William Stephens (abt.1782-1853) | WikiTree FREE Family Tree

William Stephens

Born about 22 Aug 1782 in Croydon, Surrey, England

Son of William Stephens and Mary (Unknown) Stephens

[sibling(s) unknown]

Husband of Elizabeth (Adshead) Stephens — married 20 Jul 1829 in Hobart Town, Van Diemen's Land, Australia

Descendants

Father of Jemima Stewart Stephens, Elizabeth Harriet Stephens, William Timothy Stephens and Joseph Adshead Stephens

Died 19 May 1853 at about age 70 in his home on New Town Road outside Hobart Town, Van Diemen's Land, Australia

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Profile last modified 12 May 2024 | Created 3 Aug 2011

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1 Biography
2 Sources
3 Research Notes

Biography

William Stephens was a convict after the Third Fleet.

Birth

William was born 22 Aug 1782 in Wards of Croydon, England.^[1] ^[2]

Trial

On 23 December 1809 William and an older man, William Connor, were committed to Newgate Prison in London on a charge of stealing 10 pounds of saltpetre, worth about 8 shillings, from John Maude's business on Giltspur Street in London, where both prisoners were employed.^[3]

On 10 January 1810 both men were tried and convicted of grand larceny for stealing the saltpetre.^[4]

Trial Transcipt:^[5]

84. WILLIAM CONNOR and WILLIAM STEPHENS were indicted for feloniously stealing, on the 21st of December , 10 lb. weight of salt-petre, value 8 s. the property of John Maud .

The indictment was read by Mr. Arabin, and the case was stated by Mr. Gurney.

ROBERT BIGGAR . I am clerk to John Maud , he is a chemist in Aldersgate-street . The two prisoner's were in the employ of Mr. Maud; their constant employ was in the salt-petre room . On the 21st of December, about four o'clock, the two prisoners were coming out together to get their beer; I saw them; I staid away from the Exchange, in consequence of suspicion, to watch them; they went out of the laboratory, I stopped them in Mr. Maud's premises, and told them I had something to say to them; they followed me; when I got them up stairs, I sent for Cartwright the officer. Mr. Maud was present; he told them he suspected they had robbed the premises; they hung their heads and said nothing. Cartright came; they were searched; he found a piece of saltpetre in each of their hats. Connor said, he was sorry he had done it; and Stephens expressed sorrow; I do not particularly remember what he said.

DANIEL CARTWRIGHT . Q. You are a marshal-man of the city. - A. Yes; I was sent for; I went up into the room, the two prisoners were present; I took Stephens's hat out of his hand; I felt his hat very heavy. I said, Mr. Maud, there is something in it; I searched further and took out this salt-petre; and in Connor's hat, which he had put on the table, was this piece of salt-petre; I weighed them, one piece is five pound weight; and the other is five pound and a half. Connor and Stephens begged for mercy; Mr. Maud said, he had lost so much, he could think nothing at all of it. I handcuffed them and took them to the counter.

Q. to Biggar. What quantity is there of this. - A. About five pound weight in each, worth about ten shillings. Stephens's sole employ was in cutting the salt-petre out of the crystals.

Connor's Defence. I lived eighteen years with Mr. Maud, and during them eighteen years, he gave me a very good character; I have been away from him, and only lived with him two years this last time. I superintended the laboratory for Mr. Biggar, for twelve years; and I have had the care of some thousand pounds; I behaved as an honest man all the time. I asked my mate to give me a piece of salt-petre, it was to give to a friend. Mr. Biggar knows me, he can give me a good character.

Stephens said nothing in his defence, nor called any witnesses to character.

Conner called six witnesses, who gave him a good character.

CONNER GUILTY , aged 48.

STEPHENS GUILTY , aged 26.

Transported for Seven Years .

London jury, before Mr. Recorder.^[6]

Incarceration & Transportation

On 28 April 1818 William was moved to the prison hulk Retribution, moored on the River Thames at Woolwich, London, while he awaited transportation to Australia.^[7]

Life aboard the prison hulks was uniformly abominable.^[8] The prisoners were worked up to 16 hours a day at hard labor, dredging the Thames and building the docks.^[9] Food was minimal, the men slept packed in and manacled below decks, typhus, known as Hulk Fever, was endemic, as was pulmonary tuberculosis, and as many as one in four prisoners died.^[10]

Sometime between 21 and 25 April 1812 William was moved from the prison hulk that had housed him for two years to the convict ship Indefatigable, bound for Hobart Town, Van Diemen's Land, now Tasmania, with 200 prisoners aboard.^[11] These would be the first convicts landed at Van Diemen's Land. William's sentence was 'Transportation for Seven Years Beyond the Seas.'^[12]. On 4 June 1812 Indefatigable set sail for a voyage that would last 137 days.^[13] ^[14]

Marriage & Children

On 20 July 1829 William, now apparently a fully pardoned ex-convict, married convict Elizabeth Adshead, aka Frankland, in Hobart Town, Van Diemen's Land. She had arrived in 1827 aboard the Sovereign. ^[15]

Together they had at least the following children:

Child: Jemima Stewart Stephens

Child: Elizabeth Harriet Stephens

Child: William Timothy Stevens

Child: Joseph Adshead Stephens

On 2 September 1834 William ran the following advertisement in the Colonial Times (this is likely referring to the same house in New Town that remained in the Stephens family for generations):^[16]

To Let

A GENTEEL Cottage Residence in the New Town Road, in complete repair, having not long since been erected ; together with a large Garden attached, etc, forming a respectable abode for a small family or bachelors' establishment. Terms very moderate to a respectable tenant. For particulars, apply to Mr. William Stephens, Campbell-street; or Messrs. Bartlett and Smith, Liverpool-street.

Second Arrest & Imprisonment

In an 1839 convict record attached to this entry,^[17] Stephens was listed as living as a free man (a free man referred to a a former convict who had been issued a Conditional or Absolute pardon.^[18]). He was working as a carter in Hobart Town, where he was arrested, tried, and convicted of stealing two planks of wood and sentenced to 12 months hard labor on a road crew in Bridgewater, bread and water only, no chains.^[19] He was 55 years old. His ship was listed as the 'Deveron 1820,' which carried passengers and convicts between Sydney and Hobart, and also made several London to Van Dieman's Land runs with convicts, including one in 1822.^[20]

The crime was noted in the Colonial Times on 28 May 1839:^[21]

William Stephens, was charged with the following: larceny. It appeared that about six o'clock the previous evening, Mrs. Wheeler, the wife of Joseph Wheeler, cooper to Mr. Watson upon the Old Wharf, informed her husband, that she had seen two men, whose persons she could not recognise, take two staves from Mr. Watsons premises, and put them upon a dray, which was with them; Wheeler and his wife, followed them, and upon coming up with the dray, found that the men were the prisoner and a little man, whom they did not know; the little man made off; upon asking prisoner whence he obtained them,' he said another man had put them upon the dray, and asked Wheeler to step on one side and speak to him, but he replied, '"No; no Billy. I've got you fast." Stephens threw the staves upon the road near the Treasury, and drove up Macquarie-street—Wheeler marked the planks with a piece of chalk, and left them in charge of the sentry. Wheeler sent his son for Corrigan the constable on the OId Wharf, to whom he told the circumstance and gave the staves, about, nine o'clock Stephens called upon Wheeler, and said he hoped he would not bring his name in question and that the other man's name, who was with him was James. About ten o'clock Corrigan the constable met Stephens going again towards Wheeler's house,' and took him into custody. He wished to speak to Wheeler, but it was not permitted. He said that it was probable James had put them [the staves] upon the dray, as he was a very poor man. He was remanded for the attendance of the sentry, but would be allowed bail. The man bears a very high character in his calling as a carter, and Mr.Watson, who was called to identify the property, said, he thought any merchant would trust to his care, thousands of pounds worth of property.

In April 1840, presumably as a result of his ongoing imprisonment, William and his wife Elizabeth lost ownership of their house with three cottages and grounds on MacQuarie Street in Hobart Town.^[22]

Free Again

On 30 July 1840 William Stephens was issued a Conditional Pardon by the Colonial Government of Van Dieman's Land.^[23]

In an 1841 Convict Muster William was listed as working in the Prisoners Barracks in Hobart Town.^[24]

In November 1841 William had a close call with the police, being apprehended for the theft of some butter from his cart, though he was later released when it was determined he played no part in the theft.^[25] More on this incident from the Hobart Town Advertiser on 5 November 1841.^[26]:

William Stephens and John llippingale [illegible] were charged, the former with stealing, and the other with receiving a firkin of butler, the properly of Messrs. Boyes & Poynter. The facts were these: 50 firkins of butter were consigned to Messrs. Boyes and Poynter by the Sarah Mills. Stephens was employed to cart them. On one day 25 firkins were placed; but when delivered there were only 24. Stephens said, after ascertaining there were 25 at first, that he must have lost the butter, and would pay for it. The next morning about one o'clock, constable Waters in going about his rounds discovered in llippingale's cart a firkin of butler, covered with some litter. He told another constable (Goldsmith), who watched till 7 in the morning, at which time llippingale came and put his horse in the curl, and put the butter in a bag, with which he drove off. The constable followed and apprehended him. Hearing that Stephens had lost a firkin of butter, Waters went to him, and Stephens accompanied the constable to the Police Office yard, where he at once owned the firkin produced to be one of those that were on his cart. As there was no case whatever against Stephens, he was discharged.— (He ought never to have been apprehended.)

In 1845 William Stephens was declared insolvent in Hobart Town.^[27]

Death

William Stephens died around 20 May 1853 at his home in New Town, Tasmania, after a three-month battle with influenza.^[28] ^[29]

Sources

Research Notes

It's possible that the ship Deveron, which William's Australian convict record of 1839 identified as his arrival ship to Van Diemen's Land, reflected the chance that William may have originally disemarked from the Indefatigable in Port Jackson (Sydney) in 1812, and then later transported as a convict to Van Diemen's Land aboard the Deveron, a ship known to have made prisoner runs from Port Jackson to Van Diemen's Land.^[30]

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