James Bickley, Isandlwana survivor

I've recently been in touch with the great grandson of 1/24th Bandsman James Bickley (listed alternatively as both a Private & a Corporal) who survived Isandlwana - he has kindly supplied the
following family information:

James Bickley was my great-grandfather and was born on September 28th 1847 in Limerick, Ireland, to Joseph and Bridget Bickley; he died around 1905 in Muizenberg, Cape Town (I believe of cancer).

He joined the 24th Regiment of the British Army as a bandsman; I haven't yet been able to determine what instrument he played, but he ensured that all of his ten children played some musical instrument.  The regiment was posted to South Africa in 1877, and his love, Isabella Nielson, was able to join him there from England the next year.  They were married in Kingwilliamstown on May 8th 1878 by Sir Bartle Frere (Governor of the Cape), a few days before their eldest son Arthur Percival (Percy) was born; he would have been the only child if James had not escaped from Isandlwana. 

There were four boys in all and six girls, of whom only three married; of these my grandmother Evelyn was born in 1887, and she married Harold Keppel-Jones (who had come out from England in '98 with his widowed mother and several brothers and sisters) in Cape Town in 1908, which is where my dad (Arthur, 1909 - 1996)) grew up.  Percy ran off to sea, as did the youngest boy Dudley, and neither was heard from again.  (Dad urged his aunts to try to track them down, but they wanted to leave well enough alone).  When the Bickley children asked their parents about their earlier experiences, they just burst into tears; there seems to be little doubt that James escaped on Quartermaster Pullen's horse, which he had been instructed to saddle up, which no doubt left him stricken with guilt for the rest of his life, while Mike Snook showed that Pullen had no intention of escaping himself, but rather of making a last stand.

The early arrival of Percy was also, in those days, a cause for shame.  However, the Bickleys seemed to move in circles higher than their apparently humble backgrounds would warrant.  When the children were small, they overheard one visitor say to another: "There's good blood in these children!" - and the other replied, "I know!"  (They lived in Muizenberg, near Cape Town).

      

My thanks to Michael Keppel-Jones for his permission to share this information along with photographs of both James & Isabella Bickley, which I'll ask admin to post for me shortly.

Regards,

Tim

Poor James, I don't think I would have liked to have been put in that position. Brickhill was in a similar position. Still looking at it another way, would Pullen have left James.

Looking at Brickhill's account, it looks to me like Pullen could have hung poor James out to dry; he tells James to saddle his horse then goes about rounding up men and then disappears, never to be seen again. Brave, but what was James supposed to do stand there holding his horse.

There are a lot of files in the Cape Archives on the Bickley family, including the Keppel-Jones side of the family. I'm spending time there later this week doing some research for PO Tom I will see what I can turn up.

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James Bickley

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Isabella Bickley

Photos by Tim Needham

Tim
That photo shows a lieutenant, could it possibly Be Lt AN Bickley not James Bickley?
I have James Bickley living in Kalk Bay, near Muizenberg, and a death notice in 1902. I will know more tomorrow.

Cheers

Frank,

The subject of the photograph appears to be a medal ribbon not unlike the South African General Service Medal, any idea if he served in a local volunteer force in the Cape?

By-the-way two stars prior to 1902 indicated the rank of Captain, if that helps with the identification?

John Y.

Hi John
I noticed the ribbon. I'm hoping to put some flesh on things in the archives tomorrow. There was another Bickley family in Cape Town prior to 1870 just to make life interesting.

Tim
You might like to let your family source know that I uncovered some correspondence concerning James Bickley and Isabella which appears on pp. 10-11 of Studies in Zulu War vol. III 'The Letters of Col.-Sergt. William Edwards'.  For getting pregnant she lost her post of school mistress and she was the sister of Sergt. Neilson 2/24th but is referred to as Isabella Cope, not Neilson.  Perhaps the family might clarify whether their father married twice and she and her brother had different mothers or perhaps she had previously married someone surnamed Cope?  I'd be interested to know.
A letter records his getting married "privately" possibly as late as December 1878.

Frank - I'll look forward to hearing whether you manage to find anything else out about the Bickleys; someone from the Cape Town Family History Society also found a death notice for James, this time for 1903.

John - Michael has no information regarding James' further volunteer service, however he is planning on contacting other family members who may have more of an idea. Does the tunic give any indication regarding the possible timeframe of the photograph? Late 1890s/early 1900s?

Julian - I'll certainly pass on your information to Michael, he may well know a little more about Isabella and her story; her parents were Peter William Nielson and Mary O'Rourke.

With regard to James himself, Graves1879 has found some discharge details - having served 12 years and 54 days, Cpl Bickley was discharged on 30 Sept 1879 (I have contacted the archivist at the Royal Military School of Music at Kneller Hall to see whether they have any further information).

Regards,

Tim

JY
Could that uniform possibly be early 1900's?
Frank

Hmm, i was thinking that as well.. Bambatha, McKenzie Field Force?.

Frank,

I think the pattern for that khaki drill tunic dates from the mid-1890's it was still being worn up until 1910, when an open collar with shirt and tie was introduced for regular officers.  That said if it were still serviceable it could conceivably been worn in WW1.

John Y.

James Bickley
Birthdate: September 28, 1847 (58)
Birthplace: Limerick, Limerick City, County Limerick, Ireland
Death: Died 1905 in Cape Town, Cape Town, Western Cape, South Africa
Cause of death: Cancer
Immediate Family:
Son of Joseph Bickley and Bridget
Husband of Isabella Bickley
Father of Arthur Percival Bickley; Harold Bickley; Clare Bickley; Mabel Bickley; Ethel Grace Twigg; Evelyn Keppel-Jones; Gerald Bickley; Paddy Bickley; Amy Reoch and Dudley Bickley
Brother of Jane Bickley
Occupation: Bandsman in the British 24th Regiment, escaped the slaughter at Isandhlwana, Zululand, 1879
Managed by: Michael Anthony Keppel-Jones
Last Updated: February 24, 2015.

_____________________________________________
Isabella Bickley (Neilson)
Birthdate: circa December 11, 1855 (62)
Birthplace: England, United Kingdom
Death: Died April 1918 in Cape Town, Cape Town, Western Cape, South Africa
Immediate Family:
Daughter of Peter William Neilson and Mary Neilson
Wife of James Bickley
Mother of Arthur Percival Bickley; Harold Bickley; Clare Bickley; Mabel Bickley; Ethel Grace Twigg; Evelyn Keppel-Jones; Gerald Bickley; Paddy Bickley; Amy Reoch and Dudley Bickley « l
Managed by: Michael Anthony Keppel-Jones
Last Updated: February 24, 2015

Source: geni.com

I did manage to spend a little time in the archives today and gleaned a few details.
Hope this helps to ‘fleshout’ the family.

The early beginnings of the family have already been outlined above, and they are an extraordinary family.
Ten children:
Arthur Percival
Harold Bertram
Florence Clare
Ethel Grace
Maud Constance
Evelyn Francis
Gerald Graham
Gladys Beryl
Amy Isabel
Reginald Dudley
Unfortunately, time constrains wouldn’t allow me to delve into all the family, but there are some interesting areas.

James worked in the City Council offices as a clerk but had ideas of bettering himself. On the 3rd October in 1891 he offered to buy a piece of ground adjacent to the Railway Station in Kalk Bay but he wasn’t able to raise the money in time and the sale fell through. (This ground is now the site of one of the most popular pubs and restaurants in Cape town, The Brass Bell) James was obviously a very strong willed man, as were his family, and this lead to problems with his employers as he got caught in a power struggle and seems to have backed the wrong horse. This lead, in April of 1899, to a reduction in his stipend of some 25 pounds per annum, the given excuse being his work load had greatly diminished.
The family had lived in Kalk Bay, a fishing village near Muizenberg but when James took ill and was moved into the Pretoria House Centre they moved to Mowbray. It was there that James died, 6th November 1903.
Isabel was left with the task of looking after their children and petitioned the Government for a state pension siting the fact that she still had two children at school and two daughters still learning shorthand and typing. She stressed in her claim that she was having to take care of ten children and as a result was awarded a pension of 14 pounds and 8 shillings. She lived then in a boarding house called Delgany (I haven’t managed to trace that yet)

Her claims were a trifle exaggerated as Arthur Percy had left home in 1894 to work on the Railways. He worked for the first few years in Cape Town and then moved up country to Willomore Port Elizabeth and then to Bedford before returning to Cape Town and being made redundant in 1908.

The second son was Harold Bertram, Harry to all and sundry, he trained as a clerk but I think was a restless sole who was taken on in a temporary position by the Council and then promptly asked for leave of absence to join the Cape Mounted Rifles, No 4 Troop, he served from November 1899 to 15th October 1900. He returned to Cape Town to resign his position and accepted a commission with Marshalls Horse as a Lieutenant from August 1900 until Jan 1903 spending most of that time in the Orange Republic. There is a shadow over Harry as he was also reported dead in 1881, 14th May age 22 while fighting in the Mafikeng area. His home address was given by his commanding officer as H Bickley Traders Basutoland. As that would put him at around 2 or 3 years old it seems as though there are some major errors.

I would therefore believe that the posted photo is not his dad but rather Harry.
Evelyn Francis the forth of the daughters had many of her father’s traits. She was employed on a temporary basis in Simonstown to fill a position that been temporarily been vacated. When the incumbent managed to get well sooner than expected Evelyn was asked to leave, this she flatly refused to do and wrote strongly worded letters to the Council in Cape Town. In fact so vehement were her letters the Council capitulated and she worked out her time.

Ethel Grace the eldest daughter married a Doctor and left Cape Town to live in the Eastern Cape in Flagstaff.

Unfortunately, a limited amount of time prevented more exploration of the Bickley family, I feel there’s still a lot to learn.

Cheers

Frank,

Many thanks for taking the time to look into the Bickley family a little more, in particular for ascertaining James' date of death; are there any indications as to where he may have been buried?

Regarding the photograph purportedly of James Bickley, I of course completely take your point that we can never be 100% sure that the subject is always who we're told it is; however, bearing in mind that Harry was born in 1880, and that the tunic is thought to be perhaps 1890s\1900s, the gentleman in question certainly appears older than his 20s or 30s - add to that the medal ribbon which looks suspiciously like the SA General Service......the next time I'm in touch with Michael I'll ask whether the photograph has an original caption.

Regards,

Tim

Hi Tim
I couldn't find any record of additional or volunteer service from James, that to me ruled out the rank on the uniform. There was another Bickley, AN Bickley who was around for the beginning of WW2 who had that rank. He

James died at Protea House Sillwood Ronderbosch so I would bet even money on him being in Maitland Cemetary. I will be heading out that way in a couple of weeks and will have a look at the files, Nothing digitized I'm afraid. The offices are in milnerton up the West cost.
What is starting to develop is the similarity to Jessie Mayor. Lived in the same area, two streets away, one son worked in the same Railway yard. I will try and get into that at some point.
Regards

There is a James Bickley in the cementary mentioned above by Frank.
Date of death is different.

Name                                        
James Bickley  

Death
06 November 1903        

Plot
1418a

Littlehand,

Looks like you've found him! 6th November 1903 is indeed the date of death mentioned by Frank - would be good to find out whether the grave is marked.....

Regards,

Tim

Just looking at cementary photos

The National Archives of South Africa show the death of a James Bickley in 1903.

Here's the reference:

DEPOT KAB
SOURCE MOOC
TYPE LEER
VOLUME_NO 6/9/486
SYSTEM 01
REFERENCE 3498
PART 1
DESCRIPTION BICKLEY, JAMES. DEATH NOTICE.

John Y.

I will take a drive out to Maitland later today, Its a shared plot and very close to Jessie Mayor so should be easy to find.
JY that's the certificate I looked at yesterday, interestingly they have James mothers name as uncertain but possibly Maude, deffinitly not Bridget.
Cheers

LH
Could you check that grave number, looks as though there should be an extra number in there. That area/date is in the 14000 range.

Cheers

Morning Frank,

I remember when I visited Maitland cemetery a few years ago to find Sgt George Mabin's grave (Rorke's Drift defender) the office was able to direct me using just the name and date of death - hopefully this system will work again...

Regards,

Tim

Hi Tim
I'm on my way there in a few minutes. I had a think about that photo, its also possible that it was taken of Harry later in life, not neccesarily when he was first appointed to Marshalls Horse, just a thought.

Cheers

Hi Tim
I'm afraid there is no record of our man, or his family, at Maitland. We checked all the various records for the whole of November and December. The old grave number found by LH is occupied by a different family altogether.
The options now are:
Groot Schuur, that was closed down a few years ago and is now part of the hospital buildings.
Sea Forth: Ive checked that register.
Plumstead: I will go down there tomorrow and see if anything turns up.
If its not in Plumstead then the only other option is one of the local churchyards.

Cheers

Hi All

This could be him in St. Peters Observatory.

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Sounds like it Andy. Those are the same references I was chasing at Maitland this morning, I will have a look at St Peters.

Sorry just realized the St Peters graveyard was dug up a number of years back and a new shopping mall built on the site.
The old grave stones were sent to maitland, there a whole pile of them behind a store house. I will go through again tomorrow and try and identify them. The remains, if any were dug up and transported to Maitland. Possibly then the second numbers would relate to the burial area. Thanks Andy

It's never easy is it!

Tim what are the odds that we would get at least three suvivors in one cemetery Mabin Mayor and Bickley. And considering the size of that place they are all within sight of each other, that's assuming of course James is where I think it is. I'm going to pop out there again tomorrow to check.
I went through the books at Plumstead earlier in the hope.
Ah well tomorrows another day, if it were easy we wouldn't be doing it Tim

Details of daughter Amy.

Amy Reoch (born Bickley)
Gender: Female
Birth: Mar 16 1893 - Muizenberg, Cape Town, Cape Town, Western Cape, South Africa
Marriage: Spouse: James Reoch - Circa 1924 - Cape Town, Cape Town, Western Cape, South Africa
Death: Circa Mar 17 1977 - Harare, Harare, Harare, Zimbabwe
Father: James Bickley
Mother: Isabella Bickley (born Neilson)
Husband: James Reoch
Children: David James Reoch, Sheila Geneen Priestley (born Reoch), <Private> Reoch
Siblings: Percy Bickley, Harold Bickley, Ethel Grace Twigg (born Bickley), Clare Bickley, Mabel Bickley, Evelyn Keppel-Jones (born Bickley), Gerald Bickley, Gladys Bickley, Dudley Bickley
Detail
http://www.myheritage.com/research/collection-40000/geni-world-family-tree?s=133837211&itemId=191465298&action=showRecord&indId=individual-133837211-2500193
Other information
Event: Record Role: 40000:191465298:
Source Information
Title
Geni World Family Tree

Steve

Infoe on all kids here.

https://www.geni.com/people/Isabella-Bickley/6000000017264461914

And I do it the hard way sitting in a dusty old archive man handling old folders and files and truly understanding the meaning of red tape.

I too spent the day in the Archives yesterday struggling with old and dusty ledgers, so you are not the only neanderthal when it comes to research. Had a look through the file you suggested (which was available even though Keith Smith lists it as unavailable!) - I will pm you. I will start some fresh threads on another couple of topics.

Steve

I look forward to the reveal Steve,
I also spent some time over the last couple of days in the National Library. Came across a couple of wonderful descriptions, of Cetswayo on board ship in Simons town. Am of Chelmsford inspecting a navy ship:" Very tall and slim with a huge beard, looked anything but a military man."
I recall Xhosa dismissing reading Kindle in preference to feeling the pages and smelling the books mustiness. Its the same ith the archives as opposed to online, not that I don't think it has its place. Just not for me.

There appears to be a memorial in the memorial garden within the old cemetery at St. Peter's which mentions both James and Isabella, photo at the following link:

https://www.eggsa.org/library/main.php?g2_itemId=3324963

(Bottom left of panel)

Regards,

Tim

Hopefully I will have more on Monday

Frank,

The panel shown here indicates that the remains were exhumed and reburied somewhere onsite;

http://www.eggsa.org/library/main.php?g2_itemId=278785

I suppose it would be too much to expect that James' headstone is one of the ones preserved.

Regards,

Tim

Tim
There is a memorial garden in the parking area of the shopping mall. The .monolith you have pointed to is in that garden. There are a lot of statues and memorial stones also there but a great amount were sent through to Maitland. What was recovered from the graves was also sent there. Monday will hopefully reveal a tad more.
Google Earth, St Peters Mall Observatory Cape Town look in the South West Corner for the garden of remembrance.

I managed to get through to Observatory this morning and even better managed to contact the Memorial Garden key holder.
When the development was begun, in 1975, 10 000 bodies where exhumed and buried together in the Ossuary. The larger monuments were retained and used as part of the memorial the smaller were ground up and buried with the remains.
I can therefore confirm that James and Isabella are buried in the Ossuary that you indicated Tim.
Sad end to the search but at least we now know his final resting place.

Cheers

Great work Frank and thank you for the update.

Andy

Yes thanks for all your help Frank, much appreciated.

Although their graves no longer exist, at least James and Isabella are mentioned on the modern
memorial.

Regards,

Tim

Good work Frank.

Click on link below 1st Column.

https://www.eggsa.org/library/main.php?g2_itemId=3324969

Perhaps there is still some hope.

"Western Cape, Cape Town, MOWBRAY, St. Peters Church, Garden of Remembrance
Cemetery information:-

Situated adjacent to the Pick 'n Pay Centre and opposite McDonald's in Main Road. Keys are available from security at the entrance to the shopping centre. Moira.

The headstones are neatly arranged in this well kept garden. You can lock yourself inside the garden and do your browsing at leisure.

Photos were taken of ALL the headstones.

Captions by Andrié Labuschagne, Heleen Nel, Alta Griffiths & Riana le Roux.

The GGSA Cemetery DVD only has information on the location of the cemetery
Cemetery ID: 3138
Information submitted by: Alta Griffiths

Google Earth Project Information:-
GPSID: 3745
GPS: -33 56.963, 18 28.392

Hi LH
That's what I did yesterday, literally locked myself in then spent time examining all the monuments and grave stones. Theres probably 80 or so that have survived from the original thousands. My wife spent the time shopping in the mall, memo: next time go alone.
When I collected her afterwards this was the comment," So had interesting chats with your dead friends have you?"

Cheers

Hi guy's,

I've just picked up on this thread and can add the following. In reference to the Henry that died in Basutoland his family was from Birmingham and a former soldier:

BICKLEY Henry Reginald. Enlisted 25.10.80 (Aged 22 years and occupation ‘Soldier’). Private, ‘Left’ Wing, Cape Mounted Rifles (No880). Gun War (Basuto War) 1880-81. Recorded deceased 14.5.1881. (Not on the medal roll but on the Cattle prize money 1882. Next-of-kin resided in Birmingham.

Regarding James himself there is a 'James Bickley' in the Cape Civil Service Lists that could be the same man.

BICKLEY James. Commandant General’s Staff, Colonial Forces, August 1880. Brigadier General Clarke’s Staff in the Basotho Gun War 1880-81. Chief Clerk to General Gordon, the Commandant General, August 1882. Transferred to the War Office, December 1883. Office of the Civil Connissioner, Cape Division, September 1884. Colonial Secretary’s Office, November 1884. Office of the Civil Connissioner, Cape Division 19.11.85. Secretary to Divisional land board 1885. Secretary to the Rindepest Committee 1897-98. Second Anglo-Boer War; Captain and Paymaster Uitenhage Volunteer Rifles.

Cam.

Mowbray Cemetery

https://archive.org/stream/MowbrayCemetery

Hi Cam
This what I gleaned from the Archives, as I said I believe there were two Bickley families/streams.
Harry No 1 Died 14th May 1881 serving in Mafekeng with no 4 Troop Cape Mounted Rifles.
Harry No 2 Worked for City Council as a temp clerk, earned 4 pounds 17 shillings and six pence PA Applied for leave of absence to join the colonial forces. Did so from November 1899 to 15th Oct 1900. Was asked to resign from council and did so joining Marshalls Horse from 6th August 1900. Im not sure of his discharge but there is a listing saying he left for the OFS in Jan 1903.

I can put James in Cape Town in 1891 and 1892 working for the Council as a clerk.
In 1898/99 he was Secretary to the Cape Land Board when he was demoted in terms of his Stippend.

Theres also a note that J Binkley applied for a job in 1904, the year after the funeral?

Doesn’t fit with an Army career, so do we have two families with a J and a H Binkley?

There could be a case to be made that Harold Bickley possibly had a son around 1880 who went on to become Harry No2?
There should then be a marriage certificate and birth certificate around some where. That would provide an answer to one side of the puzzle, but the James issue Is going to need a lot of work on.

Cheers

LH
There was a real stink about the process at the time and even more about the way things unfurled during the exhumation process.

Cheers