Konrad HAUB 1830-1870
Because he did not marry, was not naturalised, and took up no land selection, nothing is known of the time Konrad spent in Australia, except for the sad circumstances of his death. Even the exact date of his arrival is unclear, though the Conrad Haub who was aboard “Merrie England” with three others from Nieder-Weisel was of the right age group. The ship reached Melbourne on 16th January 1857, less than eight weeks before Konrad’s sister Juliana arrived with other members of the family aboard “Columbia”.
Konrad’s brothers, Jakob and George, spent several years prospecting before going onto the land. Both went into southern and central New South Wales, as indeed their mother Katharina did, and it is quite probable that Konrad did likewise. By 1870 all the members of the group were back in Victoria, living near one another around Rushworth. Juliana married in England before emigrating and Jakob was married in New South Wales; the unmarried sons, Konrad and George, would have appreciated having their mother keeping house for them.
On 6th August 1870 Konrad took his sister’s 13 year-old son Jacob Geisler to help work a claim at Corbetts Rush in Billy Button Gully. When Konrad was under-cutting the angles at the bottom of the shaft, the walls collapsed and the earth fall buried him. The boy got into the shaft and managed to get him free before running home for help. His father was able to get Konrad free of the shaft. He took him home where a doctor attended his injuries (mainly sore ribs and stomach). However the internal damage to vital organs was far more serious than suspected, and Konrad died early in the morning of 9th August.
An Inquiry carried out by a magistrate found that Konrad died from injuries accidentally sustained. In the presence of his younger brothers and their brother-in-law, Konrad Haub, aged 40, was buried next day in the Rushworth cemetery.
View Konrad's Family Chart
