MITCHENALL FAMILY HISTORY

William James was born 17 months after his parents marriage on 25th March 1860, He was baptised at St Matthews in Brixton, 

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His sisters Mary Ann and Laura Elizabeth were born two years later, but by the age of 11 he was living with his aunt Ann in Norwood. It is possible that the presence of Mary Ann, who died in an asylum, caused his parents to have Ann look after him. There is no record of his returning home - he remained with Aunt Ann in 1881.

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Thereafter his life is a mystery, other than the fact that he is recorded as a carpenter, taking after his fathers trade, I think he is the William (a Carpenter) who arrived in Australia in 1884. There was a an uncollected letter for William in 1889, and in 1893 Aunt Rebecca (Kempshall) posted a note in Lloyds requesting information.

 

Further posting from Aunt Rebecca were made in the later part of 19th Century, and then in the early 20th Century he turns up in New Zealand. Still working as a Carpenter, he lived until the 6th March 1929. He is buried at the Karori Cemetery in Wellington. There are no records to show he ever married and apart from a photo taken when he visited an exibition in Tasmania, details of his life in the antipodes remain scant.