Richard Greening Prole JP (1830 - 1900)

Born 9 Jun 1830 in Georgeham, Devon, England, United Kingdom

Ancestors

Husband of Mary Jane (Seldon) Prole — married 11 May 1876 in St.Georges Church, Georgeham, Devon, England, United Kingdom

Descendants

Died 1 Sep 1900 at age 70 in Aongatete, Bay Of Plenty, North Island, New Zealand

Problems/Questions Profile manager: Linda Prole [send private message]

Richard Prole JP was born in England.

Richard Prole JP migrated from England to New Zealand.

Biography

Richard was born on Wednesday, 9 June 1830. He was the son of Captain William Prole and Rebecca Watson. His mother was about 40 years old when he was born, his father 52.

Christening Date: Monday, 12 July 1830

Christening Place: Georgeham, Devon, England^[1]

In 1833 his 17 year old sister Euphemia died. Seven years later in 1840, his 19 year old brother Alexander died.

UK Census Dated 1841: Richard (aged 10) was living in the household of his parents in Georgeham, Devon, England. Also in the household was his Lucy, sister in law Charlotte and infant son Ronald Prole, and his 90 year old grandmother Rebecca Watson. There were also six other individuals recorded - probably a mixture of servants and visitors.

Sadly his sister Lucy died in 1844 at the age of 30 having never married.

On 11 May 1853 at the age of 23, Richard sailed from Plymouth, England to Adelaide, Australia on board the "Hannah Maria" under Captain Drew. He kept a diary on his voyage and wrote back to his family in England that the accommodation on the ship "is very bad indeed and we were all shamefully taken in by that Jew Michael. On getting up in the morning about 7 o'clock we have to turn out into the open air by the side of the House on deck, near the wheel and wash in about 2 tea cups of fresh water, there is no covered place to wash in, wet or dry, hot or cold weather. I now dip a bucket full of cold water up over the side and wash in that and the others are fast following my example - we then go into the cabin and finish dressing - breakfast about 9, there is tea without milk and very good, coffee very bad. We always have 3 dried hash, a mixture of potatoes mashed up with chopped meat in it and not very good owing to the preserved potatoes and cold meat etc and have plenty to eat at every meal, although the quality is not very good. After breakfast we get on the poop till dinner time reading or idling. Dinner is at 2 or 3, the preserved meat is very poor stuff, the salt beef dreadfully tough and nothing very relishing. We generally get a pie, pudding or duff after the meat and this is the best part of the dinner. Tea about 6 o'clock consisting of tea or coffee, biscuit & butter but eating the butter is on my part quite out of the question - this is the last meal for the day so that we take our 3 meals in 9 hours and go without the other 15. However, I manage to visit the Doctor occasionally and get some 'Medical Comforts' such as Porter, Sherry, Port, Anchovies or anything else that may be going but these comforts I fear will not last more than a month or 6 weeks at this rate."

The ship arrived in Port Adelaide, Australia on 1 September 1853 after 112 days at sea, having had one birth, one death and a man fall overboard. Richard was in very good spirits after the voyage and glad that he had come out to Australia. He secured Board and lodgings at Norwood about 2 miles from Adelaide at 15/- a week with attendance and employment with a Mr A Scott in a store for 2 pounds a week.

Interestingly after the "Hannah Maria" had departed Port Adelaide and sailed for Melbourne, on 9 September "The fore topsail was soon split. Between half past twelve and one o'clock on the Saturday night, the 10th, it being pitch dark, she struck on a sandy bottom, about 15 miles to the Westward of Cape Jaffa." As reported in the Portland Guardian there was no loss of life, but they had to abandon ship at 3 o'clock in the morning in a severe gale. The crew and passengers lived in tents on the beach for 5 weeks getting what they wanted from the ship. The Government schooner Yatala was sent to the wreck to rescue the survivors. Charges were brought against the Captain for running the ship ashore through neglect of duty, the charge being a serious one, and imprisonment or a few years work on the roads would be the result of the conviction.^[2]

On 15 February 1861 his father died back in Devon, England.

Richard contemplated a move to Melbourne as so many immigrants did in those days, using Adelaide as a gateway to Melbourne. He eventually became a very successful banker and JP in South Australia.

In 1861 Richard was the first Bank Manager of the National Bank in a small town called Burra (150 kms North of Adelaide) on the corner of Market and Mt Pleasant Streets. (The building still stands but the Bank closed in 2018 after 156 years of operation.)

On 1 October 1866 his mother passed away in Devon, and this may have been the catalyst for Richard tendering his resignation to return home to the United Kingdom:

Event: Employment 30 DEC 1866 R.G.Prole tendered his resignation to move back to England.

Note: Lt. Richard Greening Prole, Royal Navy

Title: National Australia Bank Archives

Text: Information available from Robert Harris' Document Collection as Document 1072

Note: National Australia Bank Archives (Information provided by National Australia Bank on request of R.C.Harris).

In the Census records of 1871 Richard was recorded as a visitor in the household of his sister and brother in law Edward and Rebecca Harris in South Street Brookfield, Braunton, Devon, England. Also present were Edward and Rebecca's daughter Elizabeth, their niece Augusta D Jeyes and one servant. Richard's occupation was given as Landholder, aged 40.

He married Mary Jane Seldon (daughter of John Seldon and Elizabeth Geen) on Thursday May 11, 1876 in St. George's Church, Georgeham, Devon, England by W G Morrison (Rector). Mary was 25 and and a Spinster, Richard was 45 years of age, his occupation recorded as Gentleman.^[3] The witnesses were John Seldon and Annie Seldon.

They went on to have two son, John "Jack" (1877-1927) and William Alexander St George "Alex" (1881-1968).

By 1881 Richard had retired (last recorded occupation Bank Manager) and was living at Putsborough, Devon, England. Richard was by now 50, his wife Mary was recorded as being 30 and their son John was 4. Also recorded in the household was Elizabeth Ann Seldon (related to Mary) and one servant, 18 year old Emily Pearce.^[4]

In 1888 Richard was awarded a Bronze medal for saving the life of one of his employees off the coast of Putsborough. Sadly one man drowned, his name was William Ley (aged 31). The inquest was dated Thursday, 13 October 1887:

MORTHOE - An Inquest was held at the Chichester Arms yesterday, before J. F. Bromham, Esq., on the body of WM. Ley, labourer, aged 31, who was drowned off Putsborough on the 26th of September. It appeared that deceased, who was in the employ of Mr R. G. Prole, was fishing with a net in company with Wm. Shapland, when he stepped into a pit and was taken off his feet by the waves and carried out to sea. Shapland was dragged out of his depth and would have shared his comrade's fate if he had not been gallantly rescued by Mr Prole. A verdict of "Accidentally Drowned" was returned.

Richard left his family in England and travelled to South Africa, where spent some time in late 1889 working as "General Manager in South Africa" for The Transvaal Mortgage & Loan & Finance Company Limited. He was based at No. 1902 Church Square, Pretoria, Gauteng.^[5]

The building known as the Palace of Justice was "Designed by the Architectural firm, Philip, Carmichael and Murray; it was completed in 1893 for the African Board of Executors. It later housed the Transvaal Mortgage and Loan and Finance Company." The building is now listed as a Provincial Heritage site. Interestingly the most famous political trial in South Africa's history, the Rivonia Trial, took place here. During the trial, Nelson Mandela and a number of other prominent African National Congress (ANC) members were charged with treason and subsequently jailed. It is here Nelson Mandela wrote a Freedom Charter on the wall of his cell.^[6]

During the Anglo-Boer war (1899-1902) the Palace of Justice was commissioned as "The Irish Hospital". "It was offered to the Central Committee of the British Red Cross, in Dec 1899, by Lord Iveagh, who offered to pay for equipping the hospital for service in South Africa as a mobile unit, initially housing 100 beds but was soon extended to 250 beds and by 10 July there were 500 beds, the staff being supplemented by military personnel. No patients were admitted after 30 September 1900 and the unit left South Africa on 15 October, passing its remaining 180 patients to the RAMC."^[7]

Richard returned to England some time around 1890. In the census of 1891 Richard (recorded as Robert G Prole) was with his wife Mary and son Alex at Langdale Lodge, Oxford Rd, Putney, London, England. Also in the household was 15 year old servant Amelia Thomas. Richard was Living off his Own Means.

The family made the decision to emigrate to New Zealand and in about October 1893 Richard and Mary, along with their two sons John and Alex boarded the Ship "Ruahine" in London, bound for New Zealand. They travelled in a Second Class cabin and arrived into Wellington on 27 January 1894.^[8]

They made their way to the Bay of Plenty where they settled on land in Aongatete on the South bank of the Wainui River. Richard was by now 64 years old. When Richard and Mary moved to Aongatete the roads were very poor although the main mail coach route was through the top of their farm. They probably lived off the land, growing their own produce and farming cattle, sheep or pigs. There was no dairy factory in the area at the time.

Richard passed away in 1900 at the age of 70. Cause of Death: Chronic Bright's Disease and Exhaustion

His widow Mary stayed on their farm after his death, which in 1902 was recorded in the Tauranga County Council Rates book as consisting of 4 Lots amounting to 152 acres. She was admitted to Tauranga Hospital in about March 1922, where she died on June 21, 1922 aged 71.

Burial

4 September 1900 Tauranga Anglican Cemetery, Corner of Grace Road and 17th Avenue, Tauranga, New Zealand. Block: Section 4, Row: 5, Plot Location: 20^[9]

Headstone was in very poor condition but was refurbished by his great grandson Stephen Prole (2016).

Sources

1. ↑ "England Births and Christenings, 1538-1975," index, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/N54M-NBD : accessed 3 March 2015), Richard Greening Prole, 12 Jul 1830; citing GEORGEHAM,DEVON,ENGLAND, reference ; FHL microfilm 916,847.
2. ↑ http://trove.nla.gov.au/ndp/del/article/86414627
3. ↑ England and Wales Marriage Registration Index, 1837-2005," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:2DPV-HMR : 13 December 2014), Richard Greening Prole, 1876; from “England & Wales Marriages, 1837-2005,”
4. ↑ "England and Wales Census, 1881," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:Q27X-8FN1 : 18 August 2016), Richard Greening Prole, Georgeham, Devon, England; from "1881 England, Scotland and Wales census,"
5. ↑ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_heritage_sites_in_Gauteng
6. ↑ http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Palace_of_Justice_(South_Africa)
7. ↑ http://www.angloboerwar.com/other-information/90-hospitals-and-medical/1855-irish-hospital
8. ↑ "New Zealand, Archives New Zealand, Passenger Lists, 1839-1973," index and images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:KXCK-VV8 : accessed 2 April 2015), M Prole, 1894; citing , Ship, Arrival Port , National Archives, Wellington; FHL microfilm 004436307.
9. ↑ https://www.tauranga.govt.nz/council/services/cemeteries/cemeteries-search/cemeteries-detail/tctl/523_?plotid=ANGLICAN*B287

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burra,_South_Australia

• http://www.devonheritage.org/stentiford/Issue_15/Australia%20Bound/3Mar1art3.htm

• http://www.explorebraunton.org/home.aspx

• https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/24300/page/986/data.pdf

• Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/209799112/richard-greening-prole), memorial page for Richard Greening Prole (9 Jun 1830–1 Sep 1900), Find a Grave Memorial no. 209799112, citing Anglican Cemetery, Tauranga, Tauranga City, Bay of Plenty, New Zealand ; Maintained by Linda Prole (contributor 49254308)

• "British Newspaper Archive, Family Notices." Database with images. FamilySearch. https://FamilySearch.org : 5 May 2020. Records extracted by FamilySearch and images digitized by FindMyPast. The British Newspaper Archive, Ireland. https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QPZQ-HV1S

• "New Zealand, Cemetery Transcriptions, 1840-1981." Database. FamilySearch. https://FamilySearch.org : 29 April 2020. New Zealand Society of Genealogists, Auckland. https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QGTH-9JB1

Census Records

• "England and Wales Census, 1841," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MQTN-T8B : accessed 21 October 2015), Richard Prole in household of William Prole, Georgeham, Devon, England; from "1841 England, Scotland and Wales census,"

• "England and Wales Census, 1871." Database with images. FamilySearch. http://FamilySearch.org : 5 May 2020. From "1871 England, Scotland and Wales census." Database and images. findmypast. http://www.findmypast.com : n.d. Citing PRO RG 10. The National Archives, Kew, Surrey. https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:V5TQ-HQX

• "England and Wales Census, 1891," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QSJK-L6Z : 15 October 2015), Robert G Prole, Putney, London, England; from "1891 England, Scotland and Wales census,"