In 1856 in West Tamar, Tasmania, one of my fourth great aunts Theresa Walker nee Chauncy (1807 – 1876) married George Herbert Poole. He had been a teacher in the Royal College of the British Indian Ocean possession of Mauritius; she was an artist and sculptor.
In a memoir of Mrs Poole, Theresa’s brother Philip Chauncy wrote:
Theresa had for some time fallen in with the religious tenets of Mr. George Herbert Poole (1806-1869), who was the founder of “The New Church” [Swedenborgian New Jerusalem Church] in Adelaide. He [Poole] had returned from Mauritius, where he had been a professor in the Royal College, to Sydney in January 1850, had left Melbourne for England in 1852, and returned to Launceston in 1856, where they [George Poole and Theresa] were married.
From the Hobart Colonial Times of 19 September 1856:
MARRIED. On the 15th instant, at the Manse, West Tamar, by the Rev. James Garrett, GEORGE HERBERT POOLE, Esq., late professor in the Royal College, Mauritius, to THERESA SUSANNA, widow of the late John Walker, Esq., Lieutenant, R.N.
It appears that Poole may have had a connection with Truro, in Cornwall, for a notice in the Cornish West Briton on 16 January 1857 states he had resided there:
At the Manse, West Tamar, Australia, of the 15th of September last, Mr. George Herbert POOLE, formerly of Truro, to Theresa Susana, widow of the late John WALKER, Lieutenant, R.N.
Following their marriage the Pooles began a farm in Tasmania, bought, her brother notes, “with Theresa’s money”. Two years later they sold the farm and moved to Victoria, where George, with no great success, tried gold mining. In 1861 the Pooles became partners in a vineyard near Barnawartha on the Murray near Albury. Among others in this arrangement was Theresa’s half-brother William Chauncy (1820-1878), who at that time lived in Wodonga. George Poole “was supposed to be a thorough vigneron, as well as a connoisseur of the best methods of tobacco growing.” (Although in 1843 Mr G.H. Poole wrote about the cultivation of the vine for the South Australian Register, unfortunately Poole was accused of plagiarising this piece. The Geelong Advertiser reported Poole had 20 years experience of growing vines in southern Europe but I am not sure this fits with the facts of his life.)
Poole was appointed local manager of the vineyard.
The scheme was successful for a couple of years but in 1864 it collapsed. George Poole returned to Mauritius in November and Theresa followed in April 1865.
In late 1866 both husband and wife became ill with an epidemic fever. They shifted to India, then after a brief return to Mauritius, in February 1868 moved back to Adelaide.
George Poole gained a job as a teacher of a school at Finniss Point near Riverton, about sixty miles (80km) north of Adelaide. In 1869 he became ill and died.
From the Adelaide Evening Journal 2 August 1869:
Deaths: POOLE.—On the 29th July, at Finniss Point, near Kapunda, George Herbert Poole, Esq., aged 63 years.
From The South Australian Advertiser 7 August 1869:
The remains of Mr. George Herbert Poole, licensed teacher of Finniss Point, were interred in the Riverton Church burial-ground on Saturday, the 31st ult. The deceased gentleman had been ailing for some time past, but suffered severely during the last month of his earthly pilgrimage from disease of the liver.
Finniss Point, also known as Finnis Point, is a few miles south of Riverton. The settlement no longer exists.
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rosiegalltimeandtide said:
The Rev James Garrett is my third great grandfather! I never cease to be amazed at how mobile/ peripatetic some of our 19th century forebears were.
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lindamaycurry said:
Why was Theresa Walker née Chauncey when she was Mrs Poole. Did she marry again after the death of her husband? I see she lived another seven years after his death. Poole sounds like he was unable to stick to anything although it would have been hard to make a success in the wine industry in those days.
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Anne Young said:
I think Poole sounds a bit hopeless – full of bluster.
I think Theresa is best known by her name from her first marriage to John Walker, so usually referred to as Theresa Walker. Her brother Philip though wrote a memoir about her calling her Mrs Poole.
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lindamaycurry said:
OK – so I just read about the life of Theresa in your other post. What a talented person she was. She didn’t choose husbands wisely but had a career of her own with her art. Amazing to read about breast surgery in those days. No follow up like we have now but she did survive another year.
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Anne Young said:
It sounds to me as though she was very strong willed. She was definitely talented though.
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JenniferAlison Jones said:
Judging by the self portrait I’d say Theresa was a talented artist. Her husband must have caused worry at times. We have family up around the area of Myrtleford and often drive through Barnawatha. Wineries have definitely taken off since the early days of grape growing.
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SteampunkCowCorn (Absenta, la Fée Verte) 🍸🎩 said:
It amazes me how talented was Theresa Walker/Poole was, that self portrait is beautiful.
If the settlement when the family lived last no longer exist, does it mean there´s no graveyard to visit, or there´s just a small ghost town there?
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Anne Young said:
His grave was in a nearby town and the cemetery is still there but I am pretty sure it is an unmarked grave. Theresa’s grave in Melbourne is also unmarked but the location is known and the local Friends of the cemetery group did a talk about her a few years ago.
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Mrs Fever said:
I’ve been reading your family history posts (in reverse order — I started with H) and find it amazing how much information you’ve been able to compile about so many individuals!
One thing that strikes me from the old notices and articles is the language and how meanings differ/change. When the Hobart Colonial Times used “late professor,” for example, I had to go back and read it twice. The term, to me, meant “deceased.” But obviously it’s a marriage notice, so I had to do a mental double-take. 🙂
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