Mary Ann Sharwood

Whilst Jerome Flood was looking after his sheep at Whangatoetoe Bay, he became friendly with Robert and Mary Ann Register. Robert Register died about December 1851.

For a Woman trying to live in Port Underwood in those primitive days on your own would have been near impossible and unbearable. Mary Ann Register (nee Sharwood) now about 38 years of age developed a relationship with Jerome Nugent Flood.

Mary Ann Sharwood arrived in Port Underwood on the 10th of June 1840, the day she and her husband George Baldick and their four young children landed at Port Underwood

Mary Ann came from Kent on England's southern coast. She was born at Old Romney and lived near the sea, but her memories were of flat lonely beaches and the great empty acres of Romney. Marsh, quite different to the sheltered coves and bush clad hills of Port Underwood

Mary Ann was baptised at St Clement's Church on December 18th 1814, the daughter of William and Elizabeth Sharwood (pronounced Sherwood). A few years later her family left Old Romney, where Sharwoods had lived for generations, and moved over the border to Rye, in Sussex. When she was 15 Mary Ann's father died at Rye and his body was brought back to Old Romney for burial in St Clement's churchyard. Mary Ann would be working then.

Most girls of her generation began work by the time they were 10. Mary Ann was trained as a Dairy maid and farm servant before becoming a maidservant in the house.

Baldick Marriage

Mary Anne may have worked on the same farm as George Baldick a farm labourer of Rye. George was probably a son of William Baldick a labourer, and his wife Ann Noakes. He was born in Sussex about 1812 and his older brother William and younger sister Harriett neither of whom could write witnessed his marriage to Mary Ann Sharwood on January 30th 1831 at Rye George signed the register and Mary Ann made her mark, she was 16 when she married George Baldick and in November the same year their daughter Harriet was borne at Rye

They continued living and working at Rye and in April 1834 their first son, William Sharwood, was born, named after Mary Ann's father. In 1836 they had a second son George.

Sometime in 1837, George and Mary Ann were approached by an agent for: William Walker and Company of Sydney and persuaded them to immigrate to Australia. They arrived, at Sydney with their three children on April 22nd 1838 on the Duchess of Northumberland as bounty immigrants. In February the following year they had a second daughter, Mary Ann, at Sydney. William Baldick with his wife Sarah and six children arrived in Australia about a month later. This family settled Newtown, Sydney.'

On April 4 1840 George Baldick signed an indenture at Sydney agreeing to work in New Zealand for Frederick Wright Unwin, solicitor of Sydney.

Unwin had purchased land at Wairau, Marlborough, in March 1840 and required more labour to build a house, and look after the stock he intended sending to Cloudy Bay. Wilton, the overseer, Laf Hall, Henry Baird and George Baldick, with their wives and families, set sail on the barque Hope arriving at Port Underwood in June 1840.

Having dropped off the families and their belongings the Hope sailed on to Ocean Bay to unload the cattle, staying in Port' Underwood for 15 days before returning to Sydney.

Later the 32 head of cattle and 11 calves were driven overland, to Wairau and left in charge of two of the labourers. Many of these cattle died of poisoning by eating tutu, but those which survived roamed free for several years becoming a nuisance to other: farmers until they were claimed by settlers from the Port.

For Mary Ann and George this was a new beginning. With luck and hard work they might eventually own their own farm something undreamed of back in Rye. A short separation and then they would have their own home at Wairau.

The women were given temporary accommodation Port Underwood in old whares, while the men lived at Wairau returning each fortnight for provisions. Work: was begun on Unwin's house, which was on the banks of the Wairau River opposite Beatson's farm at Clovernook and got as far as the frame work before disaster struck.

On September the 28th, a squally day, Wilton, Hall, Beard, Baldick, Ward, Allen and one native woman, Rehe, started in a leaky square bottomed boat from Kakapo Bay for Wairau, a distance of about 20 miles (32km). It was blowing a gale and the boat soon began taking in water. By the time they reached Boulder Bank at the mouth of the Wairau River the boat was nearly full and the next sea capsized it. Only two of the men understood sailing and Allen, who was a strong swimmer, lost his life trying to save Wilton. The only one to survive was 'Rehe who was thrown a mast by Allen and got to shore on that.

When news of the tragedy reached the families back a Tom Cane's Bay foul play was immediately suspected by the Europeans.

Before the arrival of the Hope James Wynen's wife, Rangiawha Kuika, a chieftain of the Ngatitoa tribe had been murdered along, with their little boy. Dick Cook was acquitted of the charge through lack of evidence and the natives resolved to take utu. The Europeans suspected the death of the six men was revenge for this murder. Mick Murphy chief police magistrate was sent to Port Underwood to inquire into the drownings and he exonerated the natives of any foul play. His report to, the police office at Port Nicholson (Wellington) makes it clear the men drowned through their own negligence and not by any other means.

The tragedy left Mary Ann a widow, not yet 26, with four young children to support. She was reputed to be a remarkably good looking woman, possibly more a handicap than an advantage at this point in her life, and without a husband's protection would be at the mercy of all and sundry. James Williams, in charge of the whaling station at Tom Cane's Bay, had a reputation for callousness and little help could be relied upon from that quarter.

Deakin Marriage

For the three widows of the Boulder Bank drownings and their 12 children life must have seemed grim. On their arrival at Port Underwood three months earlier they had expected to, move to Wairau as soon as accommodation was built for them. There they would have planted gardens to supplement their, dwindling provisions and set up home away from the rowdiness of the whaling station. Now they were living under sufferance in borrowed quarters with little hope of improving their condition. Remarriage was the only other option..

Most of the whalers hired wives for the season, half a keg of rum or tobacco being the going price per woman, but one who "came late' to Port Underwood that season, and so had no wife, was William Deakin.

William Deakin was one of the deserters from an American whaler, "General Williams". He had a wife in America and three sons. In December 1840 he was based in Port Underwood.

On Christmas Day 1840 Mary Ann Baldick, youngest daughter of Mary Ann and George Baldick was 'baptised at Kakapo Bay by Samuel Ironside. Two days later her widowed mother, Mary Anne Baldick (nee Sharwood) married William Deakin.

At the beginning of the 1841 whaling season, about April, MaryAnn and her four children moved with William Deakin to Tory Channel, probably Te Awaiti, to start their lives as a whaling family.

Whares or cottages were provided all year round for the men working on the stations. Some were whitewashed with lime, made by burning shells, and all were, scrupulously clean. They were built of supple jack nailed to uprights, with a layer of clay between, and were snug and warm. A huge chimney took up one end, sleeping bunks the other. There were two square holes, with shutters, for windows, one on each side of the door, and the roof, was thatched with toi toi or leaves of the nikau palm.

Each had its own garden protected by a fence, often made of discarded whale bone, to keep .out the pigs. A variety of vegetables were grown including maize potatoes, lettuce and turnips. Pigs and poultry were numerous they ate the putrid meat of the dead whales, and provided eggs and fresh meat. Cats kept down the rats, dogs were used for, pig hunting or for barter with the natives who ate them in preference to pig meat, and goats supplied milk and cheese

William's wages for 1841 would be about 35 pounds and most would be paid in kind, exchanged for beer, spirits and tobacco sugar, flour and tea.

Foul smelling shark oil and grease, kept the sand flies at bay and canvas obtained from passing ships, sewn with twine, not cotton, was used to replace, old clothes.

William and Mary Ann, had two sons, Thomas born in 1841 at Tory Channel, and Matthew in. 1844 at Port Underwood, they were both baptised by. Samuel Ironside, whose Wesley Methodist church and school were opened at Ngakuta Bay on August 5 1842.

About 1846 William Deakin deserted his wife and family and returned to America. Once again Mary Ann was obliged to use her own resources. She was now 31 with a family of six. Harriet Baldick was 14, her sister Mary Ann, six. The four boy's ages ranged from 11 years to about 18 months.

Considering how quickly she remarried it is tempting to think Mary Anne knew before he left that William Deakin had married her bigamously. She spent little time mourning her loss, and marrying Robert Register and having two more children before the end of 1848. No record has been found for Mary Ann's third marriage, or the birth of their first child.

Register Marriage

In October 1840 during the Boulder Bank drownings Robert Register was living at Kakapo Bay where he and his partner, Samuel Cave, were issued a publican's license by Mick Murphy. He is generally supposed to have been an old sailor and possibly worked at various whaling stations before taking up farming at Port Underwood

Robert Register married the widow of a sailor at Portsmouth, England in 1814. If this is the same Robert Register who later married Mary Ann Deakin (nee Sharwood) it would give credence to him being considered old. He was possibly born late 1780s making him about 57 in 1846.

Unfortunately this is not borne out by the Nelson census taken in 1849 where he gives his age as between 21 years and under 45. But as all the ages for the family are confused in this census, the information is unreliable.

Robert Register may still have been living and working at Kakapo Bay when Mary Ann married him about 1846. The first mention of him being a. farmer is not found until 1848. If a story about Mary Ann is correct that she was given land during her time at the: whaling station in return for saving a young Maori girl, it may be this land, probably at Whangatoetoe Bay, that Robert Register now farmed.

For Mary Ann life as a farmer's wife would be little different to her life as a whaler's wife, except for her isolation away from the more populated area of Port Underwood. The farm would supply their food, and their crops would be sold or bartered for goods unable to be grown.

Before 1849 they built an earth house with a thatched roof and cleared four acres of land. This was fenced and cultivated growing an acre of wheat, one of barley, one of potatoes and the rest in garden. Sixty goats and 40 pigs roamed free on the rough hillside.

There were no doctors in the area and Mary Ann became very good at treating ailments and medical emergencies, a skill which would stand her in good stead in later years.

Mary Anne and Robert Register's first child Rose was born about 1846. Mary Anne's second child Robert was born in Cloudy Bay on October 18th 1848 and later baptised in Wellington. Sarah, Mary Anne's third child was also born in Wellington.

Between l847 and 1853 Governor Grey bought most of the South Island. The New Zealand Company's charter of 34,219 acres, which included Unwin's land at Wairau, was surrended to the Crown in 1850 and put up for allotment purchases.

Although Maori customary law made no distinction between the property of single and married women, Mary Ann as a. European woman, could not own property in her own right. The first Married Women's Property Act did not become law until 1860 and any land she had been given earlier would have been relinquished to her husband on marriage.

On December 9th 1851 the Civil Secretary, aware the Land Claims Commissioners were about to investigate land claims from Register, Cave, and George Heppleman, wrote to the Colonial Secretary, Mr. Dillion requesting more information. Mr. Dillon, when acting as Civil Secretary, had already located some documentation and. his office replied on December 27 that nothing more could be found. The civil secretary advised his clerk to "Action accordingly", which statement is tantalisingly brief. Was the previously found documentation enough to allow the claim, or was it turned down through lack of evidence? Robert Register and Mary Ann continued to live at Whangatoetoe Bay which implies the, claim was successful.

This land claim is significant. No death date for Robert Register has ever been found. Robert Register was still alive in December1851. He may have, died while his claim was in progress and before the birth of his last child John, who was born about 1852. Robert Register was buried at Whangatoetoe Bay.

Before meeting Jerome Flood Mary Ann Register lived at Whangatoetoe Bay and owned about 200 acres of land stretching from Port Underwood Heads to Pipi Saddle. The Maori people had given this land to her in appreciation for a good turn she had done for a young Maori girl some time before. At this time in Port Underwood there were as many as 30 whaling ships, anchored in the harbour at the same time, and the crews of these ships were fairly rough and uncouth.

This Maori girl, of about 14 years of age, was on the beach naked, which was the Maori way of life, and a whale boat load of whalers were making rude remarks about her and generally humiliating the young lady, and Mary Ann Register came down and put her full length apron on the girl and tied the strings at the back. The Maori elders were so pleased with her kind action, they gave her the land.

After the death of her third husband Robert Register, Mary Ann continued living at Whangatoetoe Bay later known as the old place. She was now aged 37 and possibly pregnant. Thomas and Matthew Deakin, aged 10 and seven years, respectively, were at home with their three Register half brothers, and sisters aged from, about five years to nearly two.

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