Doctor BENSON or Quack?

[majm]

Hi there Simone,

I am confused by your post :

I think we have all over looked the most obvious..... Barker was an apothecary in London and I have seen in my notes the address of where he worked. If you look up the definition of an apothecary in the 18th century:

Apothecary is a historical name for a medical professional who formulates and dispenses materia medica to physicians, surgeons and patients — a role now served by a pharmacist (or a chemist or dispensing chemist) and some caregivers.
In addition to pharmacy responsibilities, the apothecary offered general medical advice and a range of services that are now performed solely by other specialist practitioners, such as surgery and midwifery. Apothecaries often operated through a retail shop which, in addition to ingredients for medicines, sold tobacco and patent medicines.

This makes sense.. stories of midwifery... working as a storekeeper.... suddenly a doctor.

There was a discussion about his status earlier on this and other threads.... eg

Hi there,

I thought we had already established that William Benson was not a quack ...
EDIT TO ADD simply that on the linked thread one of the RChatters had found an instance in the 1880's where an NSW based Dr BENSON had NOT presented to the Colonial Boards the proof that they then required as to his qualifications.  You note he was born in 1815 ... so he was quite an old gent in 1884-6 ... perhaps he was simply not willing to reply to Colonial boards that were set up long after he had gained his medical qualifications.  (Sorry, I did not realise that those added comments had not come through on this post when I first posted it).

http://www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php/topic,513004.15.html

Cheers,  JM

[majm]

http://trove.nla.gov.au/ndp/del/article/12425681 SMH 28 Sept 1843
http://trove.nla.gov.au/ndp/del/article/12426562 SMH 30 Sept 1843.


Perhaps Dr Benson delivered his son Thomas Barker Chapman BENSON at Carcoar and then within a fortnight of the birth of that son drove horse and carriage to St James C of E, King St Sydney with the baby and the baby's mum for that child's baptism .... from Carcoar to Bathurst and then to tackle the journey on from there to Sydney with a new baby and a wife recovering from that birth, during those early colonial times....  that's around 160 miles through difficult terrain over tracks and up the escarpment, across the Blue Mountains and then down again before the then arduous journey to Sydney Town ....  so it was not a step in the park so to write.... and would have taken more than a week...  The baby was born  16 Mar 1844 and baptised 2 April 1844,  I am surprised that this baptism was 2 April, ie during LENT, as Easter was 7 April 1844.   Perhaps the infant was sickly and they fetched him to Sydney for further medical attention.

Cheers,  JM

[majm]

I am not sure that it has been confirmed that the Dr Benson at Carcoar was actually Barker Joseph BENSON, but from the NSW SRO indexes there were obviously several chaps surnamed BENSON in the then colony of NSW, including PAUL BENSON in 1841 in the Petersham district.

Incidentially, there is a probate packet at the NSW SRO for Thomas B C BENSON, of  Goodooga dd 23 July 1916, probate granted 10 Jan 1917.   I think there's an option to purchase photocopy of that file and I know that alternatively the archives are available on site at Kingswood, NSW.    I notice that that index has various spellings for William Allaston BENSON 

http://www.records.nsw.gov.au/state-archives/

EDIT TO NOTE .... Re Dr Benson at Carcoar, please see next post, as Thomas BC Benson's baptismal record (held by Barkelsatthepoint)  shows his parents resided at Carcoar.... perhaps Hannah came to Sydney for her confinement....

Cheers,  JM

[majm]

Hi Simone,

http://www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php/topic,513531.50.html (Yorkshire North Riding)

At reply # 3 WolfieSmith has a copy of the will of Thomas Benson Esq dated 1838, Probated Aug 1849, and the will of Sarah, dated 1850, Probated 3 June 1851 and other research too. 

At reply # 7 blynch2 has Thomas Barker Chapman BENSON as b 1844 at Carcoar....

At reply #9 Carna mentions that Willis Allatson BENSON born 1860 is great great grandfather and his son Jack is the connection.

At reply # 55, Barkrelsatthepoint mentions “We called in at Carcoar on our trip ..... I left my details for the Historical Society there.   A lady ...... has responded and says she has no record of Dr Barker Joseph Benson but has some information on him......”

At reply # 92, Barkrelsatthepoint has the details from the BAPTISMAL records for Thomas Barker Chapman BENSON’s birth and baptism.  (Civil registrations did not commence until 1856 in NSW).

“That said we sent away for Thomas Barker Chapman's Birth Certificate and received a copy of his Baptism Certificate. It has some interesting info on it.

Baptised 2/4/1844 at Parish of St James, Sydney performed by Chas C. Kemp     Barker and Hannah's abode is recorded as Carcoar and Barker's profession is M.D.   Major John Bowler was the Police Commissioner in Carcoar in 1839 -? Also retired in the district and buried at Kelso, Bathurst.”

I understand that that record would be the one held by the NSW BDM and indexed online as Volume 28, line 354 of 1844, Thomas BC Benson, father as Barker J and mother as Hannah E. 

Do you have a copy of the civil registration of the birth of Willis A BENSON, registered Gosford District and NSW BDM ref 6852? May I please ask for Barker’s occupation listed on that record.


Cheers,  JM

[majm]

I forgot to mention that Rev Charles KEMP who baptised Thomas B C Benson was most likely related to Hannah, sorry

Cheers,  JM

[majm]

Hi there,

With a given name of Barker, there is every chance that the following chap was a related ... 
Barker Robert BENSON was a Private in D Squadron, Central District of the Seventh Australian Horse Battalion raised in Queensland for service in South Africa.  The Battalion departed 19 May 1902, 23 Officers, 467 rank and file. His service file is freely available online at the National Archives of Australia website.  His next of kin was his father, who lived at Marrickville, NSW.

http://www.naa.gov.au/collection/using/search/index.aspx (Search as a guest)

Cheers,  JM

[Barkrelsatthepoint]

Hi again Simone (and JM who has been keeping you informed and all those other rellies out there). We've been away for Easter as JM suggested.

Interesting mediums these forums - have found relatives of my Mum's too, so now have two (three) to watch.

The only thing I can correct here is the birth-date of Thomas Barker Chapman Benson which technically gives Barker and Hannah 6 more days to get down to Sydney for the baptism. 

Baptism 354 Vol 28 (as JM has said) has Thomas BC's birthdate as 10 March 1844 not the 16th, according to my copy of it from the R.G's. 

To add to JM's info on TBC at Goodooga. He was the manager of Brenda Station for many years and he was at a smaller one before that - the name of which escapes me. Put his name into Google and you'll come up with relevant info. He was married at Brewarrina and traces I've done on him show the family from his line moved predominantly to Lismore way.  The National Library Archives have a photo of Goodooga (don't quote me) hotel in 1915 with a heap of townspeople in front of it. I have often wondered if he is in it?

I'm interested in the address of where Barker was an apothecary (in London I'm presuming) if you wouldn't mind sharing it?

Also reminding everyone that JM is right about us not really knowing for sure Barker was in Carcoar except the same Baptism record lists the abode as Carcoar for Barker and Hannah. I haven't said this before but it could be politically incorrect to suggest that Barker was the first MD of Carcoar because the Carcoar people have just done a big research document on another doctor as the first doctor there who co-incidentally came from Brisbane Water (have often wondered if it was a swap) - any new info would certainly muck up any first impressions they had if Barker was proved to be a registered MD at that point.  See my post on General Robson Benson one of  (Barker's younger brothers) serving in India alongside Henry Bowler - Major John Bowler's  father. As you said Barker got around (and I would add General's have connections).

I found in a Govt. Gazette list an unclaimed letter for Barker in 1843 and I have often wondered if it was just from his father or it may have been his credentials?

I (Angela) too have written up the English family side of things and will one day get round to starting on the Australian extension.  I love this family I married into they are such an interesting bunch even though my father-in-law the longest living male relative who carries the name was 'Just our Bill' (P.G. Woodhouse).  Also when we went up to Henry Kendall's cottage last month, Gwen Dundon a researcher for the Brisbane Water Historical Society has Barker as one of the early MD's in her 5th edition of the area. (It's worth a visit if you haven't been). Reading the Rev. Alfred Glennie's notes through, Barker in his later years was one of many doctors in the area, but as you say known personally (and I would say affectionately) to him.

Good to see this forum going again. It's good I've found to print it all off, so we aren't doubling up on info that's gone before.

All for now Barkrelsatthepoint xxx 

   

[majm]

Hi there,

Re 10th v 16th March 1844.... I am not sure that the actual date in March is significant, as I think that any journey from Carcoar to Sydney Town involving a new baby would also involve that new baby's mum, particularly for feeding the wee babe.  What strikes me as significant is that the baptism occurred in the week immediately before Easter, and that it is very rare to find C of E baptisms during Lent, at any time in NSW records until at least the 1930s.   As the C of E was the established Church in NSW from settlement, and as the baptism was at St James C of E, I think that a baptism in the week before Easter is indicating that the baby or possibly his mum was not expected to survive the week.    This suggests to me that the birth occurred in Sydney Town rather than at Carcoar.....  I really have difficulty in imagining a Medico permitting his wife and new babe to undertake the journey from Carcoar to Sydney in 1844....  Very few suitable overnight accomodations, where to re-fresh or stable horse/s, and the climb up to Mt Boyce even from Mt Blaxland would all be huge obstacles to my way of thinking.  Possible ferry/punt at the Nepean  (a bridge was finished during 1844 and opened by Gov. Fitzroy, but I don't have the month handy, adding I need to confirm this, my private family papers have it as 1856 ); getting across South Creek, Eastern Creek etc all long before arriving at Parramatta etc.

I am assuming that the doc issued by NSW BDM re TBC's birth and baptism is actually a typed up document, issued in 2011 and thus is a transcribed record made in 2011.  I think if it is important to know if it reads 10 th or 16 th March 1844 that the actual hand written parish register was filmed many moons ago and can be sighted at the NSW State Library.

PS, I am not a descendant, just an RChatter with a reputation for being somewhat NSW Centric, particularly for 19thC records...  Several of my forebears arrived before Gov Macquarie and there's so many of us scattered throughout the central west and far west of NSW, generation after generation of us....

Cheers,  JM

[majm]

I have checked my family's private papers and found that a road suitable for horse drawn carriages was cut in 1832 from Mt York down to Little Hartley.  So I have then googled and found this info confirming that cutting:

 http://www.sydney.visitorsbureau.com.au/regions/blue-mountains.html

Adding :
http://infobluemountains.net.au/history/mitchell.htm

Cheers,  JM