A report
on the Assizes held at Warwick on 19th March 1791 included the following comment:
"On
Thursday the Assizes for the County ended at Warwick.to be transported for
seven years - William Abell (aged 15) J.Pennington (aged 13) H.Cooke (aged
17), T. Moulds (aged 17) for stealing wearing apparel at sundry places in
this town.."
An indenture
on 15th June 1791ordered that William was to be transported to "the Eastern
Coast of New South Wales, or some of the islands adjacent."
William
departed Yarmouth Roads aboard the "Pitt" on 17th July 1791 to arrive
at Port Jackson on 14th February 1792.
An outbreak
of smallpox had caused a delay in Rio de Janeiro for a spell of ten
days until the health of the affected was restored.
William
remained in New South Wales until 24th March 1796 when he left Sydney aboard
the "Supply" for Norfolk Island (arrived 2nd April 1796). It was
on Norfolk Island that William met Mary Ann Morey.
Mary Ann
Morey was 19 when she was sentenced to transportation for seven years at the
"Old Bailey" on 18th October 1797.
She had
been charged with stealing wearing apparel of John Thomas, an infant. Mary
stated that the child had been crying and she had taken his clothes off him,
intending to replace them in a more comfortable manner, when she was seized
by James Dyson, a passer-by.
She departed
England aboard the "Brittania" to arrive in New South Wales on 17th
July 1798.
Thomas Abel,
the son of William and Mary Abel died 12th February 1892 on Norfolk Island.
Mary gave birth to another son who was also named Thomas nine months
later, but this child died aged 3 months on 12th February 1803.
Two more
sons, Thomas (born 1805) and George (born 1805) were born before William
and Mary left Norfolk Island aboard the "Porpoise" on 26th December
1807 to arrive in Hobart on 17th January 1807. Another eight children
were born in Tasmania.
William
was granted land in the New Norfolk district and built a residence with out
-buildings known as "Valleyfield" in 1822. He was granted a publican's
licence for the sale of liquor . The property at that time was known as the
"Kings Head Inn"
William's
19 year old son was mistaken for an intruder when he was returning home late
at night on 9th April 1926 and was shot and killed. William sold the inn to
George Lowe shortly thereafter.
William
died at New Norfolk on 18th November 1850, Mary died six years later (27th
December 1856).