Continuing with the children of Robert BARTLEY and Betsy BENEST, of St Helier, Jersey, Channel Islands
Amelia Bartley and John Queree in
New Zealand
Amelia Bartley was
born in September 1841. After her father died she left Union Court and, with her siblings Louisa and Alfred, went to live with their sister Jane Hamon. Jane and
Charles Hamon ran a drapery business in St Helier. Amelia was employed as their drapery assistant. Shortly after the census was taken in 1861 she married
John Queree.
John was born on Jersey about 1839, a child of
John QUEREE, a mason, and Joanna GEACH, a dressmaker. His mother was born in
Ireland. He had a sister Joanna who was born in
1840.
In 1841 the family lived in
Albert St, St Helier but his father died about 1850. They are recorded in the
census of 1851 at 2 Columberie St. John was twelve at the time.
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| 1851 census Queree |
In 1854 his mother remarried to Mr Shapcott.
The family enlarged then with the birth of Ada Shapcott in 1855 and Mary in
1858. Mr Shapcott died about 1860. John was living at home with his mother and
step-sisters in 1861, at 34 King St. John’s mother passed away between 1862 and
1871.
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| 1861 census Queree |
About 1857 John’s sister Joanna married
John Hutton SNOOK, a master mariner. Their family included Henry (1858), Joanna (1859), Adolphus (1861), John (1862), Evelyn (1863), Jessie (abt. 1866), Maude (1866), Annie May (1867).
By 1871 she was
a widow with eight children of her own, as well as the care of her step sisters
Ada and Mary.
Joanna must have been a capable person as family research suggests she was an accomplished and active musician. She also worked with her brother in his business.
John Queree worked as a boot maker in
the town, not far from Hamon’s drapery. He and Amelia
set up home at 19 Trinity St in St Helier. Their first child John, born 1863,
died as an infant. Earnest (b 1864),
Theodore (b 1865), Amelia (1868), Florence (1869), who died young, and Walter
(1872) completed the family. Just after Amelia was born they moved again to 29
King St.
All of the Queree children went to
work in their uncle Hamon's drapery business when they reached the age of 14. The footwear business was unable to support them all.
The letters home from Auckland
in the early 1880's would have been very positive in tone.
Auckland was booming. Edward was
well established as an architect. Robert was looking forward to a comfortable
retirement, his children having made successful careers and marriages in New
Zealand.
About 1882 John and Amelia Queree made the decision to emigrate to Auckland to join Robert and Edward and their families.
John's sister Joanna had already left St Helier. She remarried in 1881, to Thomas LE SUEUR. This couple were married and lived in Brighton, England. (
BDM2b406202) Joanna died there in 1903.
All the Queree family except Earnest are
listed on the passenger list of the 'Westmeath' which arrived in Auckland on
the 16th of May 1883.
Earnest gave his arrival date as 1884 but his ship
has not yet been found.
At first John
pursued his trade as a boot maker, but the Queree’s were barely settled in
Auckland before the economy tightened.
In the late 1880's and early 1890's the
town experienced it’s most severe depression. In 1891 they lived at Hepburn St,
with all except Earnest at home. He may have been living with his uncle
Edward’s family in Devonport for several years. In 1899 the Queree’s were
living in Kent St, moving later that year to Hepburn St.
Earnest carried on
his earlier trade as a draperer and was employed by Milne and Choyce and later
with DSC. He married Maria PHILCOX in 1889 at Devonport. Alf Bartley was best
man at their wedding.
The Philcox Connection
Maria’s father was a
builder in Devonport and a friend of Edward Bartley’s. William Philcox was
about the same age as Edward, being born in 1838. He arrived in Auckland on 8
August 1856 aboard the Lord Burleigh.
He married Sarah Elizabeth Rose the year after.
In the Jury list for 1858 he is
listed as a carpenter of Barrack St. The first of their children was born at
Khyber Pass, which was to be the family home until their later move to the
North Shore. He may have been employed by E.I.Matthews and worked with Edward
from his first days in the Colony. They were both founder members of the Eight
Hour Movement in Auckland.
By 1862 he owned two
other properties at 92 and 94 Albert St which he rented out.
He was in partnership with another carpenter, a Mr Vaughan from late 1863 until
August 1866. They worked from leased premises on the corner of Albert and
Wellesley St.
At this time Edward
was in partnership with Seering Matthews, as Matthews and Bartley. They owned
their premises in Grey St. On the night of 7 February 1867 fire broke out
there, completely engulfing the building and sweeping through neighbouring
properties. While the property itself was insured there was a complete loss of
all stock and machinery, including work in progress to complete contracts.
Financially it was a particularly difficult period for the Bartley family, as
the year before a rental property Edward owned on the corner of Drake St,
leased to Mr Conway the shoemaker, had been gutted in a similar spreading fire.
The Matthews and Bartley partnership, begun on 2 Jan 1865 was dissolved 26 Feb
1870
and Edward continued as a sole trader until he and William Philcox went into
partnership together about 1873. The two men shared a
musical interest as well. They were founding members of the Auckland Choral
Society and sang together in the Christies Minstrels in the 1860’s.
Together they had
moved to Devonport and joined the parish of Holy Trinity there. Both Mr Philcox
and Edward Bartley served as choir masters for the parish at various times. In
1875 they presented a pair of kneeling stools to the parish and a donation of
£35 towards a new organ.
Later they designed and presented a new lecturn.
William Philcox died
at Buchanan St Devonport in July 1917.
Maria Queree (nee Philcox) was a very
talented pianist, active in the Devonport Musical Society, as were Earnest and
Theo Queree, along with their Bartley cousins. The families’ interests meshed
throughout Auckland arts and cultural groups.
At the Philcox home in Devonport,
called “The Shrubbery” for it’s extensive gardens, she held At Home recitals
from her late teens. These events, and the public accompaniments and recitals
she was engaged for, brought the Philcox family into contact with most of the
local and overseas talent. As she wished to continue her career after her
marriage Maria needed suitable premises from which to continue the teaching,
recitals and networking demanded by her profession. Her father built a home in
Devonport for the young couple as a wedding gift.
After her marriage
Maria travelled widely, appearing regularly in recitals and concerts in
Wellington. In April 1893 she advertised in the Evening Post as a tutor of
pianoforte. This was the same year she made her debut in
Wellington as an accompanist. The occasion was a benefit concert to raise funds
for Miss Fisher to study in Melbourne.
From the beginning her Wellington engagements were steady.
. The couple were still resident in Auckland however.
Their young daughter Renee was often present at the At Home concerts as a
toddler.
 |
| Observer 3 July 1899 |
In later trained years Renee trained in Berlin and toured England as an accompanist in
1913, staying with her brother Theo Jnr while she was in the UK. She came back
to New Zealand just before the outbreak of the war as her father had died in
May 1914. He was buried at Karori
Cemetery with a memorial cross provided by his Auckland friends.
The Queree brothers
moved to Wellington about 1900 to set up their drapery business at 116 Willis
St, formerly
Walsh’s.Walter Queree had also been living in Auckland and joined
the business in Wellington about that time. He had survived a distressing
experience at New Year in 1899. He was boating at Lake Pupuke with his friends
the Hall brothers. Tracey Hall, well known in amateur operatic circles, was
unable to swim. He drowned on the lake despite Walter’s attempts to save him.
Theo Queree was in employment as a
tailor and later window dresser for Milne and Choyce. He was active as
costumier for the Choral Society and amatuer operatic societies in Auckland. He
designed the sets for many of theatrical events held in Devonport and was well
known as a talented artist, singer and musician as well. In March 1895 he
joined with Alf Bartley and his sister Amelia to perform at the concert opening the
annual show of the Birkenhead and Northcote Fruitgrowers.
He also sang at the very fashionable occasion of a soiree at the home of
R.H.Abbott, where Alf Bartley was the principle accompanist. He remained in
Auckland until about October 1903 when he left for Wellington to work initially
for D.I.C..
Amelia Annie had
stayed at home with her parents. In 1892 she met John Pollard MOUZER, a teacher,
whose father and uncle were tailors. John had been born in Suffolk and immigrated
with his family to New Zealand. They were married in the All Saints Church in
Auckland on the 27th of December 1892. By this time her Father was in his
fifties and employed as a warehouseman.
The Mouzer’s made their home in Selwyn
St in Auckland. By 1899 John Mouzer was working as a piano tuner. Unfortunately
neither their finances nor their marriage had prospered and the couple
separated about that time.
Amelia Bartley died
in Auckland on 9 August 1903. She was buried at Purewa.
After his wife’s death John Queree went to join his sons in Wellington. He remained there until his death in 1913 at Nurse Jackson’s private Hospital, suggesting that he was not in good health at the time of Amelia’s death. His remains were returned to Auckland where he was buried beside his wife on 22 June 1913.
The Children of Amelia Bartley and John Queree
John Alfred (1863-1864)
Earnest Hugh (1864-1914)
Theodore George
(1865-1954)
Amelia Annie
(1868-?)
Florence Louisa
(1869 - ?)
Walter John (1872-1944)
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