Thomas Allsopp was born in 1815 to Samuel Allsop (b. 1792) and Mary Clark (1795–1832). He was baptised on 25 June 1815 at St Bartholomew’s Anglican Church, Hognaston, Derbyshire. His exact date of birth is unknown, as it was not included in the baptism register.
In most documentation he appears as Thomas Allsop, a native of Derbyshire. However, on the birth certificates of his children with Jane Keating, he sometimes gave Nottingham as his birthplace and his name as John Thomas Allsop. This variation may have been a deliberate ruse to obscure his convict background. In the late 1830s to mid-1840s, there was strong agitation to abolish transportation, with influential figures such as Fairfax (of newspaper fame) claiming convicts were corrupting Sydney society through immoral behaviour. Thomas may not have wanted to be associated with this stigma.
Family stories in several branches claim he was linked to the brewery Samuel Allsopp and Sons, which would suggest Burton-on-Trent as his birthplace. No evidence supports this, and current research of that family indicates such a connection is highly improbable. It is more likely that the tale arose because his mother Mary was born in Tutbury, only 8 km from Burton-on-Trent.
Early Life in England
During his childhood, Thomas lived in Derby with his siblings George (b. 1817), Mary (b. 1819), Anne (1821–1824), Samuel (1822–1829), and John (b. 1823). Sometime before 1829 the family moved to Nottingham, settling in Pierrepont Road, West Bridgford.
In 1830, Samuel and Mary had another daughter, Anne, baptised at St John the Evangelist Catholic Church. This was unusual and may suggest a conversion to Catholicism.
Tragedy followed soon after. Mary died in January 1832, and in October that year Thomas—then about 17—was arrested at West Bridgford along with several companions for stealing a gander. He was sentenced to three months’ imprisonment at the Southwell Correction Centre, where he was also flogged.
Just four days after his release, Thomas was arrested again. On 10 April 1833 he was tried at the Nottingham Quarter Sessions, charged with stealing a pair of shoes worth five shillings from Robert Lownds. He was sentenced to seven years’ transportation to New South Wales.
Following a brief confinement in Nottingham Gaol, Thomas was transferred to the prison hulk Justitia at Woolwich in April 1833. On 15 August he was moved to the barque Lloyds, departing England on 19 August 1833.
Convict Years
Thomas arrived in Sydney on 18 December 1833 aboard the Lloyds, commanded by Edward Garrett. He was described as 18 years old, with brown hair, a ruddy complexion, and unable to read or write. His body bore numerous tattoos, including tools, initials, hearts, and figures—several of which reflected the names of his father Samuel and surviving siblings Ann, John, George, and Mary.
On arrival, Thomas was assigned to Dr John Henderson of Cook’s River, Sydney. Around 1836 he was sent to Henderson’s father-in-law, ex-convict Thomas Rose of Mt Gilead near Campbelltown. He was one of about 14 convicts working for Rose when the 1837 muster was taken and most likely would have assisted in the construction of the windmill at Mt Gilead. Rose died in March 1837.
After Rose’s death Thomas returned to Dr Henderson, but he appears to have been unhappy. The Sydney Gazette reported that he absconded in February 1838, was recaptured in October, and absconded again before being recaptured in February 1839. Despite these setbacks, he was granted his Certificate of Freedom on 24 April 1840.
Marriage to Mary Ann Ridgely
On 6 December 1840, at St Peter’s Cook’s River, Thomas married Mary Ann Ridgely (born 12 October 1825 in Parramatta). They had two children:
- Ann (1842–1849)
- William Henry (1845–1927)
The family lived on Liverpool Road, Ashfield. In 1842 Thomas was charged—but not convicted—of theft from his former master John Henderson.
In 1846 the family moved to Brisbane. A surviving letter from one of Thomas’s grand-daughters recalls the move, while shipping records list a “Mary Allsopp and two children” travelling in steerage aboard the steamer William IV to Moreton Bay. Thomas is said to have travelled overland.
In Brisbane, Mary was charged with passing a counterfeit coin in July 1847 but acquitted. That August Thomas spent two weeks in the Moreton Bay Hospital. Records then show “Mr Allsop” departing Moreton Bay for Sydney two days after his discharge.
By late 1848 they were back in Sydney, where Thomas was charged with “breaching the peace” after Mary Ann left him for the actor Gustavus Arabin, taking their children with her. Their daughter Ann’s accidental death in 1849 seems to have marked a turning point. Mary Ann turned increasingly to drink, and in 1858 she died in a Sydney lane of “disease brought on by intemperate habits”. Her death certificate still listed her as Thomas’s wife, though no children were recorded—likely indicating that William was with his father.
Relationship with Jane Keating
By about 1852 Thomas had formed a relationship with Jane Keating, who had returned from the Sofala goldfields that year. Jane’s husband, Joseph Barker, remained in the Sofala district until his death in 1857 at Nuggetty Gully.
Evidence of the relationship between Thomas and Jane survives in a letter Jane wrote to the Colonial Secretary, petitioning for Thomas’s release from gaol as she was destitute with four children to support.
Thomas had been arrested in January 1853 and sentenced to three months in Darlinghurst Gaol for assaulting Mary Fitzgibbon in George Street, Sydney.
At the time of his 1833 trial in England his occupation had been listed as “Slater’s Boy”, supported by the tattoo of slater’s tools on his arm. In Australia, however, records variously described him as a labourer, gold miner, or tinplate worker—perhaps a trade learned from Jane’s father, Philip Keating, a wire worker.
Between 1860 and 1864, Thomas worked on the Sofala and Hill End goldfields.
Later Years and Death
On 22 September 1891, Thomas died of bronchitis at Sydney Hospital, aged 76. He had previously undergone surgery for a hernia and had spent more than two months in hospital under the care of Dr Davies.
He was buried on 25 September 1891 in the Church of England section of Rookwood Cemetery, Lidcombe. His death certificate recorded no details of marriages or children, though ample documentary and DNA evidence confirms them.
Children
With Mary Ann Rudgeley (Ridgely):
- Ann Allsopp (1842–1849)
- William Henry Allsopp (1845–1927)
With Jane Keating:
- Ann Elizabeth Allsopp (1854–1922)
- Samuel Henry Allsopp (1857–1931)
- Jane Amelia Allsopp (1860–1942)
- Cussiah Jane Allsopp (aka Mary Rosina Allsopp) (1862–1946)
- John Thomas Allsopp (aka Frederick Thomas Allsopp) (1865–1956)
With Mary Pike:
- Thomas Allsopp (aka Elijah John Allsopp) (1864–1944
Some records also note “several deceased” children, though further details remain undiscovered.
Jane Adelaide Keating [1825 – 1895]
Image of Thomas Allsopp courtesy of Leah Clark.