William Goetz
Memories from an original note book written by William Goetz who was later to marry Mary Spindler. Both of whom were child passengers on the sailing ship "Caesar".
Quote: "This book has been the Passbook of my Vater (Father) Simon Goetz, when he was a journey man by trade a mason and in his days no one could travel without such passbook and every tradesman had to be a journey man for a certain number of years before being apprenticed."
Memories of my Past Life
by William Goetz 4/12/1876
I was born on 26th November 1842 at Dertingen, being a Mortflecken, signifying a Market Place between a town and a village it belongs to the Grand Duchy of Baden and is situated on the border of Baden and Bavaria about 2 miles distance from the River Maine, the nearest largest town are Werthein on Main and Wuryberg. The railway runs through at present. Dertingen has about 1,000 inhabitants, the principal part of them are farmers, but there is all other mechanics, Stores and Public Houses as required. A great quantity of Wine is grown there.
When I was about 6 years old I was sent to school and I turned out a very good scaller (Scholar) amongst my fellow scallers. My Vater (Father) was a Stonemason which trade he kept up while he was in Germany. My mother was doing all kinds of farm work what we had to do of our own and sometimes do farm labour for other people besides we had a cow and she had to find food for her for all the cattle is fed in the stables here, it was hard struggle for poor people to get on there for wages were very low and heavy taxes to pay it was very difficult to save a little money or to buy a little land.
When I was about 12 years old my Vater resolved to immigrate and there was just an opening for Australia and a great many families in our Naberhood (neighbourhood) who had friends there where going, so Vater made up his mind to go also with his familie to better ourselves in Australia and so accordingly we sold our house and what land we possest and other property, for it cost us a good bit of money to pay travelling expenses.
My Vater left behind 2 married sisters and Mother left behind 3 brothers and 2 sisters all married besides her aged Mother. We left Werthein-on-Main on the 6th November 1854 in a steamboat and during that day we saw and passed the following towns: Stadt, Prazelton, Fraulenback, Hoplenburg, Reichsterhausen, Wittenburg, Heubook, Klingenburg, Hshaffenburg, Hanan and arrived in the evening at Frankfurt. We lodged there that night in the Yasthausyam ffen, the next day we left Frankfurt on-Main on another steamer when we came to Mainz where the River Main (the river we came) runs into the river Rheine, the chief river of Germany. From Mainx where we stayed an our (hour) we passed the following places, the Mausthurm, Soreh, the englishe Hell, Caleny and arrived in the night at Koelln (Calahghn) we stayed there one day in the Hotel Manneheim Hof. The following day we started at 6 o'clock per Railway through Prussia, Hanover and arrived at 12 o'clock at night at Hamburg, about 400 miles the following day we went per steamer on the River Elbe to Hamburg a large seatown. It is a beautiful place with the nice large houses and the immense lot of ships in the Harbour trading to all parts of the world. We lodged at the Hotel Zum Noralsdeutshen House. We left Hamburg on the 15th November for Australia in the Ship "Casar" (Caesar). We had on board about 460 passengers including crew, by far too many for the size of the ship. We had a very rough wether (weather) for the first few days till we passed the English Channel. I felt very ill and sea sick at first but I had good health afterwards. The whole voyage after we was about a month on the sea great sickness broke out on our ship supposed to been the cholera. Mother was very ill for 12 days and not expected to live. Some were only ill a few hours when they died, there was no less than 74 who died even some of the strongest man and woman and some children were left orphans altogether.
We were 130 days on sea when we arrived on the 10th of March 1855 at Twofold Bay. Our vessel was the first large size vessel that went into that Port. We left about 90 passengers at Eden and after laying a fortnight in Yasentine (probably meant for Quarantine) we left on the 21st and arrived in Sydney on the 26th March. We stayed there about a week when we hired with Mr Hebdeh from Monera (Monaro) as Shepherds. I and Vater to mind a flock each for a rate of £50.00 ($100.00 approx.) per annum and for a term of 2 years.
We left Sydney in a steamer and came back to Twofold Bay again when it took the Bullock Drivers no less than 13 days to bring us from Eden to Bombala the road being so bad in those days. On the 26th of April we arrived at our destination Makeratta about 6 miles from Bombala where our Master was living and from thence we shifted to the Sheep Station where we stayed 2 years, but Shepherding seemed a very lonely Bissnes (business) for us and we didn't like it so after 2 years service we left the station and came to live in Bombala where Vater was a Stonemason, our first work was to build a foundation and 4 chimnies (chimneys) for a large house at Bibbenluke. We afterwards had work at the Church of England in Bombala, and if I had nothing in particular to do with Vater I would take any work I could find. I learned sheep sheering (shearing) which I done for 10 seasons but as afterwards the work of stonemason began to slacken as there came several other masons in the district, the time of free selection of land came out, we took up a piece of land 150 akers (acres). We sold the house and allotments and a little farm we had joining Bombala and came to live on the selection at the Black Lake Burnima Run, 7 miles from Bombala where we resided 7 years. We build on it a stone house and improved the farm when we had no other work to do.
I went to be married on the 11th of September 1866 to Mary Spindler there living in Bega. Her parents came out in the same ship we came out in. She was born on May the 19th 1845 at Frankfurt A/M. After we were married about 18 months my wife began to get sick and all though we used all the Medical Man in Bombala she didn't seem to get any better. I was advised to take her to Sydney in a Hospital, we accordingly went and after she stayed there about 10 weeks she seemed to be much better and she returned to Bega to her Mother, as her Vater was dead before we got married. The Doctor advised me not to take her to Monera again as the climate was too cold for her complaint, it was the liver complaint she suffered with, and as my sister was also married in Bega we sold out on Monera all together and from thence we resided near Bega. I bought first a small farm near the Parsonage where our first daughter was born, Mary Rosina on the 23rd of November 1870.
After residing a while in Bega and there wasn't much work there Vater and I and my Brother-in-law Andrew Koellener agreed to buy the present farm at Jenkins Flat on the 8th of August 1871 from Messers Manning, and Allan, and Ward. On the 10th of July 1872 William Charles was born and on the 16th of May 1874 Luise was born. On about the end of September 1874 I began to get sick with my present diesiese (disease) on the lungs. I took the Bega Doctor Mr Shiels, but he didn't seem to do me much good , as after about 5 weeks I went to Sydney to try the Doctors there, after being there about 3 weeks I felt much better and I went home again and for a short time I kept still mending but gradually the diesiese seems to get more hold of me and about the middle of February 1875 I began to get so bad that the Doctor Evershed and my own people had great doubt of my recovery but I got gradually a little better so that I am able to work about the house. Dated 4/12/1876.
(End of story)
The writer would explain here that when William Goetz finished writing this interesting story in 1876 he would have been 34 years of age. He apparently fully recovered from his illness because he went on to live to age 68 and died on the 20th November 1910. His wife Mary (nee Spindler) went to live to the age of 76 and died on the 10th September 1921. Why William Goetz didn't continue with the story of his life will never be known.
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