Hester (Walkley) Gabb (abt. 1798 - 1857)

Born about Jan 1798 in King's Stanley, Gloucestershire, England

Ancestors

Wife of John Gabb — married 15 Oct 1826 in King's Stanley, Gloucestershire, England, United Kingdom

Descendants

Died 18 Dec 1857 at about age 59 in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

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Biography

Hester (Walkley) Gabb was born in Gloucestershire, England.

Hester (Walkley) Gabb was a Bounty Immigrant to New South Wales.

Hester Walkley was a weaver.

Hester Walkley (sometimes recorded as Esther on the Australian records) was baptised on 28 Jan 1798 in Kings Stanley, Gloucestershire. She was the daughter of Samuel Walkley and Elizabeth Pegler. ^[1][2] Her father's name is also noted on her children's birth records, differentiating her from her cousins of the same name born during the same period.^[3] Hester seems either to have been uncertain of her exact age in 1838, or else to have lowered her age for immigration purposes.

She married John Gabb on 15 Oct 1826 in King's Stanley. Witnesses were Samuel Walkley and Martha Walkley. It is not know if the witnesses were Hester’s brother Samuel and his wife Martha, or Hester’s father and her sister also named Martha. John signed his name, but Esther and the Walkley witnesses recorded their mark. Permission of parents was required for John who was around 20 years old at the time.^[4][5] John and Esther were the parents of :

• William 8 April 1828 - 26 August 1906
• Charles 3 December 1831 - 18 February 1923
• Emma 15 April 1836 - 1837 (at sea) ^[6]
• Ann 1839 - 6 April 1923

On 18 Jan 1838, John and Esther arrived in New South Wales as bounty immigrants, aboard the Layton with their children William (age 10), Charles (age 6). Their infant daughter, Emma, passed away on the voyage to Australia, aged 18 months. The ship the Layton was notorious for the measles outbreak which occurred aboard, where up to 70 children died. ^[7] The passenger lists record Esther's age as 34, her occupation as weaver, and notes that she is a native of Kings Stanley, Gloucestershire, and sister to Thomas Walkley, also a weaver, of the same place. ^{[8] [9]}

Hester and John's youngest child Ann was born around 1839 in Richlands, NSW, Australia, prior to compulsory birth registration. Her birth location is listed on the record for her first marriage. The family were part of the Kings Stanley Baptist Church in England but joined the Wesleyan Methodist Church in Australia, hence no birth or baptism record exists for Ann on NSW Births Deaths and Marriages.

Hester died in Canterbury, New South Wales, Australia on 18 December 1857 and was buried at the Camperdown Cemetery on 20 December 1857. Her death certificate states that the cause of her death was debility, which she suffered with for two months.^{[10] [11]} Hester is buried with her daughter in law Elizabeth, and grandson Arthur in section 26 of the old cemetery. Their grave is located in the now Camperdown Memorial Rest Park, just outside the cemetery wall on the Federation Road side of the park/cemetery. ^[12] It is not known if their grave originally had a headstone, however by the time all the headstones in this section were removed to make way for the park, there was no headstone at the grave.^[13]

Research Notes

• See Google Maps, Camperdown Cemetery, "Hester's Tree" for rough location of Hester's grave. ^[14]

• A 1990 transcript by NSW Births Deaths and Marriages incorrectly transcribed Hester's husband as "Nolan Gabb". This has lead to numerous family trees incorrectly claiming that Nolan was John's middle name. Later transcriptions of this record state "John Gabb" and have proven this to be a transcription error.

Sources

1. ↑ Gloucestershire Archives; Gloucester, Gloucestershire; Gloucestershire Church of England Parish Registers; Reference Number: Gdr/V1/224, viewed at https://www.ancestry.com.au/imageviewer/collections/4732/images/43137_636897_2402-00476? and at Ancestry sharing link
2. ↑ "England Births and Christenings, 1538-1975"
   FamilySearch Record: J381-KB6 (accessed 14 November 2022)
   Hester Walkley baptism on 28 Jan 1798, daughter of Samuel Walkley & Elizabeth, in King's Stanley, Gloucestershire, England.
3. ↑ https://catalogue.gloucestershire.gov.uk/search/all:snippets/0_50/snippetType_raw%3Anonconformist/score_desc/Gabb
4. ↑ Gloucestershire Archives; Gloucester, Gloucestershire; Gloucestershire Church of England Parish Registers; Reference Numbers: P190 in 1/12, viewed at https://www.ancestry.com.au/imageviewer/collections/5156/images/41511_633870_3842-00044? and at Ancestry sharing link : Marriage of John Gabb and Esther Walkley.
5. ↑ "England Marriages, 1538–1973"
   FamilySearch Record: NLSS-G4Y (accessed 14 November 2022)
   Hester Walkley marriage to John Gabb on 15 Oct 1826 in King's Stanley, Gloucestershire, England, United Kingdom.
6. ↑ Gloucestershire Archives: Kings Stanley Baptist Church - Registers - Copy Birth Certificate Book 1837, with index, (1805-1837). Reference: D2827/1/1 | Gabb, William, I.D. 116401 | Gabb, Charles, I.D. 116402 | Gabb, Emma, I.D. 116403 https://catalogue.gloucestershire.gov.uk/records/D2827/1/1?snippet=05e75e18-a2ea-4f1b-b293-bd0071cac05d&snippetType=Nonconformist
7. ↑ Huntsman, L. 2002. "Bounty Immigrants to Australia" in Clogher Record, Vol. 17, No: 3, p, 801-812.
8. ↑ New South Wales, Australia, Assisted Immigrant Passenger loop Lists, 1828-1896, viewed at https://www.ancestry.com.au/imageviewer/collections/1204/images/IMAUS1787_081223-0333? and at Ancestry sharing link. Arrival of Esther Gabb, age 34, aboard the Layton, 1838.
9. ↑ State Records Authority of New South Wales; Kingswood New South Wales, Australia; Entitlement certificates of persons on bounty ships; Series: 5314; Reel: 1291 (via Ancestry) : Arrival in NSW of John, Esther and children William, Charles, & Emma 18 Jan 1838 aboard the "Layton".
10. ↑ NSW Births Deaths and Marriages Death registration : GABB - HESTER - 1896/1857 - UNKNOWN - UNKNOWN - ST GEORGE.
11. ↑ Sydney Diocesan Archives, Anglican Church Diocese of Sydney. Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
12. ↑ Newtown Erskineville Anglican Church. "Graves at Camperdown Cemetery." Received by Amanda Gabb, 1 April 2023
13. ↑ Plan - Location of monuments within the resumed area, Camperdown Cemetery, no date [A-00452888]. City of Sydney Archives, accessed 04 Apr 2023, https://archives.cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au/nodes/view/989510
14. ↑ Google Maps, Retrieved April 2023, from https://www.google.com/maps/place/Hester%E2%80%99s+Tree/@-33.8941883,151.1767063,17z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m6!3m5!1s0x6b12b11c274f0737:0xca9058c484968d76!8m2!3d-33.8941928!4d151.178895!16s%2Fg%2F11txlxy0k9?authuser=0