Koo Wee Rup North State School flooded

The Koo Wee Rup North State School, No. 3198, opened on July 7, 1894. It was located on the corner of  Five Mile Road and Main Drain Road.  This School was originally called Koo Wee Rup South and changed its name to Koo Wee Rup North and unofficially called Five Mile School. The school parents voted for the school to close in November 1959 and the children were sent to Pakenham Consolidated School. Five Mile was the last school to join or ‘consolidate’ with the Consolidated School which had officially opened in May 1951. (1)

Koo Wee Rup North, showing school, Mechanics' Institute (Hall) and 

recreation reserve location. This section of Main Drain Road is now called Fechner Road.

Detail from Koo-Wee-Rup, County of Mornington Department of Crown Lands and Survey, 1939.

State Library of Victoria http://handle.slv.vic.gov.au/10381/104366

Here are some accounts of the school being flooded and the ineffectual action of the Education Department to solve this problem.

June 1911 - The water is running through the windows of the Koo-Wee-Rup North State school. The same article also notes - The Keast-hall, a new building at Cora Lynn, which was to have been officially opened last night, has about 3ft. of water in it. (The Argus,  June 14, 1911, see here) 

June 1911 - The settlers at Kooweerup have ample cause for righteous indignation at the incapacity which the Public Works department has shown in dealing with the drainage of the swamp. Although large sums of money have been spent in making a clear run to the sea for the Bunyip River and Tarago Creek, which cause the periodic floods to which the flats are subject, the outlet provided yet falls far short of requirements. The consequence is severe financial loss, if not ruin, to a deserving body of small holders, many of whom were induced to buy Kooweerup land on the understanding that it was reclaimed.  (The Leader, June 24, 1911, see here)  

Koo Wee Rup North in flood in 1911 - the school in the centre and the Methodist Church, erected 1909 (2), is on the right.

The Leader, June 24, 1911 https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/198161960

November 1913 -  The 5 Mile school and teacher's residence was flooded on the 14th inst. Although the Government promised a couple of years ago to take steps to prevent a flood, nothing has been done except to take levels and to import a sand-dredge, which I understand is hopelessly bogged in the mud of the Lang Lang river. (South Bourke and Mornington Journal, November 20, 1913, see here) 

June 1914 - Good progress is being made with the renovating and remodelling of the State School by the contractors, Messrs Parsons and Weller, whose contract price is £530. The school, which is being temporarily conducted in the hall, has an average attendance of 50 scholars, the teacher, Mr Wilson, having two assistants. The school has been removed about three chains from its old site, with the ostensible purpose of raising the elevation on account of floods, but the floor is not an inch above the level of the old school. Mr Keast, M.L.A., referred to this matter when at Five Mile on Friday, and said that if representations were made to to him it was not too late to alter the location of the building. The proposed school will have ample accommodation, which is in painful contrast to the Kooweerup school, where 73 children are housed in a building 34ft x 23ft, with less air space than the regulations of the department provide for.  (Lang Lang Guardian, June 24, 1914, see here) 

June 1914 - A School below flood level - Good progress is being made with the erection of a new school at Five Mile, the contract price being £530. During the flood in 1911, caused by the overflow of the Kooweerup Canal, there was two feet of water in the school, and a request was made that the floor should be raised above flood level. The new school, however, is being erected on the same site, and the floor elevation is the same as that of the old school. Mr. Keast, M.L.A., is inquiring into the matter.

(The Age, June 27, 1914, see here) 

July 1914 - The five-mile school and teacher's residence, which was recently removed by the Education department about a couple of chains, has, as was generally expected been flooded by the recent rains and unless the school is raised to the level of the road it will always be liable to be flooded after heavy rain. There are large quantities of sand, brought down by the flood about 3 years ago, lying on both banks of the canal, partly covered with grass and ti-tree, which might be used for filling up the site. (South Bourke and Mornington Journal, July 23, 1914, see here) 

Koo Wee Rup North School, 1927

Image: Koo Wee Rup Swamp Historical Society

September 1918 - The head teacher of the Five Mile School, Mr Donald, had to get out on Wednesday and wade waist deep, carrying his family to safety. All their furniture, etc., had to be hung up out of the flood fiend's grip. The water was a foot deep in the school, which was closed for the remainder of the week. This building is situated in a position particularly liable to flood, for every freshet in the Five Mile drain causes inconvenience. During the two years of the present teacher's regime he has suffered no less than 23 floodings, a record that must surely reach the limit of exasperation. The structure was removed about 100 yards some time ago, to evade or try to minimise the risk, but without any relief. The Five Mile Hall also suffered a visitation, as usual. A ball was to have been held on Wednesday night, but by that time there was a foot of water inside, and the waters danced the "flood glide" at their own pleasure. The ball was postponed to Tuesday of this week. (Koo Wee Rup Sun, September 11, 1918, see here)

Koo Wee Rup North School Residence, 1927

Image: Koo Wee Rup Swamp Historical Society

The teacher, Mr Donald who suffered the 23 floods, was John Robert Donald, who was born in August 1874 and began his teaching career with the Education Department in 1892. He was appointed to Koo Wee Rup North on January 1, 1916, having previously been at Brookside, near Bright. He was transferred from  Koo Wee Rup North  in April 1919 and in the 1921 Electoral Roll was living at 146 Gatehouse Street, Parkville. John had married Clara Cecilia Powell in 1903, they had three children Robert Stewart (born 1905-1992), Nancy Mavis (1908-1992 Mrs Raymond Kitson) and Charles Douglas (1910-1979). Robert and Charles both served in the Army in World War Two. Clara has a short term of employment at the Education Department as the sewing mistress at Brookside and Koo Wee Rup North, and her appointment ended when John left the Koo Wee Rup North School.  John died in 1962, aged 87 and Clara in 1949, aged 67. They were both cremated at Springvale Botanical Cemetery. (3).

Called Koo Wee Rup South, this is actually the Koo Wee Rup North (Five Mile) School 

in the 1937 flood. 

The Australasian, October 23, 1937. https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/141810942

Koo Wee Rup North Hall, 1927

Image: Koo Wee Rup Swamp Historical Society

The Koo Wee Rup North Hall was built in 1910 or 1911. In November 1910 the Shire of Cranbourne received correspondence from Public Health department, submitting plans and specifications regarding proposed public hall at the Five-mile, Kooweerup. The first mention I could find of the use of the hall was in June 1911, but it was most likely opened earlier than that. (4) It has been demolished, maybe in the 1980s. 

Footnotes

(1) More information here https://kooweerupswamphistory.blogspot.com/2018/06/early-swamp-schools.html  and https://kooweerupswamphistory.blogspot.com/2022/10/state-primary-schools-called-koo-wee-rup.html

(2) The Age May 10, 1909, see here, notes A new Methodist Church is to be erected at Five Mile.

(3) John Robert Donald - Public Records Office of Victoria Teacher records (1863-1959) Series 13579;  Indexes to the Victorian Births, Deaths and Marriages; Electoral Rolls on Ancestry; Springvale Botanical Cemetery  https://smct.org.au/our-locations/about-springvale-botanical-cemetery ; WW2 Nominal Rolls https://nominal-rolls.dva.gov.au/ww2

(4) The Argus, June 15, 1910, see here - A new public hall is to be erected at Five mile.  

South Bourke & Mornington Journal, November 10, 1910, see here - Shire of Cranbourne received correspondence from Public Health department, submitting plans and specifications regarding proposed public hall at the Five-mile, Kooweerup. 

The Argus, June 29, 1911, see here, - A public meeting will be held at the Five-mile Hall to consider the best means of preventing a recurrence of the recent floods on the swamp. Messrs W.S. Keast and A. Downward, M.L.A.'s, will address the gathering. 

A report of the meeting can be read  in The Age, June 30, 1911, here.

Great War Soldiers with a connection to Koo Wee Rup North

This report on the Five Mile School Honor Roll was in the Lang Lang Guardian of June 9, 1915. Five Mile, also known as Koo Wee Rup North, was a small township on the corner of the Main Drain and Five Mile Road (the road being five miles from the start of the Main Drain at Western Port Bay). The School opened in July 1894 and closed in November 1959 when school became part of Pakenham Consolidated School (read more here). Two teachers who had taught at this school were awarded medals for bravery - Captain Frank McNamara a Victoria Cross and  Captain William Wilson a Military Cross. You can read about them below.

Roll of Honor Five Mile School

Lang Lang Guardian June 9, 1915  http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article119512454

Who were these soldiers who were honoured? I  have included their Service Number (SN) so you can look up their full record in the National Archives of Australia (www.naa.gov.au)

Backhouse, Bert (Herbert Arthur Burder) (SN 612)  Bert was 23 when he enlisted on April 20, 1914. Bert is listed in the 1913 Electoral Roll at Koo Wee Rup. His next of kin on his enlistment paper was his father, Talworth Backhouse, whose address is listed as Metropolitan Board of Works, Melbourne. Bert's mother was Emily A'Beckett, a daughter of W.A.C A'Beckett of The Grange in Harkaway, so they were a well connected family, socially. He Returned to Australia on May 4, 1917 and was discharged on medical grounds (septic knee)      

Bjurstrom,  Gustave Carl (SN 503 / V9457)  I can only find one instance of a Bjurstrom enlisting and it is this one, so even though he is listed in the newspaper article as A. Bjurstrom I believe I have the right soldier.  Gustave was 19 when he enlisted on August 27, 1914 and his occupation was sawmill labourer and his next of kin was his father C.G Bjurstrom of Heyfield. In the 1916 Electoral Rolls Charles and Agnes Bjurstrom are listed at Koo Wee Rup, two years previously they were at Heyfield, so obviously moved after their son enlisted. Gustave Returned to Australia July 5, 1915 and was discharged on medical grounds on August 31, 1915. He had received a gun shot wound to the shoulder and right side whilst fighting at Gallipoli; he also had rheumatism.  Gustave was granted a Soldier Settlement farm, you can read his file on the Battle to Farm website, here. 
Gustave also served in the Second World War; he enlisted at the age of 42 in March 1940. His address at the time was Cora Lynn, and his next of kin was his wife, Alice (nee Osborn). He was discharged in December 1943.

Burns, Joseph  (SN 1399)  Joseph enlisted on October 19, 1914 at the age of 33 and was then medically discharged in April 1916 due to receiving a Gun shot wound to the 'lower extremities' while fighting at Gallipoli. He rejoined April 27, 1917 and was discharged again in the May. Joseph was the son of Francis and Margaret Burns who are both listed as the next of kin, with an address in Moreland, however there was a Francis, Margaret and Joseph Burns in the Electoral Roll  at Koo Wee Rup from 1903 to 1913.

Chippindall, Robert Arthur (SN 375) Robert was a 23 year old painter when he enlisted on August 15, 1914. His next of kin was his mother, Sarah, of  South Yarra. Robert died of wounds on May 17, 1915.  What was his connection to the Five Mile region? His father was the grandly named Giles Tatlock Chippindall and his mother was Sarah Isaac Dawson. When Giles died at the age of 57 in 1900 his death notice said that he lived at Bunyip and was employed by the Lands Department. Giles had various government positions in Victoria and Queensland  - in 1893 he was appointed as a Crowns Land Bailiff.  I have found the notice, below from 1896, so I presume he was the Lands Department Inspector in the Koo Wee Rup region.  Giles and Sarah had fifteen children altogether of which ten lived to adulthood and she died in 1932 aged 80. Robert's brother, Henry Dawson Chippindall, was Killed in Action at Gallipoli on August 8, 1915. Another brother, Thomas, is listed in the Electoral Roll in 1908  at Garfield,  his occupation is also Crown Lands Bailiff.  Yet another brother, Giles, was the Director General of Post Masters General Department and had also headed the Department of War Organisation of Industry and was knighted in 1950. Sources: Giles Chippindall's death notice The Leader July 7, 1900, see here; Sarah Chippindall's death notice The Age July 4, 1932, see here; Article on Sir Giles Chippindall, in Smiths Weekly, June 20, 1942, see here.

Robert Chippindall's father is mentioned in this article.

Warragul Guardian June 12 1896 http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article67438197

Death notice of Robert Chippindall

The Argus May 31, 1915 http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article1520676

Denham, Robert Alexander  (SN 392) Robert was born in Koo Wee Rup  and was living in Carlton and was  a fireman when he enlisted at the age of 28 on February 17, 1915 (that's the date according to the Embarkation roll and July 17, 1915 is the date according to the Enlistment papers).  His next of kin was his friend Annie Ritchie. Robert Returned to Australia July 10, 1916 and was discharged on medical grounds due to a form of rheumatism. Robert was the son of John and Janet Denham. John Denham was the Cranbourne Shire Secretary from 1909 to 1911 and the Rate collector for nine years, he also had a store at Yallock and  a dairy farm at Koo Wee Rup. Janet's father, Alexander Dunlop, had the Harewood Mains property at Tooradin and had a successful cheese making business. Source: The Good Country: Cranbourne Shire by Niel Gunson (Cheshire, 1968).

Emmott, Robert Edmund  (SN 1083) Edmund enlisted at the age of 19 of September 12, 1914 at Inglewood. Edmund was born at Fairfield Park and his next of kin was his mother, Alphina Emmott, and her address was Red Hill. His father, Joseph, had died in April 1914.  Alphina and Joseph were listed in the Electoral Roll at Koo Wee Rup from 1903 to 1914.   Edmund was Killed in Action in France on April 15, 1918.

Report of Edmund's death

Ballarat Courier, May 1 1918 http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article75185657

Garbellini, George  (SN 378)  George enlisted on February 3, 1915 aged 23. He was the second eldest of the twelve children of Peter and Jane (nee Crombie) Garbellini, of 'Five Mile Drain', Koo Wee Rup. He was Killed in Action in France on May 3, 1917.

A lovely tribute to George Garbellini

The Age June 9, 1917 http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article154981436

George Garbellini

Australian War Memorial Photograph DA08084

Gray, William Albert  (SN 218)  William was 22 when he enlisted on January 22, 1915. His occupation was farm hand and his next of kin was his mother, Margaret Gray, of Koo Wee Rup.  He Returned to Australia April 27, 1919.

Jenkins, Thomas Edward   (SN 188)  Thomas was a bricklayer and 19 years old when he enlisted on January 11, 1915. His next of kin was his mother,  Annabel Jenkins, of Boundary Road, Koo Wee Rup. Thomas had been born in Koo Wee Rup.  He Returned to Australia on April 5, 1918 and was discharged in the July on medical grounds due to a Gun shot wound to the right arm, received while fighting in France.

Johnson,  Charles Tudor (SN 588).  Tudor, as he was known, was 19 when he enlisted on November 7, 1914. He was a farmer who lived at Cora Lynn and his next of kin was his mother,  Mrs Fanny (nee Bickford) Johnson, of Cora Lynn. Tudor had attended Dookie Agricultural College before he enlisted at Enoggera in Brisbane. His father was Henry George Johnson who for some reason was not listed as the next of kin, generally fathers are more likely to be the official  next of kin than mothers. Tudor Returned to Australia on December 23, 1918. Tudor is also on the Cora Lynn War Memorial.

Killeen, Patrick (SN 772)  Patrick was 24, a farmer and he enlisted on October 1, 1914. His next of kin was his father of Koo Wee Rup.  Patrick was the son of Thomas and Maria Killeen. Patrick Returned to Australia on July 3, 1919.

Marshall, George  (SN 1780)  George enlisted on January 11, 1915 at the age of 31. He was a carpenter and his address was Cora Lynn and his next of kin was Samuel Marshall who lived at Koo Wee Rup (a later document had the address as Phillips Drain, Five Mile) George sustained two gun shot wounds at Gallipoli -  one to the left side under his arm and one in his left arm. He Returned to Australia on October 13, 1915 and was discharged on medical grounds in January 1916. Georgre was granted a Soldier Settlement farm - you can read his file, here, on the Battle to farm website. There is an Statuary Declaration in his file from 1942 saying that he lost his discharge papers in the 1934 flood at Cora Lynn. He was living at Bullumwaal, north of Bairnsdale, when he wrote the Statuatory Declaration.

M'Gregor, Robert  I am unsure who this is, there is a John and Josephine McGregor on the Electoral Roll at Koo Wee Rup from 1903 to 1905 so they may have had a son who the attended the school but I don't know. If  you have more information on Robert,  I'd love to hear from you.

Scanlan, Thomas  Patrick (SN 505) Thomas Scanlon - his surname is spelt as both Scanlan and Scanlon on official documents - is  the son of William and Ellen Scanlon of Cora Lynn. Thomas was 21 when he enlisted on January 12, 1915. He was a farmer. Thomas was awarded the Military medal and he Returned to Australia  April 5, 1919. Thomas and his brother, Joseph, are listed on the Cora Lynn War Memorial. 

Watson, Percy I am not sure who this is - my best bet going on enlistment date, enlistment place, birth place and occupation is that it is Percy Kennedy Watson (SN 926) Percy was 29 and  a labourer when he enlisted on December 7, 1914. He Returned to Australia March 11, 1916 and was discharged on medical grounds (Asthma) in the November. Once again, if you can help identify Percy I would love to hear from you.

Koo Wee Rup North State School's brave teachers

After the First World War the Education Department of Victoria published a book called The Education Department's Record of War Service 1914-1919. There were two teachers listed who had taught at the Koo Wee Rup North State School. By coincidence, both of them were awarded medals for bravery - Captain Frank McNamara received the Victoria Cross and Captain William Wilson received the Military Cross. There were 64 Victoria Cross medals and around 2,400 Military Cross medals awarded in the First World War.

What follows is the extract and the photos from The Education Department's Record of War Service 1914-1919 book on the two soldiers, plus extra information I have found about their life.

Captain Frank H. McNamara, V.C

Captain Frank McNamara, V. C

Image: The Education Department's Record of War Service 1914-1919.

Captain McNamara was the son of Mr. F. McNamara of ‘Moondyne’, Royal Parade, Caulfield. On 2nd August 1915, he was selected with seven other officers of the Permanent and Citizens Forces for the third course in Military Aeronautics at the Central Flying School at Point Cook. Officers so trained were then due to be attached to the Indian Army for duty in Mesopotamia. The Commonwealth, however, offered to form a complete squadron, and this offer was accepted by the Imperial Authorities. The squadron was formed in January 1916, and it sailed on the Orsova on the 16th of March. He disembarked at Egypt on 24th of April, and on the 28th of the same month proceeded to England for training. He returned to Egypt on the 28th of August, and joined No.1 Squadron at Heliopolis. On 21st of October, he joined the 67th Squadron at Kantara. On 20th of March, 1917 he was wounded in action, and was evacuated to the hospital at Abbassia. Later, he was promoted Captain and Flight Commander of the 71st Squadron, and served in Sinai and Palestine. He returned to Australia as an invalid on the transport Boorara on the 27th of September.

Deed for which the Victoria Cross was awarded – ‘For most conspicuous gallantry and devotion to duty during an aerial bomb attack upon a hostile construction train, when one of our pilots was forced to land behind the enemy’s lines. Lieutenant McNamara, observing this pilot’s predicament and the fact that hostile cavalry was approaching, descended to his rescue. He did this under heavy rifle-fire, and in spite of the fact that he himself had been severely wounded in the thigh. He landed about 200 yards from the damaged machine, the pilot of which climbed on to Lieutenant McNamara’s machine, and an attempt was made to rise. Owing, however, to his disabled leg, he was unable to keep his machine straight, and it turned over. The two officers, having extricated themselves, immediately set fire to the machine, and made their way across to the damaged machine, which they succeeded in starting. Finally, Lieutenant McNamara, although weak from loss of blood, flew this machine back to the aerodrome, a distance of 70 miles, thus completing his comrade’s rescue.’ Prior to enlisting, he was teaching at School No. 3198, North Koo-wee-rup.

Captain McNamara was the first Australian Airman to receive the Victoria Cross. He was born in Rushworth in 1894, the son of William McNamara and Rosanna O’Meara. He attended Shepparton Agricultural High School. In 1924 he married Hélène Marcelle Bluntschli of Brussels whom he had met in Egypt during the War and they had two children. After the War he served with the newly formed RAAF and was the Officer in Command at the Flight Training School at Point Cook and later at the RAAF base at Laverton. In World War Two he was promoted to Air Vice Marshall and, in 1942, moved to England where he worked with the RAF. Captain McNamara died in England in 1961. There is a bust of Frank McNamara in Rushworth.

Lieutenant Frank McNamara, in Hospital, most likely in Cairo.

State Library of Victoria Image  H2014.1135/3

Captain William G. Wilson, M.C

Captain William Wilson, M. C

Image: The Education Department's Record of War Service 1914-1919.

Killed in Action on 30th September, 1918. Captain W.G Wilson, M.C., late head teacher at Koo Wee Rup North. His widow, Mrs Lilias Wilson, lives at ‘Whroo’ Tooronga Road, East Malvern. William George Wilson was born on 19th September, 1882. He became a junior teacher at Moora South in 1901 and was head teacher at Lalbert Road from 1905 to 1908, then at Harrow till 1911 and at Koo Wee Rup North till 1912. He was an excellent teacher. In 1909, he received an official letter expressing the Director’s appreciation of the good work he was doing, and the success that had attended his well-directed and zealous efforts to secure the whole-hearted co-operation of parents and pupils. He enlisted in June 1915 and proceeded to camp early in July. After serving about six months and passing successfully through the Officers’ Training School, he obtained his commission. He embarked for Egypt on the 7th of March,1916. After spending some four or five months in Egypt, he embarked for England on the 29th of July 1916, going through France. He was Instructing Officer in the 14th Training Battalion for some time, and was chosen with other Australian officers to attend a three weeks’ course at Chelsea Barracks, London.  He passed the examinations successfully. On the 4th of November he embarked for France and was serving on the Somme some months when he contracted trench fever. After two weeks in hospital, he again rejoined his Company, and was in the line till the 24th March, when he crossed to England and was in hospital for four weeks, suffering from another attack of trench fever. Until the 4th of November, 1917 he remained in England, training and embarking reinforcements for France. On that date he again returned to France and was there in the line for a few weeks until he was prompted Captain (28h November).  He remained in line as officer in command of A Company. On 28th July 1918 he led his company so successfully through an engagement that he was awarded the Military Cross. The following is an account in the London Gazette of the deed for which he was awarded the Military Cross - ‘For conspicuous gallantry and initiative. He led his company forward during an attack with great judgement and skill, under heavy fire. Though there was a gap of several yards between his flank and the unit on his left, he pushed on and reached the objective with very small casualties. His courage and splendid example of determination materially contributed to the success of the operation’.

Captain Wilson had married Lilias McLennan in 1907 and they had four children, James (b. 1908, Roy (1909), Marie (1911) and Kenneth (1913), so when William was Killed in Action in France, Lilias was left a widow with four little children aged from five to 10 years old.

A version of this post, which I wrote and researched, appears on my work blog, Casey Cardinia Commemorates: Our War Years

Letters to Aunt Connie of the Weekly Times: Koo Wee Rup, Lang Lang and Five Mile

The Weekly Times used to have a ‘Young Folks’ page, edited by ‘Aunt Connie’ and 'Uncle Ben' and children would write letters to them and have them published in the paper. The letters are quite descriptive and the children would write about their gardens, the town they lived in, their farms, school life etc. In this post we look at how the children described Koo Wee Rup Lang Lang and Five Mile. In another post we look at what they wrote about Garfield, Bunyip, Tynong and Cora Lynn. I have researched some biographical information about the writers.

Letters from Linda Ellis of Koo Wee Rup

Linda wrote about grasshoppers in 1902 -

The grass is very poor about here, and the grasshoppers are numerous. They eat all the grass up. They ate the leaves off our turnips, and now they have started on the fruit trees. A couple of weeks ago the crows started on the grasshoppers, and they are having such feeds. It is amusing to watch them fight to get the most grasshoppers. There is a lot of work going on here at present, as all the drains are being enlarged. It will be a good thing when they are done, as it will keep the people from being flooded. We are only milking four cows at present; they do not give much milk. [Weekly Times, February 15, 1902, see here]

In September 1903 Linda wrote again, this time a much more poignant letter-

The crops around here are looking splendid. We have a nice lot of cabbages in, but just as soon as they begin to look nice and green the hares come and eat them off. My father is away from home just now, working, and we do miss him so much. Since I last wrote to you we have lost a little sister, and just six weeks before she died one of my aunties died in New South Wales. Mother took my little sister to the Children's Hospital, but the doctors could do nothing for her, and about three months afterwards she died. My father's mother died, too, so you see we had a very bad misfortune last year. Our flower garden looks very nice this year; especially the violets.....Some of my cousins are saying what they would like to do when they grow up. I think I would like to always stay at home. I do not like going from home. [Weekly Times, September 19, 1903, see here]

Linda was the daughter of Henry Ernest and Jemina (nee Milroy) Ellis; she was the eldest of ten children, born in 1890. They are listed in the Electoral Rolls at Koo Wee Rup in 1903 and 1906; by 1909 the family had moved to Abbotsford. Linda married Richard Semmens in 1911 and she died in 1966. 

In May 1902, Priscilla Rundle wrote about Koo Wee Rup 

Our township consists of two general stores, a blacksmith’s shop, a draper’s shop, a bakery and also a butcher’s shop.  We have a nice Presbyterian Church and a Sunday school combined. The Roman Catholics have recently called for tenders for the erection of a chapel. A few months back some of the leading spirits of our town called a meeting, in view of building a public hall. It has been decided to do so, so we now have the prospect of another building in our small township. The local agent for the Massey-Harris machinery has arranged with my father to hold a field trial of their farm implements in one of our paddocks on Tuesday, the 20^th. Everybody seems to think that it will be a fair trial, as everything looks very favourable so far. As we live about four miles from the township, we do not see much life, so we expect to have a pleasant day the day of the trial. [Weekly Times, May 31, 1902, see here]

Priscilla Rundle, was born in 1888 to James Charles and Jessie (nee Campbell) Rundle, so she was 14 when she wrote this letter ; her parents had a farm at Koo Wee Rup. Priscilla is listed in the 1909 Electoral Rolls as a school teacher, and her address was also Koo Wee Rup. She married William Freeman in 1913 and they farmed around Traralgon. She died in 1965.

Eight year old, Dorothy Gray wrote about  her life  in Koo Wee Rup, in 1904

I am eight years old, and in the third class. I have one little sister, her name is Vera Muriel. She is two years old. I am learning to ride. We have a large orchard. Kooweerup is a small place. It is very wet in winter. There is a township and in it there is one butcher, one baker two grocers, one saddler, one blacksmith one bootmaker and a draper's shop. The people get their living by sowing oats and maize mostly, and dairying. There are three orchards altogether. My father has been taking "The Weekly Times" for a great number of years. My favourite hymns are "Holy, Holy, Holy" and "Jesus Loves Me."

My father planted 600 fruit trees. I like going to school, I wish there were six school days a week. We are milking six cows, and we also have a separator. We send the cream away once a week now. We used to send it twice a week in the summer time. My little sister is such a chatterbox. My pets are a cat, parrot, calf, and a pup. Please Aunt Connie, would you mind sending a name for him. My favorite flowers are Cape Forget-me-not, sweet pea, carnation, dahlia, and chrysanthemum. [Weekly Times, July 2, 1904, see here]

Dorothy was the daughter of Richard and Margaret Mary (nee Browne) Gray. As Dorothy wrote, they had a farm at Koo Wee Rup.  Dorothy was married in 1916 to Albert Jack. A report in the paper said that she had been in charge of Christies Post Office, Wonyip for the past three years and the couple would be making their home at Daylesford. [Toora & Welshpool Ensign, August 4, 1916, see here]  Dorothy died in 1985.

Ethel Glover of Caldermeade wrote about family life and  Lang Lang in 1904 

 It has been a cold, wet day to-day, but Nellie and I went to school. Bertha has a bad cold, and she has been home from school all the week. My sister gives her lessons at home. We have skipping at school to keep us warm these cold days. I passed in everything except mental arithmetic at our last examination. I am in the higher sixth, and Nellie is in the fourth class. We go to Lang Lang State School. I will tell you a little about Lang Lang. It is becoming quite a flourishing little centre. There are four grocers' shops, two blacksmiths', two drapers', a chemist's, a green grocer's, a saddler's, barber's, baker's, and two dressmakers'; a butcher's, a printing office and butter factory, besides many private residences. So you will see it has made great headway since the railway has been constructed. When my father came to Gippsland first, 15 years ago, Drouin was the nearest railway station, and he says the roads were in a fearful state then. We have got good roads at Caldermeade. It will soon be twelve months since we came here to live. My little sister Alice is sixteen months old now, and she does torment us sometimes, when we are doing our lessons. She likes to get hold of a pen and if we don't watch her she will make a dive at the ink bottle. She races about all day like a little rabbit, and she can say a few words. We have a nice little pony to ride now. I am very fond of riding, and so are my sisters. When we lived in Lang Lang East we sometimes rode to school over the hills and small creeks, "gullies," we call them. One evening, when crossing the last gully, our pony stumbled, and tipped us over her head, splashing into the water. We were not long in scrambling up the bank, dripping wet, and the pony was quietly waiting for us. It was good of her not to clear off home and leave us. [Weekly Times, July 23, 1904, see here]

Samuel and Johanna (nee Bindt) Glover had six children - Gertrude (born 1887), Edwin (1890, died aged 7 months), Ethel (1891), Nellie (1894), Bertha (1897) and Alice (1903).  Glover. Ethel married David Scott Donaldson in 1917, they lived in Lang Lang and she died in 1971.

In 1908, 12 year old Hazel Charman of Koo Wee Rup wrote

One of my sisters and both of my brothers are away from home. One brother is driving bulls through Queensland up to the Gulf, and the other brother is with my sister in New South Wales. The cows are not milking well now. We are milking 23 cows, and we feed them with ensilage. We are making a flower garden, find we have many nice flowers. We also have an orchard, and we sell the fruit sometimes. I am 12 years old, and I am in the fifth class at the Yallock school. [Weekly Times, September 19, 1908, see here]

Hazel was the daughter of Stephen and Mary (nee Ward) Charman, who had a farm at Koo Wee Rup. She was the second youngest of their eleven children.  Hazel married William Robert Hopkins in 1920, and she died in Queensland in 1970. 

Letters from Catherine 'Kate' Garbellini of Five Mile (Koo Wee Rup North) 

In 1916, when she was 13 years old, Kate wrote -

I will take for my subject a flood that we have just had. It began to rise one Saturday afternoon and we were not able to get out until the following Friday. There were two little boys drowned, one having been swept off his feet from the flow of the water. We had to paddle out in the water to milk our cows, while my brothers had to take the horses away. I have one brother at the front. He has been in the trenches for about six months, but has not been wounded yet. He left home on May 4, 1915, to sail to Egypt. I have five sisters and seven brothers. Four of us go to school, which is about a quarter of a mile away. There are 49 children attending our school. I am 13 years and eight months old, and in the seventh grade at school. [Weekly Times, November 4, 1916, see here]

In March 1917, Catherine, as she called herself,  wrote again -

I will take for my subject ‘Our Farm’ There are 110 acres in our farm, of which 65 acres are under potatoes. The potatoes are looking well after this rain. We had about 40 acres sown down with oats and barley, but it is now cut and stacked, and the rest of the land we have sown down with grass for the horses and cows. We have six horses and a little foal, besides seven cows. We separate our milk, and send our cream to the factory, where it is made into butter. My brother at the front has been in hospital for about two months. My age is 14. [Weekly Times, March 17, 1917, see here]

Katie, as she now called herself, wrote in July 1918, this time about Koo Wee Rup -  

Koo-Wee- Rup is a large, one sided township. It consists of a large hotel, a coffee palace, a school, a baker’s shop, two butcher’s shops, three churches, four general stores, a lollie shop and a blacksmith’s shop. Large quantities of oats, barley and potatoes are grown, but some of the farmers are talking of growing flax. I have left school and am helping at home. I wish this War was over. I have had one brother killed. Many of the boys from here have gone and some of them have returned. [Weekly Times, July 6 1918, see here]

Katie was the eighth child of Pietro (Peter) and Jane (nee Crombie) Garbellini. She married David Blackwood from Pakenham South in 1923 and they had four children and lived in the Pakenham area. She died in 1983. Her brother, George, enlisted in February 1915 at the age of 23 and was Killed in Action in France in May 1917.

Letter from Airlie Ragg, eleven years old, of Lightwood Park Yannathan, 1919

I will take for my subject, the district where I live. There is no township at Yannathan. Our nearest town is Lang Lang, eight miles away. There are a school, hall, church, and butter factory here, but they are all situated in different parts of the district. The chief thing that is done here is dairying. Some of the farmers send their milk to Melbourne. others send their cream to the factory. The country all around here is very flat, and is often flooded in the winter. The Lang Lang River flows through Yannathan. Most of the farmers around bore for water, and have windmills to pump the water for the cattle. It is good grass country, mostly rye grass and clover. There is no railway here at present. Our nearest station. Caldermeade, is eight miles from here. There is a branch railway line being made from Koo-Wee-Rup to a place called McDonald's Track, and the Yannathan station is going to be on the farm where I live. My brother and I go to the Heath Hill school, which is nearer for us than the Yannathan school. I have a little sister, her name is Nancy. She is just four years old, and is going to school next year. My father has been taking the "Weekly Times" for a long while and I always enjoy reading the Young Folks' page. I am eleven years and three months old, and in the seventh grade at school. [Weekly Times, May 31 1919, see here]

Airlie was the daughter of Thomas and Rose Amelia (nee Newbound) Ragg. She married Thomas John Collins in 1937 and they lived (according to the Electoral Rolls) in Flowerdale and they had five children.

In this post we looked at how the children described Koo Wee Rup Lang Lang and Five Mile. In another post we look at what they wrote about Garfield, Bunyip, Tynong and Cora Lynn.