Silver Wells (Mr Ure's Hall) was an early building in Gembrook and is still the Ure familyPhotocopy of Empire Patriotic Fund Social Ticket 1900emerald, victoria, australia, entertainment, ure jean worrell, lennox, north gembrook, silver wells

A brief gold rush starting in 1858 led to the opening up of the Emerald district. While short lived (and not very successful,) the influx of people led to the early timber and farming industries that built the communities that now exist. The image on the postcard shows typical working conditions on more advanced operations, using significant diversions of creeks to provide water for sluicing while the creek bed below the diversion would be dried and exposed to allow workers to remove the material for processing in the hydraulic sluice. The correspondence on the postcard, whilst sometimes difficult to read, helps to paint a picture of life in the district, and how people communicated in this earlier period. The recipient of the postcard is a prominent member of the early Gembrook community, John Ure, who ran various businesses including a cheese factory in Silver Hills/North Gembrook. The lack of legible postage date opens up many mysteries about this item, as well as different references to the person in the sluice being "Tom Collins"The record shows strong significance, depicting working conditions and technology of early gold mining in the Emerald area. Even more-so, the personal/commercial correspondence depicts a customer ordering cheese from the local cheese factory, presumably before electric communication.Black and White rectangular postcard printed on laminated card stock, personal correspondence. This postcard depicts hydraulic sluicing in the Emerald area of Victoria. Two bearded workers, one wearing a hat, are posing in the mid ground. One is standing in the sluice itself and one standing above on the embankment with shovel in hand. Native forest surrounds the workings with roots exposed, while the sluice itself runs vertical through the frame, roughly cut into the ground. Eagle eyes may notice the missing hat sitting on part of the woodwork towards the foreground.Obverse: Hydraulic Sluicing, / Emerald near Gembrook / Reverse: Printed: Printed in Prussia / [Print torn off]orne / Handwritten Message: ohn Ure / Dear Sir / Will you kindly send / a loaf of old cheese for / about si ound / Station on Sunday next / will be up there if fine / kindly remember me / to all / Bill Atz / Handwritten Address: Mr John Ure / orth Gembrook Post Office / Gembrook / Handwritten Note: ho Collin / Menzies creek sluicing race / Prospect Bend area / Postmarks: Unintelligible except for Victoria and AP 9 May likely say Gembrook, year unknown Pencil Marks: 5 VEMUP1039emerald, victoria, australia, gembrook victoria australia, gembrook, emerald, avonsleigh, menzies creek, clematis, gold mining, goldmining, correspondence

The Ure family played a pivotal role as early pioneers in the development of Gembrook. In 1874, John Ure made a significant decision to secure 213 acres of land in this burgeoning region. Accompanied by his wife, Jane (also known as Jean), and their two sons, Alexander (born in 1872) and John (born in 1873), all hailing from Scotland, they embarked on their journey to Gembrook. During their time in Gembrook, two more sons, Robert (born in 1875) and James Buchanan (born in 1881), were born. It was here that the Ure family established their homestead, which they aptly named Silver Wells, inspired by the remarkably pure water source they uncovered when digging their initial well. Silver Wells became a hub of activity, featuring a collection of essential buildings, including multiple houses, machinery sheds, barns, a cheese room, dairy, and a boiler room. Notably, it also housed a post office and a store, complete with a butchers' room, catering to the needs of the local mining community that had flocked to the area in search of precious gold and silver deposits in nearby rivers. The Ures remained deeply involved in the operation of the store, situated in what was known as North Gembrook, until the year 1901. At that point, the commercial centre of the town shifted toward the area surrounding the Railway Station, coinciding with the rise of the Puffing Billy line.The photograph holds strong historic significance for it depicts Silver Wells. The estate holds a special place on the Victorian Heritage Register. The register highlights its uniqueness, particularly in the diverse vernacular construction methods employed in the various buildings, most of which were erected during the 1870s. For instance, the stables showcase the drop slab method, a distinctive construction technique. The original house and post office, on the other hand, exhibit the use of notched logs, a rare form of building in Colonial Victoria. The dairy extension is skillfully crafted with split weatherboards, adding to the architectural diversity of the site. The roofing materials also reflect the era's construction practices, with a blend of bark or shingles originally in use, although these have since been replaced with corrugated iron.A rectangular black and white photograph printed on photographic paper. Depicted is a photograph of a sign directing patrons to "Silver Wells." There are pieces of equipment in the foreground and background, including bowls, canisters and tins, among others.Obverse: "Silver Wells" / ( OLD GEMBROOK ) / OPEN TODAY 10-5/1870s, silver wells, gembrook, ure family

A4 soft cover history (third of three books) in pictures of towns along Princes Highway. Beaconsfield, Officer, Pakenham Upper, Pakenham, Cockatoo, Gembrook, Nar Nar Goon North, Tynong, Garfield and Bunyip2 Black & white & 2 Sepia postcards unmounted of a. Horse and cart being driven along dirt road in 1907. b. c.and d. various views of small creek with overhanging ferns.Postcard to Dr and Mrs Robertson - from ? Nobelius. Undated. No post date. Fern Gully near Avonsleigh House. Emerald. Fern Gully Emerald. Road to Emerald. 1907.emerald, victoria, australia, tourism, postcards, avonsleigh house, nobelius family

A4 soft cover history (third of three books) in pictures of towns along Princes Highway. Beaconsfield, Officer, Pakenham Upper, Pakenham, Cockatoo, Gembrook, Nar Nar Goon North, Tynong, Garfield and BunyipA4 pictorial history, complied by Berwick-Pakenham Historical Society- "North of the Line"emerald, victoria, australia, genealogy, families, berwick, pakenham, gva, cva, farming, agriculture, sawmills, gembrook, cockatoo, berwick