Thomas Machin (1836 - 1908)

Born 10 Feb 1836 in Southwark, London, England, United Kingdom

Ancestors

Husband of Annie (Holmes) Machin — married 10 Apr 1857 (to about 1890) in Bermondsey, Surrey, England, United Kingdom

Husband of Pauline O'Keefe — married about 1890 in Melbourne (Assumed), Victoria, Australia. [uncertain]

Descendants

Died 22 Aug 1908 at age 72 in Flemington, Victoria, Australia

Problems/Questions Profile manager: Peter Patten [send private message]

Biography

Thomas Machin, was born the ninth child of ten, a son to Edward (Saint George) Machin and Maria (Gregory) Machin. [ We find that Thomas's maternal-pedigree, provides trails back to pre-1500-periods ]...

Thomas Machin was born in Surrey, England.

Born on 10 February 1836 in Southwark, Surrey, England, ^[1] he was,

Baptised on 17 March 1836 at Saint. Saviours, Southwark, Surrey, England. ^[1]

Married on the 10 April 1857 to Annie Holmes [b-C1837] at Saint Mary's, Bermondsey, Surrey, England. ^[2]

Death: 22 August 1908 at 14, Farnham Street, Flemington, Victoria, Australia. [aged 71] ^[3]

Buried: 23 August 1908 at the Coburg Cemetery, Victoria, Australia. [Compartment: B Grave No: 937.] ^[4]

Thomas's Story Starts In 'Londons-South' [Southwark]: His life develops along with his siblings as at the age of ‘5’ the U.K. Census of 1841^[5] has our Thomas attached to this family living in Webb Street in the Parish of Saint Olaves, in the Borough of Southwark, Surrey [this neighbourhood now dominated by London Bridge Station]:

The U.K. Census of 1841: -- SOUTHWARK, -- St OLAVES -- Place: Webb Street [#5]

NAME	AGE	PROFFESSION / TRADE	WikiTree-ID	FamilySearch-ID
Edward -- [Father]:	45	Fellowship Porter	Machin-75	LV6J-1MR
Maria -- [Mother]:	40		Gregory-2272	M918-NLK
Emma,	20	Dress Maker	Machin-78	KCC8-QRD
Edward,	15	Bricklayer	Machin-79	KHRK-VDD
Jane,	10		Machin-80	LV6V-S9T
Hannah,	8		Machin-81	LV6V-S3L
Thomas,	5		Machin-62	LV6J-YZ3
Charles,	2		Machin-82	LV6V-S7W
Amelia,	14	[St Olaves School for Girls]	Machin-86

We have also found via Original Parish Records that there were other siblings / children: Mary Maria [who would have been 25] and Caroline [20], both of whom had moved on, They also had a brother William [born in 1825 died in 1826], another sister Amelia [birth date of about 1827]. Who we later found listed at a local boarding-school...

The U.K. Census of 1851: ^[6] Has Thomas as a 15 year-old Errand-Boy, the family home, [# 5] Webb Street.

"This MACHIN's Map of LONDON" shows the location of the family-home in Webb Street just one block from the then ‘London Bridge Railway Terminus’…

Note: To Enlarge Map: Double-Click-Pause-&-Click again...

MACHIN's MAP of LONDON

Thomas’s older sister Caroline Machin born in 1821, is of particular interest: Caroline, married Robert Phillip Simmons [in 1843] and they, with their then, 2 children, immigrated to Melbourne, Australia in the 1850’s. Caroline & Robert go on and bear another five children here in Sandridge [now Port Melbourne]. Robert Phillip died in 1881 and Caroline soon after in 1882, both had been residing at Trafalgar Cottages, Smith Street, Emerald Hill, [that is now South Melbourne proper].

Back to Thomas: At 21 years of age on April 10th 1857 Thomas and Annie Holmes [20] were married at St Mary’s, in Bermondsey, [the next parish to Saint Olaves] Surrey. In the same year their first child Annie is born, Sept 1857 in Lambeth, Surrey, just south of Southwark.

NEW ZEALAND, Christchurch & Timaru: In October 1859 Thomas and his young family sail-off to a New World in New Zealand as “Provincial Government Assisted Immigrants”.

The ship "Roman Emperor’s" ^[7] passenger list, detailed: MACHIN's: Thomas, his profession recorded as a Bricklayer and 23, Annie 22, & daughter Annie 2. Births On Board: Amongst three in total: on Jan. 20, 1860, Mrs. Thomas Machin, of a son.”

Thomas & the family first settle in Christchurch, research shows their second child, born on the voyage from the U.K., died at less than 12 months old. His name was recorded as Thomas Dewar Machin, [Dewar, as in the family name of the captain of the ship they sailed to NZ on, the Roman Emperor]

After about ten years in Christchurch, Thomas moves the family south to Timaru. Over the period "1870 through to about 1884" the Timaru Herald had a hundred or more articles in their; advertisement, family notices, and general story, 'columns', - of Thomas and his family. These articles including: birth’s, marriages, etc. It has been access to this most valuable resource via the New Zealand - National Libraries - Past Papers - Web-Site, ^[8] that has allowed us to create [in our own minds] a picture of a man in his critical and developing years where he created a large family and business, a picture that is just not available from any other source.

These Timaru Herald articles included detail of Thomas an entrepreneur, advertising the sales of his stock of: Stoves, Kitchen Ranges, and Builders Ironmongery from a store that Thomas ran, this along with invitations for: builders, bricklayers & labourers to quote on works he had and was tendering for, as a contract-builder & architect.

Thomas’s activities included, amongst other things, the building of: Houses, Shops, Bridges, Hotels, and Masonic Halls. Likewise Thomas is reported, taking up Jury Duty, he also sits as a committee member at number local institutions, the local school, the Masonic lodge, etc.. There is a long list of court appearances over defaulted money payments, to and from, contractors. The stories seemed endless.

AUSTRALIA, Melbourne & South Yarra: Migration on-to Australia: We have not yet found shipping advise that confirms the date, but we know that sometime between 1884 and 1887 Thomas at about 52 years of age, relocates [from Timaru in the South Island] to Auckland on the North Island [NZ] then migrates on to Australia settling in South Yarra, [a suburb of Melbourne] in Victoria. How many members of the family accompany him is not clear, but eventually all but Clara and Charles are found to be living in and around South Yarra. Wife Annie is about 50, they are the parents of eleven children still alive: Annie [Jnr] 27, Amelia 23, Clara 21, Thomas Edward 19, Charles 18, William 16, Harry 14, Fred 13, Jane 11, Arthur 9, and ‘our granddad’ Robert, just 5.

Melbourne’s newspapers, and in particular “The Argus”, follow on with more stories of Thomas's contract-builder activities. The buildings he helped create still stand, here in Melbourne and in Timaru [NZ], some are heritage listed so for the foreseeable future to be part of these cityscapes.

ESTRANGED from Wife & Family: Later in 1892, Thomas [now 56] is to succumb to 'extra-hard' times, with court appearances, fighting for payment on works rendered and the significant economic recessions of the period, finally brings on Bankruptcy ^[9] Forcing the sale of his factory / workshop in South Yarra. But not daunted Thomas is to continue on as an insurance agent. As time rolls on all the adverse disruption takes its toll, around 1898, he is estranged from his wife of forty years and has parted from his family as a whole. And in 1908 [at 72] he is to die of a Cardiac Haemorrhage - Heart Failure, at an address in Flemington here in Melbourne.

COBURG [Pine Ridge] Cemetery: Thomas is buried in a non-descript 'gravel plot' at the Coburg Cemetery with No-Material-Memorial, ^[4] and there appears to have been No-Ceremony, as for certain there were No-[Newspaper]-Obituaries. Obviously shunned by what was, at that time, quite a large and reasonably prosperous adult family. A 'sad-and-miserable' end to what appeared to be an illustrious life, that is somewhat immortalised by the 'Heritage-Listed-Buildings' and relevant 'Historic-News-Papers' articles.

[This is a short-form summary of a more detailed story of Thomas’s life, Family & Exploits; [dated-2012]. Should you be interested don't hesitate to ask for a copy of the full narrative]…

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Sources

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1} "London, England, Church of England Births and Baptisms, 1813-1917" Thomas Machin Baptism 9 Mar 1836, Southwark, Southwark St Saviour, England (Father: Edward Machin (Occupation: Fishmonger), Mother: Maria Machin) Residence: St. Olaves. Citing: London Metropolitan Archives; London, England; Reference Number: p92/sav/3015
2. ↑ "London, England, Church of England Marriages and Banns, 1754-1932" Thomas Machin Bachelor (Age: 21) occupation: Builder (Father: Edward Machin, occupation:Fishmonger) and Ann Holmes Spinster (Age :20) (Father: William Holmes Occupation: Shipwright) Marriage: 10 Apr 1857, Southwark, St Mary Magdalene, Bermondsey, England. Citing: London Metropolitan Archives; London, England; Reference Number: p71/mmg/066
3. ↑ See death registration entry at "The Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages Victoria" Registration reference "DEATH" # 9685 / 1908
4. ↑ ^{4.0 4.1} Find a Grave,(https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/207994648/thomas-machin), memorial page for Thomas Machin (10 Feb 1836–23 Aug 1908)
5. ↑ "England and Wales Census, 1841," database with images, FamilySearch.Org (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MQK9-FXX : 22 May 2019), Thomas Machin in household of Emma Machin, St Olave, Surrey, England, United Kingdom; from "1841 England, Scotland and Wales census," database and images, findmypast (http://www.findmypast.com : n.d.); citing PRO HO 107, The National Archives, Kew, Surrey. (Accessed 5 Dec 2019)
6. ↑ "England and Wales Census, 1851," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:SGKQ-3GT : 9 November 2019), Thomas Machin in household of Edward Machin, Saint Olave, Surrey, England; citing Saint Olave, Surrey, England, p. 43, from "1851 England, Scotland and Wales census," database and images, findmypast (http://www.findmypast.com : n.d.); citing PRO HO 107, The National Archives of the UK, Kew, Surrey. (Accessed 5 Dec 2019)
7. ↑ "Roman Emperor: Gravesend (1 Oct 1859) to Lyttelton (26 Jan 1860)." NZ/ Shipping/ Passenger-Lists/ Roman Emperor. Source: LDS Film #0287465 (Excel file provided by Lindel). http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlists/romanemperor.html.
8. ↑ New Zealand--NATIONAL LIBRARY--Papers Past--Machin--Link-->>[1]
9. ↑ "Argus (Melbourne, Vic.), Wednesday 10 May 1893, page 9." LAW REPORT.--INSOLVENCY COURT.--Thomas Machin, of South Yarra, builder, £5,950. -- TROVE -- Digitised newspapers . See URL-Link-->>[2] TROVE -- Digitised newspaper...