By Lyn Forde – President/Research Officer of St Marys & District Historical Society Inc.

NOW that we are seeing the effects of climate change, so did Thomas Ralph Woodland back 140 years ago in 1882.  Thomas was born in the colony, the third son of William & Ann Woodland of Park Hill, South Creek. He joined the police force in 1865 and became a Constable (No 1598) at the age of 23 years.  At the time of his enlistment his occupation was a Drover. He was 5’6½ tall, blue eyes, fair hair and single. In August, 1867 he wrote a letter to the Sydney Morning Herald saying that “In the report of Bruce’s trial at the last Session for sticking up Morris’s store at Araluen, it is stated that Constable Woodland was held up there. This is incorrect, I was never held up. The men that were held up were Constables Dacey, Staplyton, Richardson and Curran. I encountered the bushrangers the previous day and chased them single-handed and took John Connell who has received a sentence of ten years”. (Bruce was a Scottish bushranger finally remanded and charged with murder). Thomas resigned in September, 1867. At the age of 26 at St Mary Magdalene Church of England, St Marys in August, 1870 by Rev John Vaughn, he married Elizabeth Margaret Royal the only daughter of Peter Royal, Storekeeper at St Marys. In 1884 he wrote a letter to the Nepean Times asking the numerous readers what they thought about the great change in the season just closing in June that year. He said that the fruit trees and grape vines usually made two growths in the season – Spring and Autumn, but there was only one growth in the Spring as the trees and vines having set in midsummer, or at least it was so at St Marys, and his reason for his letter was to gather information from among the many orchardists and vignerons in the district with the view of testing if this occurrence is general throughout the district, because he didn’t  remember seeing this before and, it was worthwhile to watch what effect it had upon the yield for the coming season. He asked, “Is this one of the effects of the great planetary changes that is taking place as predicted by our scientists, or the result of the drought?” In his mind the dry weather was not the cause. The great effect of the season had been the under-drainage of the water and the cracking of the ground leaving the surface dry, and there was no doubt that droughts are a blessing at times as the under-drainage of water takes away the stagnant and poisoned waters of the earth that gather strength between droughts and would, in time, destroy fruit trees, grass and humanity as well. Good grass and vegetables spring from a healthy soil fed from the food of the earth’s yield and, if the yield was pure then all life was pure, and if the yield was foul then all life was  foul after it. As all plants are fed from the minerals of the earth, those minerals being in water matter, and it is to our benefit that the excess of mineral accumulation should be drawn away into the fissures of the deeper earth and the surface made pure. Without a drought this could not be done and the cracking of the ground is letting the diseased matter into the clay beds to pulverise their stagnant matter and make it more rich and fruitful, so if there was never a drought our clay soil would never be anything but clay!”. Also in December that year in Penrith Police Court, Thomas was arrested on a warrant by Constable Cahalan (Parkes Police Station) who sent him to Penrith to be dealt with. Elizabeth stated that Thomas left her in 1882 and during that time he only contributed about £20 towards supporting herself and four children. Thomas could not justify his actions in leaving his wife and family without support. The Bench ordered him to pay 15/- a week for 12 months, together with 6/6d costs and to find sureties himself in £20 and two at £10, or in default he would go to North Parramatta Gaol for 12 months. He defaulted and went to gaol. In November 1898 at Burwood,  Thomas was found at 5pm on the 29th in scrub at Flemington halfway between Parramatta Road and the railway line by Constable John Timbs of No 5 Police Station. He was described as a labourer aged 59 years with a height of 5’6” and his body was described as poorly nourished with a fair complexion, dark hair turning grey and bald on top, grey eyes, dark sandy beard, whiskers and moustache turning grey. He had three teeth missing from his upper jaw, his lower jaw perfect. There were no visible marks or injuries on his body. The lower part of his body and legs were being eaten by ants. He was dressed in dark striped tweed trousers with a faded navy-blue vest, light striped flannelette shirt, dark check shirt, red silk tie and a white cotton handkerchief with the name “woodland” on the corner, along with a blueprint cotton handkerchief.  Money found on his body 1/6- along with one wooden handle bladed knife with the letter “A” on the handle, eyeglasses, led pencil and a box containing pills. Thomas’s clothing was destroyed on the 14th of December, 1898. Thomas was identified by James Richard Woodland his brother who lived at Underwood Street, Botany. Other occupations of Thomas were that of a miner and carpenter. His wife Elizabeth was born in 1851 at Clydesdale, South Creek and died at the age of 71 years in 1922 at the residence of her son Ralph Woodland who lived in Putland Street, St Marys opposite Victoria Park. Three daughters and two sons survived – Mrs E Beacroft {Werrington), Mrs Martin (Gladesville), Mrs Thompson (Granville), and Messrs Percy and Ralph Woodland (St Marys). There were also 14 grandchildren. The funeral was largely attended when her body was laid to rest alongside Thomas in the St Mary Magdalene C of E Cemetery. Two grandsons (Messrs C and E Thompson) and two sons-in-law (Messrs Martin and Thompson) carried the coffin from the house to the hearse and then from the hearse to the church. Many wreaths were forwarded and Reverend O G Dent conducted the service. Picture shows the Woodland Family Crest.

Sources: Nepean Times, NSW Police Gazette 1854-1930, Empire (Sydney, NSW : 1850 – 1875) Wed 31 Aug 1870 – Page 1 – Family Notices, NSW Gaol Description Entrance Book 1884-1866, Ancestry 29th November, 1898, New South Wales Criminal Court Records,  North Sydney Death Records – Registers of Bodies Received, 1881–1901, Australian Death Index 1787 – 1985, Died 1898 (Registered No. 1827)