father was an officer named James Burrell who had died, This name appeared on John's Death Certificate and Martha's maiden name was left black.
Perhaps Martha had a de-facto relationship with a James Burrell and took his name before imprisonment - in those days conjugal rights with prisoners weren't difficult to arrange - but it is more likely that either John's father had the same surname Burrell or the story was made up.
From the time of arrival in Sydney at the age of 22 Martha resided with Tom Sharp, a soldier with the NSW Corps and a free man. They had numerous children before and after their marriage which took place in 1810 when Gov. Macquarie insisted that de-facto relationships be legalised.
The pre-1810 children are noted in the Mitchell Library records as 'Burrel-Sharp' - Martha was 45 when Tom Sharp died in 1823.
In the 1828 census, 5 years after the death of her husband, Martha was recorded under the name of 'Bunnell' and living with one James Paget, at Richmond with 2 of the youngest Sharp children. It is interesting to note that rather than use Sharp or Paget she had returned to using her original name.
Martha died in 1852, aged 77 and was buried at Old Richmond Cemetery with her daughter Mary Sharp and son Joseph Sharp.

John Burrell grew up in the colony a free man. He was raised as a Sharp but reverted to the name Burrell when he turned 21.
In 1820 John married Mary Horton who was 15 years old, the daughter of former convict David Horton and Elizabeth Smith (Elizabeth came on the 'Speedy' at the same time as Martha).
In 1823 John was granted 55 acres of land at Pitt Town near WIndsor north-east of Sydney. Later he bought land at Agnes Banks between Richmond and Penrith and it was here with his wife Mary that he lived most of his life.
John and Mary had 13 children, eight surviving daughters and 3 surviving sons.
The children of John and Mary were - 1.Ann (1820) / 2.John (1821, died as an infant) / 3.James (1825) / 4.Joseph (1828) / 5.Elizabeth (1830) / 6.Maria (1833) / 7.Mary (1835) / 8.Martha (1838) / 9.Sophie (1840) / 10.Frances (1842) / 11.William Thomas (1844) / 12.Charlotte (1846) / 13.Sarah Caroline (1849 died as an infant).

John's wife Mary was caught and convicted of shoplifting and sentenced to 6 months imprisonment in Windsor in 1831 at a time when her eldest child Ann was 11.
John mortgaged his Pitt Town property in 1832 to borrow 40 pounds from one Abraham Elias, inn-keeper of Sydney, a large sum in those days. It is believed he raised money to purchase the property at Agnes Banks.
It seems the eldest son James, having married young, left home abd had various labouring jobs at Penrith and across the mountains and further west to Wellington. The other boys, Joseph and William Thomas stayed on the farm with their wives and families.
James died in 1858 and in abouyt 1870 his widow Emma moved to Wellington settling on the land with several children from her previous marriage to Rossiter and 6 Burrell children. There is no record of her remarrying.

Very late in life, around 1875, John moved to Spring Hill near Orange with thier sons Joseph and William Thomas. It is recorded that they moved after being wiped out by floods on the Hawkesbury.
John never owned land afain after selling up and moving to Orange and it seems the family fortune subsided as neither of the sons ever owned property although they worked on the land all their lives. Joseph settled at Spring Terrace but William Thomas moved further west to Wellington.
By this stage all of John and Mary's other children were married and were leading lives of their own. Elizabeth had married James Parker, Mary married James Knott, Martha married John Kinsela, Sophie married Frederick Bowman, Frances married Alfred Bowman then after his death William Kelly.
Most of the daughters seem to have remained in the SYdney region except Maris (Madden) who moved to Cumnock. Martha (Kinsela) who moved to Molong and later Manildra and the youngest child Charlotte, who eloped to St.George, Queensland with Peter Moore.

Mary died at Spring Hill in 1876, aged 70 years and is buried (in the catholic section) of the Orange cemetery. John died in 1884 aged 87 and is buried at Spring Terrace, near Orange.
From the 3 sons John and Mary comes the 3 lines of the Burrell family.

  Noted events in his life were:

• connection. ⁷⁴²

John married Mary Horton on 3 Apr 1820 in St Matthews C of E, Windsor, Sydney, NSW Australia. (Mary Horton was born in 1806 in Pitt Town, Hunter Valley, NSW Australia, christened in St Matthews C of E, Windsor, Sydney, NSW Australia, died on 1 Feb 1876 in Spring Creek, Orange, NSW Australia and was buried on 3 Feb 1876 in Orange Cemetery, NSW Australia Catholic section ⁷⁴².). The cause of her death was heart disease.