The story so far… Francis Sendall left his ordinary English home and family far behind to look for a life less ordinary…

In 1892 Francis was living with missionaries in the New Hebrides, surrounded by cannibals and beset by hurricanes. From his plantation Sana Roba, on the island of Malo, he traded all things coconut with passing ships. He waited and waited for a particular lady who was often expected but never arrived.

At the exact moment that we left him, Francis was rushing off to Sydney.

Why?

To get married!

On St Valentine’s Day 1894, Francis strolled down the aisle of Sydney’s St Peter’s Church of England and married Mary Davies (sometimes Davis), the daughter of an ordinary boot maker.

On their wedding day Francis was 41 and Mary was 23. Mary had a baby girl, named Ruby Davies, born in Sydney in September 1892 – right around the time that Francis was expecting Mary to arrive in the New Hebrides. No wonder she didn’t arrive.

In those days it was a terrible thing to be an unmarried mother. People treated unmarried mothers differently, as though they were somehow less; less respectable, less capable, less mother. Thank goodness things are very different now, don’t you think?

Francis and Mary tried living on Malo but it didn’t last long. Mary came back to Sydney on board the ship Katoomba on 25 June 1895, fifteen months after they were married. The Katoomba had a handful of passengers on board, all of them men except for Mary and an ‘infant’.

Choosing an ordinary life with Mary over an extraordinary life of coconuts and cannibals, Francis also came back to Sydney, closing the door forever on Sana Roba.

There were thought to be 15 Sendall babies in all, including Ruby and two baby boys believed to have died at birth.

1892 – Ruby McIndoe Davies

1897 – Francis William Archer Stewart (Archie)

1899 – Frederick Walter Richard Charles (Freddie) died of pneumonia in February 1902

1901 – Leonard James Samuel died of an infected elbow in January 1903

1902 – George Henry David Davies (Georgie) died of diphtheria in December 1903

1904 – twin Ellen Louis Caroline (Nellie)

1904 – twin Ernest Leslie Frederick (Ernie)

1905 – Ruth Janet Mary

1908 – Alfred Victor Ellis (Alfie)

1909 – Prudence Naomi (Pru)

1911 – Florence Evelyn (Florrie)

1915 – Hilda Marjorie

1916 – Nancy May Birdwood

Sendall family life was a joyful life. It’s clear on the smiling faces of the family in the picture, they didn’t take themselves too seriously.

Behind the scenes, there were all sorts of wars going on.