SUMMARY - Ernest W (Bon) Barrie, 1909 – 1985 Profile Melton Mechanics Institute Member 1935 - 1982i Trustee 1952 - 1982 Life Member 1968 Years of service – 47 years He constructed and provided a public address system which was used at Melton and district halls and sports grounds for a wide variety of community events including school sports, gymkhanas, theatrical productions and processions. Fire Brigade Melton Fire Brigade (and predecessor Bush Fire Brigade) Apparatus Officer, 1945 - 1953 Captain, 1951 - 1965 Mt Cotterill Fire Brigades’ Group Elected Group Officer, on the formation of the Group, 1967. As Group Communications Officer he operated the VL3 LY base radio station from home on a 24 hour basis for fire brigades of Melton, Rockbank, Sydenham, Diggers Rest, Toolern Vale, Truganina and Werribee. With his brother Edgar, he built the first Melton Fire Truck. It was housed on the family property until a fire station was constructed in the Melton township. Recipient of the Queens Medal, 1979 Recognised for 44 years of service on the Melton Fire Brigade Memorial Wall Plaque, dedicated May 2013 Melton State School, no 430 Committee – School Correspondent (secretarial and financial role) 34 years of Service Provided his Amplifier Equipment for events and the annual district School Sports from 1939-1973. Donated the House Athletic Shield Melton and District Historical Society 1968 – 1985 President and foundation member Willows Historical Park – supported the establishment of the park and contributed many volunteers hours in the construction and landscaping of the precinct Member, Western Metropolitan Groups of Historical Societies, 1980s Shire of Melton Councillor South Riding, 1969-1971 Member of the Water Trust Melton Uniting Church Melton Uniting Church (and its predecessors the Methodist, Methodist-Presbyterian churches). A lifetime association which extended from childhood when he attended Sunday school until his death in 1985. Member of the Presbyterian Board of Management for more than 25 years in which he held positions of Honorary Secretary and Treasurer, Board member of the Parish Council and Member of the Committee of Management. He was a Sunday school teacher 1933. Community development With Mr RC Butler met with Shire Council in 1937 to canvass residents to ascertain prospective Electric consumers in the district. Electricity was subsequently turned on at dusk on 20th December 1939. Melton Progress Association, including Melton Musical, Elocutionary and Vocal Competitions, Vice President 1939 1940 Melton Development Association, 1960s Volunteer Air Observers Corps (VAOC)ii Carried out plane spotting at Shire Office and spotting tower in Melton and later from home until 1944/45. Agriculture and farming Progress and Better Farming Association, Melton. Honorary Secretary, 1935 Member, Agricultural Engineering Society Australia c1960-1985 A successful grower of wheat, oats and barley, he planted experiment plots and held Field Days on the “Darlingsford” property. He later diversified into other grains and sheep (wool and meat). He took a enthusiastic interest in agricultural engineering and was keen to introduce innovative ideas that improved the productivity of farms and farming practices. In the mid 1950 he conducted trials during harvest on the family property of the original mechanical hay fork built on a British Bedford truck by Bill Gillespie. This design was further refined in collaboration with the Gillespie brothers and resulted in the construction the hydraulically operated tractor mounted hay fork. The innovative design of the hay fork created interest from far and wide and was quickly taken up by farmers because it significantly reduced hand labouring of loading sheaves of hay with a pitch fork. His father established chaff mills in Melton, Rockbank, Parwan, Diggers Rest in the first decade of 1900 and in 1915 went into partnership with JR Schutt to establish the Schutt & Barrie Pty. Ltd. Chaff Cutting and Flour Mill in West Footscray. When it ceased trading in 1968 the directors were: Ernest W Barrie and Thomas L Barrie, R, A, and M Schutt. Awards Queens Medal, 1979 Rotary Award for Community Service, 1980 Victoria 150th Anniversary Celebrations contributions, 1985 Service held at Melton Uniting Church local identities

SUMMARY - Ernest W (Bon) Barrie, 1909 – 1985 Profile Melton Mechanics Institute Member 1935 - 1982i Trustee 1952 - 1982 Life Member 1968 Years of service – 47 years He constructed and provided a public address system which was used at Melton and district halls and sports grounds for a wide variety of community events including school sports, gymkhanas, theatrical productions and processions. Fire Brigade Melton Fire Brigade (and predecessor Bush Fire Brigade) Apparatus Officer, 1945 - 1953 Captain, 1951 - 1965 Mt Cotterill Fire Brigades’ Group Elected Group Officer, on the formation of the Group, 1967. As Group Communications Officer he operated the VL3 LY base radio station from home on a 24 hour basis for fire brigades of Melton, Rockbank, Sydenham, Diggers Rest, Toolern Vale, Truganina and Werribee. With his brother Edgar, he built the first Melton Fire Truck. It was housed on the family property until a fire station was constructed in the Melton township. Recipient of the Queens Medal, 1979 Recognised for 44 years of service on the Melton Fire Brigade Memorial Wall Plaque, dedicated May 2013 Melton State School, no 430 Committee – School Correspondent (secretarial and financial role) 34 years of Service Provided his Amplifier Equipment for events and the annual district School Sports from 1939-1973. Donated the House Athletic Shield Melton and District Historical Society 1968 – 1985 President and foundation member Willows Historical Park – supported the establishment of the park and contributed many volunteers hours in the construction and landscaping of the precinct Member, Western Metropolitan Groups of Historical Societies, 1980s Shire of Melton Councillor South Riding, 1969-1971 Member of the Water Trust Melton Uniting Church Melton Uniting Church (and its predecessors the Methodist, Methodist-Presbyterian churches). A lifetime association which extended from childhood when he attended Sunday school until his death in 1985. Member of the Presbyterian Board of Management for more than 25 years in which he held positions of Honorary Secretary and Treasurer, Board member of the Parish Council and Member of the Committee of Management. He was a Sunday school teacher 1933. Community development With Mr RC Butler met with Shire Council in 1937 to canvass residents to ascertain prospective Electric consumers in the district. Electricity was subsequently turned on at dusk on 20th December 1939. Melton Progress Association, including Melton Musical, Elocutionary and Vocal Competitions, Vice President 1939 1940 Melton Development Association, 1960s Volunteer Air Observers Corps (VAOC)ii Carried out plane spotting at Shire Office and spotting tower in Melton and later from home until 1944/45. Agriculture and farming Progress and Better Farming Association, Melton. Honorary Secretary, 1935 Member, Agricultural Engineering Society Australia c1960-1985 A successful grower of wheat, oats and barley, he planted experiment plots and held Field Days on the “Darlingsford” property. He later diversified into other grains and sheep (wool and meat). He took a enthusiastic interest in agricultural engineering and was keen to introduce innovative ideas that improved the productivity of farms and farming practices. In the mid 1950 he conducted trials during harvest on the family property of the original mechanical hay fork built on a British Bedford truck by Bill Gillespie. This design was further refined in collaboration with the Gillespie brothers and resulted in the construction the hydraulically operated tractor mounted hay fork. The innovative design of the hay fork created interest from far and wide and was quickly taken up by farmers because it significantly reduced hand labouring of loading sheaves of hay with a pitch fork. His father established chaff mills in Melton, Rockbank, Parwan, Diggers Rest in the first decade of 1900 and in 1915 went into partnership with JR Schutt to establish the Schutt & Barrie Pty. Ltd. Chaff Cutting and Flour Mill in West Footscray. When it ceased trading in 1968 the directors were: Ernest W Barrie and Thomas L Barrie, R, A, and M Schutt. Awards Queens Medal, 1979 Rotary Award for Community Service, 1980 Victoria 150th Anniversary Celebrations contributions, 1985 Photographs of Bon Barrielocal identities, pioneer families

Melton and District Historical Society: Railway stations were a hive of activity during the 1900s, transporting produce such as meat, dairy, hay and chafff from the Melton district to Melbourne. Rockbank station served the nearby chaff mill. From Melton Express and Sunbury News, 1910. When Mr Barrie started some 10 years ago with a travelling chaff cutter and a portable engine, and now he has behind him two large sheds, with three chaffcutters, a screw press and a damper and the necessary machinery to work the same, which is proof enough of the energy and zeal he has put forth. Lately he has started another mill a Rockbank with Mr R Barrie in charge and Mr W Barrie in charge at the Melton shed. Much regret is expressed at the departure of Mr Barrie having won the high esteem of his employees and farmers an all who have had any dealings with him. Works undertaken at Rockbank train station, fire brigade members were assisting with the project.emergency services, transport

a Sharon Hately, Diane Henderson, Lyne Pols b Val McLean? c Eileen Hay?, Kay Borella, Kay Orthank (Skinner) d Stawell High School e Five B/W photographs of Stawell High School Studentseducation

Mabs Younger graduated 1938.1. Post Card Album with slits on each page to fit postcards containing newspaper cuttings (NC) and black and white photographs (not all taken at Burnley). Provenance and date of newspaper cuttings not generally known. See B09.0007B for 20 envelopes containing 35mm colour slides. Photographs taken Dec 1949. Labelled. Most images annotatedmabs younger, female students, newspaper cuttings, students, students working outside, staff, flowers, plants, cartoon, phyllis laing, lily ponds, thrips, horses, ploughing, luffmann ponds, orchard, draught horse, pears, m atkins, j wakeford, m smith, p wilson, t baghel, carol scott, d johnston, e m jelbart, nancy canpbell, gwynneth crouch, alison wilson, bonnie campbell, louise harris, kath pullar, thelma johnson, d barker, agnes armstrong, dahlias, melons, j bacon, a w jessep, f j rae, hay, b levick, brook gipps, graham grant, j leitch, h kirkhope, garden views, royal horticultural society show, uniform, wattle, women gardeners, soldiewr farmers

School Council, Members of Staff, List of Full Course Students 1948, S.M.B. Magazine Committee, Editorial, Principal's Page, News and Notes, Editor's Notes, Obituary - S. H. Mayo, Farewells to Staff Members, Alterations in Staff, Science Section, The Literary Society, S.M.B. Yesterday and Today, The Ex-Servicemen, R.A.A.F. Story, Art Section, Escape from Nazi Europe, Short Story Competition, Senior Sport, Girls Sport, Commercial Notes, The Junior Techs, Junior Technical School Students' 1948, Students' doing Trade Apprenticeship Courses Green cover with maroon and green lettering, soft covered magazine of 54 pages. Artwork Mr Ramm - By Robert Tantau Borrick - By H. McWilliam Darb - By Robert Tantau Have a chip Will - By Robert Tantau Junior - By Robert Tantau Bruce - By Robert Tantau Pen and ink Ilustration (car) - By Ron Cairns Rosemary - By Robert Tantau Maurine - By Robert Tantau Howard - By H. Tozer Mick - By Robert Tantau Lorna - By Robert Tantau Sandy - By Robert Tantau Hughes - By Robert Tantau Bautovich - By Robert Tantau Bill and Banjo - By Robert Tantau Mac - By Robert Tantau Rowy - By John Willis ballarat school of mines, magazine, h. tozer, v. lancaster, g. murdoch, m. greenwood, alan j. fenton, c. rook, b. bryan, c. g. fairbank, r. p. flower, c. sanos, eric e. marshman, r. w. richards, m. k. ashton, w. k. l. murray, g. ramm, john c. collins, f. g. procter, dr. j. r. pound, donald c. johnston, neville d. gardner, arthur c. burrow, phillip e. richards, john f. swain, hester darby, lewis huisman, betty freeth, j. williams, m. treganowan, gwenyth williams, w. archibald, maureen callahan, margaret ryan, t. downes, dawn anderson, m. rowbottom, beverley letti, l. greenbank, valerie ritchie, beryl hutchings, p. reidy, robert tantau, willis brown, wesley wilson, donald durant, geo m. hetherington, john a. wilson, maxwell f. murray, ron cairns, geoffrey j. edmonds, john k. ballinger, william n.. edwards, r. rosser, horace j. graham, kevin k. treloar, john h. boag, francis l. veal, hans fumberger, john r. jopling, william h. wray, stanley j. dunstan, john willis, robert e. davis, jeffrey m. coward, william j. scala, george r. searle, norman w. ludbrook, robert r. u'ren, rex h. hollioake, alan vinegrad, h. mcwilliam, james w.b. tippett, james w. brokenshire, frederick g. savage, ronald t. spence, john r. sawyer, terence p. lannen, e. lloyd, d. brayshaw, valerie daff, betty hearn, thelma halsall, v. henderson, netta pitcher, moira baker, betty whitford, joan ellis, pamela hay, r. b. williams, heather coad, s. shillington, b. duffer, j. a. willsher, m. mclean, j. catherall, c. beeston, e. shaw, n. silvey, d. stevens, k. adams, t. hewitt, i. lepp, j. mccormack, a. young, l. george, j. terrill, k. spalding, j. watts, w. clarke, g. hindson, d. gilbert, a. hewitt, r. plover, g. murrowood, r. cochrane, j. bethune, j. walton, r. ward, j. blain, r. gluyas, r. luke, j. daly, k. ward, i. mcconchie, p. hewitt, j. skilbeck, e. jones, c. hoffman, w. mckenzie, r. phillips, g. allen, h. saw, c. mayne, b. graham, m. tweedale, d. alexander, w. rodgers, r. norman, m. horwood, p. hains, m. coleman, g. hannah, r. bawden, r. simpson, d. ditchfield, albert bradley, w. d. ditchfield

List of Full Course Students' 1947, Magazine Committee, Editorial, Editor's Notes, News and Notes, Our New Principal, Obituary, Farewell Dinner to Mr and Mrs A. F. Heseltine, S.M. B. Sports Committee. Principal's Page, The Literary Society, Science Section, A Trip to Whyalla, Art Section, Senior Sport, Commercial Notes, Dressmaking and Girls' Preparatory Section, Junior Technical School Section .2) Yellow cover with blue, white and green lettering, soft covered magazine of 54 pages.ballarat school of mines, magazine, n. whitaker, e. stevens, d. spence, r. gladman, d. munroe, f. g. procter, p. wilson, dr. j. r. pound, j. swain, r. w. richards, h. j. edwards, r. p. flower, ken palmer, john leslie burt, r. s. ewins, w. r. burrow, david maxwell, c. a. hoadley, mr and mrs a. f. heseltine, james rogers, dorothy spence, tom hobill, a. e. lambert, w. b. hirt, p. maloney, j. blainey, n. hornbuckle, k. bremner, o. whitworth, r. pullen, r. eason, j. a. mckenzie, j. mckenzie, w. brown, d. harbour, k. whiter, m. sewell, r. kibby, b. sherritt, mr hillman, miss fogarty, mr richards, miss darby, d. brayshaw, d. judd, b. tippett, neville m. bunning, w. ross, r. u'ren, g. bligh, s. baird, j. parker, m. grace, j. mccoy, f. savage, j. veale, d. jelbart, b. hewitt, j. willis, a. temby, b. tantau, n. rees, j. rogers, h. fumberger, l. veale, m. heatherington, r. rosser, b. davis, b. murrel, c. edmonds, r. cairns, j. morrish, j. wilson, g. coward, j. scala, w. ludbrook, g. searle, j. dunstan, m. murray, b. u'ren, r. loft, m. kennedy, a. mccallum, c. mcdonald, t. sawyer, f. mcwilliam, r. spence, b. llewellyn, t. lannen, m. robot, n. pitcher, j. cartledge, m. court, p. hay, t. halstead, n. bawden, d. stevenson, e. lloyd, b. jones, m. pitcher, olive whitworth, rhonda cockburn, k. roberts, w. clarke, j. james, n. silvey, t. shaw, s. vinegrad, j. watts, a. young, k. ward, p. hewitt, g. murrowood, i. lepp, g. hindson, k. belsar, d. gilbert, d. tozer, t. hewitt, m. collinson, w. coad, f. tolliday, w. quayle, r. wilson, r. cochrane, r. norman, c. sanos, j. daly, j. blackburn, r. kennedy, william arthur prowse, l. george, c. beaston, r. ward, g. stimson, r. plover, w. congress, s. hoffman, m. rundell, j. skilbeck, f. atkinson, r. rickard, t. wren, d. mcdonald, j. bethune, r. lavery, g. allen, b. feaver, c. jones, w. coles, k. spalding, m. tweedale, m. horwood, r. eyres, m. bailey, m. coleman, i. hicks, f. atchison, i. mcconchie, o. v. o'neull, l. l. sedgwick, william prowse, bill prowse, neville bunning

CLUNES FIRE BRIGADE WON THE CHAMPION EIGHT COMPETITION IN 1902. THEY WERE AWARDED A TROPY WHICH IS A FLUTED VASE ON A SILVER BASE WITH ORNATE FRAME HOLDING VAS AND TWO FLUTED TRUMPET VASES EITHER SIDE..1 COPY OF PHOTOGRAPH OF CLUNES FIRE BRIGADE CHAMPION EIGHT 1902 TEAM MEMBERS : W. POWER, B. HAWKS, M.C. CROWTHERS, G. PEARCE, ? MCKENZIE, F. MILES, G. HAY, ? MCKENZIE, P. KEMPSON, B. FEATONBY. .2 SEPIA COPY OF ABOVE, WITH INSCRIPTION ''CHAMPION EIGHT 1902'' .3 COPY OF SEPIA PHOTOGRAPH .4 ORIGINAL BLACK AND WHITE PHOTOGRAPH MOUNTED ON CARDBOARD .4 CHAMPION EIGHT 1902 - BAWDEN PHOTOGRAPHER CLUNESlocal history, photography, fire brigade, trophy, champion eight, 1902

48 page illustrated booklet.Published in 1934, this illustrated history of Brunswick Presbyterian Church (now Brunswick Uniting Church, Sydney Road, Brunswick) features the following images (in the order they appear) – First Church, Second Church, Old Manse, Present Church, Rev C Hay Hunter MA, Present Manse, WW1 Honour Roll boards, Rev Allan McVean, memorial tablet to Rev a McVean, Rev W Hewitson BA, Rev Thos Tait MA BD, Rev John A Crockett, Kirk Session members (1904), Rev John Alexander, Rev E H McLean Shugg BA, D Tough, Mr M L Hutchinson, Evander McIver, interior view showing McIver memorial window and pipe organ, memorial table to McIver, Kirk Session members (1934), Board of Management (1934), Sunday School Teachers’ Association and Bible Class Leaders (1934).churches, brunswick uniting church, brunswick presbyterian church

This black and white photograph shows the image of the coastal trading vessel S.S. Casino, with both sail masts and steam funnel. Men in hats are clearly visible on deck. The ship is in calm water and only light rigging is on the masts. Other vessels are in the background. Photograph is taken 1882-1932. The S.S. Casino was a passenger and freight steamer built in Dundee, Scotland, in 1882 for the Newcastle and Hunter River Steam Navigation Company of N.S.W. She weighed 425 tons gross with a length of 160.4 feet, beam of 24.1 feet and depth of 10.2 feet. She had saloon accommodation for 35 people, forecabin for 25 more people, and she carried 300 tons of cargo. While on her delivery journey on May 30th 1882 the S.S. Casino called in at the Port of Warrnambool for coal ., narrowly escaping going ashore in gale force winds due to the quick action of the pilot. At that time, still at anchor, she impressed the directors of the Belfast and Koroit Steam Navigation Company so much that they bought her immediately; she was ideal for trade in along the West Coast of Victoria. (Belfast is the original name for Port Fairy, South West Victoria. The Belfast and Koroit Steam Navigation Company was first managed by Messers. Saltau and Osburne and after the passing of Mr. Osburne, by produce merchants Messers H. Sautau and Sons, whose had a hay and corn store and shipping agency was on the corner of Liebig and Koroit Streets in Warrnambool. ) The S.S. Casino became “the most famous steamer to operate in Victorian waters along the West Coast” by author Jack Loney. Captain Boyd was her first Master, followed by Captain Chapman, who stayed with her 1890 until 1924. Captain W. Robertson followed for a short term, then Captain Middleton then took command 1925 - 1932. The S.S. Casino had several mishaps during her life. One was on 3rd January 1898 when she collided with the S.S. Flinders in Apollo Bay with minor damage. Another was on 24th October 1924 when she grounded on a reef at Point Hawdon near Grey River and most of her cargo (of Christmas goods) had to be dumped into the sea. Then in February 1929 she was ‘holed’ when she struck a submerged object as she entered Lady Bay, Warrnambool. On the morning of 10th July 1932, after attempting to berth at Apollo Bay jetty in heavy seas, Captain Middleton decided to take her out into the bay and wait until the seas abated. It was not realised that the anchor used to steady her as she manoeuvred to her berth had pierced her hull. She put about and headed for the beach but sank. Captain Middleton and nine others lost their lives; nine people were rescued including the two female passengers . Captain Middleton had been in charge of the S.S. Casino for seven years. He was the first ship’s Master to lose his life through shipwreck in the West Coast trade. In the years following the turn of the century the S.S. Casino remained the only regular trader with normal passenger accommodation along the West Coast. From 1882 she had made at least 2,500 voyages on the one run. Flagstaff Hill’s collection has a photograph of a portrait of Captain Chapman, , a ship model of the S.S. Casino that shows both forms of power under which she sailed, steam and sail. The ship is painted green and flies three flags. The inscription across the case of the ship model, incorrectly dated, tells the sad story of the wreck of the ship and the loss of lives on July 10th 1932 at Apollo Bay. A print in the Collection show S.S. Casino underway in heavy sea off Point Lonsdale, another two photographs show her at the Port of Warrnambool, leaving from the Breakwater in Lady Bay and another identifies the S.S. Casino as a ship from the Belfast and Koroit Steam Navigation Company. (Belfast is the original name for the township of Port Fairy). This photograph is significant because of its association with the coastal trader S.S. Casino and its significance to trade along Victoria's West Coast in the late 19th and early 20th century. It was taken 1882-1932 The wreck of the S.S. Casino is considered an important part of Victorian and Australian cultural heritage and as such has been declared and protected as an Historic Shipwreck under State and Commonwealth Law in the Commonwealth Historic Shipwrecks Act (1976). Photograph, black and white, taken 1882-1932. Foreground is vessel SS Casino, the Belfast and Koroit Steam Navigation Company's coastal trading ship. The ship, in calm water, has light rigging on its masts and also a steam funnel. One lifeboat is visible. People are on the deck. The background shows other vessels.Under the photograph "The Belfast and Koroit Steam Navigation Company's S.S. "Casino," 425 Tons"flagstaff hill, warrnambool, shipwrecked coast, flagstaff hill maritime museum, maritime museum, shipwreck coast, flagstaff hill maritime village, great ocean road, newcastle and hunter river steam navigation company, belfast and koroit steam navigation company, h. sautau and sons, s.s. casino, west coast trader s.s. casino, victorian coastal trader, captain boyd, captain w. robertson, captain chapman, captain middleton, apollo bay shipwreck, s.s. casino at lady bay warrnambool, saltau and osburne

Print of a picture of the S.S. Casino, This print is from an original painting by the Australian marine artist A V Gregory (1867-1957), also known as Arthur Victor Gregory. Gregory lived and worked in South Melbourne. He took over the Gregory Studio owned by his father, George Frederick Gregory, painting actively between 1899 and 1932. He usually signed his works as ‘A V Gregory’. Some of his original works have been sold for thousands of dollars. The S.S. Casino was a passenger and freight steamer built in Dundee, Scotland, in 1882 for the Newcastle and Hunter River Steam Navigation Company of N.S.W. She weighed 425 tons gross with a length of 160.4 feet, beam of 24.1 feet and a depth of 10.2 feet. She had saloon accommodation for 35 people, a fore cabin for 25 more people, and she carried 300 tons of cargo. While on her delivery journey on May 30th 1882 the S.S. Casino called in at the Port of Warrnambool for coal ., narrowly escaping going ashore in gale force winds due to the quick action of the pilot. At that time, still at anchor, she impressed the directors of the Belfast and Koroit Steam Navigation Company so much that they bought her immediately; she was ideal for trade along the West Coast of Victoria. (The Belfast and Koroit Steam Navigation Company was first managed by Messers. Saltau and Osburne and after the passing of Mr. Osburne, by produce merchants Messers H. Sautau and Sons, who had a hay and corn store and shipping agency on the corner of Liebig and Koroit Streets in Warrnambool. ) The S.S. Casino became “the most famous steamer to operate in Victorian waters along the West Coast” by author Jack Loney. Captain Boyd was her first Master, followed by Captain Chapman, who stayed with her from 1890 until 1924. Captain W. Robertson followed for a short term, and then Captain Middleton then took command from 1925 - 1932. The S.S. Casino had several mishaps during her life. One was on 3rd January 1898 when she collided with the S.S. Flinders in Apollo Bay with minor damage. Another was on 24th October 1924 when she grounded on a reef at Point Hawdon near Grey River and most of her cargo (of Christmas goods) had to be dumped into the sea. Then in February 1929 she was ‘holed’ when she struck a submerged object as she entered Lady Bay, Warrnambool. On the morning of 10th July 1932, after attempting to berth at Apollo Bay jetty in heavy seas, Captain Middleton decided to take her out into the bay and wait until the seas abated. It was not realised that the anchor used to steady her as she manoeuvred to her berth had pierced her hull. She put about and headed for the beach but sank. Captain Middleton and nine others lost their lives; nine people were rescued including the two female passengers. Captain Middleton had been in charge of the S.S. Casino for seven years. He was the first ship’s Master to lose his life in a shipwreck in the West Coast trade. In the years following the turn of the century, the S.S. Casino remained the only regular trader with normal passenger accommodation along the West Coast. From 1882 she had made at least 2,500 voyages on the one run. Flagstaff Hill’s collection has a photograph of a portrait of Captain Chapman, , a ship model of the S.S. Casino that shows both forms of power under which she sailed, steam and sail. The ship is painted green and flies three flags. The inscription across the case of the ship model, incorrectly dated, tells the sad story of the wreck of the ship and the loss of lives on July 10th 1932 at Apollo Bay. A print in the Collection shows S.S. Casino underway in the heavy sea off Point Lonsdale, another two photographs show her at the Port of Warrnambool, leaving from the Breakwater in Lady Bay and another identifies the S.S. Casino as a ship from the Belfast and Koroit Steam Navigation Company. (Belfast is the original name for the township of Port Fairy).This print of the S.S. Casino is of significance for its association with the coastal trader S.S. Casino. The wreck of the S.S. Casino is considered an important part of Victorian and Australian cultural heritage and as such has been declared and protected as an Historic Shipwreck under State and Commonwealth Law in the Commonwealth Historic Shipwrecks Act (1976). The detailed image of the vessel depicted in this print shows one of the many sail and steam vessels painted by the renowned Victorian marine artist A V Gregory, whose original works are highly valued today by marine collectors.Print with hand-painted watercolour highlights depicting the port side steamship SS Casinounderway in a heavy sea, merchant flag flying at the stern. Mounted in a decorative wooden frame behind glass. The original painting was by A V Gregory. The title of the picture is repeated in handwritten words on the matte below the artist's signature on the print.Signed "A V Gregory" Hand painted title "SS Casino off Point Lonsdale"flagstaff hill, flagstaff hill maritime museum and village, warrnambool, maritime museum, maritime village, great ocean road, shipwreck coast, newcastle and hunter river steam navigation company, belfast and koroit steam navigation company, h. sautau and sons, s.s. casino, west coast trader s.s. casino, victorian coastal trader, captain boyd, captain w. robertson, captain chapman, captain middleton, apollo bay shipwreck, s.s. casino at lady bay warrnambool, saltau and osburne, a v gregory, arthur victor gregory, melbourne artist

The wooden door was salvaged from the wreck of the sailing ship Eric the Red, which was a wooden, three masted clipper ship. Eric the Red was the largest full-rigged ship built at Bath, Maine, USA in 1871, having had a 1,580 tons register. She was built and registered by Arthur Sewall, later to become the partnership E. & A. Sewall, the 51st ship built by this company. The annually-published List of Merchant Vessels of the U.S. shows Bath was still the home port of Eric the Red in 1880. The vessel was named after the Viking discoverer, Eric the Red, who was the first European to reach the shores of North America (in 980AD). The ship Eric the Red at first traded in coal between America and Britain, and later traded in guano nitrates from South America. In 1879 she was re-metalled and was in first class condition. On 10th June 1880 (some records say 12th June) Eric the Red departed New York for Melbourne and then Sydney. She had been commissioned by American trade representatives to carry a special cargo of 500 exhibits (1400 tons) – about a quarter to a third of America’s total exhibits - from America for the U.S.A. pavilion at Melbourne’s first International Exhibition. The exhibits included furniture, ironmongery, wines, chemicals, dental and surgical instruments, paper, cages, bronze lamp trimmings, axles, stamped ware, astronomical and time globes, samples of corn and the choicest of leaf tobacco. Other general cargo included merchandise such as cases of kerosene and turpentine, brooms, Bristol's Sarsaparilla, Wheeler and Wilson sewing machines, Wheeler’s thresher machine, axe handles and tools, cases of silver plate, toys, pianos and organs, carriages and Yankee notions. The Eric the Red left New York under the command of Captain Z. Allen (or some records say Captain Jacques Allen) and 24 other crew including the owner’s son third mate Ned Sewall. There were 2 saloon passengers also. The ship had been sailing for an uneventful 85 days and the voyage was almost at its end. On 4th September 1880 the Eric the Red approached Cape Otway with a moderate north-west wind and hazy and overcast atmosphere. Around 1:30am Captain Allen sighted the Cape Otway light and was keeping the ship 5-6 miles offshore to stay clear of the hazardous Otway Reef. However he had badly misjudged his position. The ship hit the Otway Reef about 2 miles out to sea, south west of the Cape Otway light station. He ordered the wheel to be put ‘hard up’ thinking that she might float off the reef. A heavy sea knocked the man away from the wheel, broke the wheel ropes and carried away the rudder. The sea swamped the lifeboats. The mizzenmast fell, with all of its rigging, then the mainmast also fell and the ship broke in two. Some said that the passenger Vaughan, who was travelling for his health and not very strong, was washed overboard and never seen again. The ship started breaking up. The forward house came adrift with three of the crew on it as well as a longboat, which the men succeeded in launching and keeping afloat by continually bailing with their sea boots. The captain, the third mate (the owner’s son) and others clung to the mizzenmast in the sea. Then the owner’s son was washed away off the mast. Within 10 minutes the rest of the ship was in pieces, completely wrecked, with cargo and wreckage floating in the sea. The captain encouraged the second mate to swim with him to the deckhouse where there were other crew but the second mate wouldn’t go with him. Eventually the Captain made it to the deckhouse and the men pulled him up. At about 4:30am the group of men on the deckhouse saw the lights of a steamer and called for help. At the same time they noticed the second mate and the other man had drifted nearby, still on the spur, and pulled them both onto the wreck. The coastal steamer Dawn was returning to Warrnambool from Melbourne, its sailing time different to its usual schedule. Captain Jones sent out two life boats, and fired off rockets and blue lights to illuminate the area. They picked up the three survivors who were in the long boat from Eric the Red. Two men were picked up out of the water, one being the owner’s son who was clinging to floating kerosene boxes. At daylight the Dawn then rescued the 18 men from the floating portion of the deckhouse, which had drifted about 4 miles from where they’d struck the reef. Shortly after the rescue the deckhouse drifted onto breakers and was thrown onto rocks at Point Franklin, about 2 miles east of Cape Otway. Captain Jones had signalled to Cape Otway lighthouse the number of the Eric the Red and later signalled that there was a wreck at Otway Reef but there was no response from the lighthouse. The captain and crew of the Dawn spent several more hours searching unsuccessfully for more survivors, even going back as far as Apollo Bay. On board the Dawn the exhausted men received care and attention to their needs and wants, including much needed clothing. Captain Allen was amongst the 23 battered and injured men who were rescued and later taken to Warrnambool for care. Warrnambool’s mayor and town clerk offered them all hospitality, the three badly injured men going to the hospital for care and others to the Olive Branch Hotel, then on to Melbourne. Captain Allen’s leg injury prevented him from going ashore so he and three other men travelled on the Dawn to Portland. They were met by the mayor who also treated them all with great kindness. Captain Allen took the train back to Melbourne then returned to America. Those saved were Captain Z. Allen (or Jacques Allen), J. Darcy chief mate, James F. Lawrence second mate, Ned Sewall third mate and owner’s son, John French the cook, C. Nelson sail maker, Clarence W. New passenger, and the able seamen Dickenson, J. Black, Denis White, C. Herbert, C. Thompson, A. Brooks, D. Wilson, J. Ellis, Q. Thompson, C. Newman, W. Paul, J. Davis, M. Horenleng, J. Ogduff, T. W. Drew, R. Richardson. Four men had lost their lives; three of them were crew (Gus Dahlgreen ship’s carpenter, H. Ackman steward, who drowned in his cabin, and George Silver seaman) and one a passenger (J. B. Vaughan). The body of one of them had been found washed up at Cape Otway and was later buried in the lighthouse cemetery; another body was seen on an inaccessible ledge. Twelve months later the second mate James F. Lawrence, from Nova Scotia, passed away in the Warrnambool district; an obituary was displayed in the local paper. The captain and crew of the Dawn were recognised by the United States Government in July 1881 for their humane efforts, being thanked and presented with substantial monetary rewards, medals and gifts. Neither the ship, nor its cargo, was insured. The ship was worth about £15,000 and the cargo was reportedly worth £40,000; only about £2,000 worth had been recovered. Cargo and wreckage washed up at Apollo Bay, Peterborough, Port Campbell, Western Port and according to some reports, even as far away as the beaches of New Zealand. The day after the wreck the government steam ship Pharos was sent from Queenscliff to clear the shipping lanes of debris that could be a danger to ships. The large midship deckhouse of the ship was found floating in a calm sea near Henty Reef. Items such as an American chair, a ladder and a nest of boxes were all on top of the deckhouse. As it was so large and could cause danger to passing ships, Captain Payne had the deckhouse towed towards the shore just beyond Apollo Bay. Between Apollo Bay and Blanket Bay the captain and crew of Pharos collected Wheeler and Wilson sewing machines, nests of boxes, bottles of Bristol’s sarsaparilla, pieces of common American chairs, axe handles, a Wheelers’ Patent thresher and a sailor’s trunk with the words “A. James” on the front. A ship’s flag-board bearing the words “Eric the Red” was found on the deckhouse; finally those on board the Pharos had the name of the wrecked vessel. During this operation Pharos came across the government steamer Victoria and also a steamer S.S. Otway, both of which were picking up flotsam and wreckage. A whole side of the hull and three large pieces of the other side of the hull, with some of the copper sheathing stripped off, had floated on to Point Franklin. Some of the vessels yards and portions of her masts were on shore. The pieces of canvas attached to the yards and masts confirmed that the vessel had been under sail. The beach there was piled with debris several feet high. There were many cases of Diamond Oil kerosene, labelled R. W. Cameron and Company, New York. There were also many large planks of red pine, portions of a small white boat and a large, well-used oar. Other items found ashore included sewing machines (some consigned to ‘Long and Co.”) and notions, axe and scythe handles, hay forks, wooden pegs, rolls of wire (some branded “T.S” and Co, Melbourne”), kegs of nails branded “A.T. and Co.” from the factory of A. Field and Son, Taunton, Massachusetts, croquet balls and mallets, buggy fittings, rat traps, perfumery, cutlery and Douay Bibles, clocks, bicycles, chairs, a fly wheel, a cooking stove, timber, boxes, pianos, organs and a ladder. (Wooden clothes pegs drifted in for many years). There seemed to be no personal luggage or clothing. The Pharos encountered a long line, about one and a half miles, of floating wreckage about 10 miles off land, south east of Cape Otway, and in some places about 40 feet wide. It seemed that more than half of it was from Eric the Red. The ship’s crew rescued 3 cases that were for the Melbourne Exhibition and other items from amongst the debris. There were also chairs, doors, musical instruments, washing boards, nests of trunks and fly catchers floating in the sea. Most of the goods were saturated and smelt of kerosene. A section of the hull lies buried in the sand at Parker River Beach. An anchor with chain is embedded in the rocks east of Point Franklin and a second anchor, thought to be from Eric the Red, is on display at the Cape Otway light station. (There is a photograph of a life belt on the verandah of Rivernook Guest House in Princetown with the words “ERIC THE RED / BOSTON”. This is rather a mystery as the ship was registered in Bath, Maine, USA.) Parts of the ship are on display at Bimbi Park Caravan Park and at Apollo Bay Museum. Flagstaff Hill Maritime Village also has part of the helm (steering wheel), a carved wooden sword (said to be the only remaining portion of the ship’s figurehead; further research is currently being carried out), a door, a metal rod and samples of wood. Much of the wreckage was recovered by the local residents before police and other authorities arrived at the scene. Looters went to great effort to salvage goods, being lowered down the high cliff faces to areas with little or no beach to collect items from the wreckage, their mates above watching out for dangerous waves. A Tasmanian newspaper reports on a court case in Stawell, Victoria, noting a man who was caught 2 months later selling tobacco from the wreckage of Eric the Red. Some of the silverware is still treasured by descendants of Mr Mackenzie who was given these items by officials for his help in securing the cargo. The gifts included silver coffee and tea pots, half a dozen silver serviette rings and two sewing machines. The wreck and cargo were sold to a Melbourne man who salvaged a quantity of high quality tobacco and dental and surgical instruments. Timbers from the ship were salvaged and used in the construction of houses and sheds around Apollo Bay, including a guest house, Milford House (since burnt down in bushfires), which had furniture, fittings and timber on the dining room floor from the ship. A 39.7 foot long trading ketch, the Apollo, was also built from its timbers by Mr Burgess in 1883 and subsequently used in Tasmanian waters. It was the first attempt at ship building in Apollo bay. In 1881 a red light was installed about 300 feet above sea level at the base of the Cape Otway lighthouse to warn ships when they were too close to shore; It would not be visible unless a ship came within 3 miles from it. This has proved to be an effective warning. The State Library of Victoria has a lithograph in its collection depicting the steamer Dawn and the shipwrecked men, titled. "Wreck of the ship Eric the Red, Cape Otway: rescue of the crew by the Dawn". “The Eric the Red is historically significant as one of Victoria's major 19th century shipwrecks. (Heritage Victoria Eric the Red; HV ID 239) The wreck led to the provision of an additional warning light placed below the Cape Otway lighthouse to alert mariners to the location of Otway Reef. The site is archaeologically significant for its remains of a large and varied cargo and ship's fittings being scattered over a wide area. The site is recreationally and aesthetically significant as it is one of the few sites along this coast where tourists can visit identifiable remains of a large wooden shipwreck, and for its location set against the background of Cape Otway, Bass Strait, and the Cape Otway lighthouse.“ (Victorian Heritage Database Registration Number S239, Official Number 8745 USA) Door from the wreck of the ship Eric the Red. The wooden singular rectangular door includes three insert panel sections. The top section is square shaped and is missing its panel or glass. The centre timber panel is about a third of the height of the top panel and the bottom timber panel is approximately equal in height to the total height of the two upper panels. The door fastenings include both a metal door latch and traditional door bolt. They are both attached to the front right hand side of the door. The bolt is just below the top panel, and the door latch is in approximately the centre of that side. The door latch has a round mark where a handle could have been attached. The wood of the door has scraping marks in a semi-circle around the door latch where the latch has swung around on its one remaining fastening and grazed the surface. There is a metal hinge at the top section of the door on the opposite side to the latch. The painted surface has been scraped back to expose the wood. The door is shorter than the average height of a person. On the reverse of the door there are lines on the panels, just inside their edges, is what appears to be pencil. The door is not aligned straight but is skew to centre.warrnambool, flagstaff hill, flagstaff hill maritime village, maritime museum, shipwreck coast, great ocean road, shipwreck artefact, eric the red, jaques allen, sewall, 1880, melbourne exhibition 1880, cape otway, otway reef, victorian shipwreck, bass strait, eric-the-red, door

This medal for bravery, for rescue of the crew from the shipwreck “Eric the Red” on 4th September 1880, was awarded to one of the crew of the steamer S.S. Dawn by the President of the United States in July 1881. The medal is engraved with the name “Nelson Johnson” (the anglicised version of his Swedish name Neils Frederick Yohnson). It was donated to Flagstaff Hill Maritime Village in 2013 by Nelson’s granddaughter. Nelson had migrated from Sweden to Sydney in 1879. The next year in 1880, aged 24, he was a seaman on the steamship Dawn and involved in the rescue of the survivors of the Eric the Red. Nelson Johnson was a crew member of the S.S. Dawn and was one of the rescue team in the dinghy in the early morning of September 4th 1880. Medals were awarded to the Captain and crew of the S.S. Dawn by the President of the United States, through the Consul-general (Mr Oliver M. Spencer), in July 1881 “ … in recognition of their humane efforts in rescuing the 23 survivors of the American built wooden sailing ship, the Eric the Red, on 4th September 1880.” The men were also presented with substantial monetary rewards and gifts. The city of Warrnambool’s care of the survivors was also mentioned by the President at the presentation, saying that “the city hosted and supported the crew ‘most graciously’. Previously, a week after the shipwreck, the Australian Government had also conveyed its thanks to the Captain and crew of the S.S. Dawn “Captain Griffith Jones, S.S. Dawn, The Hon. Mr Clark desires that the thanks of the Government should be conveyed to you for the prompt, persevering and seamanlike qualities displayed by you, your officers and crew in saving the number of lives you did on the occasion referred to. The hon. The Commissioner has also been pleased to award you a souvenir in commemoration of the occasion, and a sum of 65 pounds to be awarded to your officers and crew according to annexed scale. I am, &c, W Collins Rees, for and in the absence of the Chief Harbour Master.” The Awards are as follows: - Crew of DAWN'S lifeboat-Chief Officer, Mr G. Peat, 15 pounds; boat's crew-G. Sterge, A.B., 5 pounds; T. Hammond, A.B., 5 pounds; J. Black, A.B., 5 pounds; H. Edwards, A.B., 5 pounds. Dinghy's Crew-Second Officer, Mr Christie, 10 pounds; boat's crew -F. Lafer, A.B., 5 pounds; W. Johnstone, A.B., 5 pounds; Mr Lear, provedore, 5 pounds; Mr Dove, purser, 5 pounds. Captain Jones receives a piece of plate. (from “Wreck of the ship Eric the Red” by Jack Loney) The medal’s history, according to the Editor of ‘E-Sylum’ (the newsletter of The Numismatic Bibliomania Society “… appears to be an example of an 1880 State Department medal, catalogued as LS-3 (page 322 of R. W. Julian's book, Medals of the United States Mint: The First Century 1792-1892). The reverse is mostly blank for engraving, surrounded by a thin wreath. It was designed by George Morgan, chief engraver for the Philadelphia Mint, and struck in gold, silver and bronze. The one pictured here (in The Standard newspaper, 2nd July 2013) appears to be silver.” The following is an account of the events which led to the awarding of this medal. The American ship Eric the Red was a wooden, three-masted clipper ship. She had 1,580 tons register and was the largest full-rigged ship built at Bath, Maine, USA in 1871. She was built and registered by Arthur Sewall, later to become the partnership E. & A. Sewall, the 51st ship built by this company. The annually-published List of Merchant Vessels of the U.S. shows Bath was still the home port of Eric the Red in 1880. The vessel was named after the Viking discoverer, Eric ‘the Red-haired’ Thorvaldsson, who was the first European to reach the shores of North America (in 980AD). The ship Eric the Red at first traded in coal between America and Britain, and later traded in guano nitrates from South America. In 1879 she was re-metalled and was in first-class condition. On 10th June 1880 (some records say 12th June) Eric the Red departed New York for Melbourne and then Sydney. She had been commissioned by American trade representatives to carry a special cargo of 500 exhibits (1400 tons) – about a quarter to a third of America’s total exhibits - for the U.S.A. pavilion at Melbourne’s first International Exhibition. The exhibits included furniture, ironmongery, wines, chemicals, dental and surgical instruments, paper, cages, bronze lamp trimmings, axles, stamped ware, astronomical and time globes, samples of corn and the choicest of leaf tobacco. Other general cargo included merchandise such as cases of kerosene and turpentine, brooms, Bristol's Sarsaparilla, Wheeler and Wilson sewing machines, Wheeler’s thresher machine, axe handles and tools, cases of silver plate, toys, pianos and organs, carriages and Yankee notions. The Eric the Red left New York under the command of Captain Zaccheus Allen (or some records say Captain Jacques Allen) and 24 other crew including the owner’s son third mate Ned Sewall. There were also 2 saloon passengers on board. The ship had been sailing for an uneventful 85 days and the voyage was almost at its end. As Eric the Red approached Cape Otway there was a moderate north-west wind and a hazy and overcast atmosphere. On 4th September 1880 at about 1:30 am Captain Allen sighted the Cape Otway light and was keeping the ship 5-6 miles offshore to stay clear of the hazardous Otway Reef. However, he had badly misjudged his position. The ship hit the Otway Reef about 2 miles out to sea, southwest of the Cape Otway light station. Captain Allen ordered the wheel to be put ‘hard up’ thinking that she might float off the reef. The sea knocked the helmsman away from the wheel, broke the wheel ropes and carried away the rudder. The lifeboats were swamped, the mizzenmast fell, with all of its riggings, then the mainmast also fell and the ship broke in two. Some said that the passenger Vaughan, who was travelling for his health and not very strong, was washed overboard and never seen again. The ship started breaking up. The forward house came adrift with three of the crew on it as well as a longboat, which the men succeeded in launching and keeping afloat by continually bailing with their sea boots. The captain, the third mate (the owner’s son) and others clung to the mizzenmast in the sea. Then the owner’s son was washed away off the mast. Within 10 minutes the rest of the ship was in pieces, completely wrecked, with cargo and wreckage floating in the sea. The captain encouraged the second mate to swim with him to the deckhouse where there were other crew but the second mate wouldn’t go with him. Eventually, the Captain made it to the deckhouse and the men pulled him up. At about 4:30 am the group of men on the deckhouse saw the lights of a steamer and called for help. At the same time, they noticed the second mate and the other man had drifted nearby, still on the spur, and pulled them both onto the wreck. The coastal steamer SS Dawn was returning to Warrnambool from Melbourne, and its sailing time was different to its usual schedule. She was built in 1876 and bought by the Portland and Belfast Steam Navigation Co. in 1877. At the time of this journey, she was commanded by Captain Jones and was sailing between Melbourne and Portland via Warrnambool. The provedore the Dawn, Benjamin Lear, heard cries of distress coming through the portholes of the saloon. He gave the alarm and the engines were stopped. Cries could be heard clearly, coming from the land. Captain Jones sent out crew in two boats and fired off rockets and blue lights to illuminate the area. They picked up the three survivors who were in the long boat from Eric the Red. Two men were picked up out of the water, one being the owner’s son who was clinging to floating kerosene boxes. At daylight, the Dawn then rescued the 18 men from the floating portion of the deckhouse, which had drifted about 4 miles from where they’d struck the reef. Shortly after the rescue the deckhouse drifted onto breakers and was thrown onto rocks at Point Franklin, about 2 miles east of Cape Otway. Captain Jones had signalled to Cape Otway lighthouse the number of the Eric the Red and later signalled that there was a wreck at Otway Reef but there was no response from the lighthouse. The captain and crew of the Dawn spent several more hours searching unsuccessfully for more survivors, even going back as far as Apollo Bay. On board the Dawn the exhausted men received care and attention to their needs and wants, including much-needed clothing. Captain Allen was amongst the 23 battered and injured men who were rescued and later taken to Warrnambool for care. Warrnambool’s mayor and town clerk offered them all hospitality, the three badly injured men going to the hospital for care and others to the Olive Branch Hotel, then on to Melbourne. Captain Allen’s leg injury prevented him from going ashore so he and three other men travelled on the Dawn to Portland. They were met by the mayor who also treated them all with great kindness. Captain Allen took the train back to Melbourne then returned to America. Those saved were Captain Zaccheus Allen (or Jacques Allen), J. Darcy chief mate, James F. Lawrence second mate, Ned Sewall third mate and owner’s son, John French the cook, C. Nelson sail maker, Clarence W. New passenger, and able seamen Dickenson, J. Black, Denis White, C. Herbert, C. Thompson, A. Brooks, D. Wilson, J. Ellis, Q. Thompson, C. Newman, W. Paul, J. Davis, M. Horenleng, J. Ogduff, T. W. Drew, R. Richardson. Four men had lost their lives; three of them were crew (Gus Dahlgreen ship’s carpenter, H. Ackman steward, who drowned in his cabin, and George Silver seaman) and one a passenger (J. B. Vaughan). The body of one of them had been found washed up at Cape Otway and was later buried in the lighthouse cemetery; another body was seen on an inaccessible ledge. Twelve months later the second mate James F. Lawrence, from Nova Scotia passed away in the Warrnambool district; an obituary was displayed in the local paper. Neither the ship nor its cargo was insured. The ship was worth about £15,000 and the cargo was reportedly worth £40,000; only about £2,000 worth had been recovered. Cargo and wreckage washed up at Apollo Bay, Peterborough, Port Campbell, Western Port and according to some reports, even as far away as the beaches of New Zealand. The day after the wreck the government steamship Pharos was sent from Queenscliff to clear the shipping lanes of debris that could be a danger to ships. The large midship deckhouse of the ship was found floating in a calm sea near Henty Reef. Items such as an American chair, a ladder and a nest of boxes were all on top of the deckhouse. As it was so large and could cause danger to passing ships, Captain Payne had the deckhouse towed towards the shore just beyond Apollo Bay. Between Apollo Bay and Blanket Bay, the captain and crew of Pharos collected Wheeler and Wilson sewing machines, nests of boxes, bottles of Bristol’s sarsaparilla, pieces of common American chairs, axe handles, a Wheelers’ Patent thresher and a sailor’s trunk with the words “A. James” on the front. A ship’s flag-board bearing the words “Eric the Red” was found on the deckhouse; finally, those on board the Pharos had the name of the wrecked vessel. During this operation, Pharos came across the government steamer Victoria and also a steamer S.S. Otway, both of which were picking up flotsam and wreckage. A whole side of the hull and three large pieces of the other side of the hull, with some of the copper sheathing stripped off, had floated onto Point Franklin. Some of the vessels' yards and portions of her masts were on shore. The pieces of canvas attached to the yards and masts confirmed that the vessel had been under sail. The beach there was piled with debris several feet high. There were many cases of Diamond Oil kerosene, labelled R. W. Cameron and Company, New York. There were also many large planks of red pine, portions of a small white boat and a large, well-used oar. Other items found ashore included sewing machines (some consigned to ‘Long and Co.”) and notions, axe and scythe handles, hay forks, wooden pegs, rolls of wire (some branded “T.S” and Co, Melbourne”), kegs of nails branded “A.T. and Co.” from the factory of A. Field and Son, Taunton, Massachusetts, croquet balls and mallets, buggy fittings, rat traps, perfumery, cutlery and Douay Bibles, clocks, bicycles, chairs, a fly wheel, a cooking stove, timber, boxes, pianos, organs and a ladder. (Wooden clothes pegs drifted in for many years). There seemed to be no personal luggage or clothing. The Pharos encountered a long line, about one and a half miles, of f locating wreckage about 10 miles off land, southeast of Cape Otway, and in some places about 40 feet wide. It seemed that more than half of it was from Eric the Red. The ship’s crew rescued 3 cases that were for the Melbourne Exhibition and other items from amongst the debris. There were also chairs, doors, musical instruments, washing boards, nests of trunks and flycatchers floating in the sea. Most of the goods were saturated and smelt of kerosene. A section of the hull lies buried in the sand at Parker River Beach. An anchor with a chain is embedded in the rocks east of Point Franklin and a second anchor, thought to be from Eric the Red, is on display at the Cape Otway light station. (There is a photograph of a life belt on the verandah of Rivernook Guest House in Princetown with the words “ERIC THE RED / BOSTON”. This is rather a mystery as the ship was registered in Bath, Maine, USA.) Parts of the ship are on display at Bimbi Park Caravan Park and at Apollo Bay Museum. Flagstaff Hill Maritime Village also has part of the helm (steering wheel), a carved wooden sword (said to be the only remaining portion of the ship’s figurehead; further research is currently being carried out), a door, a metal rod, samples of wood and this medal awarded for the rescue of the crew. Much of the wreckage was recovered by the local residents before police and other authorities arrived at the scene. Looters went to great effort to salvage goods, being lowered down the high cliff faces to areas with little or no beach to collect items from the wreckage, their mates above watching out for dangerous waves. A Tasmanian newspaper reports on a court case in Stawell, Victoria, noting a man who was caught 2 months later selling tobacco from the wreckage of Eric the Red. Some of the silverware is still treasured by descendants of Mr Mackenzie who was given these items by officials for his help in securing the cargo. The gifts included silver coffee and teapots, half a dozen silver serviette rings and two sewing machines. A Mr G.W. Black has in his possession a medal and a purse that was awarded to his father, another Dawn crew member who was part of the rescue team. The medal is similarly inscribed and named “To John Black ….” (from “Shipwrecks” by Margaret E. Mackenzie, 3rd edition, published 1964). The wreck and cargo were sold to a Melbourne man who salvaged a quantity of high-quality tobacco and dental and surgical instruments. Timbers from the ship were salvaged and used in the construction of houses and shed around Apollo Bay, including a guest house, Milford House (since burnt down in bushfires), which had furniture, fittings and timber on the dining room floor from the ship. A 39.7-foot-long trading ketch, the Apollo, was also built from its timbers by Mr Burgess in 1883 and subsequently used in Tasmanian waters. It was the first attempt at shipbuilding in Apollo Bay. In 1881 a red light was installed about 300 feet above sea level at the base of the Cape Otway lighthouse to warn ships when they were too close to shore; It would not be visible unless a ship came within 3 miles from it. This has proved to be an effective warning. Nelson Johnson married Elizabeth Howard in 1881 and they had 10 children, the father of the medal’s donor being the youngest. They lived in 13 Tichbourne Place, South Melbourne, Victoria. Nelson died in 1922 in Fitzroy Victoria, age 66. In 1895 the owners of the S.S. Dawn, the Portland and Belfast Steam Navigation Co., wound up and sold out to the Belfast Company who took over the Dawn for one year before selling her to Howard Smith. She was condemned and sunk in Suva in 1928. The State Library of Victoria has a lithograph in its collection depicting the steamer Dawn and the shipwrecked men, titled. "Wreck of the ship Eric the Red, Cape Otway: rescue of the crew by the Dawn". The medal for bravery is associated with the ship the “The Eric the Red which is historically significant as one of Victoria's major 19th century shipwrecks. (Heritage Victoria Eric the Red; HV ID 239) The wreck led to the provision of an additional warning light placed below the Cape Otway lighthouse to alert mariners to the location of Otway Reef. The site is archaeologically significant for its remains of a large and varied cargo and ship's fittings being scattered over a wide area. The site is recreationally and aesthetically significant as it is one of the few sites along this coast where tourists can visit identifiable remains of a large wooden shipwreck, and for its location set against the background of Cape Otway, Bass Strait, and the Cape Otway lighthouse.“ (Victorian Heritage Database Registration Number S239, Official Number 8745 USA) This medal was awarded to Nelson Johnson by the U.S. President for bravery in the rescue of the Eric the Red crew. The obverse of the round, solid silver medal has an inscription around the rim. In the centre of the medal is the head of Liberty to the left, hair in a bun, with a sprig of leaves in the top left of a band around her head. There is a 6-pointed star below the portrait, between the start and end of the inscription. There are two raised areas on the rim, horizontally opposite each other, from the edge to just below the lettering and coinciding with the holes drilled in the edge. Slightly right of the top is a round indentation in the rim. The reverse has a wreath of leaves as a border, joined at the bottom by a ribbon bow. In the centre of the medal is an inscription, decorated with 3-pronged design and dots. The edge is plain with 2 small, rough and uneven holes horizontally opposite to each other, as though they had been used for mounting the medal at some stage. The medal has a matte finish on both sides and is slightly pitted and scratched.“PRESENTED BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES” around the perimeter of the obverse of the medal. “TO / Nelson Johnson, / seaman of the British, / str “Dawn”, for bravery, / at risk of life, / in / rescuing the crew of / the American Ship / “Eric the Red.” “M” on obverse, truncation of the portraitwarrnambool, flagstaff hill, flagstaff hill maritime village, maritime museum, shipwreck coast, great ocean road, shipwreck artefact, eric the red, zaccheus allen, sewall, 1880, melbourne exhibition, cape otway, otway reef, victorian shipwreck, medal, nelson johnson, neils frederick yohnson, s.s. dawn, george morgan, hero

Bail Elevator loading hay bales from truck c1955Truck and machinery stacking rectangular Straw Hay BalesF W Moodie, North Plains, Stawellfarming, harvesting