George Eldridge married Elizabeth Ralph (or Rolph) on 4 Jun 1791 at Ash-near-sandwich, Kent, England. Their gravestone is located in the St Nicholas churchyard at Thanet, Kent, England showing George died on 6 Feb 1837 aged 68, his wife Elizabeth died on 26 Dec 1838 aged 68 and their son Ralph died in September. Their headstone photo was kindly supplied by Suzannah Foad.
Their son John Eldridge and his family migrated to New South Wales, Australia in 1838 and two children of his elder brother George are also known to have migrated to Australia. They were:
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George Eldridge who married Mary White on 27 Apr 1851 at the Old Church, Saint Pancras, London. Following the birth of their daughter Mary Caroline on 16 Sep 1851 and her baptism at St Pancras on 14 Mar 1852 the family migrated to Australia, possibly initially to New South Wales. Their son George was born at Maryborough in Victoria on 2 Sep 1854 and George was then recorded as being a storekeeper aged 26 and born at Sandwich, Kent, England and Mary as aged 29 and born at London.
Mary Caroline married on 6 Aug 1870 at Barkly Street, St Kilda, Victoria to George Samuel Pontin. George and Mary Eldridge were the witnesses and George Eldridge is shown as a painter. George Samuel Pontin was a plasterer born in Melbourne VIC the son of George Pontin, a plasterer and Jane Reynolds. George and Mary Caroline had six children who were born at St Kilda, Richmond and Prahran in Melbourne. No further record of her brother George is known.
George is thought to be the George Eldridge, occupation paper hanger, who died aged 54 on 27 Aug 1882 of chronic disease of lungs at the Liverpool Asylum, New South Wales. The informant was the undertaker, Liverpool Asylum and all parent and marriage details are shown as unknown.
Mary died at 21 St Edmonds Road Prahran on 11 Nov 1901 and was buried the following day at the Kew Cemetery. Her death certificate shows her as aged 74, was married at Middlesex England to George Eldridge who is shown as dead, having lived 15 years in other Australian Colonies and 35 years in Victoria and her children as Caroline dead. The informant was her grandson, Frederick Charles Pontin.
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Leonard Fitzler James Eldridge who was born on 29 Jul 1832 and baptised on 9 Dec 1832 at Saint Pancras, Old Church, London, England. He married at Burrandong in the District of Wellington, New South Wales, on 21 Oct 1863. His spouse was a widow and was shown as Mary Finley. She was Hannah Mary Tinsey (or Tincey) who was born in Cheltenham Gloucestershire England in 1826 the daughter of William and Maria Tinsey. She first married Edward Edghar in 1843. Her second marriage was to William Stanton in 1847 and her third marriage was to Robert Finley in 1857.
The births of Leonard's four children were all registered at Wellington. In Greville's 1872 Post Office Directory Leonard is listed as a shepherd of Oakley Creek, Burrendong (sic). Leonard is assumed to be the Leonard Eldridge who died aged 54 at the Prince Alfred Hospital Camperdown on 9 Sep 1885. Hannah died at Leichhardt on 19 Aug 1900 and was shown as aged 73 11/12.
