By the end of 1865, G.S.Brodie had determined to return home,and placed his remaining land in the hands of stock and station agents. Since about 1990, I have been trying to discover where Brodie properties such as Helensville and Katesville were. I also recall seeing somewhere that the Brodie properties stretched from Bulla to the Merri Creek. Various parish maps and local histories did little to confirm this claim but solving these mysteries remained in the back of my mind ever since.

A breakthrough came when I was researching my occupants of Dunhelen chronology journal. I aim to specify the locations of the above-mentioned farms, the Dunhelen Estate and the Newgrove Estate in the Parish of Mickleham.

There will be problems correlating Melway maps with the Mickleham parish map; uncertainty whether such as McLauchlan and Williamson were grantees or purchased their land from Brodie in the parish of Yuroke and making sense of differing acreages given in advertisements and on parish maps.

An example of these differences is that Guthrie's Paddock was described as 185 acres in an advertisement but c/a 22 (4), parish of Bulla, granted to A.& J. Guthrie on 5-10-1854, which fronted Emu Creek as stated, consisted of 135 acres 3 roods and 10 perches. An assumption will have to be made that 22(4) was indeed Guthrie's Paddock, the discrepancy caused by a misreading of the acreage by the stock and station agent or a Lands Department map copyist. The Dunhelen Estate is described as 5563 acres immediately below, just below that, the 5563 acres is stated to include two other properties and then there's this:
"Dunhelen, of 5563 Acres, being Sections 11,12, 13, l6, 17. l8, 22, 23, and 26 etc., in the parish of Yuroke."


To make matters even more confusing there's no section 26 in the parish of Yuroke and to make sense of a two mile frontage to the Merri Creek, it had to be section 24. This gives a total Dunhelen acreage of 6944 acres, 981 acres more than the 5563 acres stated above and my theory is that, by 1866, G.S.Brodie had already sold section 22 and 23B (a total of roughly 989 acres) to Archibald McLachlan.

Plotting the locations of the various properties will take place later when I've finished the Dunhelen occupants journal but at least I've copied the somewhat contradictory clues*.
(* For example:
"Helensville. containing 653 acres. Katesville, containing 586 acres Guthrie's paddock, containing 185 acres. Situate On the Emu Creek, a permanent stream close to Sunbury."
"Secondly-Katesville, of 583 acres. Sec. 20, parish Bulla "
Crown allotment 20A and 20B, granted to G.S. and R. Brodie consisted of EXACTLY 586 acres so it can be taken as Gospel that Katesville was 20AB, parish of Bulla.

Isaac Batey mentioned in an article, read yesterday, that Richard Brodie* had moved up to Mr Reid's place. This indicates that HELENSVILLE might have consisted of c/a 24(1), 306 acres granted to Richard Brodie and 24(2),347 acres granted to H.Cooper (probably connected with the Constitution Hotel.) Part of a closed road (c/a 2A of 22) was purchased by D.W.Reid on 5-5-1983. It was 3850 links (770 metres) before the Dunsford Track (Lancefield turn off)and the road continued north, forming the western boundary of section 24, before crossing Emu Creek at the Melway 383 D,E 7 border to link with Gellies Rd at 383 E 5, bottom right. My recall of Bulla rate records suggests that the Reids had purchased 24(2)by about 1912 when Isaac Batey's memoirs were published. Therefore I conclude that Helensville was section 24. The Quarry at 383 G9 was the north east corner of KATESTVILLE so Dameeli homestead at 383 F8 is on HELENSVILLE.

RICHARD DIED AT HELENVILLE IN 1872.
Mr. Candler held an inquest at Sunbury on the 19th inst., on the body of Richard Brodie, a landowner living at Helensville, on the Emu Creek. He was fifty-eight years of age and was of unsound mind. (Much detail.)
(P.2, The Age, 23-1-1872.)

THE EVIDENCE. (COPIED FROM THE DUNHELEN JOURNAL.)
1866.
Freehold Estate. — We also report having sold Mr G. S. Brodie's Dunhelen estate consisting of 5,563 acres, to Mr John Edols, for the sum of £27,815. (P.2, Mount Alexander Mail, 5-10-1866.)


P.3, Argus, 9-1-1866 specifies the 5 563 acres as being the Dunhelen, Newgrove and Katesville Estates, all belonging to George Sinclair Brodie.

I.W.Symonds mentioned Helensville and Katesville in "Bulla Bulla but did not specify where they were. The following advertisement (P.23, Leader, 16-10-1866) may help to do so. Isaac Batey mentioned the Katesville paddock and the five mile estate but shed no more light on their locations. With the aid of the Bulla parish map and the following information, I hope to specify the locations of the properties IN ANOTHER JOURNAL.

THURSDAY, 18th NOVEMBER.
FREEHOLD ESTATES,
Near Melbourne.
RICHARD GIBSON and Co. have received Instructions from Mr. Geo. Martin, as executor of the late George Sinclair Brodie, to sell by auction in Melbourne, on Thursday, the 18th November next, the remainder of his Victorian properties,
viz.,
Helensville. containing 653 acres.
Katesville, containing 586 acres
Guthrie's paddock, containing 185 acres.
Situate On the Emu Creek, a permanent stream close to Sunbury.
These blocks will be offered separately with the option.
They are all fenced, permanentlv watered by the Emu Creek, to which they have extensive frontages. A considerable portion is rich agricultural land. There is a commodious, comfortable cottage on Helensville
with all necessary outhouses.
Also, the property known as THE FIVE MILE PADDOCK Containing 1255 ACRES. This Is situated within 5 miles of Sunbury, Is all substantially fenced and is permanently watered by springs and waterholes.

In result after result, a NEWGROVE ESTATE was found to be in Gippsland, with the occasional mention of one at Healesville, but my determination was eventually rewarded.

TENDERS WANTED, for the ERECTION of 26 chains of dry stone WALL, and 14 chains of post and rail Fence, on the Newgrove Estate, Parish of Mickleham. Particulars on application to Mr Deagan, on the ground, or to J Mitchell, Royal park. (Tenders were to be sent to Joseph Mitchell- the superintendent of the MODEL FARM.)
(PAGE 3, THE ARGUS, 17 MARCH, 1868.)

EUREKA!
MR. STUBBS Is favoured with instructions to SUBMIT to PUBLIC COMPETITION, and sell by Auction, at his rooms,- 61 Collins-street, Melbourne, on Tuesday, the 9th day January, 1886," sale to commence at twelve o'clock precisely,
All those highly productive and very valuable estates known as
First-Dunhelen, of 5563 Acres, being Sections 11,12, 13, l6, 17. l8, 22, 23, and 26 etc., in the parish of Yuroke.
Secondly-Katesville, of 583 acres. Sec. 20, parish Bulla
Thirdly-Newgrove, of 632 acres, Sec. 17, parish Mickleham.
(P.2, Argus, 29-12-1865.)

LOCATIONS.
"NEWGROVE."
"Thirdly-Newgrove, of 632 acres, Sec. 17, parish Mickleham."
Luckily, I do not have to rely on key map 8 in my 1999 Melway. My 2008 edition has all the detail I need on map 365. The course of Deep Creek is almost identical to that shown on the Mickleham parish map. Kinnear Rd is shown on both, confirming that the northern boundary of section 17 was, as I'd suspected from the key map, DONNYBROOK ROAD. Section 17, NEWGROVE, granted to John Johnston in 1852, indeed consisted of 632 acres 3 roods 11 perches.

Its western boundary was 10930 links (2183 metres) east of Mickleham Rd with a 7960 link (1620 metre) Donnybrook Rd frontage extending east to the parish boundary with Kalkallo. The western boundary was 7960 links long and the eastern boundary 7950 links. The southern boundary was the transmission line forming the northern boundary of the Mount Ridley Grasslands. The Donnybrook Rd frontage was between the left border of 366 F4 and the right border of 366 J5. The west and east boundaries can be transposed by lines joining these two points to the n/w and n/e corners of the Mount Ridley Grasslands.
PS. One millimetre on Melway maps 3-679 is equivalent to one chain (100 links) which enabled me to plot the n/w and n/e corners of NEWGROVE. How easy was that!