John Bugden married his first wife Elizabeth Lockyear
in Wiltshire in 1820. But she was left behind when he was gaoled and then
transported to NSW. His second marriage to Margaret Roach (below) raises the
question of bigamy. This was a situation many convict men and women faced after
transportation to NSW separated them from their British spouses. Divorce was not
available to the common person until the late 1800s and even then was expensive
and scandalous. However, the situation soon developed that married convicts were
permitted to legally remarry after seven years separation, even if the spouse
was still living, as long as they were abroad. The Government's rationale was
that they encouraged marriage for convicts as a means of rehabilitation, and
was more desirable than co-habitation.
In fact, Tomlin's Law Dictionary (London, 1820, vol.1.) p.50
says after seven years, bigamy was probably not a crime: "BIGAMY ... is yet no
felony ... where either party has been continually abroad for seven years...."
The National Archives in England hold a "Settlement
Examination" document dated 18 September 1826 regarding Elizabeth Bugden, aged 24,
who was born in the Parish of Coombe
and was at that time residing in the Parish of St Martin. She was asking for
permission to settle in Salisbury. She declares that she has had no contact with
her husband for three years or that they had any children together.
It was noted, however that she was pregnant and that the child was not her
husband's.
The document also reveals that shortly after they were married, John and
Elizabeth had been removed by magistrate's order from the Parish of Pitton and
Farley to the Parish of Clarendon, where she was 'relieved' by the Parish
Officer of Clarendon. This indicates dire poverty and she would have entered a
Workhouse. Perhaps this prompted John's burglary; he wanted her freed. The
document was witnessed and Elizabeth made her mark. Beyond this, her fate is unknown.
Margaret Roach was John Bugden's second wife
and was one of the women of the Female Emigration Scheme which brought single
women to the colony as servants.
The date, cause and place of
her death remain unknown as do her birth details and parentage.
She came on the Duchess of Northumberland
leaving in October 1834 from Cork and arriving in Sydney on the 27th February
1835. The female passengers included 'House of Industry' girls and 50 others
from the city of cork and suburbs. The Belfast
News-Letter, Tuesday, October 28, 1834 reported the departure in a single
sentence: The Duchess of Northumberland with female emigrants for New South
Wales, sailed from Cork on Saturday last. Find out more about the scheme
here.
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After she arrived, Margaret 'Roche' (sic) was employed as a
house servant of Mr Raymond of O'Connell Street Sydney, and was to be paid 10
shillings a year. Coincidentally, she was employed at the same place as another
migrant also called Margaret Roach, who came out on the same ship! The other
woman was 40 years old. Our Margaret was 22 years old . Whether or not they were related is not known.
Actually, there were a number of convict women named Margaret Roach who came to
NSW in the period from 1812 to 1829. There was also a Margaret Roach who was a
daughter of one of these convict women. However,
has eliminated each of these possibilities through
exhaustive research. A record from The Colonial Secretary's Office, Sydney,
New South Wales, 7 May 1835 states: "Since I had last the honour of addressing
His Majesty's Government on the subject of emigration, the ship 'Duchess of
Northumberland,' ... has arrived in Port Jackson with 226 female emigrants....
The appearance of these emigrants on their landing created a favourable
impression, as they seemed to be better suited to fill situations as servants
than the females who had arrived by former ships; and the greater portion of
them were engaged by reputable householders within a few days after their
disembarkation..."
In 1839 the first of her four sons was born: John in 1839,
Robert in 1844, Patrick in 1845, Michael in 1847. She had eight children all
together. Her last child, Bridget was born in 1849 and little is known of
Margaret's life after this point. On daughter Ellen Bugden's Notification of
Marriage Certificate (dated 7July 1859), her father is listed as her only
parent. However, according to a birth certificate for Margaret Schneider, born
27th March 1864 at Lyndhurst Vale "Mrs. Bugden Senr" was present at the birth.
Additionally, a birth certificate for Robert Bugden on 28th January 1869 (son of
Robert and Leonora) also gave the place of birth as Lyndhurst Vale and present
at that birth was a "Mrs. John Bugden and Mrs Schneider". These records indicate
that Margaret Roach was alive in 1869 when she and John lived at Lyndhurst Vale.
She disappears from the records after this time.
