A Popular Young Man

In the library's recent cemetery tours, we looked at the tragic death of William Saunders. William's headstone had been flattened by vandals, so it was decided by some enthusiastic locals to get the stone standing upright once more. Led by local history devotee Learna Coupe and with the approval of St Peters Church, William's headstone was raised in recent weeks.

In May 1881, a contract was given for the construction of the tramway line between Camden and Campbelltown, to be completed by January 1882 for a cost of just under 13500 pounds. Generally the line followed the contours of the ground, with one exception- Kenny Hill, where a deep summit cutting was necessary. In August 1881, it was reported that "thousands of tons of stones have been removed" from the Kenny Hill cutting. This part of the construction was responsible for about half of the cost of the line.

The workers lived in a tent village, and among these workers was William Saunders. Young William, aged 18, died in an accident at the "Kenny Hill Quarry" on 16 February 1882. An inquest was held into his death on February 17th, and the cause noted as "death from a blast". William's estate was valued at two pounds. No parents or other family are noted in either his death or burial record, although it was recorded that William was born in Wales, and was a stonemason, hence his work at the quarry. William was buried at St Peters, with a memorial headstone raised by his co-workers. This indicated that William must have been a popular young man.

The tramway opened on 10 March 1882, just 22 days after the accident.

Written by Andrew Allen

When Harry met Mary

Joseph Hickey was from County Kildare in Ireland. He came to Australia in 1856 with his second wife Maria, and three children from his first marriage. After working in Liverpool as a butcher for a few years he moved to Menangle and opened a butchery business, which became a general store. Joseph had eleven more children, one of whom was Henry Joseph, who was known as Harry. As a young man, Harry assisted his parents with the storekeeping business at Menangle established by his father. After the death of his parents, the business carried on under the name Hickey Brothers.
In 1902, the building of the Cataract Dam at Appin began, the oldest dam of Sydney's water supply system. At the time it was the biggest engineering project in Australia. Harry established a business taking goods by horse and dray to the Cataract Dam site, where "Cataract City" was established for workers on the dam. The newspaper reported that at Cataract Dam "Mr Hickey, Menangle, has a large and capacious store built of wood, where every necessity may be obtained".


The main street of "Cataract City", (photo - Campbelltown & Airds Historical Society) Note the general store on the right.

Miss Mary May Carroll was born at Borenore, a small town near Orange, and educated at the Convent of Mercy at Carcoar. An exceptional student in all areas, Mary (who was known as May) was an excellent horsewoman, seamstress and musician. In her early twenties May travelled to Cataract Dam to care for her three brothers who were working on the construction. Whilst there she started up a school to teach children that lived in "Cataract City". It was here she met Harry Hickey.
After completion of the Cataract Dam in 1907, the Carroll brothers and their sister May moved onto the construction site of the Barren Jack Dam, now known as Burrinjuck. Harry Hickey opened a store there. Love flourished in the temporary cities created at the construction sites of the Cataract and Burrinjuck dams, and Harry Hickey and Mary Carroll married in 1911.

Wedding of Harry Hickey and May Carroll 1911.
(courtesy 'The Descendants of Timothy and Ellen Carroll' compiled by Judy Rayment)

They had two daughters and a son and lived in Appin and Menangle while Harry continued to work in the family business. Even after moving to Parramatta, Harry worked in Appin and Menangle until 1928, only coming home on weekends. Harry died in 1939 at the age of 68, and May in 1960. They are buried together at Rookwood Cemetery.

The headstone of Harry and May at Rookwood.

Written by Claire Lynch


Sources
"The descendants of Timothy and Ellen Carroll" compiled by Judy Rayment
Trove

Bow Bowing Creek

Back in the days before the public swimming pool at Bradbury was constructed, or Gordon Fetterplace Aquatic Centre as it is now known, most people either swam at The Woolwash or in the Nepean River at Menangle. There was however, another swimming hole that provided relief on a stinking hot Campbelltown day: Bow Bowing Creek.

Bow Bowing Creek's headwaters are found in Glen Alpine and the creek runs permanently, thanks to a natural freshwater spring. Fisher's Ghost Creek and Smith's Creek are two of its tributaries. It would once meander past the township on the western side of the railway line and be prone to flooding at Leumeah and Minto after heavy rain. The original course has altered greatly since a concrete channel was constructed in 1979. The channel cost $198,000 to build and was built to provide reasonable flood protection and to enable projected sales of council land adjacent to Campbelltown Road to proceed.

Many years ago, children from the southern end of Campbelltown would swim in Bow Bowing Creek in a hole known as "the Wattles". Kids from the north would swim in a hole known as the "Leg-o-Mutton". Alf Cooper, who lived most of his long life in Campbelltown, explained "When we came out of school we'd shout "Last to the Wattles is lousy". Across the public school we'd start undressing and by the time we ran down Sewer Lane (today's western end of Dumaresq Street) we'd be naked. The Wattles was a bonzer spot and I was a coot for diving."

It is difficult to imagine that fish were once caught in the creek! A fish called a gudgeon could be found in the creek, which grew to 20-25cms, had very little scale and was quite edible. It became extinct a very long time ago.

Old bridge on Redfern Road, Minto being flooded by Bow Bowing Creek (Jones Collection, Campbelltown City Library)

Written by Andrew Allen

Sources:

McGILL, Jeff 1995
Campbelltown's Streets and Suburbs: How and why they got their names
Campbelltown and Airds Historical Society

Campbelltown- Ingleburn News, 22 May 1979, p18

FOWLER, Verlie
Reminiscences of Alf Cooper
In Grist Mills Vol. 10, No. 4, December 1997

FOWLER, Verlie
Mervyn and Kathleen Whitten: Living on the Farm
In Grist Mills Vol. 21, No. 2, July 2008

Memories of East Minto Public School

by special guest blogger

Laurie Stroud

East Minto Public School opened in September 1898 in Hansens Road, East Minto. The two classroom school served children who lived within a 3 mile (5 kilometre) radius. The solid brick building had a verandah in front with one end enclosed and a store room at the other. The building was painted in “public school brown”.

On the end wall of the main classroom were two blackboards, each had two sections which could be raised or lowered. In effect this gave the teacher four blackboards which was quite helpful, given he had at least three classes to teach. To one side of the blackboards was a large piece of cardboard on which the multiplication tables were printed. (Leaning multiplication by rote was somewhat distracting for the other pupils but we all had to learn this way and just accepted it.) There was also a fireplace but it was seldom (if ever) used. The pupils sat at bench type desks with holes where inkwells could be placed.

East Minto Public School in 1920.

There were two tanks at one end of the building where the kids could have a drink. The square tank shown in the above photo was replaced by a corrugated iron tank to match the other. (The square tank was moved to the side fence and placed on its side to become the incinerator where rubbish was burned.) Sufficient rain water was collected from the school roof to ensure the tanks never ran dry.

The school grounds occupied about two acres with the bottom half of the site mostly bushland, including many large trees. There were three outside toilets – one for the boys, one for the girls and one for the teachers. The section between the front of the school and the main gate was covered with asphalt. This was where assembly was held at the commencement of each school day. It also boasted a flagpole – complete with flag on important occasions.

The immediate area around the school was cleared (no grass) to facilitate access and provide an area to play games during the lunch break. Sometimes there was a cricket match but the surface was rough. A bat or a proper cricket ball was seldom available. This meant that rounders became the favoured game. Rounders was played using an old tennis ball. Also it was relatively easy to fashion a baseball type bat from a sapling or a tree branch. The kids soon worked out that the longer the bat, the further they could hit the ball. However this advantage had to be balanced by the increased difficulty in actually hitting the ball. The “happy medium” was a bat just over one metre in length.

Playing rounders was not without some risks, particularly for the kid assigned to the outfield during  spring. Each year a pair of magpies would build a nest in one of the large ironbark trees towards the back of the school yard, adjacent to the side fence. The maggies considered any intrusion into their territory had to be strongly resisted. If the batsman succeeded in connecting with the ball it would invariably land in disputed territory and the person fielding the ball would be swooped repeatedly until he retreated – with or without the ball.

One year it was decided that we should not continue to be the subject to the indignity of these unwanted attacks. It was decided that force should be met with force. On the appointed day an arsenal consisting of bows and arrows, catapults, stones and acorn flicks was assembled. One kid who possessed a pith helmet hat was designated as the “lure”. When he ventured into magpie territory and was swooped, the kids responded with a barrage of stones, arrows and acorns. This only proved to be a temporary success. The wonder was that the “lure” escaped unharmed as accuracy was not a prerequisite for participation.

One of the positives of schooling in those days was the free provision by the Education Department of slates and crayons for the younger pupils, while the older ones were provided with exercise books, pens, ink and pencils. Any “extras” such as text books and sporting equipment had to be purchased by the Parents and Citizens Association (known simply as “the P&C”). Homework was unknown.

East Minto was initially a one-teacher school. The school's first teacher was Cecil George Browning Sutton. He remained at East Minto Public until he retired in 1921 and remained in the district as an active community member until his death in 1951. The altar at St James Minto is dedicated to him.

In the 1930s the teachers were Mr Edwards and Miss Frost. The next teacher was Percy Kable who also taught at Campbelltown Public School. He was followed by Mr Haines or Pop Haines as he was known. The school's numbers remained high during this time and at one stage there were two teachers. A Miss Henderson taught years 1-2 while Mr Haines took 3-6. He was regarded fondly by his pupils.
A former pupil by the name of Keith Longhurst remembered him playing cricket and rounders with the children at lunch time. Keith described his days at East Minto further: "We were taught reading, writing and arithmetic. And I don't mean maybe- we WERE taught. The only thing that spoilt my school life, if any, was that I was shifted from 2nd class to 4th class in one jump and it was a long hop and of course I missed my tables that you had to learn in 3rd class".

East Public School 1934, present Mr Edwards and Miss Frost.

(Denison Collection .Campbelltown City Library)

Names such as Etchells, Denison, Longhurst, Porter, Johnson and Hansen being prominent among the pupils.  Other names including Benjamin, Bentley, Goodwin, Hatfield, Leech, Mitcherson, Moore, Pickett, Stroud, Walters and Worrall also come to mind.

Another former pupil, Laurie Stroud from Kentlyn, enrolled at East Minto School at the beginning of the 1939 school year. It was about one kilometre further to walk each day compared to Kentlyn School but East Minto had two teachers at the time. This indicated a better learning environment. It was still a long walk for a bare footed five year so on some days his Dad would take him to school on the back of his bike. At this time Mr Haines was the headmaster. He was assisted by Miss Miles who taught the younger pupils.

Laurie recalls one winter’s day in 1941 when the school dentist arrived – unannounced. One by one the kids had their teeth checked. “For some unknown reason I had several of my first teeth removed. I had no indication of a problem other than a couple were a bit loose.  After the extractions the dentist said, ‘You can now go home, son’. I took the short cut which was in a direct line to my home through the bush; about a two kilometre walk. It started to rain before I reached home. I can still recall the shocked look on my Mother’s face when this wet bedraggled kid with blood trickling out the corners of his mouth arrived unexpectedly at the back door. Fortunately I suffered no serious aftereffects and went back to school the next day.”

Parents and students at East Minto. Mr Haines is at the rear. (Circa 1942)

Following the attack on Sydney Harbour by Japanese midget submarines in 1942, the Education Department decided that schools should be prepared in the event of air raids. The order went out that a slit (Z shaped) trench should be dug where the students could seek shelter should an air raid eventuate. In response to this request a number of fathers, complete with picks and shovels, gathered one weekend to excavate a trench. The ground was hard and progress was slow until Alf Longhurst arrived with his draft horse and scoop. The work was then soon completed. Fortunately the trench was never used for its intended purpose. However the boys quickly made use of this newfound play area to fight their own make-believe wars. When it rained the trench filled with water. Soon the walls collapsed and it had to be filled in. So much for that brilliant idea.

The P&C was quite active raising funds for the school, usually through raffles (3 pence a ticket or 5 for a shilling). The main expense was the purchase of books to be given to the pupils as prizes at the end of the year. Occasionally the level achieved in the class at the end of the year was noted for the senior students but most books simply contained a presentation sticker signed by the headmaster with a notation that the prize was awarded for “general proficiency”. This sounded impressive and must have pleased many parents. One weekend the P&C hired a bus and took all the kids to the beach at Thirroul on the south coast. This was a novel experience for many and greatly appreciated by all.
After the retirement of Mr Haines there was a succession of temporary teachers and the quality of education suffered. It was not unusual for a temporary teacher to fail to arrive and the kids had the day off. Falling numbers of pupils saw East Minto become a one teacher school. In 1943 a “permanent” teacher was allocated to the school. His name was Samuel Cook (affectionately referred to by his wife as “Cappy”, no doubt due to his surname). Initially he was unable to obtain temporary accommodation in the area so he and his wife plus two daughters lived in one of the classrooms for several weeks. This was a rather tough introduction to his new posting, particularly as the school did not have a kitchen or a bathroom.

Mr & Mrs Cook with most of the pupils. (Circa 1944)

Mr Cook proved to be an excellent teacher and he increased the academic standard and motivation of the students considerably. Instead of pupils automatically going to Liverpool Junior High at the end of sixth class to complete their schooling, his tuition and dedication enabled several pupils to pass the exam necessary to gain admission to the selective high school at Parramatta where they were able to attain the leaving certificate at the end of fifth year. Some achieved a sufficiently high standard at the special exam to be awarded a bursary to Parramatta High School. (A bursary was means tested but virtually all the parents of the pupils had no difficulty in coming in under the financial threshold.)
It is worth noting that despite the general poverty (by today’s standards) of the district, a number of students went on to become successful in their careers. These included a TV news reader, an entrepreneur (now a multimillionaire), a lawyer and a senior public servant.

On October 2, 1947 the school was destroyed by fire. It started in the early morning and destroyed everything except a store-room. Some suspected arson and others thought the fire may have started as a result of an electrical fault.

East Minto Public School after the fire that destroyed it in 1947.

(Rear)

Following the fire, existing pupils were temporarily re-located to the large open verandah on the house next door owned by Mr Jim Angus. This became their new classroom until other arrangements could be made. However as the population of East Minto catchment area had decreased after World War 2, it was decided not to rebuild. Students were then bussed to nearby schools and eventually they would attend a new school at Minto.                                                                                               

Mysterious Rock Throwing

I recently came across an unusual story that I was unaware of. In the winter of 1901 a local family suffered a traumatic experience at their home on the Glenlee Estate near Menangle. The family was terrorized by rock throwing that lasted for at least three months. The disturbance appears to have stopped as suddenly as it started.

James Carroll, a respectable and well-to-do dairy farmer, was overnight the focus of media attention. His family first noticed rocks being hurled at their farmhouse in May 1901. These missiles were hurled from the foot of the steep knobby hill next to their home. All attempts to identify the culprits failed, despite large groups of police and civilians camping out each day and night to catch them in the act. What puzzled everybody was that James and his family had no enemies or any cause to attract them. He was popular with all who knew him.

The house was attacked mostly at night, often in the small hours and almost always from the adjacent hill. The rocks landed on the iron roof but occasionally on other areas of the house and sometimes striking members of the family. The matter was reported to the police after a week. The missiles still continued, even after the police kept guard. Large search parties were formed to scour the surrounding land for miles around but nobody was ever found. The Evening News reported that "For weeks men formed a cordon along the hill, six at a time, and watched in relief of four hours each, crouching in the frost behind bushes and stumps, but without result." The newspaper went on to describe how "One evening one of the employees, going outside, sang out, as a challenge, "Give us a stone now!" Swift and sharp came the reply, as a stone struck the wall of the house beside him with a loud knock".

Damage to the place included broken windows, a hole knocked in a corrugated iron tank and roof damage. A state schoolgirl named May Ryan, living at the house, had her temple cut open as she was carrying wood. As soon as stones were heard crashing into the house, police and family members would rush out to find and hear nothing but "the moaning of the wind in the trees".

On one or two occasions unidentified people were seen on the hill. Each time they disappeared as soon as they were persued.

James Carroll later believed that someone was determined to remove him from his property. He told media outlets that he suspected why but this was never published. James was quoted as saying "They can make it as hot as they like, and I'll stand my ground all right with them, until they get tired".

The reports in the media suddenly stopped after 16 August when they reported that it had been a week since the last incident. I could find nothing else in the library's records about this episode. James Carroll's property was called Hillside Farm and he later bought Sugarloaf at Menangle. He died in 1936.

I'm not sure if the house still exists but I'd like to find out more about this story. Perhaps one of our readers knows more or know descendants of the Carroll family.

A sketch of the house in the Evening News

Written by Andrew Allen

Coronial Inquests - Dr Arthur Scouler

It was customary in the 1800s as it still is today, to hold coroner's inquests on unusual and accidental deaths. These required a coroner and medical witnesses to give testimony. One of these was Dr Arthur Scouler, who gave evidence at inquests in Campbelltown, Camden, Picton and Liverpool.
Born to William Scouler and Janet McArthur in Kilbarchan, Renfrewshire, Scotland, on March 10th 1810, Arthur went on to study medicine. He became house surgeon at the Glasgow Eye Infirmary under William Mackenzie.
In 1838, Arthur departed Scotland on board the barque "Renown", which departed from Greenock on June 11th, coming to Sydney via Hobart and arriving in Sydney on November 23rd.  Arthur wasted no time on his arrival in Sydney, advertising his services in the Sydney papers.


Dr Scouler's advertisement in the Sydney papers on his arrival

In 1839 and again in 1843 he was given eligibility as a medical witness at coroner's inquests and inquiries in New South Wales, having the necessary testimonials and qualifications.
Arthur found himself in the Campbelltown area, perhaps because his services as a medical witness were in high demand. As inquests were often reported in the newspaper, we are able to see the sort of incidents Dr Scouler was called to be witness to. In 1842 an inquest was held upon Mary Warner who suffered from "excessive indulgence in habits of intemperance". The jury's verdict was "Died by the Visitation of God". Others over the years included witnessing to assault cases, the accidental death of Thomas Hynes and later the murder of Thomas Hynes wife Ellen; the fall from a horse and resulting death of John Duross; Peter Finnamore's death from apoplexy; the early death of Catherine Hurley; the death of Patrick Tighe of asthenic apoplexy; the death of James Booth who fell from his horse and died from injuries exacerbated by a debilitated state due to intemperance; the railway accident of John Dawson losing both his legs; the murder in Picton of Elias Trapand; and perhaps one of his biggest cases - the murder of Constable Raymond at Picton.
Dr Scouler was also in practice looking after broken bones, amputations, accidents, and visiting the Immigrants Home with medicine and attending the sick. In 1845 he married Harriet Blackburn in Campbelltown. They had three children, Jane, James and Emma.
Arthur also took part in local affairs - donating to a reward for finding the person responsible for the burning of John Hurley's stables in 1851, attending local political meetings, appointed commissioner for Campbell Town's Water Works and appointed Medical Referee for the Australian Mutual Provident Life Assurance Society.
Dr Arthur Scouler passed away on Boxing day in 1868, and his library, which contained about 500 volumes, which included about 120 bound medical works, his museum of anatomy, his surgical instruments and a large collection of medicines and other requisites for a man in a large medical practice were sold by auction. His widow Harriet died in 1886. Both are buried at St John's Anglican Church Cemetery, Camden, but do not have headstones or a marker.

Destroyed by Fire

With the sad news this week of fire destroying much of the iconic General Gordon Hotel at Sydenham, I was thinking about buildings in Campbelltown destroyed by fire over the years. While most buildings that have vanished fell victim to the bulldozer, a small percentage were burnt down. I've researched four such buildings.

Denham Court Rectory

This impressive two story building was built in 1847. It was described as a "beautiful old English Parsonage". It was closed as a rectory in 1882 upon the retirement of the Rev. George Napoleon Woodd, who had been the incumbent for 26 years. The building then became Miss Gordon's Boarding School for Girls. The school later closed and the building was leased out.

Severe bushfires broke out in early September 1895 as a result of hot and dry winds. On Saturday, 7 September the occupant of the parsonage decided to bake scones. The wooden shingles of the roof caught alight and in the hot, dry conditions the fire could not be extinguished and the parsonage was gutted.

A second rectory was built in 1922 utilizing the lower story of the original rectory. A private residence now occupies the site after the second rectory was demolished in the 1960s. Bricks from the second rectory were used in the house's construction.

Denham Court Rectory after it was gutted by fire in 1895 (Denham Court Collection, Campbelltown City Library)

Glen Lorne

At 11pm on the Thursday night of 9 July 1981, Campbelltown Fire Brigade was called to a fire on Appin Road. This was the empty and derelict house known as "Glen Lorne" that dated back to 1823. The timber house had been empty for fifteen years and was owned by Lady Dorothy Macarthur-Onslow. It was built on land granted to George Woodhouse in 1823. It was purchased by an architect named G A Mansfield in 1876 and then followed a succession of owners. The house was long admired by Campbelltown residents and a landmark on Appin Road for many years. No official cause was given for the fire, although vandals were suspected.

Glen Lorne pictured around 1981, shortly before the fire (Turner Collection, Campbelltown City Library)

Glen Alpine

What was it about fire-destroyed houses that started with Glen! Glen Alpine was the home of Campbelltown's first clergyman Rev. Thomas Reddall and dated back to the 1820s. Glen Alpine House was built on land south of Campbelltown in today's suburb of the same name. It was a brick and stone house, probably single storey, with a verandah and French doors opening to the garden.

After Rev. Reddall's death in 1838, three of his daughters lived in the house until the last daughter Amelia died in 1900. The house and surrounding 375 acres of land was sold in 1902 to James Sheil.

According to local tradition, the house was burnt down around the turn of the century. Local severe grass fires in 1902-1904 were thought to have been the culprit.

The site today is in Heritage Park, a reserve in Glen Alpine suburb.

 

Members of the Reddall family standing in front of Glen Alpine; with an inset photograph of two unidentified people beside a horsedrawn buggy (Campbelltown and Airds Historical Society)

Hope Inn

The Hope Inn stood opposite the Court House in what is today's Mawson Park. A licence for the inn was granted to Isaac Rudd in 1841. William Rixon had the licence in 1847 and to William Phipps in 1850. The inn burnt down in 1854.

In 1898 The Cumberland Mercury ran an article about Campbelltown. A line from the article reads "old hands say that the stocks, which were part of the punishment inflicted upon the drunken and incorrigible, were erected on the reserve near the old "Hope Inn"."

Written by Andrew Allen

Sources:

HIGGINBOTHAM, Edward
Historical and Archaeological Analysis of Glen Alpine, Campbelltown, N.S.W.

'Historic Home Razed"
In The Crier, 15 July 1981

The Story of St. Mary's The Virgin Anglican Church, Denham Court, N.S.W.