In the 21st century when the population is better educated some may find it difficult to comprehend so many variations, but I think I can say without any doubt, had our ancestors received a contemporary education, they would have at least been able to write their own names rather than relying on sextons and parish clerks who, in most cases, recorded what they thought they heard. As villagers began to travel in search of work, many surnames became distorted and changed by local dialects, heavy accents, speech impediments or illiteracy, all of which, I suggest, have given rise to the above variations. Illiteracy would also explain why we find the mark “X” as a representation of one's signature in so many marriage documents of that era.

Cambridgeshire (CAM), the county where our ancestors lived and died, lies due north of London. It is bounded by Norfolk and Suffolk to the east, Essex and Hertford to the south, Bedford, Huntingdon and Northampton to the west, and Lincoln to the north. The county, as we know it today, now includes the former county of Huntingdonshire (HUN) which features in the early history of our family. Cambridge, the county's principal city is well known for its university, including Kings College Chapel, and Emmanuel, Jesus and Queen's Colleges.

Researching the family tree has raised some questions about our ancestral path but there is evidence to suggest that the family I have linked back to is the right connection. After consulting one or two relatives in England we have agreed on the genealogy that follows. If more conclusive evidence becomes available this will be reviewed. Acting on this premise, William Thurloe (Thurlow) is therefore the point of commencement for the purpose of these essays.

Among the proliferation of spellings, “Thurlow” and “Thurley” predominate and appear to have been interchangeable, to the extent that some members appear under more than one spelling depending on the source document. My research tells me that the former spelling is more common among those who moved to London or Australia and New Zealand; the latter being retained by those who remained in rural England. We may never know for certain how the different surnames came about but suffice to say that an inability to read or write would have been the underlying reason.

The following pedigree charts will provide a broad brush overview of my links back to William and maybe if your links coincide somewhere along the way, we may have cause to celebrate a connection.

Pedigree

Click to view an enlarged image

Chart 2 shows linkages from John Thurley (II) [1840-1909], to his father Robert Thurley [1802-1875], his grandfather John Thurley (I) [1772-1835] and ggf William Thurloe.

Chart 3 links the two William Thurloes.

Click here to read more about these families.

Central to this family history is St Bathans which takes its name from an old family place name of a New Zealand surveyor, John Turnbull Thomson. The township nestles in a small gully at the foot of Mount St Bathans in Maniototo County, Central Otago where gold was first discovered at nearby Welshmans Gully (later Cambrians or Cambrian) in 1862.

An expedition mounted by the Otago Provincial government the following year was the start of a rush to the area which was further intensified in 1864 by the good fortune of a group of Irishmen from Kildare. By July of that year, St Bathans had grown to 20 stores, four hotels and a bank, together with a population of 1000 people.

Later in the 1860s, the population swelled to 2000 with 13 hotels, among them being the Ballarat, Vulcan (opened by Samuel Hanger in 1869), Montezuma and Commercial. The Vulcan was the only one to survive and when fire destroyed the third building bearing the name Vulcan hotel on the original site, the licence and name were transferred a few doors away to the former Ballarat (built in 1882) which was renamed the Vulcan (#4). This Vulcan, built of sun-dried brick, is still serving the public today. 

The Cambrians Directory of 1891, in an advertisement under the names of William and John Thurlow as joint proprietors, promoted patronage of the Vulcan hotel in these terms:

"This new and commodious Hotel has been well furnished throughout, and is now one of the most comfortable houses on the goldfields. Large Sample Room. Best Brands of Wines Spirits and Beers. New Stable with Loose Boxes. Under the Charge of an Experienced Groom."

In the 1880s John Ewing, a miner, used hydraulic elevators at his Kildare mining claim and the intensive hydraulic sluicing and elevating resulted in the formation of a very large lake which today is about 1km long. By 1902 the Kildare Mine was abandoned and it slowly filled with water. This expanse of water is now known as Blue Lake. Nearby in the higher workings is a seam of coal known as the Burning Pit. Locals say that it began as a fire many years ago and it has been burning continuously ever since, following a seam of coal that dips at an angle of 45 degrees under the township. At times, it simply smoulders, at others it breaks into flame and the ground adjoining this area becomes very hot.

Today, St Bathans is a mere hamlet - described as a historic town within the Otago Goldfields Park - with its few remaining buildings attracting the interest of historians and tourists alike. The centre of attraction is the crater of startling Blue Lake, which serves as a reminder of the gold rush days when thousands, lured by gold, flocked here seeking their fortune. It might best be summed up in Tod Symons' reminiscent poem titled, appropriately, St Bathans.

St Bathans

In the hush of a Winter's evening
In the day's fast fading light,
I stood by St Bathans' township,
And waited the coming night.
And I saw it again in the glory
It knew in the long ago,
In the harsh, raw setting of Central's hills
With their tops white-skiffed with snow.

I heard the ring of shovel and pick,
The clatter of falling stone,
The roar of nozzles, the shouts of men
As I stood by that road alone.
Then darkness fell, the clamour died,
 The workings faded from sight,
And only the sound of tramping feet
Broke the peace of a curfewed night.

Then the hills that were dark were dotted
With a thousand winking lights,
From house and cabin and canvas tent
On flat and gully and heights,
Ghost lights of the days of the gold rush
From the homes of its mining men,
Then the lights went out, and the past had gone
Back into the past again.

So I crossed the road to the "Vulcan",
Of many the very last
Of the old time pubs of its golden days,
And a link with St Bathans' past.
And the warmth, the lights and the laughter
Brought back the present again,
But we drank to the days of long ago,
And the old St Bathans' men.

The Vulcan hotel, St Bathans
1988 ▲ and 2001 ▼

The Vulcan billiard rooms and stables building is all that remains of the original Vulcan hotel which was sited immediately opposite.

This stone cottage, restored by the Department of Conservation in 1990, was originally occupied by Mary and Sam Hanger, owners of the Vulcan hotel
(c1869-1888)
Click to view an enlarged image

Source references are available - please send an email.