COCKER -Kalgoorlie Cemetery Grave 8161 Anglican Section – Photo Danelle Warnock
Marcus Cleveland Cocker was born on 30th Sep 1871 in North Adelaide South Australia. He was the oldest child of Henry Cleveland Cocker and Elizabeth FARRAR. He had three other siblings, all girls, Ethel, Emily, and Bessie.
On the 7th Dec 1911 in Tammin, Western Australia, he married Ida Agnes HURST. Marcus was 40yrs old and Ida was 28yrs old. Ida was from Waratah Tasmania and was the daughter of John Hurst and Ellen WEDGER. None of either Marcus’s or Ida’s family accompanied them to Western Australia.
Marcus Cleveland Cocker and Ida Agnes Hurst on their wedding day, 7 Dec 1911, was kindly provided by Julie Maddocks nee Cocker – Ancestry.com
The couple was to have only one child, Leslie Cleveland Cocker, born in Collie WA in 1912. Marcus died on 2 April 1936 and is buried alone in the Kalgoorlie Cemetery. He has no memorial apart from his grave number. I have not been able to find his cause of death, he did not die in the Government Hospital and there is no mention of illness or accident in the newspapers. He went on to leave his wife the sum of £1177. He was described in his will as a prospector and the newspapers of the day show that he had a number of mines in his working life, the following are some of them. In each, he was in partnership with others.
United Australia South at Callion 5 acres in 1901
The Moonstone at Mulwarrie 5 acres in1903
The Recoupe Gm at Mulwarrie 5 acres in 1903
The Surprise – 5 acres 1905
Lady Gladys at Mulline 17 Acres in 1923
Riverina 20 acres 1931
From the following newspaper notice, it appears that Marcus’s wife and son were living in Perth at the time of his death. I haven’t been able to find any evidence that Ida ever accompanied her husband to the Goldfields. She seems to have stayed in the Perth area. This was quite common for families of miners and prospectors who moved around a lot.
Kalgoorlie Miner 3 April 1936, page 4
Postscript: Since this story was published I have been contacted by Julie who is Marcus’s grandaughter. She has given me the following information about the family.
Marcus first appears in the 1901 Electoral roll at Mulwarrie. I understand from family tales that he travelled to WA goldfields from SA with cousins in c1895 –
- Robert Loftes (see your virtual memorial site),
- Selby John Loftus (sic – Loftes – d 1896 enteric fever & haemorrhage in WA 18mths ) See Adelaide Advertiser on Trove
- Albert Loftes lived in Wiluna, and died in Perth
- Alexander Loftes lived Wiluna & Norseman died in Perth and
- Horace Sydney Stack (Sid) living Laverton 1901, 1916 Mt Magnet & died 1952 (Geraldton)
I have not been able to identify shipping. In 1905 Marcus travelled back to SA for his sister’s wedding and then returned to WA. Marcus married Ida Agnes Hurst – her mother’s maiden name was Widger. Ida was a dressmaker and most certainly lived in the goldfields, as did her family for some time. She arrived in 1908 on the “Kanowna” to Fremantle. She first appears in Electoral rolls in 1910 as Dressmaker, Davyhurst.
Her Mother Ellen and brothers, John Thomas and James appear on the rolls in 1903 & 1906 living in Boulder, and both brothers as miners. Their (John Hurst) father purportedly was with them but I can’t find him on the electoral rolls even in Tassie until 1914. It may be that he and Ida remained in Tassie. The family was back in Tassie by 1907 when one of the brothers married.
Ida moved to Perth in the late 1920s so my Dad could attend high school and complete an apprenticeship and commence working. His father visited them in Perth frequently. My Dad then returned to the goldfields as a prospector with his Dad in the early 1930s. He remained there until he enlisted in 1941. My mother talked of living at Mulline after their marriage in 1940. Ida became a business proprietor in Perth. Marcus died in the St John of God Hospital Kalgoorlie.
Moya Sharp
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