The property known as Ravenhurst, then Gladys Park and then Tulliallan, Cranbourne

For many years, the Melway Street Directory showed a property called Tulliallan on Berwick-Clyde Road, just south of Pound Road / Grices Road. This is a history of the Tulliallan property, which has had many prominent or socially connected owners. It has also had some name changes,  initially called Ravenhurst, later called Gladys Park and finally Tulliallan.  This is a companion piece to  another post on a Cranbourne property, Mayune / Mayfield, which you can read here.

The Tulliallan property on page 131 of  Edition 25, Melway Street Directory, 1998.

The section of Pound Road which runs west from Berwick-Clyde Road 

has now been renamed Glasscocks Road. 

(Melway Publishing  P/L, 1997)

The property was in Cranbourne, in fact Grices Road was the border of the Shire of Cranbourne and Shire of Berwick, although most of the newspaper articles I have found on the property say it is located in Berwick or near Berwick.  The area is now called Cranbourne North. The property consisted of  Lots 28 and 45 (and later also Lot 29) in the Parish of Cranbourne - south of Pound Road / Grices Road with a portion either side of Berwick-Clyde Road. The section of Pound Road which runs west from Berwick-Clyde Road has now been renamed Glasscocks Road. 

                                                             

Detail of the Parish Plan of Cranbourne. 

Click on image to enlarge.

The Ravenhurst / Tulliallan property was Lots 28 and 45, with  the later addition of Lot 29, bordered to the north by Pound Road / Grices Road and bi-sected by Berwick-Clyde Road.

Cranbourne, County of Mornington. State Library of Victoria http://handle.slv.vic.gov.au/10381/91639

Ravenhurst was part of the Garem Gam Run of 3,200 acres (1300 hectares) taken up by James Bathe and T.J Perry in 1840 (1). The Garem Gam run bordered the Mayune property taken up in 1840 by the Ruffy Brothers -  Thomas (1800 - 1882) William James (1802 - 1884) Frederick (1804 - 1872) Henry (1808 - 1847) and Arthur Wiggett (1817 - 1893) (2).

Dr Niel Gunson explains the further development of these properties - 
The realignments of Mayune and Garem Gam were also complicated. Dr Bathe's Garem Gam appears to have been subdivided in 1845 and the eastern station was known as Ravenhurst. In the same year, the lease for the reduced Mayune was transferred to Fred Ruffy.  Ravenhurst was held by John Crewe until his death in 1850 shortly after acquiring the Ruffy station. From 1849, Crewe had also leased  the original Garem Gam run, in conjunction with Sarah O'Shea and a non-resident partner named Brown.  In October 1850, Ravenhurst was transferred to Benjamin Rossiter and Maurice Feehan who leased the whole of Garem Gam with Mrs O'Shea from 1851, thus restoring the original pattern. The lease for Mayune was transferred to Alexander Cameron in March 1851 by John Crewe's widow, Eliza (3).  I have written about Mayune, here.

Benjamin Rossiter's death notice

The Argus, January 30, 1858 https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/7145810

Benjamin Rossiter (1786 - 1858) and his wife Zillah Baynton (1789 - 1871) had arrived in the Western Port area in 1842, having come out from Somersetshire in 1841. After Benjamin died in January 1858, his two sons took over the property. In the 1863 Cranbourne Shire Rate books (the first year we have available) the brothers are listed as owning the Ravenhurst property,  Lots 28 and 45 of 396 acres; and two other parcels of land of 232 acres and 323 acres. In 1873, Charles Rossiter and his wife Ellen (nee O'Shea) moved to Yallock to Hawkesdale, and you can read about this here. As a matter of interest, the aforementioned Eliza Crewe was the niece of Zillah Rossiter and I have also written about her, in the Hawkesdale story, here and about John Crewe in my Mayune story, here. 

Thomas Rossiter sells Ravenshurst. 

The Australasian, November 22, 1873, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article138633145

In December 1873, Thomas Rossiter put Ravenshurst up for auction. It was described as that beautiful property, near Berwick,  containing 396 acres of rich black soil, permanently watered with springs (4). It may not have been sold straight away as  the Rate Books have Thomas Rossiter owning Lots 28 and 45 until 1875, when the land was sold to William Palmer.  In 1882, Palmer sold Lots 28 and 45 and they were purchased by Abraham Stratford Strettle, known as Stratford. (5).  By 1885, Strettle also owned Lot 29, which adjoins Lot 28 to the south. It was Stratford Strettle who renamed the property Gladys Park. Strettle was an Auctioneer and it was his firm that handled the sale of Palmer's land in 1882, so it appears he purchased it for himself.

William  Palmer sells Ravenhurst.

The Age, July 26, 1882 https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/198571466

The Strettles were a social family and there is this report of a Christmas function at Gladys Park in 1883, where the invitations were on a most extensive scale. After the lunch a sports programme was held which included running races, pole vault, long jump and novelty races such as sack races.

Christmas at Gladys Park

South Bourke & Mornington Journal, January 2, 1884 https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/70042417

A clearing sale was held at Gladys Park on December 2, 1886 (6) due to Stratford Strettle deciding to lease out the property. This may have been prompted by the death of Stratford’s brother, William, who accidentally shot himself dead at the house on July 15, 1885.William was described as a gentleman of independent means (7) , who had behaved normally at dinner that evening and whilst socialising with guests at the house. After they retired to bed, a single gun-shot was heard and -

when found Mr. Strettle was in a comatose state, and his case was manifestly hopeless. He, however, lingered on for 17 hours, and died at half-past 10 o'clock on Wednesday night. A report of the Inquest noted that the witnesses all concurred in the opinion that the act was not a suicidal one, and conjectured that he had staggered against the wall where the revolver was hung, and in trying to replace it on the nail accidentally discharged it. The jury found that the deceased died from a gunshot wound in the head, which was accidentally inflicted by the deceased himself with a revolver. (8). 

After the 1886 clearing sale the Cranbourne Shire Rate Books list a number of short term tenants or farm managers (I am unsure of their role) of the Gladys Park property. They are as follows: 1887-1891 - Edward Martin; 1892 - Wilson; 1893 - Stratford  Strettle; 1894-1896 - George Blythe; 1897 - Beevor Hall; 1898-1900 - Percy Carr; 1901-1903 - John Martin and then, as we will see below, the property was purchased by Mrs Gibb in 1904.

In January 1892 The Australasian published an article by their writer, who used the pen-name Bruni, about a visit to the Strettle properties – Gladys Park and his orchard at Sweet Hills, his Lysterfield property -
Leaving the Gippsland train at Berwick, one of the prettiest villages in all Australia, a drive of about three miles brought me to Gladys-park, the property of Mr. S. Strettle. The site of this house is a most delightful one, the aspect being towards the east. Close by are the gently-swelling hills around Berwick, dotted with numerous steadings, the monotony of the native forest being relieved with many plantations of foreign trees. Beyond these are the darkly wooded ranges, whose rugged outlines contrasted strongly with the park-like appearance of the fertile hills around Berwick. Gladys-park was very much out of order, so I merely took a run through the paddocks before starting for Mr. Strettle's newly planted and extensive orchard further in among the hills. Some years ago Mr. Strettle, finding from analysis of the soil of Gladys-park that there was a deficiency of lime, gave the whole property, consisting of about 1,200 acres, a good top-dressing with lime. The result was a considerable improvement in the pastures, which fatten both sheep and cattle well in summer. A marked peculiarity in this property is the large supply of water that is easily obtained at a short distance from the surface. Close to the house, which is situated on the top of a fair rise, a well has been sunk, from which an inexhaustible supply of water is obtained at about 18ft. from the surface. Water is raised from this well by a windmill pump, and distributed over the steading, the garden, and the adjoining paddocks. (9).

In February 1898, Gladys Park was impacted by the extensive fires in the Cranbourne area and The Argus reported - both from the direction of Narre Warren and Berwick, Cranbourne is threatened with fires, and Mr Beaver [sic] Hall, of Glady's-park, has already lost a valuable extent of glass and fencing. (10). An interesting fact about Percy Carr, who was at Gladys Park after Beevor Hall, was that his father Charles Warburton Carr, was the source of the name of the town of Warburton. Mr Carr was a Police Magistrate and a Warden of the Gold Fields; gold had been found in the Upper Yarra area in February 1860 at Yankee Jim's Creek and in 1863, after a major lead had been discovered it was named Warburton. (11) Whilst living at Gladys Park, Percy's sister Cecil Garnett Carr was married on January 18, 1899 to John Mickle Lyall at St Paul's Church in Clyde. John Mickle (1869-1925) was the youngest child of William and Annabella Lyall, of Harewood at Tooradin. On a sadder note, Geraldine, Percy and Cecil's mother Geraldine, died at Gladys Park in June 1899.  (12) 

Death of Mrs Carr at Gladys Park

The Australasian, July 1, 1899 https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/138616861

When Stratford Strettle died in December 1919, at the age of 74, The Herald described him as the oldest stock and station agent in the Commonwealth (13).

Obituary of Stratford Strettle

The Herald, December 22, 1919 http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article242653991

In 1904,as we mentioned before, Mrs James Gibb purchased Gladys Park from Stratford Strettle and at the time the property was reported to be of 860 acres. Mrs Gibb was born Mary Jane Paterson, who firstly married Thomas Esson in Scotland, and they had one son, the poet and playwright, Thomas Louis Buvelot Esson. When she was widowed she moved to Melbourne and married George Brown of Inveresk, Berwick. George Brown died in 1896 and Mary then married James Gibb in 1898. I have written about Mary and her family here.  

Sale of Gladys Park to Mrs Gibb

The Argus, April 15, 1904 https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/10314663

By 1910 the Rate books list James Gibb as the owner. The Hon James Gibb (1843 - 1919) and his brother Robert were the sons of Alexander Gibb of Campbellfield. James was the M.L.A for Mornington from 1880 to 1886 and also owned Melville Park (now Edrington in Berwick, the former home of Lord and Lady Casey) Gibb was also a draught horse breeder and described as one of the most enterprising farmers in the State - a champion ploughman, gentleman and politician.   He was a Shire of Berwick Councillor for 30 years and the Federal Member for Flinders from 1903 to 1906.  His obituary in the South Bourke and Mornington Journal of March 6, 1919 said that he could claim the credit for tree planting which made Berwick one of the most charming townships in southern Victoria.  Robert Gibb farmed for his brother, and was also involved with the Mornington Farmers Society and a local Magistrate. He and his wife, Dora, later moved to and he died in 1923. (14). 

Sale of Gladys Park to the Halberts

South Bourke and Mornington Journal, June 6, 1912 http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article66180648

In 1912, Mrs Gibb sold the property to Jessie Halbert. The newspaper report (above) noted that Mr Halbert was the new owner, however Jessie is the listed in the Cranbourne Shire Rate Books as the owner. Her husband, Joseph, also owned 416 acres, part of the St Germain's Estate at Clyde. I believe that Joseph and Jessie are the parents of Jessie Mary Vasey who was the founder of the War Widows Guild of Australia and was instrumental in obtaining an increase in the War Widows pension by linking it to the rate of the basic wage.  It's an interesting connection, if this was the case,  and you can read more about Jessie Vasey in the Australian Dictionary of Biography here.

The Halberts held the property for only two years and in July 1914 (15) it was sold to  Lieutenant George Anderson Mitchell and it  was Mitchell who named the property Tulliallan. The Rate Books list George Mitchell owning the property from 1914 to 1919. George was the son of Captain James Mitchell and Elizabeth (nee Anderson) of Tulliallan, Williamstown and thus when he purchased his farm in 1914 he named it Tulliallan after his family home. 

Captain James Mitchell was a Master Mariner, joined the Port Phillip Sea Pilots, was one of the founders of the Victorian Stevedoring Company and one obituary says that he was on the Committee which chose the design for the Commonwealth flag (16). Captain Mitchell died in 1927. As a matter of interest one of the pall bearers at his funeral was Rene Jules Commans who, from 1894 until the 1933 owned The Pines, 1330 acres on both the north and south side of Heatherton Road in what is now called Endeavour Hills and was then known as Dandenong. He was also involved with the Victorian Stevedoring Company (17). Tulliallan in Williamstown was put on the market after Captain Mitchell's death and was purchased by the Sisters of St Joseph Convent. The house is still standing. 

The sale of Tulliallan, Williamstown, George Mitchell's family home.

Williamstown Chronicle, July 30, 1927 https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/page/6311889 

Lieutenant Mitchell enlisted at the age of 24 on July 15, 1915. He was a 2nd Lieutenant and his next of kin was his wife, Mary Ione Mitchell. He was discharged in October 1916 as he had a ‘Commission in the Imperial Army’ and he later joined the Royal Air Force.  He obviously sold the property on his return after the war, and is listed in the Electoral Roll  as a broker and living in Melbourne. In the 1950s George and Mary were living at Ardleigh in Emerald. George Mitchell died in 1965, aged 75. (18).

Lieutenant Mitchell sold his most charming country home together with 743 acres of land to Frederick Charles Curtis in 1919. The house was described as a very nice homestead, in splendid order, of 12 rooms with large billiard room, large dining room, large reception room and four large bedrooms. Hot and cold water laid on with a splendid service and the homestead is sewered. The outbuildings consist of detached kitchen, 2 pantries, 2 maids rooms, servants quarters, mens rooms......there is  a nice drive of English trees from the main road to the homestead and it is laid out with  a very nice lawn and summer house and has one of the best  gardens to be found in any country home of its size  near Melbourne (19). 

A description of Tulliallan homestead from the 1919 sale advertisement.

The Age, February 15, 1919 http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article155220952

Frederick Curtis was Cranbourne Shire Councillor from 1925 to 1928.  I don’t have much information about him, but his wife, whom he married in 1905, was Florence Maud Crabtree and his occupation in the Electoral Rolls was listed as a grazier. Some of the activities of the family were reported in the social columns of the Melbourne papers including, in 1927 a combined coming of age for their only daughter Gwennyth and a 21st birthday celebration of their eldest son Keith - the headline was a jolly evening at Berwick. Amongst the guests were local names such Greaves, Brunt, Whiteside and Loveridge.  In 1932 it was reported in the Dandenong Journal that Mr Curtis had purchased Oakdene in Langhorne Street, Dandenong. According to the Electoral Rolls, Keith remained at Tulliallan until the property was sold in 1938 (20).

A jolly evening at Tulliallan

Table Talk March 31 1927 http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article146470818

In 1938, Faris Addison Palfreyman purchased Tulliallan; he was a English Leicester and Romney Marsh sheep breeder. When the property was sold by Palfreyman in November 1946, the purchase price included the entire stock of stud sheep and Aberdeen Angus cattle valued at £8000. Palfreyman then moved to Queensland and amongst other things collected Rolls Royce motor cars. (21). 

In May 1926, Faris Palfreyman was the best man at the wedding of Beatrice Fischer to Arthur Long - Beatrice was the granddaughter of Jules Commans (22) who as we found out before, was a colleague and pall bearer at the funeral of Captain James Mitchell, whose son George was a previous owner of Tulliallan. You can read all about this fashionable wedding at St Johns Church in Toorak in the Table Talk newspaper here. Is this a coincidence that Faris later became an owner of the Tulliallan property or was he already familiar with Tulliallan when he purchased the property as it appears he moved in the same social circles as the Mitchells?  Faris Palfreyman  died in 1983 at the age of 80.

Completely unrelated, but sort of interesting, is the fact that Beatrice's brother, Julius Ralph Fischer, was the father of the late Tim Fischer, the former leader of the National Party, and deputy Prime Minister and the former Australian Ambassador to the Holy See (23). 

In 1946, James McKenzie Elder purchased Tulliallan. He had married Nancy Russell Barrett in 1929 and was the son of prominent business man, Sir James Alexander Elder and his wife Margaret Blyth Nicoll - you can read about Sir James in the Australian Dictionary of Biography, here. The family also had their social activities reported in the social columns of the Melbourne papers - in March 1953 there was a report of a dance at Tulliallan where guests sat on hay bales at open fires and danced in the sylvan setting at an outdoor party.  Susan Elder, James’ daughter, hosted the party. Amongst the guests were some visitors from the Western District and some members of the socially prominent Chirnside family. Susan’s marriage at the Berwick Presbyterian Church,  to Geoffrey Haggard, son of the late Commander Geoffrey Haggard, R.N was the subject of a report and photograph in both The Age and The Argus in November 1953. The wedding reception was held at Tulliallan. In December 1954 a dinner dance was held at Tulliallan for 150 guests in honour of Ian Elder, Susan’s brother (24). 

Party at Tulliallan

The Argus March 2 1953 http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article23230891

In 1960, the Elders put the property up for sale - 600 acres in 4 lots including the homestead block of 190 acres. The  homestead was described as a spacious weatherboard homestead, set in delightful surroundings, with all modern conveniences. (25) This original house was later demolished, it was still there in the early 1990s, but that's all I can say (26).  As James and Nancy Elder were still at Tulliallan in 1972, according to the Electoral rolls, the property either did not sell or they changed their mind.  Their daughter Susan operated a Cheviot sheep stud on the property.  The Age reported in March 1972 that she had founded her stud flock  in 1955 on Cheviots from Tasmania and New Zealand (27). James died in 1978 aged 76 and Nancy in 1974, aged 70. 

The Cheviot flock belonging to Susan Haggard (nee Curtis) at Tulliallan in 1972.

Image: Cheviots are on way back, The Age March 3, 1972, p. 18.

We will leave this history of the Ravenhurst / Gladys Park  /Tulliallan property with the Elders, but as you can see it has had many interesting and at times socially prominent and well connected owners. The property is now under a sea of houses. A 1860s shearer's cottage still remains as well as the avenue of elm trees or the nice drive of English trees from the main road to the homestead. (28)  It would appear that the shearer's cottage was built during the occupancy of the Rossiter family. The City of Casey heritage citation notes this about the elms -  A key landscape element is the driveway, which is lined with an avenue of 51 elms down each side; these are mature from the gates through to the 28th tree, and semi-mature after that indicating two stages of planting. The size of the more mature specimens suggests an original planting date of around 1900. About 10 of the trees are recent in-fill sapling plantings. (29)  I believe that as James Gibb is credited with the tree planting in Berwick, that he actually planted the elms after he took over the property in 1904. 

The Tulliallan Elms in November 2023

Footnotes

(1)  Billis, R.V & Kenyon, A.S. Pastoral Pioneers of Port Philip (Stockland Press, 1974)
(2) The sons of  William Joseph Ruffy and Louisa Ann Kingham were married at St Martin in the Fields in Westminster in London on May 15 1799. Ruffy was a joint editor of the Farmers Journal and Agricultural Advertizer, an English publication, from 1808-1832. The Farmers Journal was one of the first Agricultural journals in England. They family migrated to Tasmania in the 1820s. They had nine children of which five sons lived at Western Port - Thomas (1800 - 1882) William James (1802 - 1884) Frederick (1804 - 1872) Henry (1808 - 1847) and Arthur Wiggett (1817 - 1893). William Joseph Ruffy died in Launceston in 1836 aged 61 and Louisa Ruffy died in Campbell Town in 1859 aged 79.
(3) Gunson, Niel The Good Country: Cranbourne Shire (F. W. Cheshire, 1968), p. 36.
(4) The Australasian, November 22, 1873, see here. 
(5) Sale advertisement for William Palmer in The Australasian, November 12, 1881, see here.
(6) The Age, December 4, 1886, see here.
(7) The Argus, July 18, 1885, see here.
(8) The Weekly Times, July 25, 1885, see here.

(9) The Australasian,  January 9 1892, see here.  

(10) The Argus, Friday, February 4, 1898, see here.

(11) Carroll, Brian The Upper Yarra: an illustrated history (Shire of Upper Yarra, 1988), pp.11-12.

(12) The Argus, February 4, 1899, see here;  The Australasian, July 1, 1899, see here. 
(13) The Herald, December 22, 1919, see here; another obituary South Bourke & Mornington Journal, December 25, 1919, see here.
(14) South Bourke & Mornington Journal, March 6, 1919, see here; Weekly Times, March 8, 1919, see here;  Robert Gibb - Electoral Rolls; his death notice The Argus, September 28, 1923, see here.

(15) The Cranbourne Shire Rate books list the date as July 16, 1914. 

(16) The Herald, May 14, 1927, see here; Williamstown Chronicle, May 21, 1927, see here.

(17) Jules Commans - Shire of Berwick Rate Books; Obituary - The Age, April 26, 1937, see here; Sale of The Pines, Dandenong Journal, May 4, 1933, see here. 

(18) World War One Attestation file, National Archives of Australia, see here;  Electoral Rolls. 
(19) The Age, February 15, 1919, see here.
(20) Shire Councillor information from The Good Country, see citation footnote 3; Table Talk March 31 1927, see here; Dandenong Journal, August 4, 1932, see here;

(21) Shire of Cranbourne Rate Books; Dandenong Journal, November 27, 1946, see here ; Electoral Rolls. Faris Palfreyman sold 15 Rolls Royces in 1969 at an auction, and still had ten others - report in The Bulletin, 29 March 29, 1969, page 5 see here.

(22) Rene Jules Comman's death notice list his children and grandchildren - The Age, April 27, 1937, see here.

(23) Tim Fischer - https://www.parliament.nsw.gov.au/members/Pages/member-details.aspx?pk=2023 

(24) The Herald, February 26, 1929, see here; The Argus, November 30, 1953, see here; The Age, November 30, 1953, see here;  The Age, December 13, 1954, see here. 

(25) The Age, February 25, 1960, p. 35 - advertisement below

(26) Ted Bould, remembers delivering fuel to the property in the 1970s when the Whites owned it and the original house was still there then. Ted said it also had an airstrip. Frank Rovers said it was there in the early 1990s, when he attended a workshop on soil improvements there.

(27) Cheviots are on way back, The Age March 3, 1972, p. 18.

(28) The Age, February 15, 1919, see here. 

(29) Trees and Shearer's Cottage are Heritage listed with the City of Casey, see here

This is an updated and expanded version of a post that I wrote and researched for my work blog, Casey Cardinia Links to Our Past. 

The Municipality of Richmond and their quest for a Cemetery

The Argus had the following report in their August 19, 1853 issue about the establishment of  a Cemetery in Richmond to be located in the Survey Paddock - 
A meeting of gentlemen resident at Richmond was held on Wednesday evening last, at St. Stephens's School-rooms, Richmond-hill, to receive the report of the deputation appointed to wait upon His Excellency the Lieutenant-Governor, with respect to the establishment of a cemetery at Richmond. D. S. Campbell, Esq., occupied the chair. The chairman stated that he, accompanied by Messrs. Green, Trenchard, Gill, Le Strange, Burnley, M.L.C., and Dr. Wilson, the gentlemen who formed the deputation, last Monday week waited on the Lieutenant-Governor, by whom they were most graciously received. At the interview, the great inconvenience and expense which the people of Richmond were at, in conveying the dead to the new cemetery, were explained to His Excellency, and that the present and growing population of Richmond required that a separate cemetery for their use should be established in the neighborhood; that the evil was felt most strongly by the poor, particularly by those who had but recently arrived in the colony, who were unable to meet the enormous expense of removing their deceased friends to so great a distance. The deputations pointed out to His Excellency the site they had selected for the proposed burial ground, which is in the Survey Paddock at Richmond. His Excellency approved of the site, but at the same time stated, that the present Act of Council which applied to the case, contained a provision, that no cemetery should be formed within a mile of any township, which would preclude the space selected from being appropriated to the object they had in view. He was, however, satisfied that the existing law was not applicable to the present state of the colony, and required to be amended; and added it was his intention, in the ensuing session of Council, to have the subject brought under consideration, with a view to make such alterations as might remedy the inconveniences complained of. He further stated that he would make a minute, that he approved of the site selected by the parties whom the Delegation represented, for the guidance of his successor, should he leave the colony before the matter was brought to a conclusion (1). 

The Survey Paddock was the area reserved  for depasturing the Surveyor-General's Department horses and oxen. The first Survey Officers were appointed in the Port Phillip District in 1836. The Paddock was bounded on three sides by the Yarra River and in 1862 was officially renamed Richmond Park. The Burnley Horticultural College was established in the Park in 1891 (2). 

Detail Parish of Jika Jika plan, showing the Survey Paddock

Surveyor General's Office, 1856. State Library of Victoria http://handle.slv.vic.gov.au/10381/170391

There was some debate in the community as to whether the Survey Paddock was a suitable site for the Cemetery, apart for the fact that it was less than a  mile from the township, and this debate played-out in a series of letters written to the Editor of The Argus in November 1855. A man using the pseudonym Veritas wrote - 
The spot of ten acres in the Survey paddock would have been a very fine site, and of a good depth of soil on the greater portion of it: it had been tried by the surveyor of the district and found to contain six feet of earth without meeting any obstruction, but he could not ascertain what greater depth it contained owing to the instrument being too short. This place would have allowed the friends of the dead of have carried the bodies to their last homes without the expense of a conveyance, from its nearness - which is a serious object to the poor at this period (3). 

In response, C.R.P.A, wrote
It will be evident to you also, Mr. Editor, when I tell you that this fine site is a portion of Richmond Flat, over the greater part of which the well-known bluestone protrudes above the surface, and where it does not show itself thus palpably, it undoubtedly forms the subsoil, and extends to an unknown depth. How strikingly, therefore, does your correspondent "Veritas" show his sympathy for the poorer classes when he recommends that they should be compelled to pay the enormous cost of chiselling and blasting the graves in which to deposit their dead! (4)

Also in response to Veritas, Eneas MacKenzie wrote -
I copy the common-sense account of the long-longed for site from a letter received by the Richmond Committee from the Colonial Secretary's office, dated 11th May, 1851. It is thus: - "I have received the report of the Surveyor-General upon your application, from which it appears that that officer considers the site alluded to by the committee is wholly unsuited for a cemetery, the surface of the Survey Paddock consisting exclusively either of sandy alluvium within reach of flood, beds of trap fragments densely packed, or honey-combed clay, land very wet and of inconsiderable depth before the rock is reached."....Dr. Wilson stated to the meeting that, from the reports given in of the site by the surveyors it would seem to consist of clay, which in many parts was not six feet in depth; that it was a well-known fact in the colony that the effect of the sun in summer on clayey soils was to cause deep fissures, and, therefore, as such rents could be seen in the paddock, of considerable depth, he left it to the good sense of the meeting if such a site was appropriate for a cemetery. The miasma would be released and the living must then suffer by the poisonous effluvia from the dead. (5). 

The Survey Paddock by Louis Buvelot, 1871

National Gallery of Victoria https://www.ngv.vic.gov.au/explore/collection/work/4472/

Towards the end of 1855, the same time that this debate was raging, another site was offered to the people of Richmond for their burial ground and this was land adjacent to the new Boroondara Cemetery in Kew -

A public meeting was held on Tuesday evening last, in St. Stephen's school-room, Richmond to receive the report of the committee appointed to inquire as to the most suitable site that could be obtained for a cemetery for the inhabitants of the municipality of Richmond. Eneas Mackenzie, Esq., was voted to the chair. After a few introductory remarks he called upon the secretary to read the report. It stated that on the Bulleen-road Government had a reserve of about 58 acres. Of this reserve the people of Kew had applied for and had had granted to them about 32 acres, for the purpose of a cemetery for Boroondara, and that the Surveyor-General had no doubt that an application from the people of Richmond for the remaining 26 acres would be successful. The committee stated that they now left the matter in the hands of the inhabitants of Richmond (6).

There was also apparently a move at one stage, October 1856 to make an effort to obtain a site which will be included within the East Collingwood Municipality-in the Studley Park (7).  However it appears that nothing came of this and it wasn't until four years later, in 1860, that the Government formally gazetted sixteen acres of  land adjacent to the Boroondara Cemetery for a public cemetery in connection with the Richmond municipal district (8). I have written about the Boroondara Cemetery, here.

Land next to Boroondara Cemetery set aside for the Richmond Cemetery

Victoria Government Gazette, July 24, 1860 http://gazette.slv.vic.gov.au/images/1860/V/general/91.pdf

That should have been a satisfactory solution to Richmond's need for a Cemetery, albeit it was further away than the Survey Paddock,  however by 1862 they still had not established a Cemetery on the site. There were two reasons - The Council decided that if they accepted the land, the cost of fencing it would be more than they would feel themselves justified in incurring, but they were of opinion that the Government would act wisely in reserving the land for cemetery purposes, as other cemeteries were rapidly filling up, and they might at a future time have to repurchase the land at a considerably advanced price (9).  Secondly, and more importantly,  Richmond Council felt the question to be a difficult one, as while they desired to retain the land, they were prevented by the Municipal Act from expending money upon it, as it was outside their boundaries (10). Essentially, the Government granted the Richmond Municipality the land but they were prevented from spending any money on it. 

In the meanwhile, the people of Kew believed that Richmond should have their rights to the land cancelled and various suggestions were put forward for the use of the land - it could be used for recreative purposes, for a Botanical Garden or annexed to the Boroondara Cemetery. It was considered this an urgent matter as the piece of land in question was going to the bad very fast. Wood carters wore constantly taking timber from it, and the site would be a complete waste in a short time (11) and a fine reserve was being destroyed because no one had a proper control over it (12).

In August 1862,  a deputation from Kew met with  Mr. Hodgkinson, the Assistant Commissioner of Lands and Survey and Mr. Ligar, the Surveyor-General where  the best course to adopt, it was suggested, would be to annex the land to the Kew Cemetery, which it adjoins, and to set it apart as a cemetery for the districts of Richmond, Boroondara, Kew, and Hawthorn; and it was further suggested that each of these districts should be represented on the board of trustees vested with the management of the cemetery (13). 

In response it was reported that the existing Cemetery trustees were unwilling to have the proposed additions. They had already incurred a large outlay in mapping and planning out the grounds; and the proposed increase would very much interfere with the arrangement. At present Richmond had nothing to complain of, the cemetery being open to them as well as to the people of Boroondara at the same charges. That in fact both Collingwood and Richmond had already availed themselves of the accommodation offered by the trustees. Mr. Stevenson also remarked that under the present arrangement one trustee for each religious body was appointed; and if the same plan was adopted at Richmond, of appointing one for each denomination, the number would be increased to eighteen, and would, he feared, be too large to work well. Mr. Judd objected to the additional land, on the ground that if the trustees were compelled to fence it, a rank herbage would spring up, and great danger would arise in summer time from fire, &c. At present the ground was kept pretty clear by cattle feeding on it, which could not well be done if fenced in  (14). 

The decision was made in November 1862 when the site formerly set apart for a cemetery at Richmond was temporarily reserved as a site for a Public Garden and for Recreation (15). 

The Richmond Cemetery land reserved for a Public Garden

Victoria Government Gazette, December 23 1862 http://gazette.slv.vic.gov.au/images/1862/V/general/149.pdf

And with that, all hopes that the people of Richmond would have their own Cemetery were forever laid to rest.

Trove list
I have created a list of newspaper articles from Trove on the Richmond Cemetery, access it here.

Footnotes

(1) The Argus, August 19, 1853, see here.

(2) Survey Paddock to people's park: the story of Richmond Park by Lee Andrews - Australian Garden History, v. 20, no. 1, July-September, 2008.

(3) The Argus, November 15, 1855, see here.

(4) The Argus, November 20, 1855, see here.

(5) The Argus, November 23, 1855, see here.

(6) The Argus, December 13, 1855, see here.

(7) The Argus, October 22, 1856, see here.

(8) Victoria Government Gazette, July 24, 1860, see here.   

(9) The Age, July 18, 1862, see here.

(10) The Age, August 1, 1862, see here.

(11) The Argus, July 11, 1862, see here.

(12) The Age, August 1, 1862, see here.

(13) The Argus, August 1, 1862, see here.

(14) South Bourke Standard, September 19, 1862, see here.

(15) Victoria Government Gazette, December 23 1862, see here.

Boroondara Cemetery Postcards

An unusual subject for postcards is that of Cemeteries. I have three postcards of Fawkner Cemetery, sent  by Martha Bamber to her family in Sydney in the 1920s, you can read about them here.  Here are two more from my collection, both from the Boroondara Cemetery, Kew.

The land for the Boroondara Cemetery (also known as the Kew Cemetery) was set aside in late 1855, I can't find an actual gazettal date, and the earliest references I can find are in reports in the newspapers of the need for a Cemetery at Richmond. As there was no suitable land in Richmond, they had to look further afield and the site in Boroondara was mentioned. It was described in this November 1855 letter to the editor as a very fine and suitable place as a cemetery for Hawthorne and Kew, but will in no way benefit Richmond.

Letter to the Editor - the first reference I can find to the Boroondara Cemetery.

The Argus, November 15, 1855. http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article4823438

A month later, the following article in The Argus reported that the people of Kew had been granted 32 acres of a Government Reserve on Bulleen Road (now called High Street) for a Cemetery. The remaining 26 acres could be made available for the people of the Municipality of Richmond (1) for a Cemetery. I have written about the Richmond Cemetery, here.

This article about the desire for a Cemetery for the inhabitants of the municipality of Richmond includes a reference to the Boroondara Cemetery. 

The Argus, December 13, 1855 https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/4825642

The Boroondara Cemetery bounded by High Street (Bulleen Road) and Parkhill Road, in Kew. The Recreation Reserve was the area set aside for the Richmond Cemetery.

Borough of Kew, Parish of Boroondara, County of Bourke. Surveyed and compiled by Holland Loxton, 

 drawn by Edmund Adderley. Published by Arnall and Jackson in 1888. 

State Library of Victoria http://handle.slv.vic.gov.au/10381/117382

The first Trustees for the Boroondara Cemetery were appointed in December 1858. They were Henry Box (2), Thomas Judd (3), John Charles Lloyd (4), Thomas Johnson (5), Jabez Bunting Chambers (6), John Sharp Denbigh (7), Christian Finger (sen.) (8), Thomas Cubitt Balmain (9) and Michael O'Grady (10).

Trustees appointed to the Boroondara Cemetery

Victoria Government Gazette, December 21 1858 http://gazette.slv.vic.gov.au/images/1858/V/general/170.pdf

The Boroondara Cemetery website (11)  notes that the Cemetery was surveyed in 1859 and that the first burial was that of Ellen Quick, who was buried on March 12, 1859. Ellen was only 36 years old when she died on March 9  from Phthisis (Tuberculosis). Ellen had been born in Mangotsfield, Gloucestershire, England  to Thomas and Patience (nee Petherham) Derrick. She married John Quick, a stonemason, in Bristol in 1848, at the age of 25. The couple arrived in Melbourne on the Duke of Northumberland in January 1849. Their four children listed on her death certificate were - Samuel William aged 9; Marianne aged 5; Lucy Ellen aged 3 and Edward John aged one year (12). A very sad situation, though sadly not uncommon in those times, for the family to lose their mother, when she was so young and when the children were so young.  Ellen was buried in the Baptist Section, her funeral bring conducted by the Baptist Minister, Mr Foy (13). The death certificate lists two witnesses to the burial - her brother Samuel Derrick (who was also the Informant) and Uriah Whidycombe, whose name you might expect to find in a Charles Dickens novel. John Quick died August 22, 1899, aged 83 and is buried in the same grave (14).

The Age published this interesting letter in 1936, in response to a query about the ship, the John Bunyan. The letter is from William Bevan about his grand-parents, Thomas and Patience Derrick and their two daughters who arrived in Melbourne in 1852; no doubt to join their other daughter, Ellen Quick.  The letter states that one of the daughters married Uriah Whidycombe, who was a crew member on the John Bunyan. So that explains the connection to Ellen Quick, he was her brother-in-law.

Letter to The Age from Ellen Quick's nephew, William Bevan.

The Age, May 16, 1936 https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/page/19258691

Postcard of the entrance to the Kew Cemetery

As I said, I have two postcards of the Kew Cemetery. This one shows the Caretaker's Lodge and Administrative Office, built in 1860 and designed by Charles Vickers (1820-1883) (15). There were various later additions, designed by Albert Purchas (1825-1909) (16), an Architect and member of the Cemetery Trust, including the clock tower which was erected in 1899.  The Booroondara Cemetery is heritage listed, you can read the Victorian Heritage citation, here.

The erection of a handsome tower, in which will be  a large clock....

The Age, June 14, 1899 https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/202618497

A Temple Tomb, Boroondara

Image has been cropped. Produced by Godfrey B. Roberts, 143 Glenferrie Road, Glenferrie (17)

My other postcard is the Springthorpe Memorial, erected in 1897 by Dr John Springthorpe (1855-1933) (18) for his wife, Annie. The Victorian Heritage database notes that  It was designed by Harold Desbrowe Annear and includes Bertram Mackennal sculptures. It contains twelve columns of deep green granite from Scotland supporting a Harcourt granite superstructure, and a glass dome roof of lead lighting (19).

John William Springthorpe had married Annie Constance Maria Ingles in 1887. She was the daughter of John and Maria (nee Hale) Ingles of Vaucluse, Richmond. They had four children - daughter Dorothy who lived for 22 days in December 1887; daughter, Enid, in January 1889; a son in November 1890 and another baby boy who was born prematurely on January 23, 1897, the same day that Annie died aged 30. His death notice lists his children as Enid Totton, Lance and Guy (20).

The Ballarat Star in July 1898 had this report on the monument and gives all the credit to Bertram Mackennal -

 A Splendid Monument

One of the most sumptuous and artistic pieces of monumental sculpture ever seen in Melbourne will shortly be erected in the cemetery here. It has been designed and is being erected by Mr Bertram Mackennel, a native of this city, at his studio in London. It takes the form of a circular Greek temple, with columns of black and an entablature and plinth of white marble. The dome is composed of rose-tinted glass, through which soft and tender light fails upon the recumbent figure of a beautiful young female, the size of life, carved in the purest Carrara marble, and to which a faint flash of life will be given by the illumination from above. This figure rests on a sarcophagus, and at its head will stand a small statue of Love and at its foot one of Grief. The latter, by the way, is exhibited in the Royal Academy this year. When completed the whole work will have cost £2000, the munificent commission of Dr Springthorpe, of Collins street east. This pathetic and beautiful tribute to the memory of a wife, taken out of this life in the bloom of youth, will be unique of its kind in the Melbourne Cemetery, and will mark a new departure in art as applied to mortuary purposes, Mr Mackennal is also busily at work preparing the model of the statue of the Queen which is to be erected in marble in front of the

Town Hall in Ballarat West (21). 

Two different women - Ellen Quick and Annie Springthorpe - both died young and left young children behind, and both found eternal rest at the Boorondara Cemetery.

Footnotes

(1) Richmond was created a Municipality on April 24, 1855; proclaimed  a Town, September 28, 1872 and a City, February 17, 1882. (Victorian Municipal Directory and Gazetteer, 1940)

(2) Henry Box - Died February 1882, aged 82. Buried in the Church of England section. I believe this is Henry Box as listed in the 1860 Sands, Kenny & Co.'s commercial and general Melbourne directory as a Merchant and a Saddlers' and Coachmakers' Ironmonger of Little Collins Street. 

(3) Thomas Judd - Died May 1915, aged 93. Buried in the Presbyterian Section. A officer of the Customs Department; read his short obituary in The Australasian of June 5, 1915, here.

(4) John Charles Lloyd - Died November 1887, aged 64. Buried in the Presbyterian Section. His death notice has his address as Bella Vista, Alma Road, Caulfield.

(5) Thomas Johnson - Possibly the Thomas Johnson who died May 1907, aged 86 and is buried in the Wesleyan Section. 

(6) Jabez Bunting Chambers - Commission Agent, declared Insolvent  in 1855 (The Argus, November 18, 1854, see here; The Argus, February 15, 1855, see here).  Appeared as a witness in a case at the Kyneton Court in 1883 (see report in Kyneton Observer of May 10, 1883, here).  Died in Lancefield in 1888 aged 71.  I have no information as to his connection to the Kew area.

(7) John Sharp Denbigh - Died February 1875, aged 48. Buried in the Baptist Section. An officer of Mining Department. There was a hearing into Mr Denbigh's death in 1876 where it was alleged that it was caused by tyrannical treatment and overwork by the Secretary of mines, Mr Brough Smyth.  Reports in The Age, February 16, 1876, see here; The Argus, May 2 1876, see here and a brief follow-up article in The Argus of August 16, 1876, see here. There any other articles on Trove about the hearing into Brough Smyth's conduct. 

(8) Christian Finger - Died August 1884, aged 85. Buried in the Lutheran Section. In the 1870s he was the Trustee of land in East Melbourne reserved for a Lutheran Church and School; he was listed as a farmer of Boroondara (The Argus, November 1, 1872, see here)

(9) Thomas Cubitt Balmain, of Thornton Lodge, Kew.  - Died aged 36, 1864.Buried in the Unitarian Section. Chief Clerk in the Public Works Department. Death notice The Argus, January 19, 1864, see here ; information about a compensation claim for his wife in The Argus, May 12, 1866, see here. Information about the sub-division of the Thornton Estate, here.

(10) Michael O'Grady - Died January 1876, aged 51. Buried in the Catholic section. The Hon. Michael O'Grady, M.L.A. Obituary in The Herald of January 8, 1876, see here; Obituary and the report of his funeral in The Advocate of January 8, 1876, see here. Public subscriptions were invited for a memorial to Mr O'Grady and there is an illustration of it in The Advocate of January 5, 1878, here.

(11) Boroondara Cemetery https://kewcemetery.com.au/

(12) Information from Ellen's Death Certificate; England & Wales, Civil Registration Marriage Index, 1837-1915 and Victoria, Australia, Assisted and Unassisted Passenger Lists, 1839-1923 - both from Ancestry.com

(13) Joseph Foy -  the following is from A sketch of Boroondara by James Bonwick, published in 1858 and digitised at the State Library of Victoria (see here)

Mr Joseph Foy, most laudably commenced Sabbath morning and evening service at his house in the then wild bush, south of Cotham Road, in March 1853. No place of worship existed within two miles of it. The form of service was a Prayer meeting, following an address from Mr Foy; who without much literary ability, had a fluency of speech, and and honest desire to do good to his neighbours. A Baptist Chapel was opened in the Cotham Road in September 1854. 

Reverend Foy, died on May 3, 1879 aged 69 and is buried at the Boroondara Cemetery. 

(14) Boroondara Cemetery website;  Ellen's Death certificate and John's death notice.

The Age, August 23 1899 http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article202614711

(15) Boroondara Cemetery website. Charles Vickers (1820-1883) - more information on the Kew Historical Society website   https://kewhistoricalsociety.org.au/khs/the-arts/

(16) Albert Purchas (1825-1909) - more information - Encyclopedia of Australian Science and Innovation website  https://www.eoas.info/biogs/P003876b.htm and short obituary in The Argus, September 30, 1909, here.  

(17) Postcard image - the original postcard  has the image printed at a slight angle, so I straightened it up, but you can see it below. Godfrey Roberts of 143 Glenferrie Road, who published the postcard, established his Photographic Studio in June 1914, read about this here, in the Hawthorn, Kew and Camberwell Citizen of June 5, 1914.

(18) John William Springthorpe - Australian Dictionary of Biography entry   https://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/springthorpe-john-william-8610

(19) Victorian Heritage Database citation https://vhd.heritagecouncil.vic.gov.au/places/617

(20) Various Family notices in the newspapers; Indexes to the Victorian Births, Deaths and Marriage.

Life and death in two notices.

The Age, January 25, 1897 http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article9149644

John Springthorpe's death notice

The Age, April 24, 1933 http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article204882341

(21) Ballarat Star, July 18, 1898, see here.

Land sales in Beaconsfield, Victoria

On November 3, 1879 G. W. Robinson, C.E., Surveyor completed this plan of a subdivision of land owned by Charles Souter of the Gipplsland Hotel, for the new township of Beaconsfield. 

Advertising poster for the land sale at Beaconsfield on May 14, 1881.

The map is signed by G. W. Robinson and dated November 3, 1879.

State Library of Victoria, http://handle.slv.vic.gov.au/10381/165479

The sale of the land at what  was called East Berwick was scheduled to take place on December 6, 1879. The advertisment for the sale is shown below.  It included the Gippsland Hotel and 44 acres, plus 36 allotments of land varying in size from half an acre to 2 acres, near the new railway station; 10 allotments of two to five acres and one block of 35 acres and one of 60 acres. For some reason this sale did not take place and another sale was scheduled for January 10, 1880.

The first advertised sale of Charles Souter's land in East Berwick, as Beaconsfield was known at the time. The sale was scheduled for December 6, 1879.

South Bourke and Mornington Journal November 26, 1879. https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/70012545#

The land was advertised again this time the auction was to be held on January 7, 1880. An almost identical advertisement as the one above, appeared in the papers, including the South Bourke and Mornington  Journal of January 7, 1880, which you can see here and in footnote 1. 

Advertising poster for the land sale in township of Beaconsfield or East Berwick.

The sale was scheduled for December 6, 1879 and this was crossed out and January 10, 1880 written in pencil, see detail below.

State Library of Victoria http://handle.slv.vic.gov.au/10381/160198

Detail of the plan, immediately above.

State Library of Victoria http://handle.slv.vic.gov.au/10381/160198

I am unsure if the January 1880 sale took place and only some blocks were sold, or if the sale did not take place.  However, Mr Robinson's subdivision plan did not go to waste and the land was advertised again to be auctioned on May 14, 1881 and as we saw, his 1879 plan was used in the advertising poster.

Part of the 1881 advertising flyer for the land sale at Beaconsfield on May 14, 1881. The complete flyer is reproduced at the top of this post.

State Library of Victoria, http://handle.slv.vic.gov.au/10381/165479

The May 14, 1881 auction used the original 1879 plan (the plan at the top of this post) which  has 38 small blocks facing Woods Street and the Highway and 23 blocks east of what became Railway Avenue. This does not tally with the 1879 advertisement or the 1881 advertisement (below) which advertised the Hotel on 44 acres; 13 allotments of one half to 2 acres and 22 allotments of three to five acres. I feel that we can conclude that some of the block were sold in January 1880 and the May 1881 was held to sell the remaining allotments. 

Advertisement for the May 14, 1881 auction of land in the new township of Beaconsfield.

The Argus May 3, 1881 http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article5969338

A report of the sale in the South Bourke and Mornington Journal of May 18, 1881,  read it here, said that the auction sale by Mr J. B. Patterson at, Beaconsfield on Saturday was fairly successful, and altogether fifteen township lots in Beaconsfield close to the railway station were disposed of at satisfactory prices. The attendance at the sale was good, but was composed chiefly of local people, who did not seem disposed to buy, the purchasers being principally city people. There is little doubt but that, had a special train been chartered from Melbourne, it would have induced a large number of people to visit the locality, and, very likely, to become owners of some of the blocks offered. The lots varied in size from half-an-acre to one acre, and realised from £23 to £50 per block, or about £46 per acre. A genuine offer of £1750 was made for the Gippsland hotel, with paddocks, &c., adjoining, but was not accepted.

Of interest is the fact that sometime between January 1880 and May 1881 the name of the town changed from East Berwick (I have also seen it referred to as Little Berwick and Lower Beaconsfield) and became Beaconsfield, named for  Benjamin Disraeli, the Earl of Beaconsfield. Disraeli was the British Prime Minister on two occasions in 1868 and from 1874 to 1880. On the subject of names it is also interesting that Souter Street on the subdivision plan is now called Beaconsfield Avenue. Beaconsfield Avenue was proclaimed on July 30, 1888 (2). The unnamed road next to Woods Street is  Railway Avenue. A new Souter Street, which is to the right of Railway Avenue, was created at some later time, I presume in 1921 when the Beaconsfield Station Estate was sold (3). 

Charles Souter, who owned the land that became the new township of Beaconsfield took over the Gippsland Hotel from the Bowman family, who had established the Hotel in 1855.  The earliest date I can find of his ownership of the Hotel is 1869 (4). After he left the hotel he moved to Frankston. During his time there Charles became involved with the  Community - he was elected to the Frankston Council and took an interest in the Mechanics' Institute, the Anglican Church and was also the Worshipful Master at the Frankston Masonic Lodge. The Souters left Frankston in November 1891 and at a farewell function held at the Pier Hotel, he was presented with a handsome illuminated address from the residents (5).  Charles returned to the Beaconsfield region and lived at Norwood in Gembrook where he died on July 9, 1895 at only 65 years of age (6). His wife Sophie (nee Newland) died at Berwick on August 15, 1937 at the age of  96 (7). 

G. W. Washington's signature on the Beacosnfield subdivison plan

State Library of Victoria, http://handle.slv.vic.gov.au/10381/165479

G. W. Washington, C.E., Surveyor, who drew the plan was George Washington Robinson (1843 - 1928) He came to Narre Warren North in 1856 with his mother, Hannah, who had purchased 107 acres. George later named the property, Hillsley. George was a Civil Engineer and Surveyor and was the Shire Engineer and Secretary at the Shire of Berwick from 1876 to 1890 and then the Shire Engineer from 1894 to 1904 (8). He married Eliza Walton in 1867 and they had six children (9). Eliza's parents, Thomas and Eliza Walton, moved to Narre Warren in 1852 and built Holly Green. This property was sold to Sidney Webb in 1880, it was later renamed Brechin and is  now the site of the Fountain Gate Shopping Centre (10). 

Footnotes
(1) Sale advertisement for January 7, 1880 from the South Bourke &  Mornington Journal

https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/70016454

(2) Beaconsfield Avenue was proclaimed July 30, 1888.

State Government Gazette August 3, 1888 page 2472, see here.

(3) Beaconsfield Station Estate sale was held on Saturday, April 30, 1921. The land had frontages to three main roads - Main Gippsland, Beaconsfield Avenue and Woods Street - all made roads. The other streets were Souter Street, Railway Avenue, Horner Street and Goff Street.

Beaconsfield Station Estate advertisement

The Argus April 30, 1921 http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article1752395

(4) The Hotel at Beaconsfield was called the Gippsland Hotel, established by David and Janet Bowman in 1855 on their Panty Gurn Gurn Run, on the Cardinia Creek, which they had acquired in 1853. David died in 1860 and Janet continued the hotel for some years. In 1861-62, Janet Bowman paid to have a 50 mile track cut from her Hotel to the Hughes Track which went to the Jordan Goldfields (around Wood's Point). The track was said to have cost £1500. Some said that Mrs Bowman cut the track so miners would go past her door however she maintained that she did it because the Government had announced that it would compensate people who provided tracks to the Goldfields. After much fighting, in 1878, the Government awarded her £300 (or £500 depending on sources) as compensation. As she wrote to the editor of The Age of November 26, 1877 (see here) you readily understand the expensive means and firm determination were required to accomplish a work the magnitude of which would have deterred most people from even attempting. The benefits at the time from the track were immense and more recently the advantage to selectors has been appreciated by that energetic body of men. Mrs Bowman, has been described as enterprising, courageous and a devout Presbyterian. Janet Bowman died in 1904, aged 93 having out lived six of her eight children.  The Hotel is now called the Central Hotel and the existing building dates from 1928.

Earliest reference I can find to Charles Souter having the licence of the Gippsland Hotel.

The Age July 2, 1869 http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article5833594

(5) The report of Charles Souter's farewell at the Pier Hotel in Frankston in 1891 can be read in the Mornington Standard of November 5, 1891, see here. 
(6) Norwood was listed as Gembrook in Charles' death notice. Charles' Will (at the Public Records Office of Victoria) had Norwood at Upper Beaconsfield. 

Charles' death notice was in The Argus, July 10, 1895. https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/9365777

(7) Sophie Souter's death notice was in The Age, August 16, 1937. 

https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/page/19267406

(8) In the Wake of the Pack Tracks: a history of the Shire of Berwick, now the City of Berwick and the Shire of Pakenham, published by the Berwick Pakenham Historical Society in 1982.
9) The information about G. W. Washington's arrival in the area and his marriage and children comes from Early settlers of the Casey-Cardinia district published by the Narre Warren & District Family History Group in 2010 and Early days of Berwick and its surrounding districts - Beaconsfield, Upper Beaconsfield, Harkaway, Narre Warren and Narre Warren North, complied by Norman Beaumont, James Curran and R.H Hughes (Berwick Pakenham Historical Society).

A version of this blog post, which I wrote and researched, also appears on my work blog - Casey Cardinia Links to Our Past.

Postcards of Upper Beaconsfield

This post shows some postcards of Upper Beaconsfield from my own collection. The photos may have been taken earlier, but two of the postcards are postmarked 1907 and I believe the cards were most likely produced around this time. The first 15 years or so of the twentieth century were a boom time for postcards - they enabled people to send  a short message involving commercial transactions (see here) or for personal reasons (see here) or to extend seasonal greetings (see here) - the sort of transactions that we would make today with a quick phone call, email or text message.  They were also a source of cheap souvenirs for holiday makers to either keep as a momento or to send to family and friends at home. There is an interesting history of postcards on the Australia Post website, see here.

Stoney Creek Road, Beaconsfield

This is Stoney Creek Road, Beaconsfield. Beaconsfield Upper was originally called Beaconsfield, but gained the 'Upper' due to the establishment of the Beaconsfield Railway Station, which opened December 1, 1879. The settlement which developed around the Station was at one time called Lower Beaconsfield, however when a new Post Office was established there in June 1891, the town around the Station was officially known as Beaconsfield and the town in the hills, Upper Beaconsfield (1). The town is officially known as  Beaconsfield Upper. Stoney Creek Road was once known as the Main Gembrook Road (2) and runs in an arc from the Beaconsfield-Emerald Road, where it returns to a few kilometres north. Stoney Creek is a tributary of the Cardinia Creek.

Burke's Road, Beaconsfield

This is labelled Burke's Road, Beaconsfield. I presume this is Bourke's Creek Road which runs from the Healesville-Koo Wee Rup Road at Pakenham Upper and meanders along past the R.J. Chambers  Flora and Fauna Reserve to the Beaconsfield-Emerald Road at Dewhurst, which is north Beaconsfield Upper.  Bourke's Creek is a tributary of the Toomuc Creek.  Bourke's Creek is most likely named for the Bourke family who took up Minton's Run on the Toomuc Creek in 1843 and established the La Trobe Inn, also known as Bourke's Hotel, on the Gippsland Road (now the Princes Highway) around 1850 (3).

Scene, Upper Beaconsfield

This area shown in this postcard is known as Charing Cross, a triangular area at the intersection of Beaconsfield-Emerald Road and St Georges Road and Salisbury Road. The image used in this postcard dates from 1898 (4) and shows the General Store. The term Charing Cross comes from the area in London and according to the Encyclopaedia Britannica the name derives from the Old English cerring (“a bend in the road” or “a turn”) and refers either to the nearby great bend in the River Thames or to a bend in the Roman road that ran west from London (5).

South Bourke and Mornington Journal February 4, 1891

http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article70398657

This is the  first mention I could find in the newspapers of the term Charing Cross was in 1891, when George Craik (6) wrote to the Shire of Berwick on behalf of H. J. Williams (7) to erect a verandah on the shop.

Upper Beaconsfield, Victoria

This postcard shows a bucolic scene at Beaconsfield Upper. 

Footnotes
(1) Wilson, Charles W. Upper Beaconsfield: an early history (The Author & the Upper Beaconsfield Association, 2013), p. 44.
(2) Wilson, op.cit., p. 31.
(3) Thomas Bourke was the son of Michael Bourke (c. 1814 - 1877) and his wife Catherine (also known as Kitty, nee Kelly, 1819-1910). They arrived in Melbourne in 1839 and settled on Minton's Run,  a property of 12, 800 acres on the Toomuc Creek in Pakenham in 1843. Around 1850, they established the La Trobe Inn, more commonly known as Bourke's Hotel. Michael and Catherine had the following children -  James (born 1839), John (1840), Thomas John (1843), Mary Anne (1844), Michael James (1845), Catherine Agnes (1846), Daniel (1848), Mary Lucy (1850), Ellen (1851), Milo Peter (1853), David Joseph (1859), Margaret Frances (1860), Cecelia (1862) and Agnes (1864).  (Source:  Early Settlers of the Casey-Cardinia District, published by the Narre Warren & District Family History Group in 2010)
(4) Wilson, op.cit., p. 107, 107
(5) https://www.britannica.com/place/Charing-Cross
(6) George Craik (1840-1918) You can read about George on Marianne Rocke's excellent and extensive website, Residents of Upper Beaconsfield, https://upperbeaconsfieldhistory.au/ George's entry is here.
(7) H. J. Williams - not sure who this is - Marianne lists a Henry Jabez Williams and a Henry Joseph Williams, but they don't seem to be associated with the store.


A version of this blog post, which I wrote and researched, also appears on my work blog - Casey Cardinia Links to Our Past.