Rev. William Reuben Lewis (1818-1871) was Chairman of Congregational Church of Victoria, 1865-1866.Sepia toned studio portrait of a seated Rev. William Reuben Lewis who is sitting at table with his legs crossed and holding a book. He is looking at the camera. The photograph is mounted on what is scrap card.Handwritten on the back: "W R Lewis"william reuben lewis, chairman congregational church victoria, congregational minister

Robert Cochrane, 1843 - 1935, regarded as the "father" of Congregationalism in Victoria was chairman of directors of Brooks Robinson Pty. Ltd.. and one of the leading personalities of the Congregational Union of Victoria. After having spent two years in Victoria as a member of Brooks Robinson Pty., Ltd., Mr. Cochrane returned to England in 1869. In 1883, he returned to Melbourne. On His return to Victoria he became interested in the work of the Congregational Church, and joined the Augustine Church, at Hawthorn in 1886; he was senior deacon when he died. For many years Mr. Cochrane was a senior member of the committee of the Congregational College of Victoria, and he took a leading part in the development of Congregationalism in this Victoria. Many benefited by his generosity and philanthropy, and his interest in the work of the church was combined with a generous assistance to child welfare organisations, including the Sunday School Union, the Kindergarten Union and the Boys Brigade. [Source: The Argus 4 Mar 1935, pg 8.]Silver plated brass double handle, lidded art nouveau-style sugar bowl with engraving on the front of the bowl."To Mr and Mrs Robert Cochrane A token of high esteem on the occasion of their Golden Wedding 1871 January 31st 1921 From the Firm of Henry Brooks & Company, with whom are associated two senior members from the London Staff Henry Aldridge and Walter Wiles"congregational union of victoria, brooks robinson pty ltd, melbourne chamber of commerce., robert cochrane 1843-1935

The Congregational Union of Victoria (Incorporated) held its Half-Yearly Assembly from 4th October 12th October, 1937 at Collins Street Independent Church and the Melbourne Town Hall. The Chairman was Rev. Walter Albiston. A Youth Work Exhibition was held in the Independent Hall from Tuesday 8th, to Friday, 11th October.Four page booklet with black ink text. There is a line drawing on the front and three illustrations inside. congregational union of victoria (incorporated), rev walter albiston

John (Jock) Corben Lavender Jock was born in Ivanhoe, but spent most of his youth in Northcote where his father was a bank manager, and where he attended primary school, high school and the Methodist church in High Street which became a central point in his life. He took his first job in the dispatch office at McPhersons nut and bolt factory in North Richmond in 1935. After a short time at McPhersons he moved to the Trustees Executors and Agency Company in 1936. While working at the Trustees Jock developed the conviction that his vocation lay with the church. This necessitated studying Matriculation at night school for two years as well as working and studying to become a Local Preacher. The minister at Northcote at the time was the Rev.F.T.Cleverdon who helped him prepare to apply as a candidate for Ordination. Before going to university and Queen’s for his arts degree and theological training, Mr Cleverdon, who was now the minister at Neil Street, Ballarat, offered Jock the opportunity to minister to the small congregation at Brown Hill, Ballarat, which was in his Circuit, and to live with the Cleverdons. He spent a year in Ballarat under the tutelage of Rev.F.T Cleverdon in 1939. Jock was accepted by the 1940 Victorian Methodist Conference as a Candidate for the Ministry and started his studies for his theological training and an arts degree at Melbourne University that year. Because of a shortage of ministers, due to the war, Jock was taken out of Queen’s in 1943 to take charge of two fairly small churches in Caulfield - Hawthorn Road and Bambra Road. Jock was ordained in 1945 & married two days later to Elsie Chipperfield, with whom he had worked at the Trustees Executors and Agency. He had joined the RAAF as a chaplain and was sent to Borneo. Returning to Australia in early 1946, he was then appointed to Orbost for a year, Bracknell in Tasmania in 1948, followed by Reid in Canberra, 1951. The next move was to Portland in 1954. Unfortunately not long after this, Elsie was diagnosed with breast cancer. This necessitated a move back to Melbourne - to Mitcham in 1957. Elsie died in December 1957. This period was a very hard time as Jock had four young daughters but his mother helped out by living in for most of the week until Jock was married to Peg in 1959 and their son was born in 1961. In 1964 Jock was moved to Launceston, his first city church. These years were challenging for Jock as he felt compelled to speak out around social issues, such as the Vietnam War & Aboriginal rights, although many did not agree with his view. In 1969 Jock was moved to Horsham to take up the role of Separated Chairman of the North-Western District responsible for Circuits, ministers and families for policy issues and pastoral concerns over an area from the South Australian border, up to the Murray and over it to Wentworth and Dareton, up river to Swan Hill and south to Ballarat and Daylesford. It was a demanding job but richly rewarding in the relationships made with ministers and their families. In 1971 Jock was elected Secretary of the Methodist Conference and in 1972 was voted President of the Conference. He felt it an honour and a vote of confidence by clergy and lay people The final move was to Geelong in 1976 where Jock was the minister at Wesley until 1983.Jock found Geelong a very satisfying parish in which to finish his active ministry. It was while he was Minister of Wesley Church, Geelong, that the Uniting Church came into being and Jock became the first Chairman of the Barwon Presbytery. There were now two ministers at Wesley – Jock and Alex Peerman, whose joint congregation of St. Giles (Pres) and City Congregational now joined with Wesley to become the City Parish. Jock was very surprised to be elected as the third Moderator of the Uniting Church in Victoria, to take office in 1979/1980 1983 saw retirement to Portarlington several months’ locum in both Canada & Kununurra. When the property at Portarlington became too large to maintain, they moved in 1994 into the current house in Belmont & returned to the Wesley Church here. In the words of Rev. Prof. Norman Young and Rev. Peter Gador-Whyte at Jock’s funeral service: “We are here today to give thanks to God for Jock Lavender; a gentle man of great compassion, humour and humility. We gather to remember the love he shared so generously the faith he lived so graciously, and the hope he expressed both in his preaching and in his presence. As President of the Methodist Conference and Moderator of the Uniting Church Jock held significant leadership roles within the church and did so with great dignity and grace never lording it over people but leading by example with an inner strength and faith that won respect and trust. There was something really special about him that is hard to put your finger on. We have all been blessed by God through Jock. Mr Alexander Kilgour Alex Kilgour was for many years an active elder and layman in the Presbyterian and then Uniting Church. He was involved in many committees at Synod level for many years. He was a Moderator of the Synod of Victoria of the UCA—one of the first laypeople to take on the role in the early years of the UCA. He was for many years Executive Director of the Resources Commission of the Synod. He worked at Mitchell Brushes (the company owned by Ethel and John Mitchell. B&W photograph. The Rev. John C (Jock) Lavender and Mr Alex Kilgour, dressed in shirts, are standing shoulder to shoulder, facing the camera.C&N 19/3/1986rev. jock lavender; mr alex kilgour; methodist, presbyterian, uniting church; synod appointments; moderator

JOHN CORBEN LAVENDER (Jock) Jock was born in Ivanhoe, but spent most of his youth in Northcote where his father was a bank manager, and where he attended primary school, high school and the Methodist church in High Street which became a central point in his life. He took his first job in the dispatch office at McPhersons nut and bolt factory in North Richmond in 1935. After a short time at McPhersons he moved to the Trustees Executors and Agency Company in 1936. While working at the Trustees Jock developed the conviction that his vocation lay with the church. This necessitated studying Matriculation at night school for two years as well as working and studying to become a Local Preacher. The minister at Northcote at the time was the Rev.F.T.Cleverdon who helped him prepare to apply as a candidate for Ordination. Before going to university and Queen’s for his arts degree and theological training, Mr Cleverdon, who was now the minister at Neil Street, Ballarat, offered Jock the opportunity to minister to the small congregation at Brown Hill, Ballarat, which was in his Circuit, and to live with the Cleverdons. He spent a year in Ballarat under the tutelage of Rev.F.T Cleverdon in 1939. Jock was accepted by the 1940 Victorian Methodist Conference as a Candidate for the Ministry and started his studies for his theological training and an arts degree at Melbourne University that year. Because of a shortage of ministers, due to the war, Jock was taken out of Queen’s in 1943 to take charge of two fairly small churches in Caulfield - Hawthorn Road and Bambra Road. Jock was ordained in 1945 & married two days later to Elsie Chipperfield, with whom he had worked at the Trustees Executors and Agency. He had joined the RAAF as a chaplain and was sent to Borneo. Returning to Australia in early 1946, he was then appointed to Orbost for a year, Bracknell in Tasmania in 1948, followed by Reid in Canberra, 1951. The next move was to Portland in 1954. Unfortunately not long after this, Elsie was diagnosed with breast cancer. This necessitated a move back to Melbourne - to Mitcham in 1957. Elsie died in December 1957. This period was a very hard time as Jock had four young daughters but his mother helped out by living in for most of the week until Jock was married to Peg in 1959 and their son was born in 1961. In 1964 Jock was moved to Launceston, his first city church. These years were challenging for Jock as he felt compelled to speak out around social issues, such as the Vietnam War & Aboriginal rights, although many did not agree with his view. In 1969 Jock was moved to Horsham to take up the role of Separated Chairman of the North-Western District responsible for Circuits, ministers and families for policy issues and pastoral concerns over an area from the South Australian border, up to the Murray and over it to Wentworth and Dareton, up river to Swan Hill and south to Ballarat and Daylesford. It was a demanding job but richly rewarding in the relationships made with ministers and their families. In 1971 Jock was elected Secretary of the Methodist Conference and in 1972 was voted President of the Conference. He felt it an honour and a vote of confidence by clergy and lay people The final move was to Geelong in 1976 where Jock was the minister at Wesley until 1983.Jock found Geelong a very satisfying parish in which to finish his active ministry. It was while he was Minister of Wesley Church, Geelong, that the Uniting Church came into being and Jock became the first Chairman of the Barwon Presbytery. There were now two ministers at Wesley – Jock and Alex Peerman, whose joint congregation of St. Giles (Pres) and City Congregational now joined with Wesley to become the City Parish. Jock was very surprised to be elected as the third Moderator of the Uniting Church in Victoria, to take office in 1979/1980 1983 saw retirement to Portarlington several months’ locum in both Canada & Kununurra. When the property at Portarlington became too large to maintain, they moved in 1994 into the current house in Belmont & returned to the Wesley Church here. Deceased c.2015. Rev. John (Jock) Lavender is pictured standing at a microphone, wearing clerical clothingRev. J C Lavenderrev. john (jock) lavender; methodist minister; uniting church minister;

JOHN CORBEN LAVENDER (Jock) Jock was born in Ivanhoe, but spent most of his youth in Northcote where his father was a bank manager, and where he attended primary school, high school and the Methodist church in High Street which became a central point in his life. He took his first job in the dispatch office at McPhersons nut and bolt factory in North Richmond in 1935. After a short time at McPhersons he moved to the Trustees Executors and Agency Company in 1936. While working at the Trustees Jock developed the conviction that his vocation lay with the church. This necessitated studying Matriculation at night school for two years as well as working and studying to become a Local Preacher. The minister at Northcote at the time was the Rev.F.T.Cleverdon who helped him prepare to apply as a candidate for Ordination. Before going to university and Queen’s for his arts degree and theological training, Mr Cleverdon, who was now the minister at Neil Street, Ballarat, offered Jock the opportunity to minister to the small congregation at Brown Hill, Ballarat, which was in his Circuit, and to live with the Cleverdons. He spent a year in Ballarat under the tutelage of Rev.F.T Cleverdon in 1939. Jock was accepted by the 1940 Victorian Methodist Conference as a Candidate for the Ministry and started his studies for his theological training and an arts degree at Melbourne University that year. Because of a shortage of ministers, due to the war, Jock was taken out of Queen’s in 1943 to take charge of two fairly small churches in Caulfield - Hawthorn Road and Bambra Road. Jock was ordained in 1945 & married two days later to Elsie Chipperfield, with whom he had worked at the Trustees Executors and Agency. He had joined the RAAF as a chaplain and was sent to Borneo. Returning to Australia in early 1946, he was then appointed to Orbost for a year, Bracknell in Tasmania in 1948, followed by Reid in Canberra, 1951. The next move was to Portland in 1954. Unfortunately not long after this, Elsie was diagnosed with breast cancer. This necessitated a move back to Melbourne - to Mitcham in 1957. Elsie died in December 1957. This period was a very hard time as Jock had four young daughters but his mother helped out by living in for most of the week until Jock was married to Peg in 1959 and their son was born in 1961. In 1964 Jock was moved to Launceston, his first city church. These years were challenging for Jock as he felt compelled to speak out around social issues, such as the Vietnam War & Aboriginal rights, although many did not agree with his view. In 1969 Jock was moved to Horsham to take up the role of Separated Chairman of the North-Western District responsible for Circuits, ministers and families for policy issues and pastoral concerns over an area from the South Australian border, up to the Murray and over it to Wentworth and Dareton, up river to Swan Hill and south to Ballarat and Daylesford. It was a demanding job but richly rewarding in the relationships made with ministers and their families. In 1971 Jock was elected Secretary of the Methodist Conference and in 1972 was voted President of the Conference. He felt it an honour and a vote of confidence by clergy and lay people The final move was to Geelong in 1976 where Jock was the minister at Wesley until 1983.Jock found Geelong a very satisfying parish in which to finish his active ministry. It was while he was Minister of Wesley Church, Geelong, that the Uniting Church came into being and Jock became the first Chairman of the Barwon Presbytery. There were now two ministers at Wesley – Jock and Alex Peerman, whose joint congregation of St. Giles (Pres) and City Congregational now joined with Wesley to become the City Parish. Jock was very surprised to be elected as the third Moderator of the Uniting Church in Victoria, to take office in 1979/1980 1983 saw retirement to Portarlington several months’ locum in both Canada & Kununurra. When the property at Portarlington became too large to maintain, they moved in 1994 into the current house in Belmont & returned to the Wesley Church Geelong.Head and shoulders portrait of the Rev. John (Jock) Lavender, wearing suit and tie.Jock Lavenderrev. john (jock) lavender; methodist minister; uniting church minister;

JOHN CORBEN LAVENDER (Jock) Jock was born in Ivanhoe, but spent most of his youth in Northcote where his father was a bank manager, and where he attended primary school, high school and the Methodist church in High Street which became a central point in his life. He took his first job in the dispatch office at McPhersons nut and bolt factory in North Richmond in 1935. After a short time at McPhersons he moved to the Trustees Executors and Agency Company in 1936. While working at the Trustees Jock developed the conviction that his vocation lay with the church. This necessitated studying Matriculation at night school for two years as well as working and studying to become a Local Preacher. The minister at Northcote at the time was the Rev.F.T.Cleverdon who helped him prepare to apply as a candidate for Ordination. Before going to university and Queen’s for his arts degree and theological training, Mr Cleverdon, who was now the minister at Neil Street, Ballarat, offered Jock the opportunity to minister to the small congregation at Brown Hill, Ballarat, which was in his Circuit, and to live with the Cleverdons. He spent a year in Ballarat under the tutelage of Rev.F.T Cleverdon in 1939. Jock was accepted by the 1940 Victorian Methodist Conference as a Candidate for the Ministry and started his studies for his theological training and an arts degree at Melbourne University that year. Because of a shortage of ministers, due to the war, Jock was taken out of Queen’s in 1943 to take charge of two fairly small churches in Caulfield - Hawthorn Road and Bambra Road. Jock was ordained in 1945 & married two days later to Elsie Chipperfield, with whom he had worked at the Trustees Executors and Agency. He had joined the RAAF as a chaplain and was sent to Borneo. Returning to Australia in early 1946, he was then appointed to Orbost for a year, Bracknell in Tasmania in 1948, followed by Reid in Canberra, 1951. The next move was to Portland in 1954. Unfortunately not long after this, Elsie was diagnosed with breast cancer. This necessitated a move back to Melbourne - to Mitcham in 1957. Elsie died in December 1957. This period was a very hard time as Jock had four young daughters but his mother helped out by living in for most of the week until Jock was married to Peg in 1959 and their son was born in 1961. In 1964 Jock was moved to Launceston, his first city church. These years were challenging for Jock as he felt compelled to speak out around social issues, such as the Vietnam War & Aboriginal rights, although many did not agree with his view. In 1969 Jock was moved to Horsham to take up the role of Separated Chairman of the North-Western District responsible for Circuits, ministers and families for policy issues and pastoral concerns over an area from the South Australian border, up to the Murray and over it to Wentworth and Dareton, up river to Swan Hill and south to Ballarat and Daylesford. It was a demanding job but richly rewarding in the relationships made with ministers and their families. In 1971 Jock was elected Secretary of the Methodist Conference and in 1972 was voted President of the Conference. He felt it an honour and a vote of confidence by clergy and lay people The final move was to Geelong in 1976 where Jock was the minister at Wesley until 1983.Jock found Geelong a very satisfying parish in which to finish his active ministry. It was while he was Minister of Wesley Church, Geelong, that the Uniting Church came into being and Jock became the first Chairman of the Barwon Presbytery. There were now two ministers at Wesley – Jock and Alex Peerman, whose joint congregation of St. Giles (Pres) and City Congregational now joined with Wesley to become the City Parish. Jock was very surprised to be elected as the third Moderator of the Uniting Church in Victoria, to take office in 1979/1980 1983 saw retirement to Portarlington several months’ locum in both Canada & Kununurra. When the property at Portarlington became too large to maintain, they moved in 1994 into the current house in Belmont & returned to the Wesley Church Geelong.Upper body photo of Rev. John (Jock) Lavender (Geelong) speaking at a lectern.Church & Nation 23/5/79, p. 5; Rev. Lavenderrev. john (jock) lavender; methodist minister; uniting church minister;

Dr Alexander Gosman: born 27/06/1829 at Crail, Fifeshire. Hon. D.D. from St. Andrew's, Scotland. Secretary of the Congregational Union of Victoria 1867 - 1868. Chairman of the Congregational Union of Victoria 1869 - 1870, 1883 - 1884, 1895 - 1896, 1904 - 1905. Chairman of the Congregational Union of Australia and New Zealand 1904 - 1907. Principal of the Victorian Congregational College. He was involved with the Anti-Sweating League 1895 - 1902. Died 15 January 1913.Copy of original B & W gloss studio portrait of the Rev Dr Alexander Gosman, dressed in academic robes, seated at a desk.Congregational Church minister. Original photograph by W Latimer of Fitzroy, copy by Ritter-Jeppesen of Melbourne.alexander gosman, congregational union, congregational college, anti-sweating league