HENRY JENNINGS

Nathaniel Jennings was born in approx 1711 and died 16 March 1783 at Bishops Stortford, Hertfordshire [he was buried at St Michael's there]. He was a surgeon & his will is held by the Essex records office, but unfortunately, he wrote it very early in his marriage, so it was not useful. His mother's name was Sarah & she died on the 25th March & was buried at Bishops Stortford on the 30th March 1756 [an MI links the two people]. On 19th July 1745 Nathaniel Jennings married Elizabeth Rankin at St Michaels, Bishops Stortford, Hertford. They had twelve known children, baptising them at Water Lane Independent Church, Bishops Stortford, Hertford. The children were Thomas, Nathaniel, Abigail, Reginald, Sarah, John, William [b 1855, baptised 8th April 1755 at Water Lane, d 1831& buried at All Saints, Edmonton 10th June 1831], Sarah, Elizabeth, Mary, John and Samuel.

Son William Jennings was apprenticed in 1769 " This Indenture witnesseth that William Jennings, son of Nathaniel Jennings of Bishop Stortford in the county of Hertford, Surgeon (the sum of Fifty pounds) being paid or secured to the master as the consideration of his said apprentice, doth put himself Apprentice to John Muggeridge, citizen and merchant taylor of London...term of seven years....the First day of November in the tenth year of the reign of our Sovereign Lord George the third King of Great Britain, and so forth, and in the year of our Lord 1769"

William Jennings married twice, firstly to Gershoma Bradshaw, marriage licence dated 3rd June 1788. Gershoma was a widow, having previously been married to James Jordan on the 27th November 1783 at St Leonards, Shoreditch, London [interestingly, Hannah Gellibrand who became William's second wife was one of the witnesses]. Gershoma & William Jennings had two children, a son William born 11 May 1789 & a daughter Anne born 9 Sep 1790. Gershoma must have died between September 1790 & April 1794 as William marries again. Despite her very distinctive name, so far no death or burial has been found. On 1794, on the 23rd of April, William Jennings, a widower of St Gregory married Hannah Gellibrand at All Saints, in the parish of Edmonton, Middlesex, London. Hannah Gellibrand was born 14.1.1767, the daughter of the Rev Joseph Gellibrand [1732-29 March 1806, a Presbyterian Minister at Edmonton, Middlesex] and Elizabeth Tice [1743 at Taunton-d. 24 August 1824 at Edmonton.]

Signature of William Jennings from his marriage Licence 1788.
Thanks to Laurence Gray for the image.

William Jennings and Hannah Gellibrand had six children; Joseph Gellibrand Jennings 1799, Eliza Jennings 1801, Maria Jennings 1803, Henry Jennings 1805, Sarah Tice Jennings 1807 and Sophia Louisa Jennings 1813.

Henry Jennings [1805-1885] arrived in Hobart Town, Tasmania with his elder brother Joseph Gellibrand Jennings [joining their confusingly named cousin Joseph Gellibrand!] They travelled on the ship "Heroine" disembarking on 15th April 1824. Henry returned to England in 1826 on the Medway, qualifying as as a solicitor & procured a loan from his father. He returned to Tasmania on the Medway, arriving on the 12th August 1827. The Legge family, including his wife-to-be Alicia journeyed on the same ship.

William Jennings died in June 1831 and was buried at All Saints, Edmonton 1831, described as late of Fore St & aged 76. Presumably, his death was the catalyst for Hannah to decide to emigrate to Australia with her two youngest daughters, Sarah Tice and Sophia Louisa. Apparently, Maria emigrated earlier and oldest daughter Eliza [married to William Pettingel 6 Jan 1824] sadly died in childbirth on the 22nd Dec 1824.

Hannah [Gellibrand] Jennings and her daughters Sarah Tice & Sophia Louisa also came out to Australia on the "Medway" leaving London on the 8th Feb & arriving in Hobart on 31st May 1832. They were accompanied by a Miss Gellibrand. Unfortunately, they arrived just six weeks after Maria Jennings wedding on the 14th April 1832 at St David's Church, Hobart to Charles Octavius Parsons. I have yet to locate Maria's arrival in Australia, she was possibly escorted by one of her brothers or another family member.

Photo from an online chapter on the early Wesleyan Methodist Church in Tasmania.
I was not able to find the author's name, but was very happy to see a Photograph of Henry Jennings;
the only one I have seen. The second better version comes from the State Library of Victoria

Both Joseph Gellibrand Jennings and Henry Jennings travelled back to England, but returned to Tasmania. Henry went on a round trip on the "Medway" departing Hobart on the 25th April 1826. He arrived back on the 27th August having travelled back with the Legge family of Dublin. Michael Legge [b. 1764, d. 1834 Dublin] and Blanche Vincent [b. 1773 Limerick] had apparently some financial difficulties, and their eldest son William stayed in Dublin, second son Robert Vincent Legge aged 21 escorted his sisters Eliza, Fanny, Mary, Alicia and Sarah to Tasmania. Fanny married Edward Dumaresq the Surveyor in November 1827, with all her siblings following suit over the next few years. Alicia Legge must have made a good impression on Henry Jennings for they married in 1830.

Henry was a Solicitor, he was admitted to practice in NSW on the 29th September 1827 & was admitted to the bar of the Supreme Court of Tasmania on 28th September 1831. He was a founding member of the firm Shields, Heritage, Stackhouse and Martin of 24 Cameron St, Launceston.
From 1824 to 1832 he lived in Hobart, before moving to Launceston. He lived on his Estate called "Coronea" at Entally 12 km outside of Lauceston. His legal practice was in Charles Street, Launceston. Apparently Henry was, at least for a number of years, a member of the Methodist Church. His "Spiritual Diary" is held with other Jennings papers in the State Library of Victoria. In 1849 he and his family moved to St Kilda in Melbourne. The first Anglican Church service held at St Kilda was held in Henry's home at Melbourne Terrace [Now Fitzroy St] on the 23rd December 1849. Alicia taught Sunday School to the 16 children who attended. Henry had his law practice in Queens St, Melbourne.

Henry had built for his family a house known as "Wynamo", in Blessington St, St Kilda. The actual spelling of the name and the whereabouts of this house were a bit of a mystery until a labelled photographs was "discovered". Thanks to Wendy McCallum and Bob McKie. The completion of this house was apparently complicated by the workman all leaving for the Goldfields! Recently, I have become less confidant that the house Henry built was actually Wynamo, as the family doesn't seem to live there until after Henry's death. Henry & Alicia Jennings both died at "his residence" Crag-y-don, Acland St, St Kilda. I suspect that Crag-y-don is the house Henry built & that Wynamo if the house his daughters moved to after his death. A portrait of Henry Jennings apparently hung at Wynamo , but was later given by his daughters to the Law Court in Melbourne where it hung, labelled "The First Solicitor Of Van Diemens Land". I have tried to find out if this portrait still exists, but have had no success. [On a side note, I am not sure that this claim of being first is correct. Another family member William Adams Brobribb also makes this claim, and he hung up his shingle in 1818]

Nathaniel Jennings was born in England in about 1711 to Mr Jennings & his wife Sarah. Nathaniel was a surgeon of Bishops Stortford, Hertfordshire & his will is held by the Essex Archives Office. He married Elizabeth Rankin on the 9th July 1745 at St Michaels, Bishops Stortford, Hertford, England. They had at least 12 children; all of whom were baptised at Water Lane Independent Church, Bishops Stortford, including their 7th child;
William Jennings
b. abt 1755, baptised 8th April 1755 Bishops Stortford, Hertford
d. 4 May 1831 & buried at Edmonton along with Rev Joseph Gellibrand & Elizabeth Tice.
He married at St Gregory, Enfield, Middlesex on the 23rd 1794 as his second wife, Hannah Gellibrand. She was the daughter of the Rev Joseph Gellibrand [a Presbyterian Minister b. 1732, d. 1806] and Elizabeth Tice [ b. 1743 at Taunton, Somerset, d. 1824 at Edmonton]. Hannah was born on the 14th Jan 1767 & died 13 December 1845 at Green Ponds, Tasmania of cancer, aged 77. She was buried at Kempton Congregational Church. Hannah's brother William Gellibrand also emigrated to Tasmania & was of South Arm. He died on the 21st September 1840 at Hobart Town.
They had six children, 5 of whom came to Australia.

1. Joseph Gellibrand Jennings
b. 3rd Nov 1788 [from brother Henry's journal]
d. 24 May 1873 and buried at St Kilda, Melbourne.
Married Elizabeth Carter of Ringwood, Hampshire on the 19th August 1830 at St Augustine The Less, Bristol.
They had 5 children.
2. Eliza Jennings
b. 13 Jan 1801 [from her journal]
d. 22nd Dec 1824 England
Eliza married William Pettingell, on the 6th January 1824 at St George but sadly died later that same year on 22 Dec in childbirth. A copy of her diary is in the State Library of Victoria, along with other Jennings family papers.
3. Maria Jennings
b. 1803
d. 6 March 1881 Holebrook Place, Hobart, Tasmania in her 79th year.
Married on the 14th April 1832 at St David's, Hobart Charles Octavius Parsons [ b. 1799 at Monmouthshire d. 1863 at Berriedale, Tasmania after falling from his horse]
They had issue.
4. Henry Jennings
b. 3rd May 1805 [from his gravestone at St Kilda Cemetery]
d. 23 August 1885 at his residence Crag-y-don, Acland St, St Kilda, Melbourne and buried at St Kilda Cemetery.
Arrived in Tasmania on the Heroine in April 1824 with his elder brother Joseph. He returned to England in 1826 for a round trip on the Medway, with Colonel Robert Vincent Legge and his 5 sisters on the return to Tasmania in 1827. His mother & 2 sisters arrived in Hobart on the Medway in May 1832.
Henry Married Alicia Legge on the 3rd June 1830 at the residence of Major Gray at Rockford, St Pauls Plains. Alicia was born in 1809 at Garrane, Tipperary or Dublin [death certificate has Dublin], Ireland, the sixth child of Dublin Barrister Michael Legge [ b.1764 d, 1834] and Blanche Vincent [b. 1773 Limerick] Alicia died on 18 September 1875 at St Kilda. Several of her journals are held by the State Library of Victoria.
Henry & Alicia Jennings had 11 Children, see below.
5. Sarah Tice Jennings
b. abt 1807
d. 30 Jan 1858 at Redfern, NSW of Consumption & buried at "The Old Cemetery", Redfern.
She married on the 27th November 1838 Reverend Joseph Beazley. He was a Congregational minister at Greenponds, Tasmania and later Redfern, NSW. Empire Monday 1 Feb 1858 "On the 30th January, 1858 at Redfern, of Consumption, Sarah Tice Beazley, the beloved wife of the Rev. Joseph Beazley. Her end was peace."
They had issue; Raymond William Beazley, Joseph Gellibrand Beazley & Henry William Beazley.
7. Sophia Louisa Jennings
b. 1813
d. 25 April 1895 Kurrajong Heights, NSW. Buried at Rookwood Cemetery, MI at St David's Presbyterian, Kurrajong Heights.
Married on the 27th October 1836 at St Johns, Newtown, Hobart, Tasmania to Philip Russell. He was a pastoralist with the Clyde Company. They had no children. Philip died on 5th July 1844 at Golf Hill, River Leigh, Victoria, the home of his brother. The witnesses at her wedding were C.O. Parsons, Sarah T Jennings and Eliza Gellibrand.
Sophia married for a second time to James Comrie on the 12th Oct 1847 at the Congregational Church, Pitt St, Sydney. Sadly, they had only one child, a stillborn daughter on the 9th October 1849. Both were notable philanthropists, funded by the money Sarah inherited from her first husband. James Comrie died on the 2nd November 1902 and is also buried at Rookwood.

Henry Jennings and Alicia Legge had at least 11 children.
1. Blanche Ellen
b. 3 April 1831 Launceston, Tasmania
d. 19 August 1919 at Blessington St, St Kilda, Melbourne & buried at St Kilda Cemetery.
Blanche married John Wemyss Manley in 1859. They had no children, Blanch left most of her estate to her nephew Cecil Robert Becher. Blanche was known as Aunty Boo and the Old Aunty. I had a photograph of her for over 20 years inscribed to Mabel Wooldridge from the Old Aunty 1900 before I finally worked out who she was.

1919 The Argus “By the death of Mrs Blanche Ellen Manley in her 88th year, which took place at Blessington St, St Kilda, on Tuesday, one more link between the early days of settlement and the present has been snapped. The eldest daughter of the late Henry Jennings, Solicitor, and the widow of the late J. Wemyss Manley, Mrs Manley was related to two families closely associated with the earlier history of Tasmania and Victoria. Born in Tasmania and coming to Victoria with her parents in 1849, Ms Manley spent the greater part of her life in St Kilda, which she saw grow from a small collection of scattered houses connected with Melbourne by a bush track into its present large and populous city. She was for fourteen years honorary secretary for the Women’s Hospital (then the Lying in Hospital) and also a member of the G.F.S. council and of the committee of the Woman’s Convalescent home, she took a deep interest in Church affairs, more especially in connection with the parish of Christ Church, St Kilda, of which her father had been one of the first vestrymen.

2, Alicia Sarah Jennings
b. 8 July 1832 at Launceston, Tasmania
d. 19 February 1846 Launceston, Tasmania of a fever.
3. Henry William Jennings
b. 23rd February 1834 Launceston, Tasmania
d. 16 February 1843 at Hobart, Tasmania of a fever. Buried at St Andrews Presbyterian, Hobart
4. Philippa Catherine Jennings
b. 21 April 1835 at Launceston, Tasmania
d. 27 October 1905 at Fernleigh, York Street, Sale, Victoria, buried on 28th October 1905 at Melbourne General Cemetery.
Married on the 9th April 1856 at the Licensed School House, St Kilda to The Rev Michael Henry Becher. They had 16 children.
5. Robert Legge Jennings
b. 2 July 1837 at Launceston, Tasmania
d. 3 Nov 1870 at Tubbo, near Hay, NSW [death notice in The Argus]
6. John Edwin Jennings
b. 12 April 1839 at Launceston, Tasmania
d. 23rd March 1840 at Launceston, Tasmania of dysentery
7. Sophia Louisa Jennings
b. 10 April 1841 Launceston, Tasmania
d. 18 October 1914 at St Kilda, Melbourne, buried 20 October 1914 at St Kilda.
Travelled to England and the Continent in 1886-7. Journal held by the State Library in Victoria. She was the secretary of the Ladies Benevolent Society in 1891, 1903 & 1904 [from newspaper items so quite likely other years as well.]
8. Frances "Fanny" Eliza Jennings
b. 16 Jan 1843 at Launceston, Tasmania
d. 2 March 1930 At St Kilda, Victoria, buried 4 March 1930 at St Kilda.
9. Henrietta
b. 23rd September 1844 at Launceston, Tasmania
d. 25th December 1928 at St Kilda, Melbourne, buried 27 December 1928 at St Kilda.

The Argus 29 Dec 1928 “ A long life of fine service was bought to a close on Christmas Day by the sudden death of Miss Henrietta Eliza Jennings of Wynamo, Blessington St, St Kilda. Miss Jennings, who was aged 84 was born in Tasmania. She was the daughter of the late Mr Henry Jennings, solicitor of Melbourne, who brought his family to Victoria in 1849 when they settled in St Kilda. At that time there was an expanse of bushland between St Kilda and Melbourne, and a number of aboriginals were camped in the rough country. As Miss Jennings grew into young womanhood she devoted herself to working for the benefit of others. For 30 years she was a member of the St. Kilda Ladies' Benevolent Society, and for a long time she was President. She was one of the founders of the Queen’s Fund and she helped to establish the Girl’s Friendly Society ( Church of England) in Melbourne. To the time of her death she was a helper and contributor to the Melanesian Mission and the Australian Inland Mission.. For 60 years Miss Jennings walked once a week to the Brighton road State School where she gave a scripture lesson. For some time she was a member of the Women’s Hospital committee and during the war she did much sewing for the Red Cross.”

10. Alicia
b. 15 April 1847 at Launceston, Tasmania
d. 12 April 1853 at St Kilda, Melbourne aged 6 [death notice in The Argus], buried at St Andrews Anglican, Brighton, Vic.
11. Henry John
b. 9 April 1849 at Launceston, Tasmania
d. 6 June 1925 at Blessington St, St Kilda, Melbourne, buried Brighton General Cemetery, Caulfield South, Vic.
Married in 1877 to Louisa Willis Croxton [she died 1 March 1902]. Had at least 8 issue; Winifred Esther Alicia Jennings, Henry William Croxton Jennings, Mabel Frances Jennings, Algernon Croxton Jennings, Arthur Prout Jennings, Louis Michael Jennings.

Out of the 11 Jennings children, only 1 boy survived, only 3 married, and only two had children !