Edward Ewer re-visited

I've now managed to piece together more of the life of Edward Ewer (1796-1859).

Edwards death certificate in 1859 (NSW Death Certificate 1859/002402) states that Edward was born in Windsor, England. This corresponds with his place of conviction, the Berkshire Assizes. While his place of birth was known by his son Edward, who was informant on his death certificate, the names of his parents was unknown.

A few posts of Ewer pages (ancestry.com.au in particular) revealed that Edward Ewer was, in fact, born in Clewer, Berkshire, in 1796.

Clewer was a small village and parish by Windsor in England. The Clewer indexes up to 1837 show that Edward's father was Thomas EWER, whose marriage is recorded on 27 April 1790. He was described as a bachelor 'of the parish'. Jane COMPTON, a spinster, was also "of this parish". They were married by banns. Witnesses to the marriage were Rosannah Aldridge and John Spencer. No baptism records exist in Clewer for either Thomas or Jane, but it's possible they are from a nearby parish.

This index also records the baptism of six children of the marriage from 1790 to 1800:
1790: William, son of Thomas and Jane Ewer, baptised 27 June
1792: Joseph, son of Thomas and Jane Ewer, baptised 26 February
1793: Thomas, son of Thomas and Jane Ewer, a soldier, baptised 20 October
1796: Edward, son of Thomas and Jane Ewer, baptised 3 July
1798: Charles, son of Thomas and Jane Ewer, baptised 3 August
1800: Harriett ('over Charlotte'), son of Thomas and Jane Ewer, baptised 19 October

(Note: I found a marriage for Harriett to George CLARKE on 7 Feb 1821 in Clewer, Berkshire on the Familysearch site).

That Thomas was a soldier could be a useful point of information with the UK Archives. My very first entry was on the question of the Ewer’s in Australia early on... there were quite a few Ewer people here. The direct link to that entry is:
http://thehistoryofmatt.blogspot.com/2007/10/ewers-in-colonial-nsw.html#links

Three Ewer’s served in Australia in Regiments early on, and reading that Thomas was a soldier gelled with Thomas EWER of the 102nd Regiment (the Rum Corps) - he received pay as early as 1798 and returned to England in 1810. Given that Thomas and Jane had children in 1798 and 1800 it is probably not our Thomas.

There were also a William and Joseph EWER in Australia with the 73rd Regiment of Foot from 1812 – the names fit and the time fits for William and Joseph, siblings of Edward, however 73rd was primarily Scottish, though did have English among its ranks. So my brilliant idea seems a little weak now. Ultimately I can check regimental records though being in America it’ll take a while!

Clewer burial records show that Thomas Ewer of Clewer Lane was buried on 22 March 1822, aged 52 and a Jane Ewer, of the same address, 10 June 1831, aged 63. The burial records give approximate birth years of 1770 for Thomas and 1768 for Jane.

In summary

1768 (abt): Jane Compton born England
1770 (abt): Thomas Ewer born Eng
27 Apr 1790: Thomas Ewer married Jane Compton by banns, at Clewer
1790: William, son of Thomas and Jane Ewer, baptised 27 June
1792: Joseph baptised 26 February at Clewer
1793: Thomas baptised 20 October at Clewer
1793: Thomas Ewer's occupation recorded as soldier
1796: Edward baptised 3 July at Clewer
1798: Charles baptised 3 August at Clewer
1800: Harriett ('over Charlotte') baptised 19 October at Clewer
1820: Edward convicted to life transportation on 28th February in Berkshire Assizes
1821: Harriett married to George CLARKE on 7 Feb in Clewer
1821: Edward Ewer departed for Australia on 28 Aug aboard Mary (2)
1822: Thomas Ewer (snr.) buried at Clewer on 22 March, aged 52
1822: Address for Thomas and Jane Ewer listed as Clewer Lane, Clewer
1831: Jane Ewer nee Compton buried at Clewer on 10 Jun, aged 63

Next I'll lay out an approximate time-line of known events for Edward in England and Australia.