Thomas and Elizabeth - Marylebone to Australia

What led Elizabeth and Thomas to Marylebone, or how they came to meet, is uncertain. However, on 12 November 1837, when Elizabeth was about 24 years old and Thomas, about 21, they married each other at the St Marylebone Parish Church in Middlesex[1]:

London, England, Church of England Marriages and Banns, 1754-1932 via Ancestry.com

Thomas was born and raised in Tamworth, Staffordshire while Elizabeth was from Kent. Thomas was baptised on 14 April 1816 at St Editha’s Church in Tamworth; the son of Thomas and Anne [Hall] Coop[2][3]. You can read a little more about Thomas’ background in my post Tamworth and Three Generations of Coops.

Elizabeth was baptised on 22 June 1813 in West Peckham, Kent; the daughter of Stephen and Susannah [Jackson] Large[4]. Her baptism record shows that, at the time of her baptism, the family was living at Hurst in Kent and her father, Stephen, was working as a labourer. Elizabeth’s forebears had been in Kent for at least seven generations, probably longer[5].

Life in Marylebone

According to their marriage record, when Elizabeth and Thomas married, Thomas was working as a labourer in Marylebone. By 5 October 1838, when their oldest child Thomas’ birth was registered. Thomas Senior’s occupation is listed as ‘Porter’ and the family is living at 2 Westmoreland Street, Marylebone[6]. It is unclear, therefore, why on Thomas Junior’s baptism record two days later on the 7 October 1838, Thomas Senior is listed as an Upholsterer[7]. Thomas continues to be shown as a ‘Porter’ in the 1841 census. By 1841, the family was living at Great Marylebone Street, Marylebone[8]. Unfortunately, to date, I haven’t been unable to find the family in the 1851 census.

Porters were generally employed in a variety of places e.g., trading centres, markets, docks, and railway stations. It is difficult to know what Thomas’ position as a porter entailed but the fact that his career change to ‘Porter’ appears to have been around October 1838 could, perhaps, suggest he was a railway porter? It was on 17 September 1838, that the London to Birmingham line opened. It was the first railway line into London and passengers disembarked at Euston station[9].

Thomas and Elizabeth continued to live in Marylebone, and raise their children there, until 1853. Between 1837, when Elizabeth and Thomas married, and 1853 when they left for Australia, Elizabeth and Thomas had seven children, two of whom died before 1853. All these children were born in Marylebone: Thomas Coop. born in 1838[10]; Susan Coop, born in 1840[11] and died in 1841[12], aged 21 months; Henry Jackson Coop, born 1843[13]; Emily Coop, born 1845[14]; George Coop, born 1849[15] and died shortly after birth[16]; Arthur, born 1850[17] and Alice Sarah, born 1852[18].

The period 1838 to 1853 was a time of significant change in England. Queen Victoria had ascended the throne on 20 June 1837, a few months before Elizabeth and Thomas married. As well as changes in transportation with the new railway line and the employment opportunities that brought, there were numerous other changes at this time. For example, changes resulting from the People’s Charter. The Charter advocated social and political reform and received considerable support among working people. It led to three national petitions being presented to Parliament in 1839, 1842 and 1849. In June 1840, vaccination became available to the poor. This was at the expense of ratepayers and delivered via local poor law authorities[19]. However, there was still much for the poor to grumble about.

A research project focused on uncovering the voice of the poor in 19th-century England and Wales has reviewed a collection of correspondence, dating from 1834 to 1900, between central Poor Law authorities and local Poor Law Unions. The project has found that people wrote for many different reasons including: to ask for help negotiating the complex poor laws; to dispute the level of relief they received; begging not to be sent to the workhouse or asking to be sent there; or complaining bitterly about the treatment they received[20].  

Life could be tough in Victorian times. The poorest families likely had few choices. Those who were a little better off could afford a passage on a ship. Some were able to get assisted passages. Many chose to emigrate in the hope of a better life in a new country.  How Thomas, Elizabeth and family fared in Marylebone we don’t really know.  However, we do know that it was well enough to secure a passage from London to Victoria for two adults and five children; although they may have secured an assisted passage? As a Porter, Thomas would probably not have been earning much but he would have been better off than some. He does appear to have had steady work, at least from 1838 through to 1841 and, perhaps beyond until their departure from London?  

We can only speculate about what made Elizabeth and Thomas decide to venture half way around the world to Australia in 1853. Most likely they were in search of a better future for themselves and their young family and they were probably drawn to Australia by family already there.

Thomas’ older brother, Henry Coop (abt. 1813-1884), a butcher, had been convicted of stealing two sheep in the Warwick Assizes, Warwickshire in August 1833.  He was transported to Tasmania (then Van Dieman's land until 1856) as a convict (No. 14688) aboard the convict ship 'Moffatt' (voyage 115) arriving in Tasmania on 9 May 1834[21].  By 1853, Henry was a free man and living at Oatlands in Tasmania.  He had been given a free pardon during 1845-46[22]. Thomas' sister, Alice, was also living in Tasmania. Alice was living in Hobart in 1853. She had travelled to Tasmania sometime before 21 January 1850 when she married Christopher Denton in Hobart[23].

A Move to Australia

On 30 April 1853, Elizabeth and Thomas with their surviving children, Thomas, Henry, Emily, Arthur and Alice, departed from London aboard the 'Marchioness of Londonderry'. The ship was bound for Sydney, New South Wales and Port Phillip Bay, Victoria.  The shipping record shows that the Coop family had contracted to land at Port Phillip.  The record also shows that, travelling with them was a James Coop, Brushmaker[24].

 

Victoria, Australia, Assisted and Unassisted Passenger Lists, 1839-1923 via Ancestry.com 

Coop, Thomas Male Age 37 Occupation: Porter English Contracted to land at Port Phillip; Coop, Elizabeth Female Age 40 English Contracted to land at Port Phillip; Coop, Thomas Male Age 13 English Contracted to land at Port Phillip; Coop, Henry Male Age 10 English Contracted to land at Port Phillip; Coop, James Male Age 28 English Contracted to land at Port Phillip; Coop, Emily Female Age 8 English Contracted to land at Port Phillip; Coop, Arthur Male Age 3 English Contracted to land at Port Phillip; Coop, Infant English Contracted to land at Port Phillip

To date, I haven’t been able to figure out who their travelling companion, James Coop, was. Clearly, he was likely a relative.  At age 28, he would have been born in about 1825.  As far as I have been able to ascertain, Thomas did not have a brother called James ... perhaps a cousin? 

At least two of Thomas' other siblings followed him to Australia at a later date - Samuel Coop in 1857[25][26] and Joshua Coop before 1856[27] Both died in Australia – Samuel in 1885 in Tasmania[28] and Joshua in 1892 in Victoria[29].

Elizabeth and Thomas and their family arrived at Port Phillip Bay in Victoria, Australia on 4 August 1853 having been aboard the ‘Marchioness of Londonderry' for just over 3 months.  It appears they stayed there for a couple of months, perhaps waiting for a passage on to Tasmania to join family there. The date of their onward travel to Tasmania is uncertain. They may have been aboard the ship Tasmania II which left Victoria for Hobart during October 1853. However, while the shipping record looks like it more than likely belongs to them, some of the details on the record are incorrect; most significantly, Elizabeth is recorded as Mary. Also, some of the ages are incorrect and Alice Sarah is missing. It records: Thomas, 28; Mary, 30; Thomas and Henry, 12,11; Emily, Arthur 9,6[30]. According to Elizabeth’s death entry (see below), they remained in Tasmania for 2 years and then went back to Victoria. So, that would have been sometime during 1855.

Robinson Crusoe Gully, Sandhurst

Once in Victoria, they took up residence at the Robinson Crusoe Gully Diggings in Sandhurst. Sandhurst is today known as Bendigo. Having originally begun as Bendigo (the name being derived from Bendigo Creek), the town adopted the official name of Sandhurst in 1854. This was changed back to Bendigo in 1891 after residents voted (on 28 April 1891) in favour of the change – 1,515 in favour, 267 against[31][32].

Extract from The Bendigo Advertiser Monday April 27. 1891 p.2 via Trove

It appears, then, that it may have been the lure of gold in the goldfields of Victoria that drew Elizabeth, Thomas and family to Victoria in general and to Robinson Crusoe Gully diggings in particular.

The first discoveries of payable gold in Australia were at Ophir in New South Wales (1851) and then, shortly after, at Ballarat and Bendigo Creek in Victoria (1851).  This was followed by Tasmania (from 1852), Queensland (from 1857) and the Northern Territory (from 1857).   From 1851, gold-seekers from around the world travelled to Australia greatly expanding Australia’s population and boosting its economy. While the findings in Tasmania were significant, they were not as significant as those of Victoria. The Victorian gold rush accounted for more than a third of the world’s gold production in the 1850s[33].

The 1854 census recorded a population of nearly 15,500 people in Bendigo. The settlement had grown haphazardly with traders’ stores, hotels, boarding houses and dwellings ranging from calico to more permanent structures[34]. By the time Elizabeth and Thomas got there, the population would have been higher. Most at those working the diggings would have been living in tents. Life would not have been easy at the Robinson Crusoe Gully Diggings.

Elizabeth died on 11 July 1859 having been at Robinson Crusoe Gully for just 4 years. She was 46. Her cause of death is listed as Acute Peritonitis following 6 months of illness with Chronic Dysentery. Her death was certified by Doctor Donnall who had last seen Elizabeth the day before she died. Her death was registered in the District of Golden Square[35] in the Colony of Victoria (Registration No. 6701); the informant being her husband, Thomas Coop, Miner, Robinson Crusoe Gully, Sandhurst[36].

Elizabeth’s death entry also tells us that, at the time of her death in 1859, all of her and Thomas’ children who travelled with them to Australia, were still living. They are shown in her death entry as: Thomas 21, Henry 17, Emily 15, Arthur 10, Alice 6.  The record also shows that Elizabeth had had 5 children that preceded her in death – 4 males and 1 female.   As referred to earlier, two of these died in England prior to the family’s departure from London (Susan, who died in 1841 aged 21 months and George who died shortly after birth in 1849).  So, who were the other 3 male children who preceded her in death?  Were they born in Australia after the family’s arrival in 1853? 

Sarah Alice died not long after her mother, on 20 February 1861 at the age of 8. She is buried at Carlton North in Melbourne City, Victoria, Australia[37]. This suggests that, perhaps, after Elizabeth’s death that Thomas and his dependent children moved away from Bendigo and back to the city at some point before 1861?

Next Steps

Thomas Coop Jnr

Thomas Coop Jnr was already working independently of his parents when his mother, Elizabeth, died. In 1856, he had been puddling at Kangaroo Gully Diggings in Sandhurst and after that timber-getting in Victoria. It appears that, after his mother’s death in 1859, he was living in the Broken River/Benalla/ Albury/Lambing Flat area of New South Wales before travelling to New Zealand during 1861. Apart from one trip back to get a consignment of horses, Thomas spent the rest of his life in New Zealand. Thomas died on 18 February 1924 in Roxburgh, Central Otago, New Zealand[38]. Thomas has many descendants in New Zealand. You can find out more about Thomas in my posts Thomas Coop – Youth to Early Adulthood and Thomas Coop – The Roxburgh Years.

Henry remained in Australia where he married Fanny Jane Davis in 1911[39]. He died on 15 March 1923 at Woodend, Macedon Ranges Shire, Victoria[40].

Emily Coop

Emily, like her brother Thomas, moved to New Zealand. On 22 January 1873, Emily married James Coombs Bowden, a miner, at St Luke’s Church, Goldsborough[41]. Goldsborough is in Westland, New Zealand; a mining township, situated on the Waimea creek, ten miles north-east of Hokitika, and about eight miles from Kumara. Emily may have travelled to Westland with her father, Thomas (see below). She died on 14 September 1931 at Miller's Flat, Mt Benger, Central Otago, New Zealand[42]. Miller's Flat is at the southern end of the Teviot Valley about 18 km south of Roxburgh where her brother, Thomas, lived. Her father also lived there for a while after going to Westland. Emily has many descendants in New Zealand.

At this point in time, I know very little about Arthur Coop’s life in Australia or New Zealand. At some point, he did travel to New Zealand. The electoral role shows him as living in Dunedin in 1928[43]. He died on 25 January 1933 at Seacliffe, Otago, New Zealand[44]. Arthur’s last Will and testament had been made in Victoria, Australia[45]. He appears to have worked as a labourer.

After Elizabeth’s death in 1859 and the death of their daughter, Alice in 1861, Thomas Snr travelled to New Zealand. He left Victoria in February 1862 aboard the ship Chariots of Fame bound for Otago, New Zealand (Ship's Master: Kerr, Robert A)[46]. This is about the same time that his son, Thomas, returned to New Zealand after returning to Australia to get a consignment of horses. By this stage, Thomas Snr was 44 years old. It isn’t clear what he did then but it is likely that he was in Central Otago for a while as that is where his oldest son, Thomas, was.

Thomas Coop Snr

By 1867, Thomas Snr was in Westland, New Zealand. On 19 March 1867, he married Mary Hurdley(1833-1894) at Ross, Westland[47]. Ross, previously called Rosstown, was settled in 1865 as a gold mining town. Thomas and Mary were still in Ross on 5 December 1868 when their daughter Alice Coop was born[48] (perhaps named for the daughter, Alice, that he had lost?) and 27 October 1874 when their son William Frederick Joseph Coop[49] was born. 

At some point, Thomas and Mary moved from Westland to Central Otago. Electoral Rolls show that, from at least 1876–1881, Thomas and Mary were living at Miller's Flat, Central Otago. Thomas is listed as a Farmer[50]

Thomas, Mary and their family moved back to Victoria, Australia, perhaps about 1881. Thomas died, at the age of 70, on 23 June 1886 at New Gisborne, Victoria. Records show that, at the time of his death, he was a Licensed Victualler/Hotelkeeper[51].

N.B. I have now moved by blogging efforts from this platform to We Are.xyz so that I can integrate building my family history archive with blogging. This post, or a similar version of it, can be found at:  Thomas and Elizabeth - Marylebone to Australia

Notes

[1] London Metropolitan Archives; London, England; London Church of England Parish Registers; Reference Number: P89/MRY1/208 Image via Ancestry.com. London, England, Church of England Marriages and Banns, 1754-1936 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2010.

[2] England Births and Baptisms 1538-1975 Transcript via FindMyPast [Website]. Accessed 9 July 2020.

[3] Jane Chapman Tamworth and Three Generations of Coops (posted 13 July 2020) BJNL’s Genealogy [Blog].

[4] Baptism Elizabeth Large Kent Baptisms, West Peckham, St Dunstan Transcript and Image via FindMyPast [Website]. Accessed 15 June 2020.

[5] I have traced the Large family back to William Large and his parents, Henry Large and Mary Wibley. William was born to Henry and Mary in about 1639 and baptised on 29 December 1639 at All Saints in Brenchley, Kent. Baptism - William Large Kent Baptisms, Brenchley All Saints, Kent Transcript and Image via FindMyPast [Website]. Accessed 15 June 2020.

[6] Thomas Coop - GRO Reference 1838 December Quarter in Marylebone,Vol 1, page 135. Mother's Name Large - General Register Office England and Wales Civil Registration Indexes [Digital Index] London, England via General Register Office [Website]. Accessed 28 April 2022. The Author holds a copy of the birth entry (Issued to Author 5 May 2004).

[7] London Metropolitan Archives; London, England; Reference Number: P89/MRY1/102 Image via Ancestry.com. London, England, Church of England Births and Baptisms, 1813-1917 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2010. Accessed 27 June 2020 

[8]  Class: HO107; Piece: 676; Book: 5; Civil Parish: St Marylebone; County: Middlesex; Enumeration District: 8a; Folio: 7; Page: 7; Line: 24; GSU roll: 438792 Image via Ancestry.com. 1841 England Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc, 2010. Accessed 15 June 2020.

[9] Victorian Britain - British History via BBC [Website]. Accessed 28 April 2022.

[10] Coop, Thomas GRO Reference: 1838 December Quarter in Marylebone Volume 01 Page 135. Mother’s Maiden Name Large. General Register Office. England and Wales Civil Registration Indexes [Digital Index] London, England via General Register Office [Website]. Accessed 16 April 2022.

[11] Coop, Susan GRO Reference 1841 March Quarter in Marylebone Volume 01 Page 159 Mother’s maiden name Large. General Register Office. England and Wales Civil Registration Indexes [Digital Index] London, England via General Register Office [Website]. Accessed 16 April 2022.

[12] Coop, Susan GRO Reference 1841 September Quarter in Marylebone Volume 01 Page 124 General Register Office. England and Wales Civil Registration Indexes [Digital Index] London, England via General Register Office [Website]. Accessed 16 April 2022.

[13] Coop, Henry Jackson GRO Reference: 1843 September Quarter in Marylebone Volume 01 Page 158 Mother’s maiden name Large General Register Office. England and Wales Civil Registration Indexes [Digital Index] London, England via General Register Office [Website]. Accessed 16 April 2022.

[14] Coop, Emily GRO Reference: 1845 March Quarter in Marylebone Volume 01 Page 167. Mother’s maiden name Large. General Register Office. England and Wales Civil Registration Indexes [Digital Index] London, England via General Register Office [Website]. Accessed 16 April 2022.

[15] Coop, George GRO Reference: 1849 March Quarter in Marylebone Volume 01 Page 257 Mother’s maiden name Large. General Register Office. England and Wales Civil Registration Indexes [Digital Index] London, England via General Register Office [Website]. Accessed 16 April 2022.

[16] Coop, George GRO Reference: 1849 March Quarter in Marylebone Volume 01 Page 204 Age 0. General Register Office. England and Wales Civil Registration Indexes [Digital Index] London, England via General Register Office [Website]. Accessed 16 April 2022

[17 Coop, Arthur GRO Reference: 1850 March Quarter in Marylebone Volume 01 Page 258 Mother’s maiden name Large. General Register Office. England and Wales Civil Registration Indexes [Digital Index] London, England via General Register Office [Website]. Accessed 16 April 2022.

[18] Coop, Alice Sarah GRO Reference: 1852 December Quarter in Marylebone Volume 01A Page 357. Mother’s maiden name Large. General Register Office. England and Wales Civil Registration Indexes [Digital Index] London, England via General Register Office [Website]. Accessed 16 April 2022. 

[19] Victorian Britain - British History via BBC [Website]. Accessed 28 April 2022.

[20] In their Own Write: Three Million Words! via The National Archives [Website]. Accessed 28 April 2022.

[21] Information via Ancestry.com as detailed below (accessed 18 June 2020):

• Class: HO 27; Piece: 46; Page: 350 Image via Ancestry.com. England & Wales, Criminal Registers, 1791-1892 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2009; 
• Class: HO 11; Piece: 9  Image via Ancestry.com. Australian Convict Transportation Registers – Other Fleets & Ships, 1791-1868 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2007; 
• Class: HO 10; Piece: 38 Image via Ancestry.com. New South Wales and Tasmania, Australia Convict Musters, 1806-1849 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2007.

[22] Class: HO 10; Piece: 59 Image via Ancestry.com. New South Wales and Tasmania, Australia, Convict Pardons and Tickets of Leave, 1834-1859 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2007.

[23] Tasmanian Pioneer Index 1803-1899 Transcript via Ancestry.com. Australia, Marriage Index, 1788-1950 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2010.

[24] Public Record Office Victoria; North Melbourne, Victoria; Inward Overseas Passenger Lists (British Ports) [Microfiche Copy of VPRS 947]; Series: VPRS 7666 Image via Ancestry.com. Victoria, Australia, Assisted and Unassisted Passenger Lists, 1839-1923 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc., 2009.

[25] Alphabetical Descriptive List Of Immigrants With Details Of Name, Marital State, Age, Children, Religion, Literacy, Native Place, Trade, Applicant (Sponsor), Ship, Date Of Arrival; Film: SLTX/AO/MB/240; Series: CB7/20 Image via Ancestry.com. Tasmania, Australia, Immigrant Lists, 1841-1884 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2012.

[26] Archives Office of Tasmania; Tasmania, Australia; Descriptive List of Immigrants; Film Number: SLTX/AO/MB/140; Series Number: CB7/12/1/6-9 Image via Ancestry.com. Tasmania, Australia, Passenger Arrivals, 1829-1957 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2011.

[27] I have been unable to find a shipping record for Joshua. He married in Victoria in 1856 - Pioneer Index Victoria 1836-1888 Transcript via Ancestry.com. Australia, Marriage Index, 1788-1950 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2010.

[28] 1885 Deaths in the District of Hobart (RGD35) - RGD 35/1/10 Image 333 Entry 2649 via Libraries Tasmania [Website] Accessed 30 April 2022 – Samuel Coop Butcher. Died from Brain Disease.

[29] Registration 13195 / 1892 Family History Search [Digital Index Search] via Births, Death and Marriages Victoria [Website] Accessed 30 April 2022.

[30] Series VPRS 948/P0001, Sep - Oct 1853 - Image 445 via Public Record Office of Victoria; North Melbourne, Victoria Victoria, Australia [Website]. Accessed 22 April 2022.

[31] Bendigo or Sandhurst? History through newspapers via Blog State Library Victoria [Website]. Accessed 28 August 2022.

[32] The Bendigo Advertiser Monday April 27. 1891 p.2 via Trove [Website] Accessed 27 June 2020

[33] Gold Rushes via National Museum Australia [Website]. Accessed 25 June 2020

[34] Bendigo via Victorian Places [Website]. Accessed 27 June 2020

[35] Golden Square is a district of Bendigo.

[36] Elizabeth Large -  Death registration number 6701/1859 Family History Search  [Digital Index Search] via Births, Death and Marriages Victoria [Website]. Accessed 28 April 2022. The Author holds a copy of this death entry (accessed from the Registry of Births Deaths and Marriages in Melbourne on 28 April 2022).

[37] Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/198606735/alice-coop: accessed 29 April 2022), memorial page for Alice Coop (unknown–20 Feb 1861), Find a Grave Memorial ID 198606735, citing Melbourne General Cemetery, Carlton North, Melbourne City, Victoria, Australia ; Maintained by Tony M. (contributor 48299134) .

[38] Registration 1924/1915 Births, Deaths & Marriages Online [digital index], New Zealand Department of Internal Affairs [Website]. Accessed 22 April 2022.Ancestry.com; New Zealand Society of Genealogists Incorporated; Auckland, New Zealand; New Zealand Cemetery Records Image via Ancestry.com. New Zealand, Cemetery Records, 1800-2007 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2014. Accessed 22 April 2022.

[39] The Victorian Registry of Births, Deaths, and Marriages; Melbourne, Victoria, Australia; Victoria, Australia, Marriage Records Transcript via Ancestry.com. Victoria, Australia, Marriage Index, 1837-1950 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2018.

[40] The Victorian Registry of Births, Deaths, and Marriages; Melbourne, Victoria, Australia; Victoria, Australia, Death Records Transcript via Ancestry.com. Victoria, Australia, Death Index, 1836-1988 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2018; Australia and New Zealand, Find a Grave Index, 1800s-Current Transcript via Ancestry.com. Australia and New Zealand, Find A Grave Index, 1800s-Current [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2012.

[41] Registration Number 1873/4724 Births, Deaths and Marriages Online [Digital Index] via New Zealand Department of Internal Affairs [Website] Accessed 1 April 2022.

[42] Deceased Estates Placed Under the New Zealand Public Trust 1880 to 1928, 1931 to 1950 Image via Ancestry.com. New Zealand, Notices of Deceased Estates, 1880-1950 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2013.

[43] 1928 New Zealand Electoral Roll via Ancestry.com. New Zealand, Electoral Rolls, 1853-1981 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2010.

[44] New Zealand Society of Genealogists Incorporated; Auckland, New Zealand; New Zealand Cemetery Records via Image via Ancestry.com. New Zealand, Cemetery Records, 1800-2007 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2014

[45] Public Record Office Victoria; North Melbourne, Victoria; Victorian Wills, Probate and Administration Records 1841-1925; Series: VPRS 7591 Transcript via Ancestry.com. Victoria, Australia, Wills and Probate Records, 1841-2009 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc., 2016.

[46] Public Record Office of Victoria; North Melbourne, Victoria, Australia; Series Number: VPRS 948 Transcript via Ancestry.com Web: Victoria, Australia, Outward Passenger Index, 1852-1915 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2015.

[47] Registration Number 1867/4296 Births, Deaths and Marriages Online [Digital Index] via New Zealand Department of Internal Affairs [Website] Accessed 24 April 2022.

[48] Registration Number 1869/24942 Births, Deaths and Marriages Online [Digital Index] via New Zealand Department of Internal Affairs [Website] Accessed 24 April 2022.

[49] Registration Number 1874/14335 Births, Deaths and Marriages Online [Digital Index] via New Zealand Department of Internal Affairs [Website] Accessed 24 April 2022.

[50] New Zealand Electoral Rolls, 1853–1981. Auckland, New Zealand via Microfiche, Manukau City Reference Library. Information accessed by Author in 2009:

• 1876/77 Waikaia Electoral Roll - Published 1877 - Coop, Thomas - Place of abode - Millers Flat. Nature of qualification - leasehold. Place where property is situate and name and description of same - house and farm, Millers Flat.

• 1878/79 Waikaia Electoral Roll – Published 1879 - Coop, Thomas - Place of abode - Millers Flat.  Nature of qualification - leasehold. Place where property is situate and name and description of same - house and farm, Millers Flat

• 1879/80 Waikaia Electoral Roll – Published 1880 - Coop, Thomas - Place of abode - Millers Flat. Nature of qualification - leasehold. Place where property is situate and name and description of same - house and farm, Millers Flat. 

• 1880/81 Dunstan Electoral Roll – Published 1881 - Coop, Thomas (senior) - residential Millers Flat - Farmer

 [51] Public Record Office Victoria; North Melbourne, Victoria; Victorian Wills, Probate and Administration Records 1841-1925; Series: VPRS 7591 Image via Ancestry.com. Victoria, Australia, Wills and Probate Records, 1841-2009 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc., 2016.