A postcard from Mordialloc to East Caulfield

Mrs Ernest Cooke of Princes Avenue, East Caulfield received this New Year postcard from all at The Manse, Mordialloc. The postcard is not dated, but I would estimate it was sent 1912, give or take a few years either side. This post looks at the postcard photograph of the Mordialloc Pier; the recipient, Mrs Ernest Cooke; and the sender of the New Year greetings, the Presbyterian Minister or his wife.

Mordialloc from the Pier

New Year Greetings

Mordialloc Pier
The postcard is a photograph of Mordialloc from the pier. In January 1867, The Australasian reported - 
A meeting of market gardeners was held on Wednesday evening, at the Cheltenham Hotel, Cheltenham, for the purpose of receiving a report from the Market Committee appointed at a previous meeting to devise means for the establishment of the Emerald hill Market, and to take steps for the erection of a jetty at Mordialloc, and the removal of  the Metropolitan Manure Depot to the latter place. (1)

The value of a pier to Mordialloc was explained by The Age - 

The farmers and market gardeners about Brighton and Mordialloc, who are bestirring themselves to procure the erection of a pier somewhere near Picnic Point present a claim which deserves favorable consideration for more reasons than one. At present the farmers of the district cart their produce a distance of eleven miles or so to Melbourne, which is of course their chief market;  but in addition to their journey on market day, they have to send about three times a week for a supply of the manure which is indispensable to replenish the natural poverty of their soil. Of course these constantly recurring journeys to and fro involve an expenditure which would be vastly reduced if they had transport by water instead of by land. They say that if they had a pier, the saving in money value to the district in regard to manure alone would not be less than £18,000. Nor would the benefit be all on their side. Think of the material aid to the great sewage question which so perplexes the brains of our city Solons. Here is a way of getting rid of our night-soil, if you wish to got rid of it. (2)

Perhaps due to the pressure exerted by the farmers, in February 1867, £500 was assigned to the Mordialloc Pier in the Government Estimates.  However nothing came of this, and thus in November 1868, it was reported that -

 A deputation from the residents of Mordialloc were introduced, Wednesday, to Mr Jones by Mr Crews, M.L.A. They asked that a sum of £1000, promised by Mr Vale for the erection of a jetty, should be appropriated for that purpose with as little delay as possible. (3)  Mr Jones was the Minister of Roads and Railways and Commissioner of Public Works. 

The jetty was built around 1870. However by 1873 a deputation from the Moorabbin Council met with the Public Works Commissioner in regard to elongation of the Mordialloc Pier, as the pier at present was useless, on account of there not being sufficient depth of water to allow vessels to come along side. (4). It doesn't appear that it was lengthened at this time, as 16 years later, in 1889, another deputation of Mordialloc residents to the Commissioner of Customs requested that the pier be extended (5).  However well before then, the railway line to Frankston had opened in stages -  Caulfield to Mordialloc in December 1881 and Mordialloc to Frankston in August 1882, and so providing the farmers an alternate transportation mode. (6)  The pier was thus then a pleasant location for promenading and fishing, as illustrated on our postcard.

Mrs Ernest Cooke and the Manse Residents

The Electoral Rolls around this time - 1912 -  list Edwin Henry Cooke, his wife Emily Sarah Annie Cooke and his sister Annie Cooke at the address on the postcard, Princes Avenue, East Caulfield; their exact address was Rudland, 10 Princes Avenue (they were also there in the 1903 Electoral roll).  Edwin had a brother Ernest William, who along with his wife Mary Catherine - the Mrs Ernest Cooke from the postcard - were listed at Dandenong Road, East Caulfield, however their two daughters were born at residences in Princes Street in 1900 and 1903 and by 1915 they were living at 7 Princes Avenue. (7)

I looked at newspaper articles on Trove to find out who was the Presbyterian Minister at Mordialloc was at the time and found that the Reverend Hugh Jones was appointed to Mordialloc in June 1908 and preached his final service there in March 1916, when he then moved to the Ormond Presbyterian Church. (8) I felt that it must have been the Reverend Jones, or Mrs Jones, who wrote the postcard and  when I looked at the will of  Edwin Cooke (9) and I found that his executors were his brother, Ernest, and his brother-in-law, the Reverend Hugh Jones, and so it all fell into place.

Mrs Ernest Cooke (nee Mary Powell)

Edwin and Ernest were the sons of Henry Cooke and Amelia Annie Job Ham.  As listed in Edwin's will there were two other sons -  Arthur James Cooke and Charles Wilkinson Cooke  and five daughters  - Annie Amelia Cooke, Florence Maude Mary McNaught, Edith Isabella Jones (the wife of the Reverend Hugh Jones), Hattie Winifred Cole and Olive Theodora Sloggatt. (10)

Their father, Henry Cooke, along with his brother John had founded The Age newspaper in 1854; they relinquished ownership after a few years and Henry returned to his previous occupation of a merchant, and he was also a City of Melbourne Councillor. (11)  He married  Annie Amelia Ham on August 5, 1851 in Sydney. Amelia was the daughter of the first Baptist Minister in Melbourne, the Reverend John Ham.  The Minister and his family had arrived in Melbourne in 1842 and he firstly conducted services at the Athenaeum and then at the first  Baptist Church in Collins Street  which was erected in 1845.  His three sons, Thomas, Theophilus and Jabez, were lithographers and the publishers of the Illustrated Australian Magazine from 1850.  Thomas and another brother, Cornelius, later founded the firm of  C.J. & T. Ham,  Auctioneers and Estate Agents.  Cornelius was also a City of Melbourne Councillor, the Lord Mayor and a member of the Legislative Council, amongst other public roles. (12)   

Illustrated Australian Magazine promotion, c. July 1850  published by the Ham Brothers, the uncles of Ernest, Edwin and Edith Cooke.

State Library of Victoria http://handle.slv.vic.gov.au/10381/243327

Ernest William Cooke was an accountant and he married Mary Catherine Powell in October 1896 and their wedding was reported in The Australasian - 

The wedding of Mr. Ernest William Cooke, fourth son of the late Mr. Henry Cooke, and Mrs. Amelia Cooke, Egglestone, Oakleigh, and Miss Mary Catherine (Kate) Powell, eldest daughter of the late

Mr. Levi Powell and Mrs. C. Powell, of Rugeley-road, Oakleigh, was celebrated very quietly at the residence of the bride's mother on Wednesday, October 7. The drawing room was filled with masses of white flowers. The ceremony was performed by the Rev. George Lloyd, the bride's cousin. Miss Powell was married in her travelling dress, a tailor-made gown of grey flecked tweed, the revers edged with passementerie. The coat opened over a vest of ivory silk. Her large hat was of white chip, with choux of chiffon and clusters of white plumes. She carried one of Cheeseman's shower bouquets of lilies of the valley, roses, azaleas, and asparagus fern. The bride was given away by her cousin, Mr. John Williams, and was attended by Miss Elizabeth Powell, her sister. Mr. E. H. Cooke, the bridegroom's brother, acted as best man. Wedding tea was served in the dining room. Only immediate relatives were present. The young couple will spend a short honeymoon at the seaside. (13) The report continues with a list of the guests, including the Reverend and Mrs Hugh Jones, and the wedding presents. 

Mary was the eldest child of Levi Powell and Annie Price, who had married at the Wesley Church in Melbourne on February 16, 1860;  they had seven children between 1861 and 1877. (14)  Levi Powell was an Architect and he died on March 17 1885 - the Ovens and Murray Advertiser had this obituary -

The death is announced of Mr Levi Powell, architect, which took place at his residence, Carlton,

on the 17th inst., at the age of 63 years. The deceased gentleman will be remembered by old residents of Beechworth, where he resided some thirty years ago, and superintended the erection of the local Wesleyan Church, and other buildings. He shortly afterwards removed to the metropolis, and the "Herald," in noticing his demise, remarks: - Mr Powell, who was of a genial disposition, was well known among the builders and architects of Melbourne, and his death is much regretted. He had been professionally connected with a number of our largest institutions. (15) 

Ernest and Mary had two daughters - Elsie Winifred born in December 1900 and Mary Constance in April 1903. Ernest died aged 63 on September 1, 1924 at the age of 63. Mary, Mrs Ernest Cooke, the recipient of the postcard, died on December 13, 1937, aged 77.  They are buried at the Brighton Cemetery with their two daughters, neither of whom married, and both of whom lived to a good age - Elsie died in August 1987 aged 86 and Mary three months later in November 1987 aged 84.  Elsie and Mary are listed in the Electoral rolls  at 7 Princes Avenue until the late 1960s. Princes Avenue has now been devoured by the Monash University Caulfield Campus and none of the original houses remain. (16)

Princes Avenue, Caulfield East, June 4 1951. Photographer: Airspy. 

Caulfield Technical School (now part of Monash University) is the prominent building in the centre with the sports grounds. It is located in a triangle bounded by Sir John Monash Drive to the right, Dandenong Road (Princes Highway) to the left and Queens Avenue to at the bottom. Caulfield Railway Station is bottom left. 

Princes Avenue, which consists of only 14 houses,  is the dog-leg street running from Railway Avenue to Queens Avenue. 

State Library of Victoria image H2010.91/371  http://handle.slv.vic.gov.au/10381/4223329

Ernest's brother Edwin and his wife Emily (nee Kernot) were, as we saw before, also residents of Princes Avenue.  Edwin was a partner in the firm C.J. & T. Ham, the firm started by his mother's brothers. Edwin and Emily did not have children and Ernest died November 26, 1927 and Emily on January 28, 1943; they are buried at the Cheltenham Pioneer Cemetery. (17)  Emily's short obituary noted that -

As hon. treasurer of the Carlton Home, Carlton, for 40 years, and a sympathetic worker in several church and charitable activities, Mrs. Cooke devoted her long life, with untiring devotion, and won a wide circle of friends by her gentle character. (18)

Before we leave the Cooke family - Emily Cooke (or Mrs Edwin Cooke as she would have been known) was the daughter of  Charles and Mary (nee Archer) Kernot. Charles Kernot was a member of the Legislative Assembly on and off between 1868 and 1880. Her brother, William Charles Kernot was the foundation professor of engineering at the University of Melbourne; another brother Wilfred was also an engineer and eventually held the same role as professor of engineering that his brother had. A third brother Maurice was was engineer-in-chief of the Victorian Railways from 1907 to 1923 and her sister, Lillie, was married to Calder Edkins Oliver, engineer-in chief of the Melbourne and Metropolitan Board of Works. (19)  

Mordialloc Presbyterian Church, c. 1930

Image courtesy Mordialloc & District Historical Society

The Reverend Hugh Jones and Mrs Edith Jones (nee Cooke)

So now we know who Mrs Ernest Cooke was, we will look at the sender of the postcard, either the Reverend Hugh Jones or his wife Edith Isabella, and I suspect it was Edith, writing to to her sister-in-law, Mary Cooke. Edith and Hugh had married on June 11, 1896 at the Oakleigh Congregational Church; this was four months before the marriage of Edith's brother Ernest to Mary Powell.  The Australasian  reported on the wedding - 

The marriage of the Rev. Hugh Jones, M.A., Wharf-street Congregational Church, Brisbane, eldest son of the late Mr. Thomas Jones, Williamstown, and Edith Isabella Cooke, third daughter of the late Mr. Henry Cooke, Melbourne, and Mrs. Henry Cooke, Egglestone, Dandenong-road, Oakleigh, took place at the Congregational Church, Oakleigh, on Thursday, 11th June. The decorations consisted of floral arches, flower initials, and wedding bell. The Rev. Professor Gosman, assisted by the Rev. Geo. Chapman, performed the ceremony. Mrs. Powell, organist, played a festival march on the entrance of the bride, and the "Wedding March" as the party left the church. The bride, who was given away by Mr. Edwin H. Cooke, the bride's eldest brother, wore white surah silk with square train, chiffon, lace, and pearl trimmings; wreath of orange blossom and tulle veil; shower bouquet of white flowers, and diamond and opal brooch (gift from the bridegroom). The bridesmaids were Miss Hattie Winifred Cooke and Miss Olive Theodora Cooke (sisters of the bride), and Miss Emily Jones (sister of the bridegroom). They were in cream and buttercup silk, chip hats with buttercup crowns and chiffon, shower bouquets of golden flowers; gold-bar brooches, with star and crescent of pearls (gifts of the bride groom). The best man was the Rev. J. J. Hewitt. After the ceremony a reception was held at Egglestone, and about 120 sat down to breakfast served in a marquee. The toast of the bride and bridegroom was given by the Rev. Professor Gosman. The travelling dress was of dark brown fancy cloth trimmed with shot silk and passementerie, velvet cape, Thibet fur and toque to match. (20)

The report continues with a list of the guests and the wedding presents. 

Edith and Hugh had three daughters - Edith Gwendolen (born 1897), Mary Enid (1902) and Lorna Doreen (1909). The first two girls were born in Queensland and the third girl, whilst they were at Mordialloc. (21).  Hugh, who was born in Williamstown, Victoria had trained at the Victorian Congregational College, Melbourne University and Ormond Theological College. After some time in Germany to learn the language, he was appointed to the Oakleigh Congregational Church, no doubt where he met Edith. In April 1895, he was appointed to the Wharf-street Congregational Church in Brisbane, where Edith joined him after their marriage. In April 1903 he retired from the Brisbane Church to return to Victoria. As the Brisbane Telegraph reported -  This important step has been rendered necessary by the fact that Mr. Jones's general health has given his family and his most intimate friends some anxiety, for since a partial breakdown of about two years ago, his health has never fully re-established itself. (22)

We then find that in October 1903, the Reverend Jones defected/left the Congregational Church and becomes a Minister of the Presbyterian Church (23). It would be interesting to know the reason - was his partial breakdown caused by a spiritual crisis? In May 1904, Hugh was appointed to the Wallan Presbyterian Church and from there he moved to Mordialloc, where his induction was held on June 4, 1908. (24)  As is the life of a Minister's wife, Edith would have packed up the house and the girls and moved with her husband to the new Manse, which of course had the advantage of being much closer to her family members, including her mother, Amelia Cooke, who died the next year on October 6, 1909.  Henry Cooke, Edith's father, had died March 18, 1899 (25).  

The Mordialloc Presbyterian Church, St Andrews, is in McDonald Street, on the corner of Barkly Street. It was designed by Reed, Henderson and Smart and officially opened in January 1889. (26) There is some mystery as to where the Manse was at the time the postcard was written; Hugh and Edith Jones are listed in the Electoral Roll in McDonald Street; his successor Reverend John Frederick Heyhoe Sims, has an Ashmore Avenue address. It would appear that these two properties may have been rented as in March 1924 The Age reported that -

Mordialloc Presbyterian Church - At the annual Congregational meeting authority was given for the erection of a brick manse, and for the preparation of plans and specifications of a new kindergarten room, the need for which is being increasingly felt. (27)

Erection of Manse and Kindergarten Hall

The Age, March 1, 1924 http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article204093852

This new Manse was behind the Church and facing Barkly Street, between the new Kindergarten Hall and Mordialloc State School, No. 846 (now known as Mordialloc Beach Primary),  as you can see in the image below. I presume the Manse was erected 1924 or 1925 and it was certainly there when the next Minister, the Reverend Nasib Jaboor arrived. He was inducted on May 23, 1928, and his address in the Electoral Rolls was The Manse, 58 Barkly Street, Mordialloc.  The Manse is no longer stands and the land is now part of the adjoining School. As noted in Vision and Realisation: a centenary history of State Education in Victoria -  in 1967, the purchase of the site of the neighbouring Presbyterian Manse helped relieve the crowded playground.  (28)

Mordialloc Presbyterian Church and Manse, c. 1929

Mordialloc Presbyterian Church facing McDonald Street; adjoining the Church and facing Barkly Street are a Kindergarten Hall and another Hall or Sunday School building. The Manse is on the next block of land, immediately to the right of the School, Mordialloc State School, No. 846 (now known as Mordailloc Beach Primary). 

Image courtesy Mordialloc & District Historical Society

Reverend Jones preached his farewell service at Mordialloc on March 26, 1916  and then moved to the Ormond Presbyterian Church, and he was there until he retired in 1934, when he was 70 years old. (29).  Well, he partially retired as he when he died on October 16, 1935 in Adelaide, a short obituary in the Williamstown Chronicle noted that he was the minister at the Ulney Presbyterian Church, a suburb of Adelaide. He was buried at the Magill Cemetery also in Adelaide.  Edith returned to Melbourne and she died in Boronia on March 7, 1942 age 70. She was buried at Springvale Cemetery. (30) 

Hugh and Edith had three daughters, as we mentioned - Edith Gwendolen, known as Gwen, married Alfred Frank Gerald Garrett in 1927, she died in Sydney in July 1948 and her death notice lists three sons, David, Gerald and Michael. Mary Enid, known as Enid, married a Mr Price, and she died in 1982 in Melbourne; she had two daughters, Judith and Gillian, but I have no further details of her husband. (31)  

The youngest daughter, Lorna Doreen, attended Presbyterian Ladies College and became a Doctor. She worked in Brisbane and then from June 1939 until December 1953 she practiced at Boronia. Her sister, Enid, lived with her for a number of years. The Mountain District Free Press reported on her farewell function -

Never before in the history of district has anyone been given a more spontaneous and sincere farewell, than Dr. Jones, who has endeared herself to man, woman and child alike, in her fourteen years of unstinted service to the community. On her arrival at the hall, Dr. Jones was escorted to the beautifully decorated stage by Mrs Allan Chandler, as the audience of many hundreds sang, "The more we are together." Dr. Jones and her sister, Mrs Price, were then welcomed by Mrs Chandler and presented with charming bouquets. The evening then took the form of a concert, with a splendidly balanced program from local artists..... Lorna died On October 15, 1963, aged only 54. (32)

Dr Lorna Jones, c. 1947

Image: Boronia “The good old days” Facebook page   https://www.facebook.com/groups/759569961240851/posts/1830718844125952/

This, then, is the story of the postcard sent from The Manse at Mordialloc, then occupied by the Reverend Hugh Jones, his wife Edith (nee Cooke) and their three daughters Gwen, Enid and Lorna. It was sent to Edith's sister-in-law, Mary Cooke, the wife of Ernest and the mother of Elsie and Mary, who all lived at No. 7 Princes Avenue, Caulfield East. 

Acknowledgements

I am indebted to Mordialloc and District Historical Society members Peter Ratcliff, Wayne Imlach and Paula McCarthy, who provided me with photographs from their collection and information as to the location of the Mordialloc Manse. It was Wayne who identified the Manse building on the c. 1929 aerial photograph, which I have used here, and also modern photos of the location.  Thank you!

Footnotes

(1) The Australasian, January 12, 1867, see here.

(2) The Age, June 25, 1869, see here.

(3) The Argus, February 7, 1867, see here; The Leader, November 7, 1868, see here; The Hon. C.E. Jones - Illustrated Australian News for Home Readers, August 8, 1868, see here.  

(4) The Argus, June 1, 1870, see here; The Herald, June 30, 1873, see here.

(5) South Bourke & Mornington Journal, June 26, 1889, see here.

(6) Harrigan, Leo. J. Victorian Railways to '62 (Victorian Railways, 1962)

(7) Electoral Rolls on Ancestry.com; Sands & McDougall's Melbourne, suburban and country directory - available at the State Library of Victoria; various family notices in newspapers on Trove.

(8) Reverend Hugh Jones - The Argus, May 6, 1908, see here; Mornington Standard, June 13, 1908, see here; Moorabbin News, March 18, 1916, see here; Cheltenham Seaside News, April 22, 1916, see here.

(9) Edwin Cooke's Will and Probate papers at the Public Records Office of Victoria  https://prov.vic.gov.au/archive/CE2BBC2A-F567-11E9-AE98-9B0037504020?image=1

(10) Ibid.

(11) Henry Cooke - https://emhs.org.au/history/people/cooke_henry_1818%E2%80%931889

(12) Cooke/Ham marriage - Sydney Morning Herald, August 6, 1851, see here; Punch, May 23, 1907, see here; Australian Dictionary of Biography - https://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/ham-theophilus-job-3904 and Obituaries Australia - https://oa.anu.edu.au/obituary/ham-theophilus-job-3904

(13) The Australasian, October 17, 1896, see here.

(14) The Argus, February 17, 1860, see here; Indexes to the Victorian Births, Deaths and Marriages. 

(15) The Ovens and Murray Advertiser, March 19, 1885, see here.

(16) Elsie birth  - The Australasian, December 22, 1900 see here; Mary birth  - The Argus, April 20, 1903, see here; Ernest death - The Age, September 2, 1924, see here; Mary death - The Age, December 14, 1937, see here. Brighton Cemetorians database - https://www.brightoncemetorians.org.au/

(17) Edwin - The Age, November 28, 1927 see here; Obituary - The Age, November 28, 1927, see here; The Age, January 30, 1943, see here; Friends of Cheltenham & Regional Cemeteries database  https://www.focrc.org/

(18) The Age, February 3, 1943, see here.

(19) Australian Dictionary of Biography - https://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/kernot-charles-3948 ;   https://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/kernot-wilfred-noyce-6937 ; https://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/kernot-william-charles-556; William Charles Kernot obituary - Bendigo Advertiser, March 16, 1909, see here.

(20) The Australasian, June 20 1896, see here.

(21) Indexes to the Victorian and Queensland Births, Death and Marriages.

(22) Brisbane Courier, April 6, 1895, see here; Brisbane Telegraph, March 6, 1903, see here.

(23) Williamstown Chronicle, October 17, 1903, see here.

(24) Williamstown Chronicle, May 7 1904, see here and Footnote 8.

(25) The Argus, October 8, 1909, see here; The Herald, March 19, 1889, see here. 

(26) The Argus, January 16, 1888, see here; Caulfield and Elsternwick Leader, January 12, 1889, see here. 

(27) Electoral Rolls on Ancestry.com; Sands & McDougall's Melbourne, suburban and country directory - available at the State Library of Victoria; The Age, March 1, 1924, see here.

(28)  Induction of the Reverend Sims - Moorabbin News June 3, 1916, see here;  Reverend Sims had left Mordialloc by February 1927 - The Age, February 12, 1927, see here; Induction of the Reverend Jaboor, Dandenong Journal, June 21, 1928, see here. Commonwealth of Australia Gazette, May 30, 1966 - Registered Celebrants, see here; Vision and Realisation: a centenary history of State Education in Victoria, edited by L.J. Blake (Education Department of Victoria, 1973), v. 3, p. 310-311.

(29) Moorabbin News, March 18, 1916, see here;  The Herald, May 31, 1934, see here.

(30) Adelaide Advertiser, October 18, 1935, see here; Williamstown Chronicle, October 26, 1935, see here.  Edith - The Age, March 9, 1942, see here.

(31) Indexes to the Victorian Births, Death and Marriages; Gwen - death notice, The Age, July 21, 1948, see here. Lorna Jones' death notice, inserted by Enid Price, lists Enid's daughters as Judith Court and Gillian Price - The Age, October 16, 1963, p. 27 on Newspapers.com.

(32) Indexes to the Victorian Births, Death and Marriages, Electoral Rolls on Ancestry.com;  The Age, February 6, 1926, see here; Brisbane Courier Mail, September 1, 1934, see here; Fern Tree Gully News, June 9, 1939, see here; Mountain District Free Press, December 31, 1953, see here; death notice - The Age, October 16, 1963, p. 27 on Newspapers.com.

The Corner House Drapery and the Ordish Timber Yard, Dandenong East

This postcard of Dandenong 'East' shows The Corner House, on the corner of Walker and Langhorne Streets in Dandenong and the premises of E. Ordish, Timber Merchant, in Langhorne Street.  The photograph was taken around 1909. I am not sure of the boundaries of Dandenong East however State School No. 1403 Dandenong was known as Dandenong East from around the 1930s to the 1950s. The school is located on the corner of Foster and New Street. (1)

Postcard of Dandenong 'East' corner of Walker and Langhorne Streets.

The Corner House was a drapery, previously known as The Red House. The Red House, owned by George Dobson, was sold around March 1905 to Joseph Watts, who then held a Startling Clearing Sale. (2)

Startling Clearing Sale at The Red House.

South Bourke & Mornington Journal, March 29, 1905 http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article66142986

The following advertisements tell the story of  The Corner House. In May 1905, The Red House was renamed The Corner House and it advertised on a regular basis in the South Bourke & Mornington Journal.  Around March 1910, Joseph Watts sold his stock to Wilson brothers, the Big Cash Drapers, of Lonsdale Street, Dandenong. 

The Red House becomes The Corner House.

South Bourke & Mornington Journal May 17, 1905 https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/66143213 

Advertisement for The Corner House

South Bourke & Mornington Journal, October 7, 1908 http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article66148406 

Wilson Brothers acquire the stock of The Corner House.

South Bourke & Mornington Journal,  March 2, 1910 https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/66201406 

Wilson Brothers advertisement

South Bourke & Mornington Journal, March 24 1909  http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article66199784 

Who was Joseph Watts?  Joseph Eacott Watts was born in Bristol in England to Joseph and Martha (nee Eacott) Watts.  On July 30, 1873 he married Elizabeth Gittus and they had three children - Elizabeth (1874, died aged 1 month), William Henry (1875, died in Perth in 1937) and Frank Cecil (1877, served in World War One, returned to Australia in 1919 and I have no further information.) Elizabeth's father, Thomas Gittus, was a Councillor at the City of South Melbourne and Mayor in 1893/94. Sadly Elizabeth died, aged only 28, on June 7, 1882 at their home, Clifton Villa, Palmerston Crescent, Albert Park. She was buried in the St Kilda Cemetery, and her parents, Susan and Thomas, were later buried with her. (3).

Less than six months later, the 32 year old James married 22 year old  Elizabeth Charlotte Richardson on November 6, 1882 at the Presbyterian manse in East Melbourne.  She was born in Birmingham, in England, the daughter of William and Mary Anne (nee Newport) Richardson. James and his new wife, Elizabeth had six children - Ida Beatrice (1883, known as Queenie, married Robert Ernest Crooke in 1909 and died 1949), Netta May (1885-1974), Rupert Carlisle (1889-1967), Eric Clarence (1892-1966), Vera Eacott (1896-1989) and Jean Elizabeth (1902, married Frederick Middleton in 1926, died in Adelaide in 1983). (4)

Joseph and Elizabeth were listed in the Electoral Rolls from 1905 until 1934 at 20 Elphin Grove, Hawthorn, except for the 1909 roll where their address was Dandenong, which fits in with the time frame of Watts owning The Corner House drapery. Joseph died January 30, 1937 aged 86 and Elizabeth on November 10, 1952 aged 92 years old. Joseph and Elizabeth are buried at the Booroondara Cemetery, with their daughters Netta and Vera. (5)

 The other business in the photograph was the timber yard of E. Ordish. The first reference I can find of Ordish being in Langhorne Street was from the start of October 1908 when Joseph Watts began advertising The Corner House as being next to Ordish's Timber Yard 

 

The Corner House - next to Ordish's Timber Yard.

South Bourke & Mornington Journal, November 11, 1908 http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article66148572 

The first advertisement for the timber yard in the South Bourke and Mornington Journal was October 21, 1908, where Mr Ordish wishes to notify the public of Dandenong and district that he has opened large and commodious yards. A year later the firm became known as E.& J. Ordish. The brothers, Edgar and John, continued at the yard until at least 1912, but in 1913 J.W. Ordish was advertising as the oldest established Builder and Timber Merchant in and Dandenong. Plans arranged for Schools, Halls, Shops, Villas and all styles Farm Buildings. (6).

The opening of the large and commodious yards

South Bourke & Mornington Journal, October 21 1908 https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/66148472

J. Ordish joins the business.

South Bourke & Mornington Journal, October 6, 1909 http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article66200820

By 1915 A.C. W. Bailey had taken over the yard.

South Bourke & Mornington Journal, October 21, 1915 http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article66188662

Edgar and John Ordish were brothers, the sons of Thomas and Mary Jane (nee Ward) Ordish. They were both born Dandenong - John Whiting Ordish in 1866 and Edgar in 1870. Edgar was a builder/contractor and John's occupation in the Electoral roll was listed as a labourer and later a timber merchant. (7).

John married Easter Louisa Blackmore in 1889. They had three children - Hazel (1890, married Albert Crump in 1913, and died 1973), Myrtle (1892, married Geoffrey Collins in 1940 and died 1949 ) and Frank (1895-1897). On January 15, 1915 John enlisted in the A.I.F. He said he was 44 years old, in reality he was nearly 50. John served in the Middle East but was sent home after a time in hospital due to an internal derangement of knee and discharged in July 1916. John died on August 26, 1922 at his home in Beena Avenue, Murrumbeena, aged 55. Easter died On June 12, 1946, aged 87. (8)

Easter Ordish's obituary.

Dandenong Journal, June 12, 1946 http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article214794040

Edgar married Jemima Lillian Anderson in 1901. They had the one son, John 'Jack' in 1904. Edgar died on May 10, 1936 at his home 42 Scott Street, Dandenong. Jemima died on July 2,  1942, aged 71. Jack married Myra Vizard in the Dandenong Methodist Church on November 23, 1935. (9)

Edgar Ordish's obituary

Dandenong Journal, May 14, 1936 http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article214739599 

Given the opening of Edgar Ordish's timber yard in Langhorne Street was in October 1908  and the sale of Joseph Watt's The Corner House business was  in March 1910, I believe we can safely date the photograph on this postcard to 1909 or a few months either side. 

There is one more element of the postcard - the sender and the addressee. The sender was possibly a Jane, I can't really decipher it. It was sent to Miss Lizzie Hawking, Kogan, Queensland. Kogan is a town west of Dalby and south of Chinchilla. I currently have no other information about Lizzie. 

The back of the postcard

Footnotes

(1) References to Dandenong East School - Dandenong Journal, December 25, 1930, see here; Dandenong Journal, May 21 1941, see here; Dandenong Journal, January 9, 1952, see here.

(2) South Bourke & Mornington Journal, September 14, 1904, see here.

(3) Watts/Richardson wedding certificate; Watts/Gittus marriage The Argus, August 12, 1873, see here; Indexes to Victorian and West Australian Births, Deaths and Marriages; First Australian Imperial Force Personnel Dossiers, 1914-1920 -  National Archives of Australia; Daley, Charles The History of South Melbourne (Robertson & Mullens, 1940); Elizabeth's death notice The Age June 8, 1882, see here and funeral notice The Argus, June 8, 1882, see here; St Kilda Cemetery records on Ancestry.com.

(4) Watts/Richardson wedding certificate; Indexes to Victorian and South Australian Births, Deaths and Marriages.

(5) Electoral Rolls on Ancestry.com; Joseph death notice The Argus, February 1, 1937, see here; Elizabth death notice The Argus, November 11, 1952, see here; Booroondara Cemetery   https://boroondaracemetery.com.au/

(6) Advertisements in South Bourke & Mornington Journal on Trove; J.W. Ordish advertisement South Bourke & Mornington Journal, April 3 1913, see here.

(7) Indexes to Victorian Births, Deaths and Marriages; Electoral Rolls on Ancestry.com.

(8)  Indexes to Victorian Births, Deaths and Marriages; First Australian Imperial Force Personnel Dossiers, 1914-1920 -  National Archives of Australia; John death notice The Argus, August 29, 1922,  see here ; Easter's obituary Dandenong Journal, June 12, 1946, see here. 

(9) Indexes to Victorian Births, Deaths and Marriages; Edgar death notice  The Argus, May 11 1936, see here; Jemima obituary Dandenong Journal, July 8 1942, see here. Ordish/Vizard wedding Dandenong Journal, December 5, 1935, see here.

Arthur McKenna and his dear Clara

I purchased this postcard, sent in December 1910, because of the painted gum leaf on the front, but the letter on the back, from Arthur to 'dear Clara', turned out to be so romantic. 

Friday Morning 12.20A.M. Leongatha Dec 30/12/10

My Dear Clara,

I received your welcome kind letter. I was so glad to get it my Queen. I hope that you are in the best of health and that you are looking well after your Precious self. I will be glad to see my love down the hill to meet me. Dear Clara I am baking to suit myself next week. Eddie don't mind. I told him that I wanted Monday night off. I will tell you all about [it] on Saturday my love one. Please excuse the writing my love you know that I wont write much on a card. Best love and kisses xxxx  From you ever loving Arthur xxxxxx

At top -  I bought a jug and two glasses for my love one like from? your mother.

After I showed this postcard at a talk I did at the Narre Warren and District Family History Group I had an email from Marianne Rocke, their newsletter editor and Upper Beaconsfield historian who wrote -
Possible match for Arthur and Clara are Arthur Hugh McKenna and Clara Elizabeth Simpson. Married 1911, first child Joseph Purcell McKenna at Leongatha in 1912, others at Kyneton. Arthur is a baker ...

This was a great discovery on Marianne's part, so this is the story of Arthur and Clara. 

We'll start with Arthur. Arthur Hugh McKenna was born in 1877 to Hugh and Sophia (nee Stevens) McKenna. Arthur was the second of four boys all born in Brighton - Hugh (1876, died aged 20 days old); Arthur; Frederick James (1879) and Horace Elliott (1882). (1)  His father, Hugh, was a blacksmith and was found drowned at Brighton Beach on January 24, 1884, aged only 28 years old. 

The Inquest into Hugh's death heard evidence from his brother Michael who stated that he knew of no reason why deceased would commit suicide as he was in good health, in a prosperous condition, and lived happily with his wife. The witness had seen deceased alive on the same day the body was found, and there was then nothing unusual in his appearance though he had been drinking a little.  Sophia also gave evidence that he had been drinking to excess for some days previously. The Verdict - The Coroner having summed up, the jury, after a short deliberation, returned a verdict that the deceased was found drowned, but there was no evidence to show how he got into the water. (2). Hugh is buried at the Brighton Cemetery, in the Church of England section.

Sophia, being left a widow with three young boys,  married Joseph Granger, a carpenter, in 1885 and had nine children with him - Joseph Francis (1886), George Edward (1888-1889), William John (1890), Ernest Stanley (1893), Emin Pasha (3) 'George' (1895), Charlotte (1898), Annie Isabella (1901), Henry (1903-1903), Roy (1903-1904). Francis was born at Prahran, George at Essendon and the others at Brighton. From around 1908, Joseph and Sophia lived at 2 Grant Street, North Brighton and they were still at that address when Joseph died on July 16, 1931 aged 77 and Sophia died on September 18,1933 aged 76. They are buried together at Brighton Cemetery, in the 'Other Denominations' section. (4). 

Before he met Clara, in 1899 Arthur had married Mary Caroline James and they had three children - Hugh Arthur (born in Ballan 1901), Ruby Myrtle (Brighton, 1903) and Charles Gilbert (Avenel, 1906, died aged 6 months). On Arthur's marriage certificate to Clara it states that he was widower with the year 1905; I can't find  a record of Mary's death, but it is possible she died in childbirth and little Charles died six months later. The next we know of Arthur is that he is listed in the 1909 Electoral Roll at Anderson Street, in Euroa, occupation baker. (5). Where the children with him or were they being looked after by their grandparents? I don't know. 

By December 1910, Arthur had moved to Leongatha, where he was courting Miss Clara Simpson, of Kardella. Why did he move to Leongatha? That is something else I don't know.

Clara had been born in Nundah, in Queensland on September 28, 1887 to Tobias Percell Simpson, a plumber and dairy farmer and his wife, Clara Elizabeth Hosler. She had a brother Thomas William, born in 1884, another brother Tobias Percell born in 1885 and a sister Cordelia, born in 1889. The family then moved to Victoria where daughter Eliza was born in Collingwood in 1891. Kardella had been settled from 1893 as a Village Settlement, and it is likely the family moved to a property there around this time as the next five children had their births registered at Korumburra - Joseph Alexander (1895), William Henry (1897), Rachel (1898), Alex (1900) and Alice (1902). Ten children in all. (6)

Arthur's wooing of Clara was a success as they were married on June 28, 1911 at St Paul's Church of England, Korumburra. She was 23 and he was 33. Cordelia and Thomas were the witnesses (7).  Charming though Arthur no doubt was, taking on a widower with a ten year old and an eight year old was a big task, however being the eldest girl in the family with seven younger siblings Clara would have been well trained in that area. 

Kyneton as it would have looked when Arthur and Clara lived there from 1913 until 1919.

Mollison Street, Kyneton, c. 1914. State Library of Victoria Image : H90.140/633.

As Marianne discovered Arthur and Clara's eldest child, Joseph Percell, was born in Leongatha in 1912. He was followed by George Tobias in 1913, Alexander Horace in 1914 and William Frederick France in 1918 (8). The last three were born in Kyneton and the Electoral Rolls show that Arthur and Clara lived in High Street, then Mollison Street at Kyneton until 1919 when they moved back to Melbourne to 116 Moray Street, South Melbourne. (9). Even though Arthur was always listed in the Electoral Roll as a baker, it seems that in South Melbourne he operated a grocery shop, because in April 1920 he appeared at the South Melbourne Court House, having been charged with selling groceries after 6.00pm on March 24, 1920. 

From the Emerald Hill Record (10) -

Before Messrs. Kelly, P.M., M. J. O'Bryan, Machin, and Russell, JsP., at Thursday's court, two shopkeepers, named Howard E. Watt and Arthur H. McKenna, were charged with selling groceries after 6 p.m. on March 24th. Miss Elizabeth Michell, factories and shops inspectress, said that she bought half a pound of tea at 7.15 p.m. on Wednesday, March 24, in Watt's shop. Reports had been received at the department about Mr. Watt.  

Mr Watt was found guilty and fined 20 shillings. Miss Michael continued her evidence -

Miss Michael stated that at 7 o'clock the same evening she visited McKenna's shop, which was open for the sale of confectionery. She purchased a packet of cocoa. When she spoke to the defendant he said, "The little girl who served you had been told not to sell groceries to anyone." He then said, that he would apply for a permit to sell confectionery. This had been granted to him on the condition that after 6 p.m. he must keep the groceries locked up.  

Arthur was also fined 20 shillings. You forget how restrictive shopping hours used to be.

In 1924 they are listed at 153 Park Street, South Melbourne. That same year the family had a 'tree change' and moved to Goulburn Street, Cheltenham, when it was little more than a country town. 

Cheltenham as it would have looked when Arthur and Clara moved there in 1924.

Charman Road, Cheltenham, c. 1915. State Library of Victoria Image H90.140/37

From 1926 the family are listed Chesterville Road in Cheltenham, where they remained. Ruby was also living with them, she had the interesting occupation of  a book binder. Ten years later the Electoral Rolls tell us that their son Joseph was an engineer;  Alexander a printer and George a sign writer. Through all this time, Arthur was still a baker. (11)

Arthur died on October 3, 1940 at his home 13 Chesterville Road, Cheltenham. His funeral notices showed he was a member of the Star of Victoria Lodge, No. 15, a United Ancient Order of Druids Lodge. (12)

Arthur McKenna's death notice

The Age October 4, 1940  https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/204392290

Clara died September 19, 1950.She is buried with Arthur in the Brighton Cemetery, in the same grave as Arthur's father Hugh, who was found drowned at Brighton Beach all those years ago in 1884 (13).

Acknowledgment - Cannot thank Marianne Rocke enough for discovering who Arthur and Clara were. 

Footnotes

(1) Index to the Victorian Births, Deaths and Marriages

(2) The Herald, January 26, 1884, see here.

(3) Emin Pasha - the name is from Mehmed Emin Pasha (1840-1892) who was born as Eduard Schnitzer, and while serving the Ottoman governor of northern Albania (1870–74), he adopted a Turkish mode of living and a Turkish name.  He was a physician, explorer, and governor of the Equatorial province of Egyptian Sudan who contributed vastly to the knowledge of African geography, natural history, ethnology, and languages. Source: https://www.britannica.com/biography/Mehmed-Emin-Pasha

(4) Index to the Victorian Births, Deaths and Marriages, Electoral Rolls on Ancestry and Brighton Cemetorians website  https://www.brightoncemetorians.org.au/  Joseph's death notice in The Age, July 17, 1933, see here  Sophia's death notice in The Herald, September 19, 1933, see here and the children are listed as - Arthur, Horace, and Frederick McKenna (deceased). Joseph, Edward (deceased), John, Stanley, George, Charlotte (Mrs Hunter), Annie (Mrs Stockwell), Roy and George (deceased).  I was having trouble locating the Georges - then I found that the oldest George was born Emin Pasha Granger and I suspect that the youngest George is actually Henry, who was born in 1903, presumably Roy's twin. 

(5) Index to the Victorian Births, Deaths and Marriages; Arthur and Clara's wedding certificate; Electoral Rolls on Ancestry.com

(6) Arthur and Clara's wedding certificate; Index to the Victorian and Queensland Births, Deaths and Marriages. Kardella - Victorian Places https://www.victorianplaces.com.au/kardella 

(7) Arthur and Clara's wedding certificate

(8) Arthur's children with Mary James and then Clara Simpson - and any information that I currently know about them. Sources - Victorian Births, Deaths and Marriages;   https://smct.org.au/;   https://www.brightoncemetorians.org.au/;   mytributes.com.au/notice/condolences/bill-mckenna/4534034/ ; https://nominal-rolls.dva.gov.au/ww2

Hugh Arthur born Ballan in 1901. Married May Josephine Oates in 1929 (died 1930), then married Rose Deane (nee Howie) in 1937. Died in Brighton in 1957 and buried at the Brighton Cemetery. 

Ruby Myrtle born Brighton in 1903. Married Bernard Charles Cameron in 1950. Died in 1960, cremated at Springvale Botanical Cemetery. 

Charles Gilbert born in Avenel in 1906, died aged 6 months in Avenel.

Joseph Percell born in Leongatha in 1912. Died in 1991; cremated at Springvale Botanical Cemetery.

George Tobias born in Kyneton in 1913. Married Patricia Constance Flinn in 1939. Served in the Australian Army in WW2 from November 1943 until June 1946, service number VX93731.  Died in East Bentleigh in 1978 and buried at Springvale Botanical Cemetery.

Alexander  Horace born in Kyneton in 1914. Married Mary Teresa Armstrong in 1934. Served in the Australian Army in WW2 from March 1942 until October 1945, service number 31142 (VX77224). Died in Highett in 1983 and cremated at Springvale Botanical Cemetery.

William Frederick France born in Kyneton in 1918. Died 2012.

(9) Index to the Victorian Births, Deaths and Marriages and the  Electoral Rolls on Ancestry.com

(10) Emerald Hill Record, April 24, 1920, see here.

(11) Electoral Rolls on Ancestry.com

(12) Death notice The Age, October 4, 1940, see here;   Funeral notice The Age, October 5 1940, see here. 

(13) Brighton Cemetorians website  https://www.brightoncemetorians.org.au/ 

Victorian Railways and Marion Steam Shovels

The Victorian Railways possessed a Marion Steam Shovel which they were using in 1909 on such projects as the regrading of the railway line at the Armadale Station, the purpose of which was to allow the Malvern-Prahran tram line an uninterrupted crossing above the railway at High-street. (1).  The machine was manufactured by the Marion Steam Shovel Company of Ohio, U.S.A., (2) and imported in 1907, and assembled at the Newport Railway Workshops (3). 

Caption: Regrading the Gippsland line at Toorak, Armadale and Malvern: the Marion Steam Shovel at work.

The Australasian, August 7, 1909 https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/139684685

The Australasian newspaper in August 1909 had the following report, describing how the Steam Shovel worked, as well as the photograph above -

The Marion steam-shovel has recently been put to work on the regrading of the line at the Armadale station. It is the only one of the kind in Victoria, and the railway authorities state that it is giving perfect satisfaction. Excavating is effected by means of a bucket or scoop attached to a swinging arm. The bucket, after being lowered, is raided by powerful gearing, and at each lift a cubic yard of material is scraped off the face of the cutting. It is then swung round, so as to empty its load into the ballast waggons. When everything within reach has been cut away, a short length of portable track is laid in front of the shovel, along which it moves by its own mechanism, until it is in a position to make another start. Fifty waggons, holding six tons apiece, are being filled daily. The total weight would equal that of two average goods trains, but, working in a less restricted space, the machine could considerably increase this output. Providing it is not solid rock, the kind of material to be excavated does not seem to make any difference. Whether loam, gravel, hard clay, or schist, the four great steel teeth of the bucket bite this off in mouthfuls of nearly a ton, and with no more apparent effort than if it were so much butter. Money and time are both saved by the shovel, as compared with the old slow method of ploughing and scraping, for the consumption of fuel is small, and the only other expenses are the wages of the two attendants. Some heavy excavating still remains to be done, but the work ought to be sufficiently advanced two months hence to enable the down trains to be run in the cutting. The girders for the High street bridge are ready for placing in position, and this roadway, which will also carry the Malvern tramway over the railway, should be ready for traffic in November. An island platform is being built at the new station. and passengers will have access to this by subways (4). 

Marion Steam Shovel. Victorian Railways photographer.

State Library of Victoria Image H1076/224C http://handle.slv.vic.gov.au/10381/4192279

By 1911, Melbourne's rail network was in need of expansion, as The Herald in July 1913 reported - 

Standing on Prince's Bridge, and looking eastwards, on a moonlit night one may see one of the most fascinating sights in the city, the railway grid-iron over which the inward and outward bound suburban and country trains travel towards or away from each other under the signal bridges. Two pairs of lines connect the city with suburban stations on either side of Caulfield and around, and run on to the Gippsland line and branches to Wonthaggi, and also connect with the line that skirts the Bay and finds its terminal point at Mornington. In short, these two roads represent two of the important arteries of the railway system. Both goods and passenger traffic has increased rapidly of late, and it became necessary to devise means of relieving the congestion. So the duplication of the Caulfleld line was decided upon, and the actual work was put in hand in December, 1911 (5). 

The cost of the project was estimated to be £300,000 and the work was expected to have been completed at the end of 1914 (6). It was actually finished in December 1915, apart from a the new station building at South Yarra and the island platform at Caulfield. It also ran £100,000 over budget (7).  One of the end results of the work was  all the level crossings between South Yarra and Caulfield stations, were abolished (8). 

The Herald report continued with this description of the  project - 

The scheme was and is the duplication of the line from South Yarra to Caulfield by providing

up and down "fast" roads and up and down "slow" roads. The "fast" roads for country, goods, quick suburban, and race traffic, the "slow" roads for trains, with suburban passengers, stopping at

all stations. 

An important part of the scheme has been the reduction of the existing steep grades - the steepest being from 1 in 44 to 1 in 63. It was necessary to drop the lines from South Yarra to Malvern, thus doing away with level crossings, and to provide overhead bridges at some crossings. At Hawthorn the line has been, or will be dropped 12ft, at Toorak 13ft. 6in., and at Malvern 9ft. The greatest depth will be 18ft. below present level. On the other hand, the dip between Malvern and Caulfield is to be dealt with by the construction of an embankment, over which the trains will pass. Many bridges are in course of erection, and before the duplication could be entered upon land had to be purchased and expensive villas removed (9). 

One of these expensive villas was the home of Carlo Catani, Chief Engineer of the Public Works Department. His house was at 4 Elm Grove, Armadale. I have written about this here.

In July 1912, it was reported that the Railway Commissioners had 

purchased a second "Marion" steam shovel for use on the Caulfield line duplication and regrading works, and at other large excavation undertakings, and it is anticipated that the saving, which will be effected will be sufficient to cover the cost of the machine. The new machine arrived from New York in the steamer Star of Australia on Monday last, and the work of assembling the parts will be taken in hand at Newport workshops in the course of a few days (10).  The cost of the  Steam Shovel was  £3200 (11). 

At the end of October 1912,  The Argus reported on the working of the Steam Shovel -

The new Marion steam shovel purchased by the Railways department, is at present working at the Toorak station. This is the model (No. 50) that the department put into commission several years ago, but in detail it has been improved upon. The Marion is of the same type as the Bucyrus shovels, that have done such good work at Panama. The new machine has a bucket capacity of two cubic yards. In a shift of eight hours 1,000 tons can be loaded on a ballast train, but in a speed trial 180 tons have been excavated in an hour. This pace, however, cannot be kept up, for it makes no allowance for shifting the shovel. The motive power consists of a hoisting engine, and of an auxiliary engine, for pushing the spoon and bucket into the material to be excavated. As the Marion can excavate at a height of 23ft., and at a depth of 3ft. below the rails, in both cases with a working radius of 22ft., it will be seen that it has great flexibility. When it has scooped up everything within range an 11ft. length of rail is laid. The shovel propels itself along this, and is then ready to remove another semi-circular section of material, measuring 23ft. across, and, if necessary, 26ft. in thickness. (12). 

I actually own a postcard of this steam shovel, shown below, pictured at the Newport Railway Workshops.

Marion Steam Shovel at the Newport Workshop  

Back of the postcard 

Dear Katie, I trust you'll accept this as an answer to your nice letter rec'd this week. No news to make a lengthy one so sending this. Its a product of Charlie's shop - both card and engine. Was glad to get Mary's today. We'll be glad to see Dada if he comes to town. Monday is a holiday. I'm thinking of going to Brighton Sun (?)  and coming home Monday. It will be a nice spell. We hope anniversary + picnic pass off OK + that good weather prevails. With love ?

It appears the postcard was sent to Katie by her brother. The card was said to be a product of Charlie's shop, along with the engine. I am unsure what this means, but maybe Charlie worked at the Newport Workshops; or did he take the photograph and produced the postcard?  I cannot tell you. 

What was the fate of the Marion Steam Shovel? Again, I cannot tell you. There is a short article about it on Peter Vincent's website, which focusses on Victorian Railway rolling stock,   http://www.pjv101.net/cd/pages/c215m.htm

Another Marion Steam Shovel was imported in 1913 by the Commonwealth Railways  to work on the Trans-Australian Railway at Port Augusta, read about it here https://www.comrails.com/cr_locos/r_marion.html

The Marion Steam Shovel. Victorian Railways photographer. 

It appears the machine is no longer in use. It may possibly have been put aside  during the First World War and manpower and resources directed elsewhere. 

State Library of Victoria Image H1076/38E http://handle.slv.vic.gov.au/10381/4192399

Acknowledgment

My research colleague, Isaac Hermann, actually found the postcard for me. Thank you!

Trove - I have created a short list of articles on the Marion Steam Shovel, access it here.

Footnotes

(1) The Argus, August 18, 1909, see here. 

(2) More on the Company here https://ohiohistorycentral.org/w/Marion_Steam_Shovel_Company

(3) Peter Vincent's website  http://www.pjv101.net/  Steam Shovel article here   http://www.pjv101.net/cd/pages/c215m.htm  Also Victorian Railways to '62 by Leo J.  Harrigan (Victorian Railways, 1962)  confirms that the Victorian Railways purchased two Marion Steam Shovels between 1907 and 1914. 

(4) The Australasian, August 7, 1909, see here.  

(5) The Herald, July 15, 1913, see here.

(6) The Herald, July 15, 1913, see here. 

(7) The Argus, January 12, 1916, see here; The Argus, October 17, 1914, see here. 

(8) The Argus, April 14, 1915, see here. 

(9) The Herald, July 15, 1913, see here.

(10) The Age, July 25, 1912, see here. 

(11) The Age, December 13, 1912, see here. 

(12) The Age, October 31, 1912, see here.