John (Thompson) Perry (1880 - 1954)

Born 17 Oct 1880 in Henley on Thames, Oxfordshire, England, United Kingdom

Ancestors

Husband of Ursula Saumarez (Smith) Perry — married 14 Nov 1918 in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia

Descendants

Died 29 Jun 1954 at age 73 in Caloundra, Queensland, Australia

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Biography

Jack was born in October 1880 in Henley, Oxfordshire,^[1] to a young unmarried schoolteacher, Louisa Graves, who identified her son's father as John Thompson. Louisa did not register the birth until Jack was almost three months old, but by April of 1881 she had returned to her mother's household in Somerton, and left him as a nurse child, named John Graves, in the house of Richard and Mary Woods in Henley.^[2]

In 1882 the child was delivered into the care of the the family of Henry Thomas Perry, and travelled with them to Australia. (It is believed that Henry's wife, Sarah, may have been a cousin of Louisa's mother.) All subsequent official records identify him as John Thompson Perry.

Jack's adoptive parents, Henry and Sarah, died several years after their arrival in the Colonies, and Jack was raised by his older sisters. He trained as a teacher, and taught for several years in south east Queensland, before entering the clergy.

While working at the Yarrabah Mission in Northern Queensland, he met Ursula Saumarez Smith, the daughter of a well-known ecclesiastical family. They married in 1918,^[3] and had one son born in 1923.

Jack was a much-loved and well-respected minister of the church. On his retirement he moved with Ursula to Caloundra. He died there in 1954.^[4]

Sources

1. ↑ FreeBMD Births Dec 1880, Henley vol.3a p.639, John Thompson
2. ↑ 1881 England Census (Class: RG11; Piece: 1487; Folio: 88; Page: 9; GSU roll: 1341360) viewed at https://www.ancestry.com.au/imageviewer/collections/7572/images/OXFRG11_1487_1491-0179
3. ↑ Qld BDM Marriage registration 1918/B/22230 : John Thompson Perry m. 14 Nov 1918 Ursula Saumarez Smith
4. ↑ Qld BDM Death registration 1954/C/2919 : John Thompson Perry d.29 Jun 1954, son of Henry Perry and Sarah Thompson