Don Roulston Buzzard

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John Roulston in N.S.W.

John Roulston’s first recorded occupation in Sydney was as the licensee of the Lloyd’s Hotel at the corner of Brumby and Chisdell Sts., Surry Hill, Sydney. He soon gained the attention of the police and was brought before the Central Summons Court and fined.

John Roulston fined for Sunday trading at Lloyd’s Hotel

The Lloyd’s Hotel and the True Briton Hotel (at each end of Brumby St.) were both closed down as part of measures started in 1920 by the Licences Reduction Board. [27] The board was responsible for reducing the number of establishments serving liquor in N.S.W. and was brought about by the rise in the power of Temperance Societies after the First World War.

Nothing more was heard of the Smith family until 1910 when there were reports in the Sydney newspapers and business directories of John Roulston acting as a commission agent (where he took a commission on transactions) and was advertising himself as an accountant and auditor. Whether he had any qualifications is unsure.

John Roulston mental health had declined by March 1899, and he was noted in the Entrance Book of the Darlinghurst Gaol as attempting suicide. His address was entered as 7 Croydon St., Petersham, the same address as he used in the electoral roll in 1903. He was referred to the police on 21st March 1899 but no further action by the police can be found.

Entrance Book Darlinghurst Gaol 1899 - attempted suicide [28]

A worrying time for John Roulston and Florence occurred in 1899 when their only son, John Henry, went missing. He was believed to be in the company of a Walter Breen and they had gone to Newcastle, N.S.W. The report stated that Walter Breen had been missing since the 3rd of August 1899 so where had John Henry been living for the previous five weeks before the 3rd? No further reports of why the boys went missing have been found.

John Henry Missing

John Roulston was again to appear in the courts on a matter unrelated to his business activities, but as a witness to an alleged assault of a dentist, by the dentist’s business partner.

He was also involved in an altercation, on a train on 2nd April 1910, with a man named Daniel George Stuckey. Both men had been drinking before boarding the train. The reports said John Roulston and Stuckey had been friends for 20 years.

Two reports of the case are very confusing as they stated that the case was heard by two different judges and the awards for damages differed in both cases.

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[27] J.W. Ross - Last drinks in Surry Hills: the Licences Reduction Board, 1920-23
[28] Ancestry