…. …. …. synonymous with the Parish of Malvern a little to the east. For   the   first   40   or   so   years   of   settlement,   official   documentation   was often   constructed   on   the   personal   whims   of   the   writer.   There   was   no   well considered,   pre-defined   data   entry   structure   to   be   followed.   This   led   to the    same    set    of    circumstances    being    described    in    different    ways    by different   people.   Property   locations   were   often   imprecise,   their   areas   often nominal    and    un-surveyed.    It    was    common    for    recorders    to    overlook critical pieces of information.

The evolution of Land Title recording

Over   the   full   span   of   Thomas   Massey's   lifetime,   titles   were   issued   and dealt   with   on   the   "Old   System".   For   sales,   purchases   or   transfers   there was   a   need   to   prove   a   chain   of   title    (i.e.   tracing   title   through   a   series   of documents).     As     time     progressed     this     became     cumbersome     and sometimes difficult. Early   land   dealings   were   administered   and   recorded   in   Sydney.   Land allocations   and   ‘Grant’   paperwork   in   the   early   days   of   settlement   can   be hard   to   follow.   It   often   took   some   years   for   one   to   catch   up   with   the other.   With   Thomas   first   grants   there   was   no   formal   structure   to   record the   grants   and   subsequent   dealings   like   inheritance   and   sale   transfers. To    divine    exactly    what    took    place,    it    was    necessary    to    search    for administrative notes such as the one at the start of this section. As   a   beginning,   a   register   was   created   by   the   office   of   the   Judge Advocate   in   Sydney   and   parties   were   invited   to   place   their   dealings   on record.   This   system   was   improved   by   Macquarie,   when   in   January   1817 he   issued   a   proclamation   providing   for   the   registration   of   deeds    against the   recorded   grant   documents,   to   record   such   events   as   Transfers   of Ownership   or   Financial   Interest   and   an   indexed   system   of   Memorials that   recorded   in   a   structured   way   a   summary   of   the   salient   facts   of   the deed. At    the    close    of    Governor    Thomas    Brisbane’s    administration    in November   1825,   the   first   Registration   of   Deeds   Act    came   into   force   and legislated   the   Supreme   Court    as   the   place   for   the   registration   of   Deeds. “This   Act   introduced   a   special   form   of   memorial   and   the   principle   that any     Deed     or     instrument     executed     bona     fide     and     for     valuable consideration   should   take   priority   according   to   the   date   of   registration and not of execution.  [http://www.lpi.nsw.gov.au/land_titles/land_ownership/old_system] “In   order   to   promote   settlement   and   to   deter   speculators   with   fictitious capital,   Governor   Brisbane,   around   June   1822,   introduced   a   system   that linked   the   granting   of   land   with   the   employment   and   maintenance,   free of   expense   to   the   Crown,   of   one   convict   labourer   for   every   100   acres   (40 ha) they were given.” [ Heydon (1966)] Brisbane   only   granted   land   to   sons   of   established   settlers   if   their fathers' properties had been considerably improved. When   Sir   Thomas   Brisbane   took   over   from   Macquarie   in   December 1821 there were 340,000 acres (137,593 ha) of promised grants in the

colony   still   to   be   allocated.   In   addition   there   were   many   confused permissive   occupancies   and   nebulous   promises.   Lands   were   occupied and transferred without legal title, and boundary disputes were common. [Heydon, J. D. (1966)]

June 1823 - The introduction of printed Land Title Deeds

Brisbane     made     addressing     the     disorder     a     priority.     A     major administrative   ‘bottle-neck’   was   the   time   taken   to   produce   the   paperwork for   each   grant.   At   least   two   copies   were   required,   one   for   the   Grantee   and one   for   the   government   records.   All   this   paperwork   was   hand   written. Clerks   with   a   legible   hand   were   not   always   easy   to   find   and   more   urgent daily    administration    often    took    priority    over    dealing    with    the    grant recording   backlog.   Brisbane,   or   some   forward   thinking   person   in   his administration,   realised   a   great   deal   of   work   could   be   saved   by   printing the   majority   of   the   wording,   leaving   blank   spaces   for   the   variable   content like   names   and   areas.   The   first   printed   deeds   appeared   around   June 1823. Early   in   his   term,   Brisbane   also   instituted   a   program   of   proper   survey and   recording   as   the   essential   basis   for   a   future   workable   policy   of   land alienation.

January 1831 - Grants ceased - replaced by purchase

In   January   1831   the   issue   of   land   grants   came   to   an   end.   The   so- called    ‘Ripon    Regulations’    were    introduced,    whereby    the    granting    of crown   land   within   the   settled   colonies   was   replaced   by   auction   sales   at   a minimum of 5s./acre. [ ADB Goderich (1966)].

1980 - Tasmanian General Law Title changed to Torrens Title

Throughout   the   years   in   Tasmania   the   basic   concept   of   recording   title transactions   by   deeds   remained   and   was   known   as   a   General   Law   Title . Such   a   title   is   considered   to   be   only   as   strong   as   the   weakest   document in   the   chain   of   title.   It   was   not   until   as   late   as   1980   that   The   Land   Titles Act   1980   (Tas)   provided   for   the   compulsory   conversion   to   the   Torrens Title system, one that was suited to the coming computer age. A   prime   example   of   the   confusion   generated   by   haphazard   nature of   the   system   was   the   ignorance,   as   late   as   1887   of   the   Hobart Supreme   Court   as   to   the   existence   of   Thomas   Massey’s   Brisbane issued   ELLERSLIE   titles   on   file   in   Sydney   in   the   case   of   Cameron   v Massey. See REF03:1887/07/19  and Chapter 10.

Appendix 4: Transcripts - J.T.Bigge interviews

Thomas Massey

HRA: Historical Records of Australia Series III. Vol III. Tasmania, January-December 1820. This volume includes the evidence presented to Commissioner Bigge (pp 215-508). RJB   NOTE:   The    published    interview    content    is    verbatim    including    the abbreviations   -      of   the   less   obvious   ones:   cd.   =   could,   recd.   =   received,   ch.   = chief.

C. No. 89. THOMAS MASSEY, Chief Constable at Launceston,

29 April 1820

[HRA 3/3: Document page No. 449] Q.   How   long   have   you   been   Ch.   Constable   here?   A.   Since   1804;   with the exception of leaves of absence when I have been upon my Farm. Q.   What   is   your   Salary?   A.   I   have   no   salary   nor   ever   had,   but   for   about 18   months   I   recd.   5   Gallons   of   spirits   quarterly   and   Two   as   Water      bailiff. Since   last   December   I   have   recd,   nothing   but   my   rations   and   a   man   on the Store. My son is likewise victualled from the Store. Q.   Do   you   find   that   the   number   of   seven   Constables   is   sufficient   for the   Police   of   the   Town?   A.   I   do   not.   Two   Constables   are   necessarily placed   at   the   Watch   House   on   account   of   its   bad   state   and   the   Difficulty of   confining   the   Prisoners,   and,   if   any   woman   is   confined,   she   is   taken into   the   out   building   near   the   Church,   and   a   constable   must   watch there. Q.   The   Messenger   is   sent   with   orders   and   letters   to   George   Town,   how often   in   a   week?   A.   He   goes   as   often   as   any   thing   of   consequence   arrives from the Lt. Govr., otherwise only once a week. Q.   Do   the   District   Constables   muster   the   Convicts   in   their   Districts?   A. They   Inform   me   they   do   but   they   never   make   a   return.   I   asked   for   Lists   of the Convicts previous to your arrival, but I cd. not obtain any. Q.   What   is   the   pay   of   a   District   Constable?   A.   They   receive   a   ration,   I dont know to what amount, but no pay. Q.   Is   there   any   muster   of   the   Convicts   at   this   Place   on   Sundays?   A. Always. Q. Does any Magistrate attend? A. None. Q.   Then   who   takes   the   Muster?   A.   I   do   myself   generally,   but,   on account   of   my   bad   sight,   I   have   sometimes   allowed   Two   of   the   Constables Page and Smith to muster them. Q.   Have   you   a   list   of   the   Convicts   that   are   assigned   from   time   to   time to   the   Settlers?   A.   I   have   recd.   Lists   of   the   Convicts   when   they   are assigned, but I keep no general List. Q.   Why   do   you   not   keep   one?   A.   I   am   not   allowed   Paper   for   it,   or otherwise I would. …. …. ….

REF01: TROVE SEARCH - THOMAS MASSEY

Trove search of ALL sources, December 2014 (using www.elephind.com), for massey, for a date range. Entries relevant to the Thomas Massey of interest then manually selected. Entries listed in date order. All spelling, capitalisation and typography left as original. RJB Comments in Italics. Letters following a bracket at the end of an entry ‘eg: (uc’ are an internal newspaper code. The source for all entries is: Trove [National Library of Australia] http://trove.nla.gov.au/ A long listing follows ………………….. REF01:1809/04/16 [Newspaper    Article]    —    The    Sydney    Gazette    and    New    South    Wales Advertiser — 16 April 1809 GENERAL    ORDER.    -    His    Honor    the    Lieutenant    Governor    has    been pleased   to   appoint   Mr.   Robert   Jones,   late   Superintendant   at   Norfolk Island,   to   be   a   Superintendant   on   the   establishment   at   Port   Dalrymple agreeable    to    the    direction    of    the    Secretary    of    State    of    the    30th    of December,    1806,    in    the    room    of    Thomas    Massey,    dismissed .    HIS HONOR   has   also   appointed   Thomas   Howard   to   be   a   Superintendant   and Chief Constable at Port Dalrymple, until further Orders. By Command of His Honor the Lieutenant Governor JAMES FINUCANE, Secretary.   Head Quarters, Sydney, April 15, 1809.  Publication Title: Sydney Gazette And New South Wales Advertiser, The  Country/State of Publication: NSW, Australia REF01:1810/01/21 [Newspaper    Article]    —    The    Sydney    Gazette    and    New    South    Wales Advertiser — 21 January 1810 GOVERNMENT   AND   GENERAL   ORDERS.   Head   Quarters,   Government House, Sydney, Saturday, 13th January, 1810.   His   Excellency   the   Governor   [ Newly   arrived   Lachlan   Macquarie ]   requests Colonel   Paterson   will   cause   the   Public   Accounts,   any   way   connected with,   the   Periods   he   commanded   in   the   Colony,   to   be   closed   up   to   the 31st   December   last,   inclusive,   as   His   Excellency   judges   it   irregular   to make   himself   responsible   for   any   Public   Transactions   which   took   place prior to his taking upon himself the Administration of the Government. And   all   Persons   holding   Government   Receipts   given   by   the   respective Storekeepers   having   Charge   of   the   Stores   in   this   Settlement,   in   Payment for   Grain,   Animal   Food,   and   Potatoes,   or   having   any   other   Claims   for Purchases   made   on   account   of   Government,   are   desired   to   present   them for Payment immediately to the late Acting Commissary (Mr. Broughton),

REF04: NSW Colonial Secretary's Papers

1788-1856

Now hosted at www.ancestry.com.au (see link to these papers - free access for these lists). Each result included comment: Per "Gorgon", 1791; Superintendent at Port Dalrymple. Entries edited to remove duplicates.]

IMAGE INDEX - Search Thomas Massey

Images   in   REF   order   follow.   Images   of   rough   notes   and   single   line   entries have not been reproduced.

‘HISTORICAL RECORDS OF AUSTRALIA’

NOTES ON THE PRINTED VOLUMES

Confused? - read this

A   major   source   of   original   reference   material   on   the   early   days   of Australia    can    be    found    in    a    collection    of    volumes    called    “Historical Records   of   Australia”   [HRA].   These   volumes   comprise   the   sorted,   edited, letters and administration documents of the period. Anyone   using   these   documents   is   at   first   stunned   by   the   scope   of   the content   and   its   ability   to   transport   the   reader   in   time.   A   deeper   look reveals   the   sporadic   nature   of   this   collection,   a   range   of   missing   volumes and its frustratingly limited publication. It   is   very   hard   at   first   glance   to   see   any   order   at   all   in   the   various ‘snippets’   of   the   series   one   encounters.   I   am   truly   indebted   to   the   author of   an   Internet   Blog,   Janine   Rizzetti   for   the   best   introduction   to   the   series I have yet found.

Blog of Janine Rizzetti

Historical Records of Australia - Posted on August 27, 2011 h  t  t  p  s  :  /  /  r  e  s  i  d  e  n  t  j  u  d  g  e  .  w  o  r  d  p  r  e  s  s  .  c  o  m  /  2  0  1  1  /  0  8  /  2  7  /  t  h  e  -  h  i  s  t  o  r  i  c  a  l  - records-of-australia/ Following is a transcript of the blog of Janine Rizzetti - published here verbatim, on paper, lest such useful information might one day be lost. The   Historical   Records   of   Australia   comprise   three   series   of   volumes. Within   the   series,   each   separate   volume   is   about   900   pages   in   length, containing    transcriptions    of    the    official    documentation    between    the Colonial   Office   and   the   local   governments   in   the   different   states.         Series   I provides    the    Governor’s    despatches    to    and    from    England,    Series    III contains   documents   related   to   the   settlement   of   the   states   (especially Tasmania)      while   Series   IV   which   has   barely   begun,   features   documents relating   to   the   legal   system.   Volume   8   of   Series   III   only   appeared   in   2003, and Volume 9 in 2006. Series II never appeared at all. The    early    volumes    were    collected    and    published    by    the    Library Committee   of   the   Commonwealth   Parliament   between   1914   and   1925. James   Frederick   William   Watson   was   the   editor.   According   to   his   ADB (Australian   Dictionary   of   Biography)   entry,   he   was   a   medical   doctor   and historian.   He   was   appointed   a   trustee,   then   acting   principal   librarian   at the   Public   Library   of   New   South   Wales.   In   this   position,   he   inherited   the responsibility   for   transcribing   the   official   New   South   Wales   documents and   the   papers   held   in   London,   a   task   commenced   by   F.   M.   Bladen   and James    Bonwick    separately    some    years    earlier.    The    Commonwealth agreed   to   finance   the   project   in   1907   and   the   project   was   expanded   and retitled as The Historical Records of Australia. This   national   vision,   in   the   years   following   Federation   is   important. Until   then,   transcriptions   of   records   had   been   undertaken   on   a   state-by- state basis, largely by James Bonwick who had been contracted … … …

BIBLIOGRAPHY

For HRA references, it is useful to read the preceding Notes

ADB   Brabyn   (1966)   Brabyn   John   (1759–1835) ,   Australian   Dictionary   of Biography,   National   Centre   of   Biography,   Australian   National   University, h  t  t  p  :  /  /  a  d  b  .  a  n  u  .  e  d  u  .  a  u  /  b  i  o  g  r  a  p  h  y  /  b  r  a  b  y  n  -  j  o  h  n  -  1  8  1  8  /  t  e  x  t  2  0  8  1  ,    published first in hardcopy 1966, accessed online 14 August 2016. ADB   Cimitière   (1966)   Cimitière,   Gilbert   (?–1842) ,   Australian   Dictionary   of Biography,   National   Centre   of   Biography,   Australian   National   University, h  t  t  p  :  /  /  a  d  b  .  a  n  u  .  e  d  u  .  a  u  /  b  i  o  g  r  a  p  h  y  /  C  i  m  i  t  i  è  r  e  -  g  i  l  b  e  r  t  -  1  8  9  5  /  t  e  x  t  2  2  3  3  ,    published first in hardcopy 1966, accessed online 30 July 2016. ADB   Goderich   (1966)   Goderich,    first    Viscount    (1782–1859) ,   Australian Dictionary    of    Biography,    National    Centre    of    Biography,    Australian National     University,     http://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/goderich-first- viscount-2103/text2655,    published    first    in    hardcopy    1966,    accessed online 13 September 2016. ADB    Mills    (1967)    Mills,    Peter    (1786–1816) ,    Australian    Dictionary    of Biography,   National   Centre   of   Biography,   Australian   National   University, http://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/mills-peter-2458/text3287,   published first in hardcopy 1967, accessed online 21 August 2016 ALEXANDER,   Alison   (2013)   The   ambitions   of   Jane   Franklin ,   Crows   Nest, NSW Allen & Unwin, ISBN 978-1-74237-569-4 ARTHUR,    George    (Sir),    (1828)    Proclamation,    15    April    1828 ,    British Parliamentary Papers, Colonies, Australia, 4, pp 194–6 BAXTER,   Carol   J.   (1988)   Musters   and   Lists,   New   South   Wales   and   Norfolk Island,    1800-1802    Sydney :    Australian    Biographical    &    Genealogical Record. The ABGR no longer exists, see:  www.bda-online.org.au/files/MC1800_Muster.pdf BENNETT, J. M. (1966) Bigge, John Thomas (1780–1843), Australian Dictionary of Biography, National Centre of Biography, Australian National University, http://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/bigge-john- thomas-1779/text1999, published first in hardcopy 1966, accessed online 19 March 2016. BETHELL, Llwelyn Slingsby (1957) The Story of Port Dalrymple, Blubber Head Press, Sandy Bay Tasmania 7005 BIGGE, John Thomas (1822) Report on State of the Colony of New South Wales, http://gutenberg.net.au/ebooks13/1300181h.html  Date first … … …

Shows some but not all of Howards landholdings. Shows 1838 purchase by Thomas Massey from Clark. Extract from Sheet 28, Surveyors Notes Parish of St. Aubyn. c1838 Map extract from: http://stors.tas.gov.au/AF396-1-1352