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Eltham District Historical Society Inc
Photograph, George W. Bell, Diamond Creek, 1969, 1969
... melbourne Canberra Times (ACT : 1926 - 1995), Thursday 9 January ...Canberra Times (ACT : 1926 - 1995), Thursday 9 January 1969, page 1 A day of century heat, 13 KILLED IN VICTORIAN FIRES ...About thirty houses and a public hall were destroyed by fire in the township of Diamond Creek. The group officer of the Diamond Creek Fire Brigade, Mr Tom Harrington, said tonight that he thought it was a "miracle" that no-one lost their lives in the fires. A relief centre for the homeless was set up by the Diamond Valley Shire Council. Mr Harrington said that the first fire call in the town was received at 10.45 am. "Within 20 minutes there were five more fires and it seemed like the whole town was alight", he said. "It was a chaotic day. All our best plans for fighting the fires became disorganised. "As 60-mile-an-hour winds swept fires through different parts of the town many fire fighters were unable to get from one fire to another. ," Black and white photograph of charred fire remnant Diamond Creek 1969diamond creek, fire, george w bell collection, bushfire, charred, burnt timber -
Eltham District Historical Society Inc
Folder, Sir William Irvine
Sir William Irvine, (1858-1943) Eltham, Politician and Judge. "William Irvine was born at Dromalene, Newry, Down, Ireland and after the death of his father emigrated to Melbourne with his mother in 1879. Here be completed his legal studies and spent some years teaching and in legal practice before entering the Victorian Parliament in 1894. He rose to the position of Leader of the Opposition and in 1902 became Premier. He resigned in 1904 for health reasons but in 1906 entered Federal politics as the member for Flinders. He was knighted in 1913 and in 1918 resigned to take up the position of Chief Justice of Victoria. From 1919 he administered the state as lieutenant-governor several times and was acting governor for nearly three years from 1931. He died in 1943 and following a State funeral was buried at Eltham cemetery. A portrait by Buckmaster won the Archibald Prize in 1933" - Newsletter 163 Folder of information.sir william irvine -
Eltham District Historical Society Inc
Book, Roger Simmons, Eltham in the making / [editor] Roger Simmons. Vol.1, From Roman times until 1939, 1990
Paperback; 128p. : ill,maps,ports,facsim,geneological table ; 23cm.ISBN 0951590707eltham society (london) -
Burrinja Cultural Centre
Aboriginal painting - Paddy Jampin Jaminji, Paddy Jaminji, The Hills of Bedford Station, pre 1995
In around 1924 a band of Gija people crossed fences onto their traditional land near Bedford Downs Station in the East Kimberley 2000 km northeast of Perth and killed nine head of cattle. This act precipitated one of the massacres to become known as the 'killing times'. Paddy Quilty, the station owner of Bedford Downs had his men collect wagon loads of firewood which was distributed around the camp. He then invited everyone to assemble for their rations. The food, laced with strychnine, was handed out. As the Gija people fell down dying in agony, they were shot. The firewood was used to burn the bodies. One boy escaped to the the story. Paddy Jamin Jaminji (c.1922-1997) painted The Hills of Bedford Downs Station as part of a series of painting about the Killing Times. It depicts the story and sites of the massacre. At least twelve killing sites are recorded within a radius of 150 km of Turkey Creek, WA. The painting was possibly discarded due to its damage in one corner and later collected from an old shelter at Warmun on a field trip by collector Neil McLeod in 1995.Large painting on board of symbolic landscape. Brown, yellow, cream and white. Framed.bedford downs station, massacre, killing, gija, paddy quilty, turkey creek, warmun -
Warrnambool and District Historical Society Inc.
Document, Ist Airmail letter 1917, 1917
This letter, the first air mail letter sent to Warrnambool, was written by the Lord Mayor of Melbourne, Sir David Valentine Hennessy and carried by the aviator, Basil Watson on the first flight to Warrnambool January 24th 1917. The letter was delivered to the Mayor of Warrnambool, Cr Webb.There were several other letters delivered at the same time but this is the important official one. Basil Watson was a pioneer aviator who built his own aeroplane which was 18 feet long with a wing span of 26 feet and it had a 7 cylinder 50 H.P. Rotary Gnome engine. Watson flew from Point Cook to Warrnambool in one hour 55 minutes, an Australian cross-country flying record at the time. In Warrnambool Watson amazed the crowd with his dare-devil aerial acrobatics, looping the loop 14 times over the Warrnambool Racecourse. Basil Watson died when he crashed his plane into the sea near Point Cook, just two months after he landed in Warrnambool. This letter is of the utmost significance being the first air mail letter delivered to Warrnambool. It is an important memento of the first aeroplane flight into Warrnambool by the pioneer aviator Basil Watson. This is a cream-coloured sheet of paper folded in two to make four pages. It has handwriting in black ink on two pages. The writing is a little faded. The first page has the logo of the Melbourne Town Hall. The pages are partly torn at the folds. ‘Town Hall, Melbourne, 21/1/17. Lord Mayor’s Room, Dear Mr Mayor, I have much pleasure in sending you greetings by aeroplane piloted by my friend’s son, Mr Basil Watson. I hope when the cruel war is over and victory crowns our efforts, we all in the C’wealth will be able to fly from one state to the other. With best wishes for the New Year, …….. (signature indecipherable), D.V. Hennessy. His Worship the Mayor of Warrnambool.’pioneer aviation in the western district, basil watson, history of warrnambool -
Victoria Police Museum
Police Stations (Apsley)
Apsley is a small town in Victoria, Australia. It is on the Wimmera Highway, in the Shire of West Wimmera, 420 kilometres north-west of Melbourne, and 7 kilometres east of the South Australian border. Apsley Police Station opened on 29th November 1884 and was originally located in Wallace Street. It was staffed by one Foot Constable (motor cycle). The building was described, in 1930, as a four-roomed dwelling with an iron roof, set on a quarter of an acre of land. There was a bathroom, a WC, wash-house and a garage. An office adjoined the house and there was also a lockup. The station moved several times until the mid 1960s when a timber residence was moved onto land adjacent to the Post Office. The building is believed to have been transported from the Stawell area. Apsley is one of a handful of one-man police stations in Victoria and its current location, including residence, is at 19 Splatt Street. Apsley was in the Western District when it opened, then in "L" (Wimmera) District from January 1948 and "M" (Highlands/Wimmera) District from March 1990. 4 black & white photos, 1965 3 colour photos, 1987police stations; apsley police station -
Victoria Police Museum
Photograph (Frederick Deeming)
In March 1892, Melbourne Butcher John Stamford took a prospective tenant to a house he owned at 57 Andrew Street Windsor. He noticed a 'disagreeable smell' coming from the front rooms. Suspecting foul play, Stamford called the police who quickly discovered a decomposing body and partially clad body of a young woman in a shallow grave under the fireplace. 'Her skull had been shattered and her throat cut'. Two detectives, Sergeants Considine and Cawsey, began investigations. The previous tenant, a 'Mr. Druin' who had rented the house had since disappeared was the main suspect. 'Druin' had arrived in Australia from England as 'Albert Williams' in December 1891 with his 24 year old wife Emily Mather. The body was Emily's. The crime scene investigation proved difficult as the suspect - whatever his real name- had cleaned up the scene very carefully. Much later it was discovered that the suspect was in fact Frederick Bayley Deeming, a former sailor born in Birkenhead, Cheshire, in 1854. In 1881, Deeming deserted his ship and lived in Sydney where he married and had a family. Deeply in debt, he later burned his business down to claim its insurance value and fled to South Africa before he could be arrested. He is believed to have committed numerous frauds and murders in Africa. Eventually found in Uruguay, he spent time in prison in England for fraud. After being released he married Emily and returned to Australia. After leaving England, British police began investigating him over the murder of Mrs Marie Deeming and her four children. Now using another alias, 'Baron Swanston', Deeming was arrested in Western Australia before he left the country in the company of a young woman, Kate Rounsefell, whom he planned to marry. It seems Kate would have been his next murder victim. Brought back to Victoria, in May 1892, Deeming went on trail for the murder of Emily Mather. Despite a strong defense conducted by a brilliant young barrister and 3 times Australian Prime Minister Alfred Deakin, the evidence against Deeming was overwhelming and he was found guilty. Deeming was hanged at Melbourne Gaol on 23 May 1892. He was known to be responsible for at least 6 murders and may have committed others. Black and white photograph backed onto black backing board showing a man in a long coat and top hat with his hands in his pockets and a moustachefrederick deeming, emily mather, murders -
Victoria Police Museum
Photograph (Emily Mather)
In March 1892, Melbourne Butcher John Stamford took a prospective tenant to a house he owned at 57 Andrew Street Windsor. He noticed a 'disagreeable smell' coming from the front rooms. Suspecting foul play, Stamford called the police who quickly discovered a decomposing body and partially clad body of a young woman in a shallow grave under the fireplace. 'Her skull had been shattered and her throat cut'. Two detectives, Sergeants Considine and Cawsey, began investigations. The previous tenant, a 'Mr. Druin' who had rented the house had since disappeared was the main suspect. 'Druin' had arrived in Australia from England as 'Albert Williams' in December 1891 with his 24 year old wife Emily Mather. The body was Emily's. The crime scene investigation proved difficult as the suspect - whatever his real name- had cleaned up the scene very carefully. Much later it was discovered that the suspect was in fact Frederick Bayley Deeming, a former sailor born in Birkenhead, Cheshire, in 1854. In 1881, Deeming deserted his ship and lived in Sydney where he married and had a family. Deeply in debt, he later burned his business down to claim its insurance value and fled to South Africa before he could be arrested. He is believed to have committed numerous frauds and murders in Africa. Eventually found in Uruguay, he spent time in prison in England for fraud. After being released he married Emily and returned to Australia. After leaving England, British police began investigating him over the murder of Mrs Marie Deeming and her four children. Now using another alias, 'Baron Swanston', Deeming was arrested in Western Australia before he left the country in the company of a young woman, Kate Rounsefell, whom he planned to marry. It seems Kate would have been his next murder victim. Brought back to Victoria, in May 1892, Deeming went on trail for the murder of Emily Mather. Despite a strong defense conducted by a brilliant young barrister and 3 times Australian Prime Minister Alfred Deakin, the evidence against Deeming was overwhelming and he was found guilty. Deeming was hanged at Melbourne Gaol on 23 May 1892. He was known to be responsible for at least 6 murders and may have committed others. Black and white photograph backed onto black board showing a lady in dark clothing and hat resting with her right elbow on the arm of a lounge. Woman is holding a small sprig of flowers in her left handEmily Lydia Mather. Murdered by Deeming 1892 (in black ink along top of photograph)frederick deeming, emily mather, murders -
Victoria Police Museum
Photograph (Frederick Deeming)
In March 1892, Melbourne Butcher John Stamford took a prospective tenant to a house he owned at 57 Andrew Street Windsor. He noticed a 'disagreeable smell' coming from the front rooms. Suspecting foul play, Stamford called the police who quickly discovered a decomposing body and partially clad body of a young woman in a shallow grave under the fireplace. 'Her skull had been shattered and her throat cut'. Two detectives, Sergeants Considine and Cawsey, began investigations. The previous tenant, a 'Mr. Druin' who had rented the house had since disappeared was the main suspect. 'Druin' had arrived in Australia from England as 'Albert Williams' in December 1891 with his 24 year old wife Emily Mather. The body was Emily's. The crime scene investigation proved difficult as the suspect - whatever his real name- had cleaned up the scene very carefully. Much later it was discovered that the suspect was in fact Frederick Bayley Deeming, a former sailor born in Birkenhead, Cheshire, in 1854. In 1881, Deeming deserted his ship and lived in Sydney where he married and had a family. Deeply in debt, he later burned his business down to claim its insurance value and fled to South Africa before he could be arrested. He is believed to have committed numerous frauds and murders in Africa. Eventually found in Uruguay, he spent time in prison in England for fraud. After being released he married Emily and returned to Australia. After leaving England, British police began investigating him over the murder of Mrs Marie Deeming and her four children. Now using another alias, 'Baron Swanston', Deeming was arrested in Western Australia before he left the country in the company of a young woman, Kate Rounsefell, whom he planned to marry. It seems Kate would have been his next murder victim. Brought back to Victoria, in May 1892, Deeming went on trail for the murder of Emily Mather. Despite a strong defense conducted by a brilliant young barrister and 3 times Australian Prime Minister Alfred Deakin, the evidence against Deeming was overwhelming and he was found guilty. Deeming was hanged at Melbourne Gaol on 23 May 1892. He was known to be responsible for at least 6 murders and may have committed others. Medium sized photograph of Frederick Deeming with a moustache drawn on the image in inkFrederick B. Deeming (on image in black ink)frederick deeming, emily lydia mather, murders -
Victoria Police Museum
Prison record (Henry Holroyd), 19 July 1919
Henry Holroyd was charged many times over many years with counterfeiting and coining and with having in his possession moulds for making coins. Prison record forHenry Holroyd, prisoner registered number 32136, giving details of the prisoner, his crimes and the dates and places of his trials.english speaking prisoner, henry holroyd, counterfeiting -
Warrnambool and District Historical Society Inc.
Programme - Program, musical evening, Dame Nellie Melba's Farewell Tour Warrnambool, 1927
Dame Nellie Melba, born Helen Porter Mitchell (1861-1931), was the first Australian to gain international fame as an opera singer and one of the best-known singers in late Victorian times. She took the name ‘Melba’ from her home town, Melbourne. She sang in Warrnambool on at least two occasions, staying at local homes, including ‘Summer Hill’, belonging to the Murray family and ‘Lyndoch’ as the guest of Florence Lake. In 1927 she sang at the Warrnambool Town Hall with three other assisting artists and this programme records that event. The Warnambool and District Historical Society has an evening bag that was given by Nellie Melba to Miss O’Donnell, a maid at ‘Lyndoch’ at that time. This programme is of considerable significance as it is a memento of the occasion in 1927 when the famous Australian opera singer sang at the Warrnambool Town Hall during her farewell tour. This is a cream-coloured sheet of paper folded into two to make four pages. The front cover has a decorative border and blue printing and a Warrnambool & District Historical Society stamp and the back cover has an advertisement. The middle pages contain blue printing. The folds are torn in parts.Dame Nellie Melba's Farewell Tourdame nellie melba, history of warrnambool, lyndoch, melba farewell tour -
Streatham and District Historical Society
Post Card, Jack Kerr Luna Park
Luna Park in St Kilda has been a popular tourist destination thoughout the times and Jack Kerr and friend visited the theme Park during a visit to Melbourne at some stage. At this stage it appears that a photographer studio was in place at the park. It was common for people to get photos done of their adventures to show friends and relatives and for a photographic memory.Shows the popular destinations during the time. Demonstrates typical dress in the period.Rectangular, Black & white. Jack Kerr & friend sitting on a bench seat both wearing hats, suits and ties.Back: In black ink stamped, Luna Park, St Kilda. Electric Studio M. D. True, Manager. Photos Finished while you wait. Day or Night. Written inpancil the word Kerr. park, jack, photography, st, kilda, luna, kerr -
Eltham District Historical Society Inc
Photograph, Mary Owen, granddaughter of Walter Withers, unveiling the commemorative plaque on Walter Withers Rock at the corner of Bible and Arthur Streets, Eltham, 13 Oct 1990, 13/10/1990
[from EDHS Newsletter No. 75, November 1990:] WALTER WITHERS PLAQUE At long last we have unveiled our plaque in the Walter Withers Reserve. The function was attended by a number of members and friends of the Society and descendants of the Withers family. Following the unveiling, the group proceeded to the Eltham Shire Office for afternoon tea and a small exhibition of Withers' paintings arranged by Andrew Mackenzie. The unveiling was performed by Mary Owen, a grand-daughter of Walter Withers. Her speech provided an interesting personal perspective on Withers and is repeated in full here: I feel somewhat overwhelmed by the responsibility of paying tribute to the man you have all come to honour today. I have the feeling that most of you probably know more about him and his work than I do. Walter Withers died nearly seven years before I was born and so I never knew him. Sadly, although other members of his family inherited some of his talent, I was not among them and I know very little about art. This is doubly hard to bear because my husband had some ability to draw and my second daughter also has some talent in this direction. My children are all artistic - mostly in the field of music inherited partly from their father - a Welshman who sang like a Welshman - and partly from my grandmother, Fanny Withers who, I believe was no mean pianist. However all this talent gave me a miss and for many years I felt a complete ignoramus in the fields of the arts. It was not until I was nearly fifty years old that I walked into a gallery in Brisbane and, as I wandered around the room, suddenly one picture leapt at me and I knew instantly that it had been painted by my grandfather. I had never seen the picture before and it gave me quite a shock to find that I had recognized the style of painting. I realized then that I had absorbed more than I realized simply by living with pictures and with people who painted them and talked about their painting and the painting of others. When I was a child I sometimes spent school holidays with my Aunt Margery Withers and her husband, Richard McCann. Aunt Marge painted me several times but I'm afraid I was a restless subject and used to sit reading a book and look up grudgingly when she wanted to paint my eyes. During the September holidays my aunt and uncle were busy preparing paintings far the annual exhibition of the Melbourne Twenty Painters, to which they both belonged. I remember how important I used to feel when they took me along to the Athenaeum Gallery on the Friday night before the opening to help hang their pictures. There were many artists there but the two I remember are perhaps surprisingly both women: Miss Bale and Miss Tweddle. I remember how cold it used to be up in that gallery at night. They used to heat water on a gas ring to make tea and Aunt Marge used to bring sandwiches and fruit for our evening meal. Everyone seemed to be poor in those days and no-one dreamed of going out for a meal. It was a case of make-do - even to cutting down frames to fit pictures or cutting pictures to fit the frames. They had to use the same frames from year to year if the pictures didn't sell. The opening was an exciting event for me. I felt I was privileged to meet important people - people who knew a lot more than I - and Uncle Dick would get quite merry after a couple of the tiny sweet sherries which were always distributed. I realise now that quite a lot of "art talk" rubbed off on me during my visits to the Athenaeum and during my stays with my aunt and uncle. I suspect that much of our most useful learning comes this way and those of us who have had the privilege of associating with artists, writers, philosophers and other thinkers have a richness in our lives of which we may be unaware. Walter Withers was a prolific painter and, although he painted for love of it, I suspect that the need to provide for his family drove him, like Mozart, to greater efforts than he might otherwise have achieved. Reading old letters and articles about the Heidelberg artists, I have come to realize something of the constant strain placed on many of them - particularly Withers and McCubbin - by poverty and the need to make ends meet. Withers was ever conscious of the need to provide for his wife and his five children and there are touching letters to his wife, regretting that he was not able to earn more for them. In addition to his painting, he worked hard at teaching and illustrating and, as he grew older, the strain began to tell and his health deteriorated. He seems never to have had a very strong constitution and suffered from rheumatism, which must have made painting quite painful at times. His eldest daughter, Gladys, was eventually confined to a wheelchair with rheumatoid arthritis and I have a tendency to arthritis myself, so I am particularly aware of what this could have meant to him. Recently I found a short letter written by my mother to her mother, Fanny Withers on the anniversary of her father's birthday in 1919, in which she said: "Poor old Dad, I often think now what a lot he must have suffered. His life was too hard and too strenuous for him. He had too many chick-a-biddies, I think. He wasn't equal to so much town life and train journeys with so many delicacies as he had. Since I have been ill, I have realised what he must have felt like.” He certainly drove himself to produce. He travelled all over Victoria by train, buggy, bicycle and on foot and for a time he travelled from Eltham to Melbourne every day by train, although later he lived in Melbourne during the week and only returned to Eltham for the weekends. My mother died seven years after her father's death, when my twin sisters were 10 days old and I was 16 months. So I never knew my mother or my grandfather. But my two aunts, Gladys and Margery, sometimes took me to stay with Gan Withers at Southernwood in Bolton Street . No cars in those days and it seemed a very long hot and dusty walk from the Station. Three memories remain with me of Southernwood. One is the well at the back which I found quite terrifying; the second is Gan killing a snake - even more terrifying. She was a formidable woman, my grandmother and a great ally and support to her husband. I think she was the business end of the partnership. The third memory of Southernwood is my grandfather's studio – down what seemed like a toy staircase inside the room. This and the big walk-in fireplace stayed in my mind from the age of about six until I saw them again about forty years later when the house was being used as a Sunday School. I just wish that money could be found to purchase this old house for the City of Eltham so that a permanent museum could be established in memory of a man who did so much to put Eltham on the map of art history. Recently I have become interested in family history and spent some time in England, Ireland and Wales looking for traces of my ancestors. I realized then how important it is to have records of people who have contributed to our society. We forget so soon and it is amazing how often, within two generations, names, dates and many details are forgotten. We are fortunate that so many of Walter Withers' works have been bought by galleries and that people like Andrew Mackenzie have taken the trouble to search out people who knew him and to write about him and his work. And I am very grateful to the Historical Society of Eltham for recognizing the importance of having a permanent tribute in Eltham to the contribution made by Walter Withers, who loved Eltham so much and who has assured this lovely district a place in the annals of history. I am indebted to Kathleen Mangan; the daughter of another famous Australian painter , Fred McCubbin, - featured in The Age this morning (thanks again to Andrew Mackenzie) for the most apt tribute to Walter Withers. Kathleen is not well and she rang me a couple of days ago, regretting that she could not be present today “to pay tribute” as she said, “to Walter Withers for I always think Walter Withers is the spirit of Eltham.” Thank you, Kathleen. And now I have much pleasure in unveiling the plaque commissioned by the Eltham Historical Society from Bob McLellan of Charmac Industries to commemorate the life and work of Walter Withers, the spirit of Eltham. Mary Owen, 13 October 1990.Three colour photographswalter withers rock, walter withers reserve, mary owen -
Eltham District Historical Society Inc
Photograph, Mary Owen, granddaughter of Walter Withers, unveiling the commemorative plaque on Walter Withers Rock at the corner of Bible and Arthur Streets, Eltham, 13 Oct 1990, 13/10/1990
[from EDHS Newsletter No. 75, November 1990:] WALTER WITHERS PLAQUE At long last we have unveiled our plaque in the Walter Withers Reserve. The function was attended by a number of members and friends of the Society and descendants of the Withers family. Following the unveiling, the group proceeded to the Eltham Shire Office for afternoon tea and a small exhibition of Withers' paintings arranged by Andrew Mackenzie. The unveiling was performed by Mary Owen, a grand-daughter of Walter Withers. Her speech provided an interesting personal perspective on Withers and is repeated in full here: I feel somewhat overwhelmed by the responsibility of paying tribute to the man you have all come to honour today. I have the feeling that most of you probably know more about him and his work than I do. Walter Withers died nearly seven years before I was born and so I never knew him. Sadly, although other members of his family inherited some of his talent, I was not among them and I know very little about art. This is doubly hard to bear because my husband had some ability to draw and my second daughter also has some talent in this direction. My children are all artistic - mostly in the field of music inherited partly from their father - a Welshman who sang like a Welshman - and partly from my grandmother, Fanny Withers who, I believe was no mean pianist. However all this talent gave me a miss and for many years I felt a complete ignoramus in the fields of the arts. It was not until I was nearly fifty years old that I walked into a gallery in Brisbane and, as I wandered around the room, suddenly one picture leapt at me and I knew instantly that it had been painted by my grandfather. I had never seen the picture before and it gave me quite a shock to find that I had recognized the style of painting. I realized then that I had absorbed more than I realized simply by living with pictures and with people who painted them and talked about their painting and the painting of others. When I was a child I sometimes spent school holidays with my Aunt Margery Withers and her husband, Richard McCann. Aunt Marge painted me several times but I'm afraid I was a restless subject and used to sit reading a book and look up grudgingly when she wanted to paint my eyes. During the September holidays my aunt and uncle were busy preparing paintings far the annual exhibition of the Melbourne Twenty Painters, to which they both belonged. I remember how important I used to feel when they took me along to the Athenaeum Gallery on the Friday night before the opening to help hang their pictures. There were many artists there but the two I remember are perhaps surprisingly both women: Miss Bale and Miss Tweddle. I remember how cold it used to be up in that gallery at night. They used to heat water on a gas ring to make tea and Aunt Marge used to bring sandwiches and fruit for our evening meal. Everyone seemed to be poor in those days and no-one dreamed of going out for a meal. It was a case of make-do - even to cutting down frames to fit pictures or cutting pictures to fit the frames. They had to use the same frames from year to year if the pictures didn't sell. The opening was an exciting event for me. I felt I was privileged to meet important people - people who knew a lot more than I - and Uncle Dick would get quite merry after a couple of the tiny sweet sherries which were always distributed. I realise now that quite a lot of "art talk" rubbed off on me during my visits to the Athenaeum and during my stays with my aunt and uncle. I suspect that much of our most useful learning comes this way and those of us who have had the privilege of associating with artists, writers, philosophers and other thinkers have a richness in our lives of which we may be unaware. Walter Withers was a prolific painter and, although he painted for love of it, I suspect that the need to provide for his family drove him, like Mozart, to greater efforts than he might otherwise have achieved. Reading old letters and articles about the Heidelberg artists, I have come to realize something of the constant strain placed on many of them - particularly Withers and McCubbin - by poverty and the need to make ends meet. Withers was ever conscious of the need to provide for his wife and his five children and there are touching letters to his wife, regretting that he was not able to earn more for them. In addition to his painting, he worked hard at teaching and illustrating and, as he grew older, the strain began to tell and his health deteriorated. He seems never to have had a very strong constitution and suffered from rheumatism, which must have made painting quite painful at times. His eldest daughter, Gladys, was eventually confined to a wheelchair with rheumatoid arthritis and I have a tendency to arthritis myself, so I am particularly aware of what this could have meant to him. Recently I found a short letter written by my mother to her mother, Fanny Withers on the anniversary of her father's birthday in 1919, in which she said: "Poor old Dad, I often think now what a lot he must have suffered. His life was too hard and too strenuous for him. He had too many chick-a-biddies, I think. He wasn't equal to so much town life and train journeys with so many delicacies as he had. Since I have been ill, I have realised what he must have felt like.” He certainly drove himself to produce. He travelled all over Victoria by train, buggy, bicycle and on foot and for a time he travelled from Eltham to Melbourne every day by train, although later he lived in Melbourne during the week and only returned to Eltham for the weekends. My mother died seven years after her father's death, when my twin sisters were 10 days old and I was 16 months. So I never knew my mother or my grandfather. But my two aunts, Gladys and Margery, sometimes took me to stay with Gan Withers at Southernwood in Bolton Street . No cars in those days and it seemed a very long hot and dusty walk from the Station. Three memories remain with me of Southernwood. One is the well at the back which I found quite terrifying; the second is Gan killing a snake - even more terrifying. She was a formidable woman, my grandmother and a great ally and support to her husband. I think she was the business end of the partnership. The third memory of Southernwood is my grandfather's studio – down what seemed like a toy staircase inside the room. This and the big walk-in fireplace stayed in my mind from the age of about six until I saw them again about forty years later when the house was being used as a Sunday School. I just wish that money could be found to purchase this old house for the City of Eltham so that a permanent museum could be established in memory of a man who did so much to put Eltham on the map of art history. Recently I have become interested in family history and spent some time in England, Ireland and Wales looking for traces of my ancestors. I realized then how important it is to have records of people who have contributed to our society. We forget so soon and it is amazing how often, within two generations, names, dates and many details are forgotten. We are fortunate that so many of Walter Withers' works have been bought by galleries and that people like Andrew Mackenzie have taken the trouble to search out people who knew him and to write about him and his work. And I am very grateful to the Historical Society of Eltham for recognizing the importance of having a permanent tribute in Eltham to the contribution made by Walter Withers, who loved Eltham so much and who has assured this lovely district a place in the annals of history. I am indebted to Kathleen Mangan; the daughter of another famous Australian painter , Fred McCubbin, - featured in The Age this morning (thanks again to Andrew Mackenzie) for the most apt tribute to Walter Withers. Kathleen is not well and she rang me a couple of days ago, regretting that she could not be present today “to pay tribute” as she said, “to Walter Withers for I always think Walter Withers is the spirit of Eltham.” Thank you, Kathleen. And now I have much pleasure in unveiling the plaque commissioned by the Eltham Historical Society from Bob McLellan of Charmac Industries to commemorate the life and work of Walter Withers, the spirit of Eltham. Mary Owen, 13 October 1990.Two colour photographswalter withers rock, walter withers reserve, mary owen -
Orbost & District Historical Society
ticket, 1880's
The Potosi was built in Scotland in 1873 by John Elder and Co.It was a cargo/passenger iron screw steamer and sailed from 1880-1887 under the Orient Line Australia service. Samuel James Lynn was born in 1865 in Coleraine, Northern Ireland. Sam left his home in Coleraine in 1883 at the age of 17. (More information in O.D.H.S. newsletter No. 91 September, 2012 by Margaret Hollands) Samuel Lynn was a well-known Orbost pioneer. Ho owned much property throughout the district , bred Clydesdale horses and fattened about 600 cattle. He was in great demand as a judge of both cattle and horses at agricultural shows in Victoria and interstate. He was a shire councillor for 30 years and president several times. He took a great interest in the sporting clubs of the town and played cricket until late in life. He was goal umpire for the local football team for many years, judged for the Orbost Racing Club and was the first president of the Orbost Bowls Club. He was also a member of the first municipal band. A paper passenger's contract ticket for Samuel Lynn on the Steam Ship Potosi from Royal Albert Dock, Liverpool, United Kingdom to Melbourne, Australia. It is white with black print and hand-written details.front - signed "Samuel Lynn"lynn-samuel potosi-steamship -
Orbost & District Historical Society
newspaper, December 13 1884
This piece of newspaper had been used as wallpaper lining. The Weekly Times was first published on September 11, 1869, by a group of Melbourne businessmen who owned the now-defunct Daily Telegraph, with the stated aim to be a “journal of literature, sport, agriculture, science and politics”. It is Australia’s oldest rural newspaper, and is known far and wide as the Bible of the Bush. (ref Weekly Times web-site)This is a useful research tool.A section of newspaper from the Weekly Times of 1884. there is also a photocopy of the item.newspaper weekly-times -
Orbost & District Historical Society
book, 1928-1933
Manchester Unity Independent Order of Oddfellows (MUIOOF) had its origins in Manchester, England. It was established in Melbourne on 7 December 1840 when Augustus Greeves, a member of the MUIOOF in England, migrated to Australia and formed the first friendly society. In 1840 Manchester Unity IOOF was founded in Victoria.Friendly Societies were founded in the Australian Colonies in the mid-19th Century by immigrants from England who had been members in Societies which dated back to the 18th Century. Like all working people these immigrants experienced sickness, accidents, unemployment, death and burial. They needed help of like fellows to tide their families over these times. So they formed a branch of one of the Friendly Societies back in the mother country. The idea was to make fixed contributions to a fund and when they were off work they would receive a payment. When they died funeral benefits would be paid and the widow and children would be cared for. It was a form of local insurance for hard times. This was a time of 'look after yourself' as the Colonial Governments did not provide pensions or benefits. This item reflects those times. A small hard cover blue book holding certificates of M.O.O.O.F. members.m.u.i.o.o.f. friendly-society -
Ringwood and District Historical Society
Newspaper - Clippings, Ringwood Mail, Several Cuttings from Ringwood 'Mail" 1996. *** Further details Required, 1996
Cuttings from'Mail' p.5 10-Dec-1996"Better times ahead for boys choir" p.5 19-Nov-1996 "In memory of Elizabeth" p 1 26-Mar-1996 "Dog Shelter Blow" +Additional Keywords: Membry, Elizabeth -
Ringwood and District Historical Society
Photograph, William Hussey and William John Hussey with the first bus on the Ringwood - Warrandyte run. 1926 , incl Timetable
Black and white photo of old car with 2 men standing beside it.; Timetable for Ringwood-Warrandyte Coach Service on back of photo +Additional Keywords: Hussey, William / Hussey, William JohnPhoto marked "Hussey 1926" showing him standing next to motorised coach with passengers on board, and separate photographed copies of Ringwood - Warrandyte Coach Service Time Table. Photo of William Hussey and William John Hussey with the first bus on the Ringwood - Warrandyte run. 1926 model bus. The time-table shows week day and weekend times leaving Warrandyte and Ringwood. -
Ringwood and District Historical Society
Envelope, Bundle of handwritten notes attributed to Mr J. McCaskill c.1940's. Mayor of Ringwood, c.1940s
Bundle of handwritten notes attributed to Mr J. McCaskill, Mayor several times between 1936 & 1948. +Additional Keywords: McCaskill, J. -
Ringwood and District Historical Society
Book, The Life and Times of Gwen Horman with photos and family trees, 25-Sep-98
Gwen Horman was a prominent figure in Ringwood History. Her husband , Robert, was the Mayor of the Ringwood Borough in 1954 and again in 1961 and played a large part in the move for Ringwood to become a city. Gwen was a foundation member and President of the Ringwood East Infant Welfare Centre, helped fund raise for the Maroondah Hospital and was a founding member of the Ringwood East CWA in 1949. She traveled extensively and there are many diary notes of these trips included in the history.Transparent front cover and buff coloured back cover, black spiral binding contains 38 pages of printed notes and photos, some hand written amendments. Printed 25-Sep-1998. +Additional Keywords: Horman, GwenLife and times of Gwen Horman -
Ringwood and District Historical Society
Work on paper, Biography of Edward Thomas Miles 1849-1944 and descendants, c.2005
Copy of group presentation notes for a talk to Ringwood and District Historical Society by Elva Brooke on early local identity Edward Thomas Miles 1849-1944 and descendants, with photocopied newspaper pages 17 and 18 of The Leader Supplement, October 6, 1894, and extract taken from the book "I Exell - The Life and Times of Sir Henry Jones" by Bruce Brown (1991) - Chapter 4, including the story of Captain E.T. Miles. -
Ringwood and District Historical Society
Card - Voting, Authorised by Ray Bradbury, Poster - Vote for James McCubbin - City of Ringwood council elections 1972, 1972
Large card/poster promoting the election of James C.B. McCubbin JP to the South Ward, City of Ringwood - Election Saturday 26th August, 1972. Photo image 17x12 is included in the notice. +Additional Keywords: McCubbin, James C.B.Text - City of Ringwood Annual Elections - South Ward. Saturday 26th August, 1972. Voting times 8am to 8pm. Vote for James C.B. McCubbin JP -1- and "Vote Mac Back - The Man on Your Side". -
Ringwood and District Historical Society
Photograph, Ringwood Horticultural Show, the Vegetable Section - 1902, 1902
Black and white photograph. (2 copies)Written on back of photograph: Ringwood Horticultural Show- Vegetable Section, 1902. Weekly Times 29-3-1902. -
Ringwood and District Historical Society
Photograph, The Ringwood Horticultural Show - 1901. Image copied from the "Weekly Times" of 30/3/1901, 30-Mar-01
5 black and white images on one page copied from the "Weekly Times". (2 copies)"Written under images" The Ringwood Horticultural Show. Committe Group (Reading from L to R): Bottom Row- W. Chandler, E. McComas (Sec), H. Thatcher,(President), H. Chandler (Vice President), Middle Row- G. Maggs (Treasurer), J.Cameron, C.D. Hall, J. Muldowney, A. Chandler, P. Farnielo, W. Maggs. Top Row- H. Maggs, E. Kleinert, J. Hann, L.W. Chandler, J. Maguire. Photos by Frazer and Vallance, Little Collins Street, Melbourne. Pasted on back of cardboard copy- Newspaper cutting on the R.H.S. Show as reported in the "Weekly Times" 30/3/1901. Early R.H.S. Shows were held next to Club Hotel in Mount Dandenong Road. -
Ringwood and District Historical Society
Photograph, Photographs from Grand Fancy Fair in aid of the new Hall at Ringwood, 1909 (Weekly Times)
Weekly Times Page with 5 photographs, dated. October 2, 1909 with main subtitle of "Grand Fancy Fair in aid of the new Hall at Ringwood".The five pictures are described as follows, '1. The New Mechanics' Hall. 2. Some of the "aboriginals". 3. Bush Drama-Black attacking the camp. 4. Spectators watching the display. 5. Group of stall-holders.' -
Ringwood and District Historical Society
Photograph, Lady Stall Holders, Mechanics Institute Bazaar 1909
Another version of this photo used in Weekly Times article - See Item 2844Lady Stall Holders, Mechanics Institute Bazaar . A number of names are written on backing sheet. They are: 'Ethel ?, Mrs. Hocking, Mrs. Grant, Nelly Falconer, Mrs. Unsw???, ?? Blood, Mrs. Bray, Mable Blood, Lilla Wilkins, Olive Hudson, Mrs. Greenwood, Mrs. Pithie, ?? Greenwood, Mrs. McAlpin, Floss Hocking, Mrs. Hunt, ?? Greenwood, Betty ??, Lena Williams, Maggie Grant, Mable Smith, Celia Smith, Dorothy Hocking, ?? Hunt, Pop Willia??'. -
Orbost & District Historical Society
Membership Certificate, 1960's
From Grand United Order of Oddfellows. MU100F - membership and competition. 1966-67 winners in "B" Class - Loyal Orbost Lodge.Friendly Societies were founded in the Australian Colonies in the mid-19th Century by immigrants from England who had been members in Societies which dated back to the 18th Century. Like all working people these immigrants experienced sickness, accidents, unemployment, death and burial. They needed help of like fellows to tide their families over these times. So they formed a branch of one of the Friendly Societies back in the mother country. The idea was to make fixed contributions to a fund and when they were off work they would receive a payment. When they died funeral benefits would be paid and the widow and children would be cared for. It was a form of local insurance for hard times. This was a time of 'look after yourself' as the Colonial Governments did not provide pensions or benefits. This item reflects those times.Membership and competition certificate from Bairnsdale district. Large certificate with large painting of Collins Street Melbourne in wood and glass frame.document oddfellows certificate lodge muioof -
Orbost & District Historical Society
black and white photograph, July 1897
Snowy River Shipping Company formed in 1880. They were soon shipping produce (mainly vegetables) from the area to Melbourne. The Snowy River Shipping Company was formed by Mr Henry James during the 1880s, with Captain McNeil as master. Captain McNeil was an always cheerful Marlo identity and local children had many times sailing with him on the river. Captain McNeil with tug went out through the entrance and brought in the schooners.This photograph is associated with an early Marlo identity.A black / white photograph of five people, three men and two women, standing in front of a wooden cottage. The man on the left is wearing what appears to be a ship's captain's uniform.on back - "Capt. McNeil in front of house, Marlo, July 1897" -
Ringwood and District Historical Society
Book, Memoires of the Activities of the Real Estate and State Institute of Victoria 1936-1980 by G.A.Thomson
Written for the Real Estate and Stock Institute of Victoria106 pages of the life and times of Mr. George Thomson as a Real Estate Agent and the history taken from minutes and proceedings of the Real Estate and Stock Institute from its inception. Clear plastic covers with blue cloth spine. Typewritten with some reproduced pictures.Front cover has The Real Estate and Stock Institute logo in the bottom quarter. Back page has faded picture of the Lebanese Catholic Church in Rathdowne Street, Melbourne.