John Bale (c. 1788-?)

+Ann Hovell (c. 1785-12 Sep 1869)

        1-Emely Bale (16 Oct 1818-?)

        2-Frances Elizabeth Bale (c. 1820-?)

       3-Rampling John Bale (16 Aug 1822-18 May 1909)

        +Rosanna Mills (c. 1826-4 Jun 1886)

        4-Mary Ann Bale (7 Jun 1825-?)

        5-Sarah Bale (7 Apr 1829-25 Feb 1911)

        +Richard Hill (c. 1800-10 Dec 1862)

John Bale was born about 1788 in Ketteringham, Norfolk, England. He married Ann Hovell (date and place unknown), and they had several children, including Emely (1818), Frances Elizabeth (1820), Rampling John (1822), Mary Ann (1825), and Sarah (1829), mostly born in Norfolk. John worked as a husbandman and later as a publican and ostler. In March 1834, he was convicted of sheep stealing at the Norfolk Court of Assizes and sentenced to life transportation. He departed from Cork, Ireland, in October 1834 and arrived in Hobart in February 1835. At arrival, he was described as a 46-year-old farm labourer, 5'6¼" tall, with a pale complexion and brown hair. By 1840, John was living near Bothwell and working as a shepherd. Despite charges in 1841 and 1842 for neglect and larceny, he was acquitted and subsequently granted a Ticket of Leave in 1843 and a Conditional Pardon in 1846. His wife Ann and daughter Sarah arrived in Tasmania in 1845. John became a landowner in Bothwell, purchasing multiple plots between 1854 and 1857, including properties on Schaw St, Franklin St, High St, and cultivated land near Bothwell. He was active in local affairs, serving as a juror at an inquest in 1861 and witnessing his daughter Sarah’s marriage in 1867. Ann Bale died in Bothwell in September 1869, aged 84. John Bale conveyed several parcels of his land to Simon Arnett in 1870, though the formal conveyances are not located. The date and place of John’s death remain unknown.

Unless otherwise stated, all events took place in Tasmania.