Dear Readers

The following information has come to light from another mutual descendant of the Amor/Wheelers - emigrants from Wiltshire England. While some of the information following is not correct*, it is interesting to read more on our ancestors' lives.

*"...many of their children did not survive infancy..." - INCORRECT
*"...only surviving daughter, Ellen..." - INCORRECT
*and other such errors and inconsistences. NB Please see my journals for accuracy on bdms. NB Also, their last child not listed here, namely Henry AMOR was born in 1876 at "Top Creek", Echuca, Bendigo, Rochester, Victoria and he was my grandmother's father.

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William & Ann had 11 childern , who came to Australia when they were newly married, on the 'Beejapore' from Yorkshire. The 'Beejapore' arrived Botany Bay NSW 14th March 1857. The journey usually took about 9 months from England.

William Amor was born in 1837 at Brouham, Wiltshire England. In 1857, after several months at sea, William and his wife Anne Priscilla (nee Wheeler) came to Australia in search of a new life, settling in Victoria.

Their first daughter Elizabeth Jane was born in 1858 at Sawpit Gully. William quickly found work on the Mount Mercer cattle station, before heading to the gold fields at Carngham. George Amor was born at Whim Holes in 1959 but died in 1860. Ellen was born in 1861.

Having little or no success, William returned to his trade as a butcher, working at Mount Misery for three years. With gold fever still running through his veins, he returned to the gold fields at Whim Holes Diggings (Hard Hills), for a further two years. After this he returned once more to butchering and storekeeping at Paddy's Gully near Rokewood.

It was here at Rokewood that four more of the Amor children were born: William 1863, Anne 1865, Fredrick James 188 and Rebecca 1869. From there William changed direction to carrying on the roads and continued mining at Break O'Day and the other areas throughout the gold fields. Both Martha 1871 and George 1873 were born at Ondit.

As William and his family moved north east, he selected 174 acres at Top Creek near Rochester which he continued to farm for eight years. William and Anne's last child, Robert, was born in 1874 at Rochester. Many of their children did not survive infancy*.

William selected 146 Acres of land in the Parish of Kotupna where he continued to farm with his family. Over the years he purchased quite a large area of land and ran a successful vineyard on one of the allotments.

He and his family were prominent in the affairs of their district, William being a very active member of the Kotupna Railway league, attempting to obtain a railway running through the district. He was also one of the residents who worked to obtain the establishment of a creamery at Kotupna and also had an interest in affairs in Nathalia, with the Argicultural Society and the Independent Order of Oddfellows.

The boys were keen sportsmen competing in athletic sports, cricket and football with the Kotupna and Akiti Creek teams. Sadly, Robert died at the age of twenty-seven on the 17th August 1902 and was interred in the Nathalia Cemetary.

Their son William Jnr. married Louisa Ann Pridmore in 1883. Louisa has been norn at Daylesford twenty years earlier, the daughter of Rueben and Anne (nee Hunt) Pridmore, before her family also moved to Kotupna. William and Louisa had several children, Fredrick was born at Echuca in 1885 but only survived for fourteen days. Both Annie Louisa 1886 and Ethel May 1887 were born at Barwo.

William and Anne's only surviving daughter*, Ellen, married John Mitchell in 1881 and lived in the Barwo area with their children, Ellen, William Robert 1884 and John Francis 1886 all attending Barwo West School.

Anne Amor died on 20th September 1906, aged seventy-one years and her husband, William, died at the age of seventy-six, on the 4th December, 1913. Both are buried in the Nathalia Cemetary. The Amor name no longer remains in the Nathalia or Kotupna area today.

Source - Pioneers of Nathalia and district - Compiled by Nathalia Genealogical Group, 1 January, 2000