Henry CASTLE (full name Henry George CASTLE) appears in the 1841 census living with his parents and siblings in Lucas St, Rotherhithe, Surrey (part of London). The census states that Henry was 5, and born in 'Sidney New South Wales'. With Henry is father Henry Castle, 30, Ship Owner, born outside Surrey; Harriet Castle, 25, born outside Surrey; Sidney Castle, 5, born in Surrey, and Abercrombie Castle, 1, born in Surrey.
Who was Henry? How did the Castle family come to be in NSW and what became of them after 1841?
This entry is made easier than most thanks to the work of Robert and Linda TAIT, who have written a 'History of Castle's Shipbreaking' (castlesshipbreaking.co.uk), containing a wealth of information about the family's business and their ship-breaking activities on the Thames River. The e-book can be downloaded from their web site. A further outstanding resource on the CASTLE family is their pedigree published in Visitation of England and Wales, Volume 5, edited by Joseph Jackson Howard and Frederick Arthur Crisp, published 1897 - the pedigree is extremely detailed (I assumed details were provided by the family, but there is no evidence that this was the case).
Henry (Augustus) Castle (senior) came from a family of ship-builders and ship-breakers, and was born in Deptford Kent in 1808. While his movements are not well understood, Henry participated in the family businesses, and left England ultimately for Sydney some time between 1828 and 1832 (in 1832 he appears in the Sydney papers for the first time, and he is not present in the NSW 1828 census).
Henry Castle apparently adopted the middle name 'Augustus' in Sydney in order to differentiate himself from a convict in Sydney of the same name (Henry had a brother with that middle name). He established himself in a number of trades including as Ironmonger, Anchor smith, ship smith, and Foundry, and lived on George St in Sydney. He engaged in partnership with Richard Dawson.
Sydney Gazette and New South Wales Advertiser, Tue 2 Oct 1832
The above advert is the earliest I can find in NSW, October 1832, indicating that he has acquired the business of E. Chambers, Ship and Anchor Smith.
In July 1833 Henry Augustus CASTLE married Harriet NASH (of Taunton, Somerset) at St James Church in Sydney, by special license. Neither had been married previously. The following year, Harriet gave birth to a daughter named Harriet Augusta (14 Sep 1834), who died the following year (14 Dec 1835, NSW BDM V18352248 19) - while the birth is not in NSW BDM indexes, it is recorded in the 'Visitation of England and Wales' referred to above. Harriet was buried at the Devonshire St Cemetery, and transferred to Eastern Suburbs Memorial Park NSW where her headstone still stands:
SACRED TO THE MEMORY OF HARRIET AUGUSTA, ONLY DAUGHTER OF HENRY
AUGUSTUS AND HARRIET CASTLE, WHO DEPARTED THIS LIFE 14 DECEMBER 1835 AGED
1 YEAR 3 MONTHS
Their son Henry George CASTLE was second-born on 5 July 1836:
Sydney Gazette and New South Wales Advertiser
Tuesday 30 July 1833
Birth.
At her residence, George-street, on Tuesday morning, Mrs. H. A. Castle of a son.
Henry George was baptized the very next day (5 July 1836) at St Philips church, Sydney. Shortly afterwards, Henry, Harriett, and child Henry George returned to London and was living on 11 Lucas St, Rotherhithe. It was here that the CASTLE family were recorded in 1841 in the census (see start of this post above), including two sons born in London, Sidney (a tribute?) and Abercrombie. Shortly after 1841 Henry leased a site at Baltic Wharf and initiated a ship-breaking business (the timber being repurposed), that remained on that site into the next century.
In 1851 census, the CASTLE family were living at Baltic Wharf, Crescent Road, on the Thames. Henry was listed as a "timber merchant employing ten men" and Henry George was 14, a scholar, born in "Sidney N S Wales". Several new children were present: Frederick, Amy and Marcellus. In 1860, Henry George was certified as a Second Mate (the certificate confirming he was born in Sydney 1836), and presumably spent a significant amount of time from that point working on merchant ships. It is presumably as a result of this that Henry George does not appear in the 1861 England census (his parents and family are entered though).
Henry August Castle (1808-1865)
From 'History of Castle's Shipbreaking'
On 27 June 1866, Henry George married Jane Adams at St Mary's in the Castle, Hastings, Sussex. Jane was the daughter of Thomas Adams, rector at Marden, Kent and was born at Holton-le-Becker, Lincolnshire in 1844. Henry Augustus (senior) died in 1865, and his wife Harriet in 1868, and are buried at Brompton Cemetery (grave reference AC/206.6/25.3).
Henry George died at the family home, Baltic Wharf, Millbank, buried on 13 January 1870. He was buried at Brompton Cemetery (grave reference AC/206.6/25.3) with his parents and other family.
I have not found the fate of Henry's wife Jane.
Brilliant Matt, and incredible timing as I've been googling Henry Castle who died in 1965 at Cliff Lodge, Wandsworth, as my and my neighbours' 10 houses were built on the site of Cliff Lodge and its gardens, with building completed on October 26, 1968, 50 years ago, so we're having a party next week! Superb detail, thanks
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