CHAPTER 30- DISCOVERING LOUISA: A SAGA OF THE AUSTRALIAN GOLD RUSH

Before I finally identified my biological father, I researched my maternal line.  I have spent a considerable amount of time researching that side of my family- and it's been arduous and difficult task.  Something I've come to discover is that most families pass on information much like a game of "telephone".  Facts become exaggerated or distorted, actual documents have been incorrectly filled out, sometimes deliberately and, often, inadvertently.  The biggest lesson I have learned regarding registrations- particularly death certifications- is that they are only as informative as the person who reported the information at the time.  Often, particularly in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, whomever was reporting a certain death was not equipped with the information that was required for a particular death certificate.  Hence, many records list people's parents as "unknown"- or even worse, they guessed.  I suppose it never occurred to them that this information could be vital to future generations of genealogists.  So, first rule of thumb when researching family- take information provided by someone other than the subject with a grain of salt.  At least when you are presented with an "unknown" you know to look elsewhere.  I have spent years looking for people that I finally discovered (thanks to DNA) did not exist. Such is the case in the story of my recently identified third Great Grandmother. 

I've decided to start with the story of Louisa Knight Price Trevan.  In telling any of these stories, there will be a mixture of facts- and conjecture.  By that I mean that though there is no proof that something is the case, this is the most likely scenario, based upon the facts presented.  I'll use itallics when speculating- and cite the facts with which I have drawn the hypothesis.

So, we first glimpse Louisa Knight as the mother listed on the birth certificate of one Henry Price, born 8 February 1857.  His birth took place in Magpie, Victoria- a suburb of Ballarat.  Though he was born in February, his birth was not registered until 22 December of that year.  The informant was his father, Alexander Price, a 25 year old Miner from Norway.  Louisa was listed as being 23 and said she was born in Parramatta, NSW.  Alexander said that they were married in December of 1853 in Geelong and he lists one living "issue".  It's not clear whether or not he is referring to this child or one previous.

As it turns out, Henry Price was my 2nd Great Grandfather.  He is listed everywhere else as "William" Henry Price and it's not clear how that new first name came about.

Two years later on February 10, 1859, we have the birth of another boy, Edward.  (He later became Edward "Francis" Price- but I guess Louisa and Alex liked to add to names later on)  Most of the details are the same as before, but they are now living in Clunes- another popular gold-rush town.  It now says that they have three living boys at home- and as Louisa is the informant this time- I suppose she is counting Edward as one of the three.  I've yet to find any evidence of a first-born other than on Louisa's death certificate. Alex is still Norwegian and is now listed as a carpenter.

On January 27, 1861, Louisa and Alexander are married in St Paul's Church in Clunes.  Though they have always maintained in their son's birth records that they were married in Geelong in 1853- this appears to be the first "official" wedding.  It is my understanding that during the gold rush, people living in the fields often married without official recognition other than intent.  There's also the chance that they were trying to save face- but regardless- there were three sons of this union before they were legally married.

Thanks to my newly found cousin, Sam Price, I obtained a copy of the actual certificate from the wedding (as opposed to just the registry).  Alexander's parents are listed as Peter Price (carpenter) and Martha Maria Holden.  He maintains that he was born in Christiania, Norway- and indeed, those in my Price family whom have tested do have varying percentages of Scandinavian DNA.  

The real mystery is that "Price" is not a Norwegian name- though I've been told that Holden is.  There's a chance that Alexander made up his name to sound more english- or perhaps his father was an immigrant who settled in Norway.  If there are any Norwegians reading this that would like to search for Prices living in Oslo in the early 1800's I would be extremely grateful.

Louisa's parents are listed as Henry Knight (Sailor) and Isabella (no maiden name).  The fact that Louisa was born in Parramatta could suggest that one or both of her parents were convicts.  Parramatta was known for it's institutions that housed female convicts and their children. In some documents Louisa says that her father was a "Sea Captain".  One might suggest that perhaps he was the captain (or a mariner) on a convict ship that was transporting Isabella to Australia.  As of now, I am unable to locate any birth record for Louisa- or the existence of her parents.

June 4, 1861 is the birthdate of Francis Walter Price.  There was always a rumor in the Price family that my 2nd G Grandfather had a brother named Walter that lived in Warrnambool- but they didn't talk.

1861 proved a busy year for our Louisa.  In the August 24th issue of The Ballarat Star she testified in the Clunes Police Court as a witness to a theft.

While I have no proof that this is "our" Louisa Price- there is a good chance that it was.  She was married to a miner and likely lived in a tent in the goldfields- and we will learn later that she is not afraid of a courtroom.

Charles Thomas Price was born on September 19, 1863.  Most of the details are the same- however, this time Louisa only lists Francis Walter as previous issue.  This is also the last mention of a living Alexander Price in any documents.

On July 24, 1867- a daughter is born.  Her name is Sarah Jane and there is no father listed on her birth certificate.

1869 to 1873 appear to be a tumultuous time for Louisa. I have just uncovered some of these details in the past few days.  In this case, it really paid to purchase birth and death certificates.  It's always a gamble because you're going to fork out twenty bucks for a photo copied image that may or may not provide some new information.

In December 1869, there is a newspaper article regarding a court case in Clunes where Louisa is having a dispute with a man named James Davey, regarding a stable on a "creek reserve" property that had been purchased by Louisa.  Apparently the stable belonged to him even though the property belonged to her- so he was told to remove the stable and there was some sort of financial deduction that I don't really understand...anyway...so there's that.  In April of 1870, Louisa has a son named Thomas James.  There is, once again, no father listed.  In February 1872, she has another son, James.  Here's where things really became interesting to me.  I found a death registration for another Louisa Price in 1873.  On further examination, I notice that the mother is listed as Louisa Price as well.  At this point, I bit the bullet and purchased the death record- in hopes that it would provide more information.  There was no father listed, however, there were two new pieces of information.  First of all, the informant is "Alice Knight- friend". Hmmm, this is the first time I have heard of this person- and the fact that she is a Knight is of extreme interest to me as Knight is Louisa's maiden name.  Louisa (baby) died at six days old- and what really caught my attention was her middle name- Davey. Immediately that name rang a bell. It had been a while since I had seen the newspaper clipping about the stable- so I rifled back through my files and, lo and behold, not only is James Davey mentioned in that clipping from December 1869, but there is also another court dispute in June of 1873 between the two involving "abusive language".  Baby Louisa is born just four months later.

I went ahead and purchased the birth and death records for the two boys.  Sure enough, there is no father listed- but James Davey is the informant- and he is identified as "putative father".

These are the type of discoveries that make genealogists positively giddy. We run to our husband in his office and regale him with the details of what we just unearthed during about eight straight hours in front of our computer.  When we fail to get the reaction we feel we deserve we then go back to our computer and blog about it..

Just kidding.  Not really.  Actually, my husband is very supportive of all my endeavors- but this is such a part of our daily life now that I'm sure it all sounds like white noise to him.  Thankfully I have lot's of geni Facebook friends who "get it".

But wait- there's more.  When next we meet Louisa, it is June 15, 1874 and she is marrying John Williams Trevan.  The wedding takes place in "a private house in Clunes" and is performed by a Methodist minister.  John is a widow and has four living children and one deceased.  Louisa says that her husband died in 1862 and she has 4 living children and 3 deceased.  Alice Knight is listed as a witness. (I need to know about Alice Knight).

Louisa states that her first husband died in August of 1862, however, her youngest son, Charles Thomas was born in September of 1863.  Not only is the math off- but he is listed on the birth certificate as alive and well (well- alive....)

Louisa goes on to have three more sons with John Trevan- all of whom, sadly, also die in infancy.  I haven't purchased their death certificates yet (I'm a little tapped out...)- but the deaths of the previous three suggest a congenital heart defect.

Louisa Knight Price Trevan died on December 7, 1895 of Acute Enteritis- or an inflammation of the small intestine.  The informant was Charles Price- her youngest son who was 31 at the time.  Louisa's living issue and their ages are listed:

Oliver Price- 40 years.                                                                        I have never found any reference to an Oliver Price
Edit: further investigation has lead me to believe that the name is possibly Otmer.  This is, in fact, a Norwegian name.  Still no records of birth or death.

William Price- 38 years.  

My 2nd G Grandfather- born as Henry Price- later becoming William Henry Price

Edward Price- 36 years

Walter Price- 34 years

Charles Price-31 years

Sarah Price- 29 years

Edward Price actually died at the age of 25 in Rochester, Victoria.  The fact that Charles thought he was still alive reinforces my belief that this family was quite divided.  In Edward's obituary, the only family mentioned is "brother, Harry Price, of  Macedon".

It has taken me a long time to get this far.  For years, I thought that my 3rd G Grandparents were Peter Price and Lucy Blake.  Those are the names listed William Price Sr's death certificate by his son, William Jr.  There was clearly not much talk around the old homestead of family.  Lucy is indeed similar to Louisa- but where did Blake come from?  Marriage records list Alexander's father as Peter- so maybe that was a nickname....  My point is- lot's of people guessed or made things up- so don't take death certificates as fact unless you have back-up.

One last point.  I recently went back to review all of the birth certificates that I have purchased over the years.  I was scanning the 1893 registry of Grace Dorris Price, sister of William Henry Price Jr. Suddenly, a name jumped out at me. Listed as a witness was "Mrs Trevan".  A year ago that name meant nothing to me- but with this, I was finally able to connect Louisa Price to my direct line.

My final proof has been science.  Thanks to DNA testing I was matched to a cousin named McCarron.  His G Grandmother was a lady by the name of Sarah Jane Row (nee Price).

With further research, I was able to locate Sam Price- a direct descendant of Walter Price (from Warrnambool).  Sam and his cousin, Sandra, have both tested and guess what- we all match.  I have managed to find direct descendants of two of my 3rd g grandparents other children.  A year ago- we never knew of each other's existence- and nobody in my Price family had ever heard of Louisa Knight Price Trevan.

Louisa Price was a feisty warrior.  I now know so much about her- but there is so much more to uncover.  I can't wait for more revelations.  If you've ever thought of doing DNA testing- please do it.  Come on in- the water's fine.  History is coming to life for all of us.  We all have so called skeletons in our closets- but that's just the point.  Our ancestors don't define us- they provide us with context, clarity and truth.  There is nothing more important than truth.  This is my mantra.

Chapter 6: HAPPY MOTHERS DAY!

I went to bed.  I'll make the call tomorrow.  No big deal.  What's another twenty four hours?

One sheep, two sheep, three....  It'll be Monday when I call, so there's less chance of her being surrounded by her family.  Four sheep, five, six.... Yeah that would be weird.  What if one of her children answered the phone and I asked for her and then she would have the challenge of talking to someone that she gave birth to twenty four years ago while her family- who may or may not know about me- listened on.  Thirty five, thirty six,  thirty sev...  I mean, how is she supposed to handle that?  All those loving eyes watching her as she tries to keep the shock from her face and answers my questions with one word answers so as not to give away what she's talking about.  She tries to veil the panic by plastering on the sort of smile that none of her loved ones have ever seen her express, confusion ensues among them.  "Who is this American woman?  Why is she talking to our mother and causing her face to do that?  That is definitely not a Mother's Day face".  One hundred and thirty eight, one hundred and thirty nine, one hundred an...  When I count sheep I don't count a flock of beige sheep standing in a paddock.  I tried that.  Inevitably the sheep start moving around and changing their formation- though still huddled together.  Sheep have no personal boundaries. It becomes impossible to count them efficiently.  Heaven forbid I double count any of them.  How is one supposed to get an accurate count of these sheep?  My sheep jump one by one over a fence.  Each one is hued a different vivid cartoonish color and the object is to "out jump" the previous sheep by doing some sort of flourish or trick move.  It's a sheep jump hot dogging battle. 

Digression is my enemy.

One in the morning.  Wide awake.  Adrenaline rushing through my body.  What I have discovered here is that the longer one has to ruminate over the possibility of a life long awaited event, the crazier one becomes.  There was absolutely no chance of getting one wink of sleep until I had completed this task (as it were).  Screw it.  I'm doing it.  It is what it is (whatever that means).

I dialed the number.  Brrr brrrr.  The familiar double ring of the Australian ring tone- as opposed to the American single Brrrrrrrrrr sound.  What am I doing?  Suddenly.  

"Hullo?" (that pleasing lilting tone- common in Australian women.  So polite and welcoming)

"Hi. I'm calling for Lynette?"

"Yes?"

"Is that you?"

"That's me"

"Ok. (gulp. breathe.) My name is Julie and I have some personal questions to ask you.  If this is a bad time I can call back whenever is good for you..."

"No.  You can ask me now"

"Ok. Well.  Did you have a baby on April 7th, 1965?"

"Yes. Yes I did."

"Did you place her for adoption?"

"I did."

"Well.  I am that baby......Happy Mother's Day?"

Silence.   Then...

"Well.  This is lovely.  I'm so happy you found me"

Heart racing.  Hallelujah chorus playing in my head.  Can't breath.  Laughing.

Full disclosure- I can't recall the exact conversation that followed (it was twenty four years ago!) but it was open and warm and I felt that she was thrilled to talk to me.  There was laughter and joy and random questions and it was all good.  At one point she told me that she thought that I had found her because she had opened the door by sharing her story.  A few days earlier, on May 8, her daughter Ann-Maree had had her first baby.  It was a long and difficult labor- and Lynette had been there throughout the process.  It was emotional and , at times, harrowing.  The experience had brought back memories of Lynette's first experience with child-birth.  It had been something that she had mostly kept to herself, but this time, she had felt the need to vent.  She sat down with a dear friend and shared her story from twenty four years earlier.  She disclosed to me that, though her husband was very aware of the story, she had shared it with very few others- including her other children.  Her mother and one of her sisters and her (then) fiancee had been aware of the situation, and helped her through it.  Her father- and other siblings, had not been privy to the information.  So, when she finally opened up to her friend the week before, it had been an outpouring of pent up feelings and she had felt a weight lift from her shoulders to have finally released this information. She said that the fact that I had found her so soon after was proof that the universe listens and provides for the truths that need to be told.  A door had been opened.  As one who is not a stranger to so-called coincidence, this made (and makes) perfect sense to me.

As our conversation continued, she told me that she had received a call from her father  several hours earlier telling her that he had given her number to someone who had been inquiring after her- an American. Though Lynn had been dumb-founded about what this may be about, her husband John, a charming Irish gentleman, had immediately exclaimed "It's that daughter of yours- she's come looking for ya".  

John is quite perceptive.  Lynn told me that she had met John while she was already pregnant with me.  He had been supportive of whatever choice she made about the life of this unborn child.  They had become engaged during the pregnancy and married soon after I was born.  Yes, they had waffled back and forth about whether to give me up or keep me as their own and had ultimately chosen the outcome that we are all aware of.  Lynn disclosed that it had taken her more time than expected to conceive her next child (my brother Noel) and she had felt that God was punishing her for giving up her first baby. How heart-breaking.  I remember assuring her that she had made the right decision and I harbored no resentment for what she had chosen to do.

All in all, we spoke for close to two hours.  She told me about my half-siblings (two brothers and a sister) and how she would have some explaining to do.  She also told me about her five siblings (only one of whom had known about me- my Auntie Val).  And, she told me about her wonderful parents, Noel and Margaret Price.  While Noel was still alive (though not yet aware of my existence), Margaret had passed away in 1978.  Margaret (or Maxie) was the other person who had helped and supported Lynn during her pregnancy with me, and it was bittersweet that she never got to know about what had happened to me- and even more so that I had never gotten to know her.

We finished our conversation with a promise to keep in touch and send photos to each other immediately.  It was truly a fairy tale outcome.  It couldn't have gone better.  After hanging up the phone my head was spinning.  It was a culmination of emotions that I wasn't sure what to do with. Honestly, it's a blur.  

The next memory I have is noticing that the sun was coming up and it was Mother's Day.  I was exhausted.  I went to my parents bedroom and crawled in next to my Mom.  I put my arms around her and cried myself to sleep.  I don't know if I was crying out of guilt or joy or confusion.  I just knew that my life had changed.  And I knew that I wanted my mom to know that I loved her.

This was just the beginning of the next twenty five years of questions, intrigue, and ultimate answers.  To get closure, one must have all of the pieces in place.  To say some of those pieces were harder to uncover is an understatement.