[Index]
William KILBY (1811 - 1903)
labourer, brickmaker, farmer
Children Self + Spouses Parents Grandparents Greatgrandparents
Robert KILBY (1839 - 1915)
William KILBY (1811 - 1903)

+

Sarah Mary SMITH ( - 1854)
John KILBY











Jane SHELTON












b. abt 1811 at Ramsay, Huntingdonshire, England
+. Sarah Mary SMITH ( - 1854)
d. 02 Mar 1903 at Ginninderra, ACT, Australia aged 92
Near Relatives of William KILBY (1811 - 1903)
Relationship Person Born Birth Place Died Death Place Age
Father John KILBY
Mother Jane SHELTON

Self William KILBY abt 1811 Ramsay, Huntingdonshire, England 02 Mar 1903 Ginninderra, ACT, Australia 92

Spouse/Partner Sarah Mary SMITH abt 1854 England

Son Robert KILBY 1839 Huntingdonshire, England 19 Nov 1915 Queanbeyan, New South Wales, Australia 76

Sister Mary KILBY 1818 Ramsay, Huntingdonshire, England 07 Aug 1907 Queanbeyan, New South Wales, Australia 89

Daughter in Law Jane WEBSTER abt 1839 16 Dec 1913 Weetangera, New South Wales, Australia 74

Granddaughter Ann WEBSTER 1856
Granddaughter Christina Jane KILBY 1865 Weetangera, New South Wales, Australia 20 May 1951 Queanbeyan, New South Wales, Australia 86
Grandson Sidney William KILBY 1867 Weetangera, New South Wales, Australia
Grandson James Kinlock KILBY 1870 Weetangera, New South Wales, Australia 21 Jul 1950 Hall, New South Wales, Australia 80
Granddaughter Edith Lavinia KILBY 1875 Weetangera, New South Wales, Australia 08 May 1951 Ainsley, ACT, Australia 76

Nephew Shelton SMITH 1842 Ramsay, Huntingdonshire, England 1922 Lismore, New South Wales, Australia 80
Niece Louisa SMITH 1844 Ramsay, Huntingdonshire, England 1926 Junee, New South Wales, Australia 82
Niece Ann Annie SMITH 1846 Ramsay, Huntingdonshire, England 05 Jan 1917 Weetangera, New South Wales, Australia 71
Niece Maria SMITH 1849 Ramsay, Huntingdonshire, England 1852 3
Nephew George SMITH 1853 Pialligo, ACT, Australia 1939 Hornsby, New South Wales, Australia 86
Nephew Ellis SMITH 1856 Pialligo, ACT, Australia 03 Nov 1928 Wallaroo, New South Wales, Australia 72
Niece Amelia SMITH 1859 Pialligo, ACT, Australia 31 Mar 1927 Wallaroo, New South Wales, Australia 68

Brother in Law Edward SMITH 1822 Wistowe, Huntingdonshire, England 29 Jan 1888 Queanbeyan, New South Wales, Australia 66
Events in William KILBY (1811 - 1903)'s life
Date Age Event Place Notes Src
abt 1811 William KILBY was born Ramsay, Huntingdonshire, England 6
1839 28 Birth of son Robert KILBY Huntingdonshire, England 6
abt 1854 43 Death of wife Sarah Mary SMITH England 6
04 Sep 1856 45 Immigration Sydney, New South Wales, Australia per 'Lloyds' 6
02 Mar 1903 92 William KILBY died Ginninderra, ACT, Australia 6
Personal Notes:
could not read or write
Source References:
6. Type: Book, Abbr: Queanbeyan Register, Title: Biographical register of Canberra and Queanbeyan: from the district to the Australian Capital Territory 1820-1930, Auth: Peter Proctor, Publ: The Heraldry & Genealogical Society of Canberra, Date: 2001
- Reference = 168 (Name, Notes)
- Reference = 168 (Birth)
- Reference = 168 (Death)
80. Type: Web Page, Abbr: Hall Museum, Title: Hall School Museum and Heritage Centre, Locn: https://museum.hall.act.au/
- Reference = https://museum.hall.act.au/display/1939/person/2265/william-kilby.html (Name, Notes)
- Notes: Born: 1812; Died: 1903; Married: Mary Smith

John Kilby and his wife Jane (nee Shelton), of Ramsey, Huntingdonshire, England, married in 1809 and had two children. William, the elder, was born in 1811, and his sister Mary in 1818. Both were to spend most of their lives in the young colony of Australia, though they journeyed there in quite different circumstances.

Mary married Edward Smith in 1840. In 1852 with their three surviving children (one died in childhood) they sailed for Australia as assisted migrants on the Irene. Edward found employment firstly at Duntroon, and later at the Ginninderra estate. Meanwhile William had also married. He and his wife Sarah had two children - a daughter [name not known] and a son Robert, born in 1840. Tragically both Sarah and their daughter died from tuberculosis. William decided that in these sad circumstances, he and Robert would follow his sister to Australia. They sailed in 1856 on the Lloyds, arriving in Sydney on 4th September 1856. William and Robert are described in the ship's records as follows:

"William Kilby, 45, farm labourer, Ramsay, Huntingdonshire; mother still alive, can't read or write; sister Mary Smith, living in Queanbeyan NSW, no complaints; state of bodily health good; probable usefulness good; paid ₤15 for passage. Son Robert Kilby, can read and write; good reports; paid ₤10 for passage".

After trying his luck on the Kiandra goldfields, Robert decided on a farming life and acquired Portion 73 of 40 acres, Parish of Weetangera. William - who became known to all as 'Bill' - selected three 40 acre blocks (Portions 52, 53 and 54), adjoining Robert's. Together they built themselves a slab dwelling which was to become the Kilby family homestead 'Lands End'. Other land in the immediate vicinity was taken up at around the same time by the Smiths, Shumacks, Blundells, Plummers, Camerons and Williams.

Forty-five when he arrived in Sydney, William remained a widower, but as he approached sixty he was a convert of Reverend Charles Jones to the Methodist religion. Thereafter he became a dedicated lifelong worshipper at the Weetangera Methodist church, and is buried in the cemetery there, with his sister Mary and her husband Edward Smith. William died in 1903 at the fine old age of ninety one.

References
Gillespie, L.L., Ginninderra, Forerunner to Canberra, Canberra, 1992.
Kilby, E. The Kilby Family. 'Lands End' 1852-2013, author published. Canberra [available from the author (02) 6230 2234]
Campbell, W.J.M. Four Pioneers of the Limestone Plains, Angus and Robertson, Sydney, 1955

Created on a Mac™ using iFamily for Mac™ on 2 May 2025