Sheriff (Cr) George
| Type of person | Individual |
|---|---|
| Date of birth | 1832 |
| Place of birth | England |
| Date of arrival | 1856 |
| Principal occupation | Butcher |
| Date of death | 1891 |
| Place of death | Gawler |
George Sheriff and first wife Olivia (nee Humphrey) emigrated from England, arriving in Gawler in 1856; their baby daughter 'Maria Elizabeth' died shortly after. By 1859 George was carrying out trade as a butcher in Gawler Town[1] and they were renting the two room cottage that then stood at 11 King Street.
In 1862 George was fined as subsequent visits by the inspector found a "quantity of impure liquid and filth" at his Murray Street butcher's premises, "from which a horrible stench arose".[2][3] At this time he was likely trading from the western side of Murray Street, between Tod & Jacobs Streets, on the site that went on to become southern portion of Essex House (part of Allotment 47, now known as 98 Murray Street). [4][5] In 1867, he vacated that site and moved a few shops south (part of Allotment 46, around the sites now known as 88-92 Murray Street), to an ‘extended premises’ where he promised ‘cheap meat’ at the ‘very lowest possible remunerative prices’.[6][7] His shop is marked in the 1886 Plan of Murray Street, with the yards to the rear accessed via Tod Street, and would be one of the shops in streetscapes from the time, although signage isn’t visible to determine which one.
George and Olivia (sometimes spelled Olivea), went on to have about another 9 children, not all of whom survived and Olivia died just three weeks after the birth of their youngest daughter Sarah Jane May Sheriff in 1877. In 1880 George remarried, Mary Ann nee Knight, and had another four children.
Later in life, he served as a Councillor for North Ward from 1888 - 1891.
George died at his Gawler residence in 1891 after a long illness, second wife Mary Ann died in 1910.[3][4]
After George’s death, son John Joseph Sheriff and one or more of his brothers continued on the butchering business as ‘Sheriff Brothers’, likely from the same Murray Street location.[8] 'Jack' Sheriff, in his butcher’s apron, is visible in one the photos of the construction of the new Essex House in 1905 - given 'Jack' is a common nickname for 'John', this might be John Joseph Sheriff. One photo of a street parade, possibly from 1918 does shows 'Family Sheriff Butcher'.
Not uncommon for the era, the cleanliness of the Sheriff’s butchering business remained a problem, Board of Health Inspectors over the years reporting a dirty shop floor, filthy stock yards and an open trench into which all refuse was thrown from where it drained into a well.[9][10][11]
In 1917, well after their deaths of his parents, George and Mary Ann, youngest son, Henry Septimus Sheriff, was killed in action in France in WWI (see ANZACs and other WWI Personnel).
Sheriff Family Birth, Death & Marriage Information
SHERIFF, George
b. Abt. 1832, England
m. 24 May 1854, Olivia HUMPHREYS, Oxfordshire, England (d. 27 May 1877, aged 43, Reg. Barossa 81/175)
Arrived 1856 aboard ship ‘Fitzjames’
m. 25 Jan 1880, Mary Ann KNIGHT (Reg. Barossa 122/279)(d. 1910, aged 64, Reg. Barossa 353/63)
d. 5 Nov 1891, aged 60, after a long illness (Reg. Barossa 196/108)
Buried Willaston Cemetery, Willaston (Plot 15 B 1, with first wife 'Olivea'[sic])
Children of George Sheriff
George had about 10 children with first wife Olivia (nee Humphrey) and 4 with second wife Mary Ann nee Knight, they included:
SHERIFF, Maria Elizabeth
b. 1855, England
d. 19 Jan 1856, Gawler, age 10 months (Reg. Barossa West 4/118)
Burial records not found for Town of Gawler Cemetery (Pioneer Park)
SHERIFF, Ann Maria Elizabeth (EVERETT)
b. 10 Dec 1856, Gawler (Reg. Barossa, 10/212, father ‘George Sheriff’ & mother ‘Olivia Humphrey’)
SHERIFF, John Joseph
b. 29 Mar 1859, Gawler (Reg. Barossa 16/487, father ‘George Sheriff’ & mother ‘Olivea Humphreys’[sic])
SHERIFF, Sarah Jane May (HEIDENREICH)
b. 6 May 1877, Gawler (Reg. Barossa 182/478, father ‘George Sheriff’ & mother ‘Olivia Humphreys’)
SHERIFF, Henry Septimus
b. 7 Mar 1885, Gawler (Reg. Barossa 347/353, father ‘George Sheriff’ & mother ‘Mary Ann Knight’)
d. 2 Feb 1917, killed in action, WWI, France
Related Articles
References
- ↑ (South Australian Register 14 Apr 1859) https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/49902098
- ↑ (South Australian Weekly Chronicle 25 Jan 1862) https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/90253530
- ↑ (South Australian Weekly Chronicle 25 Jan 1862) https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/90253530
- ↑ (Bunyip 23 Jun 1905) https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/97601613
- ↑ (Bunyip 23 Jun 1905) https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/97601613
- ↑ (Bunyip 4 May 1867) https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/130960240
- ↑ (Bunyip 13 Jul 1867) https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/130962899
- ↑ (Bunyip 12 Jun 1908) https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/97729486
- ↑ (Bunyip 31 Dec 1897) https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/97575510
- ↑ (Bunyip 5 Sep 1902) https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/97592905
- ↑ (Bunyip 15 May 1903) https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/97588171
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