Dr Otway's birth details
William Beauclerc Otway set up and operated the first steam-powered quartz-crushing mill in Ballarat.[Notes 1] An American, he arrived in Victoria in December 1853 with his wife Rebecca.[1] No official record of Otway’s birth could be found.
Birth date
The birthday book kept by Otway’s daughter-in-law, Mary Elizabeth Hosking, gives his birthday as 14 July, but no year is given.[Notes 2]
The table below lists the events in Otway’s life for which an age is recorded in the official documents, together with the range of possible birth dates corresponding with the stated age on the date of the event.
|
Event |
Date |
Stated age (years) |
Corresponding birth date range |
|
|
From |
To |
|||
|
Enlistment in US Army[2] |
8 May 1840 |
20 |
9 May 1819 |
8 May 1820 |
|
US Census [3] |
7 Dec 1850 |
31 |
8 Dec 1818 |
7 Dec 1819 |
|
Arrival in New York [4] |
06 Oct 1852 |
38 |
07 Oct 1813 |
06 Oct 1814 |
|
Arrival in Victoria [5] |
27 Dec 1853 |
32 |
28 Dec 1820 |
27 Dec 1821 |
|
Birth record of son [5] |
26 Feb 1858 [Notes 3] |
39 |
27 Feb 1818 |
26 Feb 1819 |
It may be the case that a shipping clerk’s record of passenger details are not as reliable as the official documents. If the two arrival records are neglected, a birth year of 1819 is consistent with all three official documents. However, all three cannot be simultaneously true. If, perhaps, he was 38 when his son was born, then all three can be true if he was born between 9 May 1819 and 7 December 1819. If so, his birth date would be 14 July 1819.
Birthplace
His birthplace is similarly problematic.
|
Event |
Date |
Stated birthplace |
|
Enlistment in US Army |
8 May 1840 |
England |
|
US Census |
7 Dec 1850 |
Louisiana |
|
Newspaper article [6] |
9 February 1855 |
“Land of Cakes”, i.e., Scotland |
|
Birth record of son |
26 Feb 1858 |
Louisiana |
No conclusions or even useful speculation could be derived. My own personal thoughts are provided below.
Personal thoughts regarding Otway’s birthplace
Otway decided for himself who he was, so the fact that he is on record as having claimed three different birthplaces is unsurprising. Here are my thoughts on his possible motivations and how that reflects on his truthfulness.
- While Otway was stationed in Louisiana he lived through a range of experiences during his early adulthood which may have left him with an abiding attachment to the place; perhaps a sense that Louisiana was where he became born as the man he was. So Louisiana may not be his real birthplace.
- Similarly, his experience walking from Missouri to California in 1849 may have been somewhat formative, and if his adoption of the title of “Dr” was inspired by his acquaintance with Dr Joseph Middleton, it may have amused him to also adopt Middleton’s birthplace for the sake of a magazine-style light-reading newspaper article. So Scotland may not be right.
- At the risk of applying an anachronism, it has been my experience that it is quite common for people in their twenties to re-invent themselves, and the act of joining the US Army could have been experienced as a step toward creating a new life for himself. So England may not be his birthplace. See below regarding his name.
So all his stated birthplaces could be imaginary.
But on the other hand, Willie Dow’s birth record is one of the few Australian documents where he gives his occupation as the thing he is actually doing – quartz crushing – rather than as a medical doctor. As discussed in another page, his son was born at a time in his life when he appears to have been successful, settled, and respected by the community, and he may not have needed to pretend he was anything more than he was, and may have given his birthplace with the same honesty he gave his profession.[2] Perhaps he was born in Louisiana. (@Be careful with this one. The record of his application to join the @Mining Institute gives his qualifications as “Mechanics@ M.D.” and his occupation as quartz crusher. But this is also during his Steiglitz time. It would be interesting to list everything where his occupation is stated to see what he claimed when.)
Otway's name
Otway family historians have been looking for his birth record for decades, and continue to do so. The fact that no record has been found, combined with Otway's creative relationship with the truth, has raised the possibility that he may have fabricated his name. William Beauclerk, 10th Duke of St Albans in England, was born three weeks before Otway enlisted (saying he was a sailor from England). I could just see Willie heading off to the enlistment office with the latest news from England tucked under his arm.
See also
Notes
- ↑ Several authors credit Otway with more than this. See, for example, Cooper, B. 'Black Hill - the White Cliffs of Ballarat', Ballarat Historian, v4 n7 (1990)[1] or Guide to Ballarat, F.W. Niven & Co, Ballarat, 1890, p.49
- ↑ The current owner of the birthday book, Otway’s great-great-granddaughter, Barbara Yawney, feels strongly that Mary Elizabeth could be trusted to ensure the date is reliable.
- ↑ This is the registration date, not the actual birth date.
References
- ↑ Potts, E. Daniel (Eli Daniel) & Potts, Annette, (joint author.) (1974). Young America and Australian gold : Americans and the gold rush of the 1850's. University of Queensland Press, St. Lucia, QLD
- ↑ United States Registers of Enlistments in the U.S. Army, 1798-1914, index and images. (1840). In 'FamilySearch : accessed 24 February 2015, William B Otway, 08 May 1840' (Vol. p. 167, volume 043). New York, United States: NARA microfilm publication M233 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.), roll 21; FHL microfilm 350,327.
- ↑ National Archives and Records Administration. (n. d.). 'Seventh Census of the United States, 1850'. Retrieved from https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:S3HY-68TS-1R4?cc=1401638&wc=95RN-Y4N%3A1031313601%2C1031304802%2C1031431801.
- ↑ Shipping records of the District of New York – Port of New York. Ship's manifest for the Ohio arrived at New York 6 October 1852, sailed from Aspinwall [now Colon, in Panama]
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Birth record of William Dow Otway (Otways's son) 12 March 1858 (birth date is 16 January 1858)
- ↑ ROUGH NOTES – BALAARAT, CRESWICK'S CREEK, DAISY HILL, SIMPSON'S RANGES AND CASTLEMAINE. Melbourne Morning Herald. 9 February 1855
Further Reading
External Links
Neil Huybregts 12:58, 18 November 2023 (AEDT)