Town Talk: Shepparton getting started

By Marnie

Mar 13, 2023

Back in time: The 1889 Ford and Son Shepparton Flour Mills, corner of Welsford and Fryers Sts.

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Writing Shepparton’s history — perhaps writing any history — has never been easy. So much has been written from memory or family stories, which are sometimes — but not always — inaccurate.

It’s difficult to know what is correct and what isn’t. We celebrated our centenary in 1938, 100 years after the arrival of Hawdon and Bonney, but only now are we realising that they were unlikely to have camped anywhere near us.

We are expecting a new book on our history, written by a man who was born and bred in the area and believes we’ve got a few things wrong; this could clarify a couple of areas where confusion currently exists.

I’ve heard about this from several sources and, like many of us, am looking forward to it immensely.

In writing about the businesses that got our city started, I have only included dates and names I think are ‘safe’, but are difficult to guarantee. If you read anything that you believe to be inaccurate — please, let me know.

The businesses that got us started

In the 1850s — during the gold rush to other places — Shepparton became a popular place to cross the river. So, it is natural that the first businesses began around the punt. The post office was there and, later, meat was sold to the settlement.

The first hotel was opened in 1853 by John Parsons — on the corner of Welsford and High Sts. It was known — a little later — as The Prince of Wales. The Shepparton Hotel was built in 1860; it was on the north-east corner of Welsford and High Sts.

1860 was also the year the Governor of Victoria declared Shepparton a township, on September 24.

Not much happened over the next decade or so, except the arrival of a few hotels.

My note: Whatever else we lacked, we were never short of a pub. They came in quick succession after the Shepp Hotel: The Bush Inn, The Criterion, The Royal, George McCracken’s, The Farmers’ Arms, The Commercial, The Terminus, The Goulburn Valley, The Union (The Aussie) and The Victoria.

A further note — to give you a laugh: I am working from different sources for this story, but was doubtful about some of the dates. So I asked ‘Mr Google’ for info on Shepp’s historic hotels. The answer I got was Town Talk — several weeks of it!

See, this is one of the ways history can be confused. What if there was something incorrect and it is being perpetuated?

I glanced at the page about the Shepp Hotel and was reasonably confident; John Avram had patiently guided me through that one, and he had all the answers to my questions.

And I was also confident about the history of The Terminus, because Robert Stainsby had kindly helped me a great deal. But I was too embarrassed and afraid to even look at the other pages.

Back to this story, because from 1873 we saw plenty of action — on the business and industry front.

The first flour mill was built in Shepparton, by Mr Fred Archer, but unfortunately it was destroyed by fire in 1874.

Also, in 1873, Mr A.F. Rowe opened what appears to have been our first store, and John Furphy purchased 10 acres of land, fronting Wyndham St, and opened a blacksmith business. The much-expanded business remains with the Furphy family today. The same year, a bakery opened at the punt.

Ralph Longstaff opened a shop in 1875. His famous son, Sir John Longstaff, worked for his father for a few months but not at the Shepparton store. The following year, Swallows and Co built another flour mill to replace Mr Archer’s short-lived attempt; it was sold to Mr W. Ford in 1884. Oliver Dolphin established a cordial factory, which was later sold to the Darby brothers.

The News was first published in February 1877. After changing hands a couple of times, it was purchased by the McPherson family in 1888 and remains in the family’s hands today.

Also in 1877, Thomas and Elizabeth Kittle moved to Shepparton. The Kittles were builders, with the business being eventually run by Thomas’s sons. And then, the business offered a new service. An ad from the News in 1887 says:

“Kittle Bros. Carpenters, Builders & Undertakers, Maude St, Shepparton.”

After the railway came — 1880 to 1900

Several stores opened in the 1880s, including McDermott’s, McKinney’s and Daly’s. Thomas Geddes also established a store and bakery, which was later purchased by James Fairley. And Swallow’s shop was also opened around this time on the south-west corner of Fryers and Wyndham Sts.

In 1885, Bryant and Shiels opened a brewery, one of the largest enterprises in the area, and it gained a considerable and favourable reputation. However, when their sons took over the business, there was controversy. The clergy disapproved of William Shiels Jnr being both a brewer and a shire councillor (Shepparton Shire).

In 1889, 22-year-old Edmund John Vibert purchased two blocks of land at 396 Wyndham St, where he built a home and established his business. The business was retained by the family for almost 100 years.

In 1890, architect J.A.K. Clarke arrived in Shepparton and promptly designed his first two buildings for the city: ‘Nettlegoe’, his own home in Clarke Crt, and ‘Ivanhoe’ in Ivanhoe Crt for Mr A.B. Mason.

My note: ‘Nettlegoe’ is correct, not ‘Nettlecoe’. Mr. Clarke had nettles on his property that he wanted gone; definitely correct! Learned from the Bruce Wilson Memorial Heritage Lecture 2022 — presenter Evan Lloyd.

It is not clear (to me, at least) when James Fairley established businesses in Shepparton. However, I found — in an issue of the News, December 1896 — an ad for T. Geddes for his Maude St store; and next to it, on the front page, an ad for James Fairley for two stores — Eastern Farmers Store, at the railway station in Shepparton, and the Co-operative Store in Mooroopna. Obviously, at this time, James Fairley had yet to purchase Geddes’ Maude St business. I’ll continue to work on this and give you accurate information as soon as possible. I do know that the Fairley family ran the store until the 1930s when it was sold to the Gaylards.

These are just a few of the businesses that got us started in the second half of the 19th century. However, there are a couple I’d like to mention that began very early in the 20th century.

A new century

Cooking up a storm: Stuarts Ham and Bacon Factory, photographed in 1924.

A bacon factory was constructed in 1902, by Messrs Reidell and Dennis; in 1905, Cr J.T. Stuart joined the company and became a partner. It traded under variations of the Stuart name, and served us well, until 1999.

In 1903, Mr Fred Johns moved his jewellery business from Bendigo to Shepparton. It was taken over eventually by his son, William. Many of us will remember it.

Population growth

Given that, in 1864, the population is reported as being 30 — with six buildings, of which three were squatters’ huts — and that, from 1871 to 1881, the population grew by more than 1000, by 1888 we were doing very well indeed!

Victoria and its Metropolis: Past and Present (published 1888). In this publication, we are described as follows:

“... a large and well-built town, in the county and electorate of Moira, and the shire of Shepparton. It is situated on the eastern bank of the Goulburn River and was formerly known as McGuire’s Punt, the crossing place on the main road between Ovens and Bendigo districts in the palmy gold-digging days, and an important central police station … Shepparton has four branch banks, a shire hall, post telegraph and money order offices, five places of worship, a number of good hotels and two newspapers, the News and the Advertiser, It has also agricultural, turf, cricket, dramatic and debating clubs. The population numbers over 2000.”