HAMILTON Ann

Name	Ann HAMILTON
Country Of Origin	England
Born	1798
Died	1875
Birth/ Baptism	10 July 1798, England
Parents	Rev. Robert Campbell Drought and Ann (possibly Gray)
Skills	Business Owner, Manager
Work Locations	Hobart
Street Address	Liverpool Street, Hobart
Marriage/Spouse	17 September 1815, St Andrew, Holborn, London, to James Giddings. 8 March 1851, 36 Liverpool Street, Hobart, to Thomas Hamilton.
Arrival	2 September 1830, with two young sons, James and Robert, and her father, Reverend Drought, on the ship Lang, from London. The Reverend was the new chaplain for Green Ponds and Jericho districts. Ann travelled under the surname Gray.
Other	Ann was the illegitimate daughter of Reverend Robert Campbell Drought and Ann (possibly Gray). She was brought up by the Cross family in London. October 1821: Husband James was convicted of theft and sentenced to seven years transportation. He arrived in New South Wales on the convict ship Eliza in 1822, and after serving his sentence, used the surname Gray. James received a Certificate of Freedom in 1828. 27 April 1836: Death of Ann’s father. Reverend Drought provided for Ann in his will, which stated she managed a school at Green Ponds for him. Her father requested that her inheritance ‘may not be liable to the debts or control of her present or any future husbands’. Trust estates and property were to be divided into equal shares between her two sons immediately following her death. May 1850: Husband James died at Green Ponds. March 1851: Ann remarried to watchmaker and jeweller Thomas Hamilton. 1865: Following the death of Thomas, Ann petitioned for probate to settle a dispute between two wills and Thomas Alfred Hamilton junior. The court ruled in Ann’s favour. June 1865: Employee of 21 years, James Rait, took legal action against Ann Hamilton for unpaid salary following her husband’s death. The Hobart Town Advertiser reported on 10 June 1865, ‘the jury returned a verdict for the defendant, in as much as no account had been rendered.’ October 1869: Ann wound up the business and auctioned gold and silver watches, clocks, jewellery, iron safes, barrel organs, and fancy goods. SEE February 2024 blog: https://handsoftime.com.au/burglaries-bankruptcy-and-an-unfortunate-death-the-challenges-of-the-hamilton-watchmaking-family-2/
Death	2 November 1875 at her residence, Harrington House, Harrington St, Hobart – 77 years old watchmaker’s widow. Cause of death: phthisis
References
W K Piper, The Tragedy of The Reverend Robert Drought, September 1999 (Tasmanian Ancestry Vol. 20, No. 2). TAHO: CUS30/1/1 Arrival 1830; AD960/1/1 Will No. 106, 1836; CSO1/1/711/15553; CSO3/1/3 098 G; RGD37/1/10 no479 Marriage 1851; RGD34/1/1 no4389; RGD35/1/8 no3074 Death 1875. Ancestry: England Select Births & Christenings 1798; Australia Convict Transportation Register 1822; New South Wales Certificates of Freedom 1828. Colonial Times 24 September 1830; Hobart Town Courier 4 December 1830; Launceston Advertiser 12 May 1836; Hobart Town Advertiser 10 June 1854, 10 June 1865; Tasmanian Times 30 June 1869; The Mercury (Hobart) 27 October 1869; The Examiner (Launceston) 30 November 1875.