Catherine Clarkson - As Life Begins, So
It
Ends
Catherine Clarkson had secured her home, the
"Woodman", for her children and for the first time in over ten years
she was to feel
some stability, and perhaps a little peace.
She had her land in Goulburn and she had applied and
received a licence
to vend spirits at the Inn she hoped to establish there under the Sign
of the "Carrier's Arms",(1) This she accepted on the 23 Funs 1$35 at
the same time that her son Thomas received the licence in his name for
the Sign of the "Woodman," in Hunter Street.
Unfortunately for Catherine Clarkson though, the
remainder of her life
was not to be any more peaceful than the former years.
In April 1839, her son Thomas was committed to trial
and gaoled for the
attempted assault on a woman in the Domain. In September of that same
year he petitioned for a mitigation of his sentence claiming, "that the
limits of truth were overstepped on the part of the prosacutrix",
(Although, at the same time not denying the charge nor attempting to
lessen his guilt),(3)
He pleaded compassion for his wife and family of
three "annexed to an
aged other" (Catherine) who were rendered destitute because of his
condition,
His plea met with an angry rebuff from W.M. Manning,
Chairman of the
Quarter Sessions, from whom a report was requested, Written across the
back of Thomas' petition was the following; (4)
This
is the second or third petition for mitigation of sentence that
has been presented by Clarkson and I have before given a full report of
the evidence upon which he was convicted, The facts were shortly
these; A Mrs Neale, a respectable young matron, was
walking through the Domain on her way to the Baths at about a quarter
past 8 in the morning when she was assaulted by the prisoner---He threw
her on the ground and was had beginning to take liberties with her
person when the cries of herself or her little child alerted persons
from the Bathe, upon whose appearance he rose from her and escaped into
the bush.
The chairman Mr Manning was incensed with the fact
that the petition described his charge merely as "assault" when in fact
he had
been found guilty of an assault with intent to commit rape.(5)
Unfortunately, to date, we have not sighted the
details of Thomas'
trial to elaborate on this any further.
On 4 November 1839 Catherine Clarkson drew up her
Will, leaving all her
worldly goods to those of her family. Mary was to have the Goulburn
property and Mountford to have those of Catherine's cattle on the farm
run by her son in law William Simons. The cattle she owned at
Holdsworthy, in the care of Thomas Rowley, were to be divided into
thirds, between Mountford, Catherine Jnr and the three sons of the
wayward Thomas. To Sarah Cook, her personal effects.
(6) Image
of Will
On 17 November 1839, Catherine Clarkson finally
relinquished her tenacious hold on life & ceased her struggles.(7)
She was buried with her husband, Thomas, at the
Devonshire Street
Cemetery. Their headstone read; (8)
Thomas
Clarkson, died 20 March 1824, aged 67 years, also Catherine,
wife of above, died 17 November 1839 aged 57 year. Erected by her son
Mountford Clarkson.
On 29 and 30 March 1840 Thomas Rowley and the
children of Catherine and
Thomas Clarkson, namely John Clarkson, Catherine Rowley, Sarah Cook,
Ann Simons, Mary Harris, Thomas Clarkson and Mountford Clarkson , sold
the "Woodman" to James Holt.(9)
Gone, now was every trace of Thomas Clarkson's
estate. And what of the
Woodman?
In 1842 the Inn known as the "Sir Maurice O'Connell"
was situate on the
corner of Elizabeth and Hunter Streets. A check of available records
and survey maps indicate it was the same Inn as that formerly known as
the "Woodman".(10) In 1842 it's licence was held by Thomas Hill(11) AND
between 1843 and 1845 it was licenced to John Wilson. (12) In 1845
James Holt mortgaged the property to Robert Campbell, the younger, who
was then president of the Bank of NSW, for £12,000.(13)
Sometime between then and the next sale in 1857,
James Holt returned to
live at Basing Cottage near Basingstoke in England, leaving James
Cooper with a power of attorney to conduct his affairs in the
colony.(14)
In June 1857 the property was sold in three lots.
The portion bought
originally by Catherine Clarkson from Parks was sold to William Sharpe
Esquire for £3,000.(15) The other was the portion bought from
Mary Bigge in 1814 and it was sold to Andrew Gribbon for
£1,660.(16) The third portion was that of Mountford Clarkson's,
given him by his godparents in 1812 and this was sold to Mary
Roberts.(17) From Mary this small piece containing 11 perches passed to
William Paling in 1886, and in 1908 it passed from the hands of The
Standard Life Association Limited to William Dewar who applied in that
year to bring it under the Real Property Act.(18) Today the Goodsell
building stands on the site of the Sign of the "Woodman". What tales it
could tell if only it could speak!
Image - Sale of the Woodman
Page last updated - 7
July 2006