itellya on Family Tree Circles
Journals and Posts
SPENCER HUGH JACKSON AND THE BUS BAN (MORNINGTON PENINSULA, VIC., AUST.)
THE BUS BAN.
Spencer Jackson was Dromana's dynamo and his fellow members of members of the Mornington Peninsula Development League used a similar term to describe him: LIVE WIRE!
PENINSULA DEVELOPMENT LEAGUE MEETING AT HASTINGS.
Frankston and Somerville Standard (Vic. : 1921 - 1939) Friday 16 November 1928 p 2 Article (EXTRACTS.)
A "LIVE WIRE."
Mr.. Spencer Jackson forwarded
cheque for subscription, and £2/2/ as
his annual donation. He hoped that
members would use their best endea
vors to increase the membership. He
also offered the use of his Melbourne
office to the league if it was required
at any time. A vote "of thanks was
passed to Mr. Jackson for the great
interest he was taking in the. league.
R A.C.V. SPEED TESTS.
Mr Jackson reported that he had
had a visit from Mr H. J. Bean and
that the R.AC.V was holding speed
and acceleration tests on Safety
Beach, Dromana, on December 1. One
thousand motor cars were expected.
If the meeting was successful the club
would hold another in January. The
Dromana Progress Assdciation had
been asked to co -operate in organis
ing. Volunteers were, also required
to control the traffic.He suggested
that the league render assistance.
The profits would be donated to any
public charity that Dromana Progress
consents to give them to. He moved
that the league support.
I thought his BEAUTIFUL DROMANA of 1927 nothing more than an advertorial and that his incredible achievements of running the huge fundraising ball of 1928 that enabled construction of the road to the summit of Arthurs Seat, and being a prime mover in finally getting the coast road from Mornington to Dromana built and getting the bus ban lifted were motivated by his business interests.
UNTIL I SAW THIS!
DYSON. On July 27, at Dromana, George Robert Dyson, a truly noble character, much-esteemed friend of Spencer Jackson. (P.2, Argus,28-7-1944.)
BANNED ROAD SERVICES.
BAYSIDE RESORTS HARD HIT.
GREAT PUBLIC INDIGNATION.
What Will Railways Gain?
(BY OUR SPECIAL REPRESENTATIVE.)
Residents of the Mornington Peninsula
who had enjoyed in recent years a period
of remarkable progress and prosperity, have
suffered a severe blow through the with-
drawal of private motor-omnibus services,
which has virtually thrown them back to
the unenviable stage when they had no
direct transport service to Melbourne. Lead-
ing residents of Dromana and Rosebud
yesterday said that the astonishing develop-
ment of the buside resorts in that district
was due entirely to motor transport, and
condemned the sweeping provisions of the
Motor-'bus (Urban and Country) Act which
have forced private motor-'buses off the
road and left the district without adequate
transport facilities. Investigation of the
business affairs of many traders suggests
that the falling off in passenger traffic
already (allowing for the diminution due
to the winter season) has seriously affected
them.
Back to the "Rabbit Express."
It is impossible to find logic in the reason-
ing of the authorities who have brought
the Mornington Peninsula within the scope
of the ban. It is poorly served by the rail-
way, and the most absurd part of the pre-
sent prohibition is that the Railways de-
partment has nothing satisfactory to sub-
stitute for the 'buses. Nor can it hope to
add more than a paltry few pounds a week
to its revenue by inducing a few visitors
to submit to the annoyance and inconveni-
encee of changing from the electric train
at Frankston to motor-'buses travelling to
Sorrento and Portsea. Ten years ago the
residents of Sorrento, Rosebud, or Dro-
mana who desired to travel to Melbourne
by train in the morning began the jour-
ney before daylight in a horse-drawn
vehicle which conveyed fish and rabbits
to Mornington. This conveyance is now
historic. It was known in the district as the
"rabbit express." It deposited its weary
passengers at the Mornington railway sta-
tion in time for the morning train. Several
residents of the district invested their capi-
tal in the purchase of motor-'buses, and
completely changed the outlook for the
peninsula. Not only were residents enabled
to go to and from Melbourne in an hour or
two, but the service attracted Melbourne
people to bayside resorts which hitherto
had boen inaccessible to the majority of
wage-earners. The direct result of these
'bus services was reflected in the erection
of new shops and dwellings. Land values
rapidly increased, and Dromana, Rosebud,
Rye, and other places experienced a pros-
perity undreamed of a year or two pre-
viously. Residents of townships inland on
the peninsula also enjoyed the privilege
of speedy motor transport. It would be
an exaggeration, of course, to suggest that
the district has been crippled by the 'bus
ban, but there has been severe retrogres-
sion. The population of the peninsula is
exceedingly loyal to the private bus owners,
and has been since the inception of the
services, and the obligation under the new
law to break the journey at Frankston has
increased the hostility which the district
has shown towards the Railways depart-
ment. This attitude began when the Rail-
ways Commissioners instituted a motor-'bus
service in opposition to private enterprise.
Residents objected strongly to that en-
croachment upon a field pioneered by
private enterprise, and in which, they
claimed, there was not sufficient competi-
tion with the railways to justify the step.
The exasperating delays, inconvenience,
and difficulty in reaching Dromana by the
"official" route (for several five-passenger
motor cars licensed by the hackney car-
riage committee of the Melbourne City
Council, still ply between Melbourne and
Sorrento) was shown yesterday. Inquiry
made at the Tourist Bureau elicited the in-
formation that the only train for passengers
to Dromana left Flinders street at 9.20 a.m.
A return ticket to Frankston was neces-
sary. Upon arrival at Frankston the pas-
senger walked along a ramp a distance of
about 400 yards to a motor- bus stand. The
walk suggested the difficulties which would
befall elderly persons with luggage or
mothers with infants and small children.
The passenger had boarded the train at
Caulfield, and it was not until he reached
Frankston that he was told that at Flinders
street he could have purchased a combined
train and 'bus ticket from Melbourne to
Dromana and return, although that infor-
mation could easily have been supplied by
the Tourist Bureau. At Dromana it was
leamed that the bus did not leave Dromana
for Frankston until 5 o'clock. The pas-
senger decided to return to Melbourne
earlier in the afternoon in one of the hire
cars, which cover the distance in little
more than an hour, or about half the time
occupied by the train and 'bus by way of
Frankston. The opinion was freely ex-
pressed at several bayside resorts visited
yesterday that the only persons whom the
Railways department could expect to travel
by the train and 'bus route would be
strangers. Residents of the district having
business in the city invariably patronise
the hire cars, and it was predicted that
Melbourne residents who have gone regu-
larly to the peninsula for holidays will also
adopt that method, or forego their visits.
Hardships of 'Bus Owners.
Apart from the widespread discomfort
to the travelling public, the ban has been
disastrous to those who invested their capi-
tal in motor-'buses. At Rosebud a limb-
less soldier, who has a wife and three chil-
dren, and is a skilful driver in spite of an
artificial leg, has six motor-'buses idle in
his garage. They represent all his capital.
His position is so acute that he has been
forced to dismiss his three assistants (all
former soldiers) and is now himself en-
gaged in carting wood. Before the ban
he used 500 gallons of petrol weekly; now
he sells about 12 gallons a week to motor-
ists and uses a gallon or two himself.
That is a typical instance of the strangling
of private enterprise which was performing
an essential public service. At Dromana
one of the most respected families in the
district is in similar straits. All of its capi-
tal is represented by splendid motor-'buses
idle in the garage, and for which no buyers
can be found. One private service has
undertaken the Frankston-Sorrento route,
and co-operates with the Railways depart-
ment. The other private 'bus owners de-
cline to apply for licences for this route
(although they state that they have been
urged by the Country Roads Board to do
so) because they are certain that the pas-
senger traffic would not enable them to
pay expenses. Several of them, however,
maintain a daily five-passenger service be-
tween Melbourne and Sorrento, because
they believe that the present ban cannot
continue. Although there are 24 trains
daily to Frankston in the winter, the Sor-
rento-Portsea 'bus meets only three. To
adapt Punchs' famous advice to those
about to marry, wise counsel to passengers
intending to travel on one of the 21 trains
which are not met by a 'bus is "Don't."
"Public Rights Infringed "
Indignation was expressed yesterday by
several leading towspeople of Dromana
and Rosebud over what was called "an
iniquitous position" and "an unwarrant-
able infringement of public rights." Mr.
W. J. Chadwick, of Dromana, said that it
was outrageous to penalise the private 'bus
owners who had served the public so well.
"What does this district contribute to the
railways?" asked Mr. Chadwick. "Little
or nothing. The ban is a most distressing
setback to the district. People had an
easy and cheap way of moving about the
peninsula. Many Melbourne residents have
come here for years because of the 'bus
service, and have become property-owners.
Many week-end residents have been built
solely because of the 'buses. The Railways
department will not benefit through their
withdrawal. Some people will stay away
from the district, and others who can afford
it will buy motor-cars. People will not
submit to the inconvenience of changing
from train to 'bus, when under the old
system the 'bus picked them up at their
doors and set them down at their destina-
tions.
Councillor Shaw, of the Flinders Shire
Council, said that the recent progress of the
district was due entirely to motor-'bus faci-
lities. The Frankston service, he predicted
would be a failure. People would not bother
to change. The ban would harm the dis-
trict considerably. He estimated that 96
per cent. of the residents of the bayside
from Portsea to Dromana would decline to
travel by train. He trusted that the leader
of the Opposition (Sir William McPher-
son) would lose no time in urging Parlia-
ment to amend the law to exempt certain
districts from the provisions of the act.
Similar views were espressed by Coun-
cillor T. W. Chadwick, of Rosebud. Land
values had increased greatly since the
'buses ran through to Melbourne, he said.
Land which six years ago was sold at £1
a foot had recently been sold at £10 a foot.
Storekeepers in the district had been hard hit.(P. 16, Argus, 29-6-1928.)
Spencer Jackson's letter.
('BUS BAN. TO THE EDITOR OF THE ARGUS.
The Argus (Melbourne, Vic. : 1848 - 1957) Monday 11 February 1929 p 17 Article)
MOTOR-BUS BAN.
MORNINGTON SERVICES.
Railways Commissioners' Defence.
A letter waS published on Monday from
the secretary of the Dromana Progress
Association (Mr. Spencer H. Jackson), in
which complaint was made of the Railways
motor-bus services on the Mornington
peninsula, which were described as shock-
ingly inadequate, and such as to retard
the development of holiday resorts on the
peninsula. At the same time, Mr. Jack-
son wrote to the Railways Commissioners,
expressing keen disappointment at the
manner in which the department was re
tarding the district.
In reply Mr. Jackson has received a let-
ter from the secretary of the department
(Mr. E.C.Eyers), pointing, out that at
the time of the introduction of the Motor
Omnibus (Urban and Country) Act five
commercial road motor passenger services
(including the service operated by the de-
partment) were running. When portion
of the route between Melbourne and
Frankston was prohibited the department
withdrew its road service, as did one of
the other operators (Dyson's Motors), who
applied for and obtained a licence to oper-
ate over the authoriscd route between
Frankston and the peninsula. All other
operators, Mr. Eyers states, in defiance of
the law, have continued to run to and
from Melbourne practically as formerly,
sometimes with large omnibuses and fre
qucntly with more than five passengers.
Dyson's Motors, who are the only author-
ised operators, and who are carrying pas
sengers between Frankston and the penin-
sula under contract with the department.
have so far obtained only a negligible por-
tion of the business they were entitled to
expect, because of the continued operations
of the unauthorised services to and from
Melbourne. The commissioners are op-
posed to the through running from Mel-
bourne in contravention of the law, but
they have no voice in the administration
of the act, and are therefore powerless in
the matter. In their opinion there is no
reason why the combined rail and road
facilities should not meet fully the require
ments of the district. The journey, they
consider, can be made in the same time
as by the through road services, and large
expenditure has been incurred at Frank-
ston to make the change at that point easy
and comfortable.
-"During the current holiday season," con-
tinued Mr. Eyers, both the department
and Dyson's Motors made elaborate ar-
rangements, at considerable cost, to handle
expeditiously an anticipated large volume
of traffiic to and from the peninsula. The
arrangements, however, proved to bo quite
unnecessary, and the expenditure was
money lost, because the business did not
go by rail, but was secured by the un-
authorised 'through' services. While
these unauthorised services are permitted
to continue it would be quite unreason-
able' to expect Dyson's Motors to incur
further losses by increasing a service which
is already greater than is necessary on the
basis of the patronage accorded it. At the
present time three trains are met by
Dyson's Motors in each direction daily
(except on Sundays, when two trains are
met), and on only a very negligible num-
ber of occasions have the train connections
been missed. With the exception of these
occasions, the time-table has been closely
adhered to.
In reply to Mr. Eyers' letter, Mr. Jack-
son- contends that the department
has proved beyond doubt that it cannot
offer inducements to the travelling public
to use its means of transport. He con-
siders the railway fare to Frankston and
the 'bus charge of 5/- for an 18-mile jour-
ney excessive when, compared with the
"unauthorised" motors' charge of only 7/0
for a 44-mile journey. The small amount
of money received by the department for
the actual use of its railroad does not, he
thinks, justify tho continuance of the re-
strictions on the motor services of the
peninsula. Mr. Jackson states that the
buses miss the connecting trains more
often than they meet them, and that they
have proved that they cannot consistently
do the journey in an hour and a half, as
the "unauthorised" motors do regularly.
(P.15,Argus, 14-2-1929.)
The president of the Dromana Progress
Association (Mr.S.Jackson) said that he
could produce the dates of 33 occasions in
February on which Dyson's bus had missed
the connecting train at Mornington.
( 'BUS BAN OPPOSED. PENINSULA SERVICE SAID TO BE INADEQUATE. Minister Will Not Promise Relief.
The Argus (Melbourne, Vic. : 1848 - 1957) Wednesday 27 March 1929 p 7 Article
... * deputation from the Mornington peninsula)
Things weren't looking so promising at the end of 1929 so I tried the next decade only to find one article. The Shire of Flinders had protested against the bus ban, this article hidden among countless articles about football.
'BUS BAN PROTEST. Flinders Council Takes Action.
The Argus (Melbourne, Vic. : 1848 - 1957) Thursday 6 February 1930 p 10 Article
How could I confirm that through buses had been allowed to compete with the railways? Rosebud, Birkdale???
It worked.(Birkdale was the name that Whitaker's busline used for the suburb we now call Tootgarook because of Birkdale guest house on the east corner of Carmichael St.) This seemed to indicate that Whitaker's through service started in 1937 but out of curiosity I switched to the 1920's and found these two advertisements under MOTOR SERVICES TO EVERYWHERE.
DROMANA, SORRENTO, AND PORTSEA.
Return Fares, Sorrento, 17/3 1st Class, 16/, 2nd Class, Return Fares, Dromana, 12/3 1st class,11/ 2nd class. Book Govt. Tourist Bureau or Flinders st. station.
DROMANA, Rosebud-Whitaker's service leaves Batman av., 9:30 a.m., 5 p.m. Book Pioneer 15 Queen's Walk. C. 5224.
(Classified Advertising
The Argus (Melbourne, Vic. : 1848 - 1957) Saturday 9 November 1929 p 34 Advertising)
The first involved a combined rail/bus ticket but the numerous private bus operators such as Whitaker of Rosebud must have sensed that they would not be prosecuted.
"Fred Whitaker Senior established his garage in Dromana in the early 1920's and ran a bus to Rosebud.Later his sons amalgamated with Johnson and Metcher to form Portsea Passenger Service......Spencer Jackson organised a deputation of 200 to the Minister of Transport with the result that buses were permitted to run to Melbourne until W.W.11 necessitated economies.*" (*Petrol rationing.) P.53, A DREAMTIME OF DROMANA.
SQUATTERS IN THE WESTERNPORT DISTRICT: HOW VAGUE!
Researchers beware! Many squatters mentioned in correspondence to the Governor in early days and described as being in the WESTERNPORT DISTRICT were nowhere near the Mornington Peninsula or Gippsland areas. Just some examples are: John Aitken (Mt Aitken) and Edward Page (Glencoe) near Sunbury, Edward Dryden near Hanging Rock, Peter Young of the Sugar Loaf Run (which had to be near Seymour) and other runs called Cairn Curran, Kilmore etc.
Harry Huntington Peck knew just about every square inch of the eastern states as he demonstrated in MEMOIRS OF A STOCKMAN which is available online. Here's an example of the confusion caused by the description of squatting runs nowhere near the eastern port (that was the westernmost one when discovered) having their locations described as WESTERNPORT.
Leases were recorded in Sydney Government files as in
Westernport and held by Cuthbert and Gardiner called
Moonee Moonee Ponds and Two Rivers, the latter bracketed with
Westaway. But it is extraordinary that the oldest residents of the
locality never heard of such runs. Neither did Mr. Angus McNabb
of Wendoora, originally part of Westaway, whose grandfather
Archibald McNabb was manager for Cuthbert, after his partner
Gardiner went to New Zealand. He could not find any trace or
record of them. It is a coincidence that the name Moonee Moonee
Ponds is so like that of the suburb of Moonee Ponds close to
Newmarket?as to the origin of which there are also doubts and
arguments. It makes one wonder how it is that both are more or
less a mystery. (P.165, MEMOIRS OF A STOCKMAN.)
SQUATTING STATIONS OF FIREBRACE, DOWNIE, HUTTON and McNALL, NEAR TULLAMARINE, VICTORIA, AUSTRALIA. (and W.H.Mutton, pioneer of Avenel.)
1842 GRANTS
OH DEAR, THE TIME THAT I HAVE WASTED!
THE TITLE OF THIS JOURNAL HAS BEEN CHANGED; MUTTON IS NOW HUTTON.
After finding no squatter named MUTTON pre 1842, discovering a pioneer of Avenel, guessing that the name might have been Hutton, providing evidence to support that assumption and postulating that a handwritten H had been misinterpreted as M by such as a typesetter, I decided that I had done all that was possible. Then the penny dropped! Was the trove digitisation wrong regarding the name of the station? IT WAS!!!!! I HAVE NOW CORRECTED IT ON TROVE BUT NOT IN THE JOURNAL as a lesson to myself to read the actual article before I worry about the digitisation.
Most squatters because of insecure tenure, erected hovels, later building substantial mansions on their pre-emptive rights if they survived the circa 1843 crash. These hovels were better than nothing and purchasers of land containing such head stations could at least move in immediately, perhaps supplying a reason for their choice of that particular land, as well as fencing for stock-holding paddocks and other buildings such as shearing sheds.
Cortland Taylor's grant, section 9 Bulla Bulla at Melway 384 K 11-12 south of Oaklands, extending east to the eastern boundary of the Readymix Oakland junction Quarry, and now consisting of the quarry and Balbethan was purchased by Walter Clark of Glenara and named Glenalister after his recently-born son, who became chairman of the Moonee Valley Racing Club and a famed breeder of roses. Bob Blackwell was the last manager of Dunalister and was given permission by the new owner (who renamed the farm as Balbethan)to use Dunalister as the name of a stud he established at Elmore. See the Balbethan citation for further information. The portion of Pascoe Vale Rd between Glass St(or Five Mile Creek) and Woodlands St was originally named after Major Firebrace.
FIREBRACE STREET
John Carre Riddell's grant, 15 Tullamarine, with another of his grants (section 6 Tullamarine)became the Camiestown Estate. Most of section 15 became John Mansfield\'s triangle on which the Melbourne Airport terminal building is located, Glendewar (initially 377 acres) purchased by William Dewar who previously managed the Camiestown Estate, Charles Nash and Wallis Wright's farms and the northern 123 acres of John Peter's Chandos north of Bamford Avenue.
See the following for a map showing the location of Downie's station.
DOWNIE\'S STATION
R.H.Bunbury's grant, section 1 Tullamarine, actually consisting of 907 acres, adjoined Annandale at a line indicated by the northernmost point of Annandale Rd and extended west to the Maribyrnong River. Bunbury lost his right arm arm in naval combat, but could paint beautifully with his left hand according to Georgiana McCrae who came out on the same ship. Bunbury apparently bought the land as a dummy for Colin Campbell who called it Glengyle. Edward Wilson named his farm on the Glengyle Estate "Arundel" and this name later described the Closer Settlement and one of its subdivision roads, the other being Browns Rd.
George Russell of Golf Hill in the Western District bought section 5 Tullamarine as a dummy for Niel Black of Mt Noorat in the same district. Black leased it from 1846-1855 to Peter McCracken, the property being named Stewarton after Stewart, a member of the Black syndicate, as was the prime minister's cousin, Gladstone. In about 1893 the property was renamed as Gladstone. The property fronted the east side of today's Mickleham Rd between the Lackenheath Drive and Forman St corners, extending east to the Moonee Ponds Creek which also comprised much of its northern boundary. The freeway divided the property into Gladstone Park (east side) and Gladstone Gardens fronting Mickleham Rd.
LOCATIONS OF STATIONS
Portion 9 — 640 acres, county of Bourke, parish of Bulla Bulla ; purchaser, Major Taylor, H.E.I.C.S. (per
James Simpson, Esq.) This includes Major Firebrace's station, near the Salt Water River.
Portion 15 — 713 acres, county of Bourke, parish of Tullamarinc ; purchaser. J. Carre Riddell, Esq. This includes the place known as Downie's station, on the Moonee Moonee Ponds.
Portion 1 — 902 acres, county of Bourke, parish of Tullamarine ; purchaser, Captain Bunbury, R.N. This includes Mr. Mutton's(sic, Hutton's) station, near Keillor, on the Salt Water River.
Portion 5 — 785 acres, county of Bourke, parish of Tullamarine ; purchaser, George Russell, Esq., manager for the Clyde Company. This includes M'Nall's station, on the Moonee Moonee Ponds.
(P.2, Port Phillip Patriot and Melbourne Advertiser, 8-9-1842.)
The link for this or an identical article is at the start of the journal.
Another land claim enabled by land orders was the selection of "Woodlands" in lieu of a special survey, discussed in my very recent journal:
LAND SELECTIONS BY WILLIAM RUTLEDGE OF PARAMATTA, N.S.W. AND ANDREW McCRAE IN 1842 THAT MAY HAVE CHANGED THE HISTORY OF BULLA AND ARTHURS SEAT.
A BIT ABOUT THE SQUATTERS.
FIREBRACE.
These two children were most likely the offspring of Major Firebrace, not of his nephew, W.P.Firebrace who remained unmarried. Their father was in Melbourne in 1842 but on the Moonee moonee chain of ponds in 1844, an indication that the major was still leasing the remainder of his run on Oaklands Rd, which was called an OCCUPATION ROAD when it was proclaimed in 1848.
FIREBRACE Given namesCharlotte Elizabeth EventBirth Father's name nameFIREBRACE William Mother's maiden name Anne (Unknown) Reg. year1844 Reg. no14013
Family name (surname)FIREBRACE Given namesGeorge EventBirth Father's name FIREBRACE William Mother's maiden name Ann (Unknown) Reg. year1842 Reg. no13056
Major Firebrace did not arrive till 1841* so he must have just obtained the lease of his run on the Moonee Ponds when he was dispossessed of part of it.
They came by ship William Mitchell in 1841 - OoCities
www.oocities.org/vic1840/41/wm41.html
William Firebrace hus Cabin 1)
Mary Ann nee Wade Firebrace wife Cabin 2)
Adelaide Grace Firebrace infant Cabin 9)
Robert Tarver Firebrace son wed 1858 Cabin 5)
Edward Bell Firebrace son wed 1875 Cabin 7)
John Firebrace son Cabin 8)
Mary Anna Firebrace dau wed 1845 Cabin 3)
Catherine/Christian Mehetabel Firebrace dau Cabin 4)
Elizabeth Firebrace dau Cabin 6)
W.P.FIREBRACE'S PROMINENT ROLE AND DEATH NOTICE. Anecdotal Photograph. Mr. W. P. Firebrace.
FIREBRACE.—On the 25th June, at "Bathwick,"Ivy-street, Prahran (suddenly), William Piggott Firebrace, late Prothonotary of the Supreme Court of Victoria, elder son of the late Judge Firebrace, Demaram, British Guiana, aged 76.(P.60, The Australasian, 4-7-1908.)
In 1845 Major William Firebrace replaced the Wilsons on a run called Vectis in the Horsham area according to a letter from William Taylor (The Father of Keilor) to Governor Latrobe about early pioneers.
"Several local histories say that Firebrace named this run Vectis;this was the ancient Roman name for the Isle of Wight (England), where he was supposed to have been born. However, I have recently come across a manuscript written in 1958 by high school principal I.T. Maddern, entitled The Early Days of Horsham, which states that the Firebrace family came from Duffield in Derbyshire." QUOTED FROM:
The Micro-toponomy of Mount Arapiles - ANPS
www.anps.org.au/documents/sept_2004.pdf
Major Firebrace's father was WILLIAM NEWTON FIREBRACE.
FIREBRACE.—On the 6th of May last, in London, Elizabeth Ann, daughter of the late Wm. Newton Firebrace, Esq., of Demerara, and sister of the late Major
Firebrace, in her seventy-first year.(P.4, Argus, 3-7-1868.)
The Major had obviously returned home* and certainly DIED on the ISLE OF WIGHT but his son Robert (Tarvers?Firebrace, who'd also been on Vectis, became a Gippsland pioneer by 1863, after marrying in Sydney and first living at Orrong, Toorak (both in 1860.)
*On the 28th July, at Newport, Isle of Wight,William Firebrace, Esq., late Major H.M. 58th Regiment, aged sixty-one years.(P.4, Argus, 21-10-1856.)
This seems to confirm that the children born in 1842 and 1844 were the Major's children, their mother's name being Ann(e).
FIREBRACE.—On the 2nd ult., at Orsett terrace, Hyde-park, in her 75th year, Anne, widow of the late Major Firebrace, of Melbourne, and formerly of H.M. 58th Regiment.(P.1, Argus, 18-7-1878.)
A SCOTT death notice shows that the portion of Pascoe Vale Rd, Essendon referred to in the journal was still called Firebrace Street in 1909.
(P.1, Argus, 29-3-1909.)
DOWNIE.
Late 1830's and 1841 results on trove indicate that he depastured sheep belonging to others, either as a manager or partner,and that he was at Wardy Yallock by 1841*, his lease near Keilor obviously having been cancelled when the parish of Tullamarine had been surveyed.
Notice is hereby given THAT any persons trespassing on the Runs of the undersigned with diseased sheep, will be prosecuted according to law.
McMILLAN & WILSON, and THOMAS W. DOWNIE Wardie Yallock. 21st May, 1841.
(P.3, Geelong Advertiser, 22-5-1841.)
His name was given as Thomas Walter (or Water[s]) Downie in the 1840's and he married Margaret Muir, John, apparently their first child, being born in 1844 and registered at Geelong. He was living at Wardy Yallock in 1846 when Mary was born. The Woady Yaloak River (whose name means big creek) and Linton southwest of Ballarat on the Glenelg Highway (named after the first pioneers in the area)roughly indicate the location of Wardi Yallock. Downie returned to Scotland where he died in 1862.
DOWNIE.—On the 20th February, at his residence,Stirling, Scotland, Thomas Waters Downie, Esq.,late of this colony. (P.4, Argus, 25-6-1862.)
MUTTON, OR IS IT HUTTON?
As the following shows, I have been unable to link anybody named Mutton to Bunbury's purchase. Christine Laskowski's STEELE CREEK AND THE LADY OF THE LAKE has a map showing HUTTON'S STATION near the south side of Keilor Rd in the parish of Doutta Galla. From that spot Hutton would have been able to walk to section 1 of the parish of Tullamarine without getting his feet wet, let alone having to cross the Saltwater River. If his run did extend from Keilor Rd to Bunbury's purchase north of the river from the Watson and Hunter run, "Keilor",if would make sense for him to have two stations upon it as Edward Hobson had at Kangerong (his house near the Mount Martha run and a station near the present south boundary of Safety Beach.) While no squatter named Mutton has been found before 1842, William Hutton certainly was and near the Saltwater River too. Was Mutton a typo?
Sam Merrifield'a Annals of Essendon stated that William and John Foster obtained a ten year lease of Leslie Park in 1840; perhaps William Hutton had held the lease previously, UNDER A DIFFERENT NAME as Leslie was a given name of both William and John Foster. See "MUTTON, OR WAS IT HUTTON?" after MUTTON.
MUTTON. (I'm feeling sheepish about such an indefinite commencement!)
Mutton is a terrible name to flesh out on trove as is Rye for a similar edible reason. Rather than beef about this difficulty, I'll make a guess that the squatter north across the river from Watson and Hunter's Keilor run was William Henry Mutton, based on the earliest Mutton birth on Victorian BDM.* We'll try a pay for view ancestry site to launch an investigation.**
* EventBirth Event registration number25552 Registration year1851
Personal information
Family nameMUTTON Given namesHenry James SexMale Father's nameMUTTON William Henry Mother's nameElizabeth (Unknown) Place of birthSEYMOUR
MY HERITAGE. (I don't want to advertise heritage scavengers who charge for information they obtain free.)
William Henry Mutton, 1825 - 1856
William Henry Mutton was born on month day 1825, at birth place, to Robert Mutton and Barbara Mutton (born Kellow).
Robert was born in 1805, in Callington, Cornwall.
Barbara was born in 1800, in Callington, Cornwall.
William had one brother: Harry J Mutton.
William married Elizabeth Mutton (born Lock).
Elizabeth was born on January 20 1823, in Bath, Somerset, England.
Her occupations were Dressmaker and Ag Lab Daur.
They had 4 children: Eliza Jane Cawtheray (born Mutton) and 3 other children.
William lived in 1861, at address.
His occupation was occupation.
William passed away on month day 1856, at age 31 at death place.
He was buried on month day 1856, at burial place.
No doubt somebody discovered his body at that address five years after his death because of the smell! Perhaps his 1861 address was his grave.
IN the Supreme Court of the Colony of Victoria. Ecclesiastical Jurisdiction.
Notice is hereby given, that after the expiration of fourteen days from tho publication of this advertisement an application will be made to the Supreme Court of the Colony of Victoria, in its Ecclesiastical Jurisdiction, on
behalf of the widow of William Henry Mutton, late of Avenel, in the colony of Victoria, blacksmith, deceased, that probate of the last will and testament of the said William Henry Mutton, deceased, may be granted to his widow as sole executrix.
Dated this 20th day of October, in the year of our Lord 1856.
JOHN MATTHEW SMITH. No.9 Elizabeth-street south. Proctor for the widow of the said William Henry Mutton.
(P.8, Argus, 21-10-1856.)
N.B. A subsequent application asked that probate be granted to Elizabeth Mutton, the widow, John Bignell, of Avenel aforesaid, innkeeper, and James Hilet, of the same place, storekeeper, the executrix and executors named in and appointed by the will of the said William Henry Mutton deceased.(P.7, Argus, 30-10-1856.)
This is almost certainly the son of the Avenel pioneer and his executrix, born in 1851 (birth record at the start of the MUTTON entry.)
EventDeath Event registration number9717 Registration year1910
Personal information
Family nameMUTTON Given namesHy Jas SexUnknown Father's nameMutton Wm Hy Mother's nameElizth (Locke) Place of birth Place of deathMfield Age59
This would be "Eliza Jane Cawtheray (born Mutton)" who is stated on the MY HERITAGE page to be one of four children. Henry James was one, so that leaves two more to find.*
EventBirth Event registration number2778 Registration year1854
Personal information
Family nameMUTTON Given namesEliza Jane SexUnknown Father's nameWilliam Henry Mother's nameElizabeth (Lock) Place of birthAVEN
HERE'S ONE.
EventBirth Event registration number2213 Registration year1855
Personal information
Family nameMUTTON Given namesGeorge Thomas SexUnknown Father's nameWilliam Henry Mother's nameElizabeth (Lock) Place of birthAVENEL
I CAN'T FIND ANOTHER BIRTH RECORD WITH THE RIGHT PARENTS.
This could be the Avenel pioneer but his mother's name is given as Sophia rather than Barbara and no place of death is recorded. However he was born in Cornwall, with his year of death (and age) conforming with the MY HERITAGE details.
EventDeath Event registration number4327 Registration year1856
Personal information
Family nameMUTTON Given namesWilliam Henry SexUnknown Father's nameRobert Mother's nameSophia Place of birthCOR Place of death Age31 Spouse's family nameLOCK Spouse's given namesElizabeth
I have tried everything I can think of, including an English MUTTON genealogical forum, Keilor and Tullamarine searches in 1841 etc., to link the Avenel pioneer to Bunbury's purchase without success.
Given that the Avenel pioneer did not arrive until 1846, he could not have been the squatter on Bunbury's purchase in or before 1842.
User stories about Avenel in Victoria - Bonzle Digital Atlas of Australia
www.bonzle.com › home › cities, towns and villages › Avenel
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William & Elizabeth Mutton Early Pioneer of Avenel by 'greenfingers' (contact greenfingers about this story)
William & Elizabeth Mutton
These pioneers William Henry Mutton and his wife, Elizabeth, were immigrants, who had arrived at Melbourne, in the ship, Lady Loch, three years previously, in 1846, to seek a new life in a new land which was then known as the Port Phillip District of New South Wales.
W. H. Mutton was born at Callington, Cornwall, on 22 September 1825. He was the son of Robert and Barbara Mutton and grandson of William Kellow, squire of Callington. He was always described, by those who knew him to the end of his days, as a gentleman in every respect, by education and nature. He was twenty four years of age when he arrived in Avenel. His bride Elizabeth Locke, of the Jersey Islands, was of French descent and younger than he. Their long voyage on the sailing ship had been a great adventure for them, a journey to a land so different from everything they had known, where they would make a home for themselves in pioneering conditions.
In 1847, they had settled in Seymour, soon after their arrival in the colony, but had suffered losses in disastrous floods when the Goulburn River burst its banks. They then decided to move further north along the Old Sydney Rd to Hughes Creek, on the Avenel Run, where the Government was offering Crown land for sale. etc.
"MUTTON, OR WAS IT HUTTON?"
Caution.
I HEREBY caution the Public against employing an old scamp named Daniel Watkins. He absconded from my service on the 30th May, after I had paid his passage from Van Diemen's land. and advanced him money besides. A warrant will be applied for immediately for his apprehension, and any constable apprehending him will receive from me One Pound reward. Height, about five feet 8 inches, dark complexion, age about forty-five.
WILLIAM HUTTON, Saltwater River. (P.2, Port Phillip Gazette, 23-5-1840.)
William Hutton later had a run named Gazette consisting of 21760 acres near Mount Rouse, apparently by 23-12-1846 when he was reported to have a squatting licence in the Portland Bay squatting district. However on 23-11-1841, he was close enough to Melbourne to serve on a Supreme Court jury with such as George Evans despite their need to conduct shearing and harvesting. The resident judge stated,"Gentlemen, — The extent of the calendar and
the value of your time at this season of sheep shearing and of harvest, prevent me saying more to you than a very few words." (P.2, Port Phillip Patriot and Melbourne Advertiser, 29-11-1841.)
gazette homestead complex - Victorian Heritage Database
vhd.heritagecouncil.vic.gov.au/places/23134/download-report
Heritage Listing
Southern Grampians Shire
Statement of Significance
Last updated on - November 8, 2003
What is significant?
The present Gazette Homestead complex is located about 10kms south-west of Penshurst, on the edge of the
lava flow from Mount Rouse and on the Eumeralla River. The squatting run called Gazette dates from the early
1840s but its homestead was located some distance to the south-west. It was occupied by the Hutton family,
which had extensive and continuing pastoral interests centred on Penshurst and commercial interests in Port
Fairy. The run was divided into a northern half running sheep and a southern half running cattle. The present site
may have been an outstation for the northern half and it includes the original stone shearing shed, sheep dip and
associated but later outbuildings. A substantial manager's house, now in ruins, was built in 1882. The freehold
and leasehold land of Gazette was acquired in 1870 as the last great purchase of the important pastoral
partnership, Thomas Robertson and Sons. After the dissolution of the partnership, John and Mary Robertson
owned Gazette. It was their daughter Eliza with her husband, Dr William Cross, who commissioned the Ballarat
architect, Percival Richards to design the new homestead in 1895. It can be compared directly with another
Robertson property, Kongbool, designed by Richards in 1898. Descendents of Thomas Robertson still occupy
the property. The Gazette Homestead Complex remains substantially intact and in good condition, apart from the
ruinous manager's residence and the dilapidated timber outbuildings associated with the shearing shed.
How is it significant?
The Gazette Homestead Complex is of historical and architectural significance to the State of Victoria and to the
Southern Grampians Shire.
Why is it significant?
The Gazette Homestead Complex is of historical significance as the descendent of one of the earliest squatting
runs in the Hamilton part of 'Australia Felix' and particularly for its long associations with William Hutton and his family and with John George Robertson and his family, now to the fourth generation. The woolshed is of
architectural significance as one of the most complete surviving and still in use (with its historic extensions and alterations, the sheep dip and associated plant, and the nearby outbuildings). The manager's house, although in ruins, demonstrates the role and status of that position. The stables are distinctive for their scale and form. The homestead (with its drive, gardens, orchard and outbuildings) is of architectural significance as an example of very late Victorian architecture, for its setting within a formal but conventional garden and its siting within the broader landscape and as an example of the work of the architect, Percival Richards.
The following article implies that William Hutton came to Victoria from Van Diemen's Land in 1844 but the above evidence and the article itself show that he was here before David moved to the mainland. Frances Johnson's family history, below, shows that William bought land in Melbourne on 1-6-1837.
WILLIAM AND DAVID HUTTON
Keilor road was also known as the Portland road and the mail to Mount Macedon went through Keilor with the Portland Mail by 1851 after originally passing through Tulip Wright's patch that became Bulla*. If the squatter near Steele Creek and the Saltwater River was dispossessed, it makes sense that he would move farther from Melbourne along the same artery. That William Hutton was the squatter whose station was on Bunbury's purchase depends on an assumption that somebody (perhaps a typesetter) thought a handwritten H was M.
* PETER YOUNG'S RAGE.
WILLIAM HUTTON'S ANCESTRY AND FAMILY
This is a fabulous family history provided by Frances Johnson. It indicates that William Hutton and his partner Brown had a run by 1838, probably the one near Keilor. William was still shuttling between Launceston and Melbourne.
In June 1838 a government agent collected the first 12 successful applications
for Pasturage Licences. On 20 July the same year he sent in a further 24
applications, one of which was from William Hutton and his partner, Brown,
who were squatting with 4,000 sheep, 2 horses and 13 free men. The range of
holdings of the 24 applicants, by way of comparison, was up to 8,000 sheep,
1,800 cattle, 13 horses, and 32 free and assigned men.
THE WESTERN DISTRICTS
By 1840 the Hutton family had established themselves in the Western
Districts of “Australia Felix” at Mount Rouse, where their four youngest
children were born. However, William continued to run stock at Saltwater
River, where he is recorded as a settler in 1842. 55
WILLIAM HUTTON & ANN PARTRIDGE
WILLIAM HUTTON
BORN: 1799, Scotland
DIED: 1862 Wangoom, Vic.
MARRIED: 8 May 1829, Hobart, Tas.
ANN PARTRIDGE
BAPTISED: 21 June 1812, Droitwich, Worcestershire
DIED: 1847, Mt Rouse, Vic.
ISSUE: (1) Isabella Anne
(2) William George
(3) Thomas David
(4) Susanna Sarah
(5) Mary Paul
(6) James Charles
(7) Lucy Eleanor
(8) Alexander
(9) Jane Charlotte
(10) Henry Partridge
McNALL.
EventBirth Event registration number794 Registration year1842
Personal information
Family nameMCNALL Given namesJohn SexMale Father's nameMCNALL John Mother's nameSarah (Unknown) Place of birthMOONEE PONDS
EventDeath Event registration number385 Registration year1843
Personal information
Family nameMCNALL Given namesJohn SexMale Father's nameUnknown Mother's nameUnknown (Unknown) Place of birthUNKNOWN Place of deathMOONEE PONDS Age35
There was no death notice for John who was probably the notorious insolvent of 1842 accused of swapping valuable for less valuable property (obviously for cash)so he would be less-damaged by sequestration of his belongings.
Provincial News.
Melbourne Times (Vic. : 1842 - 1843) Saturday 23 July 1842 p 2 Article
DIED.
On the 1st April., 1848, at 9 p. m., at her residence, New Town*, Sarah, relict of the late John McNall, in the 37th year of her age, deeply regretted by a large circle of friends.(P.2, Port Phillip Patriot and Melbourne Advertiser, 3-3-1848.) *Newtown was later renamed Collingwood.
EventDeath Event registration number2087 Registration year1848
Personal information
Family nameMCNALL Given namesSarah SexFemale Father's nameUnknown Mother's nameUnknown (Unknown) Place of birthUNKNOWN Place of deathMELBOURNE Age37 Spouse's family nameMCNALL Spouse's given namesUnknown
John McNall, apparently their son, was at Smythesdale (near Wardi Yallock) by the 1860's so the McNall and Downie families may have been associated in some way. As this John McNall's death is not on Victorian BDM, he may have moved to Bourke N.S.W. He married Maria Moore.
EventMarriage Event registration number3725 Registration year1869
Personal information
Family nameMCNALL Given namesJohn SexUnknown Spouse's family nameMOORE Spouse's given namesMaria
There are only three results for John McNall on Victorian BDM (1843, THE SQUATTER'S DEATH AND 1842 AND 1869-THE BIRTH AND MARRIAGE OF,PRESUMABLY, HIS SON.)
This John McNall was probably the grandson of the Moonee Moonee Ponds squatter.
OBITUARY MR. JOHN McNALL
Western Herald (Bourke, NSW : 1887 - 1970) Friday 16 September 1949 p 8 Article
... OBITUARY MR. JOHN McNALL One of the oldest and highly respected graziers of the north west of the ... State, in the person of Mr. John Mc-Nall, passed away in the Bourke District Hospital on Thursday
ST SALVADORE ALFRED CASE OF ARDMILLAN RD, MOONEE PONDS.
Hopefully the attachment will attach. It looks as if St Salvadore Alfred Case died while living in the house (once at present Nos. 14-16) that had been occupied by two of the area's early private schools. The attachment is page 35 of Ray Gibb's "Early Landowners: Parish of Doutta Galla", sourced from his "Ardmillan" which resulted from extensive research of directories and rate records and gave information of every old house in the street, including Peter McCracken's mansion which stood on present Nos. 33-39, and the Chinese garden on Bailey's paddock. Case built "Rosina".
The Essendon Historical Society would probably have photos of the Sydenham and Blinkbonnie Ladies's colleges that were run in the house that stood on Nos.14-16.
It looks as if the attachment is not accepted. tonkin,If you send me a private email, I could post it to you.
STEVE BURNHAM'S WEBSITE.
Steve Burnham's website
Hi XXX, just a note to say the website is back up. But it's at www.burnham.net.au
Pass it on!
Cheers.
In previous journals I have referred readers to Owen (Vin) Burnham's LIFE IN ROSEBUD IN THE EARLY YEARS. The website has been offline for some time but is now back at
The following appears elsewhere in more detail in my journals but will be handy to know before you read Vin Burnham's story.
The fisherman at Rosebud West named by Vin as Axel was Axel Vincent who had apparently taken over from Chatfield.
Mr Durham was Antonio,the son of Emily (nee King) and a Greek fisherman. Emily's sister Elizabeth had married Fort Lacco who was also Greek and was the grantee of the crown allotment on the west side of Durham Place. It was in a weatherboard house in the middle of this block that Judith Mavis Cock spent her first six or seven summers before her father took his family to Tasmania; Judith is better known as Judith Durham of The Seekers,who adopted her mother's maiden name as a stage name. Antonio's daughter married a D.F.C. winning pilot (William Alexander?)Cock, thus explaining Judith's Greek heritage on her mother's side. The Durham/Lacco relationship stems from Judith's great grandmother, Emily,and Elizabeth (Mrs Fort Lacco) being sisters.
STRANGE LOCALITY NAMES NEAR FLINDERS, VICTORIA, AUSTRALIA IN THE EARLY DAYS.
WOODLANDS, FLINDERS.
Paul Rogers' mention of William Barger being on the late Charles Graves' farm made me wonder if William was the person who introduced evergreen lucerne as a fodder crop on "Woodlands."
I didn't find the article*, read years ago, which I believe named the person, but it would seem that it was not William, who had a clearing sale in 1925 as he was selling the property, and evergreen lucerne advertisements started appearing in 1929.
*Postscript. I eventually found the 1930 article.
Evergreen Lucerne
Westernport evergreen lucerne is reported to have given excellent results on the property of Mr G. L. Andrew, of "Woodlands." Shoreham. who introduced this variety to Victoria. (etc.)
https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/223998245
The crazy thing about locality names near Flinders is that both William Barger and Woodlands were described almost equally as being at Shoreham and being at Flinders. To provide even more confusion the township of Shoreham was on the east side of the mouth of Stony Creek in the parish of Balnarring and the township of Balnarring on the west was in the parish of Flinders. Where both Shoreham and Flinders were used to describe the same location, they probably were describing Henry Tuck's former Manton's Creek Run, the east part of the Parish Of Flinders. The west part of the parish had been the Barker family's run.
That common interchanging of names for the same locality was just one of three discoveries related to Woodlands.
BLACKHEAD?
GRAVES.—On the 9th of March, at Woodland, near Flinders, Blackhead, of scarlet fever, Henry, third son of Charles and Jane Graves, aged four years ; also, on the 11th of March, William John, youngest son of the above, aged eighteen months, of scarlet fever. The Lord gave and the Lord hath taken away, blessed be the name of the Lord."
(P.47, Illustrated Australian News for Home Readers,27-3-1873.)
CHARLES GRAVES' APPLICATION FOR A PUBLICAN'S LICENCE AT WOODLANDS.
TO the Licensing Magistrates at Dromana.— I, CHARLES GRAVES, of Flinders, storekeeper, do hereby give notice that I desire to obtain, and will at the next licensing meeting APPLY for a PUBLICAN'S LICENCE for a house situated at Woodlands, Flinders, containing three rooms, exclusive of those required for the use of the family. The seventeenth day of September, A. D. 1875.
(P.1, The Age, 10-9-1875.)
It is hard to believe that he was successful. No mention of the application has been found, even in Leonard Wilding's HISTORY OF THE MORNINGTON PENINSULA (Mornington Standard, 1905.)
MORE ABOUT BLACKHEAD.
The death notice (identical in two papers) was the only mention of BLACKHEAD in reference to Flinders, Westernport (or Shoreham, which I tried too) when used in inverted commas as a search term (i.e. "Blackhead, Westernport".)
"Blackhead" (as a locality) produced no results in Victoria in the 1840's or 1850's. However BLACKHEAD may not have been a locality name coined by Charles Graves (as in the case of Henry Tuck who obviously told his children that his MANTON'S CREEK RUN near Flinders was known as Merimendiewokewoke-the original name of Manton's Creek- with their young minds partly absorbing such a long word and recalling it decades later as being, as stated on the Flinders Wikpedia page, "Flinders was once believed to have previously been known as Mendi-Moke, but this has subsequently been denied.[3] BY ME!)
"BLACKHEAD"
https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/154971030 (P.2, The Age, 3-12-1862.)
EXTRACTS.
The Gazette of last night contains a proclamation by the Governor in Council, under the Act of the sixteenth year of her present Majesty to consolidate and amend the law relating to Ports, Harbors, and Shipping, in the colony of Victoria, repealing the proclamation of 30th May, 1853,which defined the limits and boundaries of ports, and made regulations for the same. His Excellency now defines the boundaries as follows : —
Western Port, within a line from Blackhead to Point Grant*, and from Cape Woolamai to Point Griffiths.
*Point Grant is near the Nobbies, Phillip Island's greatest tourist attraction because of the "formally-dressed" birds.
BLACKHEAD AND WEST HEAD.
CAPE SCHANK was referred to by Liadet in 1848 as meaning the same as west head. Considering that Cape Schanck was the graveyard of so many vessels it could be assumed that it was not the entrance to a harbour and that West Head was the western entrance to Westernport.
MAP OF WESTERNPORT.
https://www.google.com/search...
The map shows that the line from Blackhead to Point Grant would have been from West Head to Summerlands and that the Eastern entrance to Westernport would have been where the bridge now connects San Remo* and Phillip Island.
https://beachsafe.org.au/.../bass.../san-remo/griffith-point
Now how many results would you expect to find in a trove search for "West Head, Westernport". There were only two; the first in 1864, regarding country crown lands at West Head being withdrawn from sale and the second in 1909 about the Golf Club founded by David Maxwell was flourishing. See:
https://www.familytreecircles.com/review-of-a-history-of...
The obvious conclusion is that West Head was named about a year after the new regulation in late 1862 had called it Blackhead but Charles Graves preferred to stick to the old name (as many early settlers at Rye and Mornington did as evidenced by THE BATTLE OF TOOTGAROOK-Sorrento v Rye, and the Mornington team being cheered on with"Go the Pointers!"
Why would West Head have been originally called Blackhead?
STRANGE! WERE THERE TWO DIFFERENT BRODIE FAMILIES INVOLVED IN MELBOURNE'S NORTH WEST?
The Champion Ploughing Match took place yesterday in the Royal Park, near Brunswick. The prizes, consisting of a silver cup and a plough, were carried off by two brothers named Brodie,who are in the employment of Mr.
M'Conachie, of Broadmeadows. (P.2, Bendigo Advertiser, 13-8-1858.)
It's not strange that the match took place at Royal Park. The venue would have been the MODEL FARM. It is not strange that Mr Machonochie of "Stewarton" (section 5, parish of Tullamarine)would have employed ploughmen. It is the fact that the Brodie family was involved during the squatting era with huge runs north of Broadmeadows and Bulla Townships, and purchased extensive grants in these areas such as those comprising Dunhelen and Harpsdale.
Isaac Batey wrote in great detail about members of the Brodie family but I don't remember him or anybody else discussing insolvency in regard to the family. The mention of the Brodie brothers scratched the itch of curiosity that I first felt years ago when I saw mention of a Mrs Brodie running a store in Broadmeadows (Township)- found by chance and unlike the above par about the ploughing match, not included in a journal. A brief attempt to find the mention of Mrs Brodie's store at Broadmeadows again indicates that a miracle would be required to do so. I have a feeling that I had seen the report of the ploughing match at the same distant time but not wanting to get side-tracked from my objective at the time, did not follow up why the Brodie brothers would be mere ploughmen for another family rather than assisting on family farms such as Harpsdale and Dunhelen.
Another mystery involves the brothers' acquisition of skill in ploughing. From what I understand, squatters were not allowed to conduct agriculture on their runs, their licences being only for depasturing of stock. It is most likely that they were the sons of David Brodie, the family member most involved in the area, but they may have been David's brothers and therefore sons of George Sinclair Brodie.
Who was Mrs Brodie, the lady running the store at Broadmeadows Township?
Amazingly there doesn't seem to be an AUSTRALIAN DICTIONARY OF BIOGRAPHY entry about G.S., R.S., or David Brodie but- as almost expected- the Craigieburn Historical Interest Group (CHIG) had produced an article which details financial transactions which make it unlikely that family members would become mere ploughmen.
DUNHELEN
The PIONEERS OF PORT PHILLIP GROUP has published information about the Brodies but this does not seem to be available online.
Perhaps the identities of the ploughmen and the Broadmeadows Township storekeeper, and the reason for their occupations, will be discovered by chance or revealed by family descendants.
The mention of Mrs Brodie was an ADVERTISEMENT and I may not have found it because I limited my search to articles.
AHA! If I say something is on trove, IT IS, even if I can't find it.
MRS. BRODIE, late of Moonee Pomb,H»
to inform tl.o Settlers nail others, lint
she has oponed a Store nt Uroitl'iiwlo*» ml» »
complete Sloe!; nf Grocery, Dinpery. Irouraw
gery.nttd «eneml Stores, all ofu-Lich ski? tnlrudi
Fix this textoffering at Melbourne prices.___
OR IN ENGLISH!
NOTICE.
MRS. BRODIE, late of Moonee Ponds, begs to inform the Settlers and others, that she has opened a Store at Broadmeadows with a complete Stock of Grocery, Drapery. Ironmongery and general Stores, all of which she intends
offering at Melbourne prices. (P.4, Argus, 20-11-1851.)
N.B. MOONEE PONDS meant anywhere near the Moonee Ponds Creek and in this case almost certainly DUNHELEN, which extended east from the creek, as indicated by Dunhelen Lane at Melway 385 F11. Mrs Brodie must have been one of the earliest storekeepers in Broadmeadows if not the first. Was Mrs Brodie the widow of Richard Sinclair Brodie? (See the CHIG article.)
GEORGE BRODIE did become insolvent but in 1861 which would not account for the Brodie Bros. becoming employees or Mrs Brodie running a store.
George Brodie, of Melbourne, stock and sharebroker. Causes of insolvency : Losses in mining speculations, bad debts, and depreciation in the value of property. Liabilities, £2674 2s ; assets £2159; deficiency, .-£515 2s. Official assignee, Mr Courtney. (P.5, The Age, 16-5-1861.)
BRODIE BROS., PLOUGHMEN.
It seems almost certain that one of the brothers was John Brodie.
Ploughing with Horses or Bullocks.
First prize, £10, or a piece of plate of equal value, to No. 4, James Templeton, ploughman to Mr Cochrane.
Second prize, £6, or gold medal, to No. 25, John Brodie, ploughman to Mr Maconachie.(P.5, The Age, 10-6-1858.)
Janilye's comment under the journal would seem to indicate that John was not a son of George Sinclair Brodie.
It is possible that John's brother was David. A report of the first ploughing match run by the Gisborne Agricultural Society (in 1862)shows that David used horse teams and John, bullock teams.
DAVID AND JOHN
David Brodie of Harpdale was a Presbyterian according to his 1905 obituary. Unfortunately it names only one of his three sons. However, as he was born in about 1836, if he had sons named John and David, they would not have been old enough to be ploughmen circa 1860.
DAVID BRODIE'S OBITUARY
The death notice of David Brodie's widow, Fanny, does name their children. He had a son named David but not one named John.
BRODIE.-On the 7th April at her residence, 271 Park-road, Royal Park, Fanny,relict of the late David Brodie of "Harpsdale" Broadmeadows, and loving mother of Rev. George Sinclair, William McKenzie,(Mrs.J.H.Forsyth), Irene. Frances,Jean and David. Private funeral.(P.1, The Age, 8-4-1931.)
Incidentally the locations (Mickleham, Bulla, Broadmeadows) given for Harpsdale indicate just how vague such descriptions were. The homestead was and is at Melway 385 E5 near the eastern boundary of crown allotment 18, parish of Bulla at the north east corner of that parish and shire. Immediately east was the shire of Broadmeadows. Land added to the estate immediately north was in the parish of Mickleham.
There was a John Brodie, a Roman Catholic, who died at North Melbourne in 1913 and may have been the same one almost murdered at Flemngton in 1859, and others of that name who might have been the ploughman but some clue needs to be found before a line of inquiry is started.
STREET NAMES AT McCRAE NEAR ROSEBUD, VIC., AUST.
MELWAY MAP 159.
159 C9. LATROBE PDE.
The north- south section to the freeway was the western boundary of Dromana Township and originally named Burrell Rd after the family which followed the McCraes on the Arthurs Seat run in 1851. The Burrell wing at McCrae homestead is well-worth a visit, even just to see the pioneering photography and paintings of John Twycross, grantee of c/a 12, Rosebud Fishing Village, who married a Burrell girl, Charlotte (Lizzie), the widow of Samuel Clutterbuck*.
See: .The Clutterbuck Legacy: Royal Exhibition Building - Museum Victoria
https://museumvictoria.com.au/…/the…/the-clutterbuck-legacy/
159 C9. FOORD LANE.
FOORD. - On October 24. at Dromana. Thomas Gellibrand, be-
loved brother of Minnie (Dolly) Foord.(P.14, Argus, 26-10-1954.)
The Arthurs Seat Pre-emptive Right west of Burrell Rd was broken up into small lots of various sizes on the bay side of the old Cape Schanck road and the Foord family probably had about 5 acres which was, soon after the death of Thomas, subdivided into house blocks. McCrae, formerly Dromana West, came into common useage circa 1941 but Dolly didn't seem to have noticed.
159 C9. HEARN ST.
Professor (or Dr.) W.E.Hearn (not to be confused with James Hearn of "Thorngrove", Somerton who bought a huge slab of his Mt Martha run) had Heronswood built. He also bought 4 acres across Burrell Rd and well as a huge landholding near Purves Rd and in the parish of Fingal near St Andrews Beach. After his death in 1888, the whole estate was offered for sale. Alexander Sutherland and Judge Higgins, two of his law students at Melbourne University, were later owners of Heronswood.
159 C.9. HOWITT ST.
This name is often found in histories of Victoria's early days. Professor Hearn may have been a friend of G.Howitt, grantee of much land in the parishes of Fingal and Flinders which passed into the ownership of his son in law, Robert Anderson of Barragunda.
159 C9.RUDDUCK ST., WONGA GROVE.
Wonga was a Wurundjeri and Boonwurrung word for bronze winged pigeon. (Lenore Frost's Essendon histories.) Because the scrubby areas on Arthurs Seat provided a habitat for these birds, as pointed out in A DREAMTIME OF DROMANA, WONGA was used by the Boonwurrung to describe (not name) Arthurs Seat. The aborigines had words for places not names. Yarra meant something like rushing water (over the falls near Queen St) and Maribyrnong meant "I can hear a ring-tailed possum." (MARIBYRNONG: ACTION IN TRANQUILITY' Pam Lewis and I forget.) Combine rushing water and bronze-winged pigeon and you get YARRAWONGA!
Nelson Rudduck (obituary link below) built a house with this name and lived there after his retirement from business. I can't find any connection on trove or in my 1919-20 rates transcription but Wonga was definitely given as his address in another assessment. The house block was probably near Rudduck St and Wonga Grove would be on part of the 25 acres subdivided earlier. Nelson may have bought lot 2 of Professor Hearn's estate in 1888.
http://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/73273983…
LOT 2.WONGA.
The subdivision of the Arthurs Seat run became section B of the parish of Wannaeue. The pre-emptive right became crown allotments 1 and 2 of section B. Crown allotment 1 was bounded by the foreshore road, Adams' Creek (The Avenue) a line heading east from the top of The Avenue to Pindara Rd and Dromana Park.
Part of allotment 1 of section B, parish of Wannaue, containing 25 a. 3 r. and 8 p., fenced,opposite Heronswood. A magnificent site for a marine residence, splendid elevation, commanding a view of the whole of Port Phillip Bay.
(P.43, Leader, 17-11-1888.)
159 B2 THE EYRIE.
A trove search for The Eyrie in family notices found nothing in Dromana West or McCrae to establish that it was the name of a house. It may have been a reference, in the subdivision of the Coburn Estate, to the view normally only available to an eagle and how right that is, as you'll find if you climb THE EYRIE STEPS leading from the beach. Viewpoint and Prospect Hill Roads nearby seem to continue the theme.
159 B10. CHARLEWORTH ST.
Family Notices
The Argus (Melbourne, Vic. : 1848 - 1957) Saturday 30 November 1940 p 4 Family Notices
... COBURN-CHARLESWORTH.—On December 1, 1880, at Christ Church, Daylesford, Charles Wheeler Coburn, third son of Willam ... John and Catherine Elizabeth Coburn, to Ellen Charles-worth, eldest daughter of Charles and Mary
169 B10. HENRY ST.
This was probably named after Henry Burrell There were two Henry Burrells, one dying in 1910 and the other in 1922. The former would have been involved in Howitt's expedition to recover the rest of the bodies of the Burke and Wills tragedy**** and the latter prominent in newspaper publishing (after a humble beginning*.) I'm not sure which was responsible for the preservation of the McCrae foreshore***.. The Coburn-Burrell connection should arise soon**.
(*At the time of Mr. Miller's association with the printing trade, Mr.Alexander McKinley, proprietor of "Punch," was an apprentice in the same establishment.
Mr. Henry Burrell, then a lad in his teens,was also in the employ of Mason, Firth and McCutcheon, and acted as "copy" boy to the proofreaders. Subsequently, Mr. Burrell attained the important position he still holds as publisher of the "Argus." P.8, Table Talk, 11-7-1912.)
Charlotte Buvall [Burrell], of Doomera [Dromana], by her will [appointed?]
Joseph John Burrell and Edwin Burrell trustees,makes the following bequests : To her daughter, Catherine and her son, Charles Edwin, her house and grounds [at] Arthur's Seat, Dromana ; to Henry Burrell 33 [acres of] land ; to Brooks Burrell and Joseph John she [gives the] residue of her real and personal estate.
(P.14, Melbourne Punch, 18-4-1889.)
(**Mr. Charles Edwin Burrell
Mr. Charles Edwin Burrell, who died on Tuesday, was one of the oldest residents of Dromana. He was born there 83 years ago, and was the youngest son of Mr.Joseph Brooks Burrell, one of the early pioneers, who came from England in the Sibella in 1849. With his family he settled at Arthur's Seat, having purchased the home of Mr. McCrae, father of the Australian poet, George Gordon McCrae. Mr.Burrell leaves a widow, daughter of the late Mr. W. J. Coburn, of the Melbourne Stock Exchange. P.13, Argus, 6-7-1938.)
***The Dromana correspondent to the Mornington Standard mentioned that a prominent citizen was kicking up a fuss about foreshore destruction. My mate, itellya, told me to find this citizen's name.
From Henry Burrell, Arthur's Seat, bringing under notice the way the timber was being destroyed along the foreshore from Rosebud to the Rocks. The cutting of the dead timber only helped to destroy the live timber, and let the wind blow down that which was standing. He thought it was a great pity, as it was the only
shelter along the road from the north and west winds. The drain was silting
up in front of Spring Bank gate on the Three Chain road# at the back of Miss
Burrell's property. After heavy rain it flooded the ground, spoiling a deal
of grass.(P.5, Mornington Standard, 3-6-1905.)
# Now the Mornington Peninsula Freeway.
**** Mr. Henry Burrell, who died in his 69th year at his residence, Arthur's Seat, Dromana on Monday, was one of the last surviving members of the expedition which, under the leadership of the late Dr. Alfred Howitt recovered the remains of Burke and Wills. He was a colonist of 60 years,and a very old resident of Dromana.(P.13, Argus, 13-4-1910.)
159 B9-A10. COBURN AVE. 159 B 10 CORNELL ST, 159 B 10 BROWNE ST.
The early Rosebud map, which I believe was drawn by Lara Ross (nee Fountain) of "The Pines" on the west side of the Murray Anderson Rd foreshore car park, shows Springbank and states "Greens. Springbank. Burnt to the ground on Friday night. Harry Cairns at 10 p.m. and my father on board, drove through it."
My mate, itellya, said that wasn't clear enough and wanted me to find out how long the Greens had been on Coburn's Springbank and which year the homestead had been burnt down.
Isabel Morseby stated on pages 8-9 of ROSEBUD FLOWER OF THE PENINSULA "Springbank was the lovely Coburn house on the mountain built in 1894. It was destroyed by a bushfire in 1912. The present (1954) home on that site was built in 1927. Mr Coburn built many houses including Killarney in 1891. In 1912 there were not more than six houses between the Rocks and Adams' Corner*. (*Wattle Place.)
One of these houses had been built in about 1874, the second house on Arthurs Seat. P.8. "Samuel Smyth, a Flemington bridge tanner, had purchased 80 acres (of crown allotment 1, section B) and planted wattles that he irrigated by opening up springs.He built a shack for his manager Tom.. The venture was not commercially viable and most of the land passed into the hands of a syndicate.Smyth kept 7 acres and the shack which he sold to H.P.Cornell in 1895. "
(There was no assessment of Smyth in 1879 and sawyer, Peter Walker, was the only person in the west riding of the shire to occupy 80 acres.He was probably stripping the bark to sell to tanners and cutting down Smyth's wattles, probably black wattles cherished by furnIture makers, as Colin McLear points out on P.5 of A DREAMTIME OF DROMANA,)
George Fountain's family remained at The Pines during the summer but he'd go back to North Melbourne on Sunday and return on Friday night. Harry Cairns* would pick up George and any others following the same routine at Mornington Station.
"Harry Cairns varied this trip on a Friday as he waited for the 5 p.m. train from Melbourne to bring passengers down for the weekend, arriving at Rosebud at 10 p.m." (Laura Fountain's memoirs.)
*Carrier Harry who married Margaret Haddow, not Ray Cairn's father Hill Harry of Maralooba who married Agnes Cain.)
When I reported back to itellya he responded, "Okay that confirms the 10 p.m. one Friday night, but what about the date?" @#$$%* slave driver! I no complain!
DROMANA RESIDENCES LOST.
The Argus (Melbourne, Vic. : 1848 - 1957) Monday 5 February 1912 p 8 Article
DROMANA, Saturday.—Last evening, at about half-past 5 o'clock, a bush fire swept a portion of the country between Dromana and Rosebud. It swept away the residences of Mrs. Coburn, Springbank, and the summer residence of Mr. Frank Cornwell, despite the efforts of a large number of workers. Miss Burrell's house was saved after great exertions. Mrs. Coburn's house and furniture were insured for £800. The building was demolished in ten minutes. Mrs.Coburn's son-in-law and daughter, Mr. and Mrs. C. Burrell, saved only a few personal
effects. The township of Rosebud is safe,and the fire is now burning in the direction of Boneo. Portion of the same fire swept towards Heronswood, the seaside residence of Mr. Justice Higgins. The fate of the residence was for some hours uncertain, but the flames were finally beaten off. Fires are still burning at Arthur's Seat and towards Mount Martha.
Feeling smug I presented this to itellya and he ungratefully said, What about the Greens? How long were they at Springbank? Luckily I remembered Teddy Green.
"William Henry Peatey (Rosalind's father b. 22-11-1888) married Sarah Ellen Coe on 23-2-1916 with Ted Green of Main Ridge* as his best man."
(PINE TREES AND BOX THORNS, Rosalind Peatey.)
* Well that wasn't going to satisfy Grizzleguts. It was after the fire so naturally Teddy was on Greens Bush by 1916.
I couldn't find Mr Green's earlier request for a sports ground for Rosebud on Trove so hopefully it's in my comment about the Village Green being in front of The Pines in my THE FOUNTAINS OF ROSEBUD. It was!
"The road was a narrow gravel one and the coach would pull up to the front gate of "The Pines", (which was facing the Village Green?)
[The modern Village Green was the footy and cricket ground. This reserve was requested in 1896 and supported by the shire.
From Mr Green, asking that about five acres of an allotment be granted to the residents of Rosebud on the south-west of the township for a recreation ground, and stating that if the request be granted they were willing to fence it in and plant with trees. To be forwarded to the Department of Lands.
Moved by Councillor Anderson, seconded by Councillor Bensilum,' That a recommendation be made to the Lands Department to reserve five acres south-west of the village of Rosebud on the bay frontage for a public recreation ground. Carried. P.3, Mornington Standard, 2-4-1896.]
I also found evidence that the Greens may have been on Springbank by 1892.
FLINDERS AND KANGERONG SHIRE COUNCIL. Saturday March 26th 1892.
Mornington Standard (Vic. : 1889 - 1908) Thursday 7 April 1892 p 2 Article
... sanctioned. From F. Green, Rosebud, reporting two cases of whooping cough.
Did itellya praise my efforts? Not Pygmalion likely! If we weren't mates sharing the same wife I'd kick the louse outta my house. He keeps me up till 2 a.m. most nights and I hardly get a mention in any of his 455 journals (all my work) on family tree circles.
"What about the naming of Browne St and the house built on the site of the destroyed Springbank homestead in 1927?" Grrrrr!
Rosebud.
Rosebud- Springbank, Arthur's Seat Estate.Apply Brown, on estate.
(P.4, Argus, 21-12-1927.)
After an hour, I couldn't re-find the other advertisements, including the one containing "Brown, now building" until I added Chadwick to the search terms. Here's why.
iSdsiMIUl).— RunrUng Sites. 180 fort ahrve sea.
.!(' 100 feet hum Point Nejuan-nh, mnr light
Fix this texthouse. Chadwick, Rtnebud; or llrown, Hridge Cot-
Art hue's Seat- Estate : Jbr_plm.iie<_UH575:
And in English!
ROSEBUD- Building Sites. 180 feet above sea, 100 feet from Point Nepean -rd*, near lighthouse. Chadwick, Rosebud; or Brown, Bridge Cottage*, Arthur's Seat Estate or phone U 8575.(P.5, the Age, 10-12-1927.)
* Measurement on Melway indicates that Browne St is 13 chains (858 ft.) from Pt Nepean Rd, so the blocks were probably on Viewpoint Rd about a 2 chain (132ft) long jump over Penny Lane to reach Pt. Nepean Rd.-dead or alive! Viewpoint Rd might have been the part of Springbank which Tom Chadwick suggested to Melbourne residents as the best spot to view the American fleet.
VIEW FROM ARTHUR'S SEAT. TO THE EDITOR OF THE ARGUS.
The Argus (Melbourne, Vic. : 1848 - 1957) Friday 17 July 1925 p 11 Article
**The bridge was probably over Coburn Creek.
"But what about the spelling of Browne?" asked you know who. He was silenced when I reminded him that the surveyor engaged by Arthur Thomas had called the northern boundary of Block A of the Hindhope Estate McCombe St when it was supposed to honour John McComb, and just to rub it in, that the s had been left off Back Road Bob Cairns' driveway to his Fernvilla homestead near Marina Avenue (Cairn Rd) and the crescent at Rosebud West (William Cres.) where Edward Williams' Eastbourne homestead still stands.
T.J.SUMNER OF BRUNSWICK, COOLART, MOOROODUC AND FRANKSTON, VIC., AUST. (AN APOLOGY!)
The apology first. When I look now at the Ballanrong pre-emptive right on the copy of the Moorooduc parish map that I obtained at the Public Records Office, I see:
T.J.Sumne
18.5.8
BALLANRON
G
P.R.
The full stops in P.R. are very faint and the ones between 18 and 5 and 8 are almost invisible. There is no space between the numerals except between the 8 and the 5. The final 8 is only evident through a powerful magnifying glass.
I have stated on several occasions that Sumner was granted the pre-emptive right in 1858 for reasons that may now seem obvious. When I was researching for the Yuille entry in my EARLY LANDOWNERS IN THE PARISHES OF MOOROODUC, FRANKSTON etc journal, I discovered that Archibald Yuille held the Ballanrong Run from 1852 until the lease was cancelled in 1857. Looking at the P.R. on my map (without the magnifying glass), I read the date as 1856 and decided to see if there was a date on the online map (MOOROODUC,COUNTY OF MORNINGTON.)
There was: 18.5.80! Good old T.J. was instantly deleted from the early landowners journal, making this journal necessary to retain the information and to correct a serious error.
SUMNER.
This pioneer in the parishes of Moorooduc and Frankston was not mentioned by Vale in late 1855 because he did not acquire Yuille's Ballanrong pre-emptive right until 1880. His land in the parish of Frankston was probably part of Ben Baxter's Carrup Carrup Run.
EXTRACT FROM MY "THE FEMALE DROVER: A HISTORY OF MOOROODUC" (not a journal.)
SUMNER.
The Victorian Government website on members of Parliament gives the following details about Theodotus John Sumner. He was born at Liskeard, Cornwall in 1920 and died on 20-4-1884 at Brunswick. His father was the Rev, John Sumner, a Methodist minister.
T.J.Sumner married Sarah Jones Peers. He was a merchant and his religion was listed as Methodist. Sumner emigrated to Van Diemans Land in 1841 and arrived in Melbourne in April 1842. He engaged in pastoral and agricultural pursuits and became a partner of Richard Grice in 1855 when Grice?s former partner had died. Grice, Sumner and Co. were wholesale merchants who gave advances on pastoral properties. Theodotus was an early president of the National Agricultural Society and established a model farm* on his Schnapper Point Estate. He became a member of the Board of Education in 1862 and was a member of the Legislative Council from May 1873 until February 1883.
Engaged in extensive charity work, T.J. endowed the Sumner ward at Melbourne?s Children?s Hospital. His widow administered his estate, a large part of which was in trust for charity, especially the Old Colonists? Home and the Melbourne Hospital.
A quick search on google revealed the following. Grice and Sumner had two ships built at Newcasle-on-Tyne in 1863: the Penola and S.S.Blackbird. The former was built especially for the Adelaide-Melbourne run but collided with, and sank, the City of Launceston in Port Phillip Bay on 19-11-1865. The damaged Penola was briefly replaced on the Adelaide run by the Blackbird which then worked the Brisbane mail run until 1873, undercutting passenger fares charged by the established lines. The Penola was sold to J.J.Grice and Partners and S.S.Blackbird was sold to Captain A.Campbell and Partners in 1876. (Flotilla-Australia website.)
The primary Sumner residence was ?Stony Park? by the Merri Creek near the boundary of North Fitzroy and East Brunswick. A picture of the house is on the net but be warned that the one on the Architecture of Melbourne site is wrong. The southern part of Lowan St (Melway 30 B9) is an approximation of the driveway from Glenlyon St to the Stony Park mansion. Just to the west are Sumner St and Peers St, the latter honouring Sarah?s maiden name.
Stony Park was in the parish of Jika Jika. The land in the parish of Jika Jika was among the first outside Melbourne itself to be alienated. Many of the allotments were bought by speculators in Sydney and Sumner probably bought his estate for a song when the depression of the 1840?s hit. Dawson probably bought his land at the same time. One grantee who did settle was Dr Farquhar McCrae, brother of Arthurs Seat?s Andrew, who leased his grant ?Moreland? to Michael Loeman and moved to La Rose in Pascoe Vale South. He fled to Sydney when the future acting Governor, J.F.L.Foster, challenged him to a duel.
One of Sumner?s near neighbours was Michael Dawson, after whom Dawson St was named. Another (in present-day Fenton St in Ascot Vale) was John Thomas Smith who became Sumner?s near neighbour at Moorooduc as well.
At Christ Church on 12-1-1874, James, eldest son of Richard Grice of Melbourne, married Annie Ruth, eldest daughter of Theodotus John Sumner of Stony Park. (Argus 15-1-1874.)
On 19-9-1888, Gemmell, Tuckett & Co advertised three lots for sale on the instructions of the executors of the late T.J.Sumner Esq. The first lot consisted of land in Frankston. The second comprised the 1470 acres on the east side of Derril Rd and 786 acres in Frankston (parish?) and Moorooduc. The third was the Ellerslie Estate of 636 acres, entirely surrounded by Government Roads and known as the Ballanrong Park. This was the pre-emptive right, granted to T.J.Sumner, west of the Three Chain Road between Bungower and Mornington-Tyabb Roads. (Argus 19-9-1888.)
An advertisement of Allotment 1 Moorooduc of 285.2.34 (the Ranelagh Estate at Mt Eliza) ?on which is erected Nyora? (built by J.T.Smith and later Ranelagh Guest House) mentions that Mrs Sumner owned the adjoining Earimil. (Argus 7-11-1903.)
An obituary for Mrs Sarah Jones Sumner appeared in the 12-3-1929 issue of the Argus. She died at her home ?Stony Park? in Glenlyon St, North Fitzroy (now East Brunswick). She had lived in Victoria for 93 years. (Argus 12-3-1929.) On 9-12-1929, Sumner?s Stony Park Estate at East Brunswick was advertised for sale. (Argus)
T.J.Sumner was obviously interested in dog breeding and rowing. Sarah established a cr?che in Brunswick and was generous to Christ Church Brunswick.
Sumner?s estate in Moorooduc was possibly named Annesleigh (Annesley in some advertisements) after his mother, sister or his daughter, Annie Ruth. In view of the spelling of Ellerslie, the correct spelling may have been Anneslie.
The Hastings Heritage Study indicates that with his partner, Benn, T.J.Sumner held Coolart until 1875. He was also granted several blocks south of the present Riviera Hotel on the part of Long Island in the parish of Frankston.(Google FRANKSTON,COUNTY OF MORNINGTON to see these blocks as well as the huge area, near Sumner Rd,south and west of Ben Baxter's Carrup Carrup P.R. Google MOOROODUC, COUNTY OF MORNINGTON to see the Ballanrong P.R. and the land east of Derril Rd between Eramosa Rd and Mornington-Tyabb Rd.)
T.J.SUMNER, BALLANRONG, 18-5-1880 (NOT 1858), VIC., AUST.
The purpose of this is to reach the attention of anyone who happens to see my claims that Sumner bought the Ballanrong P.R. in 1858 or 1856 and alert them that the date of the grant was actually 18-5-1880. The reason for my mistake is included in the apology in the T.J.SUMNER OF BRUNSWICK, COOLART etc journal.