The following are reminscences by Whittlesea resident John McPhee: “A few things I remember or have been told: Lee Tack was a tall man and had been trained as a doctor in China; he came to Australia looking for gold, he found a nugget shaped like a man on a horse. At its peak it […]
Tag: Whittlesea
Sydney Patterson – Stories from his life
Sydney Patterson was born in 1938 in Sydney. Sydney left Sydney in 1944 after his fathers, a full time sailor ship was hit by a suicide plane, 67 sailors died and his father was severely injured. His father was the shipped off to Melbourne for 3-4 years to recover from his injuries in the Austin […]
Fellows of Oakland Mickleham
John Fellows, when he died in 1876, was described as being “late of Oakland, Mickleham”. This was distinct from the property “Oaklands” north of the Old Broadmeadows township. In this sense the name was used as a locality name, and described a large area from Oaklands Junction in the south as far north as Mickleham. […]
Lochaber Farm
Lochaber cottage was home to two generations of the Smith Family, located at the present address of 45 Harvest Home Road, Epping. Two of the twelve Smith children are pictured here with their father in front of their bluestone farmhouse in c.1918. “Mr Robert Smith (pictured at right) spent his lifetime in this and surrounding […]
World War 1 : Women in Uniform
The City of Brunswick : Elizabeth Gertrude FLEMING Annie Frances GRIFFIN Mabel Lucy HUTCHINSON Linda FLOWER Alice Elizabeth KITCHEN/KITCHIN Blanche Catherine KILSBY Charlotte Joan McALLISTER (O.B.E) Flora MELVILLE Elvina Mary OVEREND BLANCHE Lily RICKETTS Sarah Jane PROCTER Olive Mary ROSE Florence WILLANS Blodywn Elizabeth WILLIAMS The Town of Coburg : Milanie Treleavan AMBLER Octavia Ione […]
World War 1 : Sister Rosalind Eva Ballard
Rosalind Eva Ballard Address : care Whittlesea Post Office Next of kin : Mother Mrs Charles E. Ballard, care Whittlesea Post Office. Father Charles died 13 August, 1915. Rosalind Ballard was the only nurse residing in the Shire of Whittlesea to volunteer for overseas service. She was 29 when she enlisted on 11 December, 1916 […]
World War 1 Casualty : Alexander Woods (aka Gingles (Whittlesea and Scrubby Creek)
The death of an Alexander Gingles was noted in the Preston Leader on 2 February, 1918 in an article relating to the return of another serviceman from Whittlesea. He remained a mystery as there is no record of a serviceman of this name listed in any World War One archives, but his true identity was […]
World War 1 Casualty : David Edward Lohman (aka Lowman)
Lohman is a rather strange case, being included on the Whittlesea Memorial list of volunteers (although as Loman), but not on the list of those who gave their lives in the conflict. The omission was remarkable, especially given his father, 253, Alfred John Lowman was also shown as volunteering at 44 years of age and […]
James and John Mann: a brief history
James Mann was born on 25 October 1831 at “Bensil Farm,” in the Parish of Carseburn, near Forfar, Scotland, the oldest child of John Mann and Christina née Constable. John was a tenant farmer on 25 acres (part of the Bensil Estate)[i]. In 1857 James, aged 26, and his brother, John (jnr), 21—born 25 January […]
Yan Yean Reservoir
Yan Yean Reservoir: Celebrating its birth 150 Years on by Lindsay Mann ‘Of the first importance to a community is the plentiful supply of good water. In the formation of towns all other desiderata are subordinated to this …’. So wrote George Slater, in The News Letter of Australasia (March 1857, p. 3), in commenting […]