Biographies of early settlers

These biographies of some of the founding fathers of Morwell have come from “Victoria and its Metropolis”.  This work of three volumes was produced in 1887 to mark the Jubilee of Queen Victorias accession to the throne.  It contained particulars of forty Morwell and district men some of whose biographies appear here in abridged form with additional subsequent material

E
a
r
l
y

S
e
t
t
l
e
r
s

B
i
o
g
r
a
p
h
i
e
s

Applegate, Paul - Born – England 1827   

Arrived in Victoria 1853 in ship “Elizebeth”, worked as miller in Flinders Street Melbourne for one year.  Moved to Geelong, worked as carrier using bullock team for 3 years.  Farmed at Moorabool River, 1858 – 1875.  Selected land Morwell 1876.  Married 1857, Ellen Pratt of Co. Cavan, Ireland. They had four children.

Paul Applegate deceased 1900.

Biles, Thomas - Born Wales 1857.


Came to Victoria 1860 with parents who farmed at Geelong.  Selected 240 acres in Morwell 1877.  Married Miss Wuttrich of Morwell.  They had four children

Buckley, Benjamin Wager - Born Lancashire, England 1817 


Landed Adelaide 1851 from ship “Carlton” Came to Victoria 1852.  Proceeded to gold diggings at Forest Creek, Bendigo and Castlemaine.  Spent two years in carrying business.  Bought land and farmed at Kyneton before selecting 240 acres at Morwell.   Married 1848, Betsy Smith, one son, Joseph Henry who selected 320 acres Morwell

Benjamin Wager Buckley deceased 1892 – Betsy Buckley deceased 1882

Corney, Charles E. - Born Casterton, Victoria 1865   

Farmed with uncle in Western District for 18 years.  Came to Morwell to work for McDougall.  Selected 320 acres for himself.  Bred trotting horses.  He gained second prize at the Melbourne Show 1886 with his trotter “Wildfire”.  Member of Morwell Football team.  He employed three men

Daly, William   -  Born Cork, Ireland 1830  

Arrived in Victoria on “Queen of the seas” 1885.  Farmed western district.  Selected 265 acres, plus 160 acres later, at Morwell.  Married 1858, Bridget Tait from Southern Ireland.  Two children.

William Daly deceased 1910  -  Bridget Daly deceased 1879

Dunbar, Duncan   -  Born Scotland 1851   

Arrived in Victoria with parents in ship “Hamilton”.  Selected 146 acres Morwell 1887.  Married Ellen Watson of N.S.W. in 1880

Duncan Dunbar deceased 1925  -  Ellen Dunbar deceased 1937

Flegg, John  -   Born Norfolk, England 1836, Apprentice wheelwright. 

Came to Victoria 1868 aboard “Essex”.  Conducted Wheelwright business in Brighton until 1885 when he selected 320m acres Morwell.

Married 1856, mary Wright.  Nine children

Fleming, John   -  Born Essendon Victoria 1863   

Farmed with parents.  Selected 196 acres Morwell Bridge 1883
Micheal Fleming  deceased 1931  -  his wife Ellen deceased 1925

Flewin, John  -   Born  Kent, England 1846  


Arrived by ship ‘Glasburden” 1856.
His father was first brickmaker in Ballarat.  Selected 82 acres Morwell, also conducted brickmaking business in the town. 
Married 1868, Margaret Watson of Queensland, Nine children
John Flewin deceased 1926  -  Margaret Flewin deceased 1934

Godridge, Henry   -  Born Nottingham, England 1823. Learned brickmaking trade. 

Arrived Victoria 1848 in “Pride of the Sea”.  Worked Melbourne, Portland and Geelong, followed gold diggings Bathurst N.S.W., Forest Creek, Ballarat, Bendigo and other fields.  Built and constructed hotel at Russel’s Creek, Gippsland 1861 for 14 years.  Took over Morwell Bridge Hotel 1879.  Later conducted a coffee palace and was postmaster at Morwell Bridge where he also selected his land.

He married Susan Marion Graham of Stirling and had six children.
Henry Godridge deceased 1894  -  Susan M. Godridge deceased 1915

Gooding, Thomas   -  Born Somersetshire, England 1842 


Came to Victoria on ship “Sea Queen” .  Educated Presbyterian Free School, Geelong.  Spent eight years on father’s farm then 10 years droving before selecting 200 acres at Morwell.   Suffered property loss in 1800 bushfires.   Married Miss Blair of Geelong 1876.  They had five children.

Kelleher, Edmond   -  Born Co. Kerry, Ireland 1850  


Arrived Melbourne by s.s.”Great Britain”. 
Worked as farmer and overseer on north eastern Creswick and Gippsland railway lines.  With his brother John, opened a general store in Morwell 1876.  Bought 700 acres land and two allotments.  Married 1882 to Bridget Winnie O’Shannessy of Victoria.  One son

Edmond Kelleher deceased 1911, his wife Winifred deceased 1016

Kelleher, Maurice.    

Brother of Edmond,
Born 1854 and came to Victoria 1875 on the “Durham”.  Selected 250 acres Morwell 1880.  Married Ellen Tobin of Co. Kilkenny, Ireland 1885

McKitterick, John   -  Born Ireland 1837  

Arrived Victoria on “Port Phillip” 1884.
Proceeded to Morwell, bought an acre allotment selected on tarwin River.
Married in 1868 to Miss Murthas og Ireland.  Eight children

McNabb, William   -  Born Downpatrick, Ireland   

Arrived Victoria on board “Carpenteria”.

Worked successively as a wood splitter, then for a brewer and in the carrying trade, finally as a farmer.  Bought 1056 acres (at five pounds an acre) Morwell area.

Married 1864, Miss Beattie of Tyrone, Ireland.  Eleven children

Molloy, Laurence   -  Born Ireland 1838   


Came to Victoria in 1859 by ship “James Baines”. 
Spent one year on uncles farm at Kilmore, went to McIvor diggings then to New Zealand for 10 years and Queensland for 9 months.  Selected 240 acres Morwell area in 1879.
Married Miss Dowd of Ireland 1867. and had a family of five children.

Laurence Molloy deceased 1908

Morrell, Robert   -  Born Devonshire, England 1828 

Came to Melbourne on board the “Percy” 1853.
Engaged in gardening and his trade of bootmaking.
Selected 200 acres Morwell area in 1875.
Married Miss E. Meddick and had a family of eleven children.

Robert Morrell deceased 1896 and his wife Elizabeth deceased 1910

Ryan, Jeremiah   -  Born Dublin, Ireland 1847   

Went to America 1862 for five years, returned to Ireland, sailed to New Zealand 1871 on “Glen Huntley”.  He had an adventurous carrer on goldfields in Victoria, N.S.W. and queensland and also did some tin mining.  He selected 320 acres Morwell area and bought 240 acres more, plus eight town allotments and two shops in Morwell.

Married Ellen Fleming of Essendon 1883 and had three children.

Jeremiah Ryan deceased 1910  -  Ellen Ryan deceased 1944

Theobold, Thomas   -  Born Yorkshire, England  

Came to Victoria 1853 by ship “Atlanta”.  Worked in Melbourne for the Government before going to diggings ai Ararat, Ballarat, Bendigo, Forest Creek and Woods Point. 
Went to Heyfield 1870, built and constructed Commercial Hotel there until he came to Morwell in 1879.  Built and ran a butcher shop until 1885 when he retired to his farm of 51 acres.  He let a butcher’s and a baker’s shop and owned eight town allotments.  Married 1851 to Jane Gibson of Yorkshire, England.  One son

Thomas Theobold deceased 1906  -  Jane Theobold deceased 1906

Tonkyn, Howard Nicholls  -  Born Cornwall, England  

Arrived Melbourne by ship “Kent” 1873.
Worked at his trade of bakery in Carlton, Traralgon then at Morwell for four years.  Conducted Morwell Hotel for two years then went to Walhalla.
For 1500 pounds he bought the twenty five year old Long Tunnel Hotel with its 22 rooms and 13 stall stable

Valentine, William   -  Born Wicklow, Ireland 1880   

Arrive Victoria s.s.”Sorata” 1884.
Managed a farm and orchard Pakenham for two years.
After a two year visit to Ireland he bought 270 acres at Morwell in 1880.