Edward Humphreys (c.1765-1804), a dustman, was found guilty on 8 December 1784 at the Old Bailey, London, of stealing one cloth great coat, valued at 30 shillings and one pair of leather boots valued at 10 shillings from a house. Sentenced to 7 years transportation, he was sent to the Censor hulk on 23 May 1785 and was discharged to the Scarborough in February 1787. He arrived at Sydney in January 1788 as part of the First Fleet.
Humphreys (as Edward Humphries) married Mary Williams on 14 February 1791 at St Philip's Church, Sydney; both signed the register with an 'X'. The couple had at least five children. He was buried (as Edward Humphries) on 21 October 1804 at St John's Church, Parramatta.
* information from Mollie Gillen, The Founders of Australia: A Biographical Dictionary of the First Fleet (1989), pp 183-84
'Humphreys, Edward (c. 1765–1804)', People Australia, National Centre of Biography, Australian National University, https://peopleaustralia.anu.edu.au/biography/humphreys-edward-31327/text38721, accessed 9 June 2023.
c.
1765
Deptford,
Kent,
England
20 November,
1804
(aged ~ 39)
Sydney,
New South Wales,
Australia
Includes subject's nationality; their parents' nationality; the countries in which they spent a significant part of their childhood, and their self-identity.
Includes the religion in which subjects were raised, have chosen themselves, attendance at religious schools and/or religious funeral rites; Atheism and Agnosticism have been included.
Crime: theft (house)
Sentence: 7 years
Court: Old Bailey, London
Trial Date: 8 December 1784
(1784)
Occupation: dustman
Children: Yes (5)