Thomas Collins who hailed from Road Somerset, was second mate on board the convict brigantine Three Bees when he first sighted Port Jackson in May 1814. He returned several times in subsequent years as Captain of various sailing ships finally settling in Sydney Town with his new bride Sophia Danvers in 1827. Thomas became a Whaler operating out of Sydney with his part-owned boat the Elizabeth and later with the Arabian . The family moved north in the mid-1840s and became involved in pastoral pursuits near Beaudesert in southern Queensland and Gladstone in Central Queensland. This book covers the lives of Thomas Collins, his ancestors in Somerset and his descendants in Queensland
Thomas Smith, a native of West Melton South Yorkshire, trained at St. Johnโs Training College in York before commencing a 10-year teaching career in England. In 1880 he was recruited by the Queensland Agent General in London to teach in Queensland. Following a 3-month voyage with his wife and young family on the barque Garnock, Thomas was assigned to the Maryborough district where he became Head Teacher of the Tinana State School, a position he held for 23 years. This story covers the lives of Thomas and his family in England and Queensland.
