Gundagai Album - National Library of Australia

156 Pages·2009·13.88 MB·English

by  Peter Quatermaine

GUNDAGAI ALBUM
Gundagai Album
Gundagai Album
Early Photographs of
an Australian Country Town
Edited with an introduction
by Peter Quartermaine
National Library of Australia
Canberra 1976
Quartermaine, Peter, ed.
Gundagai album: early photographs of an
Australian country town/edited by Peter
Quartermaine.—Canberra: National Library
of Australia, 1976.
Bibliography.
ISBN 0 642 99058 1.
1. Gundagai, New South Wales—History—
Pictorial works. 2. Gundagai, New South
Wales—Social conditions—Pictorial
works. I. Title.
994.48
First published in 1976
by the National Library of Australia
© National Library of Australia 1976
The illustration on the case is a
photographic print made by the
Photographic Unit of the National
Library from a copy negative of
Plate 87.
Design: John Reid
Printed and bound in Australia by
John Sands Pty Ltd (Halstead Press Division)
Preface
In 1971 the National Library of Aus­ named Packer and Dr Gabriel. As will everyday life. The material is no less
tralia was presented with two remark­ be seen from the plates in this book— interesting in terms of photography,
able collections of photographs of which are representative of the whole partly because it stands as such an
Gundagai, an old-established town on body of work except for two or three early and such a substantial body of
the Murrumbidgee River in New South clinical photographs—the Butcher work by an amateur: a father figure,
Wales. The photographs, dating ap­ and Bell Collection negatives have an one might say, to countless Australian
parently from the 1890s and early overlapping range of interest and sub­ amateurs of later days.
1900s, were the gifts of two Gundagai jects, and seem as if they might once In 1973, fifty-six of the photographs
residents, Mr A. C. Butcher and Mr have comprised a single collection of were published in the National
O. I. Bell, B.E.M., who had separately material that became divided. Prob­ Library's engagement calendar for
come into possession of roughly equal ably it will never be possible to iden­ 1974, Gundagai Days. This aroused
numbers of negatives. With some tify any of the negatives as being much interest, which encouraged the
later additions, the A. C. Butcher without doubt the work of one photo­ Library to plan the publication in a
Collection and the O. I. Bell Collection grapher or another; but within the more permanent and serious form of a
in 1975 totalled 898 negatives, all National Library the negatives have wider selection of the material. In 1974
on 5" x 4" glass plates. come to be spoken of collectively as Peter Quartermaine, lecturer in Aus­
The Butcher Collection was found the 'Gabriel photographs', and rightly tralian Arts and Letters, University
in the mid-1950s following the pur­ or mistakenly it is to C. L. Gabriel that of Exeter, was invited by the Library
chase of premises in Sheridan Street, they are mainly attributed. to edit a selection of the material.
Gundagai, that had formerly belonged The glass negatives were printed He was then at the Australian
to Mr Samuel Young. Among some over a period of months, in the inter­ National University, Canberra, as an
abandoned effects in the buildings was vals of other work, in the Photo­ honorary visiting fellow engaged
the medical library of C. L. Gabriel graphic Unit of the Library, under the in research into early Australian
(1857-1927), who had practised medi­ supervision of David Reid. This was a photography. His introduction and the
cine in Gundagai from about 1889 slow process, because many of the plates follow.
until his death. Together with the books negatives had deteriorated to the At the end of the book are some notes
were several boxes of glass point at which their emulsion was lift­ on the content of the plates
negatives; from their subject matter, ing, and many had such a wide range contributed by present and former
and from Dr Gabriel's known interest of contrast that it was difficult to cap­ residents of Gundagai, and
in photography, of which there is liv­ ture every detail of the original image. offered for the interest of some
ing memory, these negatives are pre­ Reproduction negatives of uniform readers, without claiming that every
sumed to have been his work. contrast were made of the Library's detail which memory has recalled is
Mr Butcher printed a few of the set of master prints as they were infallible.
negatives and included them in 1956 completed, so that the material can
in a book on the history of Gundagai; now, it is hoped, be preserved and G. Chandler Director-General
in 1971 he generously presented the duplicated indefinitely.
collection to the National Library. A As the printing went on, it became
few months later Mr Bell, president of clear what a fine resource of visual
the Gundagai and District Historical history the National Library had been
Society, offered the National Library a given, interesting for its intimate por­
similar collection of negatives, which trayal of a country town at the turn of
in his belief were the work of several the century, and for the wealth of in­
photographers: C. E. Weston, W. J. formation it revealed about costumes,
Bell (his father), a schoolteacher interiors and countless other details of
v
Editor's acknowledgments
The purpose of this book is to make and to my former professor, Moelwyn
available a selection of prints from the Merchant, who encouraged Australian
A. C. Butcher and O. I. Bell collec­ arts and letters to flourish in Devon.
tions of Gundagai photographs held Finally I am grateful to the English
by the National Library of Australia, in Department at the Australian National
a form which allows an appreciation University for hosting me as an honor­
of the nature of the original material. ary visiting fellow during my stay, and
It is hoped that it will interest the to Professor Bernard Smith for awak­
general public while encouraging the ening and encouraging my interest
recognition of Australian photography in the Australian visual arts.
as an important part of the nation's
cultural heritage. Peter Quartermaine
I had the unexpected opportunity to Exeter
discuss the collection with John May 1975
Szarkowski, Curator of Photography
at the New York Museum of Modern
Art, when he visited Australia in May
1974 under the auspices of the Aus­
tralian Centre for Photography, and
recall with appreciation his interest
and advice. Dr Ralph Gabriel and his
wife kindly provided invaluable infor­
mation on the history of the Gabriel
family. Mr Cliff Butcher, his daughter
Elizabeth, Mr Carl Weekes, Miss Hilda
Morley, Mrs Minna Potts and Mr J. W.
Robinson all contributed identifica­
tions and reminiscences of Gundagai.
The staff at both the National Library
of Australia and the Mitchell Library,
Sydney, were unfailingly helpful in the
course of my researches.
My stay in Australia was made pos­
sible by travel grants from the British
Council and the Literature Board of
the Australia Council. I am properly
grateful for the opportunities their
support gave me. Without the
generosity of Geoffrey and Beth
Barnes and of David Malouf, I could
not have undertaken this book. I also
owe a special debt to Brian Matthews,
who made it possible for me even to
think of going to Australia for a year,
vi
Contents
v Preface
vi Editor's acknowledgments
viii List of plates
ix Editor's introduction
The plates
Notes on the plates
Select bibliography
vii
List of plates
xi Dr Charles Louis Gabriel
xii Dr Gabriel's familiar hats in
the hall beyond his surgery
1 View of Dr Gabriel's house
2 View from Dr Gabriel's
house
3-8 Interiors of Gundagai houses
9-12 The old hospital in Otway
Street
13-24 At the new hospital
25-6 Collecting for the new
hospital
27-46 Scenes of Gundagai
47-9 The 1900 flood
50-7 Railway scenes
58-69 Showgrounds, racecourse
and goldfields
70-5 The Boer War and political
activity
76-9 The Dunlop Reliability Trial,
1905
80-107 Portraits of Gundagai
residents
108-18 Gundagai pastimes
viii
Introduction
The town of Gundagai street in the original town, now be­
Gundagai, on the banks of the Mur- came the main street and remains so
rumbidgee River, is a town where a today in the northern township, form­
traveller can break his journey along ing part of the Hume Highway.
the Hume Highway between Sydney In 1858 the original hospital was
and Melbourne. Since the early days opened in Otway Street, and forty
it has been a stopping place: for years later was still described in The
diggers on their way to the goldfields, Australian Handbook as 'a fine com­
for teamsters bringing wool from the modious structure', even though Dr
Riverina stations, for itinerant bush Gabriel criticised it in 1889 as 'faulty'
workers in search of a job, a meal, or in design and construction and 'ill
a town in which to spend their suited' to the requirements of a
cheques. Two groups of Aborigines, modern hospital. In 1885 the popula­
from the Lachlan and Murrumbidgee tion of the town was over a thousand
tribes, assembled periodically by the and the Literary Institute was recorded
river but by 1900 most of them had as holding six hundred and fifty
settled on the Brungle mission, and volumes.
came into town only for the annual In the 1850s Gundagai was the
agricultural show. principal town south of Yass on the
The original site was surveyed on Sydney-Melbourne road and travellers
the half-mile-wide alluvial flats on the to the Victorian goldfields ensured its
north side of the river, between what prosperity. In 1861 gold was found
is now Morley's Creek and the Mur­ in payable quantities at Spring Flat,
rumbidgee. About 1840 the first near the town, and the diggings
settlers took up their lots from the flourished for some fifteen years.
Government and the growth of the The importance of the site as a
township began. When Dr Robert natural crossing place was recog­
Davison's general store opened in nised from the first, and in 1865 the
1842, it was probably the only one construction of a traffic bridge was
between Yass and Melbourne. In 1843 begun to replace the punt ferry that
a post office was opened, and by had linked the settlements on the
1850 there were four hotels, several north and south banks of the river.
stores, a blacksmith, a school, twenty In 1858 Francis Cadell in the steamer
houses and some tents. Albury reached the town from Ade­
On the night of 23 June 1852, the laide, and for many years afterwards
Murrumbidgee flooded the settlement vessels paid periodic visits. The
to a depth of seventeen feet, destroy­ Platypus, specially built for service on
ing seventy-one buildings and drown­ the Murrumbidgee, made several trips
ing eighty-one inhabitants. Many to Gundagai from Wagga Wagga dur­
people were saved by Aborigines liv­ ing the 1879 season. On 21 July 1886,
ing in the area. After this disaster the a railway line from Cootamundra to
main township moved to the lower the northern township was opened,
slopes of Mount Parnassus. Sheridan and on 12 October 1903 the line was
Street, which had been the highest extended south to Tumut, via a bridge
ix
Charles Louis Gabriel
constructed at Gundagai alongside wife's name, Gabriel. Shortly before on the settlement of the Kempsey
the traffic bridge. the French Revolution, they apparently area.6 The former, written in 1887,
The new hospital, for which Dr emigrated to Martinique. mentions Major Kemp as still living at
Gabriel had fought so fiercely, was Dr Gabriel's father, also Charles Kempsey, aged 94; perhaps it was he
opened the following year and in Louis, was born in Martinique, West who suggested Dr Gabriel move to
1909 the mains water system came Indies,2 and is believed to have re­ Kempsey from Port Macquarie.
into operation in the town. turned soon after 1800 to France with Dr Gabriel seems to have owned
Gundagai today retains much of the his mother and to have acquired considerable amounts of land in the
character captured in the Gabriel medical qualifications. Family history Kempsey area, but in 1864 he suf­
photographs. Road and rail bridges next records him sailing to the Pacific fered along with others who had
still span the Murrumbidgee valley, with a French expedition which visited lacked the foresight or the opportunity
and Flood's stone flour mill erected in Sydney in the early years of the nine­ of Enoch Rudder when he built on
1850, stands below Sheridan Street. teenth century. Discovering on his re­ high ground. Rudder recorded, 'At Dr
So too does the court house (burned turn to France that his mother had Gabriel's house at East Kempsey the
down in the 1930s but faithfully re­ died, he decided to return to Aus­ river rose three feet six inches above
built), Dr Gabriel's old home 'Fonte- tralia, and may have come out with the level of the verandah, the Doctor's
noy', and the original hospital in Major Kemp, who arrived in Sydney family, with that of Captain Thornton
Otway Street, which has seen service on 2 December 1837 on the convict took refuge in Mr E. W. Rudder's
as a maternity clinic and private dwel­ ship Asia, in command of the military house on the hill.'
ling, and is now being privately reno­ guard,3 and who subsequently ob­ Dr Gabriel was clearly esteemed in
vated. Today the town has just over tained him a medical post at Port the small community; he was pre­
two thousand inhabitants. In Sheridan Macquarie. sented with an illuminated address
Street semi-trailers have replaced the In 1845 Dr Gabriel senior is known from the townspeople. A similar ad­
bullock teams but the hotels, motels to have settled at Kempsey, on the dress dated 28 December 1882 ex­
and cafes of the town still make it an Macleay River,4 and it was probably pressed their gratitude to him for a
important stopping place for travellers, here that he first met Rhoda Rudder, relationship lasting 'upwards of thirty-
now as then. Dr Gabriel's photo­ whom he married on 12 June 1854. three years' and records that they also
graphs are not only valuable for their Rhoda's father, Enoch Rudder, was presented him with a buggy, which
intimate record of Gundagai life at the virtual founder of Kempsey, hav­ they trusted he would find useful.
the turn of the century, but also pro­ ing come from Monmouthshire in Charles Louis junior was born at
vide a perspective in which to see England and taken over from one Kempsey in 1857,7 third of thirteen
the living community of the present. Samuel Onions a grant of land which children. A sister had died in infancy.
he then offered for auction in Sydney Not much is known of his childhood,
Charles Louis Gabriel, 1857-1927 in November 1836. On one of the but a silver medallion now in the pos­
Dr Gabriel came from a family whose highest allotments he built a house session of his nephew records his
connections with Australia go back to called 'The Hill', and on 31 December winning the Materia Medica First Prize
the early years of the nineteenth cen­ 1836 sailed from Sydney for the at the University of Edinburgh in 1884,
tury, and whose fortunes before that Macleay, with his family and posses­ so he would seem to have justified the
had been varied.1 The family was sions, on the chartered vessel expense of sending him to such a dis­
French in origin, but his grandfather Medena.5 Enoch Rudder's History of tinguished institution. He also returned
(who may also have been a doctor) the Macleay and Origin and Present promptly to Australia, for on 10 March
married a Jewish woman and was State of the Family of the Rudders 1886, Dr C. Louis Gabriel was entered
forced by his family to drop the family (both in the Mitchell Library, Sydney), in the register of medical practitioners
name, of de Sense, and to take his contain much interesting information in New South Wales as 'Lie. R. Coll.
x