James Drew, the Hosier, married Sarah Ann Merewether Nias on April 9th 1850.

Nias James Drew was born in 1851 at St. James Westminster, London England. In London, he became associated with Rosina Hascher (née Critchley) and her husband (born in the old Kingdom of Saxony) Paul Ferdinand Hascher.

Rosina's parents were Richard Critchley (b. 1819 - died 1879 at Tunbridge, aged 60) and Elizabeth (Zarsha) Strauss who was born in 1836 at Frankfurt in Maine, Germany and who died in Australia in 1905. Zarcha's parents were Henry and Henrietta Strauss of Frankfurt in Maine.

After her husband's death, Zarsha Critchley became associated with a sea captain by the name of James Smith and sailed with him (and several of her children) to seek a new life in Australia - under the name Eliza Smith. On the same vessel and travelling to the same destination were Paul and Rosina (Critchley) Hascher, their infant daughter Henrietta and Nias James Drew. They must have sailed to Australia soon after the 1881 census date.

The question has to be asked as to whether this sea captain James Smith is connected in any way with the "Smythe" branch associated with Drew family of the time - since Ada Drew's father-in-law was a Baptist Minister in the same county, at Canterbury c. 1873-1875/6.

They sailed to Australia aboard the "Winifred", captained by E. P. Ellis. This was the "London" Line of Australian Clipper Packets under Agents Taylor, Bethell & Roberts of 110 Fenchurch Street, London. There were some 19 adult passengers in a ship capable of carrying 40. It was a voyage destined to last for 140 days (4.5 months approximately). By the time they reached Melbourne, their port of destination, the infant, Henrietta Hascher was dead.

Nias James Drew was sent to Australia, according to Fay Neville's Drew family anecdotal history, as a "Remittance Man" - that is, he was banished - by his father. 'Remittance Men' were so called because most received a scheduled remittance or allowance from their families. As such, they were, in fact, quite popular in Australia because people saw them as a certain source of regular funds! For Nias James Drew, it seems, the payment may have come as one lump sum and there was probably the end of it. During the late 1800s many such men were sent off to the far corners of the British Empire to make whatever living they could - some of these were second sons with little to expect at home others were uncontrollable young men who were an embarrassment to their families on account of an over-indulgence in drinking, gambling or other such social 'crimes or misdemeanours'. The payments were often made to keep them permanently away from Britain where it was thought they would cause problems for a 'respectable' family. Some made good, others drifted.

Given this information it is not a big step to understand the lack of UK family background to this James Drew/Sarah Nias son, possibly disowned and cast out - drinking, creating scandals - perhaps getting into trouble with the law - who knows now? If one of these was the reason, he would have been much 'in the face of' his father - a father who had become wealthy, married into an established Berkshire (non-conformist) family - the 'matriarch' Sarah living with them in 1851 - and a cousin branch of which produced the likes of the Admiral Sir Joseph Nias) - and here was James Drew, making good in London on his provincial roots - in a Victorian, "We are not amused ...", England - in respectable, comfortable Middlesex ... the last of the (Hosier) Drew line 'myth' began and was perpetuated through the generations. Nias James Drew, never to be spoken of again. He was conspicuously "cut off without a penny" by his mother in her Will - whilst his younger brother - William Somerset Drew - of whom little is known (November 2002 - more is now known!) - fared little better - being left the token sum of £20 in an Estate worth about £17,000 when the Estate was finally wound up and settled; a tidy sum in 1913.

The Haschers and Nias James Drew were in Australia by the end of 1881 and moving round in early '82. Nias seems to have been one of those men who 'drifted'. Paul Hascher appears to have left the scene (or Nias James Drew 'bought him off' and himself a partner) because Rosina then took up with Nias. There had been other Hascher children during the early years in Australia - and now, in addition, Nias James Drew and Rosina had six children, five of them born in various States, with nothing being known about their first child, Harold James Drew, who is mentioned as deceased on Nias Drew's death certificate, though no record of his birth or death can be found.

Children of Nias James Drew and Rosina Critchley with known histories -

 

Victor Charles Drew - born 1887 in Brisbane and married to Elizabeth McNally. He died in 1916 in France during World War 1. V. C. Drew,  Private 1053 of the 28th Bn., Australian Infantry, A.I.F died on Saturday 3 June 1916. He is buried at Bailleul Communal Cemetry Extension (Nord) France Reference # II. B. 134.

 

Florence Isabel Drew - born 1889 and married to Horace Phillips and died 1921 - buried in Karrahartha, WA, Australia.

 

Dorothy Nias Drew - born in 1891 in Gippsland, Victoria and married to William Oswin.

 

Oscar Desmond Drew - born in 1894 in Gippsland, Victoria - married to Sophie (name unknown) possibly married in the Lismore area of NSW just south of the Quensland border. He died in Tumut NSW in 1986.

Oscar Desmond Drew has a story attached to him in his own right. Soldier, wanderer, roo shooter, gardener, sometime toff and frequent thorn in the side of officialdom, he became a fringe member of the family, not always welcome and often turning up when in need of a bob or two. If ever he turned up looking like a rat with a golden tooth then it was probably because he had found gold - and was out to live a life of ease ... for a while.

Sarah Anne Drew (Sally) was born at the Women's Hospital in Carlton, Victoria in 1897 and was married (1917) in Western Australia to Henry Thomas Neville (born St. Kilda, Victoria 1887 and died 1949 in WA).

 

Their son Donald Clarence Neville was born in 1931and married (1956) Fay Todman at Bunbury WA. He died in Perth in 1997. His is survived by his wife Fay and there are children and grandchildren of the marriage. Thus the Smythe, Neville link remains to this day and appears to have been conjoined by Drew!

Their daughter, Gwen Neville was a twin to Donald Clarence Neville and married into the Byrom family. They live in Western Australia.

Working as a Boarding House keeper in Melbourne in the last years of his short but eventful life, Nias James Drew died in East Melbourne, Victoria, Australia on 24th April 1897 just over two months after his daughter, (Sally) Sarah Ann Drew, was born. He was buried in the General Cemetery, at Melbourne.

Rosina Critchley (Drew) (Hascher) re-married in 1902 in Fremantle, WA. Her third partner was George Henry Bradburn. She described herself at that time as "Rosina Hascher, widow" which lends weight to a 'de facto' status in her relationship with Nias James Drew. There were children of this marriage. She died in the gold mining town of Kalgoorlie WA in 1914. Her mother, Zarsha "Smith" (Critchley) Strauss died in Perth in 1905.

Drew Australia Notes:

The above page of corroborative and new information began with a message from Tony Drew - who had earliet received some information from Fay (Todman) Neville. Gratitude is extended to both 'cousins' who live in Australia.

September 2002 - Tony Drew (Anthony Eric Drew) writes:- 'I have been looking for some of my antecedents for some time now and during that period, I have collected various family histories just in case. In fact I was searching for one for a fellow in the US, another James from Oxfordshire, and I did have a tree based on Abingdon but was unable to locate it - but I did perchance look at the details Mrs. Neville sent to me - and the fact of a James Drew being an Hosier rang a bell. I found Mrs. Neville's name in the 1998 edition of the Genealogical Research Directory, whilst looking for anybody potentially researching my branch - I did express some interest because of the proximity of Newbury to the birthplace of my great grandfather, Henry Drew in Chilton Foliat, Wilts (about 12 miles away) in 1827, but I cannot see any relationship, and he of course moved to London in about 1854. There are though numerous families of Drew in that general area - through North Wiltshire to Berkshire and Oxfordshire ...' Anyone with information that might assist Tony Drew in his line search is invited to make contact through this site.

Inverloch Historical Society 1999 - Inverloch is a seaside village based in South Gippsland, in the Australian state of Victoria.  The village is situated on Andersons Inlet.

"Mr. Drew from Turtons Creek recently visited Inverloch and met with Eulalie Brewster and Ken Howsam. In 1926, his grandfather, John Vincent Drew, owned "The Golf Guest House" which we know as the "Two Views Guest House". Mr. Drew brought with him several photographs of that era ..." - mentioned: Jim Drew and Ronald Drew.

(John, Vincent and Jim (James) are very much 'Cefnllys, Radnor' Drew names.)

Harold Leslie Nash - kia Lone Pine 6/8/15 - 2nd Bttn. AIF b. West Maitland NSW son of Lt. Col. Edward Nash and Ada P. Drew.

As a side note, the 1901 census in England reveals a Charles Nias who was born in South Australia in about 1851. He is described as a Civil Engineer and was enumerated at Kings Norton in Worcestershire. The idea of Australia as a destination for Nias James Drew may have been precipitated by the fact that Nias relatives were already settled in South Australia.