Isaac's Bible

On 25 April 1809 Isaac Nichols, an emancipated convict, was appointed as Postmaster, a position that authorised him to board ships and receive letters and parcels addressed to people within the colony. This was a very important position that Isaac held. Letters were the only way for the convicts, settlers and officials of the new colony to maintain a connection with Britain. Ships were mobbed by people searching for letters and parcels. Compare this with today, where communication is instant and accessing news is only a quick mobile phone search away.

Isaac Nichols was born on 29 July 1770 at Calne, Wiltshire, England. At the age of 21 he was found guilty of stealing and sentenced to seven years transportation. Isaac arrived in Port Jackson on the notorious Second Fleet on 16 October 1791. It was his demonstration of sobriety and honesty that convinced Governor Hunter to employ him as Chief Overseer of convicts in Sydney. At the completion of his sentence, Isaac was granted land in the Concorde district and in the following years he was to acquire more land, leading to him becoming a wealthy businessman.

As postmaster, Isaac collected the incoming mail and published a list of people who had received mail in the Sydney Gazette. He hand-delivered mail to the wealthiest people in the colony. He did this until his death in November 1819.

It was through Isaac's son that the link to Campbelltown was established. His son Charles attended the school in the building known as Meehan's Castle. It was run by Rev. Thomas Reddall and was an exclusive boarding school for boys. Charles attended St Peter's Church and was their first musician, by playing the flute to lead the singing.

It was through a chance discovery in Trove that I learnt about how Isaac Nichols' bible came to be in the possession of St Peter's Church. In 1933, Isaac's great granddaughter and parishioner Violet Ida Nichols presented the bible to the church. Unmarried and wanting a safe home for the bible, Violet chose the church as the most appropriate place. It was presented on the church's 110th anniversary.

The bible dates to 1812 and is leather-bound with steel engravings. It is in remarkably good condition for its age, following restoration by the State Library in 1998 for the church's 175th anniversary. The bible was central to a re-enactment by Australia Post in 2009 of the first mail delivery to NSW. It was put on display in a glass case at Campbelltown Post Office. Isaac's bible and another bible used in St Peter's Church from its opening year, form an impressive collection in the church's archives.

Isaac Nichols' 1812 bible

Written by Andrew Allen

Sources:

https://www.nma.gov.au/defining-moments/resources/first-post-office#:~:text=On 23 June 1810 Governor,that read 'Sydney NSW'.

Letter written by Violet Nichols to St Peter's Anglican Church 1933

Macarthur Chronicle, 1 September 2009, p4

The Lamplighter

Every day at dusk you would see him. He would walk around the quiet streets of Campbelltown carrying his small ladder and kerosene can with its long narrow spout. It was a routine that he loved and that he had perfected through years of practice. As he approached each lamp post he would take the lamp out and clean the globe and then fill the lamp with kerosene and light it. A ritual from another time in a slower paced and less complicated world.

Edwin James Bamford, known as Ted,  was born in 1865 in Picton. He was the son of Edwin Bamford and and Elizabeth Reeves. The family came to Campbelltown when Ted was only 3 or 4 months old. Ted secured his first job aged only 13 when he began constructional work on Sydney's first water supply. His main duty was to supply horses to the surveyors, moving them between Campbelltown and Fairfield where they were stationed.

He began his lamplighting in 1902. Although there were not many lights in town, it still required some travelling by foot. There was a light outside the town hall, one on the corner of Allman Street, one on Dumaresq Street, one near the corner of Lithgow Street, one near the park and one on the corner of Broughton Street. They never showed much light according to local Frances Meredith.

As a boy, Fred Seers assisted him with the lamplighting for threepence a week. Fred grew up to be one of the town's much loved characters himself.

Lamplighting was not the only job that Ted was skilled at. Perhaps his greatest joy in life was as Verger for St Peter's Church. He followed in his father's footsteps with this. He would clean the church, ring the bell, chase pigeons and undertake rounds of the graveyard. He reputedly knew the inscription of every tombstone in St Peters. Later he worked in the tiny library in a small building at the back of the town hall. He was the librarian there and he also looked after two billiard tables in the small building. There was a fireplace and he kept the logs on the fire in winter. He later moved to the new Soldiers Memorial School of Arts on the corner of Queen and Lithgow Streets and worked as the librarian.

Ted had a keen interest in botany. He was able to give the botanical name of every tree, pine and shrub that you could find in Campbelltown!

He carried out his work as lamplighter up until the time that electricity was installed in Campbelltown in early 1924. No more would this gentle old character wander the streets lighting up the town. 

Ted married Frances Holland at St Peters, Campbelltown and they had three children. The untimely death of his daughter Fanny had a profound effect on him and was believed to have contributed to his death not long after. He had suffered from asthma throughout his life. Edwin Bamford died in 1936 and was buried in the cemetery at St Peters that he dutifully cared for. 

Can you help with finding a photograph of Edwin Bamford for us?

Written by Andrew Allen

Sources:

Campbelltown News 24 July 1936

A Stroll Through St Peter's Churchyard, Campbelltown NSW by Marie Holmes

Frances Meredith oral history interview 1977 (Held at Campbelltown Library)

The Bricklayer's Legacy

The research for this blog post comes mostly from Carmel Peek, descendant of Francis Lawless. Carmel wrote for the Gunning History blog, the website of which my post has taken extracts from.

St Peter's Anglican church has stood proudly in the centre of Campbelltown's CBD for almost 200 years. Planning has already begun for its bicentenary next year. Built in 1823, it is the oldest building in the CBD and believed to be the third oldest church in the country. The church holds a special place in the hearts of the Campbelltown population. But who built and designed this wonderful old building and what is their story? Thanks to meticulous research by a descendant, we can provide a clear answer to both questions.

Francis Lawless was baptised on 6 March 1786 in County Meath, Ireland. In 1807 at the age of 23, he was sentenced to life imprisonment in Dublin for highway robbery. In March 1809 he was transported to the Colony to serve out the rest of his life sentence. Francis was described as being a bricklayer "Height 5ft 10 and a half inches, Hair Brown, Complexion Fair/Ruddy, Eyes Grey".

Francis' skill as a bricklayer was probably about to save his life, not long after he arrived in the Colony. In 1810, he was charged with forging and uttering a paper purporting to be a Paymaster note for the sum of two pounds. Francis along with another man named Dalton pleaded not guilty. Dalton was freed but Francis was committed to stand trial. He was found guilty and sentenced to be hanged. Fortunately for Francis, his sentence was commuted and he was sent to Newcastle "to replace Edward Young in the lime burners". It was likely his bricklaying skills and the use that would bring to the settlement that saw him reprieved. 

In 1816, Francis married Catherine Kearns at St Phillip's Church of England in Sydney. They lived at 10 Pitt Street, formerly known as Pitts Row. The happiness gained from the marriage was continued a few years later when Francis was granted Conditional Pardon in 1819. This, along with secure employment as an overseer for the Government, meant Francis Lawless was probably in a good space at this time in his life. Further happiness arrived in the form of an Absolute Pardon in 1821.

The building and designing of St Peter's Church at Campbelltown was one of a number of constructions Francis worked on whilst living in Sydney. Other buildings included the convict barracks at Parramatta and the Benevolent Society for Sydney. Building work commenced in 1821 and was completed in 1823. The design and solid construction of the church demonstrates the competency of Francis.

Francis (better known as Frank) and Catherine eventually moved from Pitt Street after Frank received a land grant in 1826. The grant was in the Gunning district and the locality of their property was named Lade Vale. Frank lived until 1874 at his son John's property at "Erindale".

Written by Andrew Allen

Source:

Gunninghistory.blogspot.com

Demolished Schoolhouse

It stood on its own in a paddock for 135 years. Then, one day in 1973 this notable landmark fell victim to progress, after resisting demolition for many years. St Peter's Church Schoolhouse was demolished to make way for the construction of Moore-Oxley Bypass.

Tenders were called for the erection of the Church of England Schoolhouse in 1837 with the building completed the following year. It replaced and stood next to where an earlier school was built in 1823 and conducted by Thomas Robinson, who also taught in the new building, until 1839.

The building was regular tuck-pointed red brick with four windows along each side, small paned, in four sections, with a stone lintel and sill. Inside was a large stage that was used for many different performances and over many years. The schoolhouse had an outside toilet nearby, that undoubtedly created trepidation on a dark moonless night as approached.

Besides a schoolhouse, the building was also used for corrective purposes with magistrates regularly meeting to dispense justice. In later years it was used as a parish hall and in the 1950s as a pre-school run by Mrs King. Scouts also used the school and paddock for activities in the 1960s.

The location of the schoolhouse was Moore Street between Reddall and Cordeaux Street in Campbelltown. Today the south-bound side of Moore-Oxley Bypass would run straight over the site. Sandstone bricks from the school were used in a feature wall in the nearby new rectory.

(All photographs are from the Bagley Collection, Campbelltown and Airds Historical Society Collection)

Written by Andrew Allen

Source:

ALLEN, Andrew 2018
More than Bricks and Mortar: Remembering Campbelltown's Lost Buildings
Campbelltown and Airds Historical Society: Campbelltown

Reverend Canon William Stack

William Canon Stack was born in Ireland, eldest son of Rev. Edward Stack, a clergyman in the United Church of England and Ireland, and his wife Tempe Bagot. William was educated at Trinity College, Dublin, and was ordained in Ireland.

Reverend Canon William Stack and his wife emigrated to Australia, arriving on the 31^st October 1837 on the ‘Andromache”, taking up an appointment on January 1^st at West Maitland Anglican Church. He was then transferred to St Peter’s Campbelltown in about 1847, where he remained until June 1855, when he was transferred to Balmain. The Stack’s had 13 children.

William was described as having a manly character, earnest in the cause of religion, frank and genial manners, and universally beloved and respected. To all classes he was peculiarly courteous and gentle, yet remarkably firm and fearless where conscientious scruples had to be maintained. He was the first clergyman advanced to the dignity of the title Canon ‘by the suffrages of his brethren’.

Reverend Stack is pictured in the middle row on the right.

For 32 years he fulfilled the duties of his profession in New South Wales. He was constantly moving among his congregation, and visiting the poor and the afflicted. On Sunday June 11^th, he preached on the words “I have glorified thee on Earth, I have finished the work which Thou gavest me to do.”. The following day, June 12^th, he and Mrs Stack embarked on a trip to visit their son in Walgett, who had met with an accident that threatened to prove fatal. Early on the morning of Tuesday 13^th, an accident occurred when the wheels of the coach in which they were travelling went into a rut, and the coachman was thrown from the coach. The horses took fright and bolted, and Mr Stack, in an endeavour to seize the reins, was also thrown off. The coach passed over him and crushed him beyond any surgical aid. At the Coroner’s Inquest held on 14^th June, 1871 at Murrurrundi, a verdict was given of ‘died of injuries accidentally received’. His body was brought to Balmain for a funeral service, and then taken for burial at Campbelltown.

Tragedy came to the Stack family when their two infant daughters died. The church burial register recorded: Tempe Stack, 2 years 8 months died 1 June 1852 and Olivia Bagot Stack 4 years 4 months died 17 August 1852. A tablet in memory of the children was placed in the church on 20 December 1852, on petition of the churchwardens. The story passed down by parishioners is that the little girls drowned in the well beside the old parsonage, but, by the two different dates on the register, it was either two separate accidents or one of the babies must have lingered for several weeks. The parsonage, built slightly to the south of the present rectory, was built around 1840 and demolished around 1887.

During his time at Campbelltown, another daughter died and was interred at St Peter’s with Tempe and Olivia, and a son died whilst he was at Balmain and was returned to St Peter’s for burial. With his last words, Reverend William Stack requested to be buried at St Peter’s. His wife Mary lived to the age of 83 and was also buried at St Peter’s.

Reverend Stack's monument in St Peter's Anglican Cemetery

 

 Written by Andrew Allen

Disappearing Street

Howe Street in the Campbelltown CBD once ran from Broughton Street to Cordeaux Street. The part of Howe Street that once ran from Browne Street to Cordeaux Street is now part of Mawson Park.

The closure certainly didn't happen overnight. St Peter's Anglican Church first sent a request to Campbelltown Council in June 1962 to consider closing the street from the bowling club to Cordeaux Street. Council investigated the costs and sought feedback from the public. The only negative response came from a J. Moore who complained that it was too close to the main shopping centre and would reduce valuable parking. So council approved the proposal subject to the church providing an area for parking adjacent the bowling club.

For reasons unclear, the project stalled for most of the 1960s. It did reappear in council minutes in 1965, after the proposal was listed in the Government Gazette. The Minister for Lands was of the opinion that "it was expedient to close that section of Howe Street, Campbelltown, separating "Mawson Park" reserve for public recreation." Objections were again sought and a notice placed in the local media. It appears nobody objected this time. Still, it was 1968 before things started to move. Towards the end of 1968 a draft agreement for a six foot strip of St Peter's Church land for car parking opposite the bowling club was drawn up. In July 1969 the resubmission of the proposal was received. It aimed at having the work completed before the bicentenary celebrations in April 1970. Council approved the proposal.

The park was extended and more car parking space was made available in Cordeaux Street. The street was blocked off and grass planted for a public reserve. It was hoped that the warmer summer conditions would aid in the growing of the grass. The work was completed in early 1970. A number of houses in Cordeaux Street, including Lysaght's "Rosangeles" on the corner of Cordeaux and Oxley Streets, were demolished for extra parking.

An undated photograph of Billy Rixon in Howe Street. This is long before the street was closed off from Browne Street. In the background are numbers 7 and 9 Cordeaux Street. Number 9 belonged to Dr Mawson.

The road closed in late 1969. (Campbelltown and Ingleburn News)

 

Written by Andrew Allen

 

 

 

 

A 'Stormy' Relationship

 

"The Green" Campbelltown where Father Therry first said Mass in 1822

September 1st, 1822, was a day of great excitement for the Roman Catholics of the Airds District, for Father Therry was to celebrate the first Roman Catholic Mass in Campbelltown. It was to be celebrated on "The Green", an area now known as Mawson Park. Unfortunately for Father Therry and his congregation, a sudden rainstorm forced a change of plans. The deluge meant that a quick alternative had to be found. The wet and uncomfortable gathering of mud-spattered settlers begged Father Therry not to abandon his Mass and convinced him that holding it in the shell of the newly built Anglican church was the best solution. At this time the Anglican church was roofed, but the interior unfinished.

The Reverend Thomas Reddall was appointed Clergyman of the area in May of 1821 and was the first incumbent at St Peters. The church was the first, and for many years the only, building within the township. It was completed in 1823 and still stands today.

Reverend Reddall was infuriated over Father Therry's actions. Reddall complained to the Governor who in turn reprimanded Father Therry. The unrepentant Irishman replied that his actions only bestowed honour on the new St Peter's church.

It seems relations between the two were not strained for too long. Not long after Christian charity prevailed and there was a donation by Reddall towards the building of a Catholic Church in the town. Perhaps Reverend Reddall had thought more about the situation and realized that they were simply taking shelter from a deluge and that he might've been forced to take the same actions.

Written by Andrew Allen

Sources:

St John the Evangelist Parish Campbelltown- 150 years, 1984

LAWRENCE, Richard 1985
Why Campbelltown?

LISTON, Carol 1988
The Bicentennial History of Campbelltown

TIPPING, Reverend A.C. 1963
The Parish Church of St Peter, Campbelltown

More Rare Photographs

The library has purchased the remaining rare historical photographs of Campbelltown places from the State Library of Victoria (see http://campbelltown-library.blogspot.com.au/2015/05/historic-photographs-unearthed.html). It's exciting to be able to show these wonderful old images to you at a high resolution. So here they are! Remember to click on the image for a larger one.

This photograph has the title of "One of the 1st Mills in the Colony Erected about 1817". The mill was actually erected in 1845 by Laurence Kendall and William Orr. It operated as a steam-driven flour mill. In 1861 Sims, Barker and Bocking leased the mill. James Bocking later purchased the property and it became Commerce House. Bocking and his sons used it as a grocer, baker, draper and general store.

Dr William Mawson demolished the mill in the 1920s and converted the adjoining mill house into Milby Private Hospital.

This scene has changed dramatically. The only structure remaining is the now dilapidated old Fisher's Ghost Restaurant, the former mill house. The waterway now runs underground close to where McDonald's drive through is now located. It once ran under a bridge that spanned Queen Street in front of today's entrance to Campbelltown Mall's underground car park. The photo is dated 1924.

This image has the title of "Old Mill at Mt Gilead, Campbelltown". Note the man sitting in the window at the bottom. The wooden sails have almost gone. This shot was taken in 1924, almost a hundred years after it was constructed. The windmill still stands today on the property and can be seen from Appin Road.

This one is of St Peter's Church of England taken on April 4, 1940. On the western side of the church is Howe Street which used to run from Browne Street to Cordeaux Street. It was removed in late 1969 and grass laid on it for an extension of Mawson Park.

The title of this photo really intrigued me when I first read it. It's titled "Convict Gaol at Mt Gilead Near Campbelltown" and taken in 1925. I had never heard of a gaol at Mt Gilead and wondered why it was there. After doing some research I believe the photograph could be the old servant's barracks. In the July 1994 issue of Grist Mills, Verlie Fowler refers to a photograph taken by Frank Walker entitled "the old barracks, used for accommodation of the assigned servants in the early days". It showed the building without a roof like this one. Is this Walker's actual photograph? She did, however, state that evidence had yet to be found to support this being a barracks.

Written by Andrew Allen

Historic Photographs Unearthed

My colleague at the library recently discovered a number of historic photographs of Campbelltown held in the records of the State Library of Victoria. These photographs are unfamiliar to myself and other active historians in the town. They're of a high quality and provide a fascinating insight into our town's past.

I've included 5 from the list that are all out of copyright and therefore able to be copied at a high resolution. We are in the process of purchasing the remaining photographs from the State Library of Victoria and I will show them when ready. I hope you enjoy looking at the photographs below as much as I have.

This photograph shows Kendall's Mill later to become Bocking's Mill. The building on the right is all that remains today and is known as the old Fisher's Ghost Restaurant. Note the bridge in the foreground over a creek that no longer exists. The image is undated.

An undated photograph of St Peter's Church, Campbelltown

 

 

A wonderful and previously unseen photograph of the colonial houses in Queen Street opposite today's Campbelltown Mall. From the evidence available the photograph can be dated to about 1884-1886.

 

Today's Golden Wheel Chinese Restaurant in Queen Street which was previously the Campbell Coach Restaurant and before that the Congregational Manse. 

 

This photograph was taken in the 1970s and is one of the colonial terraces in Queen Street mentioned above.

Hurley's "Smash" Hit

As we are in the middle of the cricket season, I thought I would dig up a local news article that I came across a while ago. In 1926 A Mr Bland Clayton of Minto spoke to a reporter from the Campbelltown News about a cricket match that he remembered in Mawson Park around 1865. He explained that he was the person responsible for introducing round arm bowling to Campbelltown that year. This new method of bowling was met with much resistance from the locals however. He went on to say "the batsmen contributed no small share in disapproving of the new bowling, claiming that the ball was literally thrown at the batsmen and wicket." In this particular match between the locals and a Sydney team, one Sydney player refused to bowl round arm to the batsman John Hurley, a local business identity and ex-convict. He said he would demonstrate the way it should be bowled. This brought a smile to Hurley. His reply was to lift the ball with an almighty swing over Howe Street (this was a street that used to run between the park and St Peters Church) and it crashed through the window of the church. One wonders if the bowler considered giving round arm a try after this!

       Cricketer Alfred Mynn in 1853 bowling with the controversial round arm action

I noticed in an article from the same paper two weeks later there was a petition to have cricket played in Mawson Park again. Alderman Gamble was behind the push. Apparently the wicket had been destroyed in favour of a garden. However Gamble argued that "The reserve in its present state was nothing but a bird's nest, full of swallows and sparrows, it is an eyesore to the town and a disgrace to the Municipality, and the pitch was ruined for nothing but petty spite." Gamble's motion was lost in council and a cricket pitch was never made in the park again.

                     An undated photograph of Mawson Park (Clissold Collection)

Written by Andrew Allen

Sources:

Campbelltown Ingleburn News, 22 January and 5 February 1926

McBarron, E.J.
Mawson Park, Campbelltown NSW: Notes on History and Trees