Left: George Brunning, 1830 – 1893. Emigrated to Australia in 1853. Right: The first catalogue, 1855. Bottom right: Fully established at St. Kilda, 1896.
tall, was reported as being “...a gardener much respected throughout the village of Lowestoft for his industry, integrity and other excellent traits.”Perhaps business acumen was one of his “excellent traits” for in his will, drawn up in April 1867, he owned seventeen tenement houses in Lowestoft. As well as gardener he apparently also acted as bailiff and estate manager. Eliza was a widow for the last twenty years of her life and lived alone with the servants in her old-fashioned house; one grandson likened her to Whistler’s painting “Old Lady.” All six sons became gardeners and five of them migrated overseas in early manhood. George, Charles, James and William came to Australia where they fared better than John who went to California and, after becoming prosperous, was shot dead at the age of 37 in mysterious circumstances. The St. Kilda Brunnings George Brunning and his younger brother, Charles, sailed for Australia on the “Ganges”, arriving in Melbourne in 1853. On his arrival George, who had served his apprenticeship as a gardener at Somerleyton Hall, set out the gardens of Hon. Frances E. Beaver and Mr. F.G.Stevens. Then, like many others, the brothers set out on foot for the Bendigo goldfields where they had no luck. Shortly after returning from Bendigo, George Brunning obtained the position of manager, with a share in the profits, of Rule’s Nursery in Church St., Richmond. In 1855 he produced a Victorian Nursery Catalogue After saving enough money, George returned to England to bring his wife, Harriet, and son, also George, to Australia. They arrived in Melbourne on the “Royal Charter” in 1856. George then began a small nursery in Argyle Street, St. Kilda, which expanded to an area adjacent to the Grosvenor Hotel in Brighton Road. Land was later purchased in Inkerman Street, St. Kilda and the nursery expanded to a large paddock known as McEwan’s grounds in Brighton Road. It became the largest and most complete nursery in Australia. Always looking for something new, George Brunning brought thousands of pounds worth of unusual plants from England and the continent. In 1883 the St. Kilda firm became George Brunning and Sons based on 10 acres in Brighton Road where they specialized in ornamental flowers and shrubs, particularly roses and pelargoniums. By 1926, however, the land had become too valuable to use for nurseries; it was sold and the company wound up. Meanwhile, Frederick, one of George’s sons, acquired Smith and Anderson’s seed store in Elizabeth Street. After his death in 1905 the Brunning family retained an interest in the business even after the retail shop was transferred to former employees, Gill & Searle. November 2016
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