ERIC HENRY DARK'S ANCESTRY, HADFIELD, BLACKWOOD, RICHMOND, SORRENTO, TOORADIN, ROSEBUD, LYNDHURST, , VIC., AUST.
itellya
The life of Eric Henry would never have begun
But for Isaac Dark's death caused by a gun
Soon after he'd married Ann Rogers in 1851
And she gave birth to his namesake son.
Ann's father had the christian name of Henry,
Not Matthew, whose vault's in the Blackwood cemetery,
So high that it casts a very long shadow.
Edwin Dark married his brother, Isaac's widow.
That was in November 1853, and no news there'd be
Until 1862 and Edwin's insolvency
Caused by a fire on their farm near Ballan,
Enough to disrupt the best thought-out plan.
In 1855 Elizabeth Esther was born in Will Will Rook*
But she died very young and things were looking crook
Until 1859 when bad luck turned to good
And Elizabeth Esther 2 was born at Mount Blackwood.
In 1861 before things again became stark
There was the birth of Walter Augustus Dark.
In 1862, there was never any doubt
That Henry Rogers would help Edwin and Ann Alice out
And in a very short time we see
Edwin's certificate of discharge of insolvency.
So they farmed in the area till early 1867 and the clearing sale
Charles Marsh** and Mary Ann born on the farm near the town of Greendale
Before the family moved to Richmond in Melbourne
Where Anne, Frances and Ethel were born.
Charles Marsh, born in 1863, continues Eric Henry's chance for life,
In 1890, making Grace Sophia Hudson his wife
And siring Charles Alfred, Arthur William, Ernest Edward, Percy, and Walter Henry;
He was buried at Sorrento after his death on 23-8-1933.
The father of Eric Henry, Percy, shared his 1927 honeymoon,
With Dot, daughter of Bentleigh's Frank and Lydia Ying Goon.
* Will Will Rook is a parish near Broadmeadows bounded by the Moonee Ponds Creek, a line from Melway 178A11 to 7 K2, the Merri Creek and a line from to 7 K6 to 16D4, including Boundary Rd.
To be more specific, Edwin and Ann Alice were living at Box Forest, John Pascoe Fawkner's name for the present suburb of Hadfield between the Fawkner Cemetery and the Northern Golf Club at Glenroy.
On the 30th ult., at the Box Forest,Sydney-road, on the body of a child one and a-half years of age, named Elizabeth Esther Dark, who was accidentally drowned in a waterhole near the residence of her parents.. Verdict, ' Accidentally drowned.' (P.3, The Age, 5-7-1856.)
The waterhole would have been part of the Merlynston Creek which often flooded, probably on the cemetery site.
A SON BORN AT BOX FOREST.
On the 5th inst., at Box Forest, Mrs. Edwin Dark, of a son.
(P.4, Argus, 9-10-1856.)
No records of the death or birth appear on Victorian BDM.
Pentridge was the original name for Coburg, just south of Box Forest.
STRAYED into my paddock, One Red and White COW with young Calf, branded C ^near ribs, JQ off ribs, cockhorns. The owner can have her by paying expenses. Edwin Dark, Box Forest, Pentridge.(P.8, Argus, 18-3-1856.)
EDWIN DARK WAS ONE OF THE EARLIEST PIONEERS OF THE SUBURB OF HADFIELD.
Section 2 Will Will Rook was granted to John Pascoe Fawkner in 1850. He organised a land co-operative company so his beloved yoeman farmers could purchase small farms. Edwin may have been a member and an original purchaser of one or more ten acre blocks because he was on Box Forest very early in 1851.
ASSAULT.- At the Police Office on Saturday.a
man named John Deslands was charged with
having committed an assault on Edwin Dark, re-
siding in the Box Forest. Dark was quietly pro-
ceeding home in a cart, when defendant came
up and seized him by his shirt, which was torn;
the complainant then descended from the cart,
and defendant struck him with his fist. Com-
plainant admitted having had disagreements
with the defendant previously, When called
upon for his defence, defendant stated that there
were two other persons present at the time the
assault was committed, which he admitted, but
endeavoured to show provocation. Fined 2 pounds
and costs. (P.2, Argus, 25-2-1851.)
MARSH?
I had entertained the possibility that the second given name of Eric Henry's paternal grandfather, Charles Marsh Dark was related to the settlement of Bacchus Marsh being fairly close to the Dark farm. Some genealogy websites contain ridiculous mistakes such as the claim that Henry Edwin Rogers was born in 1806 at Cranbourne, Victoria Australia. Such an error would tend to drastically reduce any credibility the website might have, except for this email from Clive Smith of the Nepean Historical Society.
"---- confused me because apparently his real name is Eric Henry. The rest I've got.
Ann Rogers married Isaac Dark in 1851 they had a son Isaac Henry Edwin. (Lots of Henrys and Edwins in both the Dark and Rogers families!!)
After Isaac was killed Ann married Edwin in Nov 1853."
Henry Edwin Rogers was SUPPOSEDLY married twice before his death, aged 77 at Geelong in 1883. You'll never guess what his first wife's maiden name was! (Oh, you did!)
Elizabeth Rogers (Marsh)
Birthdate: 1806 (62)
Birthplace: Bathford, Bath and North East Somerset, England, United Kingdom
Death: November 28, 1868 (62)
Geelong, Victoria, Australia
Immediate Family:
Daughter of John Marsh and Alice Marsh
Wife of Henry Edwin Rogers
Mother of William Henry Rogers
Cheryl Bell, a DARK descendant made the following comments.
Elizabeth Rogers nee Marsh died at her home in Rogers St. Richmond and is buried in Melbourne General Cemetery.
Clive Smith wondering who is Henry's 2nd wife?
MY RESPONSE.
Cheryl Bell, from the same website:
Kezia Rogers (Benham)
Birthdate: March 11, 1848 (75)
Birthplace: Wiltshire, England, United Kingdom
Death: July 13, 1923 (75)
Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
Immediate Family:
Daughter of William James Benham and Jane Benham
Wife of Henry Edwin Rogers
I found her death notice under ROGERS-BELL and she had a daughter, Mrs Jane Douglas.
ROGERS—BELL.—On the 13th July, 1923, Kezia Rogers, beloved mother of Janie (Mrs. J. S.Douglas), aged 76 years ; also on the 10th July, 1923, my loving brother, William Webb Bell, beloved youngest son of the above, aged 38 years. Sweet rest. (P.17, Argus, 21-7-1923.)
I found her daughter's death notice:
EventDeath Event registration number25097 Registration year1958
Personal information
Family nameDOUGLAS Given namesJane Minerva SexFemale Father's nameBELL William Mother's nameCasiah (Benham) Place of birthBALLARAT Place of deathMOUNT EVELYN Age85
Jane was obviously born in about 1873 and this might explain why I didn't find a marriage record for Kezia Benham.
With the assumption that HALL instead of BELL is yet another Victorian BDM typo, this is possibly the record of Henry Edwin Rogers' second marriage.
EventMarriage Event registration number3991 Registration year1878
Personal information
Family nameROGERS Given namesHenry SexMale Spouse's family nameHALL Spouse's given namesKeziah
HoweveverCheryl Bell has provided proof that Henry Edwin Rogers only married once, to Elizabeth Marsh and that the name of the bride in this 1878 marriage could not have been Kezia Bell.
Cheryl Bell. Henry's death certificate names his marriage to Elizabeth only and he is buried with her. On checking, what I have found so far Kezia married William Bell in 1866, had her 1st child in 1867 and had her 8th and last child to William in 1884.
Cheryl Bell. In checking further as I didn't think it was my Henry. The only way to prove it to myself was to buy the marriage cert. Different Henry Rogers, yes a widower but his wife died in 1876 [not 1866 as Elizabeth] also an engine driver from Dunolly. My Henry was a stonemason. Clive Smith you may be interested to know this as well.
THANKS CHERYL! GENI, LIKE MOST GENEALOGICAL WEBSITES, MAKES MANY WILD LEAPS OF FAITH.
No wonder there were no details re the dates of Henry Edwin Rogers' supposed two marriages. The claim that Henry Edwin Rogers was born in 1806 at Cranbourne, Victoria, Australia will not require the rewriting of Victoria's history!
ERIC HENRY DARK'S FATHER, PERCY, AT TOORADIN, LYNDHURST AND DANDENONG.
Eric Henry married a BOWMAN gal in 1952. He'd probably met her ten years earlier. She might have been a descendant of one of Dandenong's early pioneers, Mr James Bowman*.
TOORADIN. MR. PERCY DARK and family are to leave us after two or three years’ sojourn here in the dairying industry. We understand Mr. Dark will settle at Rosebud. (P.1, The Dandenong Journal, 1-1-1942.)
TOORADIN. AFTER a successful clearing sale of their dairy herd and plant, Mr. and Mrs. Percy Dark and family have departed for Rosebud, where they intend to settle. For the last two years or. so, Perc leased the Brunt Bros.’ property on the main highway.(P. 13, The Dandenong Journal, 22-4-1942.)
Percy had been a resident of Lyndhurst in 1937 when he was involved in a collision with another car in Dandenong.
PERCY'S ACCIDENT.
* MR.JAMES BOWMAN
by itellya
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Itellya is researching local history on the Mornington Peninsula and is willing to help family historians with information about the area between Somerville and Blairgowrie. He has extensive information about Henry Gomm of Somerville, Joseph Porta (Victoria's first bellows manufacturer) and Captain Adams of Rosebud.
Comments
itellya on 2018-11-04 08:58:04EDWIN DARK WAS ONE OF THE EARLIEST PIONEERS OF THE SUBURB OF HADFIELD.
itellya on 2018-11-05 01:16:40MAKING SENSE OF THE ROGERS INFORMATION.
The GENI website provided the following.
Henry Edwin Rogers
Birthdate: 1806 (77)
Birthplace: Cranbourne, Victoria, Australia
Death: December 24, 1883 (77)
Geelong, Victoria, Australia
Immediate Family:
Son of Henry Rogers
Husband of Elizabeth Rogers and Kezia Rogers
Father of William Henry Rogers
1. No proof has been found that Henry had the second given name of Edwin.
2. The place and date of his death are correct but he certainly wasn't born in Victoria when its only white resident was William Buckley.
3. There is no mention of a second marriage on his death certificate.
Elizabeth Rogers (Marsh)
Birthdate: 1806 (62)
Birthplace: Bathford, Bath and North East Somerset, England, United Kingdom
Death: November 28, 1868 (62)
Geelong, Victoria, Australia
Immediate Family:
Daughter of John Marsh and Alice Marsh
Wife of Henry Edwin Rogers
Mother of William Henry Rogers
This information tied in with Ann Alice Rogers marrying Isaac Dark in 1851, and following his death, marrying his brother, Edwin Dark, in November 1853. It also offered an explanation of why Edwin and Ann Alice Dark had named their son, born at Mount Blackwood, Charles MarshDark.
Therefore it was adopted as a working theory, which needed to be proved, that Henry (Edwin?) and Elizabeth were the parents of Ann Alice.
Research has demonstrated that in 1851, Edwin Dark was a pioneer of Box Forest and Henry Rogers was a pioneer of Richmond. Thus it is clear why Edwin and Ann Dark moved from their farm near Ballan to Richmond in 1867. It was most likely that Elizabeth Rogers was ailing and Ann needed to look after her until her death in 1868. Her sister Louisa married a policeman in 1869 so Ann probably stayed with her father to look after him. Edwin and Ann were in Sorrento by 1889 and Henry Rogers died at her son-in-law's place in Geelong on 24-12-1883. That's the pudding and the proof follows.
Cheryl Bell Firstly I want to make sure that your Henry Rogers, the stone mason, was the one who married Elizabeth Marsh.(Cheryl answered yes.) You have his death certificate so can you check if this is his death record.
EventDeath Event registration number11193 Registration year1883
Personal information
Family nameROGERS Given namesHy SexUnknown Father's nameHy Mother's name Place of birth Place of deathUNKNOWN Age79 Spouse's family nameUNKN Spouse's given namesElizabeth (Cheryl answered yes.)
Henry had apparently been at Richmond for some time. His land probably originally ran from Rowena Parade to Richmond Terrace in 1855 and he would have made plenty of money from its subdivision as Rogers St house blocks by the time of Elizabeth's death.
FIVE POUNDS REWARD.-Caution to Auctioneers,Poundkeepers-Stolen. Saturday, 24th February, a roan Mare, branded S near side,S near ribs, S on neck, 21 off side. The above Reward will be given on recovery of the same. Henry Rogers, Rowena street, Richmond.(P.7, Argus, 28-2-1855.)
This, then, would be Elizabeth's funeral notice.
THE Friends of the late Mrs. E. M. ROGERS are respectfully invited to follow her remains to the place of interment, Melbourne General Cemetery.Funeral to move at 2.30 p.m., on Tuesday next, December 1, from her late residence, Rogers-street,Richmond. (P.8, Argus, 30-11-1868.) FIND DEATH RECORD.
The logical next step would be to find her death record but, would you believe, Victorian BDM has gone offline for scheduled maintenance since I started this comment!
(P.S. But it's back online before I've finished!)
Elizabeth was born in Somerset. Fancy not knowing where she'd died!
EventDeath Event registration number9602 Registration year1868
Personal information
Family nameROGERS Given namesElizabeth SexUnknown Father's nameMarsh John Mother's name Place of birthSOME Place of death Age62
There's a good chance that Louisa Rogers was born in Victoria.
MAUD-ROGERS.—On the 5th inst., at St. Stephen's Church, by the Rev. G. O. Vance, Mr. Samuel Maud to Miss Louisa Rogers, youngest daughter of Mr. Henry Rogers, of Richmond.
(P.4, Argus, 8-5-1869.) LOOK FOR BIRTH RECORD. BORN BEFORE ARRIVAL!
EventDeath Event registration number14412 Registration year1931
Personal information
Family nameMAUD Given namesLouisa Rose SexFemale Father's nameROGERS Henry Mother's nameUnknown (Unknown) Place of birth Place of deathHAWTHORN Age83
The death occurred on Sunday morning at her residence, Elgin street, Hawthorn, of Mrs. Louisa Rose Maud, widow of the late Mr. S. H. Maud, inspecting superintendent of police, formerly of GEELONG and Horsham. Deceased, who was in her 84th year, was a colonist of 83 years.(P.3, The Horsham Times, 13-11-1931.)
THE WORD THAT I HAVE CHANGED TO UPPER CASE IN THE OBITUARY PROBABLY EXPLAINS WHY HENRY ROGERS DIED AT GEELONG. Although he died in 1883, his death notice did not appear until 1884!
Rogers—On the 24th December, at the residence of his son-in-law, Sydney-place, Geelong, Henry Rogers, In his 80th year.(P.4, Geelong Advertiser, 1-1-1884.)
SO THE GENI WEBSITE AT LEAST GOT HIS PLACE OF DEATH RIGHT! There's still no proof that his second given name was Edwin but his second son was named Edwin.
ROGERS—PATRICK.—On the 3rd inst., at St. Andrew's Church, Brighton, by the Rev. S. Taylor, Edwin, second son of Henry Rogers, Richmond, to Frances,
eldest daughter of the late Walter Patrick, Hills-road, Cambridge.
(P.4, Argus, 7-11-1870.)
There would have to be more than a rough chance that John George Rogers, bricklayer, of Rowena St, Richmond was related in some way to Henry. He'd become insolvent.(P. 4, 3rd item, column 4, The Herald, 12-9-1868.)
MELBOURNE GENERAL CEMETERY. Buried in the same grave!)
Henry Rogers
BIRTH 1804
DEATH 24 Dec 1883 (aged 78–79)
BURIAL
Melbourne General Cemetery
Carlton, Melbourne City, Victoria, Australia
PLOT MGC-COE-Comp-O-No-259
MEMORIAL ID 193953550 · View Source
Elizabeth Marsh Rogers
BIRTH 1806
DEATH 27 Nov 1868 (aged 61–62)
Richmond, Yarra City, Victoria, Australia
BURIAL
Melbourne General Cemetery
Carlton, Melbourne City, Victoria, Australia
PLOT Section: O Grave Number: 259 Religion: C-E
MEMORIAL ID 193512957 · View Source
itellya on 2018-11-05 02:02:55This is the death record of Ann Alice Dark, nee Rogers, who married Isaac Dark in 1851 and then Edwin Dark in November 1853. Her father's name should be Henry Rogers and her mother's name is correctly given as Elizabeth, nee Marsh. Her year of death and age at death indicate that she would have been born in about 1835. Thus she would have been about 16 when she married Isaac and about 18 when she married Edwin. I'd seen this earlier but dismissed it because of my lack of background knowledge at the time.
EventDeath Event registration number10909 Registration year1913
Personal information
Family nameDARK Given namesAnne Alice SexUnknown Father's nameDark Hy Edwin Mother's nameElizth (Marsh) Place of birth Place of deathPt Nepean Age78
itellya on 2018-11-05 13:26:25In mid 2010, I had read almost every history of the Mornington Peninsula to be found in the Rosebud library but when I read LIME LAND LEISURE and read that Antonio Albas was probably Tony Salvas and that little was known of Mr Gomm near the Rosebud Jetty, I decided that I had to do something. I'd started writing a dictionary history of the Mornington Peninsula, the two biggest entries being FAMILY CONNECTIONS and HISTORIC ORIGINS OF STREET NAMES. This project was abandoned when family historians in the local history room told me about FAMILY TREE CIRCLES and I became itellya. Naturally my first two journals were about Antonio Albress and THE MYSTERIOUS HENRY GOMM but I later wrote a journal about FAMILY CONNECTIONS ON THE MORNINGTON PENINSULA using information I'd compiled in the dictionary history from those many local histories I'd read.
Here's one extract. Eric Henry mentioned the Johnstons of Sorrento just the other day. I've only mentioned the births of Edwin and Ann's children in the poem, not their marriages etc.
DARK-JOHNSTON
Frances, daughter of Edwin and Ann, married Charles Henry Johnston, a builder at Sorrento.
BDM records rely on the knowledge of the informant and often the spouse, offspring or friend had only a hazy recall of the detail, thus here we see Edwin's name given as Edward. He'd died in 1900 and Ann in 1913 so their details were a distant memory. Despite this error, the other details were correct. The second given name of Frances sounds like a normal girl's name but was the surname of the policeman who married Ann's youngest sister in 1869 and at whose Geelong home Henry Rogers died in 1883.
EventDeath Event registration number24265 Registration year1951
Personal information
Family nameJOHNSTON Given namesFrances Maud SexFemale Father's nameDARK Edward Mother's nameAnn (Rogers) Place of birthRICHMOND Place of deathSORRENTO Age80