History Notes - Maurie Conway's book available

18th December 2022

History Notes

Last notes for the year: don’t forget the Christmas Evening Markets on Saturday night, commencing at 4.30pm – check the advertisement for details.  No more markets after Saturday until at least February.  Members have you put your name in for the lunch on Tuesday 20th.

This week we have had a request for information from a member of the Brindle family who lived along the Jump – up road some years ago.  We have found a school photo or two but perhaps someone has other photos or information about Charlene.

An early photo of the site of the present-day Goldman’s Building has appeared – anyone with Maurie Conway’s book will find similar photo of The Commercial Store on page 53 but this one appears to be earlier one.  There is a store on the right and the attached residence has a white fence along the same line as the store.  Also in the photo are six people – two women, two men and two small children.  Now the question is who were White and Lampert - was Lampert meant to be Lambert who lived at early Rockmore – remembering that this was around 1895 on the present-day old information site.

In reference to last week’s notes re the Murray family information on several descendants of the original family were omitted.

The eldest daughter, Caroline married William Howard just before her 17th birthday on the Bingara goldfields.  They had a son, William, who died on the goldfields 9th March, 1863 at 2 years of age.  I imagine there were more children but I do not have the records.  Her husband died a few years later and she married William Brooks in 1871, at Bingara and had a big family.  Sadly, she died on 15th September, 1887, aged 47 years.

Second daughter, Martha, married William Lockrey, a widower from Inverell.  She lived in the Stannifer area rearing her step- children and a family of her own.  One of her stepsons married Maria Capel’s daughter, Emma Maria, and they lived at Wyndella near Barraba for a number of years while he was headmaster of the Barraba School.  I am sure residents will have heard of Bill Lockrey, who ran the school for many years.  Possibly there are still people who remember the old man living in Alice Street with a couple of his children – I remember his big white beard – a bit like Santa Claus!!

Third daughter, Maria, as stated married John Capel and lived at Piedmont Woolshed for 40 years.  The only child who died is buried near where the old Woolshed stood and several daughters were married from there before they moved to Rocky Creek Station early in the 20th century.  Sadly, both Maria and John were deceased by 1914.

Wishing everyone

A Merry Christmas and

A Happy 2023

Markets this Saturday at 5p.m.