Gray, James – Crimean War Veterans in Western Australia

PERSONAL DETAILS	James (John) GRAY
Birth date and place	10 Jul 1835 North Walsham, Norfolk, England.
Baptism date and place	11 Aug 1835 St Nicholas Church, North Walsham, Norfolk.
Civil Census Residences	Reeves Lane, North Walsham, Norfolk (1841). Reeves Lane, North Walsham, Norfolk (1851).
Occupations pre-WA	Butcher.
Physical Description	Height: 5 ft. 10 ins. Complexion: fair. Eyes: grey. Hair: light brown. Face: long. Build: middling stout. Distinguishing marks: Pockmarked.
Marriage date and place	Single on arrival in Western Australia. No marriage found.
Spouse
Children
Death date and place	1917 Claremont, Western Australia [WA GRO Reg No. 165 tentative].
Burial date and place	Not recorded on WA Metropolitan Cemeteries Board Index.
Will and Probate
Death Notices and Obituaries
ARMED FORCES
Regiment(s)	3rd Battalion Grenadier Guards.
Regiment No. and Rank	#7192 Private.
Attestation date and place
Service/Campaigns	Crimea.
Musters
Promotions	None.
Medals, Clasps and Badges	Crimea War Medal clasp Sebastopol. Turkish Crimea Medal [WO100-25-107 see additional information below].
Casualty/Medical
Regimental Courts Martial	Conviction(s) for absenting himself, details unknown [PCom2-387-9169].
District Courts Martial	Aldershott [WO86-010-10]. Trial: 2 Aug 1858. Desertion. Losing Necessaries. Sentenced: 168 days hard labour and stoppages.
General Courts Martial	Wellington Barracks, Westminster. Committal: 10 Jul 1858 Woolwich. Trial: 11 Aug 1858. Attempting to strike Captain G A Ferguson, his superior officer. Sentenced: Eight years penal servitude.
Prison and Register #	11 Aug to 4 Oct 1858 Wellington Barracks, 2 months. 4 Oct to 17 Nov 1858 Millbank Prison #7866, 1 month 13 days. 17 Nov 1858 to 1 Jul 1859 Pentonville Prison #8351, 7 months 14 days. 1 Jul 1859 to 3 Nov 1860 Portland Prison #9160, 16 months 2 days. 3 Nov 1860 to 11 Feb 1861 Convict ship Palmerston, 93 days passage from Portland. 11 Feb 1861 Fremantle Prison #5867.
Chelsea Pension Reference	Not eligible. Parchment Certificate issued 7 Oct 1858 in Millbank Prison.
Post Discharge Residence	Western Australia.
ARRIVAL AND LIFE IN WESTERN AUSTRALIA
Ship	Palmerston.
Departure and Arrival	10 Nov 1860 Portland; 11 Feb 1861 Fremantle.
Status/Occupation	Convict. Labourer and Shepherd Toodyay [Acc 1156-R4].
WA Convict #	5867.
WA Ticket of Leave	9 Dec 1861.
WA Certificate of Freedom
WA Conditional Pardon	12 Nov 1864 Toodyay.
Misc. Newspaper Articles

ADDITIONAL DETAILS
Gray’s Medals and Clasp for Sebastopol	In 1906/1907 a survey was undertaken of old people’s homes and asylums on behalf of the WA Colonial Secretary’s Office to identify British military veterans who had been engaged in Imperial wars, including the Crimean War [Cons 752-1919-2479 WA SRO]. James Gray was one such veteran, recorded as “never in an engagement but was on duty in the trenches” [Sevastopol]. This identified Private Gray #7192 as the man sentenced to penal servitude in WA. It distinguished him from Private James Gray #6288 present at Alma, Balaklava and Inkermann on the same Grenadier Guards medal roll [WO100-25 folios 14, 48, 69, 157].

ADDITIONAL DETAILS

In 1906/1907 a survey was undertaken of old people’s homes and asylums on behalf of the WA Colonial Secretary’s Office to identify British military veterans who had been engaged in Imperial wars, including the Crimean War [Cons 752-1919-2479 WA SRO]. James Gray was one such veteran, recorded as “never in an engagement but was on duty in the trenches” [Sevastopol]. This identified Private Gray #7192 as the man sentenced to penal servitude in WA. It distinguished him from Private James Gray #6288 present at Alma, Balaklava and Inkermann on the same Grenadier Guards medal roll [WO100-25 folios 14, 48, 69, 157].