Historical information
Greatly relieved by his son’s safe return from war, John Richard Stanton (1872-1955) buys a parcel of productive farming land for his son John Charles “Jack” Stanton (1895-1989) to give him a “good start in life”. Jack’s wife Ethel Capper, devised the name “Gracerray” for the property to honour her sister Grace and the nearby Murray River. After the First World War, fourth generation Jack Stanton (1895-1989) with the help of his father started building a new winery (at the current site of the winery and cellar door) called ‘Gracerray’ named after his wife’s sister Grace and the Murray River. It is pronounced “Grah-sair-ray”.
Jack built Gracerray around some existing cement open top vats from a winery that was demolished after phylloxera ravaged the region in the late 1890s. He used second hand materials from the defunct Great Southern gold mine and propped up the roof with huge tree trunks. Jack only made fortified wine up until the 1960s when he and his son-in-law Norman Killeen started making red wine to meet changing Australian tastes.
Physical description
Black and white portrait photograph of a mature man in suit and tie.
Inscriptions & markings
On back of photo: "145% [upper case E in small circle] J.C. Stanton"
