John Riley (abt. 1803 - 1873)

Born about 24 Apr 1803 in Eccles, Lancashire, England, United Kingdom

Ancestors

Husband of Mary Ann (Hampton) Riley — married about 1845 in Raymond Terrace, New South Wales, Australia

Descendants

Died 29 Nov 1873 at about age 70 in Brushy Hill, New South Wales, Australia

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Biography

John Riley was a convict after the Third Fleet transported to New South Wales

John Royle/ Riley was a convict who was sentenced to transportation for life at Lancaster Assizes on 23 March 1822.^[1] He was one of 5 men aboard the ship who were convicted there on that day. The 'Eliza' departed England on 13 July under Master James Hunt, reached the equator on 10 September and arrived on 22 November. Upon landing the 160 convicts were assigned to settlers and works at Windsor, Minto, Airds, Penrith, Emu Plains and Bathurst. Another notable passenger was Archibald Clunes Innes who was the captain of the guard and would go on to become one of the wealthiest men in the colony. The town of Glen Innes is named after Archibald Innes.

According to Louise Westall Taylor in 2015:

Within three years, however, he had appeared in Liverpool Court when he was sentenced to three years imprisonment at Port Macquarie."

In both the 1825 General Muster and the November 1928 Census John is recorded as being in Port Macquarie but he and more than twenty of the convicts from the 'Eliza' in 1822 ultimately resided in the Hunter Valley region. He may have committed further misdemeanours as it was over 20 years until he obtained a Ticket of Leave at Dungog on 26 July 1845 and a further 4 years until he was granted his Conditional Pardon on 31 January 1850.^[2]

His death certificate^[3] records that he married Mary Hampton around 1840 at Raymond Terrace and that together they had 16 children of whom 11 were living at the time of his death and 5 had died as children.

Again, according to Louise Westall Taylor:

Small parcels of land were purchased by Royle in the townships of Scone and Aberdeen in the Upper Hunter in the period 1854-55. Their children stayed in the general area and gradually bought up larger quantities of land. The eldest son and his wife also had 15 children, all born in Gunnedah, and the youngest couple had 14, all born in Scone. Unsurprisingly, there are many of their descendants in the Scone/Gunnedah region today."

Research Notes

It is noted that Carmel Johnson and Peter Jones appear to have a GEDmatch relationship with common ancestors' names of 'Royles' of Eccles in their ancestry. Common ancestors, perhaps even John's parents, may include Joseph Royle (abt.1762-abt.1814) and Sarah (Knight) Royle (1761-abt.1827).

Possible baptism record:

• "England Births and Christenings, 1538-1975", database, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:NF8P-J38 : 5 February 2023), John Royle, 1803.

There are further avenues for research of John and his family from around 1840 until his death in 1873. What were the full extent of his land holdings around Bellevue/ Gundy? Was "Riley St" in Gundy named after him or one of his family members?

Sources

1. ↑ UK Home Office Archives HO 11/4 1821-22
2. ↑ Conditional Pardon: State Records Authority of New South Wales; Kingswood, New South Wales, Australia; Card Index to Letters Received, Colonial Secretary; Reel Number: 793; Roll Number: 1250
3. ↑ NSW BDM death registration of RILEY/ ROYLE, JOHN, Reg. No. 6747/1873, showing AGE 73 YEARS, and DIED SCONE, registered at SCONE

See also:

• Convict Records
• Free Settler or Felon?
• Recovering Lives: 15 Convicts In New South Wales, A thesis submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy at The Australian National University, February 2015, Louise Westall Taylor, pp 210-211