Tag Archives: Beechworth

Aug 11 2013

1871: Christ Church, Anglican, Beechworth, Victoria.

The foundation stone of the Anglican ‘Christ Church’ at Beechworth, was laid by Justice Thomas Spencer Cope (1821-1891) on Saturday 13th November 1858[1] and was built to the designs of prominent Melbourne Architect Leonard Terry (1825-1884). The foundation stone is now hidden beneath the tower which was erected in 1864[2].

Many 19th Century Australian Stained Glass artists and companies are now represented by later stained glass windows erected in Christ Church but only two of the original windows remain which were created by the Ferguson & Urie stained glass company of Curzon Street North Melbourne.

Photos dated 18th December 2011.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

At the liturgical north-west corner of the nave, near the tower entrance, are the remaining two original examples of Ferguson & Urie stained glass. These are just plain single light windows with the simple red and blue stained glass border designs with plain in-fill diamond quarries. These simple designs can be found in many Victorian Churches from c.1861 – c.1888. It’s likely that all the original windows in the church were created by the Ferguson & Urie Company at the time of its erection, but the course of time sees these original windows inevitably being replaced by memorial windows.

At the base of one of the two original windows is an obscure clue as to its donor. The lower edge of one window has the text; “Presented 1871 BTW”. A small pink and yellow flower appears on the bottom left of the text and the heraldic symbol of a demi-wolf on the bottom right. The Latin text below the wolf reads “Res Non Verba”, meaning “things, not words” or “facts instead of words,” but probably more commonly known in modern times as “actions speak louder than words.”

This a very clever, simple, and very conservative adaption of one of Ferguson & Urie’s plain ‘stock’ windows. In most cases these simple windows with coloured borders were the first windows to be erected in a new church but this particular modified window is the only one found to date that has the bottom edge modified, very simply, to include the text of the donor and his coat of arms.

Although the clues at the base of the window are obscure, a logical process of elimination has narrowed down the donor of this stained glass window as extremely likely to be ‘Bowes Todd Wilson’ (c.1812-1882), Superintendent of Police for the Beechworth district Apr 1869 – Dec 1870.

Who was Bowes Todd Wilson?

In 1857 Bowes Todd Wilson (1812-1882) was Inspector of Police and District Paymaster at Kyneton[3]. In May 1859 he was appointed Territorial Magistrate for Swan Hill by His Excellency, H. S. Chapman[4] which he resigned in February1861[5]. In April 1869 he was appointed Superintendent of Police for the Beechworth District and retired in December 1870[6] with a Government pension of £186 p.a[7]. He remained in Beechworth for a short period after his retirement and later removed to Melbourne where he died at the ‘Parade Hotel’, East Melbourne on the 12th August 1882[8], aged 70 years[9].

The heraldic symbol and associated Latin text in the stained glass window is identified as being the armorial crest of the “Wilson” family name;  “..This Lion is actually a “Demi Wolf”, and the motto is associated with the families names Wilson, as is the Demi Wolf…”[10]

About Christ Church:

On the 6th of November 1856, Major-General Macarthur had approved the appointment of the trustees of land set apart for the Church of England purposes at Beechworth. Those he appointed as Trustees were; Melnoth Hall, William Gore Brett, Edward Graves Mayne, Charles King and Samuel George Hogg. [11]

Two years later, William Gore Brett, was bestowed with the responsibility for the official invitations to the laying of the foundation stone of Christ Church and his invitation to the Beechworth Shire Council was read at the council meeting the previous day, 12th November 1858[12].

At the appointed time of two o’clock on Saturday the 13th November 1858, Judge Cope laid the foundation stone and immediately after the ceremony a Bazaar to raise money for the building fund was held in the former El Dorado Hotel “…which has been tastefully decorated with evergreens, and colors of all traditions, (including the Chinese)…“

Significant tabloid transcriptions:

Ovens & Murray Advertiser, Beechworth, Wednesday 10th November 1858, page 3.

“THE NEW CHURCH OF ENGLAND.- The foundation stone of the new edifice, the erection of which has just commenced, will be formally laid this day by his Honor Judge Cope. The ceremony will take place at 2 o’clock p.m. and will doubtless attract a large number of visitors to witness it.”

Ovens & Murray Advertiser, Beechworth, Thursday 11th November 1858, page 3.

“THE FOUNDATION STONE OF THE NEW CHURCH OF ENGLAND.- A mistake occurred in our notice yesterday as to the day on which the interesting ceremony would take place, but the fault in this case was not ours. The foundation stone will be laid on Saturday (D.V.) with the formalities usual on the occasion of this nature, by His Honor Judge Cope. Two o’clock in the afternoon is the hour named and the event will we have no doubt attract a large concourse of persons.”

Ovens & Murray Advertiser, Beechworth, Saturday 13th November 1858, page 3

“THE FOUNDATION STONE of the Church of England in course of erection, will be laid at 2 o’clock this afternoon by his Honor Judge Cope.”

The Argus, Melbourne, Vic, Monday 14th Aug 1882, page 1.

“WILSON.- On the 12th inst., at the Parade Hotel, East Melbourne, Bowes Todd Wilson, formerly Superintendent of police.”

Footnotes:

[1] Ovens & Murray Advertiser, Beechworth, Saturday 13th November 1858, page 3

[7] prov.vic.gov.au, Will & Probate documents, Bowes Todd Wilson, 1882.

[9] Bowes Todd Wilson, Vic BDM: 9368/1882, age 70.

[10] Stephen Michael Szabo, Hon. Secretary, The Australian Heraldry Society– email, June 2012.

Mar 9 2012

1864: Burke Museum, Beechworth, Victoria.

Amongst the most famous secular stained glass windows created by the Ferguson & Urie company is the Burke memorial window at the Beechworth Museum in Northern Victoria.

In 1861 the former Superintendent of Police at Beechworth, Robert O’Hara Burke (1821-1861), met his demise during the infamous ‘Burke & Wills’ expedition, an event which is well recorded in Australian history.

The expedition was reportedly the most expensive ever undertaken at over £60,000 and the loss of seven lives and was the topic of much discussion at the time and still is after over a century and a half.

Newspapers all over Australia wrote of the expedition in great detail and monuments to Burke an Wills began to appear across the colony.

At Beechworth, in July 1864 it was reported that a design for a Burke memorial stained glass window, submitted by John H. Cuzner (Principal of Beechworth Grammar School and Hon. Sec of the Athenaeum), would be accepted, but the window would not come to fruition for another ten years until 1874.

Photos taken 18 Dec 2011.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

The window features the Colonial Flag of Australia, the red Cross of St George, the White Rose of England, the emblem of New South Wales in gold within the red cross, the Thistle of Scotland, the Shamrock of Ireland and the Southern Cross in gold stars with the wording “Burke Memorial”. The window was reportedly made for £30 and still exists in remarkable condition and is now the centrepiece attraction in the museum. The museum guides, pamphlets and advertising sign outside the museum all include pictures of the window and there are postcards of the window on sale.

An article on the wall at the Beechworth museum (18th Dec 2011) reads:

“In 1861, when the disastrous fate of the Burke and wills expedition became known in Beechworth it was decided that a monument be erected in memory of Robert O’Hara Burke who, as Superintendent of Police for the whole Ovens district from 1854-1858, has been stationed in Beechworth. The Athenaeum building was extended in 1863 to incorporate a museum and in 1874 the Burke Memorial stained glass window was made to order by Ferguson & Urie of Melbourne at the cost of thirty pounds. The building was further extended with the addition of wings on three sides from 1971-1979.”

“Robert O’Hara Burke was chosen by the Royal Society of Victoria to lead an expedition across Central Australia in 1860-61. Burke succeeded in crossing the Australian continent from south to north, but at a terrible price; the expedition cost him his life. The crossing ranked Burke as one of the most controversial figures in the history of Australian exploration”.

“Some called him ‘The mad amateur bushman’, others said ‘He was betrayed at the hour of success’, The Royal Commission set up to investigate the disaster which overtook the expedition, concluded by issuing the following statement: “We cannot too deeply deplore the lamentable result off an expedition undertaken at so great a cost to the Colony; but while we regret the absence of a systematic plan of operations on the part of the leader, we desire to express our admiration of his gallantry and daring”.

In 1864 the concept of a memorial stained glass window has been adopted and a design by Mr. Cuzner has been approved.

Ovens and Murray Advertiser, Beechworth, Vic, Saturday 2nd July 1864, page 2. 
“BEECHWORTH ATHENAEUM – The first meeting of the new Committee is to be held on Monday evening next, when we are informed, it is contemplated to bring under consideration the desirability of attempting to get up a Bruce Auction for the purpose of obtaining funds to complete the Burke Museum, and render it suitable for the object it is intended to accomplish; also, a better plan than at present adopted for ensuring all subscribers easy access to the books they may desire to take home from the Library. The advantages of a Museum to the district are so apparent that we feel confident the public will liberally respond to any well considered project to give that of the Athenaeum a fair start, and look forward to shortly having to congratulate the town on the possession a collection that will be creditable not only to the Athanaeum, but to this part of the colony, being aware that there are gentlemen on the committee able and willing to render great assistance in its formation. It is considered by many that the subscribers to the building itself should have an opportunity given them of expressing their approval, or otherwise, of the intended memorial to ‘Burke,’ and we are sure the Athenaeum Committee will be anxious to give them satisfaction before definitely determining on the carrying out of the design. We, ourselves, highly approve of the memorial window, designed by Mr Cuzner, as being both useful and ornamental, and merely express the feeling we have heard for the information of the Committee. Steps are also to be taken with the view of commencing the lecture session without unnecessary delay, and from the material of which the Officers and Committee are composed, we have every assurance that all that energy and zeal can accomplish will be done to preserve the Athenaeum in its present efficiency, and to give satisfaction to members of that very useful Institution.”

Mr Cuzner’s design for the window would remain on ice for the next ten years. In 1874 it finally came to fruition.

Ovens & Murray Advertiser, Beechworth, Vic, Saturday 1st August 1874, page 5.
“…The unsightly boarding in the oval aperture in the end wall of the Museum has been replaced by a stained glass window, intended to commemorate the memory of the ill-fated explorer from whom this part of the institution takes its name, and if not everything that could have been desired, your Committee trust it will be considered as a great improvement upon the state of things that previously existed. The cost of this memorial window is £30, which will be augmented by the cost of placing it in the position designed for it…”

The window is the only known extant Ferguson & Urie stained glass in an oval shape and is now artificially lighted from behind.

External Links:

Biography: Robert O’Hara Burke.

National Archives: Burke memorial window.

Short link to this page: https://wp.me/p28nLD-mp

© Copyright