Charles Kear (General)

by jean cavanagh @, Sydney nsw Australia, Tuesday, July 28, 2020, 01:04 (1340 days ago) @ LeeTazOz

Hello Lee, about a very energetic few years of research, nothing further has been done . I found cousins who came here to visit at Baulkham Hills, Sydney and over lunch discussed research and shared all of the information we had gathered.

I remember my father(Frank Arthur Phillips, son of Vashti Hannah Kear and Arthur Charles Phillips), talking about cousins, the Currys, So Vashti’s parents were Jean Shergold born in Wiltshire England and Charles Kear From Xiamen(Amoy)China. Whether Charles was full Chinese or a son of a Seaman(British came to Amoy in the 1800’s) from Forest of Dean, we don’t know. Charles May have been a full Chinese, educated at a Missionary School in Amoy who learned to speak English and when he came to Australia, anglicised his name.We can speculate but non of us have come up with any answers.

That is the mystery although my grandmother, Vashti) did look very Chinese And I was told that Jeanand Charles’s sons , all living in Mudgee, had pigtails. Definately a strong chinese look, skin colouring.

My husband and I have been to China many times and last visit, 2014, my daughter (59) and husband came with us to Xiamen(old Amoy) where we tried to so some research. Unfortunately needed a lot more time although we made contact with a man who has lived there for many years from US and he tried to help with research but was unable to find old records which we were to,d had been sent back to England.

Since a teenager , and I am now 80, I was fascinated with China without ever knowing anything about the Chinese connection as Gran (Vashti) apparently burnt her birth certificate and never ever spoke of parents To my mother (daughter-in-law) and I was too young to ask questions. In those days of course Chinese weren’t very welcome in Australia as the White Australia Policy came out 1901 and there was a lot was discrimination.

You can phone me 0408 204 360 or send me a message by clicking on the envelope next to my name at the head of this post.

I would have to did out old papers as I actually haven’t followed up anything for about 5 years now. A cousin Murray Kear had done a lot of research and also Helen Murray had done a lot and both much more organised than me and younger. Maybe about 70 now.

It’s a lot of fun actually and now I’m sorry I put it aside but it takes a lot of time which I started to feel a bit guilty about, no gardening or housework.


Cheers, Jean Cavanagh

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jean E cavanagh


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