Matthew had a farm in his own right at Benjeroop and on October 31, 1889 he married Mary Simpson at the Baptist church at Benjeroop. This church had been moved in June from its original location to a more central location in the town protected on the north and west by the high timber growing along the river, and [where] there is also a nice little grove of young trees close by, which will be a very convenient shelter for horses and vehicles, both in hot and cold weather (Kerang Times May 8, 1888). Mary was the daughter of Charles and Emma (nee Bond) Simpson. They were also farmers from Benjeroop. Matthew and Mary had four daughters whilst they were living in the Benjeroop / Murrabit region.
Around 1893, Matthew was elected as a Trustee of the Benjeroop and Murrabit Water Trust. In 1905 the family moved 400 kilometres south to Yannathan, on the recently drained Koo Wee Rup Swamp. A ‘send-off’ was held for the family on March 21 and attended by 150 locals. The Kerang New Times reported on the occasion – the room being decorated with evergreens, pampas grass, palm leaves, etc, and with the tables attractively laid out and laden with enticing comestibles from the substantial ham and turkey to the lighter trifle and jellies. Many complimentary speeches were made about Matthew, as you would imagine – He was a gentleman who was appreciated by all and had carried out whatever public duties he had performed honestly and fairly. He had original ideas of his own and endeavoured to give them effect and was not afraid to have the courage of his opinion….He was an up to date farmer, ready to adopt any new method which would improve the farming interests and had shown what could be done in the district by irrigation.
After the speeches Matthew was presented with a handsome gold Albert and locket and Mary was presented with a silver hot water kettle with spirit lamp attachment. A ‘gold Albert’ I have just found out is a watch chain. The evening finished with the National Anthem, followed by a dance which was kept up to an early hour. (Kerang New Times March 24, 1905, see here)
The family moved to Crown Allotments 28 and 29, Parish of Koo Wee Rup East. The allotments were 159 acres and 154 acres respectively - 313 acres in all. They were near Bayles on the north side of the Bayles-Modella road. When the Bennetts moved to the area it was called Yannathan, but the area was later known as Catani. Both Bayles and Catani came into existence as they were stations on the Koo Wee Rup to Strzelecki Railway line which opened in June 1922 and the towns soon developed around the stations. Catani, was, of course, named for Carlo Catani, the Public Works Department engineer who worked on the Koo Wee Rup Swamp drainage scheme. Initially Matthew was a dairy farmer, but he gave up dairying in September 1915, held a clearing sale and became a grazier.
Matthew Bennett's clearing sale.
Lang Lang Guardian September 29, 1915 http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article119512940
The family took part in the life of the community, whilst they were at Yannathan. Matthew was the president of the Yannathan New Year’s Day Sports Carnival; Mary was the vice-president of the Yannathan branch of the Lady Mayoress' Patriotic League and the whole family were involved with fund raising for ‘patriotic causes’ during the Great War. We will have a quick look at the lives of four Bennett daughters. The eldest daughter, Janey Gertrude was born in 1892. In 1917, she married Joseph Henry Carson, whose parents owned a property at Yannathan. Joseph had a property at Balldoran, north of Dubbo; Janey spent her married life in that region and died in 1984. The second daughter, Elsie Marjorie Elizabeth, was born in 1894. She married Abraham Alfred Patullo, of Lang Lang, in 1920 and they farmed some of the land that was owned by her parents. She died in 1980. The third daughter, Isabel Emma, was born in 1896, she never married and died in 1983. The fourth daughter, Josephine Eleanor was born in 1899 and married Jack Reeve Dowling, an Accountant from Melbourne, in 1936. She died in 1989.
Matthew Bennett was involved with the Victorian Farmers’ Union which became the Country Party in the late 1920s – he was on the Central Council at both State and Federal level and President of the local Yannathan branch, so it was no surprise that he would stand for election. On August 27, 1925 he was elected as a councillor to the Cranbourne Shire. His platform, as published in a letter in the Koo Wee Rup Sun of August 20, was primarily concerned with roads good roads are very essential in this Riding in particular, as it is one of intensive culture almost throughout. They facilitate production, which means wealth, cheapens transport, help to stop the drift to the city, brightens country life and very materially help primary producers and country townspeople to prosper. Mr Bennett was Shire President on two occasions and remained on the Council until his death, in 1951. He was the Shire President 1931/1932 and 1941/1942. In 1953, his grandson Stewart Patullo was elected as a Cranbourne Shire Councillor.
Matthew Bennett
Dandenong Journal September 17, 1931 http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article201085220
On October 1, 1929 at a by-election, Mr Bennett was elected to the Legislative Assembly for the seat of West Gippsland, representing the Country Party. He retired from Parliament after nearly 21 years on April 1, 1950. Apart from the fact that he was then well into his eighties, his health had been affected by illness and a serious car accident in January 1949. Matthew Bennett was a farmer and had country interests at heart and one of his achievements was the establishment of the Milk Board in December 1933, which regulated the dairy industry.
Matthew’s wife, Mary died on August 2, 1925. The death notice said that she died at her residence 16 Service Street, Hampton. She is buried at the Brighton Cemetery. It was just after her death that Matthew decided to stand for Council - I wonder if those two events were linked? Of interest though is the fact that in 1925, Mary Bennett was not living at Catani or Yannathan. Even though Matthew Bennett maintained property in the area, he also did not live in the country. From 1926 his residential address in the Shire of Cranbourne Rate books was 631 Inkerman Road in Caulfield, so maybe the roads still weren’t good enough for them and country life was not ‘bright’ enough for them and they ‘drifted’ to the city.
However, he was still popular as he kept getting re-elected and there are various reports of ‘complimentary socials’ being held in various local towns. In fact, in August 1944 at a function at the Catani Hall, Mr Bennett was presented with an illuminated address, and he was congratulated on having won such universal esteem and on having attended to his parliamentary duties in the interests of all, irrespective, of party. (Dandenong Journal August 2, 1944).
Matthew Bennett died on January 16, 1951 and he was buried with his wife Mary at Brighton Cemetery. His obituary in the Dandenong Journal of January 17, 1951 said he was affectionately known as “Mattie” throughout the length and breadth of Gippsland, was a wonderful character, who made friends everywhere, but never an enemy. Matthew Bennett Park in Drouin is named after him as is Bennett Road in Catani.
I have created a list on Trove on newspaper articles on Matthew Bennett, you can access it here. All the articles referred to here are on this list.
