Founding of the Municipality.
As we have seen, the Parish of Boroondara comprised 14,250 acres or 23¾ square miles of country. The main roads had been defined, and in some places made passable, a bridge over a creek built here and there by a paternal government. Such matters were attended to by the Central Road Board, resided over by Dr. Murhy afterwards Sir F. Murphy Speaker of the Legislative Assembly, which received its funds direct from Government and from tolls. But the growing settlement was crying out for better roads, and about 1856 it was proposed to follow the example of other districts in the young Colony and under the forms of the existing act, establish a municipality to be called the Boroondara Road Board. This was objected to by some of the residents, as hitherto they had been free from rates the revenue from the toll at Richmond Bridge and the Government grant being, they considered, sufficient for the wants of the district, and a stormy meeting against the proposal was held at the Govenor Hotham Hotel, Upper Hawthorn which is fully reported in the "Argus" of 7th October 1850 but it was of no avail. The petition for the Road Board was granted, and it was proclaimed on the 4th October, 1956. Mr Henry Sellars Walsh was elected first chairman, Mr John Toon secretary, and Mr. William Rooney surveyor.«14»
During the first two years the Board spent some £7,000 on roads, bridges, &c., then there were loud cries for more roads, &c., so the expenditure was increased to £18,000 during the next two years. But the district was progressing, and some of the leading spirits of Hawthorn thought that Boroondara was too big and unwieldy, and their portion of the district would be better looked after as a separate municipality. A requisition to the Government was signed and presented, and a public meeting called for 18th June, 1860, at the Red Lion Hotel, Lower Hawthorn, which was then in the centre of population, to receive the report of the progress made for the erection of a municipality under the existing Municipal Institutions Act. Mr. Michael O'Grady, afterwards member for the district and a good friend to Hawthorn in later years, explained the position of affairs, and resolutions were passed expressing the desirability of establishing the municipality. Meetings were subsequently held at the Hawthorn Hotel, Fletcher's Hotel, and the Governor Hotham Hotel, when the resolutions were confirmed. A memorial was prepared and presented to the Governor, Sir Henry Barkly, K.C.B., and on the 26th June, 1860, a notice was published in the "Government Gazette" granting the petition, and ordering an election of councillors to take place.
It will be noticed that Hoddle had originally called the government township of Boroondara, the land on the north side of Burwood road from the Yarra to Power Street, "Hawthorne" but the "Gazette" notice came out "Hawthorn," and as such it has remained. The new municipality appointed the same officers, Messrs, Toon and Rooney, as were conducting the affairs of the Boroondara Road Board, and for a time used the same office in Burwood Road, Hawthorn, but in the course of a few months the Board's office was removed to Camberwell. The people of Kew now began to think that with the seat of government at Camberwell they «15» would receive little attention from the Board, though represented on it by one or two residents, Messrs. Mark Cranwell and George Lewis, and talked of self government. A letter from "Q. in the Corner," in the "Richmond Australian" of 6th October, 1860, advocated the election of all Kew men at the approaching election for the Boroondara Road Board.
The Road Board was alarmed at the turn events were taking, and called a public meeting at the Kew Hotel for the 8th October, 1860, when the President, Mr. Michael O'Grady, occupied the chair, and did his best pacify the ratepayers. However, on the motion of Mr. George Wharton, seconded by Mr. Frederick Barton, the following resolution was passed:-"That in the opinion of this meeting, it is advisable that Kew should be made a separate road district." An amendment to the effect that the Road Board management of the district should be continued was proposed by Messrs. John Toon and John Rigby Norris, but received no support.
A petition to the Governor-in-Council, signed by 172 resident householders, was published in the "Government Gazette" of 9th November, 1860, praying for the establishment of the Municipality of Kew; the term Borough was introduced by an amended act some years after.
Municipal matters became rather strained. Boroondara, fearful of losing a fair amount of revenue by the defection of Kew, instructed its secretary and rate collector to make an early start with the collection of rates for the current year, and to start at the Kew end of the district. This further incensed the Kew people, and a public meeting was held at the Athenaeum (now Town Hall) on 14th December, 1860, to consider whether rates should be paid to Boroondara or not. Mr. John Halfey occupied the chair. The chairman explained the object of the meeting and read the opinion of Mr. T. H. Fellows, an eminent barrister, which was to the effect that as both the residents of the new Municipality of Hawthorn and of Kew had taken «16» part in the election of the present Board, they could he compelled to pay the rate levied. Some very strong speeches were made, and Mr. Toon, the secretary of the Board, was cross questioned as ton the amount of rates collected, and the intentions or the Board. He stated that about £100 of the present rate, due on 11th October, had been collected in Kew, while Mr. Cranwell, a member of the Board, said that even if made a separate municipality, the greater part of the money would be spent in Kew.
It was stated in the Boroondara Council that several signatures were improperly appended to the petition, only 136 being genuine, and that there were only 220 resident householders in the district.
The petition of the ratepayers was, however, granted, and the proclamation of Kew as a separate municipality appeared in a supplement to the "Government Gazette" of 18th December, 1860. Kew thus attains its fiftieth year on the 18th 'of December next, when its revenue will have so increased as to enable it to claim the dignity of a Town.
The municipality having been proclaimed the next step was to elect a Council, thus the following in the Richmond "Australian" of 22nd December, 1860:-
MUNICIPAL.
DISTRICT OF KEW.
We, the undersigned, being householders who signed the Petition for the Constitution of Kew into a Municipal District, hereby convene a Public Meeting of the Resident Householders and Landowners within such District, to be holden at the Athenaeum at Kew, on FRIDAY, the 19th day of JANUARY next, at the hour of seven o'clock in the afternoon, for the following purposes, that is to say:- «17»
lst. For deciding whether the Council for the District shall consist of three, five, or seven members.
2nd. For deciding whether the members of such Municipal Council shall or shall not receive any pecuniary remuneration; and, if any, what shall be the amount thereof. And
3rd. For electing the members of such Municipal Council.
| John Halfey. | Alfred B. Malleson. |
| Chas. Ferdinand Bradley. | Geo. Lewis. |
| Wm.Stevenson. | J. Gill Tanner. |
| T. Judd. | Thos. Hopwood. |
| John R. Withers. | G. Y. Fishley. |
| Thos. Mitchell. | S. J. Payne. |
| John Halfey. | Alfred B. Malleson. |
Of these signatories, all have passed away but one, who is still a resident of Kew, Mr. Thomas Judd, though at the moment of writing he has been away from Kew for some months on a holiday.
The meeting was duly held at the Athenaeum, Walpole Street, on 11th January, 1861, when there were about 150 persons present. Mr. J. Everard took the chair, under the authority of the Executive Council, and called upon the meeting to appoint two assessors, Messrs. J. J. French and John Padbury being elected.
It was then decided, on the motion of Messrs, W. Blanksby and S. Kellett, that the Council consist of seven members; and on the motion of Messrs. J. Halfey and F. Bayne that the members do not receive any remuneration for their services.
The chairman said the next business was the election of the members of the Council. He hoped long speeches would be avoided, and he would limit each speaker to five minutes. He would then receive names of candidates.
Nineteen candidates were nominated, and were called upon to address the meeting. Some little «18» feeling was introduced into the speeches. Mr. F. Bayne said he had come forward because he thought it desirable to introduce "new blood" into the affair, especially as he had been led to believe that it was intended that the election was to result in the return of a "nice little family party." He would give the ratepayers the benefit of his legal knowledge.
Mr. George Wharton gave the ratepayer what he termed, at the conclusion of his remarks, "a piece of his mind," referring principally to the services rendered to the district by what he termed "the Athenaeum clique," who, among the other services rendered, had preserved the ratepayers from "bowing down to the great St. Michael on the plains of Hawthorn."
The names of Messrs. W. Wade and Sheppard having been withdrawn, a show of hands was taken, with the following result:-Mr. G. Wharton, 80; Mr. S. Kellett, 13; Mr. J. Halfey 37; Mr. C. F. Bradley, 20; Mr. W. Derrick, 80; Mr. G. Lewis, 65; Mr. M. Cranwell, 100; Mr. F. Barnard, 40; Mr. F. Bayne, 32; Mr. J. Carson, 60; Dr. H. Fox, 50; Mr. G. Binney, 3; Mr. P. O'Shaughnessy, 25; Mr. D. Reed, 25; Mr. G. Y. Fishley, 5; Mr. J. G. Tanner, 12; and Mr. R. Oswin, 90.
The chairman then announced the candidates having the greatest number of votes-Messrs. Cranwell, Oswin, Wharton, Derrick, Lewis, Carson, and Fox-as the members of the Municipal Council.
On a poll being demanded, the chairman announced that the same would be held in the Athenaeum the next day (Saturday), commencing at eight o'clock in the morning an closing at four o'clock in the afternoon.
The meeting terminated with a well merited vote of thanks to the chairman-than whom a better could not have been selected. The proceedings are reported to have been very decorous throughout.
The election was held on Saturday, 12th January, 1861, and at about half past five the chairman, «19» Mr. J. Everard, announced the successful candidates to be as follows :-
| Mr. Mark Cranwell | . . | . . | 118 |
| Mr. George Wharton | . . | . . | 107 |
| Mr. John Carson | . . | . . | 101 |
| Mr. William Derrick | . . | . . | 99 |
| Mr. George Lewis | . . | . . | 85 |
| Mr. Richard Oswin | . . | . . | 85 |
| Dr. Henry Fox | . . | . . | 60 |
The newly elected Councillors briefly addressed those present, and a vote of thanks to the chairman and the assessors terminated the proceedings.
It was no doubt a plucky action on the part ot the small handful of people residing in Kew at the end of 1860 to take upon themselves the responsibilities of municipal government. That portion of Boroondara which became Kew contained 16¾ miles of the original government roads, to which must be added half the maintenance of the two boundary roads, Barker's and Burke Roads, equal to about two miles. Private owners, in cutting up their blocks, had added some ten miles, of which Mr. N. Fenwick was responsible for rather more than three. Kew thus commenced its municipal career with about 30 miles of roads and streets to look after, and as the census of 1861 gave a population of only 1,489 persons, living in 79 houses, the responsibilities of the ratepayers were fairly heavy, but their requirements were not so exacting as those of the present day. There were no gas lamps to look after, no asphalted footpaths to make and repair, no water for watering streets; still, the place progressed, and became a favored residential suburb, notwithstanding the difficulty of communication with Melbourne. The first meeting of the Council was held on Tuesday, 15th January, 1861, when Mr. G. Wharton was elected the first chairman, and it was decided to advertise for a town clerk. Of that first council only one member is now alive, Mr. William Derrick, who is at present residing with some of his family in Queensland.
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High Street (from the Junction), 1905. |
At the meeting of 22nd January it was decided «20» to appoint Mr. George Bell, sen., town clerk and collector, at a salary of £100 a year, and it was decided to advertise for a surveyor at the same remuneration. At the same meeting the Council decided to offer no opposition to an application for a portion of Studley Park as a cloth factory, but the proposed factory fell through, as nothing more is mentioned of the scheme. It was also decided to apply for a share of the toll collected at Richmond Bridge, and this toll and its apportionment proved a fruitful source of discussion for many future Council meetings.
At the meeting of 29th January, 1861, Mr. James Robertson was appointed surveyor, and a rate of 1/- in the pound, due on lst May, was duly passed.
As an indication of the anticipated growth of the municipality, the device of a shield with six sheaves of wheat and the Royal Arms, and bearing the motto "Cresco," was adopted at the meeting of 12th February. Messrs. Fishley and Pritchard were appointed to make an assessment of the district, which they duly carried out, and handed in their valuation amounting to £17,122, but this was reduced by appeals to £16,634. At the end of that month Mr. Bell resigned his position as town clerk, and on 6th March Mr. Osgood Pritchard was appointed town clerk and surveyor.
The first half-yearly report, published in the "South Bourke Standard" of 23rd August, 1861, shows that the rates collected amounted to £365, and a Government grant of £500 had been received. The expenditure for the same period was £451. Early in 1862 Mr. John Lowrey was appointed surveyor, and on 18th February became town clerk in succession to Mr. 0. Pritchard. He filled those offices until November, 1866, when, having appropriated some of the Council's funds, he committed suicide, and thus avoided facing a court of justice. In January, 1863. Mr. Francis Barnard commenced his long period of service as Councillor, and it was on the day that he was elected Mayor this unfortunate «21» occurrence took place. He was again elected Mayor in 1883 and 1884, and, with the exception of Mr. W. Derrick, is the oldest surviving councillor.
It may be mentioned that on the same day Mr. E. A. Atkyns, one of its youngest Councillors, elected in August, 1863, was elected Mayor of Hawthorn, and has served Hawthorn or Kew almost continuously ever since.
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"Findon" and "Fairholme." |
On applications being called for the position of town clerk and surveyor, Mr. Holland Loxton was selected and appointed on 11th December, 1866. This position he filled with untiring zeal and integrity until his death on 13th March, 1901, a period of over thirty-five years. He was succeeded by Mr. H. H. Harrison, the present town clerk, who had been appointed clerk in September, 1888.
The Council as first elected did not remain long the same. By April, 1861, Councillor R. Oswin had forfeited his seat for non-attendance, and Mr. John Halfey was elected in his stead. The next change was in January, 1863, when Mr. G. Wharton did not stand for re-election, and Mr. W. Stevenson took his place. A few days later an extraordinary election was held to elect a Councillor in place of Dr. Fox, who had left the district. The election is remarkable from the fact that Mr. Francis Barnard was elected by only one vote, and the election would undoubtedly have been a tie had not the brother of one of the candidates arrived too late to record his vote, the polling being F. Barnard, 66; J. Oswin, 65; C. F. Bradley, 24.
By the passing of an amended municipal act, Kew became a Borough, and entitled to nine Councillors and to call its chairman Mayor, on lst October, 1863, during the chairmanship of Mr. George Lewis, who thus became first Mayor of the Borough though that honor is usually regarded as belonging to Mr. John Carson, who was elected Mayor on 18th November of the same year. At the next election of Councillors, in August, 1864, the two additional members were elected in Messrs. Herbert James Henty and Robert Morgan Young.«22»
To enter into the details of the happenings of each year would be too tedious, so this chapter may be fittingly closed with the story of the Town Hall. Early in 1860 a number of residents had formed themselves into a company, known as the Kew Athenaeum Company, to build a hall suitable for public meetings, &c. This the municipality on its formation had rented on annual lease. At first the Council received the greater part of the tolls collected at Johnston Street Bridge, and as the bridge, even then only about three years old, was showing signs of decay, the Kew Council was putting aside its share towards the cost of re-building the bridge. Boroondara, however, was not satisfied at the distribution of tolls, and got the toll proclaimed a common toll fund, thinking that it would get a share of the funded money. The Kew Councillors, however, decided early in 1865 to use the money to purchase the Athenaeum building, which was obtained for £645, and thus became the Town Hall of the Borough at practically no cost to the ratepayers. The original hall is still the main hall of the building, but in 1883 the accommodation for the town clerk, &c., was found to be too limited, so considerable additions were made, which provided a council chamber, mayor's room, town clerk's and surveyor's offices, &c.
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