Elizabeth (Headland) Franks (1830 - 1911)

Descendants

Biography

Elizabeth Headland was the eldest daughter of George and Sarah Headland. She was born on or soon before 12 November 1830 at Brigstock, Northamptonshire. She was Christened at Brigstock on 12 November 1830.^[1]

Elizabeth married William Cox on 7 November 1849 at St Andrews Church, Brigstock. William and Elizabeth Cox lived at Brigstock at the time of the 1851 census.^[2]

Name: Elizabeth Cox Event Type: Census Event Date: 1851 Event Place: Brigstock, Northamptonshire, England Registration District: Thrapston Residence Note: High Street Gender: Female Age: 20 Marital Status: Married Relationship to Head of Household: Wife Birth Year (Estimated): 1831 Birthplace: Brigstock, Northamptonshire

They had two sons with the third on the way when they boarded the Octavia which departed Southampton to South Australia on 18 April 1855.^[3][4]

Son Samuel was born and died later on 22 June 1855 and was buried at sea.

William and Elizabeth settled at Athelstone east of Adelaide near friends from Brigstock, the Russell family. Two more children were born there. They opened an inn near where the Thorndon Park reservoir was being built. The last son, William died just before Christmas 1859 aged about 18 months.^[5]

Elizabeth's husband William died on 2 March 1860 after three weeks illness, aged 31 years.

DIED.
March 2, at his residence, Thornton Park Inn, after a illness of three weeks, William Cox, aged 31 years, leaving a widow and three children to lament his loss.^[6]

The publican's licence was temporarily transferred to Elizabeth on 12 March 1860, then in her own right on 2 April 1860. She had been pregnant when William died, and son William James Cox was born on 7 September 1860. Elizabeth and her four children moved to Campbelltown in mid-1862, having attempted to sell the license to Alexander Ross. William James Cox died on 28 October 1862.

Two further children may have been born to different fathers (26 Feb 1863 Edwin Baker to Benjamin Baker and Elizabeth Headland at Norwood and 16 March 1867 Edgar Baxter Cox to Evan Griffith Jenkins and Eliza Cox at Walkerville died 9 July 1867).

Eldest son George Henry Cox married in 1873, lived at Port Adelaide and Kingscote. Second son David Cox married 1874, lived at Kapunda and Eudunda. Daughter Elizabeth married 1878 to Stanley Pritchard lived at Port Adelaide.

Elizabeth remarried twice in later life:

1. at age 63 to widower, retired farmer and lodging house keeper John Robertson , 77 of Port Wakefield
2. at age 67 to widower Thomas Franks, retired agricultural labourer, 82 of Stirling.

Elizabeth Franks died aged 80 at Port Adelaide on 16 January 1911 at the home of George Cox in Lipson Street, Port Adelaide. She was interred at Cheltenham Cemetery.^[7]

Sources

1. ↑ "England Births and Christenings, 1538-1975," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:NV6B-SX2 : 11 February 2018, Elizabeth Headland, ); citing yrs 1813-1849 p 44, index based upon data collected by the Genealogical Society of Utah, Salt Lake City; FHL microfilm 6,126,837.
2. ↑ "England and Wales Census, 1851," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:SGYM-TTD : 10 November 2017), Elizabeth Cox in household of William Cox, Brigstock, Northamptonshire, England; citing Brigstock, Northamptonshire, England, p. 13, 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.
3. ↑ ship Octavia, 1055 tons, Captain Dale, from Southampton 18th April 1855, arrived at Port Adelaide, South Australia 19th July 1855. Transcribed and submitted to The Ships List by Robert Janmaat at: http://www.theshipslist.com/ships/australia/octavia1855.shtml
4. ↑ Results for South Australia, Passenger Lists 1847-1886 from Find My past database at: https://search.findmypast.com.au/results/world-records/south-australia-passenger-lists-1847-1886?shipname=octavia
5. ↑ Australia death index, via Ancestry.com.au
6. ↑ Family Notices (1860, March 9). The South Australian Advertiser (Adelaide, SA : 1858 - 1889), p. 2. Retrieved October 10, 2017, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article1203053 .
7. ↑ Burial Record (Adelaide Cemeteries Authority, https://aca.sa.gov.au/aca-records/ : accessed 10 Mar 2024) database entry for Elizabeth Franks (Age 81, Date of service 18 Jan 1911, Cemetery Cheltenham, Location site redeveloped)

• William and Elizabeth Cox, licensees of Thorndon Inn, 1857-1862.doc, Researched and compiled 2009, revised 1912, by Max Slee, Tranmere, South Australia (shared on Ancestry.com.au) - source for anything not otherwise cited