Shire-wide news extracts from the Moruya Examiner of 14 June 1919, provided by the Moruya & District Historical Society:
HELP your local Red Cross Society buy a portable bed for bed-ridden soldiers.
FURNITURE FOR SALE. – Residents who take a pride in having their residences beautified with high-class furniture should not forget the sale of Mr. Keith’s, which takes place on the premises, Post Office, this (Saturday) afternoon at 2’oclock sharp.
BODALLA FOOTBALLERS. – The lads out Bodalla way are practising and intend to make no mean show when they shortly visit Narooma. “Feed the backs and keep the line well spread out, boys,” and more will be heard of you. What about a visit to Moruya? Now, Mr. Bryce, look into this.
TENNIS. – The Newstead Tennis Club journeyed to Mogo on Saturday, 24th ult., and after an enjoyable game and much hospitality from the local players, won by 4 sets 16 games.
DEATHS. –
MR. H. TESSIER. Last Friday the sad news reached Moruya by wire that Mr. Harry Tessier had that morning been found dead. Mrs. Tessier at once proceeded to Newcastle, her husband having been engaged on one of the Government dredges. The deceased had a comfortable home in Gundary, Moruya, where his family resided and which was convenient for himself during the years of dredging operations in this and the Narooma Rivers. Mr. Tessier had worked one year over the retiring age at the request of the Department, in order to allow younger men to go to the front. On Thursday of last week he retired from the service in order to return home and enjoy his well-earned pension. On Friday the following day, however, he was found by his mate, Mr. Robert Bain. Deceased leaves a widow, a member of the highly respected Cannon family of Mynora, one son and one daughter.
MRS PIKE. At her residence, Mullenderree, on Friday last, Mrs. Charles Pike, who had been ailing for years, suffering from rheumatics, passed over to the Great Majority at the early age of 32 years. The late Mrs. Pike was the daughter of Mr. Lawler, of Nerrigundah. A husband and two children are left to mourn their sad loss.
BODALLA. – (From our Correspondent.)
Bodalla and its history has more than once seen the light of day through the columns of the “Examiner.” Tracing back in the dim long ago one learns that in the early days of the colony, a grant of 6000 acres was given to Mr. Hawdon on the banks of the Tuross River. In many places it was heavily timbered, and the rest was covered with tussocky grass which was the home of numerous wild pigs and cattle.
Mr. Hawdon devoted the land to sheep rearing, but it proved a failure and Mr. Hawdon sold it to that great Australian, Mr. T. S. Mort, then a leading Sydney commercial man. Mr. Mort bought the property to show people that dairying could be successfully carried on. He at once started to clear the land and prepare it for dairying. This meant the expenditure of a vast sum of energy and money. During the clearing operations much fine timber was destroyed. Mr. Mort, recognising this, at once erected a sawmill. It has been said that Mr. Mort invested £50,000 before he was able to prove that his venture was a financial success. As time went on Bodalla Estate kept increasing in size until it is now said to be somewhere in the vicinity of 25,000 acres.
Mr. T. S. Mort married twice. His family consisted of seven sons and two daughters. Four sons are dead. One son (William) settled at Dalmeny; another (Laidley) at Brou; and a third (Robert) settled at Coila and Cooper’s Island. Cooper’s Island was owned by a Mr. Brice, who exchanged land with the Mort family. The daughters are Alice and Annie. The former married a Captain Atkinson of the British Navy. The latter married a Bishop Selwyn (now deceased) of Norfolk Island.
Twenty 100 years ago booklets containing articles for the years 1899 to 1918 are available ($5 ea) from the Society’s rooms. Copies of local newspapers from the 1860s to date can be viewed at the Society’s Family History Research Centre (Ph 4474 3224) situated at the rear of the Museum in Campbell St. Moruya (www.mdhs.org.au).
