Charles Cross was the thirteenth of the fifteen children of Philip Cross and his wife Mary Ong of Ely, Cambridgeshire.
Charles married Jane Thompson (the sister to his brother George's first wife) and the couple had two children before Jane died in 1831. Charles then re-married to Elizabeth Garner of Ely and the couple went on to have another six children.
Charles and Elizabeth with five of their children, along with Charles' brother George and his family, boarded the "James Fernie" at Liverpool on the 24th October 1855 and arrived in Moreton Bay, Brisbane, Australia on 24th January 1856.
Sadly, in 1859, after just four years of Australian life, Elizabeth died in Dalby, Queensland leaving Charles with an eighteen month old baby and the rest of his young family.
In letters home to his parents, his brother George's wife, Julia, wrote to tell home that "Charley is married again" but evidence of his third marriage has so far remained hidden.
Born:
1810, Ely, Cambridgeshire.
Baptised:
18th March 1810, Trinity Chapel, Ely Cathedral, Ely, Cambridgeshire
Died:
2nd June 1871 at Goodna, Queensland, Australia, aged 64 years. It is noted that his age at death does not coincide with dates given for his baptism, the 1851 census or the age given when he arrived at Australia.
Buried:
3rd June 1871 at Goodna, Queensland, Australia.