VOLUME 4 NUMBER 2 AUGUST Newsletter of the West Torrens Historical Society Inc PO Box 43 Marleston SA 5033

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1 FROM SAND-PITS TO FAIRWAYS. May Terrace at Lockleys was named for the May family who owned the rough scrub-covered piece of land which bordered on its western side from Henley Beach Rd to Burbridge Rd. In interviews conducted by members of the West Torrens Historical Society over the years they have remarked on the undulating and uninviting property describing its sandy nature and stunted vegetation including boxthorn bushes, paddy melons and reedy swamps - hard to believe when looking at the beautifully manicured Kooyonga fairways and greens today! Ruby Woods (nee Rowell) states that Caleb May had a quarry at the bottom of May Tce and that he mixed limestone with the sand to make plaster for her kitchen at The Gums on Rowells Rd in Lockleys. She could recall that the May family never grazed the country but made their money selling dray-loads of sand - (see West Torrens Historian volume 3, number 2, page 9). Mal Stott remarked that in later years, when constructing the airport storm-water drains, the West Torrens council discovered that under the sand was a layer of sandstone rock which had to be blasted out! May s homestead stood on a sand hill near Henley Beach Rd and this later became the first Kooyonga club house. With the coming of electric trams in 1909 Caleb May lost a strip of land along Henley Beach Rd to allow for the laying of tram tracks down the southern side of the road. He was quite upset about losing the whole of my hedge which has just matured. After the Brooklyn Park Methodist Church was opened on May Tce in 1914, a tennis court was laid out on May s property about where the Kooyonga car park is now. This area was used during World War II as a training ground for the Volunteer Defence Corps (VDC) - (see W. T. Historian volume 3, number 1, page 3). Cargie VOLUME 4 NUMBER 2 AUGUST 2012 By a stroke of fate the late H. L. Cargie Rymill of the Royal Adelaide Golf Club was the first to realise that this land would make an excellent golf course. Cargie, who did not drive a car, lived at Kirkaldy and travelled to the city by the Henley Beach train which passed his door. A train strike of 1922 forced him to travel via Henley Beach in the electric tram. As he passed along Henley Beach Rd a for sale sign on the frontage of May s property caught his eye and it is said that he broke his journey at May Tce, crossed the road, climbed the fence, and strolled across the paddocks. He knew that he had discovered a great site for a magnificent golf course and he immediately put the wheels in motion to form a syndicate with other golfing enthusiasts to buy ninety acres (36.42 hectares) of the Caleb May estate and forty acres (16.18 hectares) from John White Mellor at Lockleys. In 1950 a portion of the former May property was transferred to the Lockleys Primary School as a sports oval giving the May s homestead. Kooyonga takes shape 1900s. school a much needed facility. To help water the turf the head master Mr Pearce would ride his bicycle around the oval several times holding a hose! As we look westward along May Tce it is worth reflecting on the remarkable change that has taken place in a relatively short space of time. Newsletter of the West Torrens Historical Society Inc PO Box 43 Marleston SA 5033

2 A WORD FROM THE PRESIDENT About Time was the name given to South Australia s history festival which commenced on May 1st and continued until the end of the month. The West Torrens Historical Society mounted a fine exhibition in the Hamra Centre Auditorium for the first 20 days of the festival with the theme The Churches of West Torrens. This event was by far the most popular we have staged, with many visitors commenting on the wide range and diversity of photographs and memorabilia displayed. Over 150 photos depicted the various churches and their numerous activities covering the period from the 1850s to the current time. In response to requests throughout the district we received many new and interesting photos, all of which will be added to our files and eventually made available on the library website. Several of our members made extra efforts to research and collect items for the display and, in so doing, discovered aspects of our community life which will enrich our records. The amazing Trove website provided by the National Library in Canberra has been a great source of information by providing copies of newspapers going back to the earliest days of such publications as The Adelaide Advertiser and The Register. One such item to come to light was the accompanying sketch below of the proposed Underdale Baptist Church which was to have been built on Holbrooks Rd in Sketch of the proposed Underdale Baptist Church, Holbrooks Rd. The land had been given to the church by the architect Mr H. J. Cowell and the school hall on the right of the sketch was duly erected and opened in September The building was of wood and iron with a Wunderlich front and tiled roof. The hall entrance was on the southern side of the building facing a pedestrian laneway which ran from Holbrooks Rd to Fernleigh St. The church, with a frontage to Holbrooks Rd, was never built but instead the school hall was used for regular church worship until 1953 when it was removed to Crystal Ave St Marys. It has recently been demolished. The former Torrensville Methodist/Uniting Church in Hayward Ave celebrated the centenary of the unique pre-stressed concrete building on May 6th with a display of photos, many of which were provided by the West Torrens Historical Society. Over 80 folk attended this event, held at the Adelaide West Uniting Church, and later visited the old church to inspect the wonderful restoration by its current owners who have established, within its walls, a community meeting hall for the residents of the adjoining retirement village. It is anticipated that next May we will mount a display entitled West Torrens at Work with photos of local shops, businesses, industries and associated activities. We would encourage anyone with suitable photos and memorabilia to contact us so that we can make the next exhibition another huge success. JOHN ANDREWARTHA, President. Page 2

3 SHOPPING AT DYKE S. What memories are renewed when we view a photograph of some familiar location, often frequented in earlier days, but now lost due to that all too well-used term progress. One such iconic place was the drapery store of E. Dyke and Son which traded for many years at 58 Rowland Road, (now Sir Donald Bradman Drive) in Hilton on the corner of Washington St. Albert Ernest Dyke took over the business in 1930 from Mrs A E Doherty. (The E Dyke refers to Albert s mother Elizabeth who had a business in Hindley Street Adelaide). The original shop was a single room deep with a dwelling at the rear. One of our members, Joan Modra, recalls that she grew up in Cowandilla and during the 1930s and 40s this shop was regularly visited by her mother who was a good dressmaker. With a great range of dress materials, laces, ribbons and haberdashery it was a well patronised location. In those days we always had a Sunday best dress, so it was great to find something that appealed in their wide range of materials. Dyke s also had a good range of wools and as we knitted all our jumpers we spent much time selecting the wool we liked best. I remember knitting a dress in blue wool from Dyke s - they kept a bundle of the wool selected and we bought one or two skeins at a time, hence we were never left with wool over, or ran short of wool in the dye-lot used. We shopped at Dyke s during the War and as we had clothing coupons we were restricted in how much we could purchase. I remember my sister needed a white long dress for a special occasion and my mother bought white mosquito net to make it as it was exempt from coupons. Another member, Yvonne Jackson, has fond memories of shopping at Dyke s. They stocked women s, men s, children s and baby wear plus a large range of manchester, greeting cards, sewing needs and particularly wool. Wool was sold in skeins and had to be wound into balls at home. The business survived the depression and later the problems brought about by transactions involving coupons. They provided a button covering service, hemstitching, knitted bands and inserted button-holes on garments. This was done by a family who rented the dwelling at the rear of the shop - a Mr and Mrs Hannam, who also had a business on Henley Beach Rd. Work would be picked up late afternoon and delivered the next day. Albert Ernest Dyke and his wife Marion Olive (nee Francis) had four children. Two of the daughters, Gladys and Beth, worked in the shop. After A E Dyke retired his son Mervyn, with his wife Adelaide, took over the business and later grandson Bryan carried on until the shop finally closed in contributed by Joan Modra & Yvonne Jackson. Vale CHRIS. BRICE. It was with great sadness that we learnt of the sudden death of our esteemed Committee Member and inaugural editor of The West Torrens Historian on 29th March We will miss Chris with his expertise and wonderful researching skills as well as his cheerful, entertaining presence and input at our meetings. Our sincere condolences are extended to Robyn, Nathaniel, Sarah and Richard. Page 3

4 GREY STREET AND A MAN OF WEST TORRENS. A little-known West Torrensian who perhaps deserves more recognition is Alexander Poynton ( ). Poynton was born in Castlemaine, Victoria, in November After leaving school at 14 he worked as a shearer, miner and station hand. In 1887 he moved to Port Augusta, South Australia, where for several years he was branch secretary of the Amalgamated Shearers Union. Poynton won the South Australian House of Assembly seat of Flinders in 1893 and held it until Although not a member of the United Labor Party Poynton closely allied himself with the party and voted with it in divisions. In 1899 his decision to vote with four colleagues to bring down the Kingston government briefly alienated him from Labor. In 1901 he was elected to the inaugural House of Representatives as a candidate for the conservative Australasian National League. In 1902 however Poynton again allied himself to the Labor Party and won the seat of Grey in the federal election the following year (though he did not formally join the Labor Party until June 1904). He held the seat until his defeat in the December 1922 election. From 1903 Poynton was a partner in the Adelaide land agency Poynton and Claxton. A supporter of conscription, in 1916 Poynton left the Labor Party and joined W.M. Hughes s National Labor Party. He was treasurer for two months in the brief National Labor government (the only South Australian ever to hold that portfolio). Poynton then joined the new National Party government in February 1917 and served in several junior ministerial posts. He was acting Minister for the Navy ( ), Minister in charge of shipping ( ), assistant Minister for Repatriation (1919); Minister for Home and Territories ( ) and postmaster general ( ). Poynton was respected across party lines as being shrewd, hard-working and passionate. He was awarded the O.B.E in After leaving politics he retired from public life. Poynton died on 9 January 1935 at Toorak Gardens, Adelaide, and was buried in North Road cemetery. His wife, a son and four daughters survived him. And the West Torrens connection? While serving as a federal minister Poynton lived in what is now West Torrens: he and his family lived in their home Puntabie in Hounslow Avenue, New Mile End (now part of Torrensville) for about twelve years from (At the time the home was in the Thebarton council area - Thebarton became part of West Torrens after the merger of 1997). It should also be noted that in March 1922 Poynton created the small subdivision of Grey in New Mile End. Grey quickly merged into the suburb of Mile End although Grey Street, which it contained, remains. Geoff Grainger. Page 4

5 NOTABLE HOMES OF WEST TORRENS THE PINES NORTH PLYMPTON. This is the first of a series of articles on notable homes in West Torrens which will appear in subsequent issues of the West Torrens Historian. Because of its long and diverse history the story of The Pines will be dealt with in several stages. The fact that it was built on part of Section 107, Hundred of Adelaide is in itself of historical interest. The whole section comprising 80 acres (32.37 hectares), was first owned by Samuel Smart in Smart, a solicitor, was appointed as the first sheriff of the colony in May Prior to his appointment, several Van Diemen s Land convicts had escaped and were committing offences in South Australia. The apprehension of these convicts, and the fact that Smart knew them, were significant factors in the Government s decision to appoint a sheriff in the state. One of these convicts was Michael Magee who was found guilty of shooting at Samuel Smart after forcibly entering the sitting room of his home. He was tried on April 12th 1838, found guilty, and became the first person to be executed in the state. Smart sold the property and it passed through other owners until it was purchased in 1850 by Charles Simeon Hare who was on the first Council of the District of West Torrens. In 1872 the section was divided into two sections of 40 acres each and passed to several owners. In 1876 it was further subdivided with the section fronting the Public Road (now Marion Rd) again divided into 20 acre lots owned by Patrick O Rielly and William Mock. The northern lot was acquired from Frederick Byrne by John Martin, draper of Rundle Street, Adelaide in 1880 and in 1882 he had a house built (set back from the road) which he called The Pines. At this time the road became known as Martins Rd. The road and the entrance to the house were lit by gas lights, some of which were strung from trees on either side of the drive. Mr Dick Pascoe was the gas lighter and he went along the road each night by horse and buggy and lit the lamps with a taper. The Pines was a beautiful home consisting of a large drawing room, library, dining room, four bedrooms, bathroom, kitchen and kitchenette as well as the maid s quarters consisting of two bedrooms and another bathroom. There was a cellar down two flights of stairs and another room downstairs as well. A spiral staircase led to two rooms upstairs. The home was furnished with beautiful antique furniture. John Martin travelled throughout the district in an elegant horse driven phaeton. Martin and his wife Margaret nee Tucker, who was born in Walkerville, had five children, Ada, Claude, Royden and twins Leonard and Dudley. John Martin died on 25 th November 1889 aged 48 years when his wife was only 27 years of age and the twins only a year old. To be continued. John Martin s phaeton at The Pines. Page 5

6 Brooklyn Park Methodist Girls Comrades reunion Basketball players at Keswick Methodist Church 1950s. (Church and hall at rear). Page 6

7 Hall set up for Miss World 1980 competition at Torrensville Uniting Church, Hayward Avenue. Mile End Baptist - Victoria St. - Sunday tennis team Page 7

8 THE Extracts RICHMOND from the files BLOCKS of the West Torrens Historical THE Linfoot Society family settled on one of the Richmond Blocks in the BIRKALLA ROVERS SOCCER CLUB. The Birkalla Rovers Soccer Club was founded in March The club, which owed its formation particularly to the efforts of Mr Jim Taylor, was based at the Birkalla Polo Ground at Plympton until it transferred to the Camden Oval in But the Birkalla Rovers were almost called something else. The founders of the club wanted to name it as Plympton, but the name was vetoed by the Soccer Association because a defunct club of that name, the Plympton Juniors, still owed the association 2 10 s (a not insubstantial sum) - so the club became Birkalla. In the early days the team had no change rooms so the players would change on the back veranda of Joe Porra s betting shop on the opposite side of Anzac Highway. Birkalla amalgamated with the West Torrens soccer club (formed 1923) in 1979 to become West Torrens Birkalla. The club continues to be based at its Camden headquarters. Birkalla Rovers Soccer Club PENRHYN SHOPPING CENTRE. William Bernard laid out the township of Penrhyn (a name with origins in Cornwall), in With the development of housing to the west of Marion Rd the need for a local shopping facility arose, so in 1952 the Penrhyn Shopping Centre at 164 Marion Rd (between Passmore and Britton Streets) was opened with the added convenience of a drive through and customer parking area. This complex was rather revolutionary for its time making it possible to shop at the various stores while taking up the option of the service station s advertised drive-way attention and full lubrication service! The other tenants in the centre included Cecil C Poole - master hairdressers, - J. D. Curtis - greengrocer and fruit and F.H. & L.M. Prettejohn - grocer and West Richmond post office store. The central curved glass service station showroom was a highlight of the building which in more recent times has been replaced by a more conventional structure housing the Adelaide Collision Repair Centre. Penrhyn Shopping Centre, 164 Marion Road c1950s. Page 8

9 WILFORD WINERY On April 12 th 1853 John Daykin Holbrook purchased a block of land in Underdale abutting the River Torrens and adjoining a similar block purchased on the same day by Thomas Hardy. Both gentlemen intended to establish vineyards. Hardy called his property Bankside and Holbrook named his Wilford after his home village in Nottinghamshire England. The Holbrook family homestead stood on the eastern side of what was to become Holbrooks Rd, just south of the river crossing. The front of the homestead, portion of which was built of mud bricks, was covered with wisteria. Adjacent to this building were several out buildings, including the winery with cellars, a section of which still stands alongside the Linear Park walking track. Holbrook s Wilford winery homestead c 1930s. Special wine label for Adelaide Cup. WHEN MYERS OWNED AN OVAL. In an enlightened move, from 1949 the Myer Emporium (S.A.) Ltd. leased four hectares c. 10 acres later increased to eight hectares c. 20 acres of the Adelaide Polo Club s Birkalla Polo Ground at Plympton as the site for a staff sports ground. In 1959, noting the prospect of the profit that might be made by subdivision, and burdened by increasing rates, the Polo Club sold their ground. Two-thirds went to the Education Department as the site for the Plympton High School, and the rest to the Myer Company. Four years later, in the wake of a change in senior management interstate and the growing recreational distraction of television, Myer disposed of its Plympton land. Residential developer N.L. Stokes subdivided a portion, while the remainder went to the Education Department for use as the Plympton High School oval. Today residential subdivisions dominate much of the original polo ground site. Dame Merlyn Myer at the opening of the Myer Emporium Bowling Club rinks Page 9

10 A BIG DAY AT KESWICK & RICHMOND. A huge effort by the residents of Keswick and Richmond resulted in a spectacular carnival and procession to raise funds for the repatriation of the recently returned soldiers on Saturday December 6 th An energetic local committee representative of the West Torrens district busied themselves for weeks. They were rewarded by thousands of spectators lining the streets from North Terrace to the grounds near the Richmond railway station. The stirring strains of the Mitcham Army Camp Band led the parade with returned soldiers joining in the march. A troupe of ladies on horseback, a company of boy scouts, trade displays and decorated motor cars were also accorded places. Special trains leaving No.2 platform, North Terrace ran every half hour and Messrs. J Reid & Co. gave the committee the use of four of their largest buses which ran every 15 minutes Advertisement in The Mail newspaper Saturday 25 November from the G.P.O. News boys sold official programmes in the city streets on the morning of the event. Horses-in-action took place at the Carnival with more than 200 entries secured. The Premier, Hon. C Vaughan, opened the proceedings after having assisted in selling tickets at the gate! Amongst the stalls convened by Mrs. F. W. Ingerson were Paddy s Market, Bran Pie, Christmas Tree and Dodging Dora. Mr. Vernon S. Shepherd was the Honorary Secretary and the day culminated in an illuminated Grand Continental commencing at 8 pm. This highly successful function was the forerunner of several similar events to be held in Richmond in subsequent years. Crowds line the streets to watch the Grand Carnival at Richmond in Page 10

11 COMING EVENTS FOR YOUR DIARY WEST TORRENS HISTORICAL SOCIETY MONTHLY MEETINGS at Kandahar Commencing at 7:45pm Monday August 27th. General meeting. Discussion among members on the suburbs of Mile End and Mile End South. This will include viewing of a selection of our photographic collection relating to these suburbs. Monday September 24th. Special meeting. Speaker Christine Roark (nee Mellor) will speak on The Mellor s of Mellor Park). Please bring supper. Monday October 22nd. General meeting - DVD presentation of News Items featuring West Torrens from the ABC. Also programme suggestions for Monday November 26th. Christmas Meeting. Transport in West Torrens - an audio visual on the history of all modes of public transport within our district. John Andrewartha with Ron White. Please bring supper. No meeting in December. Website access to Local History through the West Torrens Library. The West Torrens Historical Society web-site is users.chariot.net.au/~wths/ THE West Torrens Historical Society is currently digitalising all its files in partnership with the West Torrens Hamra Centre Library. This is an ongoing project. Hundreds of WTHS files photographs, images, documents, transcribed interviews and newspaper articles are already accessible via the Hamra Centre Library s website. To help you access these files, follow these instructions: Go to the City of West Torrens website At the top of the Home Page click on Library and then in the drop-down box Library Web Catalogue. This will open the Home Page of the West Torrens Library Service. At the top of this page click on Collections. This will take you to a search page; click on Local History. This will open the search page for Local History; follow the search instructions. DISCLAIMER - COPYRIGHT Views and opinions expressed in articles in this newsletter do not necessarily reflect the views of the West Torrens Historical Society Inc. While every effort is made to ensure accuracy of the articles printed, responsibility is not accepted for any errors they may contain that are out of our control. If a work of copyright has been inadvertently included and the copyright holder prefers that the work not be made available, please contact the West Torrens Historical Society and the record will be removed from general access. PRIVACY ACT A Member s or Friend s personal information collected by the Society, e.g. name, address and telephone number, will only be used for the forwarding of the newsletter and relevant information concerning the Society. The information will not be shared, sold or given to a third party without the Member s or Friend s consent. Any s received will be treated as above, however any information sent by will be at the sender s risk and the Society will not be held responsible for any unintended use or disclosure of this information. SUBMISSIONS TO NEWSLETTER Submissions to the newsletter are welcome but their publication is at the discretion of the Newsletter Committee and can be given to Members or sent to PO Box 43 Marleston SA Page 11

12 Friends of the West Torrens Historical Society Inc. Application for Membership Please post to: The Secretary West Torrens Historical Society Inc. PO Box 43 Marleston SA 5033 MEMBERSHIP FEE: $15 I/we wish to become a (member/renew membership) of the Friends of the West Torrens Historical Society Inc. I enclose my membership for 2012/13. Name(s):.. Address:... Postcode:. Contact Details: My own interests are:.. Phone: Signature(s): Mobile: . Please make cheques payable to West Torrens Historical Society Inc. Membership is renewable in March each year. West Torrens Historical Society Contacts: Website users.chariot.net.au/~wths/ Secretary: (08) President: (08) s: grays67@bigpond.com aja@aka.net.au Correct as at August BOOKS NOW AVAILABLE: Gateway City $5; West Torrens Suburb Names $5; A Pictorial History of West Torrens $10. (postage extra) While limited stocks last! Page 12