Rayners of Australia
The information below has been kindly supplied by Leigh Prideaux, in Victoria, Australia.
Rayners at Northbourne
Henry Rayner (1) was born at Shepherdswell 1814 son of James Rayner and Elizabeth Clarke. Henry married Eleanor Marsh who was born at St Margaret's at Cliffe in 1817, daughter of William Marsh and Eleanor Hunt. The marriage took place at the parish church of St Augustine's Northbourne on May 16th 1839.
The 1841 census has Henry and Eleanor living at Cold Harbour Farm Northbourne where Henry was the farm bailiff with their daughter Elizabeth. Between 1840 and 1850 nine children were born to Henry and Eleanor at Northbourne.
The 1851 census has Henry, Eleanor and family living at Frith Farm Guston. By the time of the birth of their tenth child in 1853 Henry and Eleanor and their family were living at Bere Farm Westcliffe. They had two more daughters both born at Guston. Henry died at Broadlees Farm Guston in 1859. Eleanor married James Powell at Dover in 1865.
Henry and Eleanor's children were:
- Elizabeth Clarke Rayner born 1840 at Northbourne
- James Rayner born 1841 Northbourne married Mary Elizabeth Hammond 1869 Dover
- Charlotte Rayner born 1842 Northbourne
- Eleanor Hunt Rayner born 1843 Northbourne
- Henry Rayner (2) born 1845 Northbourne died 1929 Williamstown Victoria Australia
- Phoebe Rayner born 1847 Northbourne died 1897 Cheriton married Thomas Haywood 1876 Woolwich
- Julie Ann Rayner born 1848 Northbourne died 1848
- Frances Rayner born 1849 Northbourne died 1849
- George Rayner born 1850 Northbourne died 1853 Dover
- Charles Rayner born 1853 Westcliffe died 1853 Westcliffe
- Maria Rayner born 1856 Guston
- Sarah Rayner born 1858 Guston married William Sutton 1892 Dover
Henry Rayner (2) 1845-1929
Henry Rayner (2) joined the Royal Navy aged 16 and served for 12 years before being discharged September 17th 1873 and being taken on crew of the Northumberland for a round voyage to Melbourne Australia. Back in London he was discharged in February 1874. He married Ellen Cotterell a servant at Windsor Castle February 28th 1874 at Old Windsor Berks and once again signed on the Northumberland for a voyage to Melbourne. Ellen was also on this voyage. The family story is that Henry and Ellen met through Ellen's brother who it was said was one of Henry's RN shipmates. ( So far no evidence has been found to support this story)
Henry and Ellen made their home in Melbourne where Henry was a seaman in the Victorian Naval Forces and then worked for the Ordnance Branch of the Victorian Defence Dept. He was then a boatman for the Trade and Customs Dept. By 1895 Henry was an assistant lighthouse keeper and served at Cape Otway, Queenscliff and Warrnambool.
Henry and Ellen had ten children born between 1875 and 1895, the first three at Preston and the next seven at Williamstown a bayside suburb. Their eldest son Charles drowned at Williamstown in 1891.
Sometime in 1905 Henry and Ellen and their younger children moved to Altona a suburb next to Williamstown where they operated a dairy farm in Mount Street.
Henry died in 1929 and Ellen in 1942. Both are buried at Williamstown Cemetery. Three children died young and another Violet died during the influenza epidemic which spread throughout the world at the end of the Great War.