William Eason and Jemima Pemble

William Eason was born in Liverpool , Lancashire in 1857. His father was Richard Eason and his mother was Catherine Cameron. He married Jemima Anne Pemble, daughter of Edward Pemble, at Tumbridge, Kent, in 1881. They came to Rockhampton on the ship the Selkirkshire on the 2nd of November1882 with Catherine, their small baby. Jemima and Catherine were sent onto Brisbane by ship, while William walked or got lifts from Rockhampton to Brisbane (618 Ks).

They say he came with nothing but his clothes and a rather fancy pocket knife , which is still in the family. All Jemima had was a rocking chair and her clothes.

Shortly after arriving in Brisbane in 1882, they had another child Emily, who seems to have lived with them until she was twenty three approximately, then she disappears. Descendants have not heard of anyone talking about an Aunty Emily. Then William Walter was born in 1884.

They lived at Kangaroo Point for a time, and William worked as a brass worker for most of his life. He played rugby union for Queensland 1888. He played six games for Queensland during his three active seasons ('88, '89 and '91). Debuting against Great Britain on 18th August 1888. He also faced Colonial New South Wales and The New Zealand Maori - which places him among the more significant contributors to the early game in QLD.

Willaim Eason, bottom right, in Queensland Rugby Team

In Red! Red! Red!, the history of QLD Rugby, it says he was convinced to play for new club Union Harriers by future QRU Secretary Maurice Baldwin and was described as "a converted soccer player" and "the team's hooker or centre forward."

With the Harriers in 1888 he, alongside John Campbell, Ernie Hutton and Deacon Wadsworth beat Ipswich Rangers 16-2 to win the "Hardgrave Challenge Cup" - a hotly contested forerunner of todays Premiership Rugby tournament.

William they say he was a man about town always attending the races and going to the pubs where he was reputedly a pugilist of some renown. He lived life to the full but I don't think Jemima was included He also appears to have enjoyed sailing.

William died on the 25th October 1915, aged around 61, in Brisbane Hospital from a urethral stricture, uraemia and anuria. The informant was his daughter Kate (Catherine) Eason. He was buried at Toowong Cemetery.

Jemima was living with her daughters Kate and Win when she died in1939.

Children of William and Jemima Eason

1. Catherine Harriet Alice was born on the 9th March 1882. She did not marry and was listed as a shop assistant.

2. Emily was born on the 15th July 1884. Nothing is know of her after the age of 23, but she was listed as 31 years age on William's death certificate..

3. William Walter was born on the 11th November 1886. He was apprenticed as a fitter and turner / training as an engineer for the East India ship company at Kangaroo Point, and completed his training with them. He then got a job with the railway workshops in Ipswich. On the 8th June 1912 he married Charlotte Tickner (who arrived here in 1911 on the SS Waipara). Family lore says that Charlotte was running away from an abusive father in England, and she told her children she came here at sixteen and went out west to governess. No records of this has been found. She had a job as a servant at Indoorapilly before having her first child, Emily May in 1912. This child appears to have been born out of wedlock as they were married well after she was born. William Walter went to England on the troop ship Ulysses to work for the war effort at Woolwich arsenal as a munitions worker volunteer. He was badly injured when a block of a large gun fell on him and smashed his leg. While he was away Charlotte, with Emily and John, lived with her husbands parents at Kangaroo Point. Family lore says that Charlotte had to work her hand raw plucking fowls to earn money as William Walter sent none home. William was sent home from the war in 1919 and continued to work at the Ipswich railway yards until retiring. Apparently he lived alone for a while, but then reunited with his family. Rumour says he fathered a child to another woman in England but no records have been found. Charlotte died in 1949 from stomach cancer after being nursed by Nance for a few years. William Walter was living with his son Robert and daughter Nance at Darra Queensland until he died, aged 101 years old, in 1988. See children of William Walter and Charlotte Eason below.

4. Richard was born on the 24th September 1888. He died age 2 years, in 1890. He is not listed on William's death certificate.

5. Leonard was born on the 31st August, 1891. He married Fanny Acaster Dean from Nambour, but they never had children. He was a journalist for a time and then he worked for the railway. They travelled a lot all around Australia. They were avid antique collectors and imported a lot of antiques from England and Scotland. Fanny is reputed to have been a bit of a hoarder.

6. Winifred Isobel was born on the 5th April 1894, died 1977, aged approx. 83 years old. Winifred never married and was listed as a hat maker for most of her life.

Children of William Walter and Charlotte Eason

1. Emily May (Maisie) was born on the 15th July 1912 and died 1921 aged 9 from Diphtheria.

2. John Edward was born on the 8th of September 1913 in Brisbane. He married Doris Hilda Maurer in 1939. He worked for the Department of Births Deaths and Marriages in the Treasury Casino building in Brisbane. They had only one child, Doris Heather, who was born on the 20th January 1940. John quit his job in 1948 and purchased a farm at Summers road Oxley, where the couple lived until retiring to a beach house at Toorbul in 1965.

3. William was born In 1921. He died, aged 2, in 1923 from gastro enteritis.

4. Robert was born in 1923 He served his apprenticeship as a Moulder and then became a church minister in Brisbane, and later served the church at Cunnamulla. He never married.

5. Nancy came last. She worked as the secretary to the matron at the Wesley hospital in Brisbane. She also did not marry.

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