Joseph and Mary Ann-from Whittlesey to Melbourne.

Above: Two portraits of Mary Ann Measures who married Joseph Bishop in 1853.

Joseph Bishop lived with his first cousin, Mary Ann Measures, for some years prior to him deciding to take his business to Australia. She was the daughter of his maternal aunt, Eleanor Barnes Measures, and resided with her bachelor cousin in the capacity of a housekeeper.
The 1851 census also shows a 27 year old man named George Aveling living with Joseph Bishop. He had been apprenticed to Joseph between 1839 and 1844 as an ironmonger's apprentice,(Information as provided by George Aveling's great-grandson, Jack Aveling of Australia) and also decided to immigrate to Melbourne when his employer declared his intention to relocate to another country.
In 1853, Joseph, Mary Ann and George all booked passage on board the ship " South Carolina". The ship was scheduled to leave Liverpool on October 5, 1853, and on October 1 Joseph and Mary Ann were married in London. The family legend always stated that Joseph and Mary Ann were cousins who had married to satisfy convention, and that their marriage was a very happy one.
They were married at Saint Dunstan In The West, London, on October 1, 1853. Joseph at the time of the marriage had been residing in Fleet Street, London, and Mary Ann at Saint John's, Hampstead. Their fathers were stated as being Joseph Bishop, deceased, and Thomas Measures, Inn Keeper.

The two photographs above are very interesting in that they appear to be of the same portrait, with one being 'doctored' to appear much younger. The actual photograph of Mary Ann shows her as she appeared at the time of her marriage in 1853, aged about 41 years.The other portrait appears to have been painted over the second in an attempt to portray Mary Ann as she would have looked when she was younger.This portrait is in a small case with :Central Photographic Rooms, Messrs Cotton & Ware, 90 Cannon Street West, City".
Some investigation into this business gives the following information:
"Cotton, John Anderson.
Born in Deptford 1831.
Christened July 11 1831 in Deptford.
STUDIOS: 1. 90 Cannon Street West, City of London 2 floor 1854 - October 1856. Aka Central Photographic Rooms. Succeeded by Cotton & Wall. Inaugural member of committee of South London Photographic Society 1859.
Times adverts in mid - 1860s claimed established 1853." Source: photolondon.org.uk

This dating puts Mary Ann as one of Cotton's early customers.She is wearing a wedding ring, so the photo can be accurately dated between October 1, 1853, when she married Joseph, and October 5 when they sailed for Australia.
The 'South Carolina' arrived in Melbourne on Wednesday, January 4, 1854.The Argus newspaper reported that she had accomplished her passage from Liverpool in 97 days, having been detained 16 days by calms, 3 degrees north of the line."Her run from the longitude of the Cape was made in 23 days."
Joseph went into partnership with Edward Keep to form the business 'Bishop and Keep', an Ironmongers' firm based in Melbourne.The 1856 Electoral Roll reveals that Joseph Bishop, ironmonger, and his faithful employee George Smith Aveling were residing at Beach Road, Brighton.