John Robinson

  General Notes:

John Robinson was born in Offington, Lincolnshire, England. John arrived in Australia with his parents Abraham and Mary in 1855 on the ship "Shackamaxon"
He married Mary Ann Smith on June 20th 1865 at Hawthorn, Victoria. Mary Ann was born in Barham, Lincolnshire, England. John was a brick-maker by trade and his father Abraham Robinson was also a brick-maker. Mary was a domestic servant and her father Abraham Smith, a Labourer.
John was 20 and Mary 19 when they married. John was able to sign his name on the register, but Mary wasn't and signed with an x, her sister Elizabeth who was a witness also signed the same way.
John and Mary had eight children. The eldest Abraham was born in 1866 and they lived at Nunawading. In 1868 Eliza was born at Boroondara, Mary Ann, 1871 at Hartwell, John, 1874 and William George, 1877 at Ballyshanna (now called Nunawading), Elizabeth Annie,1880, Henry, 1883,and Sarah, 1886 were born at Burwood. The family certainly moved around a few times between 1866 and 1886.
When William Stephens married Elizabeth Robinson in 1899, John is recorded as being a farmer. He actually had a market garden and grew vegetables.
By the time grandaughter Ruby Stephens remembers visiting them, they lived in Hodder Street opposite the Brighton Cemetery. Son Jack (John) and Sarah still lived at home. Neither had married, although Sarah had a daughter Myrtle.
John was the foreman on the Caulfield Council and his sons Jack and Bill (William) also worked there.
At the house in Hodder Street there was a stable for the 2 Council horses. They were the big draught horses and were bought home each night and fed with the best of food and always well brushed and curry combed. The grandchildren when they stayed weren't allowed to go near the horses in case they kicked them.
Later when John retired from working the horses he still worked a quarter of a mile from his home at a council sand quarry. He checked the loads being taken out by drays.
He had a cancer in his bottom lip and every lunchtime he sat with leeches on his lip until they had gorged themselves on his blood and fell off. The leeches were a shilling each from the chemist. Myrtle used to take Ruby to a creek in Bentleigh. They would wade in the water to catch them. Her grandfather would pay for them. Ruby would yell and brush the leeches off her legs, so didn't earn anything. Myrtle wasn't quite so squeamish and was much more successful in catching them.
Beside their house was a Chinese Market garden, which grew cauliflower, cabbage and vegetables for the Victorian Market. The workers carried buckets of water on each side hanging from a shoulder cradle. They went off each morning in their wagons with the vegetables and bought back all the scraps of veggies to dig back into the soil. They used to give the children over-ripe apricots to take home, when they went to get veggies for Mary. For the rest of her life Ruby always remembered the delicious taste and liked her apricots over-ripe. The Stephens children would take it in turns to go to Granny's in the school holidays after Christmas. Myrtle, cousin Wendy and Ruby were the same age and always had fun together. Nell and Florrie (Bill's daughters) were a few years older and the younger ones dodged them a bit or was it the other way around.
They had a big kitchen with a wooden table and a couch along one wall, always a cosy room. Their lounge room had an open fireplace with lovely old vases and a clock on the mantle piece.
The couch and chairs were covered in plush coloured patterned velvety material. There was lots of crockery on the tables and furniture.
We understood they were second cousins, but not sure of that. They were short in statue. Mary was always good to be with and loving. John was rather a stern man; thought children should be seen but not heard. As far as Ruby knows they never visited the farm, but the grandchildren visited them.
Their house had a front and side veranda, which Ruby thought was wonderful. They played on the side a lot; Myrtle had a rocking horse there. Ruby thought that was a lovely thing to have.

  Noted events in his life were:

• Occupation: Brick-Maker, Carpenter, Labourer, Market Gardener, Carter And Farmer.

• connection.

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• Death Certificate Number: (519).

John married Mary Ann Smith, daughter of Abraham Smith and Elizabeth Thompson, on 20 Jun 1865 in Hawthorn, Melbourne, Victoria Australia. (Mary Ann Smith was born on 21 Jun 1844 in Barholm, Lincolnshire England, died on 16 Sep 1929 in Hodder St, North Brighton, Victoria Australia and was buried on 18 Sep 1929 in Burwood Cemetery, Victoria Australia Methodist Section 4, Row 1, Grave 194..)