INTRODUCTION

It was in 1980 that I first became interested in tracing the Bellman 
family history. Members of the family knew very Little about their 
forebears, not even the date of their grandfather's death. My mother 
had kept an article, with photo, about the Salvation Army Eventide Home 
at Linden Park, in which grand- father, Alfred Henry Bellman, was given 
some prominence. Ken and I went to see Aunt Evelyn Bellman at Gawler, 
to see what she could tell us about her father and family. As she lived 
with her aunt from the age of seven, she could tell us very little, but 
she had been to see her father; after seeing his photo in the "News", 
in 1956, shortly before he died. On sending for his death certificate 
we found that he died on 15 July 1956, and that he was born at Moonta, 
so we sent for his birth certificate in which it stated his birth date 
as 15 July 1876, and his parents' names as Charles Henry Bellman and 
Caroline Hammill. A visit to the Archive-s revealed that Charles and 
Caroline came from Cornwall, and arrived on the ship, "Melbourne", 
in South Australia on 6 December 1858.

Having found their county of origin, Cornwall, it was simple to look 
up Bellmans-Cornwall, in the International Genealogical Index at the 
Genealogy Society Library in Adelaide, and, on taking copies of the 
records home, it was possible to trace a Bellman family tree back to 
a John Bellman, born approximately 1650. A researcher in England was 
engaged to find Charles and Caroline's wedding certificate and he also 
sent out census copies for 1841 and 1851 of the Bellman and Hammill 
families, giving them some background.

It was a disappointment when sending for the death certificates of 
Charles and Caroline Bellman to receive "no record" notices, so from 
this I concluded that they had gone interstate or possibly Caroline 
had married again. Then an obituary notice for Mrs Caroline Bellman 
was found, through the Abbott Index in the Archives, stating that she 
had married a second time, but had resumed her first husband's name, 
after the death of her second husband. There were nine children by 
the first husband, Charles Bellman. The newspaper article did not 
mention the second husband's name, only that she had two surviving 
children, Alfred Henry Bellman and Mrs Edith Crerar, of Prospect, 
the latter from whom she had never been separated.

Previously an Edith Bellman had been found in the 1905 and 1912 
electoral rolls, so to find Caroline's second married name, a search 
was made in the electoral rolls for 1919, the year she died, looking 
first in Prospect. Not finding the name Crerar there, I looked in the 
rolls for North Adelaide and found Edith Hosking. Crerar and her husband, 
William Bayne Crerar, at 74 Archer Street, North Adelaide. Then I 
looked for Caroline at the same address, and found Caroline Fountain 
at 74 Archer Street, North Adelaide. It was then possible to get 
Caroline's death certificate, marriage certificate and eventually to 
find her funeral notice and her grave in West Terrace Cemetery. This 
grave had a headstone on it bearing the names, Charles and Caroline 
Bellman. The death notice of Caroline's second husband, John James 
Fountain, and his grave in Payneham Cemetery were also found.

Another application for Charles Henry Bellman's death certificate 
was made but it seemed that his death was not registered. With the 
name, Fountain, a biography and photo of Caroline on her 83rd birthday, 
were found in the Abbot Index.

Concerning the nine children, a search in the Genealogy Society Library 
Cemetery Card Index, disclosed a third child, named Charles Henry Bellman. 
He was buried in the Moonta Cemetery in 1875, aged.l2 years. His death 
and birth certificates were obtained and it was found he was born at 
Burra in 1863. The Burra, Moonta, Adelaide sequence was mentioned in 
Caroline's obituary notice.

Ken and I went to Moonta and found, in the cemetery Records at the 
Moonta Council Office, the burials of two more children. They were 
James, died 1868 and Eva, died 1872. Birth and death certificates 
were obtained for them. Being unable to find early cemetery records 
for Burra it seemed that the search had come to a full stop, as the 
registrar of Births, Deaths and Marriages will not supply certificates 
unless the correct christian name is supplied.

Meanwhile Edith Bellman, who married William Crerar, had been traced 
to Renmark through the directories in the Archives and the Electoral 
Rolls. Also a daughter, Marjory Carol, appeared in the Electoral Rolls. 
Then in February, 1982, I was lucky enough to have a grandson of Edith 
Bellman (Crerar) find my name in the Genealogy Society Supplement, 
(a list of names of members' interests) and being interested in family 
history, he contacted me, and we were able to help each other. A visit 
to his mother, Marjory, Mrs. Jarrett, revealed more information 
concerning two other Bellman girls, Annie and Emmie. Annie had married 
a Mr McKean, and Emmie had died unmarried, aged 38 years. Their birth 
certificates were sent for and it was found that Annie was born at 
Burra in 1864, but of Emmie or Emily they found "no record".

There were still two children unaccounted for, so it was back to the 
Archives and a search in Burra Church Records disclosed Methodist 
Church Baptisms for Kooringa, and the two missing children were found. 
Another Charles Henry and Caroline and their birth dates, parents' 
names and their place of abode. Realising they must have died young, 
I sent for their death certificates and discovered Charles died at 
Burra in 1862, aged 31/2 years and Caroline died eleven days later, 
aged nearly two years.

On the same day, a search was made in the Adelaide Hospital Records 
for the admittance of Charles Henry Bellman, the father, having been 
told by Marjory that he died in the hospital. His name was not in 
the index, but I was allowed to examine records and found his 
admission to the RAH twice in early 1880, and followed this up by 
finding his date of death in hospital on 20 May 1880. Next to find 
his place of burial, research in the Newspaper Reading Room for a 
funeral notice was unsuccessful so back to the West Terrace Cemetery, 
with the date of death. His grave was found, unmarked, in the southwest 
corner of the cemetery.

At this stage, September 1982, birth, death and marriage indexes 
became available at the public at the Registrar's Office, but as births 
were only listed from 1878 - 1906, this was no help in finding Emmie's 
correct name, so Ken and I made another visit to the Moonta area and, 
at Kadina, found the records had been shifted from the Police Station 
to the Council Office, which meant we were able to examine the records 
ourselves. In the birth records Ken found the missing link, Martha 
Emily Bellman, born 15 February 1873. We obtained her birth certificate 
at Kadina, and with the correct name sent for her death certificate to 
the Registrar in Adelaide, but to our disappointment received a 
"no record" reply. Further inquiries at the Registrars indicated only 
two Bellman female deaths recorded between 1890 and 1920, and neither 
of them were Emmie. In spite of further research in newspapers and 
West Terrace Cemetery Records no trace of Emmie's death has been found.

Meanwhile Annie Bellman's story was traced and it was found that she 
had married twice, had one son, and there were some living McKean 
descendants. So from then on it was a case of filling in the details 
of families from the living relations, and with the help of birth, 
death and marriage certificates. Uncle Bert Bellman, the only surviving 
child of Alf and Annie Bellman, was particularly helpful in supplying 
such details as he could remember. Mrs Jean Barnden kindly supplied 
details about the Duell family. Thanks are also due to Marjory Jarrett 
(Poppy) and members of the McKean family and all Bellman family members 
who have supplied information and photos to help in compiling this 
Bellman story.

Elinor (Nell) A Bellman