Branching out - Coolebarghurk Creek, looking back

Having seen a little of what the Coolebarghurk Creek looks like now, I thought I'd do a little digging and see how it was in the past.
For 40,000 years before European arrival, the Coolebarghurk and surrounding lands were home to the tribes of the Wathaurong people who would hunt, fish and gather plants from along the creek. The remains of stone tools as well as cooking mounds were found in the Police Paddock, reflecting this early occupation of the land. The name Coolebarghurk is believed to be a version of the Wathaurong name Kooly bar ghurk meaning "man's track by the creek".
White settlement came to the upper part of Coolebarghurk Creek in the form of the Scottish-born squatter John Norman McLeod.  In 1837 he sailed from Van Diemen's Land to the Port Phillip District where he landed at Indented Head with stock which he used to establish the run which it is said, he named Borhoneyghurk after Barnighurk the local Wathaurong tribe.
McLeod claimed the squatting rights to some 24,790 acres of land stretching from Moranghurk Station a few kilometres south of Meredith to Bungal Station north of Mt Doran. To the east, the run was bordered by the Moorabool River and to the west it followed Native Hut Creek and shared boundaries with the run of that name as well as the Woodbourne No. 2, Cargerie, Narmbool and Lal Lal runs.
Local sources indicate that the homestead built by McLeod on his run was situated on high ground about 5km north of what would become the township of Meredith and about half that distance to the south west of Morrisons. The house is now in disrepair but can still be seen from a distance.

Ruins of the original Borhoneyghurk homestead, image taken by Margaret Cooper

Borhoneyghurk homestead,  image taken by Margaret Cooper

McLeod remained at Borhoneyghurk, running sheep on the property until about 1849 when he sold his rights and left the district, along with his wife and three eldest children - all of whom were born at Borhoneyghurk.

Rock piles, remains of Borhoneyghurk homestead, image taken by Margaret Cooper

Timber remains of Borhoneyghurk homestead, image taken by Margaret Cooper

With the departure of John Norman McLeod, the Borhoneyghurk run was divided in two - the majority taking the name Borhoneyghurk East and a smaller section renamed as Borhoneyghurk West of about 5,000 acres which passed into the hands of George Frederick Henry Read Jnr. Looking at the relevant survey map, the homestead would appear to have remained with the land acquired by Read. He in turn only held it until 1853 when he sold it to his brother-in-law Capt. Alexander John Smith.

Image believed to be that of George Frederick Henry Read Jnr,
owner of the Borhoneyghurk West run c1851. Image held by the
Allport Library and Museum of Fine Arts

Prior to McLeod's departure from Borhoneyghurk, he appears to have administered the run along with Mr G.B. Ball and Mr Sinclair, but by 1852, the larger Boroheyghurk East - including much of Coolebarghurk Creek - was taken up by the Reverend Thomas Nattle Grigg who held it for several years until 1856 when the lease was taken up by the Morrison family.
At some point, a second homestead, this one a stone structure, was built on the Borhoneyghurk East run, along the banks of the Moorabool River to the south east of Morrisons township. It is believed that the Morrison family lived here. During the 20th century, the building was demolished and another built by the Miller family who then owned the land.

Borhoneyghurk East stone house on the banks of the Moorabool River near
Morrisons township. Photo supplied by Margaret Cooper

With the discovery of gold in 1851, everything changed. At this time, the township of Meredith was surveyed on the banks of Coolebarghurk Creek near where the old bullock track from Geelong crossed the creek. Buildings sprang up, hotels were opened. The first of these - Watson's Hotel - was situated on the banks of the creek a little to the north of Dickman's Bridge. At this time land was also gazetted for churches and a school and a tract of about 50 acres was reserved along the banks of the creek for the police force who utilised the land as a base for the mounted troops which escorted gold from the nearby Steiglitz goldfield. The town also became a busy staging point for traffic moving not only between Steiglitz and Geelong but also the goldfields of Ballarat, Buninyong and other nearby diggings.
Nor perhaps were settlers and the authorities the only ones to establish a base of operations along the creek. Local legend has it that one of Victoria's most infamous bushrangers, Francis McCallum (aka Captain Melville), established a hideout along the banks of the creek. Whilst I can find no mention of Melville being in the area during the time of his "reign" in the early 1850s, it is easy enough to imagine that a hideout along the creek would have provided a handy base from which to prey upon the diggers with their gold returning to Geelong along the track from Ballarat.
Since Melville's death in 1857, rumours have abounded about a secret stash hidden by the bushranger in the Dundas Ranges, however local legend suggests another location for the loot. During a recent visit to investigate an historic bluestone house which sits on the east bank of the creek at Meredith, we were told of a previous occupant of the property (John Davies) who spent time in gaol with the Captain.

This bluestone house on the east bank of Coolebarghurk Creek dates to the
early years of the 20th century. During the era of Captain Melville, the
land served as the local pound

Whilst serving out their respective sentences, Melville informed Davies that the stash was in fact hidden near the site of the Meredith Creamery not far from the creek. The legend states that Melville claimed to have hidden his riches beneath a tree, which unlike all the others around it, leaned into the prevailing wind.
Most however, came by their riches more honestly and some even tried their hand along Coolebarghurk Creek. The Lord Kitchener Gold Mine, located on the upper reaches of Coolebarghurk Creek and now part a private property, was another of the sites we visited during our travels. The mine was however, a relative latecomer to the scene dating as far as I can tell, to the early 20th century.

The remains of the mullock heap at Lord Kitchener Mine

Reports in the gazettes and newspapers of the day seem a little sketchy, but the Launceston Daily Telegraph of 1st April, 1910 reported that good rock was being extracted from the mine and that the "formation [was] about 6ft wide, and [carried] gold all through it", however I can find no record of the company existing prior to this. In addition and despite having been around for some time, Government Gazettes show that it was first registered as a no liability company in March, 1912 with 24,000 shares valued at 2 shillings each. The capital of the company, including equipment was valued at £300. The company manager was John Ure McLeish.

During our visit we saw the remains of a mullock heap which is still visible and we were shown the depression where the mine shaft once descended.

The poppet head, Lord Kitchener Mine, image supplied
by Margaret Cooper

Also still visible are the concrete footings of the pumps required to keep the mine from flooding - another indication of the amount of water flowing into what appears an almost dry creek bed - fact (we were informed) which led to the eventual abandonment of the site for mining purposes. Anecdotally, the story is that the mine had two periods of operation, the first and most successful, tunneled  towards the creek whereas a later operation which tunneled from the opposite direction was abandoned due to persistent flooding.

Concrete footings said to have supported the pumps which kept the mine from flooding

This end of the Lord Kitchener Mine and possibly the end for mining on the Coolebarghurk altogether, came in December, 1913 when a deed appeared in the Victorian Government Gazette dissolving the syndicate known as the Lord Kitchener Extended Mining &c. and entitling Fitz Alan Boyd acting as liquidator, to all the books and property held by the company.

This shed, once part of the Lord Kitchener mining operation now stands on the
corner of  McLeod and Russell Streets in Meredith, image supplied by
Margaret Cooper

Whilst the big finds of the gold rush eventually petered out, the township of Meredith did not. Many of those who had tried their hand at mining, were now looking to settle on their own piece of land and by the 1870s, closer settlement acts were being passed by the government to encourage this. Instead of two properties, the Coolebarghurk Creek now flowed through many smaller farms, providing water for stock and crops as well as any remaining native flora and fauna along its banks.
Another boost to the district came with the arrival of the railway in 1862 and the re-alignment of the road from Geelong to that of the present Midland Highway route. This saw the focus of the town shift away from the banks of the creek to the west, but commerce continued and the township survived. So too did the little path by the Coolebarghurk Creek. From Wathaurong trail, to the rutted bullock track of the 19th century, to today's Ken Middleton Walk; thousands of years on, man's track by the creek remains.

The Ken Middleton Walk beside Coolebarghurk Creek. During the 1840s and 50s
bullockies and their wagons followed this track along the creek from
Geelong to Ballarat

Branching out - GOLD! GOLD! GOLD!

There's gold in them thar hills! Well, in the Moorabool Valley to be precise - at Morrison's and Steiglitz on land which originally formed part of the squatting runs of Moranghurk, Durdidwarrah and Borhoneyghurk.
Gold was first discovered in the area in small quantities in 1851 but was not considered workable. In 1853, the squatter Andrew Love and George Morton found alluvial gold which resulted in a small flurry of activity, but it was not until late 1855 when William Hooley and Joseph Davis discovered the first of several gold reefs at Steiglitz on the banks of Sutherland's Creek near the bottom of the main street that the rush really started.

Timber bridge over Sutherland's Creek, Steiglitz

The table below gives a timeline of the development of gold mining along the Moorabool and it's tributaries - most notably Sutherland's Creek, Tea Tree Creek (which runs into the west bank of the Moorabool West Branch between Elaine and Morrison's) and Dolly's Creek (which also joins the west branch of the Moorabool from the same direction but further to the north).

Date	Place	Type of mining
1851	Morrison’s Station	-
1851	Dolly’s Creek	-
1855	Hooley & Davis discover reef at Sutherland’s Creek, Stieglitz	Quartz
1855	Sutherland’s Creek	Alluvial
1855	Yankee Gully	Alluvial
Late 1850s	Morrison’s Diggings	Alluvial
1857	Dolly’s Creek	Alluvial
1857	Tea Tree Creek	Alluvial
1862	Stony Rises	Alluvial
1863	Stony Rises	Quartz
1890s	More gold at Stieglitz	Quartz

This first rush in the area at Steiglitz involved alluvial mining, however reefs - the richest in the country - were also discovered and through the 1860s and 1870s deep lead mining of quartz veins became the norm. It was one of the first areas in the country where reef mining took place and in the very early days, the lack of quartz crushing facilities posed a problem so it was suggested that quartz be carted off site either to Geelong or back to England for crushing! This situation was soon rectified in 1856 when the first public crushing plant opened in Steiglitz and by 1862, fifteen quartz batteries were operating there.

Remains of a mullock heap at Steiglitz

As they were discovered and worked, the reefs were given names to differentiate them. The best known was perhaps New Chum, but others included Gibraltar, Tam-O-Shanter, Ironbark, New Years, Cooper's, Dreadnought, Yankee Smith,  Hanover, Boxing, Mayday, Sailors, Victoria, Clifton, Portuguese, Commissioners, Scotchman's, Birmingham, New Lode, Satchwell's, Garlick's, Durham and Italian.
The long term nature of reef mining and the requirement for heavy equipment meant that the settlement at Steiglitz was more permanent than many goldfields and by the late 1850s the town boasted four churches, five schools, four hotels and a police magistrate to maintain good order.
By 1859 Steiglitz boasted two bridges "paved with gold", specks of which could be seen in the quartz tailings from the worked out Italian Reef which were used as road base.
As the mining operations at Steiglitz began to shift from alluvial to reef mining, smaller claims were amalgamated and larger companies moved in, meaning miners were paid a wage rather than working their own claim. Some older reefs were also reworked as cheaper, more efficient methods of quartz crushing became available. By 1862, forty leads were being worked and 15 quartz crushers were operating. The majority  however were still involved in alluvial mining up and down Sutherland's Creek.

Sutherland's Creek just west of Steiglitz township

This was also the year in which the Geelong-Ballarat railway line opened, providing reliable transport to the goldfields which was connected from the station at Meredith by coach.  By the 1870s, there was also a public library, racecourse and the new brick courthouse which was built in 1875.

The courthouse at Steiglitz

By 1879 however, as the gold supply began to dwindle, the number of miners fell to about 100. The last crushing plant had closed a couple of years prior. People moved on and the population likewise dwindled.
As I discussed in one of my previous Woodbourne Creek posts, the 1860s saw changes in the law which opened up land for selection and closer settlement by small farmers. In the case of the Steiglitz area, many of these selectors had first tried their hand at mining but instead turned to the land to support their families. It was this pressure which saw the land east of the Moorabool River which had been part of the Moranghurk Estate, carved up into smaller properties when the squatting licence for the run was revoked in 1870.
Then, in the early 1890s, new gold deposits were discovered at Steiglitz and the miners began to return once again. The population sprang up to 2,000, trades and services returned, clubs and societies flourished to entertain the population. The boom was back.


Steiglitz township during the gold rush

However it was relatively short-lived and as yields dropped in the late 1890s, the population once again began to decline. People moved away, taking their business - and in many cases even their houses - with them.
Mining licences continued to be issued in small numbers over the years until 1941 when the last mine closed. From this time, public buildings were moved away and services relocated to other towns. Those who remained, looked to other industries to earn a living.
In 1951, the centenary celebrations marking the discovery of gold in the district saw the erection of a commemorative cairn. The central stone at the bottom was taken from the home of William Sharpe and those to the right and left from the original von Stieglitz home. They are topped by pieces of quartz from the abandoned mines.

Commemorative cairn at Steiglitz

Branching out - settling in

From what I have seen of the earliest days of settlement along the three rivers, there were two types of squatters who came to settle "Australia Felix". All were graziers, bringing with them the stock they hoped would thrive in the new land. All were adventurers, often embarking on extended treks into territory unknown to Europeans in search of grazing land but not all came to stay.
There were those like Cowie, Stead, the von Steiglitz brothers and the Learmouths who came, established their runs over the course of the 1840s and then returned to the United Kingdom. Then there were those like Russell, Thomson, the Austins and many more who came, built permanent houses on their runs and often took on prominent roles in the communities which grew up around them.
So for this post, rather than focus on a single part of a river or a single property, I thought this time I would look at a particular person who was amongst the second group: Dugald McPherson.

Dugald McPherson. Image held by Museum Victoria

Dugald was a Scotsman, born at Ashens, Argyllshire on 9th September, 1820. In 1840, he and his brother Peter arrived in Victoria and that same year, along with William Taylor - another Scottish immigrant -  Dugald took up the squatting licence for the property Moranghurk on the Moorabool River, about 42km from its confluence with the Barwon at Fyansford. There they ran their stock and built a small timber cottage.
They remained at Moranghurk until 1846 when, together, they made the move to the Wimmera district where they took up land. In 1848 the run was divided between the two. McPherson named his 53,000 acre run Ashens for his hometown in Scotland, whilst Taylor's run was known as Longerenong.
On the 1st June, 1852 at Melbourne, McPherson married Mary (May) O'Cock, the daughter of a St Kilda solicitor. With his new wife, Dugald returned to the Wimmera where May became the first white woman in the district, where she was considered quite a curiosity by the local indigenous population.
Only two years later however, McPherson was once again on the Moorabool River when 1854 he purchased the leasehold of John Cowie's Bungeeltap West run, presumably along with the pre-emptive right to 640 acres of land along the river which Cowie had purchased that same year.

Looking northwest across the Moorabool East Branch to Bungeeltap land
from the driveway of Emly Park

Here too the McPhersons are believed to have interacted with the local clan of the Wathaurong tribe, with Mrs McPherson reported to have witnessed a corroboree at the township on "Ballan Flat". The name Bungeeltap of course is derived from a local Wathaurong word, however I have seen two quite different meanings for the name. The first claims the meaning as "spirit water" the second, "eagle's nest". I do not know which is correct, but Bunjil (aka Bungal) was the name given to the eagle believed by the Wathaurong to be the creator spirit and who dwelt nearby at Lal Lal Falls.
Whilst not the first Europeans to settle the Bungeeltap West land, the McPhersons were the first family to call it home. In about 1863 they built a two-storey stone house in the gothic revival style, overlooking the east branch of the Moorabool River. It was at Bungeeltap homestead that their eight sons and five daughters were born. Two of the children who died in early childhood - Norman aged 3 (died 1861) and Cluny aged 4 (died in 1871) - are buried on the property. A shepherd named Tim who died from a snakebite during John Cowie's tenure in 1840 is also buried on Bungeeltap land, beside the river.

Looking north west across Bungeeltap land from the Egerton-Bungeeltap Rd

As with most of the large squatting runs, when the land acts of the 1860s were enacted, Bungeeltap West was thrown open for selection. In addition to the land held as part of his pre-emptive right, McPherson also purchased a further 293 acres directly to the north along the river. Another 274 acres were also purchased in the name of his father-in-law, Richard O'Cock, giving a total of around 1,200 acres in family hands before the squatting licence for the property was finally relinquished in 1880.
Then in November, 1875, a notice appeared in The Argus stating that estate agents had "...closed the sale of Emly Park Estate containing 6,700 acres...to Dugald Macpherson(sic)..." thus it seems that for a while at least, Bungeeltap East and Bungeeltap West were again held by a common owner. I cannot be sure how long Emly Park remained in McPherson's hands, however I was able to discover that in 1900, Vincent Valentine Mogg of nearby Yallock Vale purchased the property which he owned until his death in 1843.
As well as a grazier, McPherson was an innovator and was keen to improve his property and his flocks and herds. He was the first in Victoria to use an "earth scoop" also known as a "leveller" - a horse-drawn machine, guided by hand which was used to level ground for irrigation. He had his machine made at a local foundry from a drawing he had seen in a book.
Over the years, the property became known for its fine merino wool and beef cattle. Horses and horse breeding were also of interest to Dugald who it is reported, would drive a carriage and four-in-hand when visiting either Ballarat or Melbourne. At Ballarat's first national agricultural show in 1868, his horses, cattle and ewes all appeared in the prize lists and his name regularly appeared in the stock pages of the newspapers throughout the 1870s, 80s and 90s.

Bungeeltap stables. Image taken 1965 by John T Collins. Image held by
The State Library of Victoria

The McPhersons were also particularly active in the growing community at Ballan. Dugald was a councillor on the Ballan Council from 1864-1873, served as chief of the Highland Society of Ballarat and along with others was a founding member of the Australia Club in Melbourne. He was a devout Presbyterian and was the driving force and principal benefactor behind the establishment of St Paul's Presbyterian Church, Ballan which held its first service on 22nd June, 1866. The building still stands today as the Ballan Uniting Church.

Ballan Uniting Church

Dugald's wife "presented" the central stained glass window which adorns the northern end of the church and also laid the foundation stone. Her efforts to start a Sunday school at their Bungeeltap homestead, resulted in the opening of Bungeeltap State School No. 1155 in 1875.

Northern end of Ballan Uniting Church showing the window
presented by May McPherson

Interestingly, despite their Scottish ancestry and involvement with the Presbyterian Church, at least one of Dugald and May's sons attended Geelong Church of England Grammar School and is listed amongst the old boys in a 1915 issue of the school magazine The Corian.
In addition to their support for the church, the McPhersons appear to have taken an active role in the sporting life of the district. On 26th January, 1889 the younger members of the family were host to a cricket team made up of Ballan residents who travelled to Bungeeltap by coach to compete against a side composed of seven of the McPhersons and a few of their friends. The match was preceded by a luncheon, following which, hostilities commenced on "the well grassed flat on the banks of the Moorabool, between the Emly Park home station and Bungeeltap house" - I imagine on the Bungeeltap side. Whilst, the ladies of Bungeeltap were said to have been avid spectators at the game, Dugald does not appear to have been a participant in the match which was won comfortably by the Ballan men.
In addition to his pastoral interests at Bungeeltap, McPherson also held licences for Nhill Station in Northern Victoria and Paddington Station at Cobar in New South Wales, whilst his father-in-law Richard also moved to live near the family at Ballan. This house - known as Westcott - also passed to the McPhersons upon O'Cock's death in 1883, with one source indicating that the family used it as their town house. Between 1914 and 1930, the house was used as a private hospital and the fourth McPherson daughter died "at her residence, Westcott, Ballan" on 4th May, 1924.

The remaining portion of Westcott, Ballan

Dugald died at Bungeeltap on 20th October, 1901, but the family remained at Bungeeltap for the next 15 years until May also died there on 14th August, 1916. She was buried in the Ballan New Cemetery with Dugald in the family grave.

McDugald family grave, Ballan New Cemetery

Following her death, a clearing sale was held on the property, selling off the farm equipment and the property was leased out, however, the property did not remain long in family hands and by 1922, the property had been sold to William Rhodes who then undertook substantial renovation of the homestead and retained ownership of the property until his death in 1931 after which the estate passed to his widow and two children.

Branching out - Woodbourne No 2: where is it now?

Well this turned out to be a whole lot more complicated than I expected, so what was going to be one post will now be three of them. I initially set out to discover the history of Woodbourne No. 2 - one of the original squatting runs lying in part on the Leigh River, but covering the entire length of Woodbourne Creek, a tributary of the Leigh.

The Woodbourne Creek at the Meredith-Mt Mercer road crossing

The Woodbourne Creek at the Meredith-Mt Mercer road crossing

Woodbourne No. 2 is perhaps one of the lesser known squatting runs in the region of the three rivers. It is of particular interest to me however, as I grew up on a farm which formed part of the original run. I also attended the local Woodburn Creek Primary School - yes, the spelling is different.
The run itself covered the area bounded on the south east by Native Creek No. 1 run (then in the hands of the Learmonth brothers of the Derwent Company), to the south west by Golf Hill and the Upper Leigh runs of the Clyde Company, to the north and west by the Cargerie run of George FH Read Jnr and on its short north eastern boundary just above Meredith, by the Borhoneyghurk run of John Norman McLeod. In total, an area of about 14,000 acres.
Prior to European occupation, the land was of course home to the indigenous tribes of the Wathaurong and according to the Journal and Proceedings of the Royal Society of New South Wales (1877-1884) there were obvious signs of Wathaurong habitation along the Woodbourne Creek in the form of oven mounds and trees stripped of their bark which had a variety of uses.
The Woodbourne No. 2 run was first occupied in 1844 by Alexander, Charles and John Wilson who formed a partnership known as Wilson Brothers. It was the smallest of three squatting runs held by the Wilsons, the other two being Kewell (117,760 acres) and Walmer (40,000 acres), both located in the Wimmera district.
Whilst it is reasonable to assume that the brothers spread themselves between their three runs, we know they spent enough time at Woodbourne to build a house.


Woodbourne homestead. Copyright Department of the Environment

The structure was a six room, timber homestead which records indicate had a central hallway and was constructed from pit-sawn stringybark or yellow box planks. The roof was covered by stringy bark shingles.

Original section of Woodbourne homestead showing timber walls and roof
battens. From the Bob Reid Collection, Copyright, Department of the Environment

The site of the house whose remains still stand, is close to the head of the Woodbourne Creek. The creek rises from a natural spring around 5.5km north west of the present day town of Meredith and would have provided a permanent water source for the settlers.
In November, 1847 the brothers placed an advert in the Geelong Advertiser seeking information on a bay mare branded with a W (presumably for Woodbourne) which had strayed from the property two months earlier.
About a month later the brothers applied to have the licences for their various properties renewed. They are listed as the landholder of Woodbourne No 2 in the Squatters' Directory of the Occupants of Crown Lands of Port Phillip 1849 indicating that their application was successful.
However, the partnership did not long survive this point and was dissolved at the behest of brother Alex when the following announcement appeared in The Argus of 1849:

Notice,

The partnership hitherto existing between John Wilson, Charles Wilson and Alexander Wilson, under the designation of Wilson Brothers, is this day dissolved as far as the said Alexander Wilson is concerned, he having withdrawn from the firm.

EALEX WILSON.

For WILSON BROTHERS,

                          CHARLES WILSON.

Witnesses   ANDREW LOVE Jun.

                         CHARLES MACKINNON

Woodbourne February 26th, 1849

The homestead and its surrounds today

Further testament to the Wilson's time in the area is a little creek (just over 10km in length) which bears their name and which is joined by Woodbourne Creek about 1.8km above their confluence with the Leigh River at Bamganie.
Whether the longer Woodbourne Creek (about 15km in length) takes its present name from the name given to the run by the Wilsons or the run was named for the creek, I do not know, however I have seen at least one survey map from the 1860s which gives the name of the creek as Reid's Creek.
This name reflects that of the person who took over the run after the departure of the Wilsons, in 1853 - William James Reid, an Irishman from Letterkenney in the north of Ireland.

William James Reid, squatter

Reid took possession on 2nd January, 1853 and a few months later in May of that year brought his new bride Elizabeth Elliott Armstrong to live on the property. Together, they raised a family of nine children and as the need arose they extended the original timber house with a bluestone extension consisting of three extra rooms and a passageway. The new section was situated in front of the original house and was roofed with slate and surrounded by a verandah of corrugated iron. At some point the shingle roof of the original building was also covered with iron. The ceilings were of pressed metal and - in the front rooms - lathen plaster whilst the floors were hardwood.

The homestead showing the old (rear) section and the newer (front) section.
From the Bob Reid Collection, Copyright, Department of the Environment

At the time of purchase from the Wilsons, the run carried 5,000 sheep. A geographical and topical map produced for the surveyor's office in 1867, indicates a brush fence separating the Woodbourne run from that of George Russell's to the south as well as a set of "brush yards" which if I calculate correctly would have been about 1km west and 3.5km south of Bamganie and the Meredith-Mt Mercer roads respectively.

Reid and his family remained at Woodbourne until 1872 at which point one source indicates that he forfeited the lease on the run. I suspect that the timing of his exit may have been no chance thing. In the early to mid-1860s, the Victorian government introduced new laws to encourage closer settlement, allowing small "selectors" to take up blocks of crown land on easy terms, including areas held under current squatters licences. The squatters complained vehemently to the government that the new laws discriminated against them, the very people who had opened up the countryside and brought about such improvement.
After all their effort, they were - they claimed - at risk of having their land snatched from beneath them by moneyed "land sharks". On the other hand, many squatters themselves attempted to rort this new system by having "mediums" purchase the rights to the land on their runs which in turn would immediately be leased back to the squatter - in return for a fee of course!

Wilson Creek below its confluence with Woodbourne Creek looking across land
which was selected from the original Woodbourne run in 1872 by P O'Donnell

His obituary claims that William Reid argued long and hard against the land sharks and his refusal to pay "tribute" to them cost him dearly. Newspaper reports of the day indicate that Reid did in fact fight against the resumption of "his" land and looking at the surveyor's maps of the era, there were several blocks of Woodbourne land selected during the 1860s and possibly further blocks sold outright to selectors. Much of it seems to have been to the east of the railway line with some to the north of the homestead site. This may well account for statements indicating that the size of the run had been reduced to 10,000 acres by 1865.
By 1869 and during the 1870s however, the uptake of land seems to have gathered considerable pace. Much of the land to the west of the homestead and down to about 1.5km south of the Meredith-Mt Mercer Road was taken up. A number of blocks towards the most southerly part of the run along Wilson's Creek were also selected.

Henderson's Road which crosses Wilson Creek at "Tayolor's Bridge" was named
for a later selector from the 1880s who took up land to the west of this site on the
Leigh River - probably on Golf Hill land. This road may have formed part of the
boundary between the two properties. Edwin Taylor selected the land which can
be seen immediately the bridge in 1880.
behind the bridge

At this point, Reid probably saw the writing on the wall for his run and in 1872 chose to forfeit his lease and sold the remaining 3,000 acres and homestead to John Matheson of Moranghurk.
 This enabled him to pursue his squatting ambitions on the Darling River. From there, he went on to purchase a number of stations in New South Wales and one as far north as Cloncurry in Queensland as detailed in his 1914 obituary. In later life, he retired to Geelong and is buried at the Eastern Cemetery with his wife and several other family members.


Views fit for a squatter. The Reid family grave at the Eastern Cemetery

From 1872 onwards, the homestead was used as staff housing by the Mathesons, remaining in good condition until the 1950s. The land along with the neighbouring Native Creek No. 1 run - also acquired by Matheson - was absorbed into the Moranghurk Estate, remaining intact until soldier settlement arrived in 1953.
At that time, the block containing the homestead passed to Mr George Morris Lloyd and his wife Olive. The Lloyds and their children farmed the block until 1973, despite having suffered heavy losses in a fire in 1967. In that year, they sold the farm to Alan and Margaret Parkinson, who are still the owners of the farm they called Woodbourne.

The remains of the homestead today. The walls of the bluestone section
remain standing however the roof appears to have completely collapsed. The
stables (right) built in the 1870s appear to be mostly intact.

The rest of the Woodbourne No. 2 run - mostly the southern section - seems to have reverted to crown land which was taken up by selectors during the 1880s, 1890s and into the early 20th century. The only part to remain in government hands today is the land along the lower section of Woodbourne Creek which now forms the Bamganie State Forest.

Inside the state forest, looking across Woodbourne Creek

The creek at this point is steep and quite heavily wooded and would not have been appropriate for either grazing or cultivation which may in part explain its continued reservation as crown land.


One of the many gullies running down to Woodbourne Creek near the state forest

There is however another possibility which will be the subject of my next post - GOLD!

Branching out - Moranghurk

As mentioned in a recent post, I attended a book launch and plaque-unveiling at Moranghurk near Lethbridge a couple of weeks ago. I subsequently posted a little about the history of soldier settlement in the area through which the Barwon and its tributaries run. Because the two topics are so intertwined in local history, this then got me thinking about the squatters who were the first Europeans to live in the area. That then resulted in yesterday's rather lengthy post on the subject of the local "squattocracy".
Now, I intend to have a look at some of the estates mentioned in yesterday's post and hopefully over time this will build up a handy picture of the historic properties along the banks of the three rivers and beyond, showing what they were and what they have become today. Some are already the subject of previous posts so for the moment I will concentrate on some of the others.
First:

Moranghurk

The front gate

Whilst the history of Moranghurk as a squatting run and then as an estate only dates back to 1840, the name itself is much older. The property name was originally spelt Moranghourke but both spellings are believed to be derivatives of the Wathaurong word Murrangurk. One meaning given for the word is to describe someone returned from the grave and was the name given to the escaped convict William Buckley who was discovered by the Barrabool tribe. A slightly different version tells that Buckley was found at the grave of a famous warrior of that name and, not having seen a white man before, he was thought by the Wathaurong to be the reincarnation their hero. Why the name was chosen for the property is not clear.
Unlike many of the estates in the area, Moranghurk has always been in the hands of a partnership or a family. The first selection of 18,00 acres was taken up in 1840 by the Scottish settlers William Taylor and Dugald McPherson who held it until 1846. The property included land along both sides of the Moorabool River. To the west it was bounded by the Native Creek No 1 Estate, at that time occupied by Robert Sutherland for the Clyde Company, to the north by John McLeod's Bohoneyghurk and to the south by the Clyde Company's Tall Tree Estate . East of the Moorabool, Moranghurk shared a boundary with Durdiwarrah belonging to the Steiglitz family and a small section of its south eastern perimeter with the Anakie Estate of Frederick Griffin.

View south down the Moorabool Valley from Moranghurk.

The next to takes up the lease was Peter Sharp in 1846 who transferred it to his brother William in 1848. By 1849 the Squatters' Directory of that year showed the estate as 18,333 acres held by William Sharp.
In the earliest days, Taylor and McPherson built a small cottage on the property made of mud and stone. At some point in the 1840s the present house was constructed, possibly to a design by Thomas Albin Nuttal. Whether it was Taylor and McPherson who had the house built or the Sharps is unclear.

Moranghurk homestead

In 1853 Andrew Love (son of the Presbyterian minister) took over the leasehold before mortgaging the estate to one William Ross in 1854, however Love's subsequent insolvency saw the property once again return to William Sharp in 1856 who then sold the lease to John Matheson in 1857. This period saw a significant amount of legal wrangling with Ross mounting actions against various people including Love.



This land across the Moorabool Valley would originally have been part of the
Moranghurk Estate

Over the ensuing decades, Matheson consolidated his holdings. In 1870, the squatting licence for the estate was cancelled. Matheson took up the pre-emptive right to about 5,000 acres of the original run, but had to relinquish the land east of the Moorabool as pressure from disenchanted gold diggers on the Stieglitz side of the river pushed for farmland of their own. At some point he acquired the Native Hut No 1 Estate to the west as well as 3,000 acres of the Woodbourne No 2 Estate to the north (including the homestead - the subject of a subsequent post). Presumably prior to 1870 - his holdings totalled 26,000 acres, however ultimately he held around 19,000 acres of land, possibly including some reclaimed portions of the original estate west of the river.

The Moorabool Valley and Moranghurk land from the front lawn

During his time Matheson increased the stock on the run and made significant improvements. In 1862 he was running 8,943 head of sheep but by the time of his death in 1882 this had increased to 19,945.
In the early squatting days, property boundaries were often determined by natural features such as creeks and rivers, or by dirt ditches, dug to mark the line. By 1879 he had fenced the run and divided it into paddocks with a combination of stone, brush and post and rail fences.


Several of the Cyprus and a small bridge along the Moranghurk driveway

Between 1873 and 1875, Matheson turned his attention to the house and buildings, extending the former and building a number of outbuildings including shearers' quarters, woolshed, stables and dairy. Other buildings were also constructed during the 1860s. Ninety-seven of the Cyprus trees which line lengthy driveway were planted in 1879.

The house and gardens

Following his death in 1882, Matheson was succeeded by his son John Matheson Jnr. The younger John however died in 1893 at the age of 37, leaving two young sons. So for the next 18 years, the estate was run by his trustees who continued to make improvements including several further outbuildings until, in 1912 - having completed his education at Harrow and Trinity College, Cambridge - John Lee Matheson and his younger brother Norman McDonald Matheson returned to the property to live along with John L's wife Lynette. They were the first generation of the family to live permanently on the estate.
They suffered a setback not long after taking control of the property however, when a grassfire which was believed to have started when a man at the Larundel Estate near Elaine threw out a pan of hot ashes, burnt through several miles of their fencing, consumed a significant amount of pasture and killed a large number of sheep. None the less, they were able to make a success of the estate and their tenure saw a number of further improvements with a focus on fine quality Merino production. This youngest generation of Mathesons were also responsible for building the gate lodge, the garage, the men's quarters and also an ornate pump house on the river. All this activity was interrupted by a period of English service during the First World War for John during which Norman managed the estate.

The gate lodge at Moranghurk

They were however, the last generation of the family to own it. John died childless in 1953 and the property passed to his brother Norman. By this time however, it was much reduced as the Soldier Settlement Commission had resumed around 12,000 acres of Moranghurk land in 1952 - the distribution of which is the topic of the recent publication Moranghurk, soldier settlement at Meredith: this is their story compiled by Margaret Cooper.

The garage

Like his contemporary Janet Biddlecombe at Golf Hill, John L is believed to have been unhappy with the break up of the estate. Following John's death, Norman had hoped to run a model stud farm on much of the remaining land. The government however, were not prepared to cede more than the  homestead block of 2,183 acres, having already claimed the remaining acreage.
Norman felt he needed at least 5,000 acres to make the project work, so as a result he sold the last of the land along with the house to the Commission who then auctioned it to George "Dudley" Erwin and Jack East, mates from the air force.
Erwin and East were not however, long term occupants and changed little on the property. Erwin went into politics and the property was once again sold, this time in 1957 to Isaac Peter Ralton Scott. Like the Mathesons before him, Scott was keen to improve the property. In addition to another round of alterations to the house - including the demolition of a stone section of the building - land usage began to change. Paddocks were cleared, crops sewn and pastures improved. From being exclusively a grazing run, it now moved towards mixed farming producing not only sheep but cattle, grain and a variety of other crops.

The garden today with glimpses of the valley beyond

Isaac was helped on the property by his son Roger, however upon Isaac's death, the property once again changed hands. This time in about 1988 it was sold to the current owners Ross and Liz Wilkie who have done much to restore the garden and who now operate the former "men's quarters" (styled the shearer's quarters) as a group accommodation facility.
Additional details concerning the history of the property can also be found in Eric A. McGillivray's book The heritage of Lethbridge.