Richard “Ozzie” Osbourne Fletcher 1833 - 1864
Born: December 24, 1833 in Grosses Coques, Nova Scotia.
Died: April
1, 1864 in Maroochydore, Queensland, Australia
Spouse: Luisa
Wilhelmina (Krige) Fletcher,
married October 24, 1853, Patryskloof, South Africa.
(Click here to see the entire document.)
Children: None
Father’s name:
Richard Fletcher Birth
place: possibly Shelburne, Nova Scotia
Mother’s name:
Mary (Hanselspiker) (Bain) Fletcher Birth place: possibly New Jersey, America
Siblings: George S. Fletcher (This
link will return you to Fannie (Dane) Fletcher’s page.)
It appears that Richard Osbourne Fletcher, who
apparently preferred to be called Ozzie to distinguish himself from his father
and grandfather, was one of those unfortunate individuals that lived close to
fame or greatness, but never really achieved it for himself. Family oral history says that he was born
while his parents were travelling from Yarmouth, Nova Scotia to Digby to enjoy Christmas with his mother’s family. After crossing over the Metaghan
River, his mother went into labor and gave birth after they were through the
woods by Grosses Coques, roughly 20 miles short of
Grandma’s house. Grosses Coques is in Acadian country and is rich in history. Please see this Taste
the World website for some insight into the Acadian culture.
His parents are noted as Richard and Mary
Fletcher. This was Mary’s second
marriage, the first being to George Bain.
George Bain and Mary Hanselspiker were married
in Digby, Nova Scotia on June 5, 1808. I cannot determine if Mary was the daughter
of Conrad or William Hanselspiker. Both lived in Digby
and both had a daughter named Mary. The Hanselspikers were Loyalists and moved to Nova Scotia after
the Revolutionary War where they had fought on the British side. They lived in New Jersey during the war. Richard Fletcher may be related to Dr.
Richard Fletcher, an army physician that arrived in Yarmouth in 1762. Dr. Fletcher’s wife was the daughter of John McKinnan and was noted for her literary ability. LDS has a record of a Mary McKinnon born to
John McKinnon and Flora (Lamont) McKinnon.
Dr. Fletcher has the infamous legacy as having discovered a Runic Stone
in Yarmouth, supposedly proving that Vikings had landed in North America well
before Christopher Columbus. Nicknamed
the Fletcher
Stone (Link takes you to an 1892 article by K.G.T. Webster), it
unfortunately has all but been proven to be a hoax. There is more discussion in the book The World’s Greatest Unsolved Mysteries
by Lionel and Patricia Fanthorp, available in Google
Books.
Supposedly
the characters read “Lief to Eric
raises this monument” and carries the date 1007.
Another analysis
of the stone is at: http://users.eastlink.ca/~oginword/main.htm
Ozzie grew up on Yarmouth, Nova Scotia and as a young
man began working as an apprentice seaman, but followed his brother George S.
Fletcher to Australia early in 1853.
(See more info about George S. Fletcher immigrating to Australia on the
heroic schooner Brilliant on Fannie (Dane) Fletcher’s page.) He only got as far as Cape Town, South Africa
when a storm damaged the ship’s spars and they were forced to take port. It was while stranded in South Africa that he
met Luisa Wilhelmina Krige and eventually married her
at the family farm in Patryskloof. It is
interesting to note that Luisa’s younger cousin Sybella Margaretha “Isie” Krige went on to marry Jan
Christiaan Smuts, who became Field Marshall Smuts, eventually Prime
Minister Smuts, and routed the British at Doornkloof in the 1902 Boer War. Ozzie and Luisa eventually caught up to the
rest of the Fletcher family in Melbourne, Australia.
Ozzie continued with his seafaring, eventually
signing on as 2nd Mate with the groundbreaking English Steamship Great Britain. It was during this employ in 1859 that Ozzie
had yet another brush with history, namely the infestation of rabbits in Australia. The story goes that it was our Mr. Fletcher that
signed the bill of lading for the 24 rabbits ordered by Thomas Austin, therefore
approving them to be delivered to Australia.
It was this Thomas Austin who later released these rabbits into the wild
and they reproduced like, well, rabbits.
My wife’s Father-in-Law, Howard Hardesty, who is a descendant of the
Fletchers on his mother’s side, shares that Ozzie Fletcher made the following
comment when asked about the rabbits, “I had no idea.”
Left:
The Steamship Great Britain. For more information please go to: http://www.ssgreatbritain.org/BriefHistory.aspx
Right:
A European rabbit in Tasmania, Australia. (Image taken from
Wiki-pedia.)
The ss Great Britain made a name for itself voyaging all over the world,
from Hong Kong to the Falklands.
However, Ozzie yearned to stay closer to home, so in mid-1860 left for a
much smaller vessel, the sloop Elk which
only stayed in Australian waters. At
about this same time, rumors were prevalent about gold being found in
Australia’s interior. With much
anticipation and hopes of hearing about gold, the Elk was hired to go to the Gulf of Carpenteria
on the north coast of Australia near Wellesley and wait for the Burke and Wills
expedition. Unfortunately, mostly
because of inept leadership, this south to north expedition to explore
Australia’s inland regions never reaches the north coast. They had to stop almost within sight of the
coast and turn back because of impassable mangrove swamps. The Elk’s
crew, hoping for news of gold, ended up with nothing except word of another
government contract that sent them to run supplies for HMS Caroline being sent to help with the outbreak of Maori tribal
hostilities of New Zealand’s Taranaki Province. Later, they were transferred to Auckland, New
Zealand where the Elk was chiefly
used as a despatch-boat. I can find no record of her
being engaged in any action. Her commission ended on the October 12th, 1863,
and she was sold out of the service, the purchaser being Captain Davidson.
Robert O’Hara Burke and William John
Wells, leaders of the failed expedition.
(Images taken from Wiki-pedia.)
During this extended period away, Ozzie’s wife Luisa
must have lost her hope for a happy marriage and divorced him. Having lost his wife, no children, and little
money, Ozzie next tried to pursue the rumors of gold, but got no further than
the coastal community of Maroochydore. Family oral tradition tells us the story that
Ozzie, while drunk on the beach, stripped down nude, and fell asleep on the
night of April 1, 1864. Ozzie’s lifeless
body was found, having died from exposure.
To this day, there is a history of nudism in Maroochydore,
including large numbers on Alexandria Bay for the Annual Nude Olympics. The Sunshine
Coast Daily has this interesting article related to area Nudism: http://www.sunshinecoastdaily.com.au/story/2008/04/29/nudists-exposure-charge-dismissed/
Maroochydore sunbathers rejoice in their
freedom.
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Page
April Fools! Richard “Ozzie” Osbourne
Fletcher is a work of fiction, though the page is laced with many interesting
real, though unrelated, facts.
Please be reassured that the
rest of my genealogy site is serious and is as accurate as I can possibly make
it.
Thanks,
Jim
4/1/2010.