Charles was born on Norfolk Island on 18th December 1801. He married Ellenor Murphy at St.Johns Church, Launceston on 27th January 1820. Ellenor was born in 1804 in New South Wales, the daughter of Michael Murphy and Hannah nee Williams.
Charles appears to have been able to turn his hand to a number of occupations. Mainly the family trade of carpentry and farming with variable success. He was a wheat farmer in Launceston, where he and Ellenor lived until 1834. Ten children were born to them during these days, but one, James, lived only nine days.
In 1834 Charles and his family moved to New South Wales. It is not known where they lived when the first moved there, but from 1836 Charles and Ellenor lived in the Queanbeyan district.
Sometime before 1845, Charles decided to try his luck in Victoria. Charles and his family set off for Gippsland. They took with them three dray loads of supplies, and after a journey of four months arrived at what is now known as Bairnsdale.
Charles carted wool from here to Port Albert. This was a difficult journey. At the Ford on the Latrobe River about [probably 1/2] a mile from Sale, the bales had to be unloaded, the bullocks swum across the river, and then the dray was pulled through. The river bank and surrounding area was so boggy that when it was reloaded on the other side it sank. This meant that the dray had to be unloaded again, the bales rolled to solid ground, the dray pulled out again and reloaded again.
Charles only had a permit to occupy this Crown land, and when he returned from his trip to Port Albert he found that an Archibald MacLeod had applied for and received a title for the land, which Charles had occupied beside the Mitchell River. MacLeod named this property Bernisdale, later to be spelt Bairnsdale.
Charles then moved his family to another run which he named Cascade. They lost many a head of cattle here in attacks by aborigines, and becoming disheartened, sold out to a Mr. Bodman, who renamed the property Trenton Valley.
From here in 1845, Charles and his family moved to Woodside, and once again named their property Cascade. At this time he must have been querying the wisdom of his move from Queanbeyan, however things improved, and he later bought a run higher up the Bruthen Creek, and later occupied Lowlands on Lake Wellington. In 1856 Lowlands is recorded as being stocked with 5,000 sheep, 300 cattle and 6 horses.
Charles died of general prostration at Bruthen on 20th February 1862. Ellenor died at Tarraville on 5th July 1881. Most of their children stayed in the area and there are descendants of this branch of the family living there to this day.
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Compiled by Gayle Thomsett from material supplied by Miriam Marshall.
Charles Lucas was born at Norfolk Island on the 18th December, 1801, the tenth child and sixth son of Nathaniel and Olivia Lucas. In April, 1805 he sailed with his family on the "Investigator" to Sydney, where he lived until shortly after his father's death in 1818.
There is evidence of Charles' older brothers, William and Nathaniel, being in Launceston in 1817. It is probable that after the death of Nathaniel Senior his son Nathaniel returned to Sydney to escort his mother and younger brothers and sisters to Tasmania. In September, 1818, Olivia, Nathaniel Junior, George, Charles, Sarah, Mary and Thomas were passengers on the schooner "John Palmer", bound for Port Dalrymple.
At the age of 18 years, Charles married the 17-year-old Ellenor [or Ellen] Murphy, who was born in Sydney, the daughter of Michael Murphy [Marine] and Hannah [nee Williams]. The ceremony took place at St. John's, Launceston on the 27th January, 1820 and was performed by John Youl, Chaplain, in the presence of Nathaniel Lucas and Timothy Daly. On the same day, Charles' sister Sarah married James Hortle.
As was the case with so many early settlers, Charles appears to have been willing to turn his hand to a variety of occupations. Throughout his life he seems to have combined carpentry [the family "trade"] and farming with variable success.
Charles was a wheat farmer as a young man in Launceston, where he and Ellenor lived until 1834. Ten children were born to them during these years, but one, James, lived only nine days. In 1834, in a boat he reputedly built himself, Charles set off for Sydney with a cargo of wheat. The schooner ran aground at Twofold Bay and had to be abandoned. Crew and passengers eventually reached Sydney after a gruelling overland trip of about 300 miles. It is not clear whether Charles took the whole family with him on this voyage, or whether he sent for them later, but from 1836 Ellenor Lucas and their growing family lived in the Queanbeyan district of New South Wales.
In November, 1845 the family, by now including six sons and eight daughters, set off in a party of twenty-one for the greener pastures of Gippsland. They took with them three dray loads of provisions, and after a journey of four months arrived at what is now known as Bairnsdale.
Charles Lucas carted wool from here to Port Albert, a difficult undertaking to say the least. At the ford on the Latrobe River (about 1/2 mile below the present Swing Bridge at Sale) the bales had to be unloaded, the bullocks swum across, and the dray finally pulled through. The boggy nature of the river bank caused the dray to sink after it had been reloaded on the other side, and crossing this morass involved unloading and rolling the bales, pulling out the dray, and reloading yet again.
Having only a permit to occupy Crown Lands issued by the Police Magistrate in Queanbeyan, Charles returned to find that Archibald Macleod had applied for and received title to the land which Lucas occupied on the Mitchell River. Macleod named this run Bernisdale, later spelt Bairnsdale.
The Lucas family moved on to another run which they named "Cascade" after Cascade on Norfolk Island where Charles and several of his brothers and sisters had been born. They lost many head of cattle here in attacks by aborigines, and becoming disheartened, sold out to Bodman, who renamed the property "Trenton Valley".
From here, in October 1845, Charles Lucas moved to Woodside, and another "Cascade". At this time he must have been querying the wisdom of the move from New South Wales. However, things improved, and he later bought out Buntine from a run higher up Bruthen Creek, and subsequently also occupied "Lowlands" on Lake Wellington. In 1856, "Lowlands" is recorded as being stocked with 6 Horses, 300 cattle, and 5,000 sheep.
Undoubtedly Charles was assisted at different times on his various properties by several of his sons. (In 1852, in an action against William O'Rourke, John Lucas is recorded as being in charge of "Cascade" for his father Charles.) This has given rise to some problems for present-day researchers, as Charles (Thomas) and many of the records of happenings in the early days of Gippsland do not distinguish between Charles Senior and Charles Junior.
Charles Junior died in 1918, aged 96. He was a well-known identity and something of an oracle in the district. However it is said that he was not above embellishing the many colourful tales he told. Charles Junior did not marry until 1856, and is known to have moved around considerably, particularly during the gold rushes. Charles Senior remained at Bruthen Creek with his wife and the younger members of his family.
Charles Lucas Senior lived a full and varied life, though not an easy one. He died on 20 February, 1862 "of general prostration". Ellenor died at Woodside in 1881.
Children of Charles and Ellen Lucas
A. Ellen Lucas I. Caroline Lucas
B. Charles Thomas Lucas J. Elizabeth Lucas
C. Nathaniel Lucas K. William Lucas
D. John Lucas L. Joseph Lucas
E. Jane Lucas M. Mary Ann Lucas
F. George Lucas N. Sarah Lucas
G. James Lucas O. Emma Olivia Lucas
H. Susannah Lucas P. Robert Samuel Lucas