What happened in Garfield in 1916

This is a look at what happened in Garfield in 1916, 100 years ago. These references all come from digitized newspapers available on Trove, http://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper  There were many references to the War and how the community was supporting the war effort, but this is mainly a look at the non military activities in the town.

The Dandenong Advertiser reported on January 27, 1916 that the new rifle range for the Garfield Rifle Club was formally opened on Saturday by Mr Thomas Roxburgh of Melbourne. In addressing the gathering Mr Roxburgh emphasised the necessity for all young men to fit themselves for the defence of their country. Thomas Roxburgh was a Shipping Agent who, in 1912, planted the first commercial crop of asparagus ever grown in Victoria at his farm on Fallon Road, Vervale. His property was called Cheriton Park, though locally it was referred to as Roxburgh Park.

The same article reported that bush fires have been burning in all directions around the township for the last three days. On Sunday morning they approached as close as the State School fence, but fortunately no damage was done to property. The principal sufferer was Mr T. W Jefferson, who lost about 20 cords of firewood.

The Argus reported on February 22 about another fire in Garfield  At about 1 o’clock this morning the general store occupied by Messrs E. Harcourt and Co. together with practically the whole stock, was totally destroyed by fire. The fire was first noticed by George Scotland, a baker employed by Mr G. Bird. It was then burning on the extreme eastern side of the building and had apparently started on the outside. This was the second time within eight months that Harcourt and Co have had their premises burnt.

On March 31 the Gippsland Mercury had the headline ‘A Brotherly Affray’ - Two brothers named Borthwick from England were shot today on a farm at Garfield South. A dispute is said to have arisen over farm matters. A third man is in the Warragul Hospital with a shot wound in his cheek. Neither brother is fatally injured.

Another violent incident made the news on June 9 in the Dunmumkle Standard (a newspaper based around the Murtoa, Rupanyup area). At Garfield on Sunday as a result of a quarrel, an old man named John Munro was struck on the head with an axe. Munro, in company with three others, was in his hut when a man known as “Matt the Austrian” arrived. A quarrel occurred. Munro put the Austrian outside, but finding an axe the Austrian smashed the window. Munro went to stop him and was attacked receiving a terrible gash on the left side of the head and several heavy blows with the back of the axe on the muscles of the back whilst he was on the ground. The police who were sent for are now endeavouring to trace the assailant.

The Age July 1, 1916

http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article155164073

On July 1, The Age reported that a Mr Hull from Garfield was walking along a lonely track when he came across the body of a dead man. Constable Anstee of Bunyip was called and the remains were conveyed to the Iona Hotel at Garfield. The body was decomposed and Dr Cowan who conducted the inquiry was of the opinion that the death took place at least a month ago. From letters on the body it is thought that the man’s name was Peter Lynch of Cork, Ireland. His remains were buried at the Bunyip cemetery. I’d imagine that the current owners of the Iona Hotel are glad that deceased bodies are no longer conveyed to their establishment.

The Dandenong Advertiser reported on another fire on August 3. Mr R. Lennox of Iona had his large hay shed containing 50 tons of prime hay, a quantity of chaff and sundry articles being consumed in the flames.  Sadly for Mr Lennox the shed was not insured and the fire had been started by his little child, a boy of tender years.

The same article also reported that Garfield residents had a very successful jumble fair; articles of every description being collected by a committee of local ladies and £40 was raised for the Red Cross.

The Dandenong Advertiser had a report on September 21 about a concert and Queen Carnival held on the 13^th. Miss Kathleen Scanlon ‘Queen of Erin’ proved to be the winner; the other contestants being Mrs Aspinall, ‘Queen of England’, Mrs M. Lennan, ‘France’ and Miss Park who represented ‘Belgium’ The competition was initiated by Mrs Aspinall and was entered into with spirit by the local ladies.  The function raised £70. Mrs Jean Aspinall was the wife of William Aspinall, the Bank Manager.

The Dandenong Advertiser of September 28 reported on recent floods which caused enormous damage and great suffering in many homes.  It reported the sad news that a son of Mr T. Cunningham of Tynong was drowned in a drain in front of his house. Mrs Cunningham saw her son disappear, but was powerless to save him.  The same flood claimed the life of a boy from Koo-Wee-Rup, Lyle Raymond Loveday, who was drowned whilst out rabbiting. The paper reports that the boy was an exceptionally promising lad and would have been 12 years old on the day after the fatality.

Finally we will end 1916 as we began with yet another fire in Garfield. The Argus of December 27 reported that at about 3 o’clock the day before a four roomed dwelling owned by Mr Gaghin and used as a men’s quarter was burnt. The building was insured for £100.

What happened in Garfield in 1915

This is what happened in Garfield in 1915, 100 years ago. These references all come from digitized newspapers available on Trove.  There were many references to the War and the soldiers who enlisted and served, but this is a look at the non military activities in the town.

January -  The building of the Iona Hotel at Garfield has just been completed. The old wooden structure which had been burnt down about six months ago has been replaced by a new brick building at a cost of £8500 containing 30 rooms, sewered and lighted by an Areogen plant, and it is without doubt one of the best and most commodious houses of its class in Gippsland. Mr T. O'Donohue is the owner and Mr T. J. Cryan licensee. (Dandenong Advertiser, January 14, 1915, see here.)  Read more about the Iona Hotel, here.

January - Mr Henwood was unfortunate enough to have a dairy cow run over by a train. Needless to say, the cow was severally damaged. (Bunyip Free Press, January 14, 1915, see here)

February - Many papers reported on the misadventures of Charles Gregory of Garfield. Charles had climbed the weight tower of the air-gas plant of the Iona Hotel, and remained at the top for some time and then jumped to the ground, a distance between 30 and 40 ft (9 to 12 metres).  His thigh and elbow were broken and his head was considerably battered.  He told Constable Anstee that he had been ‘studying astronomy’ but when he saw the moon fall, he thought ‘discretion the better part of valour and he jumped to prevent it falling upon him’. (The Age, February 26, 1915, see here)

Charles Gregory's misfortune

The Age February 26, 1915 http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article154929941

March - On St Patrick's Day - Late on Tuesday night two residents of Iona were driving home when they found a man lying on the road with his face considerably bruised. They drove him to the Bunyip police station and told Constable Anstee of their find. They left him with Constable Anstee and in a few hours the man began to realise it was St. Patrick's "in the morning," and was close to the lock-up.  There was scarcely any need for the man to explain that he had been ' keeping up' St. Patrick's Day, as Constable Anstee could see that without being told. On promising to go home he was allowed to depart without having to answer the common charge of being drunk. (Bunyip Free Press, March 18, 1915, see here)

May - A young man from the city named Edward Heffernan was charged with using obscene language at Garfield on May 6th. He pleaded guilty. Constable Anstee deposed that the accused was in front of the Iona hotel on race night and was using very bad language (sample produced) among a crowd. Witness arrested him, and accused bailed himself out, as he had a good sum of money on him. Accused said he did not remember anything about the matter as he had been drinking. Fined 20/- or 7 days imprisonment.  (Bunyip Free Press, May 13, 1915, see here)

June - Fire at Garfield - Shortly before 2 o'clock on Tuesday morning the. drapery, grocery and general store conducted at Garfield for many years by Messrs E. Harcourt and Co. was totally destroyed by fire, together with the whole of the contents, with the exception of a tin of kerosene and a few bags of chaff. How the fire started is at present a mystery, but as the Garfield railway station office was broken into during the night, it is thought that thieves broke into the store and afterwards set is on fire. Nothing of value was taken from the station. Harcourt and Co's. stock was insured for £400 in the New Zealand Insurance Company, and the building for £250 in the same company. As Harcourt and Co. recently went to much expense in renovating the premises, and had lately put in extra stock, their loss is a heavy one.  (Bunyip Free Press, June 24. 1915, see here.)

July - On Tuesday a young man named William McMillan was arrested at Iona by Constable Anstee, and was conveyed to Melbourne to undergo a sentence of three months' imprisonment imposed by the Carlton bench in June. It appears that McMillan was proceeded against at the Carlton court by a resident of Garfield for the maintenance of an illegitimate child, and the bench made an order that he should pay 10/- per week, and find a surety of £80 that he would comply with the order, in default three months' imprisonment. He did not attend the court when the order was made, and had been at large since, hence the arrest. (Bunyip Free Press, July 29, 1915, see here) 

September - It is apparent, by the  many visible signs, that an energetic committee has control of the Garfield Hall affairs. A good lighting system has been introduced with great success, and the interior generally has been improved. We may soon expect to see the interior proclaim the activity of the  aforementioned body. (Bunyip Free Press, September 30, 1915, see here)

October  - The young man Charles Joseph Lyons, who was arrested on the 24th September at Garfield by Constables Anstee and Allen, after his tracks had boon followed up for over 20 miles by the Dandenong black trackers, was charged with stealing two draught horses, valued at £40, the property of  Marshall Bros., of Kooweerup. He pleaded guilty. The evidence showed that accused drove the horses from Kooweerup across country to Ringwood, where he caused them to be sold by auction. Accused was committed to stand his trial in Melbourne (Bunyip Free Press, October 7, 1915, see here)

December -This is a lesson for everyone who runs a Post Office.  The Bunyip Free Press reported that for some year residents of Iona obtained their mail at Kirwans’ store. Since Mr Kirwan was fined for selling liquor without a license the Postal authorities have removed the post office to the residence of Mr Clark. (Bunyip Free Press, December 2, 1915, see here.)

What happened in Garfield in 1914

This is what happened in Garfield in 1914, 100 years ago. These references are from various newspapers available on Trove http://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper.

A report on January 15, 1914 in the Bunyip Free Press said that Mr Laurence Plant of Garfield had caught 41 blackfish in the Diamond Creek (in Tynong North) and his companion had caught 36. The fish were caught in less than two feet of water.  Mr Plant went on to say that the trick to catching blackfish was not to go fishing when the sun is shining on the water in the middle of the day as the fish can see you. He also said that there were plenty of rabbits and wallabies within a half a mile from the Railway Station for ‘sports’ lovers. In this sense ‘sports’ lovers means shooters.  I’m not sure how many wallabies you would now see within half a mile (800 metres) of the Railway Station today but you would no doubt see plenty of rabbits. Mr Plant advertised in a later issue of the paper that he would clean chimneys at a nominal cost.

On January 22 in the Bunyip Free Press it was reported that the Iona Brass band visited Garfield and that they are making great progress under Bandmaster Legge. The Iona Brass Band began in 1909 and disbanded in 1916 as many of its members went off to war.

The Argus reported on April 13 that a school boy at the Tynong School, named Smith struck another scholar who retaliated by kicking Smith in the shin and thereby breaking the leg. Interesting report for a number of reasons – firstly they named the school boy involved, this would never happen today; secondly no mention of the word ‘bullying, perhaps they feel that young Smith got his just desserts. 

On April 16, 1914 the Bunyip Free Press reported that the Garfield School Committee had instructed the Secretary to write to the Railways Commissioner and complain about the class of train provided for school excursions as the stifling dog boxes are by no means conducive to the health and safety of children. In the last few weeks there have been similar complaints from commuters about the stifling trains and trams, so no change there in 100 years! In other school news it was reported that Mr John Daly, who had been head teacher at Garfield for 17 years, was promoted to Coburg School in May 1914. At a ‘complimentary social’ to farewell Mr Daly and his wide Gertrude. Mrs Daly was presented with a case of cutlery and a silver sugar and cream bowl.

The Argus of April 29 reported that on Thursday, April 23, the Iona Hotel and adjoining buildings were destroyed by fire. All that remained of the fine block of buildings were 20 chimneys. The hotel had been built in 1904 and its replacement (the existing building) opened in May 1915.

On May 28, 1914 in the Bunyip Free Press there was a report of the Iona Football Club dance, held at the Garfield Hall. At nine thirty there were only five couple present and it looked like the dance would prove a frost. In less than half an hour, a good crowd turned up and an enjoyable time was spent. The Iona Football Club had started as early as 1907 and finished up around 1931.

Bunyip Free Press  February 12, 1914

http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article129628335

However, my favourite report for 1914 illustrates how our language has changed over the years.  From the Bunyip Free Press of February 14, under the headline Gay Life at Garfield there is a report of two men and a woman who were behaving in a disgraceful manner in the Garfield township. The Bunyip Police travelled to Garfield and found that the reports were true, so they arrested John and Elizabeth Fitzgerald and a Mr Moss. The police chartered two vehicles and transported the unsavoury cargo to the Bunyip lock-up. At a subsequent court appearance, both men were fined £5 or ones month’s imprisonment and the ‘wife’ was fined £2 or a fortnight’s imprisonment.  As the trio were all of the nomad travelling class they couldn’t afford the fine so they were sent to His Majesty’s hominy factory in Melbourne.  I had never come across the term hominy factory before; it means prison as apparently hominy is a slang word for prison food; hominy being a thin gruel or porridge made from cornmeal.

What happened in Garfield in 1913

This is a look at what happened in Garfield in 1913, 100 years ago. These references are from various newspapers available on Trove http://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper.

On January 16 1913, the South Bourke and Mornington Journal (SBMJ) carried a report of a recent Shire of Berwick Council meeting where applications were presented from a Mrs C. Louch of Garfield and a Miss M. Bell of Bunyip to manufacture ice cream. In the 1914 Electoral Roll, Catherine Louch was listed as the Newsagent at Garfield. Margaret Bell of Bunyip is listed as a 'Confectioner'.  Commercial production of ice cream was relatively new in Australia and ice cream had only just become popular.  Apparently, originally custard was used in the ice cream but this was revolutionised by Fred Peters, an American, who had arrived in Sydney in 1908 with his mother's ice cream recipe which used only pure dairy products. It took Peters four year to accumulate enough money to go into the ice cream business and when he did in 1912 the demand for his 'American' style ice cream was amazing. Peters Ice Cream is now part of Nestles.

South Bourke and Mornington Journal  January 16, 1913

http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article66182332

I don't know how successful the new ice cream making ventures of Catherine and Margaret were, however in the 1919 Electoral roll Catherine is still listed as the Newsagent, but in the 1924 Electoral roll there is a Catherine Louch listed in the St Kilda area and her occupation is listed a 'Confectioner', so it seems likely that her career started in Garfield. I don't have any more information about Margaret.

Also in the SBMJ of February 20, Thomas O’Donohue complained to the Council about the smoke nuisance, which had been going on for two years, from Henry Hourigan’s shoeing forge which adjoined his properties. Mr Hourigan was told that he must erect a chimney otherwise proceedings would be taken against him.

On May 22, the SBMJ reported on another Berwick Shire Council meeting where the Clerk of Works recounted that a traction engine had destroyed the road from Hill’s to the Garfield Road bridge and a considerable quantity of maintenance sand will have to be put on, otherwise the road will be impassable before the end of winter. One hundred years later people are still concerned about the state of roads, so no change there.

In the Sunday Times, a Perth newspaper, on July 6 under the headline A Mother’s Appeal there was an enquiry from Garfield for a young man named Fitzgerald who is supposed to have landed in W.A early in April and gone to the country sleeper cutting. His mother was dangerously ill and anxious to hear from him. He was described as ‘5ft 11in high, dark complexion, not very stout’. 

Sunday Times (Perth) July 6, 1913

http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article57749085

In another Berwick Shire Council report from the SBMJ of July 24, a letter had arrived from William Campbell, the grocer, enclosing a petition asking that a polling booth be established at Garfield. The Council’s rather unhelpful response was that this was not thought to be desirable but that Pakenham South is more suitable.

In the SBMJ of December 17, it was reported that a money order office has been established in connection with the Post Office at Garfield.  Finally on December 27, Thomas O’Donohue was back in the news again as The Argus reported on December 27 that two brick shops owned by him were destroyed by fire. The shops were occupied by a Mr Deas who was a draper.  They were totally destroyed; however the stock was insured for £400 and the buildings for £500.

What happened in Garfield in 1912

This is a look at what happened in Garfield  one hundred years ago in 1912. These references are taken from various papers on-line at  http://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper

The headline for an article in The Argus on February 19 was Boisterous potato diggers.  The article says that there are many potato diggers in the area at present and that two of them had been drinking  during the day and had created a disturbance in the Main street.  Blows were exchanged between themselves and a manager of a store and a  stone was hurled through a shop window. Constables Anstey and Ryan made several arrests.

In May, Jefferson Siding was closed. The Siding was between Garfield and Bunyip and used mainly for bricks and firewood. (The Argus May 9, 1912)

In July, three cases of Diphtheria were reported in Garfield. Dr Oliver visited from Pakenham and decided that Mr Rileys home was the centre of the outbreak. He also ordered that the School be closed for one week for fumigation and cleaning.  Diphtheria could be fatal and in 1912 257 Victorians died of the disease. (South Bourke & Mornington Journal August 1, 1918)

On July 13, The Argus reported that Lennon Brothers Circus performed in Garfield and a windstorm arose and wrecked the tent. The audience which was not very large was uninjured and showed not the least sign of panic or confusion beyond the wailing of a few young children at being plunged from a glaring light to absolute darkness.

In December, the license for the Iona Hotel was renewed at a sitting of the Dandenong Licensing Court. The licensee, F.A Carrroll had to pay the assessed fee of £75.00. As a comparison the fees for the Gippsland Hotel (Top pub) and Stacey’s Railway Hotel at Bunyip were both £55 as was the fee for the Nar Nar Goon Hotel. The Pakenham Hotel (near the Railway Station) was  £100 but Bourke’s Hotel at Pakenham (on the Highway next to Toomuc Creek) was £45. (South Bourke and Mornington Journal, December 19 1912)

However, the most unusual thing that happened in Garfield in 1912 was in the October when a Beer Strike took place  The story goes that the hotel keeper decided to increase the price of pints of beer from four pence to six pence.  A meeting of beer drinkers was held to protest against the increase and it was unanimously agreed  to abstain from beer  until the price returned to four pence. Anyone  found paying six pence would be fined £1.00.  This was reported in papers as far away as the Cairns Post, The Adelaide Advertiser, The Worker (which was a Brisbane paper) and the Broken Hill Barrier Miner. I am not sure how true the story is or  how this issue resolved itself.

Barrier Miner, October 19 1912

http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article45223730

This article is from the October 19 edition of The Barrier Miner, which had an interesting headline, as you might expect from a newspaper from a strong union town.

What happened in Garfield in 1911

The article I wrote for the first edition of The Spectator looked at what happened in Garfield in 1910, (read it here) and this is the article I wrote for the February 2011 edition of  The Spectator - a look back at Garfield, 100 years ago, in 1911. These references are taken from The Argus, on-line at  http://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper. There are plenty of reports about the Garfield Races, of which Mr W.Reidy was the Honorary Secretary, so The Argus is a good source of information if you are a race fan.  

There is a report of April 13 in which a bookmaker, Walter Turnbull, was charged with uttering counterfeit sovereigns, at these races on March 31.The case was heard by the Police Court Bench at Bunyip under Police Magistrate Harris and J.P’s Pearson and A’Beckett. The conclusion reached by Magistrate Harris was that there was a grave doubt of feloniously uttering and the accused was discharged. Uttering means putting into circulation counterfeit coins or notes.

The Argus August 2, 1911

http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article11604720

 Amongst the farming reports in The Argus is a report of June 16 said the Barker Brothers of Garfield sent a consignment of Jonathan apples to Hamburg in Germany and realized an average price of 18 shillings and six pence per case.  On August 2, a report said that in the past six months nearly 6,000 tons of farm produce had been trucked away from the Bunyip, Garfield, Tynong and Nar Nar Goon Railway stations, representing a sum of over £4,000 in freight. Garfield despatched 3,287 tons.  This indicates the significance of rail as a form of transport and the amount of produce grown in the area, which also would have included the Swamp.  

The agricultural wealth of this eastern end of the Shire of Berwick, may have been a factor in the decision, made in 1911, to re-locate the Shire Offices from Berwick to the more central town of Pakenham. The original Shire Offices had been built in 1865 for the Berwick Road Board, on top of the hill at Berwick.  The new Building opened in 1912 and  has since been relocated to the corner of Main Street and the Princes Highway in Pakenham, and is now the home of the Berwick  Pakenham Historical Society.

However, it is the personal stories in The Argus, which I find most interesting.  On October 11, there was a report of a Breach of Promise of Marriage case. Mrs Charlotte Ewen, formerly of Garfield, a widow with a two year old child, was claiming damages of £1,000 against Mr William Park Temby, farmer, of Bunyip for damages of breach of promise. A subsequent report on November 21 said that as part of Mrs Ewen’s damages she was claiming £40 for the cost of her trousseau. Mr Temby, 33, who had a farm of sixty acres, claimed that Mrs Ewen had broken off the engagement because she wanted more than I could give her, the furniture, and a  longer honeymoon than I was prepared to spend.  His financial position had changed due to considerable losses through potatoes with the Irish blight. A witness, Elizabeth Flett of Bunyip, said that that Mrs Ewan had told her she had broken off the engagement as Mr Temby deceived her about his property and that most of it belonged to his mother, she also did not think she would get along Mr Temby’s mother. The jury of six took 45 minutes to make a decision and awarded Mrs Ewen £50 in damages. To put that in perspective, a female factory worker, at the time, had an average annual wage of £70. Was she just a gold digger or was he a heartless cad? Who knows, but as you can no longer sue for breach of promise when an engagement breaks up then these sort of press reports are, unfortunately, a thing of the past.

What happened in Garfield in 1910

I wrote this in 2010 for the Garfield Spectator, I have done one for every year and they are still an interesting snap shot of the town, 100 years on.

One of my favourite sources of historical information is The Argus newspaper. You can search The Argus and many other Australian newspapers on the Trove website. An absolute wealth of information can be found on this website and even though The Argus was a Melbourne newspaper, it had a lot of country coverage.

Here are some of the events which happened in Garfield, one hundred years ago, in 1910, as reported in The Argus.

On March 26, there was a report of a fire in a stack of wheaten hay belonging to Mr J.J. O’Leary. The fire was started by his son who was playing at burning off. The stack contained 50 to 60 tons of hay and was totally destroyed and uninsured.

In April 4, there was an account of an outbreak of typhoid fever amongst the men employed on the railway line. The Shire of Berwick Health Officer, Dr Keogh, said that due to the fact that these men had no sanitary conveniences, the only wonder was that there was not a much greater outbreak of fever.

The Argus March 1, 2010

http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article10838362

If you are a racing fan there are lots of accounts of the Garfield Horse races, both advertising the races and the race results, such as the one above.

The Argus also had many stories about local residents, so if you have an interest in family history then you may find information about your own ancestors.  For instance, on May 24, there was a report headed Broken leg at 80 and it went on to tell us that Mrs McNab, who was visiting her son, was retiring for the night, when she fell and broke her leg in two places, the sufferer was attended by Dr Withington, who ordered her removal to Melbourne.

An article in September 5 reported on the funeral of Mrs R. Leeson, who for many years conducted the old Pig & Whistle Inn at Cannibal Creek, near Garfield. The deceased who had resided in the same house for over 50 years, was 100 years old.

The Argus November 29, 1910

http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article10480848

Finally my favourite report for 1910 is this one from November 29. Obviously no-one worried about privacy issues in 1910! If you have an interest in local history or family history, then The Argus is well worth a look.