Notes |
- "Richard Walker was the sixth child and third son of Thomas Allwright and Martha Hobson.
It is generally claimed in the Allwright Family that the original immigrant, Richard Allwright arrived in Cape Town in the S S Nautilus in 1817. This is not true as the Nautilus first left Gravesend on 3rd December 1819 and the earliest mention of him in Official Records in South Africa is a letter, dated 9 Jan 1815, stating that he is fifteen years of age and asking for permission to do an apprenticeship with a Mr. Townsend as Gold and Silversmith in Cape Town. This letter also states that he was born in Westminster, London and his current address at the time was Plein Street No 16, Cape Town (Cape Town Archives CO 3901, no 48). How he came to South Africa is not known.
The next document states that he arrived in 1814 asking permission to stay in the Cape Colony as he has completed his apprenticeship with Mr. Townsend. This letter was signed by a 'W' Allwright though and dated 17 September 1822. We gather that he did receive his Colonial Passport which was granted by His Excellency Lord Charles Somerset. (Cape Town Archives CO 3923, NO 301) On the 30 September 1822 Richard wrote another letter to Lord Charles Henry Somerset asking permission to marry Mary May Broocke (spelling in document- could be correct or incorrect. We established that it is Brookes as their daughter, Martha was christened Angelina Brooks Eva). (Cape Town Archives CO 3923, no 355)
The next document shows that on 11 November 1822, he married Mary May Brooks, who arrived in Cape Town from England. The marriage was performed by the Rev. George Hough, the Colonial Chaplain in Cape Town (A 1939, 1/1/1/2) and witnessed by John and Sarah Windell. They even named their son, Richard Allwright Windell born 1816 and died 11 April 1842.
Richard was a small man +/- 5 feet 4 inches tall, of fair complexion with brown hair and light blue eyes. Strangely no description could be found of Mary May Brooks. She was said to be a Medical Doctor's daughter.
Richard was a Silversmith and Jeweller by trade as we know, but found this unprofitable in the Cape Town of those days with a total population of 15 000 people. He therefore turned to masonry and building to make a living.
Richard and Mary continued living in Cape Town until at least December 1837, when a son, James, was baptized. Sometime after that date, he and his family, except the eldest son, Thomas, gravitated towards Somerset East where they apparently settled down to building and farming. On the way to Somerset East Richard and his family apparently spent some time at George where he became acquainted with the writer, C. J. Langenhoven. This acquaintance appears to have inspired C. J. Langenhoven to write an amusing one-act play entitled "Die Kys about the Forro."
It is included in C. J. Langenhoven's "Ons We Deut Die Eire" and is written in phonetically -spelt Afrikaans- English. In English the title would have been "The Case about the Furrow". It concerns a complaint brought before a Meeting of a Town Council about "Aalryt" diverting water from the river by a furrow situated at a point in the river above that from which the Town Council's canal supplying the town with water, was drawn.
Richard died in the house of his son -in- law, William Denham Eva, atWhittlesea on the 20 December 1847 at the age of 49. (Cape Town Archives MOOC 6/9/48, no 325). His wife had died from a stroke in their home in Somerset East in about 1842. His body is said to have been buried with hers in the same grave. Her Death Notice has not been found.
Somerset East: The first settler in this area was a man called Willem Prinsloo. He settled under the Bosberg, very close to where the Museum is today. Prinsloo was the unofficial veld cornet of the district where at least 20 other families had settled in 1774. They send a famous petition to Cape Town asking for the establishment of a Drostdy and a church in the area. This is however Graaff- Reinett was established. At some stage Prinsloo gave up parts of his farm and a farmer called Otto moved into the corner now known as Bestershoek. The Trichardt family followed, as well as the Besters. Lord Charles Somerset, taking up the ideas promulgated by Cradock and Caledon that there should be a settlement on the Eastern Frontier, initiated a plan for an experimental farm in the area. American botanist, Dr. Mackrill, was given orders to find a suitable farm, and was told to look at three places, the Gamtoos Valley, the Swartkops Valley and Bosberg, which he naturally chose. The farm was established in 1815, for the purpose of improving stock breeding in the Cape Colony and providing produce for the soldiers at the Frontier. It was called "Somerset Farm". Ten years later, in 1825, the project was cancelled, a new Drostdy was declared, and the town of Somerset was established. The "East" was only added on 30 years later."
Descendants of Richard Walker ALLWRIGHT
Produced by: Darryl W. Allwright
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