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-As at June,1999 there were 6 listings of the surname OAKLEIGH in all Australian Telephone Directories. 5 were resident in the state of Victoria, with my family resident,since 1998, in the state of Queensland.
-My parents,Alfred William OAKLEIGH(b.1900 d.1969) AND Clarissa May Meer(b.1905 d.1978),married in 1928,at Darlinghurst,NSW and lived at the time of their deaths, at Beverly Hills,NSW.
-I currently have two sons,Robert William(b.1979) and Jonathan Paul(b.1984), whom I would dearly love to be able to leave a family tree of some description.As was the case with a lot of families in the early 1900's in Australia,not much importance was given to discusssing/researching/documenting family histories.I endeavoured in 1999, to embark on a journey to repair that flaw.
-To date,none of the Victorian contacts have replied to my inquiry regarding the sharing of any data or research effort.
Consequently,the only records currently available for my family tree, are a wedding certificate and death certificate of Alfred Victor OAKLEIGH, who married Catherine Rose CHALKER in Sydney,in July 1899, possibly having arrived from Galway,Ireland prior to this date.According to his wedding certificate he was aged 30,his father was listed as William OAKLEIGH and his mother as Mary WREN and his place of birth,Galway,IRL.William OAKLEIGH's occupation was given as Undertaker.
-On a trip to Galway,some years ago,a casual visit to the office of births,deaths and marriages,revealed no results to an inquiry over the counter.Indeed the officer fielding the inquiry,stated he thought that the name of OAKLEIGH,was most definitely not Irish.But I must press on with the only documentation available to me, at this time.Alfred Victor's death certificate indicates he was the second steward, presumed drowned,upon the floundering of the SS Nemesis,off the NSW coast, on or about July 10,1904.
- My research has taken me to other sites and I've been able to trace back Catherine Rose CHALKER's line (see family tree)to my g,g,g,grandmother, one Elizabeth SCHECKLE, who arrived on the convict ship Speke 1, in 1808.Elizabeth's common law husband in Australia,himself a transported convict(Coromandel-arr.Sydney 1802)was William CHALKER and they had 9 children together.
Her son,Daniel,born 1806 and who had accompanied her when she was transported from England,was christened a CHALKER and is my g,g,grandfather.
CONVICT INFO:SCHECKLE(SHACKLE) ARR.Sydney 1808 on SPEKE 1
WELSH(WALSH)ARR.Sydney 1802 on ATLAS 1
RICE ARR.Sydney 1815 on NORTHAMPTON
CHALKER ARR Sydney 1802 on COROMANDEL 1
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-So,the current OAKLEIGH lads, Robert and Jonathan, are 5th.generation Aussies. But we're still searching for the OAKLEIGH beginnings-anyone out there that can help-hello!
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