Edward Hayes ~ 1856 - 1938
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The "Mimosa Glen" Family
Growing upEdward 'Ted' HAYES was born 19 May 1856 in Woodstock, Victoria to Mark Anthony Hayes and Sarah (nee Hendy). Edward and Sarah were farming in Woodstock near his brother Edward Bryan (Teddy) Hayes when Ted was born. At birth, Edward had a big sister, Mary Ann and two big brothers, George and William.
The family of six moved back to Tooborac in October 1857 where Mark & Maria had first settled back in 1851. Ted grew up in Tooborac where his dad, Mark, bought 213 acres at McIvor Creek. They set up camp by the creek on the property and began farming. Meanwhile Mark built a house on the property and called it "Leicester House". Mark used the property for sheep farming with some crops. In 1858, another brother, Mark arrived. He was followed by James the year later. When Edward was 5 years old, David was born to the family. Two years later, Joseph arrived in . Sadly Joseph drowned as a toddler. As a 10 year old, Edward would have been quite upset by losing his nearly 3 year old brother. Everyone thought someone else was watching young Joseph, yet no-one saw him fall into the water. The family must have been devastated. Just one month before Joseph's death, Maria had given birth to Alfred. When Edward was 12 years old, his final brother, Albert was born 1868. Thus Edward grew up on this sheep property working with his dad and seven brothers. Of these, Alfred was in some way disabled yet we can only suppose he helped the men on the land. Edward only had the one big sister, the first born Mary Ann. Edward was educated at the Common School which stood at the top of the hill at Norman Hayes’s. Whatever sort of scholar he was, he went on to become a competent business-like farmer. |
BullockyEdward's father gave each son property to help them establish themselves. On the 12 March 1877, Edward made his first selection of land - Lot 17 of 7 in the Parish of Tooborac containing 175 acres 3 roods 14 perches. His father Mark paid £2 application fee that day and then on the 4 June that year, Mark paid £6-1-0 on the selection.
Edward's brothers had already moved on. George had moved onto his own land in Mangalore 7 years previously and William had gone to Emu Flat a couple of years before this. Edward now had his own property. Back in March, his father had bought 6 bullocks for £50 and then on 18th October he bought wood for yokes for 1s 9p followed by a purchase on 5th September of bullock chains. Edward now had the facilities to start to earn for himself, set up by his father. Jack Hayes wrote that his father, Edward, drove the bullock team for many years to and from Melbourne. I wonder what he hauled? Probably wool bales, sheep and rabbit hides. While his stock grew fat, one assumes he was free to spend time hauling. I wonder if they used the trains when they arrived in 1888 -- the trains were mainly for timber, so I'm not sure if sheep or wool or rabbit fur would have been accepted. Edward's block Lot 17 of 7 is probably the land later known as the "Hill Paddock". He built himself a hut on this block while he cleared it. |
Wikipedia tells us that: "Bullocks were less excitable and more dependable when faced with difficulties than horses. Furthermore, bullocks were cheaper to purchase, equip and feed. Horses also required complex, expensive leather harness that frequently needed repair. Bullock gear was simple and the yokes were sometimes made by the bullocky from different kinds of timber.
A bullocky walked on the nearside (left) of the bullocks for added control of the team and also because seating was not usually provided on the wagons and jinkers. The bullocky called each bullock by name to adjust its pace and effort. If the whip was needed it was flicked out in front of the bullock driver; then by the use of all his strength he swung it over his head, often twirling it several times before he cracked it or let fall upon the back of a bullock he might wish to reach." |
Sarah Hendy
Sarah was born in Down Street in Collingwood, 16 Dec 1862 to William Hocking Hendy and Mary (nee Stitchell). William had come from "Tregominion Farm", The Lizard, Cornwall in England while Mary had been born in London. William's parents were Thomas Shepherd Hendy and Sarah Hocking both of Cornwall. Mary's parents were John Stitchell and Sarah Ellis both of London.
William Hocking Hendy sailed on his own on the "Fairlie" from Plymouth for Melbourne in 1856 when he was 23 years old in search of gold. He was listed on the ships records as a Mason who could read and write. Mary Stitchell left Southampton on her own and arrived in Geelong in 1854 when she was 23 years old. She was listed as a Domestic Servant who could read and write and was coming to be employed ('engaged') to Mr Robert Dent of Yarra Street, Geelong. They were both listed as Church of England. We would love to know how they met here in Australia. William and Mary married in October 1855 in Collingwood. Sarah was their fourth child and their only daughter. Sarah was born to a family of three big Hendy brothers, John Stitchell (1856), William Thomas (1858) and Frederick Edward (1860). |
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Wedding BellsAt some point in Sarah's childhood, William moved his family to the Tooborac area where Sarah met Edward Hayes before 1881.
Edward and Sarah were married 13 January 1881 at the North Tooborac Wesleyan Church. On their wedding day, Edward was 24 and Sarah was 18. (Does any one know of a wedding photo?) Since his first land selection at age 21, Edward at some point selected Sections 14, 15 & 16 in Toorborac as well as purchasing land from the Fitzgerald's. Thus Edward and Sarah built their first home on Section 16 and lived there in Tooborac for 27 years from 1881 until 1908 (apparently, there is a photo of the house). Over the years, they added rooms and outbuildings. |
Sarah's Father, William re-marriedSarah had married Edward two years before her father re-married. When Sarah's mother Mary died in 1882, her father William, remarried at age 52 years. His new bride, Rosa Roberts was 21 years old and they went on to have three children of their own: Isabel Francis, William Frank and Eric Charles Edgar. This gave Sarah her first sister (half-sister) but too late as a sister-companion, as Sarah was 21 years old when her little sister Isabel was born. After Edward died, Rosa went on to re-marry two more times. Firstly to Walter Albert Yemm in 1899 to whom she had one child, Stanley Cecil Yemm (1900). Finally, Rosa married John Moore in 1908.
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A house full of childrenEdward and Sarah had all 9 children born at home. They were all delivered by the local midwife, Granny (Frederika) Haack. Mary Jane was their first in 1881. No-one recalls her being called Mary Jane as she was quickly dubbed "Tottie". Mark was born in 1884 and Edward (Eddie) followed in 1886. In January 1889, Edward's mother Maria died. Their next three children were daughters, Evelyn 1889, Dora Estelle 1891 and Winifred 1893. In September 1893, Edward's father Mark died only a couple of months short of Winifred's birth in December. John Stitchell, known always as Jack, was born in 1896 but sadly little 3 year old Winifred died on his first birthday from "sunstroke" (possibly for want of a better explanation). In March 1898, Edward and Sarah fostered a 15 year old girl, Grace Eveline Bone. Grace must have been a big help to Sarah and stayed with them for just over 2 years. This was at a time when Mary Jane 'Tottie' was boarding with her mother's cousin in the city. The last son, Leslie was born in April 1898 and the last daughter, Violet Bernice was born at the turn of the century in 1900. Grace left a year after Violet was born. We presume that 'Tottie' had returned by this time to become the seamstress for her family.
Grace Bone appears to have been sent to 5 families from the time she was five until living with the Hayes and a further 4 families after she left Tooborac. This information was found at http://users.ncable.net.au/~jburrell/gen/causon/bon_cau.html |
ChurchEdward’s father, Mark had been instrumental in establishing the Tooborac Wesleyan Methodist Church. This meant that young Edward had enjoyed attending its dynamic Sunday School as he grew up. As a father, he continued the family involvement for all his children. Many of his children grew up to participate by teaching Sunday School themselves. Evelyn especially actively taught for many years.
Edward was a trustee of the Heathcote Methodist Church and attended the quarterly meetings of the church for 30 or 40 years. |
Heathcote Agricultural SocietyIn the early 1890's, Edward followed his father Mark onto the Committee of the Heathcote Agricultural, Pastoral and Horticultural Society. Edward (Ted) was member of this committee from 1890 until 1927, some 37 years. He served as President both in 1898 and 1915. Ted received a presentation of a rug and cap on retirement to Melbourne, where he continued to act as a collector for the society.
In fact several Hayes family members served as President over the years, including his son Jack in 1934. See the booklet - "The First Centenary: A History of the Heathcote Agricultural, Pastoral and Horticultural Society." |
Candidate for Eastern Riding
Thursday 10 August 1905
Public Notices SHIRE ELECTION. TO THE RATEPAYERS OF THE EASTERN RIDING: LADIES and GENTLEMEN, I beg to acknowledge receipt of a numerously signed requisition asking me to become a Candidate at the coming election for the Eastern Riding, I must say the requisition came to me as a complete surprise and beg to tender my sincere thanks to all who promised their support, but must decline the offer on this occasion. Yours respectfully, EDWARD HAYES
Public Notices SHIRE ELECTION. TO THE RATEPAYERS OF THE EASTERN RIDING: LADIES and GENTLEMEN, I beg to acknowledge receipt of a numerously signed requisition asking me to become a Candidate at the coming election for the Eastern Riding, I must say the requisition came to me as a complete surprise and beg to tender my sincere thanks to all who promised their support, but must decline the offer on this occasion. Yours respectfully, EDWARD HAYES
Justice of the PeaceAs well as being active on most local public committees, Edward was a Justice of the Peace. The McIvor Times recorded his name where he served beside a Judge of certain local matters. We have, in particular, the records of three of these cases involving farmers who failed to actively clear their land of rabbits. Reading these gives a greater insight into the struggle all these farmers faced with the prolific rabbit population. See the Rabbit Cases to the RIGHT -----
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Police Court
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A. E. Cox v A. McMaster, charged with failing to destroy rabbits as required by the Vermin Act. Mr Chas. Neal appeared for the prosecution, and there was no appearance of defendant.
A. E. Cox, sworn, deposed he was the rabbit inspector for the Heathcote district. He visited the defendant's property on the 15th August, and later served the second notice by registered letter. Prior to that he interviewed the defendant on the ground, when be (the defendant) was going on with the work. Asked him who owned the land and he said he did. He again inspected the property after serving notice on October 15. When the first inspection was made the rabbits were very bad and the burrows practically untouched. When he made the final inspection portion of the burrows were dug, but the rest had not been touched. To the P.M.-The burrows were too numerous to count. Corroborative evidence was given by Inspector W. Marshall. In finding McMaster £10, with £1 11s costs, the P.M. remarked the case was a very bad one. Same v John Roy, a similar charge of failing to destroy rabbits. The defendant did not appear. Inspector Cox said the property was first inspected on the 15th August. The block contained 247 acres, and was in the Eastern Riding of the McIvor Shire. He found the destruction of the rabbits had been very much neglected. He interviewed the defend- ant before the inspection, when he told him he would have to destroy the rabbits. Roy said he could not obtain men, and had since made no effort to destroy the rabbits. He then told Roy he was going to take action against him. When he made the final inspection on 16th October nothing had been done, and the rabbits were very bad. He counted up to 170 rabbits in about ten minutes. He did not count the burrows as they were too numerous, and the rabbits were running under the rocks in dozens. He had put one man on since. |
Evidence in support of the prosecution was also given by Inspector Marshall.
The P.M., in imposing a fine of £5, with £1 11s costs, remarked that defendant persons should attend the court as probably they could give some evidence in their own favor. Same v John H. Duncan. Chargedwith failing to destroy rabbits after due niotice had been given. The defendant pleaded not guilty; Inspector Cox gave evidence as to having visited the defendant's property on the 15th August. Duncan had 600 acres of land in the south-western riding of the McIvor Shire. He complained to defendant about the prevalence of rabbits and threatened action if the act was not complied with. Duncan said he was working on the property and thought the work done would be satisfactory. When he inspected the property again he found the rabbits still very bad. Then made his final inspection on the 16th and 17thOctober in company with Inspector Marshall, when be found the burrows very bad, only a few being dug out, while others had only been filled in. The rabbits were so thick that it was Impossible to count them. Corroborative evidence was given by Inspector Marshall. In a statement to the Bench Duncan said he worked on the rabbits for ten months of the year, and caught all he could with dogs and traps. He used to live on the property, but did not live there now. The P.M. to Duncan--You should realise the great harm you are doing your neighbors and yourself by failing to clear your property of rabbits. The story you have told of your attempt to exterminate the rabbits is a deal of nonsense, and you, with others, too, will have to realise that you are doing wrong to adjoining landholders, and the practice would have to cease. You are fined £8 with £1 1s costs. A similar charge was preferred against Joseph A. Duncan, who-pleaded guilty. Evidence in support of the prosecution was given by Inspectors Cox and Marshall. Duncan was fined £8 with £1 11scosts. |
New home - Mimosa Glen VillaWith the nest so full, the family had outgrown the house at Section 16 in Tooborac where they had lived for 27 years. The children were all well grown when Edward built his beautiful "Mimosa Glen" in 1908.
Why "Mimosa"? All wattles belong to the genus Acacia, in the Mimosa family. So the name was quite general for the many wattles on the property. Edward sold the wattles collected to the tanning industry for tanning fur skins such as rabbit, fox, kangaroo. So in 1908, with his architect-drawn plans, the new family home was built.
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Mimosa Glen was a sheep farm. The sheep were run for both wool and meat. Every spring the fat lambs were shorn and then sold off for lamb chops.
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As the nest begins to empty ...
The beginning of this next phase for this family is the first wedding. In 1909, Eddie married Ada Millicent (Millie) Green in the April at the Mission Hall in Baynton near Millie's home, then in the August Tottie married Thomas Davies at her family home, Mimosa Glen. Mark married Anne Stewart (Nancy) Chapman in the April of 1911 at Yarrawonga. For the next 10 years there was a family of 3 daughters and 2 sons living at home in Mimosa Glen, except for Jack's time in the armed services in WW1, some travels and time spent away at school in Melbourne for Violet (?). The youngest, Violet, married Les Bragge in 1921 and a couple of years later in 1923, Jack married Alice Carkeek. Only four months later in early 1924, Dora married Jack Nairn.
This left Les alone to help his dad run the property and Evelyn to help mum for the next four years. Les married Grace Hill, in 1928 in Thornbury. Les brought Grace home to live at Mimosa Glen.
This left Les alone to help his dad run the property and Evelyn to help mum for the next four years. Les married Grace Hill, in 1928 in Thornbury. Les brought Grace home to live at Mimosa Glen.
Retirement
After 20 years of calling Mimosa Glen home, Edward and Sarah moved to 39 Cochrane Ave in Camberwell for their retirement in 1928. Their son Les and his new bride were now in charge of Mimosa Glen. Evelyn moved with her parents to Camberwell and never married.
Edward's Will included a Fiddleback Walking Stick legacy for his eldest son Mark, a seemingly ‘poor’ inheritance. However, the boys had received their inheritance via properties during Edward’s lifetime. Support toward their own properties was given to the boys at their marriages. As Evelyn didn't marry, she inherited Cochrane Ave on Sarah’s death. The Will simply included token gifts like walking sticks, Bibles, wearing apparel and pictures. On Sarah's death, again, further family treasures were bequeathed to the children.
Edward's Will included a Fiddleback Walking Stick legacy for his eldest son Mark, a seemingly ‘poor’ inheritance. However, the boys had received their inheritance via properties during Edward’s lifetime. Support toward their own properties was given to the boys at their marriages. As Evelyn didn't marry, she inherited Cochrane Ave on Sarah’s death. The Will simply included token gifts like walking sticks, Bibles, wearing apparel and pictures. On Sarah's death, again, further family treasures were bequeathed to the children.
Grandchildren recall ...
Lorna Davies recalls: My mother Mary 'Tottie', first child of Edward and Sarah Hayes, was not content working at 'Mimosa Glen' and at the age of 16 years her parents boarded her with cousins Polly and Eliza Jacka and Sarah and Hubert Kemp of Wellington Street, Clifton Hill, the Toorak of Melbourne in those days. She learnt needle craft, oil painting, and piano. She later returned home to 'Mimosa Glen' as dressmaker for 8 children. At some later stage she went to live and work at cousin Alfred Gadd's General Store in Nagambie as dressmaker. It was there that my mother Mary Hayes met my father, Thomas Davies, after his first wife Sissy (a tiny delicate person) died.
Ted Bragge recalls: When he was a student, perhaps at high school, he would go to stay at Mimosa Glen with Grandpa & Grandma & Evelyn. He recalls helping on the farm and travelling in the horse and buggy to church on Sunday with Grandpa & Grandma in front with he and Evelyn in the back. He also recalls going to stay at “Glenora”, over the road from his grandparents at Mimosa Glen in Tooborac. When Grandpa handed the property on to his Uncle Jack and Auntie Alice, they made him most welcome for two summers as a child. His mother Violet was most unwell and sending Ted away for the summer school holidays was helpful to her and a delight for Ted.
Ruth's story:
Ruth recalls how her Grandma Sarah sometimes gave dolls to Ruth and her sister Muriel. Some of them were cupee dolls that had been bought at Agricultural shows. The other much cherished gifts were books. Ruth still has several of these gifts.
Ted Bragge recalls: When he was a student, perhaps at high school, he would go to stay at Mimosa Glen with Grandpa & Grandma & Evelyn. He recalls helping on the farm and travelling in the horse and buggy to church on Sunday with Grandpa & Grandma in front with he and Evelyn in the back. He also recalls going to stay at “Glenora”, over the road from his grandparents at Mimosa Glen in Tooborac. When Grandpa handed the property on to his Uncle Jack and Auntie Alice, they made him most welcome for two summers as a child. His mother Violet was most unwell and sending Ted away for the summer school holidays was helpful to her and a delight for Ted.
Ruth's story:
Ruth recalls how her Grandma Sarah sometimes gave dolls to Ruth and her sister Muriel. Some of them were cupee dolls that had been bought at Agricultural shows. The other much cherished gifts were books. Ruth still has several of these gifts.
Edward & Sarah's Family Bible Registery
Heathcote CemeteryEdward died 24 May 1938 in Camberwell, Victoria when he was 82 years old and was buried in Heathcote Cemetery. Sarah lived six more years on her own and died 6 Jan 1944 in Camberwell at 81 years and was also buried in Heathcote Cemetery. Interesting that the gravestones say they were each a year older than our calculations from their birth dates. The family Bible registry above says they were both 82 years at death.
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