ROSEBUD IN 1855
This map shows early selectors on portion of the former Tootgarook run which was generally called section A of the parish of Wannaeue but the part of the run on the McCrae foreshore which George Smith ceded to Andrew McCrae’s Arthurs Seat run was later referred to as “No Section “.

Smith must have ceded the area to McCrae (as stated by Marie Hansen Fels in I SUCCEEDED ONCE) before mid 1850 when he transferred Tootgarook to Edward William Hobson. The description of McCrae's run in December 1850 and December 1848 has the following addendum (in bold type) which was the area ceded:
No. 208.
Andrew Murison M'Crae.
Name of run, Arthur's Seat.
Estimated area 21,300 acres.
Estimated grazing capability, 300 head of cattle.
On the north by Jamieson's special survey four miles, on the west by the coast line of the Bay to the nose of the mountain called St. Anthony's Nose,from thence along the Cape Schanck road to the Drumdrumallock Creek,
being a boundary line with Mr Purves,ETC.;also that piece of land between the Cape Schanck road and the sea, commencing near the rocks on the point known as St. Anthony's Nose, and ending at the creek* at the junction of the Point Nepean and Cape Schanck roads, nearly opposite the end of the paddock fence.
*Adams Creek, which virtually followed the course of The Avenue, the boundary between the Arthurs Seat Run and Portion 20 Wannaeue.



Part of the Parish of Wannaeue near the Village Reserve of Dromana ...
ROSEBUD 1855

N.B. For some reason, the link to the map does not work. To access the map, paste Part of the Parish of Wannaeue near the Village Reserve of Dromana ...into your search bar.

The parish of Wannaeue extended east to Mornington-Flinders Rd, where it adjoined the parish of Balnarring, west to Government Rd/Weeroona St, Rye where it adjoined the parish of Nepean and south to Limestone Rd where it adjoined the parish of Fingal. This map was drawn on 1-7-1855 shortly after JAMES PURVES' "Rosebud", insured for 700 pounds, was stranded on the foreshore.

Although no section boundaries are shown on any Wannaeue parish maps, it is clear that section A comprised the Tootgarook run and section B the Arthurs Seat run. The latter was originally south of the road to Cape Schanck but George Smith ceded the McCrae foreshore, originally part of the Tootgarook run, to Andrew Murchison McCrae before his visit to California with his young aboriginal friend, Johnny, (who died soon after their return and was buried near the lighthouse by young George McCrae,) Dr Tweedale's grant may not have not been part of Tootgarook but was called Crown portion 1 of section A. Dr Tweedale was the head of the Quarantine Station at the Heads.

PORTION 20.
Georgiana McCrae had good reason to fear that her homestead block would be swallowed by the planned township of Dromana but crown portion 20 Wannaeue (the WANNAEUE VILLAGE RESERVE) was not alienated until the mid 1870's. As coastal access around Anthony's Nose was only on the beach until 1866 when Ned Williams was said to have carved a road, this land was probably leased to Captain Henry Everest Adams. By sheer coincidence portion 19 was selected by Isaac White of whom nothing is known except that he had the greatest affection for the wife of Henry Everest Adams (expressed in an indenture between Isaac and the Captain re a property near South Melbourne found in Harvey Marshall's scrapbook.)

Portion 20 was between The Avenue and the line of Parkmore Rd. Isaac White's portion 19 extended west to Adams Avenue, and by the first Kangerong Road Board assessment of 1864 was occupied and probably owned by Captain Adams.

Two tracks join in portion 20, both indicating how much of a barrier the Rocks presented to coastal travel, The early Dromana Township maps show tracks whose general course was like Latrobe Parade, heading uphill just before the tea tree swamp (below the present bowls club) to access the back road (Palmerston Avenue/ today's freeway.
The track between this THREE CHAIN ROAD and portion 20 may have been made by travellers calling in for a chat, to have a horse shoed or perhaps to sample the Vivyan Vineyard produce if such was available by 1855.

The track from the beach (actually the point where Adams Creek met the coastal track) may have been made by Captain Adams when he reputedly beached his vessel (named) and used its timbers to construct his cottage at Adams Corner in circa 1842 (as claimed in an undocumented submission to council in the early 2000's to have a park in McCrae named after Captain Adams.)The captain may have beached the vessel IN Adams Creek at high tide which would have made it far easier to salvage its timbers to construct the cottage.

The captain may have used the upper track later to access his 36 acres near the Arthurs Seat summit (c/a's 5 and 6, section D, Township of Dromana, heading up Towerhill Rd from Melway 159 F8.)

PORTION 19.
Parkmore Rd indicates the boundary between portions 20 and 19 and this boundary would have met the back road at the end of Surrey St in Melway 170 H1. On the map at this point is shown a strange double creek crossing the two branches rejoining on the coastal side of the road to feed a waterhole. Today, that waterhole has become the un-named reserve between Woodvale Grove and Surrey St.

The double crossing of what was called the Hobson's Flat road caused a huge dispute between Back Road Bob Cairns who was on the uphill side of the road and Robert Henry Adams, on the coastal side, in the first decade of the 1900's. Poor William Hobley was caught in the middle of this dispute and may have moved to Leongatha to escape the unpleasantness and false accusations*. Surely crossings 1 and 2 would be those shown on the map.
* https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/65837598
https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/65837643

The subdivision of portion 19 (Albert Holloway's PARKMORE etc) will be discussed in a separate mini history.

PORTION 18.
Portion 18 was purchased from the grantee by Charles Blakey, poundkeeper and grantee in section 6 Yuroke at Somerton. He subdivided the land and Jack Jones whose store on his foreshore block (later George Fountain's THE PINES) had been burnt down seems to have been the only buyer, his two acres on the FJ's corner being described as lot 86 and shown in a sketch of title on a memorial in Harvey Marshall's scrapbook recording a loan obtained from Captain Adams by William Edwards.

In 1874, Blakey's executors put the remaining 150 acres up for sale and portion 18 was sold to Robert White junior. He sold it to the Lake brothers in 1888 after the death of his first wife and moved to John Moore's 27 acre "Glenferrie" on the north corner of White Hill and McIlroy Rds at Red Hill, (where he was called Blooming Bob White to distinguish him from his nephew, Bullocky Bob White A.K.A. Robert James.) Here his children who had been among Rosebud State School's first pupils were cared for by his late wife's sister, Hadassah Hillis, who in 1999 became his second wife
.
Jack Jones had built a store on lot 86 in about 1884 and the Lake Brothers tried unsuccessfully to have him evicted in 1889. The rest of the story of the 150 acre farm is told in the chapter HENRY POTTON'S FARM in Peter Wilson's ON THE ROAD TO ROSEBUD including the two suicides of De Garis, the developer of the HEART OF ROSEBUD ESTATE. The historic sites and street names on portion 20 will be discussed in another mini history.

On the map a very prominent waterhole is shown just west of the line of Adams Avenue, the eastern boundary of portion 18. The site of the waterhole is today's Lawson Park,(170 F1) accessed from Mark St by the appropriately-named Adams Lane (which I have never noticed before!)

CROWN PORTION 17.
Crown portion 17, extending from Jetty Rd to the line of Norm Clark Walk was the true heart of Rosebud. Robert Glover seems to have bought his co-grantee out, possibly after it was advertised for sale in 1857; it seemed to be a working farm with a homestead.*
* https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/7145537
"TUESDAY, 10th MARCH.
Parish of Wannaeue, Arthurs Seat. 129 Acres.
Four roomed Cottage, Men's Huts,etc."

On 3-9-1864, the property had a net annual value of 6 pounds 10 shillings. By 2-9-1865 it was owned by Woolcott, the value of the 129 acres unchanged. On 31-7-1892, he was assessed on 120 acres and 84 acres on 25-7-1896. The unsold portion of the estate still consisted of 84 acres when W.F.Vale, agent, Melbourne was assessed on it in 1910.

William Gomm, grantee of c/a 13 Rosebud Fishing Village and son of a convict had apparently leased part of the 129 acres in 1876 but it had obviously been subdivided by R.R.Woolcott by 1878, when, with the aid of a loan from Nelson Rudduck of Dromana, George and Susan Peatey bought lot 76 on the south corner of Jetty Rd and McDowell St, today surrounded by Netherby and consisting of 2 acres, occupying the block in about 1888 when the loan had been repaid.

Daniel Coyle (a grantee in the fishing village) and his wife, known to oldtimers as Granny Coyle were early shopkeepers at Rosebud before moving to Mordialloc BUT THE SHOP MAY HAVE BEEN ON THEIR ROSEBUD FISHING VILLAGE BLOCK, crown allotment 10, immediately east of today's Banksia Point apartment/cafe development, RATHER THAN ON PORTION 17.
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The school started in the Mechanics' Institute which proved unsatisfactory and land in Woolcott's subdivision was purchased to erect a school and teacher's residence as detailed in Peter Wilson's book. It was at the school that the post office started in 1889 and it remained on portion 17 until about 1996.

In summary, this is where Rosebud people posted and picked up their mail.
1. PRE-1889. Loose bag at lighthouse (with keepers' mail.)
2. School. Slot cut in residence wall.(1889.)
3. Louis Anderson's store on lot 42, c/a 17,Wannaeue,near Peebles site 1890-1897)
4. School hole in wall 1897-1901.
5. John Roberts family's P.O. 1901-1919 on lot 42 as above, last postmaster being Percy Ditchburn.
6. Rudduck's store 75 metres to the west with William C. Twyford as first postmaster there in 1920, a Rudduck son in law and Roy Cairns probably before the store was destroyed by fire.
6A. Rudduck store rebuilt quickly on larger scale and bought by Edwin James Wheeler in 1923. Site occupied present numbers 1039,1040, 1043 and 1045, the post office being in No.1045. Wheeler sold to Stephens in 1929 but retained the post office and possibly 1043.
7. Mr Wheeler transferred the post office to a new building at 1047 in February 1937. He retired in March 1946 and his son,Geoff, was appointed postmaster.
8. On July 4,1951, it was reported that the new site for the post office, at 1003 Pt. Nepean Rd,with a frontage of 83 feet,had been completed.
9. Rosebud Plaza (formerly Port Phillip Plaza) P.O. 1996? (This is the approximate date given for the closure of the Rosebud West P.O.)
The above information was provided by Peter Wilson in a local paper accessed in Mick Dark's collection.
Information about Robert McDowell and some street names will be included in another mini history.

ROSEBUD LAGOON.
A feature of Rosebud in the old days that can be seen on the map, mainly in portion 17 but extending slightly into portion 16 was the Rosebud Lagoon. It was drained so that Spray St could be constructed.

CROWN PORTIONS 16 AND 15.
Crown portions 16 (west to Fifth Avenue) and 15(west to First Avenue) became the Clacton on Sea Estate in 1909. In 1864, Hugh Glass, grantee of crown portion 14 owned crown portion 16 as well. Glass became insolvent and it is impossible to ascertain from rate records who occupied portions 15 and 16 until 1909 when it was bought by a reputedly American company.

Peter Wilson's ON THE ROAD TO ROSEBUD devotes a chapter to the estate but most of the information relates to gimmicks to promote sales and land that owners forfeited due to unpaid rates which the shire developed quite recently with Clacton Divide connecting its east and west ends. Most of the land that did sell was naturally near the beach. In the last assessment available on microfiche, that of 1919-20 W.H.Ritchie of Box Hill and Peter Percival, Mrs A.J.Ross, Arthur Smith, Mrs K. Tute, W.L.Twyford and Walter G.Uridge, all of Rosebud, were assessed on land containing buildings, with net annual values above 10 pounds.
Arthur Smith may have been A.J.Smith, president of the Mechanics' Institute who illegally detained the Methodist Church's organ in 1903.
https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/67084789
Mrs Katherine Tute and her husband owned much land between Waterfall and Duells Rds and Mrs Tute, whose husband was a P.O.W. in W.W.1, made Ewart Brindle of Dromana promise to continue his art in America.

The second 1909 article illustrates what a fib was told in the first about the Clacton on Sea estate.
600 blocks sold in 2 weeks?
History of Clacton on Sea land

The second article also shows that W.F.Vale had owned crown portion 15 of 101 acres 1 rood and 8 perches and the Freehold Investment Company portion 16 of 115 acres exactly (as on the 1855 map and my much later parish map!), not 116 a.2 r. 2 p. and 102 acres as stated in the article. The investment company had also owned 29 acres that became part of Eleanor Rigg's Hindhope at about the same time. See Portion 14.

Everyone loves winning a prize but the Limerick winner thought his was a dud.
scrubby black sand about a mile from the beach

CROWN PORTION 14.
Crown portion 14 between First Avenue and Boneo Rd was sold off in portions of 19,19, 20, 20 and 16 acres when the Grantee, Hugh Glass, became insolvent.
The first two bits were eventually combined by Greg and Eleanor Rigg and went south to include 50 First Avenue and all Hope St house blocks.They retained the name bestowed on half of the property prior to 1900 by Oswald Randall. Hindhope Villa at 50 First Avenue was probably 117 years old when it was demolished in 2017! Subdivision of the property commenced after John McComb of Carrum (Seaford) had leased it for a year. McCombe St was supposed to be named after him but the surveyor engaged by developer, Arthur Alfred THOMAS who bought Hindhope on 23-1-1914, got the spelling wrong. Hindhope Villa was bought by Alexander Mackie Younger whose first wife stupidly shot herself just after she'd bought him a huge portion of the estate, whose second wife left him during their honeymoon because he'd installed a maid who, surprise, surprise, became his third wife.
The 16 acre portion was owned by (John?) Freeman and was combined with the two 20 acre blocks by Ramsay and Nora Couper to form a property that became known as The Thicket. It was later owned by Alf Rawlings and today is easily recognised by Warranella Avenue and the streets such as The Drive which connect it with the Government roads.

It was subdivided as the Rosebud Park Estate about two years* after Nora Couper died at Box Hill.

COUPER.-On the 1st . January, 1925, at her residence, 64 Station street. Box Hill, Nora, the dearly beloved wife of Ramsay Couper, and fondly loved mother of Sybil, Evelyn (Mrs.Jamieson), and Guy late of Rosebud, Dromana.
(P.1, Argus, 2-1-1925.)

ROSEBUD PARK ESTATE

Nora's daughter Evelyn had married George Edward Jamieson in 1915. He was a son of William Jamieson, grantee of the Rosebud Fishing Village block between the Jetty's Cafe and Mechanics' Institute sites.
EventBirth Event registration number17123 Registration year1885
Personal information
Family nameJAMIESON Given namesGeorge Edward SexUnknown Father's nameWilliam Mother's nameAdelaide (Phair) Place of birthDR OM