William Lazenby, arrived on the convict ship Moffat on 9th May, 1834.
Leaving behind his wife Mary and two children at York, William Lazenby was transported for stealing a gamecock and hen. His convict records show that he was a 27 year old ploughman, with a fresh complexion, red hair and grey eyes. His Surgeon’s report states behaved well, very good; there are not many offences on his record other than being in a public house after hours and not duly presenting himself at the police office. He received his certificate of freedom in 1840. Four years after his arrival, with no hope of seeing his family again, William married a fellow convict, Susan Gambrill. With the clergyman’s approval they were married on 19 October 1838 at Hamilton. She was 23 when she arrived on the Westmoreland on 3 December 1836. She was 5 foot 1 with a fresh complexion, brown hair and hazel eyes. Her face and hands were freckled. Susan was a house and nursemaid. She was sentenced to life for larceny, stealing a silver watch from a man. Her gaol report states her to be of bad character and had spent 12 months on the town. The surgeons report was very bad. Her prior convictions were once for vagrancy for which she received one month and once for currents, another four months. Less than three years after her marriage to William, Susan died under sentence on 27 July 1841 at Penquite near Launceston. She is buried at St. John’s Anglican Cemetery, Launceston.
William’s description record notes a scar under his chin and was heavily inked with a whole list of tattoos: Woman, child, 2 hares, 2 dogs, mermaid, man, on right arm. Woman, 3 cocks, W.L M.C., dog, anchor, gun on left arm, Cock on left breast, pockpitted.
On 5 May 1843 William applied to marry another fellow convict Eliza Hurst who had been assigned to him as a servant. Eliza had arrived on the convict ship Emma Eugenia on 9th April, 1842. A nurse and needlewoman, Eliza Hurst was 18 when she was transported for pickpocketing ₤16. She had been reported as being on the town for a period of 13 months. She was put on the sick list on the Emma Eugenia on 25 January 1842 for three days with ophthalmia (inflammation of the eyes). Eliza must have been quite a handful, about 17 years younger than William, she still found herself in trouble occasionally, for being ‘disorderly’ and pretending to be free and was fined 5/- for drunkenness.
Eliza received a ticket of leave in 1847 and her conditional pardon was approved in 1849, she was free by servitude 29 July 1855. Eliza and William settled at Ralph’s Bay. They are on the electoral, valuation and jury rolls as residents between 1856-61.
They had seven children with four not surviving beyond infancy. Their three surviving sons were William Thomas Lazenby (1849-1903), James Lazenby (1852-1936) and Joseph Richard Lazenby (1855-1928).
William died at Ralph’s Bay on 5 January 1883 aged 84, and Eliza died of heart disease on 8 July 1888 aged 67.
William Thomas lived in Toorak, Melbourne where he died after a long illness.
James married Eliza Lawrence. Their son Robert served in WW1 and died of his wounds in France in 1918. He is buried in the Terlincthun British Cemetery in Nord-Pas-de-Calais, France.
Joseph married Amy Isla Lawrence. Two Lawrence sisters married two Lazenby brothers! Joseph and Amy had eight children: Ivy (Bilton), Albert (father of Rex, Jean, Nancy, Bill and Doreen), Robert, Dahlia, Louis (father of Frank, Joyce and Edward), Owen (father of Lawrence and Lorna), Amy Isla (Queenie, married Oscar Calvert) and Vera.
Joyce wrote a book 'Echoes and Images' which provides an insight into the lives and times of members of the Lazenby family growing up on the peninsula. In particular, recounts happy and tragic stories relating to her parents Louis and Ethel (nee von Bibra) and their family. Joyce (1922-2010) lived on Sledmere Lane (off Clifton Beach Road) overlooking Pipe Clay Lagoon.
References:
Tasmanian Archives & Heritage Office - Convict records: CON31/1/28 image 129, CON18/1/15 image 237,
CON23/1/2 L819-839.
Female Convicts Research Group (Tasmania)