James, Bennett John

Fast Facts

Type of person	Individual
Date of birth	1818
Place of birth	Wendron, Cornwall, England
Date of arrival	1840
Principal occupation	Store-keeper and the owner of a flour mill
Date of death	1865
Place of decease	Willunga

Bennett (or Bennet) John James was born on 15 Feb 1818 in Wendron, Cornwall, England. He was the second son of John James (1784-1838) and Martha (nee Johns) (1789- ).

Bennett John James married Jennifer Williams (1818-1906) on 8 Oct 1839 at Crowan, Cornwall. She was the daughter of Thomas Williams (1790-1856) and Honor (née Wallis) (1794 –1876).They had four children:

Mary (1840-1926) b. at Hindmarsh, m. James Marks Cornelius (1838-1923) at the Wesleyan Chapel, Willunga on 8 Nov 1860.

Eliza (1843-1922) b. at Hindmarsh, m. John Marshall junior (1842-1932) on 3 Nov 1863 at Willunga.

William (1847-1931) b. at Willunga, m. (1st) Milbah Maria Tink (1846-1879) on 23 March 1869 at Willunga, (2nd) Mary Elizabeth Petters (1846-1941) on 13 July 1882.

Thomas (1850-1887) b. at Willunga, m. Eliza Humphris (1851-1915) on 19 Feb 1874 at McLaren Vale.

Bennett, aged 22, and his new wife Jennifer (nee Williams), arrived in South Australia on 5 Feb 1840 on board Java. Jennifer's father Thomas Williams and family were also aboard Java on this voyage. His older brother, William James (1810-1883), also emigrated to South Australia and lived at Kapunda.

In the early 1840s, Bennett and Jennifer James and their growing family lived at Hindmarsh where two daughters were born (Mary 1840 and Eliza 1843). Bennett James was a store-keeper and the owner of a flour mill. He owned Lot 264 in section 700 (Willunga South) that was located adjacent to Lot 282 owned by Thomas Williams. He sold Lot 264 to Thomas Trenowth in 1859.

Bennett John James died on 31 Jan 1865 at Willunga and he is buried in the Wesleyan Methodist (Uniting) Church Cemetery in Willunga.

Sources

• Passengers in History Database – South Australian Maritime Museum
• South Australian Births – Index of Registrations 1842-1906
• South Australian Marriages – Index of Registrations 1842-1937
• South Australian Deaths – Index of Registrations 1842-1972
• SA Census 1841
• South Australian Advertiser 17 June 1859:1
• South Australian Register 10 Nov 1860:2

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