Grandma's garden at Cora Lynn

I am rather fond of palm trees and there used to be a palm tree in the garden at Grandma's house on Murray Road, Cora Lynn. The property was called Evesham. Grandma was Eva Rouse (nee Weatherhead). Her garden was magnificent and the palm tree was out the back, near the water tank and next to a weeping cherry tree and near the holly bush. Growing next to the water tank was a tree dahlia, which as you would know, has a very short flowering season. Behind the palm was the vegetable garden and an orchard.  If we went around the house to the west side, Grandma had lots of dahlias; round the house to the front or the north and the the east side - were trees, blossom trees, magnolias, a feijoa, a camellias, various roses - bush and climbing; lilacs, a wisteria, bird of paradise, and then around the back on the back path to the back door there was a Cecile Brunner pink rose, fuscias, violets, hellebores, Chinese lantern trees, snowball trees, a mulberry tree. Plus various flowers everywhere - stocks, snap dragons etc.  The garden was her pride and joy.

My Dad (Frank Rouse), my aunty  Marion, and Grandma - off to church on a Sunday, around 1955 - and there's our palm tree in the back, behind the water tank.

Grandma in front of the tree dahlia, 1966 - and there's our palm tree on the right,  next to the elevated tank.

No palm tree in this photo - but this is Evesham and Grandma with two children and holding a baby, most likely my dad, who was born December 1934.

Evesham, 1958. No palm trees in any of the following photos, but here are some other photos of Grandma's garden. The fence was constructed by my Dad and my uncle, Jim Rouse. The top pipe was  a water pipe, which could have  a hose attached to the end and it had taps at various intervals to connect hoses.

Evesham, 1958

Evesham, 1958. This is the driveway, the little building on the right is the chook feed shed. The bricks on the left are for a 3 bay open-fronted shed that was being constructed.

Evesham, 1964

Lyonville by Eva Weatherhead

This letter was written by my Grandma, Eva, to Aunt Connie, the editor of the 'Young Folks' page in the Weekly Times.  Eva, the daughter of Horatio and Eleanor (nee Hunt) Weatherhead, lived at Lyonville, before most of the family moved  to North Tynong in 1909. Eleanor and Eva, the youngest child, stayed at Lyonville until Eva finished school around 1914. Eva married Joe Rouse in 1922 and they farmed at Cora Lynn. This letter was published December 7, 1912.

Eva Weatherhead's letter

Weekly Times December 7 1912 http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article224035245

Lyonville

Eva Weatherhead, living at Lyonville writes:

Dear Aunt Connie,  I will take for my subject Lyonville. Lyonville is situated on the side of the Dividing Range. The Loddon and Coliban Rivers flow past Lyonville. Not far away there are several mineral springs and the Bullarto reservoir. It supplies Daylesford with water. The reservoir is a nice picnic resort. In Lyonville there are two hotels, two shops, the English and Roman Catholic churches, a hall, two boarding-houses and a school. A great many visitors come here every year to enjoy the mineral water. One of the mineral springs is situated at the bottom of Babington's Hill. It is nice to walk up to the top of the hill. I go to school, and am in the sixth grade. Please may I write again? Age, 11 years. 

(Yes, Eva; write again next month. -  Aunt Connie)

Two Soldier Brothers by Eva Weatherhead

This letter to Aunt Connie, the editor of the 'Young Folks' page of the Weekly Times was written by my Grandma, Eva Rouse (nee Weatherhead) It was published in the Weekly Times on November 6, 1915.  It has an interesting description of the town of Tynong.

Eva's letter about Tynong and her brothers.

Weekly Times November 6, 1915  http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article132708870

Two Soldier Brothers

Eva Weatherhead, who lives at Tynong, writes:
Dear Aunt Connie, It is a very long time since I wrote to you. Since then we have shifted from Lyonville, where we formerly lived. Tynong is a small country township situated on the main Gippsland line. In it are two stores, a boarding-house, post office, station, school and some very nice private residences. We live over five miles from Tynong. There are some pretty fern gullies. They are made beautiful by different sorts of ferns and shrubs, with creepers climbing everywhere. Some of the ferns grow to a great height - 30 feet and 35 feet. A very good view can be obtained from the mountains, and on clear days one can easily see the sea. Tynong is on the edge of Kooweerup Swamp. The people around here make a living by farming, dairying, and fruit growing principally. There are many wild flowers out now. Some are very pretty. Kangaroos, wallabies, rabbits, foxes, wild dogs, and wombats frequent the bush. We have a pony which I ride and drive. I have two soldier brothers. One is at Seymour and the other at the front. I have three cousins at the front. One was killed, and another wounded. My age is 14 years and 1 month. Please may I write again?
[Yes, Eva. I hope your brothers will come safely home to you all. Aunt Connie.]

The two brothers Eva writes about are Frank and Alf - you can read about them here.

The use of a Sawmill by Eva Weatherhead

This was published in the Weekly Times on January 1, 1916, in the 'Young Folks' page, edited by Aunt Connie.  It was written by my grandma, Eva Rouse (nee Weatherhead) She was the youngest child of Horatio and Eleanor (nee Hunt) Weatherhead (read about them here)

Eva's letter about Sawmills

Weekly Times  January 1, 1916 http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article121101109

The use of a  sawmill

Eva E. Weatherhead who lives in Tynong writes:
Dear Aunt Connie - I will take for my subject ' the use of a sawmill'  A sawmill is used for converting logs into  into timber, to be used for building purposes. The trees are cut down in the bush by men, who saw them into the various required lengths. The logs are hauled, by means of a jinker and team of bullocks or horses, or sometimes a traction
engine, to the mill, where they are barked, and made ready to put the saws through. The first saw used is the 'breaking down' saw, which splits the logs into pieces that can be conveniently handled by the sawyer. These pieces are put on to the skids and turned over to the 'running out' saw. This saw, which is usually smaller than the 'breaking down' saw, cuts the pieces into boards, or the timber required. The boards with defective ends have the defects cut off by the docking saw. The timber is then put on a truck, wheeled out, and loaded on to a waggon, or another truck, and taken to its destination by bullocks or horses. The machinery in a sawmill is driven by a steam engine, which burns up all the waste timber. The sawdust is all wheeled away and put in a heap, while the bark off the logs is burnt. My brother, who was in the Seymour camp, was shifted into the 4th F.A. He sailed on November 18. We had a letter from my brother who is at the front. He had narrow escape. A shell landed about nine feet from him, and alongside his mate. The mate was killed, and my brother knocked down and dazed, but not hurt. Thank you, Aunt Connie, for your kind wishes regarding my brothers. T wish 'The Weekly Times" every success. Please may I write again?
[Thank you, dear, for your good wishes. Yes, write again. Aunt Connie.]

This is Eva, aged 14 - taken 1915. 

She was born on August 30, 1901 and she died on February 8, 1982.

Swamp wedding

 It is 90 years since my grandparents, Eva Eleanor Weatherhead and Joseph Albert Rouse married at the Methodist Church in Garfield on November 2, 1922. Joe was the eldest son of James and Annie (nee Glover) Rouse. You can read more about his arrival on the Koo-Wee-Rup Swamp in my first blog post. Eva was the youngest and and ninth child of Horatio and Eleanor (nee Hunt) Weatherhead of North Tynong. Horatio and his sons came  to North Tynong, from Lyonville, in 1909 where they set up a timber mill. Eva and her mother stayed behind in Lyonville so Eva could finish school and they then moved to Tynong. Eva was Post Mistress at Tynong from late 1919 until she was married three years later.

Joe and Eva lived on the 56 acre farm at Cora Lynn selected in 1903 by James Rouse which they ran as a dairy farm. They had seven children - Nancy, Florence, Dorothy, James, Frank, Daphne and Marion - with six surviving to adulthood. Grandma's passion was her garden, and you can see in the photographs of Evesham, as they called their house, below.

Evesham, soon after it was built, after their marriage, and below, around the mid 1930s.

Life on the farm, Eva and Nancy, taken about 1929. 

Joe with Jim and Frank, taken about 1937.

Joe was born November 9, 1892 at Clydebank (near Sale) and after he died on on September 3,  1954, Grandma run the farm with her children. She was born on August 30, 1901 and she died on February 8, 1982.