
Fyans' ford
Chronicles

Sunset over the Moorabool River

Cover Melbourne Punch, 1856

On 2 August, 1855, Melbourne Punch made its first appearance in a career that was to satirize
over seventy-five years of colonial development.






PUNCH'S VISITS TO REMARKABLE PLACES ~ FYAN'S FORD Melbourne Punch, 1856

Batman's first meeting with Buckley, Houten, H. L. van den, 1878
REMINISCENCES OF GEELONG, ETC. (Ca 1835)
​
Sixty-five years have passed since John Batman first heard the "Co-ee" from
Buckley's black friends, on the fair plains of Geelong; and yet, ten years before that, Hamilton Hume and Captain Hovell had reached the Southern Sea "through a charming region," which must have been the Geelong district, as the "Bushman" declared, and not the Western Port fancied by the Seaman," but thus did the country escape being made a penal settlement in 1826......
(Signed) James Bonwick
Take me there ...

FIRST VICTORIAN VINEYARDS.
​
"Another interesting walk was undertaken by the author to Geelong and the Barrabool Hills in 1844. It was on February 29, the last day of the Geelong races, he left Melbourne........"

.jpg)

Echoes of the past
Anne Drysdale and Caroline Newcomb

Azolla carpeting the surface of the river
near the Moorabool River Reserve

Riversdale Flour Mill on the Barwon at Chilwell, 1866. Image taken by John Norton, held by the State Library of Victoria
Blog Topics (section)
If I were asked to nominate my recommended contemporary source of information about Fyansford and its locality (apart, of course, from Fyansford.com) I would, without a doubt, point to Barwon Blog by Geelong blogger, Jo Mitchell. Jo Mitchell has for nigh on a decade now posted a mammoth number of Barwon-related blogs. A glance at her list of Blog Topics underscores the breadth of Jo’s interests. I particularly appreciate her attention to detail, her research skills, personal slant and respect for sources. While Jo may focus on specific detail at a given time she also more than occasionally follows a theme e.g., the Moorabool River (58 posts) or more specifically her journey by kayak down the Moorabool from Batesford to Fyansford back in March, 2015. While Jo frequently gets up-close-n-personal with her own photographs, I do appreciate her use of well-researched maps, commentary and assorted photographs / images all with due credits.
​
For a compilation of links relating more specifically to Fyansford hit the Take me there… marker.

I am forever on the lookout for people who appreciate Fyansford, who recognise what it has to offer and who then, in turn, show their appreciation either in words, via photography or in their art.
Pecali and Wendy were just such a couple and I was very much saddened when I read that Pecali had passed away and what was once Pecali and Wendy’s blog became simply Wendy’s blog.
I think their Fyansford postings which span the period 2010 – 2014 are particularly worthy of appreciation.
​
“Yesterday Peceli and I drove along the new Ring Road skirting Geelong then turned left back towards Geelong and we decided to stop at the tiny town of Fyansford, to take photos, sketch, have some coffee or lunch and wander near the Moorabool River….” (July 5, 2010)





The Geelong Advertiser is, to my mind, the best source of information regarding local issues, identities and places.
e.g. The Protestant Orphan Asylum, Herne Hill



With details as per article

Remember:
Click image to see full size
William Buckley
The Wild white man



Recreating the Country is a contemporary blog by Stephen Murphy
Stephen, a long-time nurseryman and designer of natural landscapes with qualifications in Geology and Environmental Management, has an informative, delightful and extremely well-presented series of blogs on the vegetation of the Barrabool Hills.
Suzy Keys
Blog : William Buckley, the Wild White Man

The definitive go-to site for hard-core content on William Buckley
Geelong in Historical Pictures
Geelong's most popular, dedicated, drama-free, Facebook history page..
The following are but a sampling of what's available on GiHP.
Remember to click an image to enlargen.

Fyansford and Cement works as seen by Charles Daniel Pratt

An early view of Fyansford, showing the cement works

Charles Pratt and company at Belmont Common

Fyansford and Cement works as seen by Charles Daniel Pratt
Centre for Fortean Zoology Australia
CFZ Australia is a branch of the non-profit UK-based Centre for Fortean Zoology (CFZ).

About CFZ Australia
​
We're naturalists, authors, photographers, and academics with a strong interest in zoology.
We investigate reports of 'mystery animals' - rare, extinct and possibly undiscovered - in the Australasia region. We're especially interested in new species, and Australian big cat, 'Queensland Tiger' and Tasmanian Tiger (Thylacine cynocephalus) sightings.
The CFZ is dedicated to all things cryptozoological. Its primary focus involves unknown animals, or cryptozoology, but the CFZ also examines unusual and aberrant animal behavior, animal mutilations, animal colour variants, teratology, and animal folklore. This is why the organisation refers to itself as the "Centre for Fortean Zoology", rather than any moniker including the word "Cryptozoology".
And so ~ What has this to do with Fyansford?
The CFZ was founded by author and naturalist Jonathan Downes in 1992,
and is based in the United Kingdom. CFZ Australia was started in 2007.
The Best of the Jillong Pocket...
Sample Magazine
Stories
Remember:
Click image to enlarge









Remember ~ Click image to enlargen
Of relevance ~
Jillong Pocket
-
Geelong Cement Works pp. 5-7 (June 2010)
-
William Buckley pp. 6-7 (August 2010)
-
Foster Fyans pp. 20-21 (September, 2010)
-
The Wathaurong Tribe p. 22 (January, 2012)
-
Captain Francis Melville pp. 12-13 (March, 2012)
-
Fyansford pp. 4-6 (September, 2013)
-
Geelong’s Flour Mills pp. 22-23 (November, 2013)
-
The Barwon River pp. 20-21 (August, 2014)
-
William Buckley to the Rescue pp. 12-13
-
William Buckley pp. 26-27
-
Captain Foster Fyans pp. 22-23
-
Baums Weir pp. 170-171
-
Cobb & Co. pp. 289-291

Changing Perceptions of young Fyansfordites

As reflected in letters to
Aunt Connie from young Fyansfordites

Below is a selection of letters from young Fyansford readers of
the Aunt Connie "Young Folks" column in the Weekly Times (1898 - 1923).
Violet Carroll (1898- 1900)




Tanzin, Rose and Albert Hocking (1899-1905)



Violet Read
Violet Read (1920-1921)


Leigh Price 1898 Maud Downey 1901 Daisy Taylor 1923






early australian press
James Bonwick
Bonwick in July, 1862, opened a school in St Kilda which became very prosperous, having an enrolment of over 150 boys. He continued historical and anthropological work in his spare time, publishing John Batman (1867), Curious Facts of Old Colonial Days (1870), Daily Life and Origin of the Tasmanians (1870) and The Last of the Tasmanians (1870). Bonwick was a prolific writer and the story of his life makes for great read.





REMINISCENCES OF GEELONG, ETC
by James Bonwick
appeared in the Geelong Advertiser
Saturday 24 November 1900 (page 5).
Though relating in only a minor way to Fyansford district, this article certainly makes good reading for anyone interested in our early history.
Click here to read the entire article.
​
FosterFyans
"Memoirs recorded at Geelong, Victoria, Australia"
by Captain Foster Fyans” (1790-1870)

Living with the Locals (2016)
comprises the stories of 13 white men, boys and women who were taken in by the Indigeus people of the Torres Strait islands and of eastern Australia and who lived in their communities between the 1790s and the 1870s, from a few months to over 30 years. The white people had been shipwrecked or had escaped the confines of penal servitude and survived only through the Indigeus people's generosity. Many of them were given Indigeus names-Bunboe, Murrangurk, Duramboi, Waki, Giom, Anco. They assimilated to varying degrees into an Indigeus way of life-several marrying and learning the language-and, for the most part, both parties mourned the white people's return to European life.The stories in Living with the Locals provide a glimpse into Indigeus life at the point of early contact between Indigeus people and British colonists. It was a time when negative attitudes towards Indigeus people gave rise to misinterpretation of events and sensationalised versions of the stories. However, many of the white survivors spoke up against the appalling treatment of the Indigeus people, and advocated for conciliation and land rights. They also were unwilling to reveal Indigeus beliefs and customs to unsympathetic colonists.
Available Ebay $37.95



The story of William Buckley –
through others’ eyes pp.26-49
(Apologies:
Sample not complete. I need to purchase a copy)

Who was J. H. Wedge?
I had no idea who J.H. Wedge was until Stephen Murphy
introduced me to him on his "Recreating the Country" blog

John Helder Wedge's map of his explorations (1835)
The story of colonial surveyor and explorer John Helder Wedge, one of the forgotten founders of Melbourne ~ An audio presentation
(Australian Broadcasting Corporation, Radio National 2011-06-02)
TROVE Search results
Richard Howitt
best known for:
Impressions of Australia Felix, During Four Years Residence in that Colony
From: Impressions of Australia Felix, During Four Years Residence in that Colony





With list of contents
First Victorian Vineyards
Geelong was named in 1837 by Governor Richard Burke, with the name derived from the local Wathaurong (Wadawurrung)
Aboriginal name for the region, Djillong, which was understood to mean 'tongue of land'.

Our aim is to educate and help as many people as possible to protect and share the respect that we hold for our Country
Djillong: Our History, Our Story, Our Future
A Project created by the late Uncle David Tournier
Visitors’ Illustrated Guide to Geelong
R.C.Q.
1/-


1879
