Ellis Gurney Gush

Other Events and Attributes:

• 1820 Lineage: Yes

Ellis married Mary Gwynaeth Smith on 18 Apr 1944 in Adelaide, Eastern Cape, South Africa. Mary (daughter of Edmund D (Rev) Smith) was born on 16 Sep 1918 in London, England; died on 26 Mar 2000; was buried in Sidbury Chapel, Sidbury, Eastern Cape, South Africa. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

1. Dorothy Gurney Gush
2. Ronald Gurney Gush
3. Megan Gurney Gush
4. Bridget Gurney Gush

Other Events and Attributes:

• 1820 Lineage: Yes

Joseph married Margaret Eliza Matthews on 19 Oct 1892 in Salem, Eastern Cape, South Africa. Margaret (daughter of William Henry Dawson Matthews and Margaret Ann Attwell) was born on 23 Sep 1868 in Salem, Eastern Cape, South Africa; died on 17 Sep 1962 in Sidbury, Eastern Cape, South Africa; was buried in Sidbury Chapel, Sidbury, Eastern Cape, South Africa. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• 1820 Lineage: Yes

Notes:

Married:
Witnesses: Charles Slater and Amy Mathews

Other Events and Attributes:

• Burial: Salem, Eastern Cape, South Africa
• 1820 Lineage: Yes

Notes:

Seemed to have had some sort of psychic powers
Grew up at Salem

Bought the farms Woodbury and Schietkop(later Beacon Hill) with a friend
George Slater for the ammount of 2400 pounds, he later bought out his
partner and the made his home at Woodbury.

His parents Richard and Margaret lived with Joseph during their latter
years and actually died at Woodbury.

Joseph was for 13 years a member of the legislative assembly also a J.P.

He did not share his fathers attitude to war and served with the Albany
Levy in the war of 1552 and was 2ic of the Albany Rangers in the
Gaika/Gcaleka war of 1877/78 under Capt John Gardner, He was Capt in the
Sidbury Mountd Rangers in the same war.

He was a progressive farmer and took an active part in the life of the
community, he was co-founder and
surporter of the Methodist church at Sidbury.
Was President of the House of Assembly in 1867.

He and Charlotte had 10 children.

Birth:
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Microfilm transcription has 7/3/1821

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Died:
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Buried:
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Joseph married Charlotte Dennison, 1820 Settler on 13 Aug 1844 in Salem, Eastern Cape, South Africa. Charlotte (daughter of George Dennison, 1820 Settler and Hanna Elizabeth Purcell, 1820 Settler) was born on 30 Sep 1819 in Nottingham, Nottinghamshire, England; died on 14 Apr 1893 in Salem, Eastern Cape, South Africa; was buried in Sidbury Chapel, Sidbury, Eastern Cape, South Africa. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• 1820 Lineage: Yes
• Settler ID: 888
• Name: Charlotte Dennison 1820
• Settler: 13 Feb 1820, Liverpool, Lancashire, England

Notes:

Birth:
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Settler:
Calton's party on the Albury

Buried:
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Other Events and Attributes:

• 1820 Lineage: Yes

Notes:

Description: Rev Palmer

William + Margaret Ann Attwell. Margaret (daughter of Brooke Attwell, 1820 Settler and Sarah Booth, 1820 Settler) was born on 19 May 1833; was christened on 23 Jun 1833 in Albany District, Eastern Cape, South Africa; died on 10 Apr 1908; was buried in Salem, Eastern Cape, South Africa. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• 1820 Lineage: Yes

Other Events and Attributes:

• 1820 Lineage: Yes
• Settler ID: 2840
• Name: Richard Gush 1820
• Occupation: a Carpenter
• Birth: 24 Apr 1789, Beer, Axminster (nr), Devon, England
• Settler: 15 Feb 1820, Gravesend, Kent, England

Notes:

THE GUSH FAMILY IN SOUTH AFRICA

Richard Gush was born at Beer, in Devonshire. His parents were members of the Episcopal Church of England. He was a spirited lad who often spent his leisure trying to obtain useful knowledge. At age 14 he was apprenticed to a carpenter which trade he followed for most of his life. When he was 17 he was confirmed and after the ceremony told his companions that he would now not commit sin since his God parents were no longer responsible for his conduct, hereby showing his ignorance of these things.
At age 21 he went to London with his youngest brother and they lodged in the home of a pious Wesleyn family and eventually Richard joined the Wesleyans and became a Sunday school teacher. In his 23rd year he married Margaret Evans which was a happy union. Along with several other Wesleyan families he emigrated to the Albany district of South Africa. Richard was part of the Sephton party which was by nature a religious band. Most of this party, 66 families, were on the Aurora however some 35 families sailed on the Brilliant, with Gush as their leader. They arrived at Simons Bay on 30th April 1820, and at Algoa Bay on 15th May 1820.
While still in London Richard met with a Richard Barrett a minister of the Society of Friends and eventually he himself embraced the Quaker principals On reaching South Africa Richard settled in the Salem area, and apart from a stay of 2 years in Grahamstown this was his home for the rest of his life. The Old Farm was looted and burnt by the impis of the Gaika Chief Hintsa. He was a Methodist lay preacher and helped to build the church in 1822 as also the one which succeeded it in 1832. He did much of his work as a carpenter under a large tree which grew near the front door of his home which was not far from the village of Salem.
Richard Gush possessed a tender loving spirit with a keen sence of justice which caused him to feel that slavery was wrong, also his Quaker principals made him feel that violence of any kind was contrary to the will of God. He gained fame for an act of bravery during the frontier war of 1834 / 35 when Salem village was threatened by a large band of Caffres. He being a pacifist and opposed to bloodshed rode out unarmed with a person named Woest to meet the Caffres and persuaded them not to attack the village, in exchange he fetched two loaves of bread weighing about 15 pounds a 10 pound roll of tobacco and pocket knives for them.
Tradition has it that Salem was not again threatened by Caffres.
He was a total abstainer from alcoholic liquors for more than twenty years, desiring by his example to induce others to abstain from these intoxicating drinks, which he saw, often betrayed, even religious professors, into sin: he also laboured to put a stop to the sale of intoxicating liquors, which, as in other places, had long proved a great injury in the neighbourhood in which he resided.
He was noted for his strict honesty and truthfulness. Though often placed in circumstances in which these qualities were tested he would not yield in any degree to the temptation of falsehood. " To convey an untruth in any way, is equal to telling a lie. "
Having given up his business of carpenter and builder, the last seven years of his life were spent in tending to his garden, which was a great source of pleasure to him, and afforded him much opportunity, for contemplation, and communion with his God and Saviour.
A few weeks before his death, he grafted a number of trees; and on one of his daughters saying to him, that the garden was well stocked; he replied, that if sold they would realize five pounds, which sum he intended to give to the Bible Society that year. His intention was carried out by his children, though they kept the trees as memorials of their honoured parent, whose deep interest in circulating the Holy Scriptures, was one of the many evidences he gave, of his high esteem for the Sacred Volume.
Towards the close of his life, Richard Gush had thought of making a voyage to England to visit his relations, and enjoy the company of Friends for two or three months. His family were beginning to make preparations for his voyage; and one of them remarked, that it would soon be time for him to be going. He replied, " I have had some thoughts lately, that the Lord is about to give me Heaven instead. " His wife being on a visit to some of their children at Woodbury, about twenty-five miles from Salem, he joined her, intending to return in a few days, but was prevented by the great heat of the weather. In the morning of the 20th of September 1858, he complained of spasms, which soon passed off. In the course of the day, while walking in his room, he several times repeated these lines:
Who can sink with such a Prop,
That bears the world and all things up.
About seven o'clock in the evening, he suddenly became insensible; and on reviving, he requested his wife to come to him that he might take leave of her; having bid her farewell, he waved his hand, as if to signify that he had done with earthly objects. He then required to be left in quiet, when all but his eldest son retired from the room. Joseph when observing him looked as if he wanted to say something, asked if he wanted to speak and he replied, " Yes -- Heaven. " His son then knelt by him and silently prayed, that his father might be permitted peacefully to enter the realms of eternal bliss; and Richard Gush, as though his spirit was in secret union with that of his son, emphatically responded -- Amen. He then said " Joseph, set your affections on things above. " After a short time his son again addressed him, saying " My dear father, the God who has sustained you through life is able to support you in death." He fervently replied, " Yes;" and then quietly breathed his last. He was nearly 70 years of age. His remains were removed to Salem, where he was buried in the Churchyard, and followed to the grave by a large number of his friends among whom were four ministers, three of them Wesleyans and one Baptist.
His two eldest sons, regarding their father's objection to the practice of putting on black; as a token of mourning, abstained from doing so , thus honouring his memory, as true mourners for the loss of a parent, who by precept and example had trained them up in the fear of the Lord, and whom the Lord had greatly blessed, and made a blessing to many.

( Originally published by " The York Friends " Tract Association. 1860. )
His grandson Rcigard Cherry Gush wrote on 4 Sep 1920 " When the settler Richard Gush landed in Salem, he dug out a room in the banks of the Assigai or Salem river, which he called the 'Salt Box' and lived in it with his family until the river flooded and washed them out like rats out of a bourah. see https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-CSVZ-5SMP-T?i=1125&cat=305287

County Devon
Place (with link) Seaton
Church name (with link) St Gregory
Register type (with link) Parish Register
Baptism date 24 May 1789
Person forename Richard
Person sex M
Father forename Thomas
Mother forename Mary
Father surname GUSH
Film number 22-051
Transcribed by Dawn G
File line number 1531

Settler:
Sephton's party on the Brilliant

Richard married Margaret Evans, 1820 Settler on 2 Feb 1812 in London Church (St Anne's - Soho), London, England. Margaret (daughter of Joseph Evans and Hannah Grainger) was born on 21 May 1790 in Bradfield, Berkshire, England; was christened on 20 Jun 1790 in Bradfield, Berkshire, England; died on 20 Apr 1881 in 'Woodbury', Salem, Eastern Cape, South Africa; was buried in Salem, Eastern Cape, South Africa. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• 1820 Lineage: Yes
• Settler ID: 3790
• Name: Margaret Evans 1820
• Settler: 15 Feb 1820, Gravesend, Kent, England

Notes:

Settler:
Sephton's party on the Brilliant

Notes:

Married:
Name: Margaret Evans
Gender: Female
Marriage Date: 2 Feb 1812
Marriage Place: Saint Anne Soho,Westminster,London,England
Spouse: Richard Gush
FHL Film Number: 918596, 918597, 918598, 918599, 918600, 918601, 918602

Other Events and Attributes:

• 1820 Lineage: Yes
• Settler ID: 886
• Name: George (Sgt) Dennison 1820
• Settler: 13 Feb 1820, Liverpool, Lancashire, England
• Residence: 28 Feb 1825, Graaff-Reinet, Eastern Cape, South Africa

Notes:

Nicholas Hall writes on 30 Jul 2023:" I have acquired a certified copy of the army's register entry for their marriage from the UK's GRO stating that they were married on Zante (Greece) on 20 July 1812.
The Zante version is also supported by the history of Sergeant Dennison's military unit, 1/35th Regiment of Foot, which took part in the capture of Zante and other Ionian islands in 1809 and remained in that area until 1816. Furthermore the Dennisons' first child Ann was born on Zante in 1813 "


MILI:
Description: 35th Regiment

Settler:
Calton's party on the Albury

George married Hanna Elizabeth Purcell, 1820 Settler on 20 Jul 1812 in ,,Island of Zante, Greece. Hanna was born on 23 Dec 1792 in Co. Limerick, Ireland; died about 1850 in Moroko's Town, Thaba 'Nchu, Free State, South Africa. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• 1820 Lineage: Yes
• Settler ID: 883
• Name: Hanna Elizabeth Purcell 1820
• Settler: 13 Feb 1820, Liverpool, Lancashire, England

Notes:

Wrote a series of letters 1820 - 1847

Settler:
Calton's party on the Albury

Other Events and Attributes:

• 1820 Lineage: Yes
• Settler ID: 2705
• Name: William Henry J Matthews 1820
• Occupation: a Labourer
• Settler: 15 Feb 1820, Gravesend, Kent, England

Notes:

MATTHEWS, William Henry. He was a labourer who had been a prisoner of war during the Napoleonic War and learnt French. He and his wife opened the only school in Albany, both as boarding and day, and was regarded as the father of Albany Education.
SOURCE: The Settler named Jeremiah Goldswain by Pauline GOLDSWAIN.

They had 5 children that died in infancy !!!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
This info comes from an article in the Directory of South African Biography which can be found at Cory.

WILLIAM HENRY MATTHEWS
William Henry Matthews (*London, September 1793 - ?Salem, Eastern Cape Province, 22.1.1867) was an 1820 Settler and teacher.
The son of a London artisan, MATTHEWS, who served in the Napoleonic Wars, was captured by the French and after his release opened a school at Hackney in London.

In 1820 he sailed for South Africa in the Aurora as part of the Sephton party, and when the settlement was established at Salem in July 1829 began teaching the children there.

Through the medium of HARRY RIVERS, then landdrost for Albany, the Rev. WILLIAM SHAW prevailed upon the Governor to recognise MATTHEWS as the official schoolmaster for Salem and neighbourhood. He received the appointment on 27.12.1822 together with a salary of 300 rix-dollars per annum, thus the Salem school became the first government-aided teaching institution in Albany.

At first classes were conducted in the building which also served as a chapel, but by 1824 land had been apportioned for the erection of a separate school, the building of which was completed the following year. A boarding establishment followed soon afterwards.

The teaching offered at the 'Salem Academy' was not aimed solely at the transfer of knowledge; Matthews was a man of high principle and his approach to education embraced the concept of Christian living. Part of his aim in teaching was to mould the characters of those he taught and his pupils were instructed with this end in view. MATTHEWS and his Academy enjoyed a high reputation and many parents, especially missionaries living at a distance from Salem, chose to send their children to this school. Among the pupils who rose to distinction in later life were THEOPHILUS SHEPSTONE and CHARLES BROWNLEE, while the sons of the Bechuana chief KGAMA, SAMUEL and WILLIAM SHAW KGAMA, were also educated here.

The Rev. WILLIAM SHAW greatly admired MATTHEWS and wrote of his work as the 'wonderful and gracious provision which Divine Providence has made for the children of Missionaries as well as others'. Shaw also remarked that Salem was kept up as a village by 'the valuable academy'.

In 1845 when the twenty fifth year of the settlement was celebrated, it was decided that a fund would be raised by public subscription to erect a new school building; Matthews was the first and largest subscriber to the fund.

He also played a prominent role on the village committee which regulated the affairs of Salem, and in 1836 was appointed a justice of the peace.
In the church a plaque to his memory reads: 'the magistrate, doctor, adviser, peacemaker, and universal referee of all the country around' .

MATTHEWS married FRANCES COXTON on 27.10.1819 and eight children were born to them at Salem.

Settler:
Sephton's party on the Aurora

William married Frances Coxton, 1820 Settler on 27 Oct 1819. Frances was born in 1794; died on 8 Jul 1867; was buried in Salem, Eastern Cape, South Africa. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• 1820 Lineage: Yes
• Settler ID: 2706
• Name: Frances Croxton 1820
• Settler: 15 Feb 1820, Gravesend, Kent, England

Notes:

Settler:
Sephton's party on the Aurora

Other Events and Attributes:

• 1820 Lineage: Yes
• Settler ID: 69
• Name: Brooke Attwell 1820
• Occupation: a Shoemaker
• Settler: 3 Dec 1819, Gravesend, Kent, England
• Occupation: 27 Feb 1832, Grahamstown, Eastern Cape, South Africa; a Bootmaker

Notes:

Settler:
Crause's party on the Nautilus

Brooke married Sarah Booth, 1820 Settler on 1 Aug 1832 in Grahamstown Church (Anglican), Grahamstown, Eastern Cape, South Africa. Sarah (daughter of Benjamin Booth, 1820 Settler and Margaret Mortimer, 1820 Settler) was born in 1813 in Lambeth, London, England; died on 4 Sep 1892 in Grahamstown, Eastern Cape, South Africa; was buried in Grahamstown Cemetery (Old), Grahamstown, Eastern Cape, South Africa. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• 1820 Lineage: Yes
• Settler ID: 2647
• Name: Sarah Booth 1820
• Settler: 15 Feb 1820, Gravesend, Kent, England

Notes:

Settler:
Sephton's party on the Aurora

Notes:

Married:
Description: Rev William Carlisle