William Robert Oliver (1876 - 1937)

Born 18 May 1876 in Ballarat, Victoria, Australia

Ancestors

Died 1 Jul 1937 at age 61 in Ballarat, Victoria, Australia

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Biography

William was born in 1876. He was the son of William Oliver and Ellen Truss. ^[1]

In 1881, when he was just 6 years old, he was taken away by two older girls and was missing overnight. This propmpted a letter ^[2] by his father to the local media, thanking police for his recovery.

A report in the local media in 1891 describes an accident and how a lad named Oliver ....fell on the stones and was apparently severely injured. He was at once taken to his parents’ residence.... ^[3][4]

William Robert does not appear on the electoral rolls until 1920. There is no trace of him on the electoral rolls after 1922. ^[5] His occupation on these rolls was gien as a labourer and his address was Davis Street, off Wills Street (Wills St is now known as Mair Street) Ballarat East.

In an inquest into his death, his sister, Elizabeth Emma ( nee Oliver) Ellis deposd that he was single, of sober habits, and of good health. He had resided in a barn at a property near Burrumbeet for the previous 15 years, (approx 1922 to 1937) where he had been doing odd jobs for a Mrs Stewart, the owner. He received an invalid pension. ^[6]

William Robert passed away on 1 July 1937, age 61 years, as the result of a motor vehicle accident near Burrumbeet (he was a pedestrian). ^{[7] [6]} He was buried on 5 July 1937 in the Ballarat Cemetery, location: Open Ground Not Known, Grave 01, at Ballarat, Victoria, Australia..^[8]

Note

1. There is no evidence that this was William Robert. The accident happend when he was 17 years, so he would be described as a lad. It would also explain why he was on an Invalid pension at the time of his death, as deposed by his sister, Elizabeth, at the inquest into his death. 2. There is no evidence on the Victoria BDM site of William marrying.

Sources

1. ↑ Victorian BDM Birth Record No 6831/1876 William Robert Oliver Online Search Accessed 10 April 2023
2. ↑ INLA; Trove; The Ballarat Courier (Vic. : 1869 - 1885; 1914 - 1918) Mon 22 Aug 1881 Page 3 RECOVERY OF A CHILD BY THE POLICE. [ https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/249747292?searchTerm=oliver ONLINE] Accessed 12 April 2023
3. ↑ NLA; Trove; The Ballarat Star (Vic. : 1865 - 1924) Thu 23 Mar 1893 Page 2 No title ONLINE Accessed 12 April 2023
4. ↑ See also Note
5. ↑ Ancestry.com. Australia, Electoral Rolls, 1903-1980 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2010. Original data: Australian Electoral Commission. (Electoral rolls Ballarat East, Ballarat, Victoria1920; 1921; 1922;)
6. ↑ ^{6.0 6.1} PROV; VPRS 24/P0000, 1937/923 William Robert Oliver: Inquest; Given name : William Robert; Family name : Oliver; Cause of death : Pedestrian fatality; Location of hearing : Ballarat ONLINE Accessed 10 April 2023
7. ↑ Victorian BDM Death Record No 15510/1937 William Robert Oliver Online Search Accessed 10 April 2023
8. ↑ Ballarat Cemeteries ONLINE Seach Criteria: Robert William Oliver; Date of Service 1937; Accessed 13 April 2023

Source abbreviations:
BDM Victoria: Births Deaths and Marriages Victoria, Department of Justice and Regulation, State Government of Victoria.
NAA: National Archives of Australia.
NLA: National Library of Australia
PROV: Public Record Office, State Government of Victoria.