Fairfax is my great grandfather, my mother Vera is the daughter of Fairfax' daughter Mona. Fairfax left Darwin with my mother, Vera, in Dec 1941, when they were put on a plane to fly south to Adelaide, to be evacuated just before the first bombing raids of Darwin in Feb 1942. All civilians were evacuated from Darwin from 1941 for the rest of the war and Darwin was bombed many many times with many casualties. Vera and Fairfax were among the last civilians to leave. Fairfax had lived in Darwin since the early 1880's when he arrived from Mauritius to join his uncle, Boyle Travis Finnis, who was one of the founders of South Australia, the first non-convict settlement in Australia. Boyle Travis Finnis arrived on the Cygnet from England in 1836 to found the colony of South Australia, and his daughter Fanny was the first female white child born in South Australia just a few weeks after they arrived. They were the first settlers and they had to start from scratch. B. T. Finnis was the first Premier of South Australia and there is quite a lot you can read about him. He also founded the site for Darwin (although this incident was surrounded by contoversy) and Fairfax came out from Mauritius to join him in taking the overland telegraph from Adelaide to Darwin in the early 1880's. Mum says Fairfax met Rosetta Dwyer in Darwin when she was visiting from Tasmania and they married and lived in Darwin until Rose died and Fairfax was evacuated. Mona Finnis was one of their daughters, and Mona married Douglas Crombie Watts, and Vera Watts, my mother, was their oldest daughter (2 older brothers, and another 2 younger sisters). Fairfax and Rose lived with Mona and Vera. I'm not sure when Rose died, but Fairfax lived with my mother until they were evacuated in 1941, and lived and moved with her to Sydney, where he died shortly after the war, in 1946. Mum says Fairfax spoke French (from Mauritius) and had the family crest on many hairlooms, which were unfortunately looted or bombed in Darwin during the war. I have a family tree which goes back to Henry Finnis, of Acryse, Kent, died 1726, who was Fairfax great grandfather. Fairfax' name was Fairfax Ingleram Finnis. Ingleram is a family name that goes back ceturies and a search of Ingleram Finnis on the net is interesting. Mum's records go back to the Finnis's coming across from France with William the Conqueror. They were kinsmen of the Conqueror and were given land. Fairfax was born in Mauritius in 1862. His mother is Georgina Adelaide Barclay, born 1834, daughter of Sir William David Barclay. She died in Mauritius in 1925. I have been to Mauritius and visited the grave stones of the family at Le Reduit, there are many members of the family's gravestones there. I have not been to England to look up the family there, but I have a letter from Great Aunt Rica, Fairfax sister, written from London on 5.11.1956, to mum's sister Muriel, with a photo of Georgina and 6 of her children, taken in Mauritius, she says, about 70 years previously. It's a great photo. The letter includes the names of many family members in England. I'd love to track down more of the family, and am going to be archiving mum's papers early in the New Year. Mum, Vera, has her 90th birthday on 27 Dec, and was born in Darwin in 1908. I have always wanted to find out about Rose Dwyer and have never been able to track down any information, so it's fortunate I saw your email. Can you please write me of what you know about Rose. She is my Great Grandmother.
All best wishes, Glenys Haren.

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Replying to:

Fairfax Ingleham Finnis married my great aunt, Rosetta Dwyer, in Darwin, Australia, in 1885. Can anyone tell me if he had connections with Kent. His place of birth is listed as Mauritius on a census record.