Click on images to view (if available) a larger image. Use your browser’s Back button to return to site.
| Name | MELVILLE – Robert |
|---|---|
| Regiment (s) | Royal Marines 43rd Company |
| Regiment Number (s) | 7242 |
| Date/Age/Place/Trade or Profession at Attestation | 13th November 1833 / 18 years 8 months / Gloucester England Labourer |
| Description – Height Complexion/Eyes/Hair/Scars | 5 Ft 7½ in Fresh / Hazel / Brown / None |
| Overseas Service/Duration | Nimrod 17th December 1834 to Ringdove 18th April 1837 Wellesley 30th June 1837 – 8th August 1841 Ferret 11th December 1841 – 7th March 1843 Vanguard 10th February 1845 – 20th March 1849 Swift 27th June 1849 – 29th January 1853 Britannia 25th July 1853 to Simoom 29th November 1855 |
| Length of Service | 22 years 5 months |
| Rank/Date/Place of Discharge | Private / 19th April 1856 / Devonport Plymouth Devon |
| Campaign Medals | China War Medal (1840-42) Crimea War Medal: clasps for Balaklava and Sebastopol Turkish Crimea Medal |
| Intended Residence at Discharge | Plymouth Devon |
| Pension Districts | 1856 – 3rd Plymouth |
| Pension Paid | £16-16-0 per annum |
| Date of Departure and Place England or Ireland | 19th March 1857 London England |
| Ship and Date of Arrival Western Australia | CLARA 3rd July 1857 |
| Date/Place of Birth | 1815 Dumfries Dumfriesshire Scotland |
| Date/Place of Baptism | Not yet known |
| Father Date/Place of Birth | Not yet known |
| Mother Date/Place of Birth Marriage | Not yet known |
| Siblings | Not yet known |
| 1st Wife Date of Birth or Baptism | HARDMAN Margaret Not yet known |
| Date/Place of Marriage | 29th May 1857 at sea aboard the Clara during its voyage to Western Australia |
| Children by 1st Wife | Mary Agnes Ellen (Helen) B 1858 Perth Western Australia M MASON John 1875 Perth Western Australia D 3rd August 1936 Fremantle Western Australia bur Anglican section Karrakatta Cemetery Western Australia Margaret (twin) B 1860 Perth Western Australia M CUMMING Duncan 1884 Fremantle Western Australia D 8th January 1914 Perth WA Buried Karrakatta Cemetery WA Thomas (twin) B 1860 Perth Western Australia Thomas Henry B 1862 Perth Western Australia D 17th November 1883 Geraldton Western Australia Julia B 1865 Perth Western Australia D 1866 Perth Western Australia Robert Richard B 1867 Perth Western Australia D 20th July 1951 Royal Perth Hospital Perth Western Australia |
| Father of 1st wife Date/Place of Birth | Not yet known |
| Mother of 1st wife Date/Place of Birth Marriage | Not yet known |
| 2nd Wife | |
| Date/Place of Marriage | |
| Children by 2nd Wife | |
| 2nd Husband of Wife | IRWIN Samuel Thomas |
| Date/Place of Marriage | 1869 Perth Western Australia |
| Children by 2nd Husband | Sarah Ann B 1870 Perth Western Australia Elizabeth B 1870 (deduced) M CLEMENTS Albert Edward 1898 Beaconsfield WA D 5th February 1948 Mt Lawley Perth WA Bur Karrakatta Cemetery |
| Land Grants Western Australia | None |
| Occupation after Arrival | Assistant Warder Convict Establishment Western Australia 30th January 1859-19th November 1859 |
| Newspaper Articles | Perth Gazette Friday19th February 1869 page 2 death of Robert Melville The West Australian Tuesday 13th January 1914 page 9 Obituary Margaret Cumming The West Australian Tuesday 4th August 1936 page 1 Death notice Agnes Mason The West Australian Saturday 7th February 1948 page 1 Death notice Elizabeth Clements The West Australian Monday 23rd July 1951 page 16 Death Notice Robert Richard Melville |
| Departure from Western Australia | Not applicable |
| Date/Place of Death/Burial | 14th February 1869 Perth Western Australia Not yet known |
| Date/Place of Death/Burial Wife | 9th July 1890 Colonial Hospital Perth Western Australia East Perth Cemeteries Western Australia |
| Will or Probate | None known |
| Further Information | It was during his period of service on the HMS Wellesley that Robert earned his China Medal. He was also serving on the HMS Ferret in 1849 when it transported the political prisoners William Smith O’Brien, T.M.Meagher, Bellew McManus and Patrick O’Donahue to Hobart Tasmania He was on the Britannia when he earned his Crimean Medals It is not clear how Margaret Hardman came to be aboard the Clara as she married Melville on the Clara some nine weeks after ship’s departure. In 1881 his widow applied for a land grant however as Robert had not applied for one during his life time neither she or his son were eligible |