The Western Port Times GRANTVILLE & DISTRICTS
ISSN 2209-3508 (Online) ISSN 2209-7163 (Print)
________________________________________________________________ Volume 1 Number 7
FREE
November
Welcome to edition 7 of The Geoff Guilfoyle’s Grantville Hotel History, Pages 5-6 Western Port Times. This magazine has been introduced as a rebirth of the original Western Port Times, which was published in Grantville from 1898 until 1910. Produced by The Waterline News, for the U3A Local History Group, based in Grantville. The Western Port Times is a creative exercise to showcase Grantville’s history, via the group’s website. www.grantvillehistory.com.au
The first in a series of the hotels of our area.
The first instalment in an extended history of The Grantville Cemetery, Written for us by Jane Hendtlass. Pages 7-12
Inside this month’s edition: A special feature on the South Eastern Historical Association, Pages 3-5
Who is George Murdoch Buchan? Find out on pages 13-14 The Bass Valley U3A Local History group has a couple of vacancies for people interested in the rich history of our area. The group meets once a month in Grantville on a Monday night. If you are interested in joining the group please go to the website and use the contact form to register your interest. You will need to become a member of U3A which also allows you to enjoy a wide range of other activities Roger Clark - Editor
Check out the website and subscribe FREE - www.grantvillehistory.com.au
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Links to other sites Group member, Grantville local, Clive Budd, Who is now also the webmaster for the new Bass Valley Historical Society website: www.bassvalleyhistoricalsociety.com.au has started a list of links you might be interested in, to other historical Associations. If you know of any we should add to the list, please do not hesitate to let us know: Email: leader@grantvillehistory.com.au Historical Group links South Eastern Historical Association seha.org.au Koo-Wee-Rup Swamp Historical Society kooweerupswamphistory.blogspot.com.au/ Lang Lang and District Historical Society langlang.net/historical.html Leongatha and district Historical society leongathahistory.org.au Wonthagi Historical Society wonthaggihistoricalsociety.org.au/ Western Port Historical Society Inc. hwphs.org.au/ National Library of Australia Trove trove.nla.gov.au/ State Library of Victoria slv.vic.gov.au/ Grantville History grantvillehistory.com.au Inverloch Historical Society cv.vic.gov.au/organisations/inverloch-historical-society/
The Bass Valley U3A Local History Group are still looking for photos and information on places of significance to our local history. If you have anything you would like to share with us, we have the facilities to scan or photograph your items so they do not have to leave your possession. If you have something you would like to share: Email - leader@grantvillehistory.com.au THE WESTERN PORT TIMES Editor & publisher Roger Clark For the Bass Valley U3A Local History Group PO Box 184 Grantville 3984 Phone 0410 952 932 (Leave message if no answer) Email: leader@grantvillehistory.com.au SUBSCRIBE FREE Have the Western Port Times emailed direct to your inbox each month. Send your name and email address to: leader@grantvillehistory.com.au
The Western Port Times November 2018
The South Eastern Historical Association
South Eastern Historical Association seha.org.au
Page 3 Chelsea and District Historical Society P.O Box 377, CHELSEA, 3196. Telephone: 03 9772 0145 or Secretary Leonie 03 9772 2875. The Old Court House Museum, operated by the Chelsea and District Historical Society is closed for a complete renovation and refurbishment until the end on 2018 or early 2019. The extensive works are being carried out by the City of Kingston with some heritage input from Heritage Victoria. If you need to contact the Society during this time, ring either of the phone numbers listed above.
City of Greater Dandenong The South Eastern Historical Association (SEHA) Rhonda Diffey Collections Archivist was established in 1965 and covers the south east P.O Box 200 Dandenong 3175 suburbs of Melbourne, the Mornington Peninsula, the rdiffe@cgd.vic.gov.au Bass Valley, Koo-Wee-Rup Swamp, Wonthaggi and Phillip Island. Cranbourne Shire Historical Society Or, the municipalities of the City of Kingston, City of 13 Mickle Street, TOORADIN, 3980. Telephone: Greater Dandenong, City of Casey, City of Frankston, 03 5998 3643 Mornington Peninsula Shire, Cardinia Shire and Bass The Society manages the Fishermans Cottage Coast Shire. Museum on the foreshore at Tooradin. It is open Delegates from each group meet quarterly at various Sundays 12 noon to 4.00pm. The Society was locations. established in 1968. The Association and its member groups provide access to a wealth of historical knowledge, important to all of us, for not just where we live now but where we came from, went to school, or where relatives came from. Contact details for all SEHA member groups are as follows: Bass Valley Historical Society Contact Secretary: Libby Skidmore eskidmore@dcsi.net.au Website: www.bassvalleyhistoricalsociety.com.au Berwick-Pakenham Historical Society P.O Box 442 Pakenham 3810. Secretary – Audrey 03 5943 2271 The Society operates a Museum in the Old Shire Offices in Pakenham. Enter off the service lane off James Street. It is open 1.30pm to 4.00pm on Sundays. The Society was established in 1962
Dandenong and District Historical Society Telephone: 03 9794 8947 Email: dandhist@internode.on.net P.O Box 8029, DANDENONG, 3175. Website: www.ddhs.com.au The Society was established in 1963. Dingley Village Historical Society Dingley Village Neighbourhood Centre, 31 Marcus Road, DINGLEY VILLAGE, 3172. admin@dingleyvillagehistoricalsociety.org.au
The history of Dingley Village is now available in a book by Anne Schaeche, produced on behalf of the Dingley Village & District Historical Society
Dromana and District Historical Society P.O Box 30, DROMANA, 3936. Email: dromanahs@gmail.com Website: http://home.vicnet.net.au/dromana/ The Society operates a Museum at the Old Shire Casey Cardinia Libraries Heather Arnold, Local History Librarian, Locked Bag Offices, 359A Point Nepean Road, Dromana 3936. It is open from 2.00pm to 4.00pm on the First and 2400, Cranbourne, 3977. Third Sunday of the month. heather.arnold@cclc.vic.gov.au The Society was established in 1987. Telephone: 03 5990 0150 ‌./4
The Western Port Times November 2018
Frankston Historical Society Ballam Park Homestead 280 Cranbourne Road, FRANKSTON 3199. President: Glenda Viner theviners@bigpond.com.au or telephone: 03 9789 3116 Website: http://www.frankstonhs.org.au/ The Society manages Ballam Park Homestead – see the website for more details. The Society was established in 1960.
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Mordialloc and District Historical Society P.O Box 544, MENTONE, 3194. The Society operates the Laura and Charles Ferguson Museum, Old Bakery Lane in Mentone. It is open Sundays from 2.00pm to 4.00pm.
Friends of Cheltenham & Regional Cemeteries PO Box 2958 CHELTENHAM 3192 info@focrc.org Website: http://www.focrc.org/
Mornington and District Historical Society P.O Box 71, MORNINGTON, 3931 Website: http://morningtondistricthistory.org.au/ The Society operates the Old Post Office Museum, corner Main Street & The Esplanade, Mornington. It is open Sundays and Public Holidays 1.30 p.m. to 4.30 p.m and Wednesdays during school holidays 11.00 a.m. – 3.00 p.m.
Hastings Western Port Historical Society hwphs@outlook.com Telephone: 0490 132 011 Website: www.hwphs.org.au Visit the website for details of their Museum located at corner of Marine Parade and Skinner Streets, Hastings. Open Sundays 2.0pm to 4.00pm and Wednesdays 10.00am to 12 noon. The Society was established in 1973.
Narre Warren and District Family History Group Research Room at Cranbourne Library, 65 BerwickCranbourne Road, Cranbourne is open to the public Tuesdays and Saturdays 11.00am to 3.00pm. The Group was established in 1989. P.O Box 149, NARRE WARREN, 3805. Website: http://nwfhg.org.au/ Email: president@nwfhg.org.au
HMAS Cerberus Museum Curator – Toni Munday. Toni.MUNDAY@defence.gov.au Postal address: D Block, Phillip Road, HMAS Cerberus 3920. Telephone: 5931 5687 or 0412 242 824
Nepean Historical Society P.O Box 139, SORRENTO, 3943 Email: admin@nhs.asn.au Website: www.nepeanhistoricalsociety.asn. au The Museum in the Mechanics’ Institute 827 Melbourne Road, Sorrento is open 1.30 pm to 4.30 pm Saturday, Sunday, some Public and School Holidays.
Koo-Wee-Rup Swamp Historical Society Secretary: 2 John Street, KOO-WEE-RUP, 3981 Telephone: 03 5997 1357 President: Heather Arnold 0407 521 637 Email: kooweerupswamphistsoc@gmail.com
The Museum is located at the corner of Rossiter Road and Henry Street, Koo Wee Rup. However, due to renovation works the Museum is likely to be closed to the public until January 2019 – contact Heather if you have any queries. The Society was established in 1974. Lang Lang and District Historical Society P.O Box 8, LANG LANG 3984 Email: lldhs.sec@gmail.com Website: http://www.langlang.net/historical.html The Society operate the Lang Lang Historical Display Centre, Whitstable Street, Lang Lang in the old Infant Welfare Centre. It is open Sunday afternoons. The Society was established in 1998.
Phillip Island and District Historical Society P.O Box 816, COWES, 3922 Email: history@waterfront.net.au Website: http://www.pidhs.org.au/ Visit the website for details of their Museum at the Phillip Island Heritage Centre, 89 Thompson Avenue, Cowes. The Society was established in 1967.
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Rye Historical Society P.O Box 65 RYE, 3941 ryehistoricalsociety@gmail.com Website: http://ryehistoricalsociety.weebly.com/ Visit the website for details of their Museum in the Old Schoolhouse, at the Rye Primary School, open Sundays 2.00pm to 4.00pm.
The Grantville Hotel History
Somerville-Tyabb and District Heritage Society P.O Box 363, SOMERVILLE, 3912. Website: http://home.vicnet.net.au/~stdhs/ Visit the website for details of their Display Room at the Somerville Mechanics’ Institute. The Society was established in 1996.
The first in a series, researched and written by Bass Valley U3A Local History Group member, Geoff Guilfoyle on the hotels in our area. CA 95 in the Parish of Corinella / 1517-1529 Bass Highway [this is the site of the first hotel – opposite from approximately today’s medical centre – with the later hotel approximately opposite the present hardware store at about 1555-1565]. Originally the site of John Dickin’s general store (originally built by George Scott) and slowly converted to a hotel and by 1876 was operating as a hotel. Dickins died on 30 January 1883 and his wife, Elizabeth, took over as licensee in April of that year (purchasing the holding outright in April 1886). In December 1884, she surrendered the license to Michael Moore, who held it until an unknown date in 1887. [Joseph White has it as December 1887 but can’t be correct – see below]. Sometime in mid-to-late 1887, Elizabeth Dickins sold the hotel to William Joseph Smith having on 5 May 1886 married Samuel Sleight, an undertaker, and planning to leave the district. While Smith was the new owner of the hotel, it is not certain who the licensee was at this time, though by 23 October 1887 it was Henry Brooke. (On 20 December, at the Griffiths’ Point Licensing Court, Brooke was fined £2 for letting a drunken person enter his hotel on 23 October). Alice Coghlan took over the licence from Annie Coghlan [almost certainly a relative] on 13 December 1889. She seems to have kept the licence until Smith, the owner, sold the property to (unknown given name) Kingin in 1892. [Interestingly, a Margaret Coghlan was issued a temporary licence for the races at nearby Queensferry on 12 December 1888. Either this is a clerical error and the application was by Alice Coghlan, or it indicates that a Coghlan relative was the licensee of the Victoria Hotel, also known as the Old Victoria House, at Queensferry at that time]. Kingin sold the building (date unspecified) to Alice Thomson who demolished the hotel and built a new one further along the road towards Wonthaggi. [It is not clear whether the old hotel continued trade during the construction of the new building]. Alice Thomson owned the new Grantville Hotel while Alice Coghlan resumed or took anew the hotel license. ….6
Wonthaggi and District Historical Society P.O Box 18, WONTHAGGI 3995. Telephone: 03 5672 2009 http://www.wonthaggihistoricalsociety.org.au/ The Museum at the old Railway Station is open Saturdays from 10.00am to 2.00pm. Old Wonthaggi Station Home of the Wonthaggi Historical Society
Whalebone Hotel
Wonthaggi Hospital
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The Grantville Hotel History continued
In March 1925, Dr. Robert Hodgson Cole, Melbourne coroner, now retired; purchased the hotel from Lang. [Some reports have Lang leaving the district but a W. B. Lang is listed in a June 1935 report in The Argus as being on a local committee seeking government assistance in draining the Bass and Woolamai flats. If he did leave, he returned at some stage]. Lilian Grace Cole (nee Bryan) took over as hotel licensee from Edith Lang. It is almost certainly not a coincidence that the owner and licensee shared the same surname but their exact relationship is unclear, though it is likely Lillian is Dr. Cole’s daughter-in-law. [Joseph White erroneously has the hotel burning down shortly after this and the Victorian Heritage Database, using him as its source, follows this line.] In November 1929 Spauls(?) Hotels Pty. Ltd. (Daniel J. Parks Nominee) took over the license. [This is almost certainly local man Daniel J. Parks aka Noon-Parks, d. 1942]. James Leslie Wilson became the hotel license holder in March 1930. In August 1931, Dr Cole submitted plans for a new building with a hot and cold water service, electric light and a sceptic tank system. The work would cost £3,000 and take six months to complete – but would only proceed if the financial situation improved. This was 1931 and the first full year of what came to be known as the Great Depression. In May 1933 the lease, licence and furniture of the hotel was put up for sale though Dr. Cole continued to own the property. Hazel Klau became the last to hold the hotel license, obtaining it in July 1933. The previous licensee, James Wilson, became the barman there. The 50 year old main building burnt down around 3am on either the 25th or 26th January 1934, leaving the outbuildings untouched. Accounts differ on whether there were any guests present, The Herald (25 January 1934 edition) saying no in its brief account, and The Age (26 January 1934 edition) saying yes, one, unnamed, and giving considerable details of the fire and the guest’s escape. The hotel was never rebuilt. It was, however, insured. The Hotel’s licence was suspended on 23 November 1934. In 1935 the net annual value of the property had dropped from 82 pounds to 7 pounds. As of November 2018, no building currently occupies the site of either iteration of the hotel. William Barnes Lang died at Bass in 1939, aged 74. Dr. Cole died in a Geelong private hospital on 29 December 1939, aged 81.
[A photograph of the new hotel, most likely from the 1885 -1886, depicts a large weatherboard building, with a veranda running along the front and side. The name “A. Coghlan” is above the Grantville Hotel sign]. William Baker Lang purchased the hotel in 1897 from Alice Thomson. [It is unclear whether Lang ran the hotel himself as hotel licensee or whether Alice Coghlan continued to do so. This also applies to the Mornington Hotel at Cranbourne, which Lang purchased in mid-1901.] In October 1895, Lang founded the Grantville Racing Club (with himself as secretary) and had a race course built behind the hotel with the track fenced in on both sides. The first race was set for 30 December 1895 and ran as scheduled. [Joseph White erroneously has it 28 December 1896]. In October 1899, Lang proposed adding a six-roomed weatherboard villa adjacent to the hotel. It is not recorded if this extension was built but it is likely that it was. In its 21 February 1901 edition, the Great Southern Advocate has Lang selling the hotel to John Marsh and leaving the district. However, he either changed his mind (unlikely) or the paper misunderstood Lang’s intentions (almost certainly the case). Whatever the truth, it was the licence that changed hands with Lang keeping the hotel. In 1902 John Marsh was charged and found guilty of running an illegal coach service between Lang Lang and Grantville. It isn’t clear whether Lang was involved. In 1907, the then hotel licensee, Agnes (name unclear but likely Harrison) surrendered it to Lang who was now both owner of the hotel and who also held the hotel licence. James Young took over as hotel licensee in October 1914 followed by Edith Lang (wife of W. B. Lang) in November 1915. At the Licensing Court in December 1916, Edith Lang applied for and received a reduction in assessment from an annual £80 to £50. W. B. Lang gave evidence of the falling off of business at Grantville, and handed in a list of takings. Businesses had been closed up and the police station moved away. There was no business doing except on the sale day, one day a month. [Additionally, there was no longer a Grantville and Jeetho Agriculture Show or a monthly horse racing meeting and the Nyora-Wonthaggi branch Railway had reduced shipping in Western Port to insignificance].
Sources: Hotel Licence register 1907-1934 Joseph White, 100 years of History Victorian Heritage Database Report H8021-0039: Former Grantville Hotel Great Southern Advocate South Bourke and Mornington Journal The Age, The Argus The Dandenong Journal and The Herald.
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The Grantville Cemetery Early History - Part 1
By Jane Hendtlass
Current view of the site of early graves in Grantville Cemetery
Grantville Cemetery is the public interment site on Crown land above the north bank of the waterway known as the Deep Creek on the eastern side of the Bass Highway 2.7 km north of Grantville in Victoria, Australia. The Deep Creek was part of the shared boundaries between the Hurdy Gurdy and Westaway pastoral leases and the Parishes of Corinella and Cranbourne (i) so that the place names Deep Creek, Corinella and Bass were also used to describe all the land in Western Port between the Deep Creek and the Bass River and Grantville Cemetery was sometimes called Deep Creek Cemetery until at least 1883. (ii) Grantville Cemetery provides a focus for our long-established families’ grief and memories. It is also the place where our bereaved transient residents have left their children in our care. Grantville Cemetery still serves a wide area of east Gippsland and has become a valuable reservoir of information about the history of the Bass Valley and beyond. It is now the oldest community-based Government organisation still operating in Grantville. The Grantville Cemetery Trust is appointed by Governor-in-Council to manage the Grantville Cemetery and, as the most recently appointed trustee, I have been updating the Grantville Cemetery Interment List and exploring the cemetery’s history. This article is a more wide-ranging and updated version of the first of a series published in the Waterline News in which I will share some of the stories I have
gathered along the way. I hope it will attract more members of the local community to also volunteer as trustees of this multi-faceted and constantly evolving operation. Since 1853, Victorian law has required that all deaths are certified by a medical practitioner and reported by a next of kin or their delegate, all burials are witnessed and all records are maintained in perpetuity by the Registrar of Births Deaths & Marriages. (iii)Although land transport to the Bass River was difficult and often impossible until at least 1870, ceremonies relating to Corinella births, deaths and marriages were performed by Cranbourne religious or government officials and registered at Cranbourne. From 1855 to 1865, the Cranbourne Presbyterian minister, Alexander Duff (1815-1898), performed both government and religious roles when he was also appointed Deputy Registrar of Births Deaths & Marriages. Alexander Duff had a reputation for riding his horse, Dobbin, as far south as the Bass Alexander Duff River to provide religious services to settlers in the southern part of his bailiwick and to record the events for the Registrar of Births Deaths & Marriages. (iv)
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Grantville Cemetery History continued On 1 May 1865, the post master and agent for the newspapers at Bass River, (v) Walter Keen (1839-1894), was appointed to the position of Deputy Registrar for Births Deaths and Marriages in Corinella (vi) but he was ‘replaced’ on 26 June 1869 (vii) and the role reverted to Alexander Duff in Cranbourne. For example, on 27 April 1870, Alexander Duff rode to Corinella to marry William Beck and Ellen Maria King. He performed the ceremony in his role as a minister of religion but he registered the marriage in Cranbourne. (viii) Similarly, Isabella Georgina Stewart’s birth was recorded as taking place in Deep Creek, Corinella on 11 January 1871 but her birth was registered by Alexander Duff in Cranbourne on 5 May 1871.(ix) However, unlike baptisms and weddings, funerals cannot be planned in advance and there were no church buildings between the Deep Creek and the Bass River in 1872 so that religious or civil celebrants did not usually travel from Cranbourne to perform, witness or record burials south of Lang Lang. Therefore local, pre-1872 deaths and burial sites can be expected to be, at best, under-reported and/or misrepresented. (x) As well as records kept by the Registrar of Births Deaths & Marriages, cemeteries also keep an interment register for administrative purposes and, although it is not compulsory, Grantville Cemetery makes these records publicly available. An informal burial ground on a five-acre block on the beach front near the Town of Corinella (xi) had been operating since before 1866 (xii) and at least three people were buried there between 1867 and 1872. (xiii) We also know that a new-born baby, Hugh Murphy, died in Bass in the County of Mornington on 14 October 1871. His father witnessed his burial in Bass on 15 October 1871 and Alexander Duff registered his death at Cranbourne on 18 October 1871 (xiv) but there is no record that Hugh Murphy was buried in Corinella so it is possible that he was buried in an informal burial site somewhere else in Bass.
On 6 June 1872, David Barclay Kennedy (1847-1890) was appointed the new Deputy Registrar of Births Deaths & Marriages for Bass. He was an immigrant from Londonderry in Northern Ireland who worked as a miner, a publican and a local councillor in Woods Point near Beechworth before a fire in 1866 destroyed his hotel and many other buildings in Woods Point in 1866. In 1869, he moved to run the new post office and store at Bass and farm near the beach in Queensferry. (xv) David Barclay Kennedy is buried in the Grantville Cemetery. David Kennedy’s first task as Deputy Registrar was to record the death of George Edwards (1870-1872) on 2 July 1872. (xvi) His death certificate also records that he died from accidental drowning at Deep Creek in Westernport on 29 March 1872. George Edwards was also the first burial recorded in the Grantville Cemetery Interment Register. On 31 March 1872, George Edwards was buried in an unmarked grave in the sandy ground on a hill north of the Deep Creek (xvii) and, in the absence of any clergyman, doctor or magistrate nearer than Cranbourne, two local residents, John Hade (1832-1892) and Alexander Stewart (1832-1888), were witnesses. (xix) George Edwards’ father probably worked on John Hade’s property on the northern side of the track we now know as Glen Alvie Road east of Grantville. (xx) However, David Barclay Kennedy was not a Minister of Religion or a civil celebrant and, as Deputy Registrar for Births Deaths & Marriages, he was not required to witness burials so, despite on-going use of the burial ground near the Town of Corinella, an informal alliance of local men continued to dig the graves and witness the burials of at least another 22 local residents in the informal burial site north of the Deep Creek as required by the Registrar of Births
The Western Port Times November 2018 Grantville Cemetery History continued George Edwards probably died on John Hade’s property east of Grantville (xxi) and the other 22 people interred in this informal burial site before 1878 also lived south of the Deep Creek in the Parish of Corinella.(xxii) The question then is: why did John Hade and Alexander Stewart choose to overlook the long-standing Corinella burial ground and bury George Edwards in an otherwise unrecorded burial site north of the Deep Creek in 1872?
The answer to this question probably lies in the shared boundaries and history of the Hurdy Gurdy and Westaway runs. (xxiii) The 16,000-acre Hurdy Gurdy pastoral lease and the 7680-acre Westaway pastoral lease had been owned and managed together since 1850 (xxiv) when Samuel Henry Cohen (1821-1899) bought them cheaply from the wellrespected settler, James Scott (18291896), in 1867. (xxv) Samuel Cohen was the only bidder in a mortgagee’s auction. (xxvi)
Samuel Cohen also held 27 acres in two Crown leases near the township of Corinella. Against this background, the Board of Lands & Works let the contract to build Samuel Henry Cohen JP the first bridge over the Deep Creek in 1868; (xxxiii) or that ‘John Stewart’, who was probably Alexander Stewart’s brother, John Stewart (1832-1905), won the contract to build the bridge in 1869; or that the Commission of Crown Lands & Surveys assigned a Ballarat surveyor and inspector of Weights & Measures, Edmund Colbert (1811-1885), to choose and survey a town site on the Westaway run in 1870; (xxxv) or that the Town of Grantville was named after James Macpherson Grant and gazetted on 20 September 1872; or that Edmund Colbert mistakenly labelled Hurdy Gurdy Creek as the northern boundary of the Town of Grantville; or that this mistake was perpetuated in advertisements for sale of Crown land and not corrected until 1900.
Accordingly families living in Corinella parish could use the bridge to access the informal Samuel Cohen was a land agent and burial auctioneer who had been declared ground on bankrupt twice in New South Wales (xxvii), the Hurdy (xviii) before he moved to Victoria in 1858 Gurdy run and became a local Magistrate and Justice north of the of the Peace in 1862. (xxix) From 1863 to Deep Creek 1872, Samuel Cohen and his business in 1872 and partners also managed Crown land sales Samuel Cohen had been compensated for for the Commissioner of Crown Lands & his interest in the Westaway run that was Surveys (xxx) and James Macpherson used to create Grantville, he remained in Grant (1822-1885) M.L.A. was possession of the Hurdy Gurdy run and he intermittently Commissioner of Crown already had at least one political reason to Lands & Surveys and President of the allow burials on his land. Board of Lands & Works.(xxxi) By 1872, …../10
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Cohen’s possession of the Hurdy Gurdy run and the political implications of Samuel Cohen was also lead figure in a Edmund Colbert and Samuel Cohens’ second series of events that would have cemetery-related decisions, the informal influenced John Hade and Alexander burial site north of the Deep Creek became Stewarts’ decision to bury George Edwards a practical option for families living in and in the new informal burial ground north of around Queensferry and Grantville in the Deep Creek. In 1870, the Commission 1872. of Crown Lands & Surveys also directed Edmund Colbert to choose and survey land A third factor that would have influenced for the Corinella Cemetery at the same John Hade and Alexander Stewarts’ time as he was surveying the town site of decision to create a new burial site north of Grantville so the new cemetery was the Deep Creek was that they both knew probably intended to serve both townships. and were somewhat indebted to Samuel Accordingly, Edmund Colbert chose land Cohen: in about 1871, Samuel Cohen sold close to Alexander Stewart’s Queensferry about 70 acres of the Crown lease on his properties and adjacent to a Crown lease Hurdy Gurdy run east of Grantville to advertised in January 1870. On 31 May John Hade (xlviixliv) and, despite 1872, this land was formally reserved from objections, (xlv) Alexander Stewart owned sale for the Corinella Cemetery (xxxix) but his 20-acre property in Queensferry as well the Corinella community had already as the Bass River Saw Mills on a 300-acre complained that it was on a swamp and Crown lease south of the Bass River in five to eight kilometres was too far to travel Woolamai.(xlvi) Therefore, Samuel Cohen from Corinella. In response, Edmund was their neighbour and, as the manager Colbert admitted that he ‘forgot’ to consult of Crown land sales, he was also about the site as he had been directed. (xl) responsible for their land transactions so he was in the position to influence or at Parliament was informed that Corinella least negotiate with John Hade and residents were further distressed when Alexander Stewart to create the new burial Samuel Cohen, as agent for the Crown, site on his Hurdy Gurdy run. transferred the freehold title for the informal Corinella burial ground to a On 20 December 1873, Samuel Cohen Melbourne hotelier, Bernard Reilly (1846- ended his direct relationship with the 1918) in 1871.(xliiixli) (This sale occurred informal burial ground north of the Deep soon after James Macpherson Grant Creek when he sold his remaining interests upheld but was unable to reverse the in the Hurdy Gurdy and Westaway runs to cause of Bernard Reilly’s complaint about a Cranbourne shire councillor, Frederick a Land Office decision relating to his Poole (1826-1894), who already owned a application for a separate Crown lease. 240-acre property at Loch, name “Loch (xlii) Although the reservation for the first Park”. (xlviii) Then, Frederick Poole on-sold formal Corinella Cemetery was withdrawn his two Crown leases to John Clifford and, after due consultation, land for the Barrett (1836-1920) in July 1874. current Corinella Cemetery was reserved In the course of these two transactions, the on 11 May 1874, burials continued at the Government took the opportunity to informal Corinella burial ground on reserve five acres from the Hurdy Gurdy Bernard Reilly’s land until at least 1877. run for the Grantville Cemetery. It was probably a mistake that this new In the meantime, the informal Corinella formal cemetery adjoined but did not burial ground was more than five include any of the seven known prekilometres from Queensferry and up to 10 existing graves. kilometres too far from the new Town of Grantville. However, in the context of the …../11 new bridge across the Deep Creek, Samuel
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Grantville Cemetery History continued
them, these men had the time, commitment, funding and personal, practical, political, organisational, and Therefore, in the absence of a managing body for the management skills required to learn and perform new cemetery, John Barrett allowed the Grantville their role. The second article in this series will record community to continue its use of the informal burial George Monks’ life story and his influence on the site on his land until 1879 when the Government development of the Grantville Cemetery. reserved the extra land required to incorporate the graves that were already established. References:
After six years of informal management, the Chairman of the Shire of Phillip Island & Woolamai, Solomon West (1836-1910), chaired a public meeting on 19 January 1878 in the Grantville Hotel to nominate trustees for the Grantville Cemetery and, on 18 April 1878, the Governor-in-Council appointed the first trustees: John Dickins (18431883), John Monk (1829-1880), George Francis Monks (1837-1910), Alfred William Selman (18331902) and Alexander Stewart. (lii) At their first meeting on 22 June 1878, the Grantville Cemetery trustees appointed George Monks as their chairman and John Dickins as secretary. (liii) In the absence of a separate public meeting, these men were also appointed trustees for the new Corinella Cemetery (liv) but, after a public meeting in Corinella on 18 March 1878, George Child Crump (1844-1882), Henry Harmer (1823-1898), Alfred William Selman, George Chinn (1834-1916), Henry Herman Bergmeier (1849-1926) and Patrick Quinlivin (1818-1911) were recommended as trustees for the Corinella Cemetery and four of the previous appointments were revoked on 18 April 1878. (lv) Alfred Selman remained trustee of both cemeteries until he left the district at the end of 1879. (lvi) The first five Grantville Cemetery trustees represented long-term and transitory Grantville or Queensferry residents as well as the main Christian denominations in their community and John Dickins, John Monk and Alexander Stewart are all buried in Grantville Cemetery. However, the new formal cemetery was uncleared, unfenced and unsurveyed and they still had no formal responsibility for the ongoing, pre-existing burial site north of the Deep Creek. The approaching 150-year anniversary of the Grantville Cemetery demonstrates that, between
i The Argus 16 February 1867, p. 6; The Argus 25 August 1869, p. 6; The Argus 25 August 1869, p. 6; Mornington / lithographed at the Department of Lands & Survey Melbourne: Dept. of Lands and Survey, [1888] MAP RM 2755. ii Bass Australia Death Registration No. 312/1883; Bass Australia Death Registration No. 314/1883. iii Registration (Births, Deaths and Marriages) Act 1853. iv Casey Cardinia: Links to our Past 4 September 2015 scanned from Niel Gunson, The Good Country: Cranbourne Shire. v Leader 6 July 1867, p. 30. vi Victorian Government Gazette 9 May 1865, p. 1043. vii Victorian Government Gazette 9 July 1869, p. 999. viii Cranbourne Australia Marriage Registration No. 51/1870. ix Cranbourne Australia Birth Registration No. 509/1871; Bass Australia Death registration No. 4/1873. x Grantville Cemetery Trust Minutes dated 1 June 2009. xi The Argus 23 August 1866, p. 2. xii The Argus 23 August 1866, p. 2. xiiiThe Argus 30 August 1866, p. 3; Victorian Government Gazette 31 May 1872; Victoria Hansard 11 June 1873, p. 289; Victoria Hansard 9 July 1873, p. 669. xiv Cranbourne Australia Birth Registration No. 22625/1871. xv Ovens and Murray Advertiser 2 July 1864, p. 1; Leader 14 January 1865, p. 5; Mount Alexander Mail 9 May 1866, p. 2; South Bourke and Mornington Journal 25 August 1880, p. 2. xvi Victoria Government Gazette14 June 1872, p. 1132; Bass Australia Death Registration No. 1/1872. xvii Bass Australia Death Registration No. 1/1872. xviii Leader 19 September 1874, p. 20. xix Bass Australia Death Registration No. 1/1872. xx The Herald 26 July 1870 p 3; Will of John Hade, Probate Application 58/191 Supreme Court of Victoria Probate Jurisdiction filed 16 June 1895; The Argus 10 September 1945, p. 2; Crown Allotment 173 Division of Survey & Mapping, Parish of Corinella Schedule of Allotments 2453 Sheet 2, p. 2. xxi The Herald 26 July 1870 p 3; Will of John Hade, Probate Application 58/191 Supreme Court of Victoria Probate Jurisdiction filed 16 June 1895; The Argus 10 September 1945, p. 2; Crown Allotment 173 Division of Survey & Mapping, Parish of Corinella Schedule of Allotments 2453 Sheet 2, p. 2. xxii The Argus 16 February 1867, p. 6; The Argus 25 August 1869, p. 6; The Argus 25 August 1869, p. 6; Mornington / lithographed at the Department of Lands & Survey Melbourne: Dept. of Lands and Survey, [1888] MAP RM 2755. xxiii The Argus 25 August 1869, p. 6; Mornington / lithographed at the Department of Lands & Survey Melbourne: Dept. of Lands and Survey, [1888] MAP RM 2755. xxiv The Argus 2 May 1850, p. 4; The Melbourne Daily News 16 May 1850, p. 4; The Argus 6 April 1851, p. 4; Geelong Advertiser 23 April 1859, p. 2; The Argus 25 August 1869, p. 6; The Argus 23 July 1886, p. 3. xxv The Argus 16 February 1867, p. 6; The Argus 25 August 1869, p. 6. xxvi The Age 28 February 1867, p. 4; The Argus 11 May 1867, p. 6; Town of Grantville Parish of Corinella County of Mornington L4469 23 September 1872. ‌./12
The Western Port Times November 2018 Grantville Gemetery History references continued xxvii The Sydney Morning Herald 26 September 1844, p. 4; Empire 23 February 1861, p. 4. xxviii The Argus 16 June 1858, p. 4. xxix The Argus 26 May 1862, p. 7. xxx Australasian Sketcher 12 May 1877, p. 10; Victoria Gazette 6 September 1864, p. 1935. xxxi The Argus 16 September 1863, p. 6; Advocate 30 July 1870, p. 10; . xxxii The Age 28 February 1867, p. 4; The Argus 11 May 1867, p. 6; Town of Grantville Parish of Corinella County of Mornington L4469 23 September 1872. xxxiii Victorian Government Gazette 31 December 1868, p. 2526. xxxiv The Australasian 2 January 1869, p. 21; Leader 9 January 1869, p. 24. xxxv Portland Guardian & Normandy General Advertiser 4 February 1861, p. 2; Portland Guardian & Normandy General Advertiser 6 August 1868, p. 3; Portland Guardian & Normanby General Adviser 16 August 1862, p. 2; Portland Guardian & Normanby General Adviser 24 August 1868, p. 2; Ballarat Courier 30 August 1870, p. 4; Argus 29 October 1874, p. 10; Grantville Victorian Places Monash University & University of Queensland, 2015; Edmund Colbert, Town of Grantville L4469, 1872. xxxvi Victorian Government Gazette 20 September 1872, pp. 727-728. xxxvii Town of Grantville Parish of Corinella County of Mornington L4469 23 September 1872. xxxviii The Argus 20 February 1873, p. 7; The herald 18 February 1876, p. 1; The Argus 16 July 1881, p. 3; Victoria Government Gazette 2 March 1900, p. 833; Victoria Government Gazette 9 March 1900, p. 898. xxxix The Argus 24 January 1870, p. 8; Victorian Government Gazette 31 May 1872. xl The Argus 11 June 1873, p. 6; Victoria Hansard 9 July 1873, p. 669; Town of Grantville Parish of Corinella County of Mornington L4469 23 September 1872. xli The Argus 11 June 1873, p. 6; Victoria Hansard 9 July 1873, p. 669; Town of Grantville Parish of Corinella County of Mornington L4469 23 September 1872. xlii Weekly Times 25 November 1871, p. 5; Sands Melbourne Directory 1872, p. 593; Victoria Hansard 11 June 1873, p. 289; Victoria Hansard 9 July 1873, p. 669. xliii Victoria Hansard 11 June 1873, p. 289; Victoria Hansard 9 July 1873, p. 669; Corinella Cemetery Interment Records 1 April 2017; Victoria Government Gazette 17 January 1879, p. 162. xliv The Herald 26 July 1870 p 3; Will of John Hade, Probate Application 58/191 Supreme Court of Victoria Probate Jurisdiction filed 16 June 1895; The Argus 10 September 1945, p. 2; Crown Allotment 173 Division of Survey & Mapping, Parish of Corinella Schedule of Allotments 2453 Sheet 2, p. 2. xlv The Age 25 November 1875, p. 3. xlvi Cranbourne Australia Birth Registration No. 509/1871; Will of Alexander Stewart, Probate Application 36/980 Supreme Court of Victoria Probate Jurisdiction filed 20 July 1888; The Argus 26 November 1875, p. 6; The Argus 29 January 1887, p. 12; Will of Alexander Stewart, Probate Application 36/980 Supreme Court of Victoria Probate Jurisdiction filed 20 July 1888; Crown Allotment 162 Division of Survey & Mapping, Parish of Corinella Schedule of Allotments 2453 Sheet 1, p. 1. xlvii Australasian Sketcher 12 May 1877, p. 10; Victoria Gazette 6 September 1864, p. 1935. xlviii Casey Cardinia - links to our past p. 3.20.
Page 12 xlix The Age 28 November 1870, p. 3; The Argus 17 December 1873, p. 3; The Argus 19 February 1874, p. 7; The Argus 31 July 1874, p. 4. l Victorian Government Gazette 15 May 1874, p. 910. li Victorian Government Gazette 25 September 1891; The Argus 6 November 1879, p. 7. lii South Bourke and Mornington Journal 23 January 1878, p. 2; Victorian Government Gazette 18 April 1878, p. 856. liii Minutes of meeting of Grantville Cemetery Trust dated 22 June 1878. liv Victorian Government Gazette 15 February 1878, p. 350. lv Victorian Government Gazette 18 April 1878, p. 856. lvi Warragul Guardian & Buln Buln & Narracan Shire Advocate 22 January 1880, p. 3. ___________________________________________________
The Dunbabin family
The Dunbabin family settled near St. Helier in the 1890s. The senior Dunbabins, John and Amelia, produced ten children, in itself not a remarkable feat, large families being common. What is unusual is that all ten children, in an era of poor hygiene, rampant disease and insufficient medical knowledge, survived infancy. Two of the children, however, died before their time: Sydney Dunbabin in a shooting accident and, most notoriously, Elizabeth who was murdered near Woodleigh in 1915. The main suspect, Peter Allan, committed suicide before he could be arrested. Seven members of the family (the two senior Dunbabins and five children, including Elizabeth) are buried in rather neglected graves at the Grantville Cemetery.
The Western Port Times November 2018
George Murdoch Buchan
By Lee Chase
George was born at Blackflat, now Glen Waverly, Victoria on 29 May 1902. The son of Frederick James BUCHAN & Margaret MURDOCH. MILITARY SERVICE Service No: VX13532 Aged 36 years, and married to Lillian (Badger) in 1925.
Page 13 South Australia. Harold grew up and attended school in semi-rural Montmorency. At 14 he was apprenticed to a Flemington-based trainer, Richard Bradfield, who proved to be an outstanding mentor. Bradfield often sent him to race in South Australia, where he did well, winning the Adelaide Cup on Stralia in 1925. When he finished his apprenticeship, Bradfield advised him to move to South Australia.
On 17 May 1928 at St Peters Church, Adelaide, Badger married Frances Augustus Newton, with the forms of the Churches of Christ. The couple returned to Victoria and lived near Mentone racecourse; they were to shift to Caulfield in 1938. As number-two jockey for the trainer Lou Robertson, Living at Woolamai in South Gippsland he enlisted Badger had few opportunities for major wins so in 1936 he turned freelance. That year he reluctantly in the Militia on 26 January 1939. At that time, he accepted the mount on Northwind which duly won was the station master at Kilcunda. the Caulfield Cup at 66/1. His success with Ajax He had previously served with the CMF at Dandenong, Victoria. He was promoted to Corporal made Badger a household name. He rode the champion horse to 30 of his 36 top-class victories on 13 November 1939 and then transferred to the between 1937 and 1940. Even Ajax’s loss, at 40/1 on, AIF on 29 April 1940, at Caulfield. George was at Rosehill, Sydney, in 1939 perversely increased the posted overseas. He visited relatives in Scotland in September 1940. James Andrew Buchan-Smith can fame of horse and jockey. recall meeting him. (Notes of Emma Buchan confirm this). He served until 5 November 1943 when he was Clarence Badger had been critically injured in a race crash at Geelong on 13 April 1938. Harold rushed discharged. At the time he belonged to the 2/2 from Sydney to Melbourne then, following his Australian Railway Company. His brother Ted brother’s death on the 14th, returned by air next day confirmed that George was station master at Kilcunda, in Gippsland, Victoria. George died at age to keep his riding engagements at Randwick. On 20 April he rode three winners, only to be suspended 66 years and his ashes are interned at Springvale. for a month for careless riding. Over the five seasons Lillian Buchan nee Badger – George’s wife was born from 1938-39 to 1942-43 he was Victoria’s leading jockey. in Northcote, Victoria in 1904 and she died in January 21, 1992. She was the first child of Ernest A car accident in 1943 nearly killed Badger and kept William Badger and Esther Kemp and the eldest him from the saddle for about five months. He sister of famous jockey Harold Lindsey Badger vowed to secure another premiership and achieved (below). George and Lillian had 5 children. Keith, this goal in 1947-48, helped by first-placings on Lawrence, Ronald, Valda and Rhonda. Columnist in a number of races, including the Caulfield Cup. A fall from that horse affected his Harold Lindsay Badger vision and he retired in November 1948. Next year (1907-1981), youngest brother of Lillian was born on he visited England for medical advice but the condition was inoperable. Over his career he had 10 October 1907 at Northcote, Melbourne, third won nearly a thousand races; his victories in more of eight children and second than one hundred feature events included the Newmarket Handicap (three times) and the son of Australian-born Doncaster and Epsom handicaps (twice). parents Ernest William Badger, boot clicker, and his wife Esther Kemp, née Moss. In a sport tarnished with dubious dealings, Badger maintained a rare reputation for honesty. Not quite 5 Two of Harold’s brothers, ft (153 cm) tall, he had been rejected for army service Clarence and Eric, became in World War II despite his strength and tenacity: jockeys. His greatthe press called him a `pocket Hercules’. grandfather, David Badger (1827-1890), had been a …./14 pioneering Baptist minister in
The Western Port Times November 2018 George Murdoch Buchan continued
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Books
He rode at 7 st. 10 lb. (49 kg) with recourse to the steam baths, but never weighed more than 8 st. (51 kg). A private man who regarded racehorse-riding as a job, he disdained glamour and avoided publicity, so his achievements have been undervalued. He was happily inconspicuous in retirement, briefly leasing a hotel at Flemington, and farming at Romsey and Sun-bury before settling in Melbourne at Mount Waverley. He died on 13 December 1981 at Cheltenham and was cremated. His wife survived him, as did their son, Harold, a distinguished musician.
Written by Jan Harper for the Kernot Hall and Reserve Committee in 2003 the book is still relevant, perhaps even more so given the recent surge in interest in local history.
Select Bibliography M. Cavanough, The Caulfield Cup (1976) D. Badger, David Badger (1985) A. Lemon, The History of Australian Thoroughbred Racing, vol 2 (1990) Argus (Melbourne), 14 Apr 1938, p 1, 16 Apr 1938, p 22 Turf Monthly, Jan 1971, p 6, July 1980, p 18 Age (Melbourne), 16 Dec 1981, p 28 Sun News-Pictorial (Melbourne), 16 Dec 1981, p 88
Kernot, Woodleigh and Almurta came into their own during the railway era, from 1910 to 1978. Settled from 1986 onwards, life changed as milk from the dairy farms and stock raised on properties were linked with markets through the silver thread of the new railway line. Communities expanded as railway personnel, and the infrastructure they attracted, boosted the settlements. While this history reflects that of Gippsland as a whole, it is unique to the area in drawing our personal lives and juxtaposing them with larger social and economic trends. Copies are available from The Western Port Times. $30.00 plus postage, or free local delivery. Email: leader@grantvillehistory.com.au
The Western Port Times November 2018
Traces Magazine The launch of Traces Magazine earlier this year has created great interest from people interested in local history, wherever they live. Edition 4 is now on sale and features some great stories, including one on photographic storage and restoration
Page 15 San Remo Newsagency Newsxpress Wonthaggi Newsagency Fountain Gate Newsagency Beach St Newsagency Bayside News & Tatts Strezelecki News & Tatts Wantirna South Studfield Traralgon News & Lotto Pakenham Newsxpress Grantville Newsagency
San Remo Inverloch Wonthaggi Narre Warren Frankston East Frankston Mirboo North Studfield Traralgon Pakenham Grantville
If you require any additional information, contact the publisher : www.tracesmagazine.com.au #1
We have received a number of inquiries regarding where to buy the magazine and have obtained the following information from the publishers. The list covers our target area, and subscribers, plus areas they might be likely to be passing through Traces Magazine Stockists in our areas Lonsdale News Leongatha Newsagency Yarram Newsagency Stows Newsagency Mornington Newsagency Hampton Park Newsagent Berwick Newsagency Ringwood East Newsagency Emerald Village News Warragul News Tooradin Newsagency
Dandenong Leongatha Yarram Bairnsdale Mornington Hampton Park Berwick Ringwood East Emerald Warragul Tooradin
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The Western Port Times November 2018 If you have old photos you need restored, give Trish a call.
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