Thomas Norris, of Child Okeford Dorset England, married Jane Lambert, of Shapwick Dorset, by banns on 24 July 1803, at Shapwick. Both gave their mark in the Marriage Register in lieu of a signature. Witnesses to the marriage were John Marshfield and Henry White.

All available evidence suggests that Thomas was the son of John Norris and Betty (nee Cole). John and Betty's son Thomas was baptised on 25 December 1786 at Child Okeford, which means that he was only seventeen years old when he married Jane Lambert. However, court records showing that Thomas was 32 years old in 1817 and 36 years old in 1821 corroborate his age. Thomas's father, John Norris, was from Child Okeford while his mother, Betty, was from Sturminster Newton.

Thomas and Jane Norris had six children:

• Ann, baptised 7 October 1804, at Child Okeford, Dorset.
• Henry, born circa 1806 at Shapwick, Dorset.
• Isaac, born circa 1810 at Shapwick, Dorset.
• Samson, born 17 March 1813, at Child Okeford, Dorset.
• William, baptised 5 October 1817 at Child Okeford, Dorset.
• Kezia, baptised 16 January 1820 at Child Okeford, Dorset.

All of the children except apparently Henry and Isaac were baptised at Child Okeford. A letter from Major Edward Macarthur to his brother William Macarthur confirms that Henry was Sampson's brother while, in evidence given during a legal trial involving the Norris family, Isaac states that he is the brother of Samson. According to other sources, Henry was born in Blandford Dorset and Isaac in Shapwick.

Ann Norris married Daniel Tapper on 24 March 1823 at Child Okeford and had three children before the family emigrated to the Swan River Colony (Western Australia) in 1830 aboard the Rockingham.

Henry Norris married Caroline Moore on 11 April 1825 at Child Okeford and had five children. The first four were baptised at Child Okeford: Mary Ann (16 March 1828), Daniel (6 February 1831), George (16 June 1833), and William Matthew (9 October 1936).

During September 1836, Major Edward Macarthur, son of John (deceased) and brother of James and William, contacted the Rector of Chettle in Dorset to seek suitable volunteer agricultural labourers to emigrate to New South Wales to work on the Macarthurs' Camden Park Estate under the Bounty System of assisted immigration. Included among the sixteen families chosen to make the voyage to NSW was the young family of Henry Norris. The ship in which they sailed was the Brothers which left Portsmouth on 30 October 1836 and arrived in Port Jackson on 8 April 1837. Henry Norris had only been at Camden Park some twenty months before he died on 7 January 1839, aged 32 years. Henry and Caroline's fifth child, Elizabeth Jane, was born at Camden on 27 January 1839, twenty days after the death of her father. Henry's widow later married Henry Sharp on 1 June 1840 at Camden.

Samson Norris (also spelt Sansom and Sampson in various records) married Sarah Read on 18 November 1834 at Child Okeford and had six children. The first two were born in Child Okeford: Henry, on 4 September 1835 and Anne, on 13 September 1838. Meanwhile, the Macarthurs had arranged for two more ships to carry emigrants from England to New South Wales. The second of these was the Royal George and, like his brother Henry before him, Sampson decided to make the voyage to New South Wales with his young family. The Royal George sailed from Portsmouth on 11 November 1838 and arrived in Sydney on 10 March 1839. Samson's remaining four children were all born at or near Camden: Elizabeth Jane (22 December 1840), Isaac (21 March 1843), Charles (30 September 1845) and John (14 April 1851). On 7 April 1856, Samson was drowned when attempting to drive his bullocks from the Nepean River at Camden. As his wife looked on helplessly, he became entangled among the chains and the bullocks' feet and it was some hours before his body was found.

Isaac Norris married Mary Arnold, a widow, on 4 July 1830 at Child Okeford and had four children, all baptised at Child Okeford: Frederick (6 February 1831), Mary Ann (18 November 1834), William (28 May 1837) and Ellen (1839). Their third child, William was buried at Child Okeford on 1 August 1845.

Over ten years after his brothers Henry and Samson had emigrated, Isaac, with his wife and three living children embarked aboard the Emigrant bound for New South Wales. They arrived on 8 June 1849 and, after a short sojourn in the Maitland district, settled in Camden. Isaac Norris remained in Camden until his death on 13 February 1896.

Also on board the Emigrant was Isaac's other brother William. Shortly after arriving in New South Wales, William married Mary Anne Lucas on 11 July 1849 at West Maitland. Mary Anne was a fellow passenger aboard the Emigrant and a native of Grenville Dorset. William also settled in Camden where his seven children were born: Sampson (3 June 1850), Charlotte Jane (25 April 1852), James (26 June 1854), Lucy (15 October 1856), Emma (1860), Ann (1860) and William (1862). It appears that William later moved away from Camden.

While Ann, Henry, Isaac, Sampson and William all migrated to Australia, Thomas and Jane's youngest daughter, Kezia, remained in Dorset. Kezia was still living with her mother in 1851. The 1841 Census lists Kezia as "button maker", the 1851 Census as "agricultural labourer". She married Samuel Hurdle at Child Okeford on 2 October 1853. This marriage produced three children: William (born circa 1857), Samuel (born circa 1858) and Ellen (born circa 1863). Kezia Hurdle died on 14 June 1872 at Charminster, Dorset.

The 1841 census records Jane Norris as "knitter" while the 1851 census lists her as "pauper, agricultural labourer". Her husband is not listed at Child Okeford in either census, suggesting that he died before 1841; however, no burial has as yet been discovered for Thomas Norris and the last known record of him is his release from the County Gaol in Dorchester on 15 April 1822, having served three months with hard labour for "leaving his Wife and Family chargeable" to the parish. Jane Norris was buried at Child Okeford on 7 February 1853, aged 75.