John Holden
| First name | John |
|---|---|
| Last name | Holden |
| Country of Origin | England |
| Date of Birth | 1805 |
| Year of Arrival in Australia | 1842 |
| Submitted by | Lillian Dillon |
Story
John Holden was born in 1805/6 in Blackburne, Lancashire England the 2nd son of Moses Holden & Ellen Hall. Little appears to be know of John’s earlier days. He may or may not have been the John Holding who deserted from the 17th Regiment in England. John met & married Mary Anne Yates in Blackburn England in 1838 and travelled to Australia in 1842 on ss “Agness Huon” with 2 children.
Previously John\’s brother Elijah, a private in the 17th Regiment had embarked on the Convict ship ‘Andromeda’ on its 4th voyage to Australia in 1830 with his wife (& family?) In 1836 to enable him to stay in Australia when his unit was posted to India he was discharged by request from the Army. He took up farming in the Cobbity area before coming down to Pt. Phillip in 1847 with his family.
His brother John became a tenant farmer to Thos. Hassell the lay preacher & son-in -law of the famous preacher Samuel Marsden in the Camden area of NSW.
Their daughter, Mary Jane Holden was born in Narellen NSW in 1847; the family moved overland to Gundagai in 1852 where they were camped with their 5 children when the Murrumbidgee river flooded, forcing the residents to re-site the township to higher ground. As Mary Holden Snr. helped deliver aboriginal babies the natives helped them cross the swollen river to safety.
After joining Elijah in Geelong in 1853 a few years later John & his nephew James selected land at Sutherland\’s Creek, where John continued to farm. James Holden left Sutherland Creek & took up land at Stawell in 1866 and this land became what is known as “Overdale.
When Mary Jane was 24 she married another farmer Geo. Wm. Johnston who arrived from his native Stepney in London around 1855 & had 7 children.
Elijah in his letter to brother William in 1868 .”Br. John is living on his Farm about 10 miles from Geelong. His health is much better than it was When I wrote last His Wife is very well and their children are all maried but one. ” (sic)
John’s wife Mary Anne died of Pneumonia on 23 April 1872 aged 62 & John Holden of bronchitis 9 years later aged 75 at Sutherland’s Creek. Both John & Mary Anne are buried there however the cemetery is now nearly non-existent (part of a paddock) & ceased being used around the turn of the century.
For full family history see http://pandora.nla.gov.au/tep/10421