John Clements Eddy
The International Genealogical Index records that "John Clemence Edy" was christened in Saint Just In Penwith, Cornwall, England, on 12 February 1826. He was son of John Eddy and Elizabeth Clemens. It is interesting to note that spelling was often phonetic and spelling variations were not unusual at this time. Thus not only is the surname spelled variously as "Eddy" and "Edy", but also his middle name was recorded in England as "Clemence" while his mother's maiden name is "Clemens" and, in documents in Australia, his middle name is spelled as "Clements".
The International Genealogical Index records that John Eddy married Mary Ann Nankervis in St Just In Penwith, Cornwall, on 15 March 1845. It is possible (not confirmed) that a daughter, Mary, was born in the early years of the marriage. Their son John was born in 1848. In the same year they emigrated from Cornwall.
Thanks to John Kimber's web-site, http://homepages.picknowl.com.au/sixtiesdj/, we know that a number of Cornish families, mostly inter-related, and including members of the Eddy and Nankervis families, emigrated together on ship, the ship William Money, departing Plymouth in September 1848. John Kimber's site relates information from the diary of James Menzies who travelled on the ship. According to both the Shipping List in Adelaide and to James Menzies' diary, the William Money departed the Port of Plymouth at 5pm on 19 September 1848. A separate source, http://www.westnet.com.au/talltrees/shipping/shipping5.htm#william gives the ship's size as 835 tons and states it departed Plymouth on 9 September 1848, arriving in South Australia on 3 January 1849. However, http://members.iinet.net.au/~perthdps/shipping/mig-sa2.htm#sa2 records that the ship departed Bristol on the 19th travelling via Plymouth. The minor discrepancies in regard to dates does not alter the essence of the story.
John Kimber's site has additional information. John Clements Eddy and his wife were accompanied on the boat by their one year old son; their daughter Margaret Jane Eddy was born on board the ship but died on 27 January 1849, just a few weeks after arrival in South Australia. Also on the ship were John's brother James and James' wife. The families all went straight to the Burra Burra mines when they arrived in South Australia. It is known that Cornish migrants were a significant proportion of miners at Burra.
The discovery of rich copper deposits at Burra in 1845 induced a remarkable mining boom and stimulated rapid expansion. The development of South Australia outpaced that of the rest of the continent until 1850 (Encyclopaedia Britannica). Burra, declared a town in 1846, was the largest town in South Australia outside of Adelaide, had a population of over 4,000 people. (At the end of the 20th century it is much smaller, and accommodation available to tourists includes cottages that the Cornish Miners built and lived in). reference http://rtw.com.au/bs/burra.html
The Burra Burra Monster Mine was worked from 1845 until 1867 as an underground mine reaching a depth of 183 metres. From 1870 until its closure in 1877, the mine operated as a shallow open cut. During this
Due to the rapid development of The Burra Monster Mine, miners
were forced to excavate caverns in the soft soil of the banks of
the Burra Creek. In 1851, nearly 2,000 of the town's 4,400
population lived in 600 dugouts which spread for 3 miles up and
down the creek. In 1851, floods devastated "Creek Street",
driving out the inhabitants and by 1860, they were deserted.
see http://weblogic.com.au/burra/
Burra Mines, South Australia
According to the birth certificate of his son (Richard) and the death certificate of his wife, John was a miner. Working back from information on the birth certificate of his grand-daughter, Euphemia, it appears that John was working as a miner in Burra, South Australia, in 1850. And it was here that his second son, Richard Eddy, was born.
In the 1850s the dislocations caused by the discovery of gold in Victoria diverted labour from South Australia, especially from the copper industry (Encyclopaedia Britannica).
And John Eddy was such a case. The death certificate of his wife states that she lived in South Australia for two years and then Victoria for 46 years until her death in 1897. Working backwards with that information, one would conclude that the Eddys moved to Victoria in 1852, no doubt in search of gold.
So while there is no definitive information about John Eddy, it is likely he worked in the underground coppermine and may have lived in an underground dugout or may have lived in one of the miner’s cottages in Burra, South Australia. After approximately two years, when gold was discovered in Victoria, he moved there.
One gold find that may be attributed to him, or a close family member, is noted elsewhere with information about his father.
John was the father of eight children.
In 1891, at the time of the marriage of one of his daughters, he was residing at 30 Ralston Street, South Yarra (Melbourne). At the time of his wife's death in 1897, they were at No 1 Portland Place, South Yarra. John Clements Eddy died in Toorak, Victoria (the name of the street is written on his death certificate but has not been deciphered) on 10 January 1907. He was buried with his wife in the St Kilda cemetery, (Wesleyan section, compartment A, grave 47A).
It is likely that many persons named Eddy in Victoria are descended from John Clements Eddy and Mary Ann Nankervis.
The grave of Mary Ann Eddy (Nankervis) and John Clements Eddy in St Kilda Cemetery, Melbourne, Victoria.
(Wesleyan section, compartment A, grave 47A). Photograph provided by Margaret Kelly.
Select this option to see map of location of grave in St Kilda Cemetery.
