Ellen (Register) Redchester - Fraser - Morgan [Convict "Prince of Wales" "Charlotte" 1788]

Ellen REGISTER (aka REDCHESTER) was born 1764 (daughter of Robert REGISTER). Ellen was baptised 16/11/1764 at Aldborough, York, England

Ellen married/had a relationship William FRASER c1783 and they had the following children

• William 1784, died before 1787

Ellen and William were convicted of larceny and sentenced to 7 years transportation. Ellen arrived in Sydney Cove on 26/1/1788 on "Charlotte", having started the journey on "Prince of Wales". William was also transported to Australia on "Charlotte".

Once in Australia Ellen and William had the following children

• John 1789
• Daniel 1791

After William died in 1791, Ellen married/had a relationship with William MORGAN and they had the following children

• Ann 1797
• Lucy 1800
• William 1802
• Sarah 1804
• Richard 1806

Ellen died 18/11/1840 at Concord and was buried 20/11/1840 at Liverpool.

• http://australianroyalty.net.au/individual.php?pid=I67778&ged=purne...
• https://convictrecords.com.au/convicts/redchester/ellen/132996
• http://familyhistorybyclaytontalbot.weebly.com/eleanor-redchester.html
• http://www.sydneymagic.net/HISTORY/FRASER/fraser.html
• http://familypedia.wikia.com/wiki/Ellen_Redchester_(c1764-1840)

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Ellen Frazer (nee Register) Great Great Great Great Grandmother

Age at time of Crime

23 yrs old

Description

Height - Complexion - Hair - Eyes - General Remarks -

Crime

Ellen Frazer alias Ellen Redchester (Register) of Manchester, single woman (she was infact married to William Frazer), stole six pieces of fustian, one piece of yellow canvas, and half a gross of white filleting, the property of James Leigh, Robert Leigh, Thomas Leigh, Thomas Darwell; also goods the property of Marmaduke Clarke

Trial Date

Jan 1787

Trial Place

Quarter Sessions at Manchester England

Sentence

7 years - Ellen and her husband William Frazer both received similar sentences and arrived in the Colony as part of the convict component of the First Fleet in 1788. She was recorded as being a single woman, which if she had taken advantage of her real marital status to claim influence by her husband, she may have been acquitted. It was only after their request to the Gaoler Higgins, at Lancaster Castle, to be sent to the same place that Higgins on the 5 Apr 1787 sent a letter to Evan Nepean, enclosing a copy of her marriage certificate dated 8 Nov 1783 from Aldborough, Yorks, and reporting their wish to be sent to the same place "as they have been married some years and have had children". The name was spelt "Frazer" in the marriage register.

Ship

Ellen was sent direct to the "Prince of Wales" on the 9 Apr 1787, aged 22 years. Ellen’s husband arrived in the Colony on the "Charlotte" and it maybe that Ellen was transferred to the "Charlotte" at Rio on the 13 Aug 1787, as one female convict was transferred from the "Prince of Wales" to the "Charlotte" at Rio. The Census of 1828 indicates that she arrived on the "Charlotte"

Arrived in NSW

26 Jan 1788 in Sydney Cove New South Wales

Ticket of Leave

Unknown

Conditional Pardon

Unknown

Life in New South Wales.......

7 Jun 1789 - Ellen and William’s first son, John was baptised in Port Jackson, and was the second white child born in the Colony. 18 Jul 1791 - Their second son Daniel was baptised. Jun 1791 - Ellen’s husband died from heavy drinking and not long after she began co-habitating with William Morgan. 20 Feb 1794 - (Ellenor Frazer) received her first land grant of twenty acres at Concord. Believed to be the first woman to own freehold land in the Colony. 22 Jul 1794 - She received a further twenty acres. 3 Nov 1798 - Her partner William Morgan charged with illegally withholding some of her pigs, which the court made him return. It was said at this time that they had separated after living together for seven years, but by 1800 they were back together again as Eleanor bore him their second child Lucy, and they were to have more children before finally separating permanently sometime after 1806 when their last child, Richard was born. 22 Oct 1828 - Her partner William Morgan passed away. 1828 to 1840 - Ellen continued to live at Concord until she died in 1840, at the time of her death she was seen as being a highly regarded settler. The obituary appearing in the Australian newspaper noted: “Died at her residence at Concord on Wednesday[sic] 18 inst. Mrs Eleanor Frazer[sic] aged 83 years. Mrs Frazer was a ‘first fleeter’ having arrived on the formation of the colony. Her intellect was unimpaired to the last, she had a perfect recollection of the ‘first deed’ in New South Wales. She remembered Commodore de la Perouse, and used to describe the dress worn by persons forming the expedition under his command. Her remains were interred with those of her eldest son John (who was the second person born in this colony) in Liverpool Church-yard, to which place the corps[sic] was followed by a long train of children, grandchildren and great grand children belonging to the deceased.” A comment in the publication “Concord - A Centenary History” noted that “Eleanor Frazer was obviously a woman of remarkable resilience and fortitude who well deserves recognition as a pioneer of Concord”. Elleanor bequeathed her land at Concord to her two sons William and Richard Frazer Morgan but also requested in her will that Thomas Humphries be provided for. Thomas was an ex-convict who was assigned to her in her early days as a land holder, and remained with her until her death.

William Frazer First Husband of Ellen Frazer (nee Register)

Age at time of Crime

Description

Height - Complexion - Hair - Eyes - General Remarks -

Crime

William Frazer of Manchester, stole six pieces of fustian, one piece of yellow canvas, and half a gross of white filleting, the property of James Leigh, Robert Leigh, Thomas Leigh, Thomas Darwell; also goods the property of Marmaduke Clarke. His accomplice was his wife Ellen Frazer (nee Register).

Trial Date

January 1787

Trial Place

Ellen (eleanor) Register(may be Redchester.), first husband was William Fraser. they were both Convicts arriving on the "Charlotte" although she initially was on another ship and is believed to have been transferred in rio to the "charlotte." June 1789 Ellen and William Frasers first son was baptised and believed to be the 2nd white child born in the colony.. 18 july 1791 thier 2nd son Daniel was baptised. June 1791 Ellens husband William Frase Died from Heavy Drinking,and she began Co Habiting with William Morgan. 20 feb 1794 she (Eleanor Fraser) recieved her first land grant of 20 acres at Concord, believed to be the first woman to own freehold land in the colony , 22 july 1794 recieved another 20 acres . She Separated from William Morgan after thier last child Richard was born in 1806.she died at concord aged 83

BIRTH & BAPTISM
about 1764

Source: Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Familysearch. [database on-line]: Intellectual Reserve, Inc., 2008

Text:
ame: Ellen Register
Gender: Female
Baptism Date: 16 Nov 1764
Baptism Place: Aldborough Near York,York,England
Father: Robert Register
FHL Film Number: 990892

Source: estimated from date of baptism/christening

MARRIAGE 1
William Fraser — View this family
8 November 1783 (aged 19 years)
Aldborough, Suffolk, England, United Kingdom

Source: Purnell, Marion (editor)

Text:
Ellen was described as a 'singlewoman' at trial so perhaps was not married to William Fraser.

Source: Email message

Citation details: [unknown surname], Ray. "Australian Royalty message - Ellen Redchester", email message to Marion Purnell 17 Jan 2018
Text:
She married 8 Nov 1783 in Aldborough, William FRAZER (c1760-1791)

MIGRATION
26 January 1788 (aged 24 years)
Sydney Cove, Greater Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

Source: Gillen, Mollie. The Founders of Australia: a biographical dictionary of the First Fleet. North Sydney: Library of Australian History, 1989

Text:
Ellen Fraser alias Ellen Redchester was sentenced to 7 years transportation at Manchester Quarter Sessions in Jan 1787 for larceny. Her husband William was sentenced similarly for the same crime. She was transported aboard the ship Prince of Wales.

Source: Cobley, John, comp., The Crimes of the First Fleet convicts. Sydney Angus & Robertson: 1970

Text:
Ellen Fraser alias Redchester was tried at the Quarter Sessions at Manchester in Jan 1787. Her crime was that "Ellen Fraser alias Ellen Redchester of Manchester, singlewoman, stole six pieces of fustian, one piece of yellow canvas, and half a fross of white filletting, property of James Leigh, Robert Leigh, Thomas Leigh, Thomas Darwell; also goods the property of Marmaduke Clarke. She was sentenced to seven years transportation.

Source: Purnell, Marion (editor)

Text:
She may have been transferred from the Prince of Wales to the ship Charlotte at some point in the journey. She is listed in the 1828 census has having arrived per the ship Charlotte.

MARRIAGE 2
after June 1791

Source: Flynn, Michael. The Second Fleet: Britain's grim convict armada of 1790. Sydney : Library of Australian History, 1993

Text: Common law relationship

Frazers Farm
20 February 1794 (aged 30 years)
Concord, Greater Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

Source: Ancestry.com. New South Wales, Australia, Registers of Land Grants and Leases, 1792-1867 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2010.

Citation details: Registers of Land Grants and Leases Entire colony, including Van Diemen's Land 1792-1804 (Vol. 1A)
Text:
To Ellen Frazer, 20 acres grant at Concord
Granted by F. Grose 20 Feb 1794
Annual quit rent 1 shilling commencing 20 Feb 1799
Named Frazers Farm
Laying and situate in the district of Concord on the west side of Grantham farm from which it is separated by a road of one hundred feet in width.

CENSUS
November 1828 (aged 64 years)
New South Wales, Australia

Source: Census of New South Wales November 1828, ed. by Malcolm R. Sainty and Keith A. Johnson. Sydney: Library of Australian History, 1985 ie. 1980

Text:
Morgan, Eleanor, 64, free by servitude, Charlotte, 1788, 7 years, Protestant
Morgan, Richard, 22, born in the colony

DEATH & BURIAL
18 November 1840 (aged 76 years)
Concord, Greater Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

Source: National Library of Australia. Trove: one search...a wealth of information. [database on-line].

Citation details: The Australian (Sydney) Tue 24 Nov 1840 p. 3
Text:
At her residence at Concord, on Wednesday the 18th instant, Mrs. Eleanor Frazer, aged 83 years. Mrs. Frazer was a "first fleeter", having arrived on the formation of the colony. Her intellect was unimpaired to the last, and she had a perfect recollection of the "first deeds" in New South Wales. She remembered Commodore de La Perouse, and used to describe the dress worn by the persons forming the expedition under his command. Her remains were interred with those of her eldest son John (who was the second person born in the colony) in Liverpool Church-yard, to which place the corpse was followed by a long train of children, grand and great grand children, belonging to the deceased.

20 November 1840 (2 days after death)
Liverpool, Greater Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
Cemetery: St Lukes Church Cemetery

Source: Gillen, Mollie. The Founders of Australia: a biographical dictionary of the First Fleet. North Sydney: Library of Australian History, 1989

Text:
She was buried as Eleanor Fraser.

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From descendant Michelle Dennis
Ellen Register and William Frazer
Ellen Register was a First Fleet convict, born in 1764 in Aldborough, Yorkshire, England. Sometimes the records state her name was Eleanor, and use the surname Register, sometimes Redchester (try saying Redchester quickly and you will see why).

She was baptised on 16 Nov 1764 at St Andrews, Aldborough, Yorkshire, England to parents Robert Register (ca 1740-1794) and Dorothy Simpson (1733-1796).
Robert and Dorothy had been married on 1 Dec 1761 in the same church three years before, and had six children baptised there – Ellen 1764, Mary 1766, Lucy 1767, Richard 1771, Ann 1773 and Martha in 1776.

Ellen’s mother Dorothy, daughter of Richard Simpson, wife of Robert had been also baptised in the same church on 10 June 1733, and buried there, aged 63, on 27 April 1796. Robert was also buried at St Andrews, Aldborough on 3 September 1794, aged 54.

Ellen was married at the age of 19 on 8 Nov 1783 at St Andrew’s, Aldborough, to William Frazer (c1760-1791). William was born in 1760 in Sheffield, South Yorkshire.
William and Ellen had a child together the following year –

William Frazer, son of William Frazer, born 1784, baptised 5 Dec 1784 at St Andrews, Aldborough, Yorkshire. I haven’t been able to find a burial for this William.

Unfortunately in 1787 at the age of 23, Ellen and William decided to steal some materials, probably to sell.

They were both arrested and tried at the Manchester Quarter Sessions in Jan 1787 for larceny. She was sentenced to seven years transportation. The trial calendar stated –

“Ellen Fraser alias Ellen Redchester of Manchester, singlewoman, stole six pieces of fustian, one piece of yellow canvas, and half a fross of white filletting, property of James Leigh, Robert Leigh, Thomas Leigh, Thomas Darwell; also goods the property of Marmaduke Clarke.”

Ellen was described as a ‘singlewoman’ at trial so perhaps she tried to limit her attachment to William Frazer, to save either him or herself.
Ellen was originally transported in May 1787 on the “Prince of Wales” but it would seem that she was one of several woman who were shifted to alternate vessels whilst in the Cape of Good Hope.

Ellen completed her voyage to Australia on the convict transport ship the “Charlotte” arriving in Sydney on the First Fleet, on 22 January 1788.

William Frazer was also transported for his crime. When sending to Evan Nepaean a copy of the marriage register for William Frazer and Ellen Redchester, the gaoler at Lancaster Castle where they were held wrote that he had signed the contract for Frazer’s removal and had sent him with the other convicts for embarkation. This is the only record of Frazer’s going except for his name on the contractors muster. He doesn’t appear on any shipping register.
William Frazer is first mentioned in Australia on the victualling list dated 17 November 1787 with his wife Ellen. Only the names of their ships vary.
William appears working as a “blacksmith, noted for his surely temper and heavy drinking. On 5 January he received 25 of 100 lashes ordered for insolence (“You may kiss my arse”) to Seargeant Martin Connor when he refused to move more than two paces from the marine lines. On 23 June he was sentenced to work in irons for a month for another incident of drunken insolence”.

“He was employed as a blacksmith in the early days of the colony, and was a favourite of Captain Tench and Governor Phillip, who once asked Frazer to examine some locks that Phillip had especially imported for the Public Store. Frazer reportedly asked for a crooked nail and in an instant picked the locks.”

When he died on 13 June 1791, Collins wrote that “Frazer was an excellent workman, and was supposed to have brought on an untimely end by hard drinking, as he seldom chose to accept any article but spirits in payment for work done in his extra hours”. Captain Tench regretted that “had not his villiany been still more superior then his skill, he would have proved an invaluable possession to a new country”. (1788 The People of the First Fleet by Don Chapman).

Ellen formed a marriage relationship with William Morgan a private in the NSW corps, he had come to the colony in the Second Fleet to Australia, aboard the ship “Neptune”.

A marriage record cannot be found for the couple, but they do baptise their children in the Anglican Church at St Phillips, Sydney and at St Johns at Parramatta.

Ellen Frazer nee Redchester/Register and William Morgan had 5 children registered under Morgan.
Ann Margaret born 1797 & baptised at St Phillips Sydney. Died 1832 age 34. Ann married William Wilson in 1814 St Johns, Parramatta. Six children. Died 1832.
Lucy born 1800 & baptised in 1803 age 3 at St Phillips Sydney. Lucy married John Clegg 1818 St Johns, Parramatta. Four children. Died 1825 age 24.
William born 1802 & baptised 1803 at St Phillips Sydney with his sister Lucy. He married Ann Pymble, four children. He died in 1853 age 51.
Sarah born 1804 & baptised at St Johns Parramatta. Sarah married Frederick Meredith junior 30 Sept 1822 St Lukes, Sydney. 11 children. She died in 1884 age 80.
Richard born 1806 & baptised 1812 age 5 at St Johns Parramatta. He married Margaret Murphy 11 Oct 1833 Sydney. 9 children. He died in 1851 age 44.
Ellen was granted 20 acres of land on 20 February 1804 at Concord, NSW. Close by was the new land grant farm of Mr William Morgan. She obtained another grant of 20 acres on 22 July 1805 also at Concord. She is believed to be the first woman to hold land in the colony of Australia.

She appears in the 1811 NSW Population Muster – Female Convicts – Eleanor Frazer, “Charlotte” trial 1786 Manchester.

On 27 August 1826 an Ellen Frazer is recorded in the Sydney Gaol Description and Entrance Books under Ellen Frazer, Ship ‘Mary’ General Sessions, Sydney, crime absenting from service, 3rd class at the factory, one month, Sept 10 1826. This is the wrong ship, so not sure if this record is for her.

In the 1828 NSW census we find Eleanor Morgan, 64, free by servitude, “Charlotte”, 1788, 7 years, Protestant. Holding 20 acres, all cleared and cultivated. Richard, her 22 year old son is living with her.

Eleanor died on 18 November 1840, aged 76 on her land grant in Concord, New South Wales.

Her death notice states “At her residence at Concord, on Wednesday the 18th instant, Mrs. Eleanor Frazer, aged 83 years. Mrs. Frazer was a “first fleeter”, having arrived on the formation of the colony. Her intellect was unimpaired to the last, and she had a perfect recollection of the “first deeds” in New South Wales.
She remembered Commodore de La Perouse, and used to describe the dress worn by the persons forming the expedition under his command. Her remains were interred with those of her eldest son John (who was the second person born in the colony) in Liverpool Church-yard, to which place the corpse was followed by a long train of children, grand and great grand children, belonging to the deceased.” (The Australian Newspaper Sydney Tuesday 24 Nov 1840 p. 3).

She was buried 20 Nov 1840 at St Lukes Liverpool NSW, as Eleanor Fraser.

In her will she bequeathed her 20 acres of land each to her two sons William Frazer Morgan and Richard Frazer Morgan. There was also provision made in her will for Mr Thomas Humphries, a carpenter.

What a life she led!