Henry Hellyer - Legacy

Legacy

Although Henry Hellyer had no descendants, his younger brother Thomas Hellyer (1801–41) migrated to New Zealand with his son William (1821–1885) by way of Hobart Town, Tasmania, where Thomas married his second wife on 11 June 1832. Henry Hellyer had by then advised the Court of Directors of the VDL Co that he would be leaving their service at the end of his contract, to accept an appointment with the Surveyor-General in Hobart Town. It is not known if the brothers had plans to work together, or if they met, or if Henry Hellyer attended the wedding. He could have done so, since the VDL Co operated a cutter that made the trip regularly for mail and supplies, but his name is not listed amongst the witnesses.

Henry's nephew William Hellyer migrated from New Zealand to New South Wales about 1838,and became a solicitor and was a member of the NSW Parliament for one day in 1861. Many Australian Hellyers are descended from William, whose son Thomas Henry Hellyer (1840–1889) was a member of the NSW Parliament from 1883 to 84.