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William Ward and Catherine Mitchell were pioneering settlers of the Central Coast of New South Wales. They both arrived in Australia as convicts. They raised a large family and many of their descendants remain on the Central coast today.
William was from London, but parents have not yet been discovered. Catherine was born in Scotland, the daughter of John Michell and Catherine McGregor. Their son Manasseh Ward was a prominent citizen in Gosford and is the next link in this family biography.
The full story of William and Catherine is told in the PDF document right, which draws heavily on information in the documents below. The list of resources includes several research notes that may include some details not used in the finished story. You may need to scroll the resources window to see the full list.
There is a second resource window below for resources that disprove conclusions that some other researchers have made.
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Resources
Resources
5. ward-william-catherine.pdfMy research notes
My research notes
These are rough notes made during my research, They include some events and discoveries not included in the final story.
ward-william-catherine-research-notes.pdfNot true
Not true
Thee resources below either disprove ir cast serious doubt on the following conclusions that some other researchers have made:
That our William Ward applied for replacement of belongings lost while ferrying a boat in 1822.
That our William Ward applied for a lost certificate of freedom in 1824.
That William Ward's parents were William Ward and Catherine Hennell. The will below includes a description of William Ward snr as 'of the London Stock Exchange'. I suggest that this William would have been a prosperous man and unlikely to apprentice his only son as a chimney sweep (convict records tell us our William was a chimney sweep).
That building ruins on the Killcare waterfront are the remans of William Ward's first house. It is now apparent that the ruins do not lie within the boundaries of William's grant, which excluded a strip of 100 feet along the foreshore. The 100 foot reservation was a standard feature of all land grants at the time.
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