Sarah Jane Wagg (1856 to 1919) - The second child of William (Bill) and Sarah Wagg

Sarah Jane Wagg was second child of William and Sarah Wagg - named after her mother (Sarah) and her maternal aunt (Jane).  A transcript of Sarah's birth registration shows she was born on 11 July 1856 at Botany Road, Redfern - just over 6 months after the death of her brother, William George.  Her father, William Wagg, a drayman, aged 28 from the West of England is the informant.  Sarah Turner, aged 23 and born in Sydney is shown as Sarah Jane's mother.  The date and place of William and Sarah's marriage is recorded as 18 April 1853 at St James Church, Sydney.  The transcript also show the previous issue as "1 boy deceased".

By the mid 1860s, the Wagg family has moved to the Blues Point area on the North Shore of Sydney Harbour.

In 1883, Sarah Jane, aged 27, married James Judkins Gillett, aged 35.  The marriage is registered at St Leonards.  James Judkins was born in about January 1848 in Islington, England.  He was the second child and older son of the six children of James Elvin Gillett and Frances Jane Judkins.  

Sarah Jane Gillett (nee Webb)
Original held by Jill, Sarah's great-granddaughter.
James Judkins and his brother, Charles Elvin Gillett (abt 1857 to 11 June 1937), came to NSW in the early 1880s.  It probable that Charles Elvin arrived in early 1883 as an assisted immigrant but it's not clear if James Judkins travelled with him.  It seems that the rest of the family remained in England.  In 1886, Charles Elvin married Alice Louisa Bowling (1859 to 1929) in Glebe and settled in Auburn.

James Judkins and Sarah Jane Gillett had four children and all their births were registered in Armidale-

  • Elvin William - 1885 to 26 November 1947,
  • Pearle Beatrice - 1887 to 15 May 1970, 
  • Leslie Hayden (Les) - 1889 to 28 January 1943 and 
  • Claude C - 1891 to 1891.
Family of Sarah Jane (nee Webb) and James Judkins Gillett

The family were living in the Nyngan and Warren areas in the late 1890s and early 1900s - about 75 kilometres apart.  The 1903-1904 Australian Electoral Roll shows James Judkins' occupation as an engine driver.

NSW Government Gazette - 3 July 1897
NSW Government Gazette - 25 September 1898
The 1911 Electoral Roll shows that James Judkins has returned to Sydney and is living at 87 Miller Street, North Sydney.  In 1913, James Judkins, a lift attendant, Sarah Jane and Leslie Hayden, a foreman, are living at 13 West Crescent, Blues Point.

We have a letter, dated 19 July 1918, from Sarah Jane enquiring about her nephew, William John Neely, who was in the AIF at the time.  Her address is shown as 31 Cooke Street, Tempe.

1918 letter written by Sarah Jane Gillett (nee Wagg)
When Sarah Jane died, on 28 September 1919, she and James Judkins were living at 91 Telopea Street Redfern.  Sarah Jane was 63 years of age and the cause of her death is recorded as encephalitis which was diagnosed 6 days earlier.  She is buried at the Field of Mars Cemetery, East Ryde.

Family Notices (1919, September 30). The Sydney Morning Herald (NSW : 1842 - 1954), p. 8. Retrieved July 2, 2017, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article15857607
On 23 October 1925, James Judkins died at the family home in Redfern, aged 77 years.  He is buried with Sarah Jane at the Field of Mars Cemetery, East Ryde.

Family Notices (1925, October 26). The Sydney Morning Herald (NSW : 1842 - 1954), p. 10. Retrieved July 2, 2017, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article16250621
Sarah Jane and James Judkins were survived by three children and their families-
  • Elvin William and Alice Vivian (nee Mills) and their two daughters, Zena Myrtle (Tina) and Winifred Isobel,
  • Pearle Beatrice Wendes (nee Gillettt) and her daughter, Thelma Muriel and
  • Leslie Hayden (Les) and his two daughters, Zoe Jean and Enid Ada (Kay).
If you have any additional information or corrections, please contact me at chrisw9953@gmail.com.




Popular posts from this blog

Welcome aboard the Australian!

Image
Welcome aboard the Australian. Yes, that's the name of the boat in the photo. Are you related to the people on the boat? The chap on the left is the patriarch of our family, William Webb Wagg (abt 1826 to 8 Jan 1905). Known as Bill Webb, "old Billy Webb" or Grandpa Webb to his grandchildren, he was 76 when this photo was taken.  On the boat are his four sons who survived to adulthood - left to right - Charles "Charlie", Albert Hayden "Hayden", William John "Bill" and Christopher Henry "Chris".  Four of Grandpa Webb's grandchildren are in the photo - William (son of William John) on the boat and left to right on the pier are Hayden Albert (son of Albert Hayden), Claude William (son of Charles) and Mabel Zoe Glencora "May" (daughter of Christopher Henry).   The fellow on the pier is Halway Harry Anderson - known to all as Harry Anderson. Charles and Albert Hayden married two sisters, Amy and Josephine Clancy. Harry mar
Read more

Reuniting the families of James Judkins Gillett (1848 to 1925)

Image
James Judkins Gillett (JJG) married my great-grandaunt, Sarah Jane Webb Wagg, on 29 October 1883 at St Thomas Church of England, North Sydney.  Here's a record of their marriage- You can read the earlier blog on JJG and Sarah  HERE.   That was in July 2017 when my interest in family history was growing and I recorded- "James Judkins was born in about January 1848 in Islington, England.  He was the second child and older son of the six children of James Elvin Gillett and Frances Jane Judkins." James Judkins and his brother, Charles Elvin Gillett (abt 1857 to 11 June 1937), came to NSW in the early 1880s.  It's probable that Charles Elvin arrived in early 1883 as an assisted immigrant but it's not clear if James Judkins travelled with him.  It seems that the rest of the family remained in England.  In 1886, Charles Elvin married Alice Louisa Bowling (1859 to 1929) in Glebe and settled in Auburn." I mainly research my direct family line,
Read more

21 September 2018 - The centenary of the death of Sarah Webb Wagg (nee Turner)

Image
Today marks 100 years since our many times great-grandmother and great-aunt, Sarah, died at the home of her son, William - 247 West Street Cammeray. Sarah was born on 21 October 1832 in Sydney - the daughter of George Turner (a carpenter from York, England) and Mary Hand (a convict from Atholone, Ireland).  George and May had another daughter, Jane, but it's possible that there were more children - the search continues! You can read last year's post about Sarah here. Sarah married William Wagg (a seaman and convict from Norfolk, England) on 18 August 1853 at St James Church of England in Sydney.  They settled on the lower North Shore of Sydney and raised their large family. Here's the last photo that we have of Sarah with her extended family.  She's clearly visible as are some of her sons and their wives.  I doubt we'll ever identify everyone or know the reason for the gathering. Listening to my great-grandmother, Josephine Webb-Wagg (nee Clancy)
Read more