My Keilor Historical Society journal is fairly lengthy so I had no idea where to look for my mention of the Clippertons when Patricia's private message arrived. My mind immediately went to a title document regarding a subdivision lot on Main's Estate that I did not transposed onto my Melway. It just didn't make sense.Main's Estate (Section 12 Doutta Galla) was bounded by Hoffmans Rd, Buckley St, Rachelle St and the line of Farrell St (Melway 15 K11.) The east-west dimensions of this particular lot went too far east, probably 100 links too far so that the government road, Hoffmans Rd, was included in the block.) What was the point of transposing such nonsense? If I had known Eddie Deutcher at the time I was practically living in the titles office,the point would have been perfectly obvious!
The titles clerk's error had created a need for the Hoffmans Road Dogleg!

Let's look at Patricia's information first.

Subject: Keilor Historical Society
To: itellya
From: NorrissP
Date: 2014-01-17 04:39:44
I lived opposite Mr Clipperton Car Wrecking Yard. Happy days opposite Anne, Peter, Russell and Freddie CLIPPERTON. I remember Claudia BAILEY from the neighbourhood in Market Street. She became an Air Hostess with TAA. My father was an airlines pilot; he died in a plane crash in 1961. A few years later I moved with my mother to Perth, Western Australia. My best friends at school were Frances DIAMOND and Rosemary SMITH. Thanks, Patricia.

I'm sure Patricia would love to hear from any of her old schoolmates. Private message her through Family Tree Circles.

I thought I'd write a journal detailing a bit of history about those who lived near Hoffmans Rd. Rosehill Rd was named after Dugald McPhail's farm, Rosehill, which was between Buckley St and Rosehill Rd. The other major farm on Main's Estate was James Wilson's farm, later occupied by James Anderson, which is discussed in my journal 1888 GEOGRAPHY WITH THE MELBOURNE HUNT. The following comes from my EARLY LANDOWNERS:PARISH OF DOUTTA GALLA (a copy of which was given to Bob Chalmers of the Essendon Historical Society.)It does not include most of the pioneers on Main's Estate but this information will be supplied if requested.

HOFFMANS RD 1923-1969. Eddie Deutcher?s memories. The Fullarton Connection.
It is of interest that in 1923 Hoffmans Rd only went south to the northern end of Moushall Ave, which was originally called Hoffmans Rd until 9-11-1960 (Land Plan 10004). Keilor Council had first made moves to have Hoffmans Rd constructed in 1945 but it was not until November 1969 that the road was made. Essendon and Keilor had agreed in 1957 to construct the road forthwith but it was 10 years before work started. The hold up was a dispute about the proposed width, the two councils? preferences differing by two feet. No doubt the Fullarton connection had something to do with the eventual resolution. John Andrew Peter Fullarton was an Essendon councillor from about 1958 for 13 years (followed by his wife, Dorothy, Essendon?s first female councillor, until 1986.) Their son Graeme was Mayor of Keilor in 1969-70. (?DICTIONARY HISTORY OF TULLAMARINE AND MILES AROUND? R. GIBB, PAGE F.96-7.)
The land plan also shows that Garnet St was called Grieve St until 8-6-1962.
It seems that the 1923 subdivision of Springbank fizzled, probably because the tramway extension to Hoffmans Rd did not eventuate. (The Tramway Extension Estate with frontages to Hoffmans Rd and other, but defunct, streets, was advertised for sale on 12-4-1919 according to Bob Chalmers? Annals of Essendon, but obviously shared the same fate.)
SPRINGBANK LINGERS.
On 25-7-1930, when James Anderson mortgaged his land across Green Gully Rd from Braeside (13K Maribyrnong of 35 acres, from the midline of Buchan and Tarwin Courts to the bridge) he was described as a dairyman, formerly farmer, of Buckley Park. As explained before, the location of Springbank was known as Buckley Park in those days, the modern designation of Niddrie not having spread south from 17B, which Henry Stevenson had so-named after a suburb of his native Edinburgh in about 1870. The double storey brick Springbank mansion must have been decaying as it was demolished in the 1930?s. James Anderson may have built a new farmhouse before moving to Braeside. Eddie Deutcher said that when he arrived, the farmhouse was a pink weatherboard occupied by Merle someone and then Mr Shell from 1954 or 1955.

EDDIE DEUTCHER?S MEMORIES.
Ralph Dixon has been mentioned earlier. It is unclear which side of Hoffmans Rd he built on C.1923 but Eddie Deutcher recalls that he was later living opposite Mary St (present No. 49). The Broadmeadows Observer Souvenir edition of 1961 (Proclamation of the City of Keilor) states wrongly that Eddie Deutcher was the first resident on the Keilor side of Hoffmans Rd; Ralph beat him by quite a few years.
A Mr Spencer subdivided his land into four blocks of 44 ? x 138 feet (their depth later reduced to 130 feet when Hoffmans Rd was made.) Spencer, of Price St, died in 1980 and his widow later lived next door to Eddie Deutcher. The only other resident of Hoffmans Rd when Eddie moved in was Harry George at the corner of Mary St. Eddie says that the development of Hoffmans Rd mainly took place between 1951-2 and 1965. In 1949, Eddie bought his block (No. 63) for L135. The other blocks sold for L500 (C.1953), L750 (1956) and $15 000 (about 1969). Eddie moved onto his block from St Kilda in 1951 but had to live in a caravan for 2 ? years because of the post-war shortage of building materials.
Council- owned land in George St was an unofficial dumping ground and a haunt of youngsters who gathered there to smoke. The tip was the source of several fires that threatened the widely scattered houses.
There used to be a training track for trotters near Garnet St.
The Clippertons were another early family in the area. Russell Clipperton was a foundation pupil at the Doutta Galla Primary School. Part of what we now call Hoffmans Rd was occupied by Fred Clipperton?s car wrecking yard and people travelling south had to take the Hoffmans Rd Dogleg which is now called Moushall Ave.
The first shop in Hoffmans Rd was Fred Cook?s general store on the Teague St corner, later Joe Wiley?s and a self serve bottle shop. Probably next was the green grocery started, and still operated many decades later, by Tony Sicerliano. Ray Orchard?s model aeroplane shop and Miss Gartland?s pharmacy were features of the shopping centre for many years.
Power and water came to Eddie and his neighbours in 1953 and sewerage in 1965.
In 1954, Eddie became a Keilor councillor and judging by his grasp and recall of details as shown above, he would have been a good one.
More of Eddie?s memories are on Pages D. 95-8 of my Dictionary history of Tullamarine and Miles Around.

Section 13. (HOFFMANS Rd to LINCOLN RD.)
This was between Buckley St. and Mt. Alexander Rd., which Keilor Rd. was called until at least 1900.
The western half, consisting of lots A and B, between Hoffman?s Rd. and the walking track near Hedderwick St., was granted to William Hoffman, one of the handful of Germans in the north west. He called his house Butzbach but the farm appears to have been known later as Buckley Park. (The renaming may have occurred near the time of W.W.1, when anti- German feeling led to moves to change the names of Coburg and Essendon, the latter thought by some to have originated from Essen, and many residents such as Groenberger of the Junction Hotel at Tullamarine changed their surnames.)
Later owners were Messrs E.A. and William Croft. In 1914, William Croft was the only resident west of Nimmo St; the house was apparently near Croft St. and between Buckley and Temple (Spencer) Sts. This accounts for the kink in Price St.
A map at the Merrifield Library shows that when the estate was subdivided, land containing the ?Butzbach? residence of ?Croft Esquire? was at the south west Temple (Spencer) St/ Nimmo St corner with Price St (down to the bend) as the western boundary. Part of this block of 4 ? acres was sold as eight allotments fronting Price and Market Sts on 23-10-1924. The old homestead must have been demolished in the early 1950?s to make way for Croft St, as this street was first mentioned in 1953. Mr Spencer, mentioned in Eddie Deutcher?s memories under section 12, may have been living in the old homestead.
Just as Peter McCracken was one of the first lessees on Stewarton (Gladstone Park), his brother Alexander Earle McCracken was possibly the first to rent Butzbach. He had erected a four stall stable and a barn on it within 10 months of the grant being issued to Hoffman, and in March 1851 was apparently building a house. A.E.McCracken grew wheat on Butzbach and the farm prospered but due to the ill health of his wife, Jane, this branch of the family returned home in 1857, probably to Ardwell Farm on the Ardmillan Estate in Ayrshire. In a letter written on 14-4-1858, Robert McCracken informed Alexander Earle that Butzbach had been taken up by the McAuleys (McCracken?s spelling.). (I wonder if McAuley had been a neighbour of Peter McCracken at Kensington 1855-7 and was the origin of the name of Macaulay Rd. More likely the McCrackens knew them from their early days on the Merri Creek.)
One of the early occupiers of subdivision lots on Buckley Park was Ralph Dixon, who settled in the Gilbertson St area in 1912 before moving to Hoffmans Rd in 1923. Some things he recalled were:
*the two rows of pine trees, through which the drive ran to the Hoffman / Croft house from Buckley St,
*the Woods family?s dairy farm in Sapphire St (see section 12 Rosehill Estate in 1900),
*old Mrs Sinclair?s goats near Ogilvie St,
* and James Anderson?s dairy farm with its homestead on the (1961) service station site. (This was across Hoffmans Rd on the south corner of Teague St.)