In an earlier essay here I have talked about William Davis, a once famous exile from Ireland to Australia during the rebellion of 1798, known to posterity as the Wexford Pikemaker. Australian Catholics know him as one of the chief advocates of the establishment of Catholicism in Australia: in his day it was a proscribed and unlawful faith, to the distress of the many Irish people there, both free and convict. William was 35 years old when he was exiled, and may well have been married. Marriage at age 20 was common in Ireland, and by 35 a man might expect to have as many as 12 children. No evidence for this survives, but it is worth bearing in mind as one of the losses of exile. I have also summarised earlier here what is known about three young children whom William took care of, his much loved ‘orphans’. But in between is a shadowy figure, Joseph Davis, about whom not much is known, who emerges in records of the time intermittently, mysteriously, but whose relationship to William, or the orphans, is uncertain. Researchers have speculated, and rival theories have surfaced.

Unlike the earlier essays, this one on the elusive Joseph is about what we don’t know, not what we know. It is an example of how history emerges from the shadows, uncertainly, as first one detail, then another, is uncovered or deduced. The picture seems one of a Rake’s Progress, but is it true?

William’s evidence
We know about Joseph Davis first through the words of William Davis himself. In his will dated 11 August 1843, made just six days before his death, William makes note of Joseph: “I also give…to Joseph Davis, son of Joseph Davis deceased…I also give…unto William Davis son of the above named Joseph Davis…I also give…unto Catherine Davis daughter of the aforementioned Joseph Davis and Margaret Noonan…” These are the three orphans William cared about and bought up, here identified as the children of a Joseph Davis and a Margaret Noonan. Joseph senior is identified as deceased by the date of the will. Of the 11 bequests in the will, the other eight are to offspring of William’s siblings, his sister Mary, and his brothers John and Robert. There is no mention of any natural children of his own. His relationship to the deceased Joseph, and Margaret Noonan, is not mentioned. Two rival theories are derived from this unusual lack of legal exactitude. Firstly, that there was no family relationship to Joseph; secondly, that there was, and that a breach or difference had occurred between William and Joseph leading to the ostracism of the later. This is a “family story”, an often told tale with no evidence, passed on because “there must be something to it.”

Earlier, in February 1834, William left a testimony in court records about a Joseph Davis, who could perhaps be the same man mentioned in his will (there is no way of being certain of this). This Joseph had been charged with both horse theft and cattle rustling by a Bathurst settler who appeared to have a mania for court summons, as he was revealed during the trial to have often prosecuted others for similar offences, all unsuccessfully. Joseph clearly had an excellent lawyer, and was dismissed on both charges with a caution from the judge. William was called as a character witness during the trial: “For the defence, Mr. Sydney Stephen called on Mr. William Davis, of the Church Hill, who deposed that the prisoner was an adopted child of his; that he had known him ever since he was three years of age; that he was a little wild, like the generality of the native youth, fond of stopping out to bathe, and rove in the bush, when he should often have been at home, but he never knew him to be guilty of any dishonesty; on the contrary, he considered him an honest lad…A respectable inhabitant of Sydney, the prisoner’s adopted parent, had given him a wild character, though he could impute nothing to him of a vicious nature.  His Honor adverting to the fact of the prisoner’s being a native of the Colony, advised him never again to present himself as a culprit in a Court of Justice.” This account was reported in the Sydney Gazette 20 February 1834. If this is the same man as mentioned in William’s will, the father of the orphans, then his relationship and mention in the will is explained. He was not a member of William’s family, but had been adopted by William at a young age, some time after William met him at age three. By the time of the trial Joseph had already fathered two children with Margaret Noonan, another Joseph, and Catherine, and a little over 13 months later Margaret gave birth to the third, William Michael. A Margaret Davis is mentioned in the NSW RGO index as dying in 1835, and a Margaret Davis was buried with William and his wife Catherine Miles at Devonshire Street cemetery, and this may well be the otherwise unknown Margaret Noonan.

The possibility still remains these are two different people. One, a natural son or relative but for some reason not identified as such in the will, and the other an adopted son of the same name. In either case the man had died by 1843 (there is no death listed 1834-1843 on the NSW RGO index but may be elsewhere in Australia) or been ostracised by the family and was “missing, believed dead”.

Once alerted to the existence of this shadowy figure researchers combed surviving records for other traces.

Catherine’s evidence
What surfaced was uncomplimentary, and involved another two court cases. “March 4 — Joseph Davis, free, charged with an assault on his mother-in-law, Catherine Davis; ordered to find competent sureties to keep the peace, and stand committed until entered into”. (Sydney Gazette 08 Mar 1826). And the following month: “Jos. Davis, a young man who had lately arrived in the Colony, and who, on a former occasion, of having assaulted his mother-in-law, had been brought before the Bench, and ordered to find security for his good behaviour, appeared at the bar this morning charged with riotous and disorderly conduct in the street, at 12 o’clock last night, with a further breach of the peace at the hour of one in the morning, and with having grossly insulted and abused a wardsman in the execution of his duly. His former recognizances ordered to be estreated on the present offence”. (Sydney Gazette 01 April 1826).

The behaviour is the same as that of the 1834 trial. Not vicious, but “a little wild”. Joseph is identified as son in law to William’s wife Catherine, and so married to her presumed daughter, Margaret Noonan. He is clearly the future father of the orphans Joseph, Catherine and William Michael, and the lack of any reference to William Davis suggests no family connection, but perhaps that of adoption. So we get a picture of a man who knew William and Catherine, had married Catherine’s daughter, was prone to wild and undisciplined behaviour, was to father three children, and was believed dead in 1843.

The records mention Joseph again, but much more obscurely. From now on there is some doubt of the identity of the Joseph Davis mentioned.

In August of 1824 Catherine, William’s wife, travelled to England on the ship Midas. A little less than a year later, 25 June 1825, Catherine returned, with son Joseph Davis and his wife. Passage was paid for on security of land at Charlotte Place in Sydney, William Davis’ house. Was this the same Joseph? Did Catherine take William’s adopted son (and her son by marriage) over to Ireland to marry her daughter Margaret Noonan? Why go there rather than Margaret travel to Australia?

The only thing to link all these mentions in the records together is the connection with William Davis, and the fact they are internally consistent by date, and seem to be about the same kind of person.

A projected chronology of Joseph might sum this up best.
1825 Joseph married in Ireland sometime between January and April to Margaret Noonan, William Davis’ wife’s daughter.
1826 Joseph in court in March for assault, in May for riotous behaviour (“lately arrived in the Colony”).
1828 Joseph’s son Joseph believed born 12 February in Sydney.
1833 Joseph’s daughter Catherine born in Sydney.
1834 Joseph summonsed for trial 20 February for livestock theft.
1835 Joseph’s son William Michael born 25 March in Sydney.
1835-1843 Joseph disappears, believed dead by William Davis.

So far we don’t know how old Joseph was, when he was born, or who his parents were. But archival records give some further clues.

Archival evidence
Census records don’t survive from colonial times in Australia, but similar returns, called musters, were made from time to time by the Governors. William Davis appears in these records, usually identified by his residence at Charlotte Place, or by his ship of arrival, the Friendship. William and Catherine appear in the muster of 1814 for example. But in another muster, of 1823, William is mentioned along with a Joseph and an Elizabeth. William is mentioned as arriving on the Friendship, with a life sentence, having earned an absolute pardon (which meant he could leave the colony if he wished), as living in Sydney, and whose occupation was a baker (the only time this occupation is mentioned for William). Joseph, “son to Mr Davis”, age 10, born in the colony, and Elizabeth, “child of Mr Davis”, age 2, born in the colony, are also mentioned with him. There is no mention of William’s wife Catherine. Who is this Mr Davis? Is it William? Or could there be another Mr Davis?

The Governor set up an Orphan School to help children and parents, which provided shelter, food and schooling for indigent settlers. A Joseph Davis appears in the lists for this school, in several capacities. In 1823 a Joseph Davis is listed, parent or guardian William Davis, age 10. The same year a Joseph Davis is expelled for absenting himself from the School on a regular basis. But why would the already wealthy William Davis need to have a child in Orphan School? I think the explanation is that William didn’t put him there. If we look at the records in a different sequence, we find that in the year 1823, a parent put this Joseph in Orphan School, that then William was prevailed on to become guardian of the child, and that the child then took matters into his own hands by running away. Can we reconcile all this with the Joseph we have already traced? Almost, but not quite. The stumbling block is the age, given in Orphan School listing and muster as 10 in 1823. Could this be inexact, made lower for some reason, perhaps an entrance qualification?

Joseph Davis senior
There is yet another Joseph Davis entered in Orphan School. We know a bit about this Joseph. He was the son of Ann, or Nancy, Davis. Her husband was another Joseph Davis, who was an Irish rebel from Dublin.

This Joseph Davis senior may have been a relation of William Davis, though not all families named Davis of course are related. We do know his father’s name was John, as was William Davis’ father, but again the name John is common. Some members of William Davis’ family, his nephew John and some of John’s sons, worked in Dublin as coachbuilders, but still nothing more conclusive has been found to link the two Davis families.  It is all speculation.

Joseph Davis the elder was born in 1761 in Ireland, and worked in Dublin as a cutler. He was a member of the United Irishmen. On 01 October 1797 he was arrested in Wicklow for “administering an unlawful oath” (protesting against English atrocities), a treasonable offense, and transported to Australia for a term of seven years. He was married, to a woman called Mary Bassford, and had four children. There exists several heartfelt letters he wrote to his wife while a prisoner awaiting sailing. He left Cork 24 August 1799 on the ship Minerva and arrived at Port Jackson 12 January 1800. Joseph didn’t return to his wife and family on expiration of his sentence. By 1807 he was living with another convict, Ann Calder (12 December 1781-13 June 1826) and with her had eight children, Ann born 1807, Elizabeth born 1807 (a twin), Sarah born 1808, Joseph born 20 September 1809, John Emmett born 03 November 1812, Charles Oliver born 1816, Philip born 1819, Edward Fitzgerald born 1823. Joseph was eventually pardoned, and set up as a cutler in Sydney at Sydney General Hospital. He died suddenly 25 September 1823, highly thought of.

According to his obituary Joseph Davis senior was a freethinker and deist who enjoyed debating philosophy with others (and usually won the argument). He was said to have become devout when he began suffering from the illness that finally killed him, and we could imagine if we like William earnestly urging Joseph senior to care for his immortal soul.

Ann was apparently in some financial difficulty and petitioned the Orphan School for help. On 10 January 1823 she asked for admittance to Orphan School for her son Joseph, giving his age as 10 (he was 14). On 12 April 1824 she asked for further help. She listed her children: Elizabeth born 1808, Joseph 1810, John 1812, Charles 1817, Philip 1820 and Edward 1823. Ann, or Nancy, mentions that her eldest son Joseph, aged 14, is finding it hard to earn enough to support the family because of his youth, and prays the School will take in two of her sons, Charles and Philip. Her appeal was successful. She died two years later.

We apparently have two Joseph Davises, one aged 10 in 1823, who suddenly appears in the household of William Davis for the first time, parent a Mr Davis, and is also listed for Orphan School, parent or guardian William Davis, age 10, that same year; and a second one who suddenly, aged 14, on the death of his father in 1823, must support a mother and family of six. Could this possibly be the same Joseph? How exact were the ancestors in estimating ages? My experience in looking at census returns has been, not very.

We know a little more about Joseph Davis, son of Joseph the cutler. On 02 October 1823 he advertised that he was continuing his father’s business as a cutler, and prayed for patronage, in view of his juvenile years. He was trading on his father’s good name, and sympathy for the family’s plight. Nothing more is heard of this Joseph for some time. Then, in 1832, he appears in two court cases. He was still a cutler apparently, prosecuting one customer for passing a forged note and another for stealing a watch. Then he disappears from records.

It’s quite intriguing. Could these two Joseph Davises be the same man? One would have to imagine not only that quoted ages were inexact in those days, which they were, but that Joseph was only intermittently a cutler. But that’s possible. Perhaps an extended chronology would help.

1809 Joseph son of Joseph born in Sydney.
1812 William and Joseph senior both residing at Parramatta, Joseph junior age three.
1823 Ann Davis, wife of Joseph, puts her son Joseph in Orphan School, age said to be 10 but actually 14 and he is expelled for absenteeism.
1823 Joseph’s father Joseph dies, and Joseph junior attempts to carry on his business as cutler, age 14.
1823 Joseph in Orphan School, parent or guardian William Davis, age 10.
1823 William Davis adopts Joseph.
1823 on muster, aged 10, with William Davis of the Friendship, and son of “Mr Davis”, together with sister Ann aged 2.
1825 Joseph married in Ireland sometime between January and April to Margaret Noonan, William Davis’ wife’s daughter. Age 16.
1826 Joseph in court in March for assault, in May for riotous behaviour.
1828 Joseph’s son Joseph believed born 12 February in Sydney.
1832 Joseph  prosecutes two customers for theft.
1833 Joseph’s daughter Catherine born in Sydney.
1834 Joseph summonsed for trial 20 February for livestock theft.
1835 Joseph’s son William Michael born 25 March in Sydney.
1835-1843 Joseph disappears, believed dead by William Davis.

It must be emphasised that all this is mere speculation, and that much of the ‘evidence’ is actually the opposite, lack of evidence. Would you agree that Joseph, son of Joseph, or “Mr Davis”, born in the colony in 1809, might be the adopted son of William Davis he defended in court in 1834 and believed dead in 1843? Could William and Catherine have had a difference of opinion about Joseph’s marriage, William thinking him too young but Catherine presenting him with a fait accompli? This may explain the mysterious quarrel William and Catherine conducted in the newspapers on her return from England.

Unfortunately there is very little further evidence about Joseph Davis, and it only adds to the confusion.

On 15 May 1842 a Joseph Davis married a Christina Simpson in Cooma. Could this be the same Joseph, expelled from the family in 1835 or soon after for irresponsible behaviour? This Joseph looks like he abandoned Christina, or failed to support her, and in 1859 she remarried.

In 1859 a Joseph Davis, aged 50, died of a fever in Braidwood. He was the right age. No personal details were entered on his death certificate.

Family stories
But this is not all we ‘know’ about Joseph Davis. Stories circulated about him and were passed down the generations. William Michael, the youngest orphan, believed a story that Joseph had been killed by falling from a horse some time in 1835, the year his wife Margaret died. There is no trace of this death in the records (so far). Another story has him quarreling violently with William Davis about religion, and Joseph’s irresponsible ways, and being disowned by William. This story, of course, can’t be proved one way or the other. Still another tradition says Joseph was William’s nephew, son of William’s brother Robert. This is unlikely, as Robert would have been 49 in 1809 and his wife Elizabeth about 44, should 1809 be the date of Joseph’s birth. Robert could well have had a son Joseph (it was a popular name in this family) but he is unlikely to have been born after 1800 unless our information about Robert is wrong. A son of Robert could not match the records of Orphan School or musters. And William would have no need to adopt a nephew, who was already part of his family. Robert’s son Joseph, if he existed, could have married Margaret Noonan in Ireland, come to Australia, and fathered the orphans. But he couldn’t have been the subject of the court cases or an inmate of Orphan School, or of any other Australian record.

Here is the evidence, such as it is, for the life of an obscure man who for various reasons was important in the life of William Davis and his wife Catherine. He may have represented the family William had, and lost, in Ireland. He may have proved a disappointment. He may equally well have been a warm hearted, emotional and impulsive, and in that way an unreliable character. Here I may, after stating what we know for sure, have been guilty of conflating the records for two or several men of the same name. What do you think?

Imperceptibly, history merges into speculation, nurtured by the lack of evidence. Ultimately, the question is determined as, how many different people called Joseph Davis do you think might have lived in Sydney between 1809 and 1835 having some connection with William Davis the Wexford Pikemaker? I incline to be tidy, and look to find as few as possible. You may prefer to see many, and, who knows, you may be right.

©2012 Original material copyright Phillip Kay. Research data gathered from NSW Archives and RGO documents and the work of Pat Davis Farr, Robert Davis, Penny Black, Dorothy Fellowes and others on the Davis family, and Irish Wattle (Barbara Hall and Cassie Mercer) on Joseph Davis the elder. See Joseph’s letter at http://irishwattle.blogspot.com.au/2012/02/love-letters-from-ireland-we.html. Images and other material courtesy Creative Commons. Please inform post author of any violation.