→ Joshua Benjamin Blencowe (2 Jan 1837, Buckingham, Bucks) → Sydney, NSW, Australia. Arrived: approximately 1857.
Buckingham
Joshua’s father Benjamin Robert Blencowe (1807-1895) was a business man of some note in Buckingham and so Joshua was afforded the life of a young Gent. His mother Eleanor Hargrave (1810 – 1883) had a brother Richard Hargrave who was by the 1840s, a sucessful landowner and entrepreneur in the New South Wales Colony.
It would seem that an offer was made by Uncle Richard for young Joshua to come to NSW and Uncle Richard was to look after Joshua and find him work on one of his properties. So at 20 years of age Joshua was to go to the Colonies and this paved the way for the balance of the family to come after.
The Voyage
Joshua’s voyage was paid for by his father but we have not found a record of his trip but descendant Frank McClenaghan wrote in an article in the Blencowe Book “We are still searching for the date of his arrival and the identity of the ship on which he sailed but we know that it must have been about 1857; we assume that he paid his own way which makes for difficulties when searching shipping records. ‘Josh’ arrived in Sydney aged only about twenty but his emigration to New South Wales was not entirely a leap into the unknown for his uncle Richard Hargrave had been established in the colony for some time.”
Note: Descendant Frank McClenaghan wrote other facts that I can’t tie into records that we have. The main discrepancy seems to be what employment did Joshua age 20 first take up in Australia . Frank has him initially working as a draughtsman and later as a land agent, until in 1869 he is Overseer at the Hill Grove Station. At 20 I think Joshua had no particular training or skills to become a draughtsman. I prefer to believe the Govt Gazette records that have him employed at age 48 as a Clerk in the Surveyor Generals Office in Armidale and think his early life was most likely learning the cattle business under his Uncles sponsorship.
Hill Grove Station C1857
While we have no records for the first few years Joshua was in the colony its seems very likely he went to live and learn the Cattle business at his Uncle Richard Hargrave’s Cattle station. By the time he arrived this was a mature operation of 21,000 acres. Richard Hargrave was in fact now in politics as a member for New England. This newspaper article from 1856 gives a picture of his time in NSW. See the Appendix for the detail of Richard Hargraves emigration and business and personal ventures
While his parents and siblings arrived in 1861 they initially stayed in Sydney and his father began a retail business, Joshua stayed in New England I believe, because by 1869 now 32 years he was the Station Overseer. He wouldnt have got that role presumably with working on the Station beforehand. Joshua that same year, married Lydia Howe Brazier. Lydia had emigrated with her parents (they assisted immigrants) from Bedfordshire in 1855 two years before Joshua.
Middle Farm C1873
Frank writes “Josh and Lydia made their home at Middle Farm, about five miles out of Armidale. Middle Farm is of special interest to the Blencowes of New England as it is the small property on which their ancestors lived from about 1873 until their death, Josh in 1889 and Lydia in 1928. Our first Australian generation was raised there.“
It would appear Joshua continued to work at Hill Grove Station and possibly elsewhere before he first took a Clerks job with The Surveyors Generals Office which had a building on Faulkner Street in Armidale. There is definitive evidence of Joshua Benjamin Blinco’s role in the Armidale Land Office, though his specific title evolved during this decade.
- The Appointment: Joshua served as a Draftsman and later as a clerk in the Crown Lands Office in Armidale.
- Evidence in the “Blue Books”: The NSW Public Service Lists (commonly known as the Blue Books) from the 1880s list Joshua B. Blinco as an officer within the Department of Lands.
- Source: The most specific source for his official status is the NSW Government Gazette. In the edition dated January 20, 1885, he is formally listed as a Draftsman at the Survey Office in Armidale.
By the late 1880s and early 1890s, Joshua transitioned into the role of a Private Land Agent. After gaining years of “insider” knowledge in the government office, he established a private practice.
Note: He also bought two house lot sized plots in Armidale as well. All 7 of the children were born in Armidale in the period 1869-1885.
While Mother and Father were in Sydney some distance away they must have visited Middle Farm in 1889 from Blencowe Book “Benjamin Robert must have been at Middle Farm on 1 May 1889 because that is when and where the ‘family Bible’ washanded on to Joshua Benjamin. (The following is a transcription from that Bible now held by David Stanley Blencowe – the only son of Stanley Blencowe who had issue.
Robert Blencowe. Halse, Brackley, Northamptonshire: England 1790
Benjamin Robert Blencowe his only son born at Halse W Brackley
To my son Joshua Benjamin Blencowe, Middle Farm nr Armidale New England New South Wales
Benjamin Robert Blencowe 1st May 1889 at Middle Farm
To my son Joshua Benjamin Blencowe born at Hillgrove Station nr Armidale NSW on 16th Feb.1870
J.B.Blencowe 28th May 1889 present age 52
Joshua made sure that his children all had a basic education ; he made available 6 acres of his land for a Government school and many children from neighbouring farms attended. The little building is still standing and is full of stock feed.
Tragedy – September 1890
As this news paper reports and tragic suicide by Joshua in his 52 year. What was behind this Depression/Mental Illness, Financial Stress we do not know.
Clarence and Richmond Examiner (Grafton, NSW)
Armidale.
TUESDAY.
On Saturday the citizens received quite a shock on hearing that Mr. J. B. Blencowe, land agent here, had shot himself. It appeared that deceased, who was invariably respected, was conversing with his family, went to his room, and shortly after, the report of a gun was heard. It was then discovered that deceased had placed the muzzle of the gun to his mouth, struck the trigger with a screw-driver, and the discharge caused instantaneous death.
Deceased was 53 years of age, and the only reason that can be assigned for the rash act was that he was a great sufferer from rheumatism. He always lived on happy terms with his family, and during the many years he filled the position of Lands Agent here, was genial and courteous. The jury at the inquest found that deceased came to his death by a gunshot wound seIf-inflicted.
Timeline
| Event | Date/Location | Details |
| Full Name | Joshua Benjamin Blencowe | |
| Birth Date | 2 Jan 1837 | |
| Birth Place | Buckingham, Bucks | |
| Census UK 1851 (30 Mar) | 30 Mar 1851, Market Place, Buckingham, Buckinghamshire | Benjamin R Blencowe Head Married Male 43 1808 Wine & spirit merchant & inn keeper Brackley, Northamptonshire, England Eleanor Blencowe Wife Married Female 40 1811 - Greenwich, Kent, England Eleanor Blencowe Daughter Unmarried Female 16 1835 - Buckingham, Buckinghamshire, England Joshua Blencowe Son Unmarried Male 15 1836 Scholar Buckingham, Buckinghamshire, England Richard Blencowe Son Unmarried Male 4 1847 Scholar at home Buckingham, Buckinghamshire, England Robert Blencowe Son Unmarried Male 2 1849 - Buckingham, Buckinghamshire, England John Kinch Visitor Widower Male 69 1782 Yeoman Enstone, Oxfordshire, England George Hards Servant Married Male 53 1798 Waiter Epsom, Surrey, England William Humphrey Servant Unmarried Male 19 1832 Boots Dadford, Buckinghamshire, England Eliza Knight Servant Unmarried Female 32 1819 Cook Surrey, England Ann Skinner Servant Unmarried Female 20 1831 House serv Northamptonshire, England Susannah Welch Servant Unmarried Female 17 1834 House serv Radclive, Buckinghamshire, England |
| Emigrated a Blencowe variant | 1857, Sydney, NSW, Australia | From descendant Frank McCLENAGHAN We are still searching for the date of his arrival and the identity of the ship on which he sailed but we know that it must have been about 1857; we assume that he paid his own way which makes for difficulties when searching shipping records. ‘Josh’ arrived in Sydney aged only about twenty but his emigration to New South Wales was not entirely a leap into the unknown for his uncle Richard Hargravea had been established in the colony for some time. Read full story from Blencowe Book https://1drv.ms/b/c/3ccacf881163cd90/EdJHWMWl2iRKhg-mggCDrkYBX-YRjeKSG97pYL9H0mEamQ |
| Occupation | 1869, Hillgrove Station, nr Armidale, NSW | Overseer |
| Marriage | 6 Apr 1869, Hillgrove, NSW | |
| Birth of Son Joshua Benjamin | 17 Apr 1870, Hillgrove Station Wolomumbi N.S.W. | |
| Birth of Son Robert | 1 Jun 1871, Armidale N.S.W. | |
| Residence | Apr 1872, Armidale N.S.W. | |
| Birth of Daughter Elizabeth Sarah Mabel | 1872, Armidale N.S.W. | |
| Birth of Daughter Clemente Mutlow | 5 Dec 1874, Armidale N.S.W. | |
| Birth of Daughter Eleanor Maude Mary | 1876, Armidale N.S.W. | |
| Birth of Daughter Lilian Lee | Jan 1880, Armidale N.S.W. | |
| Occupation | Mar 1885, Government Gazette | Clerk, District Survey Office, Surveyor General |
| Birth of Son William Leslie | 1 Aug 1885, Armidale, NSW | |
| Land Tax | 1889, Government Gazette | Armidale two lots see image of record |
| Death | 27 Sep 1890, Middle Farm, Armidale, NSW | Suicide with Shotgun |
Descendants
Children
The Blencowe Book contains a good description of the family descendants from Joshua Benjamin Blinco 1870 who had the most grandchildren for Joshua and Lydia. These granddaughters had husbands that served their country in the World Wars.
- Clara Blencowe 1896-1967 married Claude Albert Jack 1899 – 1972 who served in WW1 and WW2 in France and New Guinea
- Norah Mabel Blencowe 1899 – 1991 married Joseph Aloysius Byrne 1906– who served in WW2 Private, N390884, Volunteer Defence Corps – Engineers
Sources
- Birth and Early Life records, Brackley, Northamptonshire (1807).
- UK Census 1851: 9 Market Place, Buckingham.
- NSW Public Service Lists
- NSW Government Gazette. In the edition dated January 20, 1885
- NSW Electoral Rolls: Enmore/Newtown District (1890s).
- Obituary Notices: Sydney Morning Herald and local New England Gazettes (July 1895).
- NSW Will Books: Testamentary Records for Benjamin Robert Blencowe, Enmore.
- The research of Pat McClenaghan and the Blencowe Book (2001).
- Date: October 21, 1890 (Probate Notice) Direct Trove Link: NSW Government Gazette – Page 8159
Evidence: In the fourth column, under “PROBATE JURISDICTION,” you will find:
“In the Will of Joshua Benjamin Blinco, late of Armidale, in the Colony of New South Wales, Land Agent, deceased.” - His Role as a Government Draftsman (1885) Date: January 20, 1885 Direct Trove Link: NSW Government Gazette – Page 414 Evidence: Look for the “Department of Lands” section. He is listed as Joshua B. Blinco, Draftsman in the Armidale Survey Office.
Appendix- Richard Hargrave
The Blencowe Book contains some errors about the sequence of Joshua Benjamin Blinco’s career in Australia which Iive attempted to rectify above. However, the Blencowe Book also missed out, understandably, the background of Richard Hargrave. My research unearthed this set of facts that fill in the picture of how Richard was helped by his parents to buy Hillgrove Farm after circumstance beyond his control wiped out his investments. My primary source is the Diary of Richard Hargrave held at the University of New England and Regional Archives (Accession A516). Parliament of NSW
I used Claude AI to find, edit and write the overview below:
Richard Hargrave (1 February 1817 – 19 January 1905) born at Greenwich, England, and arrived in Sydney in 1838 aboard the ship Argyle. Wikipedia . He initially worked for Hoskins, Mayor of Sydney, on Combelong Station at Monaro, and within 12 months became a partner, forming Callendoon Station and Goondiwindi Stations on the Macintyre River. n 1843, the failure of Sydney merchants Hughes and Hoskins, followed by the collapse of the Bank of Australia, wiped out all station properties. Coming to Sydney in January 1845, Hargrave wrote to his father in England reporting his losses. He was urged to return home, but declined; money was forwarded for a fresh start, and in 1846 he bought Hillgrove Station near Armidale.
His diary, covering 12 December 1838 to 2 April 1839, is held at the University of New England and Regional Archives (Accession A516). Parliament of NSW This is a potentially rich primary source not mentioned in the document that researchers could consult.
After politics, Richard Hargrave and his wife retired to Armidale and moved into a cottage near the railway station. The street where they lived is now named Hargrave Street after him. He died at Armidale on 19 January 1905, the final surviving member of the first Legislative Assembly of New South Wales. Wikipedia