Jacob Hunt (PIC) was the 2nd child born to George Hunt of Chittoe, Wiltshire, England and his wife, Jemima, whose maiden name is thought to have been Stephenson according to the death certificates of some of his sons. Jemima was born in North Bradley according to the 1851 census and George at Bromham. Jacob had four brothers and three sisters, John, James, George and Daniel Joseph. His sisters were Mary, Elizabeth and Jane. All are said to have been born at Chittoe where their parents lived. Jacob was born on 26th April, 1835 and baptised at St. Andrew’s in Chippenham about 5 miles away. John, James and sister, Jane may also have been baptised there. Mary and Elizabeth were baptised in St. Nicholas Church, Bromham, George and Daniel were baptised in St. Mary’s, Chittoe. Not much is known about Jacob’s early life but he had been a good scholar and could read and write. At what age he left school is not known but it is clear he learned the ways of the land as his Hunt family were agricultural laborers or tenant farmers. Jacob grew up in this beautiful area of Wiltshire in this quaint village and no doubt knew all who lived there.
Jacob and his siblings were brought up in a Christian environment and most had biblical names. Jacob had strong Christian beliefs which he passed on to his children later in life. According to word of mouth, Jacob’s father, George was a lay preacher.
When the 1851 census was taken Jacob was 16 years old and lodging with the Bracher family at Sutton Mandeville. We do not know if he was just visiting or working there, possibly working.
Somewhere along the way he learned the art of wine making, which he continued to do throughout his life time. One of his descendants, who knew him well and learned a lot about his life, told me during his life in England, Jacob had trained horses for the police in Cheltenham in nearby Gloucestershire, which does not surprise me as he was obviously a good horseman. It is likely this is where he met Eliza Martin who came from Gloucestershire and later became his bride. Jacob’s grand daughter told me for generations the Hunt’s in Wiltshire kept livery stables and bred horses for the noblemen of the county. As these are stories handed down by Hunt descendants we would expect there to be a certain amount of truth in them; oral stories are often embellished upon, but we can only go on what we are told. If Jacob did document his life story, it does not exist to day. Unfortunately, when people pass on, descendants often discard papers and objects which would mean a lot to another member of the family, especially when it comes to recording family history.
We do not really know for sure if Jacob ever worked at Spye Park which borders Chittoe and in 1855 was owned by the Lord of Bromham Manor, John Bayntum Starkey. According to Dan Hunt, “Lord Starkey’s wife was a Wyndham before marriage and her sister married a Codrington from Wroughton which is close to Swindon. When her sister died, three sons were reared by the Starkeys. These three Codrington brothers later went to Australia and settled in New England”, end of quote. I know the Codringtons took up large tracts of land in New England and did very well for themselves.
By 1855 England was going through hard times and it was not easy to get ahead and establish oneself on the land. Jacob was ambitious and adventurous (as will be seen later) and would have heard a lot about the new colony and many people who had nothing to begin with were doing well and establishing themselves on the land. There have been many theories put forward as to why Jacob came to Australia. From what I have learned I feel he decided it was a land of opportunity and was keen to establish himself. To quote Dan “the Starkeys approached Jacob about looking after five prize bulls being sent to Australia to their Wyndham relatives while on board the ship.” Mr. Charles Codrington of Ben Lomond, New England, NSW offered Jacob employment if he came to Australia. This would have been encouraging for Jacob. Mr. Codrington, a few generations back was likely to be connected to the Codrington family who at the present time live about 20 kms due west of Chittoe at Doddington House just over the Wiltshire border in nearby Gloucestershire.
AUSTRALIA BOUND