Showing 21 items matching "clark alister"
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Sunbury Family History and Heritage Society Inc.Photograph, Veronica Burgess, Alister Clark Rose Garden, 12th December 1999
... Alister Clark Rose Garden...Clark...Alister Clark Memorial Rose Garden...He was a guest at the official opening in Bulla of the Alister Clark Memorial Rose Garden on 12th December 1999. ...He was a guest at the official opening in Bulla of the Alister Clark Memorial Rose Garden on 12th December 1999. ...The man in the photograph is Alan McKenzie a long time resident of Bulla. He was a guest at the official opening in Bulla of the Alister Clark Memorial Rose Garden on 12th December 1999. The garden is in the grounds of the former Shire of Bulla council offices. Alister Clark developed many varieties of roses at his property, 'Glenara' in Bulla.The establishment of the Memorial Rose Garden in Bulla acknowledges the contribution made by Alister Clark to gardens in Victoria.A non-digital coloured photograph of a man standing beside a timber arch in a garden. A small bluestone building with a slate roof is in the background.alister clark, alister clark memorial rose garden, glenara homestead, bulla, rose gardens -
St Kilda Historical SocietyEphemera - Invitation, The Alister Clark Memorial Rose Garden, 1950
... The Alister Clark Memorial Rose Garden...Alister Clark...Alister Clark was a foundation member of the National Rose Society of Victoria in 1900 and served as its president. ...Alister Clark was a foundation member of the National Rose Society of Victoria in 1900 and served as its president. ...Invitation to the official opening of the Alister Clark Memorial Rose Garden at the City Gardens, Blessington Street St Kilda (now the St Kilda Botanical Gardens) on 18 November 1950. Alister Clark was a foundation member of the National Rose Society of Victoria in 1900 and served as its president. He put great effort and skill into developing new varieties that were grown throughout Australia and were highly regarded in the USA. He supplied his new varieties without charge to State rose societies for propagation and sale and won many awards.Cream coloured card printed in brown on one sidealister clark, st kilda botanical gardens -
Sunbury Family History and Heritage Society Inc.Photograph, Veronica Burgess, Alister Clark Rose Garden, 12th December 1999
... Alister Clark Rose Garden......Alister Clark Memorial Rose Garden...The garden in the photograph is a section of the newly designed and planted Alister Clark Memorial Rose Garden situated in the grounds of the former Bulla Roads Board property. ...The garden in the photograph is a section of the newly designed and planted Alister Clark Memorial Rose Garden situated in the grounds of the former Bulla Roads Board property. ...The garden in the photograph is a section of the newly designed and planted Alister Clark Memorial Rose Garden situated in the grounds of the former Bulla Roads Board property. The garden was officially opened on 12th December 1999 in the grounds of the former Shire of Bulla Office building.The garden honours the work of Alister Clarke, who developed many different of rose varieties suited to Australia's climate at his 'Glenara' property in Bulla.A non-digital coloured photograph of a newly landscaped garden with a series of trellises in the garden bed and young rose bushes. Some mature trees are growing in the background.rose gardens, roses, alister clark memorial rose garden, glenara homestead, bulla -
Sunbury Family History and Heritage Society Inc.Photograph, Veronica Burgess, Alister Clark Rose Garden, 12th December 1999
... Alister Clark Rose Garden......Alister Clark Memorial Rose Garden...The two men were guests at the opening of the Alister Clark Memorial Rose Garden in Bulla on the 12th December 1999....Alister Clark Rose Garden Photograph Veronica Burgess ...John McMahon is a long time Sunbury resident and served as a Shire of Bulla councillor. Edward Fanning's family were early European settlers in Bulla. The two men were guests at the opening of the Alister Clark Memorial Rose Garden in Bulla on the 12th December 1999.A non-digital coloured photograph of two men standing in an open area in front of a small bluestone building.edward fanning, john mcmahon, alister clark memorial rose garden, bulla -
Sunbury Family History and Heritage Society Inc.Photograph, Veronica Burgess, Alister Clark Rose Garden, 12th December 1999
... Alister Clark Rose Garden...Alister Clark Memorial Rose Garden...Trevor and Margaret Dunn and Sue Barnett are the three people who were invited to attend the official opening of the Alister Clark Rose Garden in Bulla on the 12th December 1999. ...Trevor and Margaret Dunn and Sue Barnett are the three people who were invited to attend the official opening of the Alister Clark Rose Garden in Bulla on the 12th December 1999. ...Trevor and Margaret Dunn and Sue Barnett are the three people who were invited to attend the official opening of the Alister Clark Rose Garden in Bulla on the 12th December 1999. At the time Sue Barnett was the curator at the George Evans Museum in Sunbury and Margaret and Trevor worked there as volunteers.A non-digital photograph of two ladies and a man standing in a garden at an official function. A display board with photographs is behind one of the ladiesehind one of the ladies and a small grey cement brick outbuilding is in the background.alister clark memorial rose garden, bulla, trevor dunn, margaret dunn, sue barnett -
Sunbury Family History and Heritage Society Inc.Photograph, Veronica Burgess, Alister Clark Rose Garden, 12th December 1999
... Alister Clark Rose Garden...Alister Clark Memorial Rose Garden...Johnston and Grace McKenzie were guests at the official opening of the Alister Clark Memorial Rose Garden in Bulla on the 12th December 1999. ...Alister Clark Rose Garden Photograph Veronica Burgess ...Mr. Johnston and Grace McKenzie were guests at the official opening of the Alister Clark Memorial Rose Garden in Bulla on the 12th December 1999. Mr. Johnston is the grandson of James Stewart Johnston, who is the grandson of James Stewart Johnson, Chief Superintendent in the Victorian Colonial Government and in 1864 established his winery and vineyard at 'Craiglee' in Sunbury. Grace McKenzie and her family are long time Bulla residents.A non-digital coloured photograph of a lady and man standing in front of an old bluestone building.alister clark memorial rose garden, rose gardens, glenara homestead, grace mckenzie, james stewart johnson -
Sunbury Family History and Heritage Society Inc.Photograph, Veronica Burgess, Alister Clark Rose Garden, 12th December 1999
... Alister Clark Rose Garden...Alister Clark Memorial Rose Garden...The four people were guests at the official launch of the Alister Clark Memorial Rose Garden in Bulla, which took place on 12th December 1999. ...The four people were guests at the official launch of the Alister Clark Memorial Rose Garden in Bulla, which took place on 12th December 1999. ...The four people were guests at the official launch of the Alister Clark Memorial Rose Garden in Bulla, which took place on 12th December 1999. They are from L-R: John Burgess, Margaret and Edward Fanning, early Bulla residents and Mr. Johnson, grandson of James Stewart Johnson, who was the Chief Superintendent in the Victorian Colonial government and in 1864 established his vineyard and winery at 'Craiglee' in Sunbury.The Alister Clark Memorial Rose Garden at Bulla has many of the roses in it that Alister Clark developed on his 'Glenara' property at Bulla. A non-digital coloured photograph of lady and three men having a friendly conversation while standing in a garden. Parked cars and another building can be seen in the background.alister clark memorial rose garden, john burgess, margaret fanning, edward fanning, mr. johnson, bulla, rose gardens -
Hume City Civic CollectionPhotograph
... Clark Alister...The boy in the photograph is a young Alister Clark taken some time in 1873. The photograph is included in the biography on page 23 of Alister Clark, 'Man of Roses'. ...Hume City Civic Collection 44 Macedon Street Sunbury melbourne The boy in the photograph is a young Alister Clark taken some time in 1873. The photograph is included in the biography on page 23 of Alister Clark, 'Man of Roses'. ...The boy in the photograph is a young Alister Clark taken some time in 1873. The photograph is included in the biography on page 23 of Alister Clark, 'Man of Roses'. As well as being active in the VRC, Alister Clark was an enthusiastic rose breeder. He developed roses suited to Australian climatic conditions and named many of them after women he knew. His former home 'Glenara' at Bulla is of local heritage interest.A black and white scanned photograph of young boy dressed in clothing worn by boys in the 1870sclark alister, roses, bulla rose garden, glenara -
Sunbury Family History and Heritage Society Inc.Photograph, Veronica Burgess, Rose Garden opening, 12 December 1999
... Alister Clark...Mary's Church of England is adjacent to the Rose Garden. Alister Clark, a former Bulla resident and a rosarian, developed many different species of roses at his Glenara property. ...Many of them, such as the Lorraine Lee, have become a popular addition in gardens Alister Clark 'glenara' homestead Bulla Alister Clark Memorial Rose Garden Roses Jack Ogilvie A non-digital coloured photograph of a man standing in front of a lectern addressing a group of people who are standing in a garden. ...The Mayor of Hume City Council, Jack Ogilvie, was addressing local people on the 12th December 1999 in the grounds of the former Bulla Roads Board building. St. Mary's Church of England is adjacent to the Rose Garden. Alister Clark, a former Bulla resident and a rosarian, developed many different species of roses at his Glenara property. The garden in Bulla has been erected in his memory.Alister Clark developed many rose varieties that could withstand Australia's climate. Many of them, such as the Lorraine Lee, have become a popular addition in gardensA non-digital coloured photograph of a man standing in front of a lectern addressing a group of people who are standing in a garden. A small bluestone church is on the adjacent property.alister clark, 'glenara' homestead, bulla, alister clark memorial rose garden, roses, jack ogilvie -
Hume City Civic CollectionAgreement, Sunbury & District Bush Fire Brigade
... ...Clark Alister...It took three years to raise a total of (pounds) 429-11-00. sunbury Sunbury & District Bush Fire Brigade O'Brien Leo Clark Alister Cahill Malichi 1940's A list of names of subscribers who donated money to the Sunbury & District Bush Fire Brigade. ...This is a list of subscribers to the Sunbury & District Bush Fire Brigade Fund raising funds to buy a motor truck. They were raising funds between the years 1941 to 1943. The subscribers came from all over the district Clarkefield, Diggers Rest, Tullamarine, Sunbury and Yuroke and every where in-between. It took three years to raise a total of (pounds) 429-11-00.A list of names of subscribers who donated money to the Sunbury & District Bush Fire Brigade.sunbury, sunbury & district bush fire brigade, o'brien leo, clark alister, cahill malichi, 1940's -
Sunbury Family History and Heritage Society Inc.Photograph, Veronica Burgess, 12th December 1999
... ...Alister Clark Memorial Rose Garden...They were guests at the official opening of the Alister Clark Memorial Rose Garden in Bulla, which took place on 12th December 1999....They were guests at the official opening of the Alister Clark Memorial Rose Garden in Bulla, which took place on 12th December 1999. ...The two men are Alan McKenzie and Trevor Dunn, who are cousins and long-time residents in the Sunbury - Bulla area. They were guests at the official opening of the Alister Clark Memorial Rose Garden in Bulla, which took place on 12th December 1999.Both men are long time residents of the area and have been involved in many community activities.A non-digital coloured photograph of two men standing in an open area with photographs on a display board to the LHS of the image.alan mckenzie, trevor dunn, alister clark memorial rose garden, bulla -
Sunbury Family History and Heritage Society Inc.Photograph, Veronica Burgess, 12th December 1999
... Alister Clark Memorial Rose Garden...They were guests ate the official opening of the Alister Clark Memorial Garden in Bulla which took place on 12th December 1999. ...They were guests ate the official opening of the Alister Clark Memorial Garden in Bulla which took place on 12th December 1999. ...The five people in the photograph are all members of the McKenzie - Dunn families, who are longtime residents of the Bulla - Sunbury district and over the years have been active in the community. They were guests ate the official opening of the Alister Clark Memorial Garden in Bulla which took place on 12th December 1999. The people are from L-R: Grace McKenzie, Laughlin Dodd, Margaret Dunn nee Callighan, Elisa Dodd and Margaret Dodd nee McKenzie.A non-digital coloured photograph of 4 women and a young boy standing in a garden with a bluestone church in the background.alister clark memorial rose garden, bulla, grace mckenzie, laughlin dodd, margaret dunn, elisa dodd, margaret dodd -
Sunbury Family History and Heritage Society Inc.Photograph, 'Glenara' Homestead, 20 August 1952
... Clark who lived at Bulla which is situated about 20 kms NW of Melbourne in the Deep Creek valley. He was born there in 1864 and lived there throughout his lifetime until his death in 1949. His father established the property during the mid-nineteenth century. Alister...Handwritten information has been written on the back of the photograph about Alister Clark who was the owner of Glenara....Clark who lived at Bulla which is situated about 20 kms NW of Melbourne in the Deep Creek valley. He was born there in 1864 and lived there throughout his lifetime until his death in 1949. His father established the property during the mid-nineteenth century. Alister ..."Glenara' was the home of Alistair Clark who lived at Bulla which is situated about 20 kms NW of Melbourne in the Deep Creek valley. He was born there in 1864 and lived there throughout his lifetime until his death in 1949. His father established the property during the mid-nineteenth century. Alister Clark was a rose grower and created the very popular 'Lorraine Lea 'rose along with other famous species. A rose garden has been established in the township of Bulla in his memory. He was also an active member of the Victorian Racing Club. The original photograph was published in the Melbourne 'Herald' on 20 August 1952 on page 5.Alistair Clark was a prominent rose grower and developed many rose species which were suitable for Victorian conditions. The homestead is a good example of Victorian architecture built in Victoria in the latter years of the nineteenth century. The house has a heritage listing in the City of Hume Heritage Study.A non-digital black and white photograph with a fine white frame, of a Victorian homestead with a a verandah across the front of the house. It is set in a spacious garden with garden beds, lawn and trees. Handwritten information has been written on the back of the photograph about Alister Clark who was the owner of Glenara.clark, alistair, 'glenara' homestead, roses, bulla, deep creek -
Sunbury Family History and Heritage Society Inc.Photograph, 'Glenara' Homestead
... The garden in the image was taken in the grounds of Glenara Homestead at Bulla, which was owned by Alister Clark of rose breeding fame. Refer to entry P0951 for the information relevant to the Clark family....The garden in the image was taken in the grounds of Glenara Homestead at Bulla, which was owned by Alister Clark of rose breeding fame. Refer to entry P0951 for the information relevant to the Clark family. ...The garden in the image was taken in the grounds of Glenara Homestead at Bulla, which was owned by Alister Clark of rose breeding fame. Refer to entry P0951 for the information relevant to the Clark family.A non-digital black and white photograph with a cream border of a large garden. A tower is seen in the distance and a pottery urn on a pedestal is to the LHS at the meeting of a pathway. -
Sunbury Family History and Heritage Society Inc.Photograph, Friendly Societies Hotel
... The Black Horse hotel now occupies the site, which is to the east of the Alister Clark rose garden and former Bulla Roads Board building....The Black Horse hotel now occupies the site, which is to the east of the Alister Clark rose garden and former Bulla Roads Board building. ...The building in the image is the former Friendly Societies Hotel which was in Bulla and run by the Kelly family. The Black Horse hotel now occupies the site, which is to the east of the Alister Clark rose garden and former Bulla Roads Board building.By the 1880s when the Bulla township reached its peak this was one of 4 hotels in the township.A non-digital copy of an old sepia photograph of a single storey building with seven people standing on the verandah.hotels, friendly societies hotel, bulla township -
Hume City Civic CollectionPhotograph
... In the 1990's the Alister Clark Rose Garden was established in the surrounding grounds. ...In the 1990's the Alister Clark Rose Garden was established in the surrounding grounds. ...The former bluestone Bulla Shire Hall building was constructed in 1867 and remained the centre of local government until the early 20th century when the administration was moved to Sunbury. In the 1990's the Alister Clark Rose Garden was established in the surrounding grounds. The garden is open to the public all the year round. In 1999 the rose garden was officially opened.A coloured photograph of the front elevation of the original Shire of Bulla offices. It is a bluestone building, double fronted with a pitched roof on both wings and above the porch. The woodwork trims have been painted in cream and red. The double wooden front door is painted red. The sign outside the building indicates the former function of the building and its importance.ORIGINAL/SHIRE OF BULLA/OFFICE/1868-1923shire of bulla, council chambers, rose gardens, rose growing, bulla township, roses, clark, alistair, george evans collection -
Sunbury Family History and Heritage Society Inc.Photograph, 'Glenara' Homestead
... Clark, who moved from NSW to Victoria in 1853 and purchased land on the banks of Deep Creek. Four years later in 1857 his homestead was completed. In the same year Bulla Racing Club held its first annual meet on the property. Later that year, Alister... Clark purchased the homestead from the family estate and began developing an extensive rose garden on his property. Alister ...'Glenara' is the homestead, which is situated in the Deep Creek valley at Bulla. It was the home of Walter Clark, who moved from NSW to Victoria in 1853 and purchased land on the banks of Deep Creek. Four years later in 1857 his homestead was completed. In the same year Bulla Racing Club held its first annual meet on the property. Later that year, Alister Clark purchased the homestead from the family estate and began developing an extensive rose garden on his property. Alister Clark developed varieties that are adaptable to Australia's climate such as the Lorraine Lee rose and his rose breeding achievements led him to international recognition as a rose breeder of note.A non-digital black and white photograph with a white border of large single story Italianite homestead in a creek valley and surrounded by lightly timbered hillsglenara homestead, bulla bulla, walter clark, alistair clark, roses, rose gardens, deep creek -
City of Melbourne LibrariesPhotograph, Bull, Hugh Jones, 1897-1993, Vice-regal visit to Zoo: Lord Huntingfield greets the King of the Beasts
... In 1937, rose breeder Alister Clark named a yellow hybrid tea rose for her. ...In 1937, rose breeder Alister Clark named a yellow hybrid tea rose for her. ...Photographer notations on slide: "Vice Regal visit to zoo B42" Published: The Age, Tuesday 26 June 1934, page 11. Published title: VICE-ROYALTY GREETS THE KING OF THE BEASTS AT THE ZOO. Published caption: “Lord Huntingfield experienced a pleasant “induction ceremony” as Patron of the Royal Zoological and Acclimatisation Society yesterday, when he made a tour of the Zoological Gardens. The picture shows the Governor, accompanied by Lady Huntingfield, inspecting the King of the Beasts, who is submitting to a little playful treatment from the Director of the Gardens, Mr. Wilkie, while the Director whispers in his ear that a distinguished visitor has come to see him.” Trove article identifier: http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article204818472 Description: A man wearing a hat and suit strokes a caged lion, observed by a man in a hat, scarf and overcoat who is leaning on a walking stick, and a woman in a hat and coat, holding a handbag. They stand behind a protective rail. Research by project volunteer, Fiona Collyer: Andrew Arthur Wellesley Wilkie, 1853-1948, was Director of the Melbourne Zoo from 1923 to 1936 and was associated with the zoo for 70 years. He first worked as a horticultural assistant to Government botanist Baron Ferdinand von Mueller at the Botanical Gardens at the age of 13, along with his older brother David. One of Andrew’s jobs was to capture moths for the National Herbarium. In 1857, a group of prominent Melburnians assembled at St. Patrick’s Hall to form the Zoological Society of Victoria, with the aim of introducing animals and plants from overseas. It was conceived, “For the purposes of science and for that of affording the public the advantages of studying the habits of the animal creation in properly arranged zoological gardens.” The Victorian Government granted 32 acres (13 hectares) of land to the Zoological Society at the southern end of Richmond Paddock on the opposite bank to the Botanical Gardens. (This is where AAMI Stadium and Collingwood Football Club now stand.) In 1861, the Zoological Society of Victoria was renamed The Acclimatisation Society of Victoria. Unfortunately the Yarra River frontage was damp, swampy and subject to flooding, so the animals were briefly housed at the Botanical Gardens until in 1862, the City of Melbourne donated 55 acres (22 hectares) of land at Royal Park for the fledgling zoo. Baron von Mueller secured employment at Royal Park for Andrew and David and they helped to lay out the gardens, plant trees and take care of a collection of deer, pheasants, hares and partridges. Initially the zoo was used for the acclimatisation of animals recovering from the long voyage to Australia and for breeding them for sport. In 1872, the zoo bought two lions, a leopard and a cheetah that had been seized from circus showmen Keith and Phillips when they were unable to pay the bill of butcher Mr T K Bennet of Bourke Street. The first zoo director, Mr. Albert Le Souef, negotiated with captains of ships to buy animals at overseas ports they visited and soon a multitude of exotic species arrived, including a ten-year-old Indian elephant in 1878. In 1923, after being head keeper for some years, Andrew was appointed director of the zoo. By 1933, the zoo had 110 different species of animals, 200 species of birds and 72 species of reptiles under Andrew’s care. He had personally planted all but six trees and laid out the garden beds. As director he lobbied authorities for funds to build more humane enclosures for the animals. In June 1928, Table Talk magazine wrote of Andrew Wilkie: “Up at the Zoo there is a humble gentleman who is a lion among the lions, who knows the proper specific to employ when the boa constrictor has chilblains, and who is a friend and confidant of Queenie the elephant. His fount of zoological lore has never been plumbed. It is bottomless, like his good fellowship and geniality. Every day he may be seen somewhere in the grounds of that growing sanctuary for the strange and arresting fauna and creeping things of the world, and I assure you as one who is privy to his passion that that area and its inhabitants are rarely out of his thoughts.” Andrew retired from the zoo in 1936 at the age of 83 and in 1948 died at his home in Brunswick aged 94. He and his wife Josephine had six children. Roy, aged 28 in 1934, was a former Wirth’s circus lion who had been left at the zoo at 10 years of age. Andrew visited Roy every day on his rounds and the pair formed a close and affectionate bond. Wireless Weekly magazine in February 1933 reported, “Roy was delighted to see Mr Wilkie, and in a docile manner, approached the bars of his cage and had his head vigorously rubbed by the director, who daily carries out this act of kindness.” As reported in The Herald on 27 October 1936, “Mr Wilkie has also found the old lion docile. He has not shown the animal any particular favouritism, but the lion has shown him a faithfulness that none of the keepers can claim. When Mr Wilkie approaches the bars the lion rolls over and lets the director stroke him and pull his tail. He gets very excited if Mr Wilkie passes without climbing over the protecting rail for a little game.” A 1930 newsreel film shows Andrew stroking Roy’s mane through the bars and the blissed out big cat lying on his back while lifting his chin for a rub. Another newsreel film from the time shows Andrew stroking a lioness and playfully pulling her tail. The Victorian Acclimatisation Society was founded in 1861 by Edward Wilson, 1813-1878, then owner and editor of The Argus newspaper. He said that Australian indigenous animals were practically useless, providing only “a little sport and an occasional meal”. The Society believed that Australia’s plants and animals were vastly inferior to those in Europe. They wanted to introduce and acclimatise to Victoria “all innoxious animals, birds, fishes, insects and vegetables, whether useful or ornamental” for sport and for the table, and to spread indigenous animals and plants from the colony around the world. Their motto was “if it lives, we want it”. The Society was primarily responsible for introducing sparrows, starlings, sambar and hog deer, ostriches, brown trout, blackberries, and carp to the Murray River. They released the European songbirds, thrush and blackbird to quell the homesickness of British settlers. The Society also sent Australian animals like platypus, echidnas, kangaroos and koalas to Europe for scientific and novelty purposes. Thomas Austin, a wealthy sheep farmer of Barwon Park, Winchelsea (property now owned by the National Trust) was a member and in 1859 he introduced hares, blackbirds, thrushes and partridges onto his property. He is probably best known for introducing 24 breeding rabbits onto his estate as game for shooting parties. Thomas quipped, “The introduction of a few rabbits could do little harm and might provide a touch of home, in addition to a spot of hunting." In 2022, genomic data confirmed that Australia’s feral rabbit population is entirely descended from these rabbits. Biological control has brought the rabbit population down from an estimated high of 10 billion rabbits in the 1920s to approximately 200 million today, inhabiting 70% of Australian landmass (5.3 million square kilometres). In 1872, the Acclimatisation Society was renamed The Zoological and Acclimatisation Society of Victoria and they focused on importing exotic animals for display purposes to the zoo. In 1937, the Royal Acclimatisation Society of Victoria was recreated as the Zoological Board of Victoria with a focus on research of native animals threatened with extinction. In an editorial for The Argus newspaper, 16 March 1856, Edward Wilson lamented: "…this country has been shamelessly stolen from the blacks. Had they been like the New Zealanders or the North American Indians, we should have bought their land, and supplied them with the means of living when we took it... In less than twenty years we have nearly swept them off the face of the earth. We have shot them down like dogs. In the guise of friendship we have issued corrosion sublimate in their damper, and consigned whole tribes to the agonies of an excruciating death. We have made them drunkards, and infected them with disease which has rotted the bones of their adults, and made such few children as are born amongst them a sorrow and a torture from the very instant of their birth. We have made them outcasts on their own land, and are rapidly consigning them to entire annihilation. There are but a few of them left, comparatively. This is what we would do for that few. We would feed and clothe every one of them.” [Note: this last sentence is italicized in the original newspaper article text]. Lord Huntingfield, (William Charles Arcedeckne Vanneck) 1883-1969, Governor of Victoria 1934-1939, was a British Conservative Party politician and the first ever Australian-born Governor of an Australian state (although he was always considered British). He was patron of the Royal Zoological and Acclimatisation Society of Victoria and was acting Governor-General for six months during the absence of Lord Gowie in 1938. Lady Huntingfield (née Margaret Eleanor Crosby) 1884-1943, his American-born wife showed great interest in social welfare and the advancement of women and children. She was president of the City Newsboys Society and Patroness of the Girls Friendly Society. In 1937, rose breeder Alister Clark named a yellow hybrid tea rose for her. In 1940, the City of Melbourne opened the Lady Huntingfield Free Kindergarten in North Melbourne, now the Lady Huntingfield Early Learning and Family Services Centre. Lady Huntingfield died in London in 1943 after her house was bombed during a German airstrike. The Lady Huntingfield Memorial Scholarship was established after the City of Melbourne raised £1000 in a public appeal conducted in her memory for students undertaking a Social Work degree at the University of Melbourne. It is awarded annually to this day. The Queen Victoria Hospital named a bed in her honour. References: VICE-ROYALTY GREETS THE KING OF BEASTS AT THE ZOO. (1934, June 26). The Age (Melbourne, Vic. : 1854 - 1954), p. 11. Retrieved August 18, 2024, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article204818472 Prominent Personalities ANDREW WILKIE (1928, June 7). Table Talk (Melbourne, Vic. : 1885 - 1939), p. 15. Retrieved August 29, 2024, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article146562949 'Thomas Austin (pastoralist)', Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Austin_(pastoralist) 'Edward Wilson (journalist)', Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_Wilson_(journalist) THE WOMAN'S WORLD (1934, June 26). The Herald (Melbourne, Vic. : 1861 - 1954), p. 14. Retrieved August 19, 2024, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article243164806 MR. WILKIE CAN PULL THE OLD LION'S TAIL (1936, October 27). The Herald (Melbourne, Vic. : 1861 - 1954), p. 4. Retrieved August 18, 2024, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article248551307 Director Of Zoo Will Retire Tomorrow--With White Kitten (1936, December 30). The Herald (Melbourne, Vic. : 1861 - 1954), p. 8. Retrieved August 18, 2024, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article244655203 LIGHT CAR CLUB IN CARICATURE (1931, August 25). The Sun News-Pictorial (Melbourne, Vic. : 1922 - 1954; 1956), p. 24. Retrieved August 19, 2024, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article276250310 'The Acclimatisation Society was driven by misguided ideals about 'fixing nature' in Australia', ABC News, https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-11-04/acclimatisation-society-introduced-species-history-listen/101588262?utm_source=abc_news_app&utm_medium=content_shared&utm_campaign=abc_news_app&utm_content=safari 'Dr Andrew Wilkie Director Of Melbourne Zoo, With Lion (1930) Video', Pond5 Inc., https://www.pond5.com/stock-footage/item/155691351-dr-andrew-wilkie-director-melbourne-zoo-lion-1930 'Kodak Cinegraph Compilation No 12', ACMI Collection, YouTube.com [Zoo footage at 8.33 minutes, Mr Wilkie at 11.04 minutes], https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OZZqgSNsP0k THE ABORIGINES. (1856, March 16). The Argus (Melbourne, Vic. : 1848 - 1957), p. 4. Retrieved September 28, 2024, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article4833244Photographer notations on slide: "Vice Regal visit to zoo B42".1930-1939, melbourne zoo, animals, hunting, wildlife, royal park, gardens -
City of Melbourne LibrariesPhotograph, Bull, Hugh Jones, 1897-1993, Vice-regal visit to zoo: Governor (Lord Huntingfield) meets the cockatoos
... In 1937, rose breeder Alister Clark named a yellow hybrid tea rose for her. ...In 1937, rose breeder Alister Clark named a yellow hybrid tea rose for her. ...A group of five men dressed in hats and overcoats look at caged cockatoos. Research by project volunteer, Fiona Collyer: On 25 June 1934, new Victorian Governor, His Excellency Lord Huntingfield and his wife Lady Huntingfield made an official visit to the Melbourne Zoological Gardens in order to grant his patronage to the Royal Zoological and Acclimatisation Society. The zoo director, Mr. Andrew Wilkie, introduced them to the cockatoos in the flight aviary. The Argus newspaper reported the visit in the following morning’s issue: "Birds' Greeting To Governor. Visit to Zoological Gardens. "A Very Important Society." "Cheery shouts of "Hullo!" and requests for drinks greeted His Excellency the Governor (Lord Huntingfield) on one of his official visits yesterday morning. Lady Huntingfield, who accompanied him, was asked loudly for a kiss. They were inspecting the huge cockatoo aviary at the Zoological Gardens after Lord Huntingfield had granted his patronage to the Royal Zoological and Acclimatisation Society. Both obviously enjoyed the democratic experience. It was explained to them that most of the cockatoos had been presented by residents of flats, whose neighbours objected to the noise of the birds, while others were protected birds which had been surrendered. Lord Huntingfield recalled that he had taken two Australian cockatoos to England when he left Australia in his youth. One, a galah, had lived in England for many years." In 1929, the Zoo built a commodious new flight aviary at the cost of several thousand pounds and Zoo director, Mr Andrew Wilkie, sent out an appeal published in newspapers Australia-wide for donations of parrots from all states. Many of the parrot species he wanted were protected and a special permit needed for their capture, however Mr Wilkie guaranteed he would obtain authority from the Fisheries and Game Department and that the cost of transit would be borne by the Zoo. The wanted birds were "Parrots - Black-tailed, Rock Pebbler, King, Superb, Grass (all kinds), Swamp or Ground, Mallee or Ringneck" and "Cockatoo[s] - Black, Pink or Major Mitchell, Gang-Gang". The Zoo asked that the birds be sent in boxes large enough to prevent overcrowding, contain food and water and the Zoo notified on the type and number of birds in transit. All boxes were to be addressed to 'The Zoo, Melbourne'. A letter from a reader appeared in the Weekly Times newspaper's popular "Camp-fire Circle" page for "Young Australians", 11 May 1929: "Dear Pal, I am much interested in your page, especially the nature notes. I have a pet parrot, but I don’t like to see it shut up in a cage, so I am giving it to the Melbourne Zoo. It can whistle 'Pretty Joey' and 'What's the Matter with Father' and is just learning to whistle for the dog... Wishing you and the Camp-fire Circle success." - Murray Holmes (Gorae, Vic.) The fate of this talented parrot is unknown, however in 1932, this young naturist, T Murray Holmes, 1912-1947, collected for the first time a type specimen, blue star sun orchid from Gorae (near Portland, Victoria), and it was named in his honour, Thelymitra holmesii. Murray was described by orchid collector W H Nicholls as "a youthful and energetic orchidologist, who added much to our knowledge of the orchids of south-western Victoria." Murray Holmes enlisted in the army in 1941 and fought in the Middle East before being sent to Java. In 1942 he was captured by the Japanese and became a prisoner of war for three years, working on the notorious Thai-Burma railway. Murray's health was undermined though ill treatment and starvation and he returned to Australia after the war, broken and sick. He died aged 35 in 1947. He was intensely interested in the flora and fauna of the Gorae area to the end. Murray's parents received over 200 tributes of respect for their son - too many to answer personally so they put a notice in the Portland Guardian thanking "all kind friends and relatives for letters, cards, floral tributes and personal expressions of sympathy received in their recent sad bereavement - the lamented death of their loved son, Murray." Andrew Arthur Wellesley Wilkie, 1853-1948, was Director of the Melbourne Zoo from 1923 to 1936 and was associated with the zoo for 70 years. He first worked as a horticultural assistant to Government botanist Baron Ferdinand von Mueller at the Botanical Gardens at the age of 13, along with his older brother David. One of Andrew’s jobs was to capture moths for the National Herbarium. In 1857, a group of prominent Melburnians assembled at St. Patrick’s Hall to form the Zoological Society of Victoria, with the aim of introducing animals and plants from overseas. It was conceived, “For the purposes of science and for that of affording the public the advantages of studying the habits of the animal creation in properly arranged zoological gardens.” The Victorian Government granted 32 acres (13 hectares) of land to the Zoological Society at the southern end of Richmond Paddock on the opposite bank to the Botanical Gardens. (This is where AAMI Stadium and Collingwood Football Club now stand.) In 1861, the Zoological Society of Victoria was renamed The Acclimatisation Society of Victoria. Unfortunately the Yarra River frontage was damp, swampy and subject to flooding, so the animals were briefly housed at the Botanical Gardens until in 1862, the City of Melbourne donated 55 acres (22 hectares) of land at Royal Park for the fledgling zoo. Baron von Mueller secured employment at Royal Park for Andrew and David and they helped to lay out the gardens, plant trees and take care of a collection of deer, pheasants, hares and partridges. Initially the zoo was used for the acclimatisation of animals recovering from the long voyage to Australia and for breeding them for sport. In 1872, the zoo bought two lions, a leopard and a cheetah that had been seized from circus showmen Keith and Phillips when they were unable to pay the bill of butcher Mr T K Bennet of Bourke Street. The first zoo director, Mr. Albert Le Souef, negotiated with captains of ships to buy animals at overseas ports they visited and soon a multitude of exotic species arrived, including a ten-year-old Indian elephant in 1878. In 1923, after being head keeper for some years, Andrew was appointed director of the zoo. By 1933, the zoo had 110 different species of animals, 200 species of birds and 72 species of reptiles under Andrew’s care. He had personally planted all but six trees and laid out the garden beds. As director he lobbied authorities for funds to build more humane enclosures for the animals. In June 1928, Table Talk magazine wrote of Andrew Wilkie: “Up at the Zoo there is a humble gentleman who is a lion among the lions, who knows the proper specific to employ when the boa constrictor has chilblains, and who is a friend and confidant of Queenie the elephant. His fount of zoological lore has never been plumbed. It is bottomless, like his good fellowship and geniality. Every day he may be seen somewhere in the grounds of that growing sanctuary for the strange and arresting fauna and creeping things of the world, and I assure you as one who is privy to his passion that that area and its inhabitants are rarely out of his thoughts.” Andrew retired from the zoo in 1936 at the age of 83 and in 1948 died at his home in Brunswick aged 94. He and his wife Josephine had six children. The Victorian Acclimatisation Society was founded in 1861 by Edward Wilson, 1813-1878, then owner and editor of The Argus newspaper. He said that Australian indigenous animals were practically useless, providing only “a little sport and an occasional meal”. The Society believed that Australia’s plants and animals were vastly inferior to those in Europe. They wanted to introduce and acclimatise to Victoria “all innoxious animals, birds, fishes, insects and vegetables, whether useful or ornamental” for sport and for the table, and to spread indigenous animals and plants from the colony around the world. Their motto was “if it lives, we want it”. The Society was primarily responsible for introducing sparrows, starlings, sambar and hog deer, ostriches, brown trout, blackberries, and carp to the Murray River. They released the European songbirds, thrush and blackbird to quell the homesickness of British settlers. The Society also sent Australian animals like platypus, echidnas, kangaroos and koalas to Europe for scientific and novelty purposes. Thomas Austin, a wealthy sheep farmer of Barwon Park, Winchelsea (property now owned by the National Trust) was a member and in 1859 he introduced hares, blackbirds, thrushes and partridges onto his property. He is probably best known for introducing 24 breeding rabbits onto his estate as game for shooting parties. Thomas quipped, “The introduction of a few rabbits could do little harm and might provide a touch of home, in addition to a spot of hunting." In 2022, genomic data confirmed that Australia’s feral rabbit population is entirely descended from these rabbits. Biological control has brought the rabbit population down from an estimated high of 10 billion rabbits in the 1920s to approximately 200 million today, inhabiting 70% of Australian landmass (5.3 million square kilometres). In 1872, the Acclimatisation Society was renamed The Zoological and Acclimatisation Society of Victoria and they focused on importing exotic animals for display purposes to the zoo. In 1937, the Royal Acclimatisation Society of Victoria was recreated as the Zoological Board of Victoria with a focus on research of native animals threatened with extinction. In an editorial for The Argus newspaper, 16 March 1856, Edward Wilson lamented: "...this country has been shamelessly stolen from the blacks. Had they been like the New Zealanders or the North American Indians, we should have bought their land, and supplied them with the means of living when we took it... In less than twenty years we have nearly swept them off the face of the earth. We have shot them down like dogs. In the guise of friendship we have issued corrosion sublimate in their damper, and consigned whole tribes to the agonies of an excruciating death. We have made them drunkards, and infected them with disease which has rotted the bones of their adults, and made such few children as are born amongst them a sorrow and a torture from the very instant of their birth. We have made them outcasts on their own land, and are rapidly consigning them to entire annihilation. There are but a few of them left, comparatively. This is what we would do for that few. We would feed and clothe every one of them.” [Note: this last sentence is italicized in the original newspaper article text]. Lord Huntingfield, (William Charles Arcedeckne Vanneck) 1883-1969, Governor of Victoria 1934-1939, was a British Conservative Party politician and the first ever Australian-born Governor of an Australian state (although he was always considered British). He was patron of the Royal Zoological and Acclimatisation Society of Victoria and was acting Governor-General for six months during the absence of Lord Gowie in 1938. Lady Huntingfield (née Margaret Eleanor Crosby) 1884-1943, his American-born wife showed great interest in social welfare and the advancement of women and children. She was president of the City Newsboys Society and Patroness of the Girls Friendly Society. In 1937, rose breeder Alister Clark named a yellow hybrid tea rose for her. In 1940, the City of Melbourne opened the Lady Huntingfield Free Kindergarten in North Melbourne, now the Lady Huntingfield Early Learning and Family Services Centre. Lady Huntingfield died in London in 1943 after her house was bombed during a German airstrike. The Lady Huntingfield Memorial Scholarship was established after the City of Melbourne raised £1000 in a public appeal conducted in her memory for students undertaking a Social Work degree at the University of Melbourne. It is awarded annually to this day. The Queen Victoria Hospital named a bed in her honour. References: Prominent Personalities ANDREW WILKIE (1928, June 7). Table Talk (Melbourne, Vic. : 1885 - 1939), p. 15. Retrieved August 29, 2024, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article146562949 BIRDS' GREETING TO GOVERNOR (1934, June 26). The Argus (Melbourne, Vic. : 1848 - 1957), p. 6. Retrieved August 19, 2024, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article10950051 Zoo Appealing For Parrots And Cockatoos To Fill Aviary For Children’s Instruction (1929, April 11). The Sun News-Pictorial (Melbourne, Vic. : 1922 - 1954; 1956), p. 31. Retrieved August 23, 2024, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article275757361 LETTERS FROM READERS (1929, May 11). Weekly Times (Melbourne, Vic. : 1869 - 1954), p. 50. Retrieved October 6, 2024, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article223183144 Correspondence. (1929, April 18). Corryong Courier (Vic. : 1894 - 1945), p. 6. Retrieved August 30, 2024, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article269039262 'Edward Wilson (journalist)', Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_Wilson_(journalist) 'Thomas Austin (pastoralist)', Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Austin_(pastoralist) 'The Acclimatisation Society was driven by misguided ideals about 'fixing nature' in Australia', ABC News, https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-11-04/acclimatisation-society-introduced-species-history-listen/101588262? utm_source=abc_news_app&utm_medium=content_shared&utm_campaign=abc_news_app&utm_content=safari Touching Canine Devotion. (1942, September 21). Portland Guardian (Vic. : 1876 - 1953), p. 1 (EVENING). Retrieved October 6, 2024, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article64381989 OBITUARY (1947, August 11). Portland Guardian (Vic. : 1876 - 1953), p. 2 (EVENING). Retrieved August 26, 2024, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article64412155 Family Notices (1947, September 11). Portland Guardian (Vic. : 1876 - 1953), p. 2 (EVENING). Retrieved October 10, 2024, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article64412476 'Thelymitra holmesii', Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thelymitra_holmesii THE ABORIGINES. (1856, March 16). The Argus (Melbourne, Vic. : 1848 - 1957), p. 4. Retrieved September 28, 2024, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article4833244Photographer notations on slide: "Vice Regal visit to zoo B42".zoos, governors, 1930-1939, cockatoos -
City of Melbourne LibrariesPhotograph, Bull, Hugh Jones, 1897-1993, Vice-regal visit to zoo: Governor (Lord Huntingfield) and koala
... In 1937, rose breeder Alister Clark named a yellow hybrid tea rose for her. ...In 1937, rose breeder Alister Clark named a yellow hybrid tea rose for her. ...Published: (1934, June 26). The Age (Melbourne, Vic. : 1854 - 1954), p. 11. Published title: VICE-ROYALTY GREETS THE KING OF THE BEASTS AT THE ZOO. Published caption: Lord Huntingfield experienced a pleasant “induction ceremony” as Patron of the Royal Zoological and Acclimatisation Society yesterday, when he made a tour of the Zoological Gardens. The picture shows the Governor, accompanied by Lady Huntingfield, inspecting the King of Beasts, who is submitting to a little playful treatment from the Director of the Gardens, Mr. Wilkie, while the Director whispers in his ear that a distinguished visitor has come to see him. (Inset), is a picture of Lord Huntingfield greeting one of the Koalas. Trove article identifier: http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article204818472 Description: A man wearing a hat, scarf and overcoat reaches up to pat a koala in a tree watched by a man in a hat and suit. Research by project volunteer, Fiona Collyer: In 1932, the Zoo built an Australian native animal enclosure which visitors could enter and closely view koalas, wallabies, kookaburras and magpies all placed together. The branches of the trees in the enclosure were cut so that visitors could easily see and feed the koalas sitting in them. The cost to feed each koala fresh gum leaves was fifteen shillings per week. By 1924, Queensland was the last stronghold in Australia for the koala. They were functionally extinct in South Australia, only a few hundred in NSW, and an estimated population of 1000 animals remained in Victoria. There had been a six-month open season on koalas in Queensland in 1919 where over a million had been slaughtered, however with its vast, dense forests it was impossible to accurately know their numbers. Koala fur is tough, warm and waterproof and was in high demand from consumers in Canada, Britain and the US to make hats and gloves and for lining greatcoats. In 1927, with Queensland suffering a crippling drought and high unemployment, the cash-strapped McCormack Labor Government declared an “Open Season” on koalas and “opossums” for their skins, for the month of August. (Possums were often called “opossums” at this time but they are actually possums). There were widespread protests from many groups including the Nature Lovers League, Wild Life Preservation Society of Australia, Queensland Museum, C.W.A. Royal Australian Ornithologist Union, Boy Scouts, religious and women’s groups. There were letters to newspapers from ordinary people, editorials and pleas to women to refuse to wear or purchase koala fur. People questioned the masculinity of koala hunters as it was felt that no proper bushman or sportsman would kill such a defenceless creature. The Brisbane Courier newspaper led the campaign, devoting six columns a day to “Spare the Bear”. Author Vance Palmer sent an impassioned letter to the editor of the The Brisbane Courier, 19 July 1927: “Sir- It is be hoped that the disgust which all humane people have felt at the declaration of an open season for native bears in August will not be allowed to fade away until some protest... so overwhelming and effective that the question will never be raised again. For the shooting of our harmless and loveable native bear is nothing less than barbarous. His case is entirely different from that of other furred animals. No one has ever accused him of spoiling the farmers’ wheat, eating the squatters’ grass or even spreading the prickly pear. There is not a social vice that can be put down to his account. In addition, he is comparatively defenceless. He affords no sport to the gunman, and can be trusted to present a sitting target to the creature mean enough to aim at him. For this reason he has been almost blotted out already from some areas, in days when our fauna and flora were held in such little regard that the settlers’ first instinct was to shoot every strange animal and to sink his axe into every unfamiliar tree.” The Anglican Archbishop of Brisbane, Gerald Sharp, had his letter published in The Brisbane Courier on 16 July 1927: “Sir... The extermination of fauna so distinctive of our country, especially of such harmless and pretty creatures as our native bears, seems to me a shameful thing, and this is likely to mean their extermination.” But it was all to no avail. Known as “Black August”, the government was unmoved by the public’s outrage. 10,000 licences were issued to hunters and “the slaughter of the innocents” went ahead. The newspapers were full of stories of dreadful cruelty against the helpless, benign creatures by the heartless hunters who not only used guns and spotlights but wire snares and cyanide baits so that pelts wouldn’t be damaged. Infant koalas were left orphaned and unlikely to survive without their mothers. Top quality pelts were sold at an average price of 56 shillings and 9 pence per dozen, poor quality skins for as little as 2 1/2 pence each. In December 1927, the Minister for Agriculture and Stock, Mr W. Forgan Smith told the Parliament that during the August open season 597,985 koala pelts worth £139,595 had netted the state’s coffers £6000. 952,194 “opossum” pelts were sold and £9000 made for the State. The backlash that followed helped topple the Queensland Labor Government in 1929. The Wild Life Preservation Society of Australia lobbied the Prime Minister Mr Stanley Bruce to refuse to issue exportation permits for koala pelts and from 10 November 1927 the Commonwealth Government suspended the issuing of permits. In 1930, the Society made a direct appeal to USA President Herbert Hoover and he signed an order prohibiting the importation of koala and wombat fur to USA, eliminating a major market. Koala pelts were often deliberately mislabelled “wombat” to get around restrictions. The ban most likely saved the koala from probable extinction. Three years later the Australian Federal Government banned the export of koala products. This movement against koala killing was really the first conservation campaign in Australia. It raised awareness of the vulnerability of a beloved animal and eventually brought about national parks and national laws for their protection. By 1936, community opposition to possum open seasons was beginning. The koala was made a Protected Species in all states in 1937, meaning no one is allowed to harm a koala, however the laws protecting the gum trees they rely on for food and shelter are weak. The Australian Government estimates the wild koala population in Australia is between 225,000 and 500,000 in 2024. The Australian Koala Foundation estimates the national population at less than 60,000 in 2021 with a 30% decline in three years. Habitat loss from land clearing, dog attacks, road deaths, chlamydia, bushfires and drought exacerbated by climate change, continues to cause their decline. Over eight million koalas were killed for their pelts between 1888 and 1927. Any one of the annual harvests killed more koalas than are alive now. At this time, children were also being taught to appreciate Australian native animals. In 1933, “Blinky Bill: The Quaint Little Australian” book for children was published by Angus and Robertson. It was written and illustrated by New Zealand-born author Dorothy Wall and “Dedicated to my son Peter and all other Peters and Johns and Bobs and Toms and Marys and Bettys and Joans and Pats and all kind children.” The book tells the story of Blinky Bill - a mischievous, patched knickerbocker-wearing koala and his mother and father. The story has messages of conservation and instances of human unkindness and cruelty. Mr. and Mrs. Koala and young Blinky lead a mostly idyllic family life amongst a variety of other animals in the forest. However it all changes in chapter two, when Blinky Bill’s father is distressingly shot by a hunter. There is a harrowing description of Mr. Koala’s shooting and eventual death. “The Koala family lived so happily; never thinking of harm, or that anything could happen to disturb their little home, as all they asked for were plenty of fresh gum-leaves and the warm sun. They had no idea such things as guns were in the world or that a human being had a heart so cruel that he would take a pleasure in seeing a poor little body riddled with bullets hanging helplessly from the tree-top... That same being might just as well take his gun and shoot baby kookaburras, so helpless were they all and so trusting.” “Poor Mr. Koala one day was curled up asleep in his favourite corner, when the terrible thing happened. Bang! He opened his eyes in wonder. What was that? Did the limb of the tree snap where that young cub of his was skylarking? ... bang! again. This time he felt a stinging pain in his leg... Peering over the bough of the tree he saw a man on the ground with something long and black in his arms... Another bang and his ear began to hurt. Bang! again and now his little body was stinging all over. He grunted loudly and slowly climbed up the tree, calling Mrs. Koala and Blinky as he went. He managed to reach the topmost branch... Tears were pouring down his poor little face. He brushed them away with his front paws and cried just like a baby. Fortunately Mrs. Koala and Blinky Bill were hiding in the leaves quite motionless, and the shadows of the tree made them appear as part of it. The man with the gun stood and waited a long time, then walked away, whistling as he went - the only sound to be heard in the bush except the cries of the little bear far up in the tree.” Blinky and his mother quietly and fearfully wait for Mr. Koala to wake. In the morning, grunting and crying, they feel his lifeless body with their paws. Eventually Mrs. Koala realises that her husband is dead and that they need to move to a safe place. After travelling deeper into the forest, Mrs. Koala and Blinky meet koalas Mrs. Grunty and her son Snubby and she describes how she was captured as a baby by koala fur trappers to be a pet for a little girl. The trapper forgot to bring gum leaves for the koala so they try to feed her cake, milk and bananas, making her sick. The little girl’s father relays something he read in the paper: “During the year 1920 to 1921, two hundred and five thousand six hundred and seventy-nine koalas were killed and their skins sold to the fur market, under the name of wombat.” They place the koala in a box with a teddy bear for company. The baby koala’s health deteriorates and the alarmed trapper returns her to the bush. Mrs. Grunty tells Mrs. Koala that she and Blinky are the only bears that she has seen for ten years: “I remember well the little girl’s father telling her... that not so many years ago the bush was alive with us bears, from Queensland to the south of Victoria. Now, we are so rare that we have become a curiosity, something to put in zoos, for children to see; and actually in museums. I believe our grandparents sit there in glass cases, stuffed with something inside to make them appear alive, and, oh dear, glass eyes. In New South Wales, I think we could wander for miles from one corner to another and never meet a bear. I don’t know why we were all killed. As you know, we don’t eat the farmers’ crop or ruin their orchards. All we asked for were our own gum-trees.” At the end of the book, Dorothy tells her readers - “The kindest action of all would be to leave the koala baby in his own bushland, among his own playmates, with the sun, the sky, the birds, and the gum-trees, where he will grow to manhood and live for many years - happy as he should be.” In 1934, a “Wild Zoo”, the Sir Colin Mackenzie Sanctuary, opened on 32 hectares of land, formerly part of Coranderrk Aboriginal Reserve in the Yarra Valley, exclusively displaying Australian native animals, birds and reptiles. It was later renamed Healesville Sanctuary and is now managed by Melbourne Zoo and home to over 200 species of Australian native fauna. The Sanctuary is committed to rescuing, breeding, researching and raising awareness of the vulnerability of Australian animals. Andrew Arthur Wellesley Wilkie, 1853-1948, was Director of the Melbourne Zoo from 1923 to 1936 and was associated with the zoo for 70 years. He first worked as a horticultural assistant to Government botanist Baron Ferdinand von Mueller at the Botanical Gardens at the age of 13, along with his older brother David. One of Andrew’s jobs was to capture moths for the National Herbarium. In 1857, a group of prominent Melburnians assembled at St. Patrick’s Hall to form the Zoological Society of Victoria, with the aim of introducing animals and plants from overseas. It was conceived, “For the purposes of science and for that of affording the public the advantages of studying the habits of the animal creation in properly arranged zoological gardens.” The Victorian Government granted 32 acres (13 hectares) of land to the Zoological Society at the southern end of Richmond Paddock on the opposite bank to the Botanical Gardens. (This is where AAMI Stadium and Collingwood Football Club now stand.) In 1861, the Zoological Society of Victoria was renamed The Acclimatisation Society of Victoria. Unfortunately the Yarra River frontage was damp, swampy and subject to flooding, so the animals were briefly housed at the Botanical Gardens until in 1862, the City of Melbourne donated 55 acres (22 hectares) of land at Royal Park for the fledgling zoo. Baron von Mueller secured employment at Royal Park for Andrew and David and they helped to lay out the gardens, plant trees and take care of a collection of deer, pheasants, hares and partridges. Initially the zoo was used for the acclimatisation of animals recovering from the long voyage to Australia and for breeding them for sport. In 1872, the zoo bought two lions, a leopard and a cheetah that had been seized from circus showmen Keith and Phillips when they were unable to pay the bill of butcher Mr T K Bennet of Bourke Street. The first zoo director, Mr. Albert Le Souef, negotiated with captains of ships to buy animals at overseas ports they visited and soon a multitude of exotic species arrived, including a ten-year-old Indian elephant in 1878. In 1923, after being head keeper for some years, Andrew was appointed director of the zoo. By 1933, the zoo had 110 different species of animals, 200 species of birds and 72 species of reptiles under Andrew’s care. He had personally planted all but six trees and laid out the garden beds. As director he lobbied authorities for funds to build more humane enclosures for the animals. In June 1928, Table Talk magazine wrote of Andrew Wilkie: “Up at the Zoo there is a humble gentleman who is a lion among the lions, who knows the proper specific to employ when the boa constrictor has chilblains, and who is a friend and confidant of Queenie the elephant. His fount of zoological lore has never been plumbed. It is bottomless, like his good fellowship and geniality. Every day he may be seen somewhere in the grounds of that growing sanctuary for the strange and arresting fauna and creeping things of the world, and I assure you as one who is privy to his passion that that area and its inhabitants are rarely out of his thoughts.” Andrew retired from the zoo in 1936 at the age of 83 and in 1948 died at his home in Brunswick aged 94. He and his wife Josephine had six children. The Victorian Acclimatisation Society was founded in 1861 by Edward Wilson, 1813-1878, then owner and editor of The Argus newspaper. He said that Australian indigenous animals were practically useless, providing only “a little sport and an occasional meal”. The Society believed that Australia’s plants and animals were vastly inferior to those in Europe. They wanted to introduce and acclimatise to Victoria “all innoxious animals, birds, fishes, insects and vegetables, whether useful or ornamental” for sport and for the table, and to spread indigenous animals and plants from the colony around the world. Their motto was “if it lives, we want it”. The Society was primarily responsible for introducing sparrows, starlings, sambar and hog deer, ostriches, brown trout, blackberries, and carp to the Murray River. They released the European songbirds, thrush and blackbird to quell the homesickness of British settlers. The Society also sent Australian animals like platypus, echidnas, kangaroos and koalas to Europe for scientific and novelty purposes. Thomas Austin, a wealthy sheep farmer of Barwon Park, Winchelsea (property now owned by the National Trust) was a member and in 1859 he introduced hares, blackbirds, thrushes and partridges onto his property. He is probably best known for introducing 24 breeding rabbits onto his estate as game for shooting parties. Thomas quipped, “The introduction of a few rabbits could do little harm and might provide a touch of home, in addition to a spot of hunting." In 2022, genomic data confirmed that Australia’s feral rabbit population is entirely descended from these rabbits. Biological control has brought the rabbit population down from an estimated high of 10 billion rabbits in the 1920s to approximately 200 million today, inhabiting 70% of Australian landmass (5.3 million square kilometres). In 1872, the Acclimatisation Society was renamed The Zoological and Acclimatisation Society of Victoria and they focused on importing exotic animals for display purposes to the zoo. In 1937, the Royal Acclimatisation Society of Victoria was recreated as the Zoological Board of Victoria with a focus on research of native animals threatened with extinction. In an editorial for The Argus newspaper, 16 March 1856, Edward Wilson lamented: "...this country has been shamelessly stolen from the blacks. Had they been like the New Zealanders or the North American Indians, we should have bought their land, and supplied them with the means of living when we took it... In less than twenty years we have nearly swept them off the face of the earth. We have shot them down like dogs. In the guise of friendship we have issued corrosion sublimate in their damper, and consigned whole tribes to the agonies of an excruciating death. We have made them drunkards, and infected them with disease which has rotted the bones of their adults, and made such few children as are born amongst them a sorrow and a torture from the very instant of their birth. We have made them outcasts on their own land, and are rapidly consigning them to entire annihilation. There are but a few of them left, comparatively. This is what we would do for that few. We would feed and clothe every one of them.” [Note: this last sentence is italicized in the original newspaper article text]. Lord Huntingfield, (William Charles Arcedeckne Vanneck) 1883-1969, Governor of Victoria 1934-1939, was a British Conservative Party politician and the first ever Australian-born Governor of an Australian state (although he was always considered British). He was patron of the Royal Zoological and Acclimatisation Society of Victoria and was acting Governor-General for six months during the absence of Lord Gowie in 1938. Lady Huntingfield (née Margaret Eleanor Crosby) 1884-1943, his American-born wife showed great interest in social welfare and the advancement of women and children. She was president of the City Newsboys Society and Patroness of the Girls Friendly Society. In 1937, rose breeder Alister Clark named a yellow hybrid tea rose for her. In 1940, the City of Melbourne opened the Lady Huntingfield Free Kindergarten in North Melbourne, now the Lady Huntingfield Early Learning and Family Services Centre. Lady Huntingfield died in London in 1943 after her house was bombed during a German airstrike. The Lady Huntingfield Memorial Scholarship was established after the City of Melbourne raised £1000 in a public appeal conducted in her memory for students undertaking a Social Work degree at the University of Melbourne. It is awarded annually to this day. The Queen Victoria Hospital named a bed in her honour. References: VICE-ROYALTY GREETS THE KING OF BEASTS AT THE ZOO. (1934, June 26). The Age (Melbourne, Vic. : 1854 - 1954), p. 11. Retrieved August 23, 2024, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article204818472 Prominent Personalities ANDREW WILKIE (1928, June 7). Table Talk (Melbourne, Vic. : 1885 - 1939), p. 15. Retrieved August 29, 2024, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article146562949 'Edward Wilson (journalist)', Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_Wilson_(journalist) 'Thomas Austin (pastoralist)', Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Austin_(pastoralist) 'The Acclimatisation Society was driven by misguided ideals about 'fixing nature' in Australia', ABC News, https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-11-04/acclimatisation-society-introduced-species-history-listen/101588262?utm_campaign=abc_news_web&utm_content=link&utm_medium=content_shared&utm_source=abc_news_web Blinky Bill: the quaint little Australian (eBook); by Dorothy Wall, 1933, 2023, Project Gutenberg Australia, https://gutenberg.net.au/ebooks04/0400571h.html "Black August": Queensland's Open Season on koalas in 1927 (thesis); Glenn Fowler, 1993, Australian National University, https://www.savethekoala.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/Black-August.pdf Unfair game: Queensland's Open Season on koalas in 1927; Jacqui Donegan, 2000, University of Queensland, https://mesto-ku.narod.ru/koalas.pdf OPEN SEASON CONDEMNED. (1927, July 19). The Brisbane Courier (Qld. : 1864 - 1933), p. 15. Retrieved September 5, 2024, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article21863465 COUNTRY WOMEN'S ASSOCIATION. (1927, July 30). The Brisbane Courier (Qld. : 1864 - 1933), p. 25. Retrieved September 20, 2024, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article21866965 AUSTRALIA: Barnardo's children at Melbourne Park Zoo (1929), British Pathé, YouTube, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Wcrbo_cHpI 'Kodak Cinegraph Compilation No 8', ACMI Collection, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MCrBng5RwFI KOALA SKINS. EXPORT BAN SOUGHT. (1927, August 4). The Brisbane Courier (Qld. : 1864 - 1933), p. 10. Retrieved September 15, 2024, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article21868746 THE ABORIGINES. (1856, March 16). The Argus (Melbourne, Vic. : 1848 - 1957), p. 5. Retrieved September 28, 2024, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article4833244 Koala Bears (1937), British Pathé, YouTube, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XbqgMtyuzwE Australian Koala Bear (Earliest Archive Footage: 1929), Pond5, https://www.pond5.com/stock-footage/item/152767491-australian-koala-bear-earliest-archive-footage-1929Photographer notations on slide: "Vice Regal visit to zoo B42".1930-1939, zoos, governors, koalas, conservation, possums, botanic gardens -
Kew Historical Society IncMemorabilia, MUIOOF: Port Phillip District/Yarra Yarra District Honour Board, 1930
... alister...t.a. till...r.w. bent...j.w. woolard...a.e. woolard...r.h. harle...jean harle...l.o. adams...d.h. lloyd...k.w. harle...d.g. mclean...p.s. pearse...v.l. profitt...f.c. marks...m.h. mcalister...j. newman...e.m. savory...a.f gration...c.g. teasdale...e.k. sparkes...a.j. scott...w.h. savory...t.r. holland...g.t. smith...d. adams...s. rowe...t. bentley...l.e. fegan...m.j. fiander...g.n. bentley...j.l. oakley...h. brierley...b. oakley...m. j. fiander...w. humphries...a. weingardt...c. nunn...d.a. adams...s.p. clark...The Board was donated to the Society when the Hall was demolished. muioof (kew) yarra yarra district port phillip district j. kleiner manchester unity independent order of oddfellows w. woollard d. gray g. taylor d. dannock e.g. backwell s. conder j.h. joyce r. summers r. clulow w. morris f. fanhauser j. waters w. butson a. dalton t.g. jellis j. watson w. howieson a.h. alexander w.h. perry a.r. studd t. greenhill w.a. hunt w. maslen t. eakins h. ellis a. geoffrey j. priestman t.e. morrisjamieson c.h. bryan g. hinchcliffe t. foley a.j. conder s. clapham a. cornish f.j. fauvel e.m. bond h. co j.g m. moller e. hillier w. finucane w.e. bristow v. geoffrey a. hill j.t. studd h. de c. kellett a.j whittaker e. foley e.f. fordred p.j. ridgeway j. barnard h.a. ingham h. woollard j.w. fuller e. mclean p.g. pearce f. walsh h. fryar h. salisbury h. woolard h.c. cox a.j. watson w. holt f.t. james e.c. parry g. lees h.o. ada,s g.c. barclay g.h. mockridge g. philpott j. corser a. lilburn w.p. wheeler t.e. morri r.r. clarke h.d. sisson w.r. harle w.g. gray j.d. newman c.w. laidler e.a. rae a.a. homes a. mcconachie h.f. woollard p.g. gallop h.c. nelson l.n. graebe e.w. firth n. rae r.j. kelly j. donaldson f.t. jmes c. till t.j. doyle s.m.f wills w.l. smith h. mcallan h.a. morgan a. kinns w.r. adams c.h. jones g.h. carter m. prout a.w. bishop k.c. hemmings e.k. sparls l.m. harle j.m. prout l.e. watts d.b. adams f.u. woolard a. macrae n.l. gration d.h. vickers m.h.m. alister t.a. till r.w. bent j.w. woolard a.e. woolard r.h. harle jean harle l.o. adams d.h. lloyd k.w. harle d.g. mclean p.s. pearse v.l. profitt f.c. marks m.h. mcalister j. newman e.m. savory a.f gration c.g. teasdale e.k. sparkes a.j. scott w.h. savory t.r. holland g.t. smith d. adams s. rowe t. bentley l.e. fegan m.j. fiander g.n. bentley j.l. oakley h. brierley b. oakley m. j. fiander w. humphries a. weingardt c. nunn d.a. adams s.p. clark s. evans g.n.bentley s. clugston d.c. mitchell a.e. martin g.n bentley l.b. murrell t.b. will d. murrell Maker marks - [Painted on back panel] "Lodge Board - Written by Bro. ...The MUIOOF Lodge was located in Union Street, Kew. The Lodge was established in 1863. It was demolished in the early 1990s.The Lodge Board lists the names of representatives of many of Kew's pioneering families. The Board was donated to the Society when the Hall was demolished. MUIOOF Lodge Board - Yarra Yarra District, Loyal Kew Lodge No. 5093 Port Phillip District till 1888 / Yarra Yarra District from 1888 Past Grands [listed] W.Woolard 1864 to A.E. Martin 1990 Maker marks - [Painted on back panel] "Lodge Board - Written by Bro. J. Kleiner, Signwriter 432 Burwood Rd. Glenferrie March 1930".[Engraved on pediment] "G.E. Gosbell, Woodcarver 1955". muioof (kew), yarra yarra district, port phillip district, j. kleiner, manchester unity independent order of oddfellows, w. woollard, d. gray, g. taylor, d. dannock, e.g. backwell, s. conder, j.h. joyce, r. summers, r. clulow, w. morris, f. fanhauser, j. waters, w. butson, a. dalton, t.g. jellis, j. watson, w. howieson, a.h. alexander, w.h. perry, a.r. studd, t. greenhill, w.a. hunt, w. maslen, t. eakins, h. ellis, a. geoffrey, j. priestman, t.e. morrisjamieson, c.h. bryan, g. hinchcliffe, t. foley, a.j. conder, s. clapham, a. cornish, f.j. fauvel, e.m. bond, h. co, j.g m. moller, e. hillier, w. finucane, w.e. bristow, v. geoffrey, a. hill, j.t. studd, h. de c. kellett, a.j whittaker, e. foley, e.f. fordred, p.j. ridgeway, j. barnard, h.a. ingham, h. woollard, j.w. fuller, e. mclean, p.g. pearce, f. walsh, h. fryar, h. salisbury, h. woolard, h.c. cox, a.j. watson, w. holt, f.t. james, e.c. parry, g. lees, h.o. ada,s, g.c. barclay, g.h. mockridge, g. philpott, j. corser, a. lilburn, w.p. wheeler, t.e. morri, r.r. clarke, h.d. sisson, w.r. harle, w.g. gray, j.d. newman, c.w. laidler, e.a. rae, a.a. homes, a. mcconachie, h.f. woollard, p.g. gallop, h.c. nelson, l.n. graebe, e.w. firth, n. rae, r.j. kelly, j. donaldson, f.t. jmes, c. till, t.j. doyle, s.m.f wills, w.l. smith, h. mcallan, h.a. morgan, a. kinns, w.r. adams, c.h. jones, g.h. carter, m. prout, a.w. bishop, k.c. hemmings, e.k. sparls, l.m. harle, j.m. prout, l.e. watts, d.b. adams, f.u. woolard, a. macrae, n.l. gration, d.h. vickers, m.h.m. alister, t.a. till, r.w. bent, j.w. woolard, a.e. woolard, r.h. harle, jean harle, l.o. adams, d.h. lloyd, k.w. harle, d.g. mclean, p.s. pearse, v.l. profitt, f.c. marks, m.h. mcalister, j. newman, e.m. savory, a.f gration, c.g. teasdale, e.k. sparkes, a.j. scott, w.h. savory, t.r. holland, g.t. smith, d. adams, s. rowe, t. bentley, l.e. fegan, m.j. fiander, g.n. bentley, j.l. oakley, h. brierley, b. oakley, m. j. fiander, w. humphries, a. weingardt, c. nunn, d.a. adams, s.p. clark, s. evans, g.n.bentley, s. clugston, d.c. mitchell, a.e. martin, g.n bentley, l.b. murrell, t.b. will, d. murrell
