How James Willoughby's voyage aboard the S.S. Nurjahan changed his life forever
This April, as part of the Blogging from A to Z Challenge, I’m sharing their stories, one letter at a time. Today, we focus on the letter X, which stands for Xmas.
Migration has always been a defining feature of my family’s history, with ancestors crossing oceans and continents in search of new beginnings. Some left with a plan, others disappeared into the unknown, their stories unfolding in unexpected ways. One such journey began in 1884 when my great-grandfather, James Lincoln TempleWilloughby, vanished from his family’s life, setting sail for Australia.
Departure: A One-Way Journey
At 19, James left behind his home in Millwall, a neighborhood deeply connected to London’s docklands, and boarded the S.S. Nurjahan as a steward.i ii iii iv The Nurjahan was no ordinary ship, it was a gleaming steel steamship built by the renowned Harland and Wolff of Belfast. At 2,967 tons and powered by 2,000-horsepower engines, it was a marvel of modern engineering, designed specifically for passenger comfort. Its spacious decks, elegant saloons, and state-of-the-art amenities, including baths and washhouses, made it one of the finest emigrant steamers of its time.vvi For James, it was also an escape, a chance to leave behind the soot and clang of the forge where he had worked as a blacksmith’s apprentice.
By the 1880s, England was a land of contrasts. While the Industrial Revolution had brought wealth to some, it had left many others struggling in overcrowded cities and declining rural towns. For James, working as a blacksmith’s apprentice in Millwall, the soot-filled air and relentless clang of the forge were daily reminders of a life with little promise of change. Emigration offered a chance to escape the grinding poverty and limited opportunities of Victorian England, and for James, the S.S. Nurjahan represented not just a ship, but a gateway to a new future.
The ship departed London on November 26, 1884,vii stopping at Plymouth,viii and Teneriffe,ix The Nurjahan paused in Cape Town over Christmas for a few days, and the voyage took on a new dimension. Spending Christmas in a colonial part must have felt both exhilarating and disorienting. Far from the frosty scenes of home, he likely swapped a cold English Yuletide for summer warmth beneath the Southern Cross. Each stop exposed James to new people, domestic servants, farm laborers, skilled tradesmen, each with their own hopes and dreams.x Their stories left an impression on him, planting the idea that he too might forge a new path.
Disruptions and Discipline at Sea
After nearly two months at sea, the Nurjahan reached Hobart in January 1885. The arrival was marked by unruly celebrations, with several crew members arrested after altercations with local authorities. James, however, remained focused on his duties, watching as the immigrants disembarked to start their new lives.
Life aboard the Nurjahan was not always smooth sailing. While the ship was renowned for its modern design and passenger comforts, below deck, tensions brewed. Crew members worked long hours in tough conditions, and discipline was strictly enforced.
In Hobart, several members of the Nurjahan’s crew found themselves in trouble with the law. John McClements, a sailor, refused an order from the second engineer, citing a lack of clean clothes.xi He was promptly arrested and forced to return to duty. Another sailor, Jeremiah Walsh, was fined for disorderly conduct on board, while William O’Brien and Thomas Cluskey were charged with assaulting police officers during shore leave.xii
Not all disturbances came from the crew. The ship also had a stowaway, Daniel Donovan, who refused to disembark upon arrival in Hobart. When forced ashore, he caused such a commotion that he was arrested for using obscene language.xiii
For James, witnessing these incidents may have reinforced his desire for a different future. The rigid hierarchy of ship life, the harsh punishments for minor infractions, and the volatile behavior of fellow sailors all stood in contrast to the stability he saw in life on land.
A Journey Backward: The Other Side of Migration
Not all those who boarded the Nurjahan saw it as a passage to a new future. For one young woman, the ship was a last resort—a way home after migration had failed her.
Having married against her parents’ wishes, she followed her husband from Tasmania to New Zealand and then to England, only to be abandoned with her three-month-old baby in Gravesend. Left penniless after he pawned her jewellery and disappeared, she survived on the kindness of strangers. When her plight reached a local businessman, he arranged for her passage back to Hobart aboard the Nurjahan.xiv
Her story stood in stark contrast to those of the hopeful emigrants James had met at the start of his journey. It was a reminder that migration was not just a path to opportunity, it could also lead to heartbreak and loss. For James, who was already weighing his future, this story may have reinforced the idea that stepping ashore in Sydney would not be a guarantee of success, but a leap into the unknown.
Disappearance into a New Life
On January 24, the ship reached Melbourne, and by January 31, it was en route to Sydney, passing Green Cape in the afternoon. Under the command of Captain William Mason, the Nurjahan arrived in Sydney on February 1, 1885, completing its long journey from London via Hobart and Melbourne. In Sydney, James found himself at a crossroads. The Nurjahan was undergoing a transformation, its passenger accommodations were being removed, turning it into a cargo vessel.xv What had once been described as spacious accommodation for immigrants was now being converted into cargo space, even advertised as suitable for transporting horses due to the impressive 8 feet 6 inches height of the 'tween-decks. His role as a steward was no longer needed.
Australia in the 1880s was a land of contrasts. While the gold rushes of previous decades had slowed, the promise of wealth still lingered in the air. Cities like Sydney and Melbourne were bustling hubs of trade and industry, their streets lined with the hopeful and the ambitious. For James, stepping ashore in Sydney meant more than just a new job—it was a chance to reinvent himself in a society where hard work could lead to respect and prosperity. Yet, the challenges were real: the scorching heat, the vast distances, and the isolation from all he had known. But for a young man with little to lose, Australia was a land of endless possibility.
James now faced a choice: return to England, find work on another ship, or stay in Australia. Inspired by those he had met on the journey, including the ship’s doctor, who had decided to settle in Victoria,xvi James chose to remain.
For his family back home, he had simply vanished. His mother, MaryAnn, held onto hope, placing a newspaper notice in 1901 searching for him.xvii
“Willoughby, or Todman (James), left Millwall in 1884; last letter from Sydney, N.S.W., in 1888. Mother asks”
In an age before telephones and instant communication, losing touch with family was an all-too-common fate for emigrants. Letters took months to cross the oceans, and many were lost or never sent. For James, the decision to stay in Australia meant more than just a new life, it meant leaving behind his family in Millwall, perhaps forever. His mother’s notice in the newspaper, searching for her vanished son, was a poignant reminder of the countless families torn apart by the tides of migration. Yet, for James, this disappearance was not an end, but a beginning—a chance to rewrite his story in a land where the past could be left behind.
A New Beginning
We don’t know if James(or Walter, as he may have been known) ever contacted his family back home, but we do know that he became a valuable member of society. After a brief stint in New South Wales, he establish himself as a respectable business man and mechanic in Victoria. His disappearance was not a tragic loss but a transformation. He was part of a broader pattern, one where migration was as much about reinvention as it was about movement. For some, migration meant carrying their past with them; for James, it meant leaving it behind entirely.
In the end, his journey was not just about the distance travelled but about the person he became along the way.
📘 Glossary of Colonial Terms and Phrases
To help readers unfamiliar with colonial and maritime terms, here’s a brief glossary explaining some of the words used in today’s post:
Steward — A member of the ship’s crew responsible for serving meals and maintaining passenger accommodations.
Tween-decks — The space between the decks of a ship, often used for cargo or steerage passengers.
Emigrant Steamer — A steamship specially designed or adapted to carry emigrants to new colonies.
Stowaway — A person who hides on a ship to travel without paying for passage.
Disembark — To leave a ship and go ashore.
Unassisted Immigrant — Someone who migrated without receiving financial support from government or private immigration schemes.
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The URL for this post is https://ancestralresearchjournal.blogspot.com/2025/04/x-is-for-xmas-at-sea-and-gift-of-new.html, originally published on 28 April 2025
Author 2025, Sandra Williamson
Thank you for reading. Sources and further references are listed below.
i 1885 'Shipping.', Australian Town and Country Journal (Sydney, NSW : 1870 - 1919), 7 February, p. 39. , viewed 02 Mar 2025, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article71023367
ii Passenger List: "New South Wales, Australia, Unassisted Immigrant Passenger Lists, 1826-1922" Ancestrycom (accessed 13 April 2022) Entry for Crew member James Willoughby aged19 born Bermondsey working as a Steward; on the vessel Nurjahan Departed London; Arrived 2 Feb 1885 in Sydney, New South Wales; 23 unnumbed entry on page 2 of the Arrival List of Crew & Passengers for the voyage
iii 1885 'Shipping.', Australian Town and Country Journal (Sydney, NSW : 1870 - 1919), 7 February, p. 39. , viewed 07 Mar 2025, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article71023367
iv 1885 'SHIPPING.', The Sydney Morning Herald (NSW : 1842 - 1954), 5 February, p. 4. , viewed 07 Mar 2025, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article13581796
v 1885 '[BY ELECTRIC TELEGRAM.] MOUNT NELSON.', The Mercury (Hobart, Tas. : 1860 - 1954), 8 January, p. 2. , viewed 28 Feb 2025, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article9098647
vi 1885 'Along the Wharves.', Evening News (Sydney, NSW : 1869 - 1931), 29 January, p. 4. , viewed 02 Mar 2025, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article111173630
vii 1885 'Shipping.', Australian Town and Country Journal (Sydney, NSW : 1870 - 1919), 7 February, p. 39. , viewed 02 Mar 2025, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article71023367
viii 1885 'Shipping.', Australian Town and Country Journal (Sydney, NSW : 1870 - 1919), 7 February, p. 39. , viewed 02 Mar 2025, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article71023367
ix 1885 'ARRIVAL OF THE S.S. NURJAHAN.', The Mercury (Hobart, Tas. : 1860 - 1954), 20 January, p. 2. , viewed 01 Mar 2025, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article9099231
x 1884 'OUR CABLE NEWS.', Launceston Examiner (Tas. : 1842 - 1899), 29 December, p. 2. , viewed 28 Feb 2025, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article90552963
xi 1885 'THE TARIFF CONFERENCE.', The Mercury (Hobart, Tas. : 1860 - 1954), 22 January, p. 2. , viewed 01 Mar 2025, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article9099328
xii 1885 'LOCAL AND GENERAL.', Tasmanian News (Hobart, Tas. : 1883 - 1911), 21 January, p. 2. , viewed 01 Mar 2025, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article163519143
xiii 1885 'LOCAL AND GENERAL.', Tasmanian News (Hobart, Tas. : 1883 - 1911), 20 January, p. 2. , viewed 01 Mar 2025, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article163519109
xiv 1885 'A DISTRESSING CASE.', Launceston Examiner (Tas. : 1842 - 1899), 8 January, p. 2. , viewed 01 Mar 2025, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article38294355
xv 1885 'Auction Sales', The Sydney Morning Herald (NSW : 1842 - 1954), 14 February, p. 21. , viewed 02 Mar 2025, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article13584686
xvi 1885 'THE MERCURY.', The Mercury (Hobart, Tas. : 1860 - 1954), 21 January, p. 2. , viewed 02 Mar 2025, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article9099275
xvii MISSING FRIENDS. (1901, April 13). Evening Journal (Adelaide, SA : 1869 - 1912), p. 6. Retrieved October 21, 2015, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article207944213
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