Around the District

The Widow of Wappan
This story, of Anne Fraser Bon and her 80 yea association with Aboriginal people in Victoria has been the subject of folklore and numerous chapters in local history books. What was not written, is the extent to which Mrs Bon championed the rights of Aboriginal people, leading to a grand gesture before her death in 1936.

This is the story of Mrs Anne Fraser Bon and her relationship with William Barak, ngurungaeta or head man of the Wurundjeri people. It is also the story of the hidden history of the Mansfield district, the fate of the Yeerunillum (Broken River) people, part of the nine clans which made up the Taungurung tribe.
The story is firmly based on historical acts and letters.

Pages 12 = A4 Printed & Stapled

Tolmie... The First 100 Years complied and published by The Tolmie Sports Committee. No date but likely 1980s.

In the early days the area was known as Wombat but later when the name was changed to Tolmie it was supposed that it was named for Ewen Tolmie. If that is the case we have included a short resume about him.
Ewen Tolmie was born in Scotland and migrated to Australia in 1838 where he landed in Sydney; he is purported to have travelled overland arriving in Melbourne in 1840. He held licences to the Bird-In-Hand and also the Robert Burns in Melbourne.
• In 1854 Ewen Tolmie took his family back to Scotland to be educated. He returned briefly to Australia in 1857 but finally returned in 1859 having completed the children's education.
Ewen Tolmie acquired 'Dueran' and 'Hollands Creek' properties as repayment of an overdue debt, in December 1880 but he stayed on part of it and died there on February 9, 1883.
During the time of his residence he did some gold mining in the area and for this purpose he registered 'Tolmies Quartz Tunnelling Co." He is also credited with a cure for scab in sheep.

100 pages A5 soft copy
210mm x 145mm x 5mm

The Mansfield Historical Society’s Family History Book Volume 3 records the authentic narratives of the following local families: Perrin, Amor, Bostock, Buckland, Calvert, Davies – Merrijig, Davies – Storekeepers, Redfern, Ross, Smith, Greenway, Stilborn, Handford, Highett, Klingsporn, Lakin, Lovick, Maud, and McCaskill.

155 pages soft cover
300mm x 210mm x 10mm

The Mansfield Historical Society’s Family History Book Volume 2 records the authentic narratives of the following local families: Peachey, Parsons, Pollard, Adams, Murphy, Bullock, Neely, Purcell, Ritchie, Gough, Green, Hearn, Hermiston, Hill, and Howie.

146 pages soft cover
300mm x 210mm x 10mm

The Mansfield Historical Society’s Family History Book Volume 1 records the authentic narratives of the following local families: Arbuthnot, Close, Comerford, Crockett, Cummins, Dundas, Reardon, McMaster, McCormack, Mcintosh, McMillan, O’Halloran, Powell, Friday, Gear, Gilmore, Shanks, Stewart, Griffiths, Stoney, Tehan, Thompson, Todd, Walsh, and Mahoney and histories of the following Properties: Changue, Merrijig, Maindample Park, Targai, The Circle, and Tonga.

194 pages soft cover
300mm x 210mm x 11mm

Memories from the sawmills of the Delatite Valley

"Tales from the High Country" is perhaps not a "history" at all.
Rather it is a collection of stories voluntarily told and memories shared. Taped orally, it is the personal narratives by people whose connections to, and love of this place called Sawmill Settlement are strong and passionate. They depict the next wave of pioneers - the sawmilling families (sadly too few left to include many stories) and those who bought land and built homes in the Settlement once it became available.

Pages 124 = A5 Printed & Bound
245mm x 190mm x 10mm

SAWMILLING IN THE MANSFIELD DISTRICT
Sawmilling has long been a part of Mansfield's way of life. The sawmilling industry has boosted Mansfield's economy, providing many valuable jobs.
This, however, was not always the case. Once the timber around the Mirimbah area was thought useless, and farmers were compelled by law to ringbark trees on their land, with the object in view of clearing the whole of the area for agricultural purposes. Thus, the Australian Government unwittingly threw away a substantial amount of money in the form of timber. After this error was corrected, a prosperous timber industry grew.

With the timber industry once being of such importance in the Mansfield area, we have decided to once again record a selection of stories and histories of the industry, by former sawmillers and their families.
The only changes made to the original have been made for the purpose of updating the material. Spelling of "Mirimbah Mirrimbah" has been left as it appeared in the original stories.
We hope that you enjoy reading this valuable collection of material.

35 pages = A4 Printed & Bound

Colourful Characters of The Victorian High Country.

Of Pioneers & Perseverance is the fifth in a series of six books exploring the fascinating lives of many of the colourful characters who have once called the Victorian High Country "home."
Their stories are told mostly through the recollections and writings of the older mountain people who knew knew of, the various characters in one way or another.
This material has been collected and the interviews recorded over a period of nearly 30 years. Hairy-Chested History tells the stories of the snow-country pioneers of the Hotham and Harrietville area, From Fraser's to Freezeout explores the pioneers of the Dargo High Plains, From Drover's to Daisy-Pickers focuses on the colourful characters of the Bogong High Plains, and Weatherbeaten Wisdom draws on characters from all over the rest of the high country. This fifth book concentrates on a whole range of mountain pioneers whose stories all have one thing in common - they each demonstrate a remarkable and often almost unbelievable capacity for endless, dogged perseverance.

306 pages hard cover
250mm x 185mm x 27mm

300mm x 210mm

MAINDAMPLE DISTRICT
The early Days ..
... beginning in the 1860's
This history book has been put together to assist in raising funds for the Maindample progress Association and the Maindample Rural Fire Brigade.
Contents
Heritage
Maindample Railway
Maindample and Glen Creek School
Neighboring Glen Creek
1903 Electoral Roll
Mining - Maindample and Glen Creek
Maindample Fire Brigade
Maindample Race Club
Clancy
The Paps
The Kelly Story - Maindample's association

Most of the information for this publication came from the early Mansfield Newspapers including Mansfield Independent 1869-1872, The Mansfield Guardian 1872-1885 and the Mansfield Courier from 1885 onwards.
All Parish Maps Copyright © Crown ( State of Victoria)
All rights reserved. Land Victoria.
1903 Electoral Roll Australian Electoral Commission
Front Cover photograph "The Paps" a well known landmark in the Maindample District.

101 Pages
210mm x 297mm x 7mm

A compilation of personal stories of the families of Tolmie and surrounding communities since 1879 to present and the historic of the township over those years.

Respected businessman, Ewen Tolmie and his second wife Colina, took up pastoral leases of Dueran and Holland Creek when he returned to Australia from his homeland in Scotland in 1859.
Ewen Tolmie became a very well regarded farmer and community member in the Wombat and Mansfield region until his death in 1883. During these years, the so-called bushranger element had become an increasing problem in the Wombat Ranges, culminating in the shooting of three policemen at Stringybark Creek by the Kelly Gang in 1878. In order to rid the area of the bushrangers, the government of the time opened up the ranges for selection. Only those who passed a strict examination were granted land. The rich, deep, volcanic soil was suitable for growing a range of crops despite the cold climate and the abundance of rainfall proved attractive to many, particularly those from the dry western districts and the Mallee. Parcels of land selected were typically 320 acres. Ewen Tolmie himself took up some of the selections. So by the early 1880s the township of Wombat had been established in the heart of the Wombat Ranges.

152 pages A4 soft copy
300mmx 21mm x 13mm

This book does not purport to be a history of Bonnie Doon and District; the time and sources available made it impossible to tackle such a task. What has been attempted rather is to present the interested reader with an overview of the most significant historical aspects of our area.
Some of the items deal with eras long since over, others concern single significant events and people which have had lasting effects on the District, still others trace the history of various bodies which have become local institutions.

Pages 94 = A5 Printed & Bound
210mm x 145mm x 7mm

A journey back in time including past tales of Dry Creek, Tallangallook, Barjarg, Tolmie, Toombullup.

Dedicated to my Ancestors and the Early Settlers
'Sharing Their Dreams and Disappointments'
My Ambitious Project.
For a number of years I have been endeavouring to pick up threads of the past in an attempt to preserve a small patch of history.
During this period I became aware of the strong connection between the Wombat Ranges and portion of the Strathbogie Ranges therefore I ventured to weave them together.
Hopefully the resulting publication will help to convey an insight into the past.
To my friend, Pat, "Thanks for the encouragement".
© Copyright Sheila Hutchinson
"Homeleigh" Maindample 1999

159 pages A4 soft cover
300mm x 210mm x 10mm

The history of the Mansfield District is as old as Australia itself going back many thousands of years.
However for obvious reasons documented records do not go beyond the late 1830's with the coming of the first European settlers to the area. From then until 1864 our information has largely come from the private letters of settlers to relatives or associates in Mel-bourne, Sydney or the U.K.
From 1864 however, with the establishment of a local newspaper, we have a contmous record of life in the district as it evolved on a day to day basis in response to the world-wide political, scientific and commercial influences.
The Mansfield Historical Society undertook a mammoth task to recognise Australia's bicentennial year. Society members, working in pairs, researched the district's history through the files of the Mansfield Courier.
Each team looked at a period of 10 years, and extracted the important news items from about 500 issues of the Courier.
From their research the content of these pages has been extracted.

28 pages = A5 Printed & Stapled
146mm x 212mm x 4mm

"The person or persons responsible for the bestowal of the name 'Merrijig' on that prettily situated locality must surely have possessed the gift of peeping into the future, with, perhaps, visions of merry gatherings in the schoolhouse, for, assuredly, no better or more appropriate name could have been chosen. "Merrijig! Why, the word itself is symbolic of the people." (The Mansfield Courier March 1920).
This statement by the reporter for the Courier encapsulates the unique quality of character that Merrijig and its community have - always it would seem - had to offer.
It was not the sight of a snow-capped Mt. Buller, which drew the original Merrijigers to the locality, it was the simple desire to own some land and they were lucky enough to be sent to Merriig. Although the scenery is magnificent and there is little to challenge it in the world, it is the community, which gives the area its depth, its third dimension - its very soul.
Between these covers you will experience the weave of life, the blend of families, the struggles and the achievements of people who lived here before us. And what a wonderful fabric they have woven for the benefit of all. For those of us who are fortunate enough to live here now, we will hopefully want to continue weaving along a similar pattern showing courage, consideration, generosity and general community support for all that happens in this, our unique 'enchanted valley'.
Adele McCormack
Pages 214 = Printed & Bound
260mm x 180.5mm x 100mm