Emma Hume's Diary

A treasure we hold at the library is the diary of Emma Hume. Emma lived a large part of her life at 'Beulah' on the Appin Road, not far from Campbelltown. The diary (actually a number of diaries), written between 1895 and 1912 describes the trials and tribulations of what it was like living on an isolated country property at the turn of the century.

Emma Johnston Clayton was born on April 25, 1843 at Gunning and was the daughter of Benjamin Clayton and Francis Broughton. She married John Kennedy Hume in 1873 at Campbelltown. They had one child named Ellen. In 1884 Emma, her husband and 10 year old daughter Ellen returned to live at Appin after living at Cooma Cottage at Yass. Emma moved back to 'Beulah'. John Kennedy Hume died there in 1905, Emma in 1919 and Ellen, who never married, in 1936. After Ellen's death, the property and various items including the diaries were given to the RSPCA. They were then passed to a private collection.

Emma's diaries indicate she had a quiet life at 'Beulah'. She records the small daily routines of looking for ferns in the creek, endless ironing, reading in the summerhouse and getting the piano tuned. There were entries almost daily describing her and Ellen walking to the gate and back! She also regularly mentions spending time in the garden, which 'Beulah' became famous for.

I am yet to locate a photograph of Emma Johnston Hume. Further enquiries will hopefully locate one.

The diary is available on microfilm at HJ Daley Library.

'Beulah' photographed in 2015 by Kevin Rixon (Rixon Collection)

 

Written by Andrew Allen

Sources:

 

HUME MACDOUGALL, Jennifer and GRIEVE, Prudence 1991

                       Beyond the Borders: An Anecdotal History of the Hume and Related Pioneering Families in Australia

 

https://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/heritageapp/ViewHeritageItemDetails.aspx?ID=5045426

Terrifying Train Trip

Camden Train besides Narellan Road at Kenny Hill travelling towards Campbelltown in 1962

It's amazing to think that a steam train called Pansy once puffed its way very close to Narellan Road. How useful would a train along Narellan Road be today! The last ride happened on 1 January 1963. The older generation of locals regularly share fond memories of riding on the Camden "Tram", as it was known. One former driver and fireman connected to the local railways wrote down his memories of  Pansy in a book titled 'Recollections of Pansy (The Camden Train)', published in 2013. Most of Malcolm Pearson's memories of Pansy are fond ones however one particular memory scared the pants off him!

Malcolm recalled the day that Pansy tore down the hill into Campbelltown with such force, he thought his days were over. He explains in his book "As soon as the train had made its way over the crest of Kenny Hill and onto the steep downhill grade, the brakes would be applied before the train was able to gain any significant momentum". He went on further to explain that "it was not difficult to hold the train to a slow speed so long as the brakes were applied soon after reaching the top of the hill, but if the train was allowed to gather too much pace, then it was almost impossible to reduce its speed and for the rest of the descent the train would be virtually out of control." Well, this did happen to him! Surprisingly it was a driver who was familiar with the line that was responsible for Malcolm's hair raising journey.

Malcolm was working that day on the train and explained that a large amount of coal was collected and added to the milk pots and carriage to make it a maximum load. He had intended to settle down in his seat and relax for the ride back to Campbelltown. That's not how it worked out however. The driver, who was in control of the brakes, did not follow the usual practice and apply the brakes soon after reaching the crest of the hill. The train had gathered a great deal of momentum before he first used the break and this had no affect on slowing the train down. Kenny Hill was an extremely steep gradient. So steep in fact, it was regarded as the steepest gradient used by adhesion locomotives in Australia. Not the hill you would want to be going way too fast down! In an effort to regain control of the train's speed, the driver had no option other than to thrust his brake valve handle into the emergency position.

Despite reaching the flatter part of the line at Maryfields Station (where Narellan Road today passes over the Hume Highway) the engine did not slow up. By the time it reached a place called Gus' Mudhole (about where the turn off to the UWS is and on the northern side of Narellan Road), Malcolm became extremely worried. As he described in the book, "it was one of the worst feelings I have ever endured." He was convinced, as the train came to close to Kidd's Hill (about where Blaxland Road intersects with Narellan Road), that the train would be unable to negotiate a right hand bend. By some miracle it did, although there was much jerking and squealing. Eventually, after crossing Bow Bowing Creek and the level crossing, the train incredibly came to a stop. Malcolm's knees were shaking and he could hardly stand. He and his colleagues confronted the driver but he couldn't explain what happened and could only offer an apology.

I was amused about him describing how when two girls got off the train, they turned to him and his colleague to wave and smile, completely oblivious to what had just happened!

This is just one of many interesting and funny stories associated with the 'Camden Tram', known affectionately as Pansy. This same train can be seen today at the Thirlmere Railway Museum.

An undated photograph of Maryfields Station which was the last station on the line before reaching Campbelltown

Written by Andrew Allen

Source:

PEARSON, Malcolm 2013
Recollections of Pansy (The Camden Train)

Sister Haultain

Recently I became aware of the name Helen Frances Jane Cynthia Haultain. Ingleburn RSL has a memorial park and plaque dedicated to her, and I was asked by them to see if I could find out some further details of her life. I was able to find out the following information.
Helen Frances Jane Cynthia Haultain, was born to parents Henry Graham Haultain (a New Zealander) and Helen Caroline Hill. Henry and Helen were married in Bengal, India where Henry was an Inspector of Police.
Eldest child Charles was born in 1896, Helen in 1904, and sister Sybil in 1905. They were all born in Calcutta. Helen was mostly known as Cynthia, so I’ll refer to her as Cynthia for the rest of this article.
Helen and the three children arrived in Australia on June 14th 1920, from Calcutta, aboard the ship “James”.  I could find no record of father Henry Graham Haultain coming to Australia, and he died in India in 1937.
The Haultains settled at Ingleburn, with the earliest record of them living there I could find was 1926. Cynthia’s brother Charles, who became a mariner before joining the Navy, married Ruby Olive Cust, an Ingleburn girl. Mother Helen lived with second daughter Sybil at “Oranmore” on Cumberland Road.
Cynthia passed her nursing exams in 1929 and her application was accepted by the Nurses Registration Board the same year. In 1930 she became engaged to Leslie Palmer but they did not end up marrying.
Cynthia trained at the Coast Hospital which later became Prince Henry Hospital, during which time she lived at Maroubra. She went on to nurse in the Blue Mountains and was living at Wentworth Falls, in 1932, and then in 1933 was living at Auburn whilst working at Newington State Hospital where she remained until joining up. She was experienced in respiratory nursing and operating theatre techniques.

Sister Haultain
(Photo: 2/3 A.H.S. Centaur Association, May 2013 Newsletter)

Cynthia served at Hay Camp Hospital as well as on board the hospital ship Oranje. She then served on board Australian Hospital Ship Centaur which was torpedoed by a Japanese submarine on May 14th 1943 and Sister Haultain was reported 'missing', which was then changed to 'drowned due to enemy action'.  Of 332 persons on board the Centaur only 64 survived. In a strange twist of fate, the HMAS Lithgow, called on to search for survivors, was captained by Sister Haultain’s brother, Captain Charles Graham Theodore Haultain.
In addition to the park and plaque honoring Sister Haultain, there is also a stained glass window in her memory in St Barnabas’ Church, Ingleburn, her family’s place of worship.
In 2009, a search led by David Mearns, discovered Centaur’s wreck. Centaur was located about 30 nautical miles off the southern tip of Moreton Island, off Queensland’s south-east coast. The site is now a memorial to the lives that were lost.


Written by Claire Lynch
Sources:
Trove
2/3 A.H.S. Centaur Association (Inc.)
Ancestry

More Then and Nows

Three out of the four comparisons below were taken around the area where Dumaresq Street intersects with Queen Street in Campbelltown. The other one is taken from Hollylea Road in Leumeah.

Corner of Moore-Oxley Bypass and Dumaresq Street. The above image of Tripp's Cottage was taken in the early 1980s. Today's car park below has obliterated virtually everything from the photo above.

 

Almost 100 years later this scene is so different. This was taken at the corner of Dumaresq and Queen Streets. Behind the trees is the Old CBC Bank that can just be seen in the above image.

 

 

The iconic Tripps Garage can be seen in the above image shortly before it was demolished around 1966. Behind it is the house where the family lived. Below is the same site today with Ralph's Chemist on the corner.

Much has altered since the above shot was taken, probably in the 1950s or early sixties. This part of what was then Campbelltown Road is now Hollylea Road. The old road now ends here. The site of Keighran's Mill would have been on the extreme right of the photograph. Not far behind the cars is the creek that can be seen in the old photograph.

Written by Andrew Allen

Mystery Solved...possibly!

A few weeks ago I posted about the very difficult task of identifying more (actually anything) about the above photograph. I knew my chances of finding anything were remote. However, after some intense detective work, I think I'm on to something!

Very few details about this photograph in our collection existed. There was no date, location or names of the people. All we have is that it was taken in Campbelltown. We do however, have the name of the photographer. The image was taken by Boag and Milligan, Sydney. Research by the State Library of Queensland reveals that these two operated a photography business. The early part of William Boag's career was spent in Sydney where he was in partnership with portrait photographer Joseph Charles Milligan. Boag then went to Queensland in November 1871.

The library was fortunate enough to have two other images of Campbelltown in its collection by William Boag. Both these images were taken in 1871. It can be fairly certain then that this particular photograph therefore dates to 1871. Both the other photographs are of buildings located at the southern end of Queen Street: Mrs Hickey's shop and Bugden's blacksmith shop. In fact both buildings, from the records we hold at the library, appear to have been located virtually side-by-side to each other.

I decided I would search all the 1156 images we held of Queen Street for a building at the southern end of the street that looked like the one above. After trawling through hundreds, there was one that caught my attention. It was taken in the 1950s. It shows what appears to be a very old house and to the left of it, another house. A closer inspection of it however, reveals that it is two houses very close to each other. At first glance the building or buildings don't appear to resemble our building. However, if you imagine looking at them from a different angle, you get a different picture.

Below is the house taken in the 1950s.

If you examine the 1871 house, you will notice a building adjoining it that has a verandah  and roofline elevated from its verandah. The house, like the one in the 1950s photograph, is very close and almost attached to it. Other similarities include the chimneys and the verandah posts. There is also a similar gap where gates can be found at the side of both houses. About 80 years separates both photographs, so changes will obviously have occurred in that time.

It's a shame we don't get a decent shot of the 1950s house from the other angle, as this would probably show where the windows are located and therefore prove one way or another if it is our house.

If we can be sure this is the same house we are looking at, maybe we can then go close to identifying the people in it. Norm Campbell, who is now in his mid 90s, remembers the houses that were taken in the 1950s. He said that Mears family lived in the smaller one on the left (same house as the 1871 one) and the Reynolds family in the larger house on the right.

Norm also confirmed that Bugden's also lived in the house to the left of the other houses in the 1950s photograph. This is of course a much later house and would've replaced Bugden's old blacksmith shop. Mrs Hickey's shop was located 50 metres to the south of the Queen Street and Bradbury Avenue intersection. I measured this and it is exactly where you drive in to the car wash today. Therefore I believe it would've been in the same vicinity as the above buildings, possibly even between Bugden's and the 1871 house. Norm also said that the post in the extreme right of the 1950s image was part of Dredge's cottage.

So, I believe I could possibly have solved this. I can't be certain of course. However, it would make sense that Boag took the three buildings next to each other on that day in 1871.

I welcome your thoughts on this.

Written by Andrew Allen

The Railway Harmons

In the Campbelltown Ingleburn News of April 30^th, 1968, it was reported that Frederick Harmon of Campbelltown would drive the inaugural electric train to Campbelltown on May 4^th. It was also reported that he was a grandson of William Harmon, a crew member of the first train to run to Campbelltown in 1858. Whilst this is a great story, some research revealed it was not entirely true!

William Henry Harmon was born in 1853. He married wife Jessie Maria Lovett in Sydney in 1878 before settling in Liverpool. They had a large family of seven children. William joined the Railway Department and became a locomotive engine driver. He retired in 1913, and died in 1933 at the age of 80. It would seem that Mr Harmon would have been far too young to drive or crew the first train to Campbelltown, and indeed it was reported in the SMH that the Chief Engineer, Mr Whitton, drove the train in 1858.

Percy Harmon was born to William and Jessie Harmon in 1887. He played football as a youngster. Percy volunteered for the Navy at the age of eighteen for five years. After his stint in the Navy, Percy joined the Railways Department as a cleaner, but when war broke out, he resigned and rejoined the Navy from 3^rd July 1915 til March 1919, serving as a Captain’s valet on the HMAS Fantome. During this time he married Maria Baskerville. On his return he rejoined the railways, where he became a locomotive fireman. Percy and Maria had 8 children. Percy was a locomotive fireman until his retirement. He died in 1972.

Frederick Harmon was born to Percy and Maria in 1926. He married Betty Gloria Lidden of Campbelltown, a graduate of the Conservatorium of Music, in 1951. They lived in Sturt Street Campbelltown. Frederick was the driver of the inaugural electric train to Campbelltown on Saturday May 4^th.  The most recent information I could find out about Fred Harmon was that he was still living in Campbelltown in 1980 and was still a locomotive driver. Apparently he was a bit of a character, and when he and Betty divorced, he stayed on in Sturt Street.

Fred Harmon at left (in white shirt and hat) at the accident at
 Menangle Station in 1963. Photo - Norm Campbell Collection

Whilst the idea that a grandfather and grandson drove the first train and the first electric train into Campbelltown was a great one, the real story of the train driving Harmons is equally interesting.

Written by Claire Lynch
Sources
“Parramatta District Soldiers in the Great War”
Trove
Ancestry

A Near Impossible Challenge

 

 

I like a challenge. Particularly when it comes to old photographs. This one however, might prove beyond my capabilities. It's really frustrating when you come across a photo in your collection that you know nothing about. The photographs above fit this category. Both of the above are the same photograph, but with one showing more detail using a close up shot. There is no date, no location and no names for the people posing for the photographer. All we know is that it was taken in Campbelltown. It was snapped so long ago. So long that the people are long gone from this world, their life stories likely to have been lost forever. The house has almost certainly been demolished and its location lost to history. As I explained though, I do welcome a challenge!

In the next week or so and before my next blog post, I will examine what we little we do know about this photo and, using the available clues, put together a profile of the photograph. I do know the photography company, so this might help date the photograph, along with the clues in the photo. The other tool I have at my disposal is assistance from our blog subscribers and readers. There are also various social media sites I will use that can help get the word out there and get people to contribute their thoughts and ideas.

I welcome your help. Let's see what we can do!

Written by Andrew Allen