William Fisher Preshaw

[sancti]

1851 census

William F Preshaw 41 Born England occ Surgeon
Isabella Preshaw 43 Born Scotland
William Preshaw 17
Isabella Preshaw 16
Margaret Preshaw 14
George Preshaw 11
John Preshaw 9
Mary Preshaw 6 born Jersey St Helier
Robert Preshaw 4
Lydia Preshaw 2 born Jersey St Martins
Alexander Preshaw 28 brother occ sailor born Scotland
Emily Brodie 27 governess
Ann Hodges 14 servant
 
 
Address Victoria Villa, St Martins, Jersey

[Pastmagic]

See:
http://members.societe-jersiaise.org/whitsco/jerseycow1.htm

[bpoid]

His parents were William and Margaret (Mathers) Preshaw. He was born in Plymouth in 1810 (Napoleonic period) so I suspect his father had some Navy connection though possibly not in navy. It would be good to know.

Mysticism and materialism is an interesting point and seems to have been present in him. He was very active in community and building it up in Mount Alexander ( general name of goldfields here). His name is frequent in local and Melbourne Press, Victorian Government gazette etc. Yet there is also his preaching, giving away the native Australian girl, the first of her race to be married in the Church of England here, and his continued  naming himself as member of the Catholic Apostolic Church. He described himself as a Tory and a radical in social and political causes. Consistently spoke out against The Lieutenant Governor's authority and executive and for self government. he was himself arrested but only briefly held and even spoke in support of the sly grog sellers against the police. Yet he had excellent relations with Captain Bull of the Government authority- though he was i=one of the non authoritarian ones.
Interesting at the time he maintained friendly relations with all the various mixed up clergy including 9in the mid 19th century) the local RC priest, Patrick Smythe , noted from the Eureka rebellion at Ballarat which fairly quickly brought self government and universal male suffrage, except for native Australians
 .
 An early influence on the Catholic Apostolics was a minister who stated redemption was open to all and not particular churches or sects.

[bpoid]

Thank you for the Jersey report. Actually my name is well known in Channel islands although, perhaps oddly, i have never done any family research. I think mon arriere arriere arriere grand pere  came to Australia (NSW) from France via Jersey.
i find the report in itself fascinating but the I am that way inclined. Agricultural chymistry sounds just like Preshaw- he was up to same here. I think he also published two small books, one on Human anatomy and one on hydrotherapy.
Bpoid

[Pastmagic]

See that rootschatters have been busy on this thread:

http://www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php/topic,374715.0.html

sorting out his descendants, of which there were many.

He was in Brechin in 1831 as a surgeon:

http://www.fdca.org.uk/1831Sassines%20P.pdf

http://www.google.ie/search?tbm=bks&tbo=1&q=%22+preshaw%22%22+brechin&btnG=
(Nice book- lovely old drawings of the area). He is listed as a subscriber.

Louisa Lane's Jersey guide in 1836 gives an address - Union St.

The half-yearly abstract of the medical sciences: : Volumes 3-4 - Page 155
   
William Harcourt Ranking, Charles Bland Radcliffe, William Dommett Stone - 1846 -
In the case of a boy, aged 1 1 years, reported by Mr. Preshaw,* of Jersey, the hydropathic treatment effected a cure after bleeding, mercury, opiates, and warm baths had failed in arresting the spasms.
   
books.google.ie
Medical times: Volume 15 - Page 333

Full account of this in his own words in the Lancet:
http://books.google.ie/books?id=MjVPAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA154&dq=num=9&sqi=2&ved=0CGEQ6AEwCA#v=onep
   
1847 -
[From the Jersey and Guernsey News of Jan. 16.] On Thursday morning, Drs. Preshaw and Clement removed a large tumour from the left arm of a female residing at St. Clement's, by a perfectly painless operation: this being the first time ...

All Full View on Google books.

PM

[bpoid]

great thank you.

[Pastmagic]

http://www.jersey.syd-fyn.dk/index.php?page=jersey-home&id=887

more agriculture.....

Also a very odd family tree ascribing him to an American ancestor...

http://familytreemaker.genealogy.com/users/p/i/c/Alan-C-Pickard/index.html

might be worth following up...

Your William is an interesting man, ahead of his time..

[bpoid]

Thank you again. You do wander wide in your searchings,
He was an interesting man and very influential in development of the Castlemaine, Mt Alexander region in Victoria.i am starting to get a picture of him before Australia. I continue to ponder on his coming here and the call of gold which he soon surrendered for a return to medical practice. There are parts of a journal in his son George's book "Banking under Difficulties" that goes no further than building castles in the air, "Australia Felix" and the land of gold.
TheAmerican family tree is odd. I have a copy of marriage lines from Brechin of William Preshaw and Margaret Mathers in 1807.  Bpoid

[Pastmagic]

Nice little mention in an ad in:
The Morning Post (London, England), Thursday, May 08, 1845; pg. [1]; :

"Water Cure Establishment, Honeyden, Jersey. This establishment is OPEN for the reception of Ladies and Gentlemen, and is under the direction of an experienced  medical practicioner. Apply Dr. Preshaw. surgeon, Jersey."

Also an account in
Caledonian Mercury (Edinburgh, Scotland), Monday, August 6, 1838; Issue 18508.

Where there was a cermony involving him sealing hermetically a bottle containg newspapers, medals etc which was placed under the foundations of a new steeple in the church at Fettercairn - big cermony, and party in village afterwards...very interesting piece, too long to transcribe...wonder if it is still there, and if it was his idea? PM