James TORDOFF 1835-7/Oct-
At Bradford Parish Church (Yorkshire, United Kingdom) James Tordoff of this parish, Weaver & Mary Smith, of this parish, minor, by Banns, (neither signed) Witness, Enoch Wilkinson, Isaac Tordoff. James and Mary Smith have 6 children James is sentenced at Wakefield for Larceny (theft) and is Transported to New South Wales in the William Jardine. He obviously did not profit from a fresh start in Australia, he seems to fancy a change of crime and becomes a bigamist by marrying again!. In all this turmoil the one thing that James did not change was his age that is reasonably accurate.

June 20 1859
James Tordoff/Bach/England/Laborer/40/Sydney NSW
Ann Cooper/Spr/England .........../35/Sydney NSW
(Neither signed)Wit, William Waller, Eliza Waller Presbyterian Church, Elizabeth Street, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia In 1856 his father leaves a will mentioning "James Tordoff son of the deceased and one of the next of kin and being transported beyond the seas".

All this time Mary Smith is shown as married in the Census, one wonders if James told her about his Australian wife, because he returns to Yorkshire. In 1871 Census Mary Smith is shown as a widow because James has returned to his old ways and has been killed trying to rob a train, he was decapitated. He looked out the window as another train passed and his head was taken off! He was stealing some green cloth, and died in 1868. Obviously not the greatest criminal mind of his generation!

What I would like to know is any further information regarding James and his Australian family, did James and Ann Cooper have children and if so what happened to them? How did James get the money to return to England? What ship did the rascal come back on? What was he up to in Australia? Did Ann Cooper die or did she dump James and go on to greater things? James seems to have returned between 1859 and 1868 as he is not in the 1861 Census with his English wife, so maybe he returned 1861 to 1868.

Tordoff is a good old Yorkshire name going back to at least 1499, but out of the County it can be written in many strange ways. You have to think of it being pronounced in a Yorkshire accent and being written down phonetically by someone who is not familiar with it. It is interesting that James marriage certificate is the accepted spelling. Dardoff, Lardoff, Tordo, Todo, Todoff, even Fodriff but usually the double FF is the give away. All help and information gratefully received.