Sir George Shenton -Australian Dictionary of Evangelical Biography

Shenton Jr got to build on the efforts of his father and did a good job of it. I am assuming Shenton Park was named after his father or him. SHENTON, George (Sir) (1840-1909) James H. Cain, , SHENTON, GEORGE (SIR) (b. Perth, WA, 6 Dec 1840; d. Perth, WA, 20 June 1909). Wesleyan businessman and politician. Young George Shenton carried on the excellent reputation of his pioneer father George Shenton (q.v.) and became even more notable in the life of the growing colony. He served for many years as a member of the Legislative Council and at one time was the Speaker. In 1880 he became the first mayor of Perth and was later knighted for his services to the community. Sir George formed a company called Shenton Elder & Co which later became Elder Smith & Co. Like his father before him, Sir George was totally committed to the Methodist Church. Upon his father's unexpected death he took upon himself the business and financial responsibility for the building of the new church on the corner of William and Hay Streets. He honoured his father's promise by donating £1000 to Wesley Church Building Fund. He saw too that his father's wish that the new church be called Wesley Church was fulfilled. Later, in 1875, he ordered and donated to the church the first pipe organ in the colony and later still, in 1909, just prior to his death, he donated a second and larger pipe organ to Wesley Church, which is still in regular use. Another gift of the Shenton family was the magnificent stained-glass memorial window in the chancel of Wesley Church. Sir George Shenton and his family were faithful members of the church and it is on record that at the stroke of 10.45 by the Town Hall clock on Sunday mornings, he and his wife, leading all the members of their considerable family and followed up in the rear by their servants, could be seen stepping towards Wesley Church almost in procession. They always sat in the three front pews, Sir George and Lady Shenton in the centre of the front pew, the family in the second pew and the servants in the third. At the conclusion of the service they retired in the same manner and order as they had entered. Ronald E Turner, Foundations Not Made With Hands (Perth, 1984); Wesley Lutton, The Wesley Story (Perth, 1970); Australian Journal of Pharmacy (August, 1968); The Shenton Papers (Battye Library, Perth); Register of Baptism; (Wesley Church Archives, Perth) JAMES H CAIN

Frederick Waldeck- Australian Dictionary of Evangelical Biography

I#m assuming this guy is the namesake of the famous gardening company here in Perth. I never realised he was German, but I do wonder if he was of aristocratic blood. Who was going to call him a liar in out of the way Perth?? WALDECK, Frederick (1807-1895) James H. Cain, , WALDECK, FREDERICK (b. Germany, 1807; d. Greenough, WA, 14 Sept 1895). Missionary to Aborigines. Little precisely is known about the ancestry of Frederick Waldeck except that he came from the German nobility. He served his apprenticeship to tailoring in Bremen and later, in May 1833 migrated to London where he set up a tailoring business. In Sept 1835 the Western Australian Missionary Society was chartered in London to evangelise the Aborigines. The Society was both interdenominational and international. Irish, Scottish and English churches pledged support through local branches and a group of Christians from Stuttgart in Germany also contributed. The society was set up along the lines of the world famous Moravian Missions. The Rev Louis Giustiniani DD an Italian, accompanied by his German wife and two German catechists, Frederick Waldeck and Fredericka Kniest were sent to the Swan River Colony to begin work among the Aborigines. They arrived at Fremantle 26 June 1836 on Addingham. They set up their mission in Guildford almost at once and began work among the Aborigines. A few weeks after arriving in the colony Frederick married Miss Kniest. The mission did not progress as well as expected. Within a year Frederick Waldeck and his wife left Guildford and set up a tailoring business in Perth. Frederick was naturalised in 1841, and he immediately acquired a lot in Hay Street where he built his home and shop. In Sept 1840 the Wesleyan Methodists opened a Native School in Perth, later transferred to Wannaroo in 1844 where a 60 acre parcel of land known as Alder Lake Farm had been secured. The land proved unsuitable for serious farming. In Oct 1848 Waldeck was appointed superintendent. At this time the Waldecks had six children, a seventh and possibly eighth were born while they were at the Wannaroo farm. Despite his flourishing business and family, Frederick Waldeck took on the position because he saw that the need for a superintendent was great. The Wesleyan Society paid Waldeck a salary of £90 for the first year and free farm milk and vegetables. John Smithies (q.v.) described the Waldeck couple as 'deeply pious ... with a tender and increasing love for the natives' cause ... He has a good knowledge of farming and general usefulness'. Later he was to write to London that Waldeck was 'not all the help he wanted for school operations but he consciously does his duty and in a spiritual sense is a blessing'. With the Waldecks in charge of the farm the native children's schooling recommenced. They also held regular morning and evening Bible readings as well as conducting singing and prayers. Twenty natives were then living on the farm. The farm was still not supporting itself as had been hoped. At the end of their third year the Waldecks left the farm and returned to Perth. For over 20 years Frederick Waldeck and his family were actively associated with the Wesleyans in Perth. He was a trustee of Wesley Church, a member of the choir and for many years was the superintendent of the Sunday School. Frederick took up 30 acres in Greenough (480 km N of Perth) in 1857. He built a solid homestead which he named Mt Pleasant and by the turn of the century the Mt Pleasant holding consisted of 900 acres. The Waldecks were one of the pioneering families in the district and he was sometimes referred to as 'the father of us all'. The Waldecks quickly arranged for Methodist services to begin and soon a church was built. By 1863 of the 650 white settlers in the Greenough Northhampton districts 468 of them claimed to be Methodists. Mt Pleasant homestead was a church, doctor's surgery, courthouse, post office and tailor's shop. Most of the children were married from Mt Pleasant. Frederick and Fredericka Waldeck survived 5 of their 6 sons. An obituary in the West Australian on 16 Sept 1895 included the following: 'By his death Greenough loses one of the most respected of its settlers, and one whose name was a household word for a life of benevolence ... many owe their lives to the active Christianity of this good, old man. He possessed no small skill in medicine and surgery ... and when Greenough was not supplied with a medical practitioner, without fee or reward, (he attended many and was often called) "good old Doctor Waldeck".' Ronald Turner, Foundations Not Made With Hands (Perth, 1984); Norman King, The Waldeck Story (Fremantle, 1980); Thomas Farmer, Extract from the Journal of Thomas Farmer (Wesley Church Archives) JAMES H CAIN

John Smithies - Australian Dictionary of Evangelical Biography

George Lazenby was a prominent lay preacher for the early Methodists in the colony, but they wanted a real preacher, The first one was shipwrecked off South Australia on the way here and must have decided that was a sign from God, because he stayed in that colony. So they tried again and Smithies came out. He had been in the wilds of Newfoundland, so I can't imagine a much bigger career move distance and climate wise! Smithies tried to help the Aborigines, but it seems they died a lot. I'm assuming this comes from the western diseases they would have come into contact with and I wonder if Smithies ever realised that his very physical presence was bringing death to his moral charges? SMITHIES, John (1800-1872) John Harris, , SMITHIES, JOHN (b. Sheffield, England, c. 1800; d. Barrington, Tas, 1872). Wesleyan missionary. Ordained in 1827, Smithies was appointed to Newfoundland in 1828 by WMS. Two years later, his fiancée, Hannah, followed him to Newfoundland where they were married in 1830. They gave dedicated service to the isolated settlers around Hant's Harbour and, later, St Johns. The Smithies, however, found the Protestant/Catholic struggle for political dominance distressful, and Newfoundland did not seem to provide them with the challenging missionary life they desired. They returned to England in 1837. In 1839, WMS appointed Smithies to the Swan River Colony (WA) in response to the pleas of Methodist colonists; his double mandate was the pastoral care of the settlers and the evangelisation of the Aborigines. Arriving in 1840, Smithies struggled to fulfil both demanding tasks, but his interest lay with the Aborigines, as he showed in the text of his first sermon in the colony: 'Unto me, who am less than the least of all the Saints, is the grace given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ' (Ephesians 3 8). From the outset, the Smithies were enthusiastically supported and materially assisted by Joseph Hardey (q.v.), Francis Armstrong (q.v.) and the other Wesleyans of the colony. The Smithies, immediately on their arrival, began caring for several Aboriginal children in their home. Within a month Smithies commenced his Wesleyan Mission School in Perth: thirty Aboriginal children lived in the Smithies' own home, worked as domestics in Perth homes in the mornings and attended formal schooling in the afternoons. Smithies' plan was both to 'civilize' and to 'Christianize'. The number of deaths among the children was very disillusioning, an experience and a response both common to many missions to Aborigines in the mid 19th century. But there were encouraging signs, both spiritually and educationally, among the Aboriginal young people. Smithies also took seriously his responsibility to the colonists. He commenced regular services in Perth and Fremantle, and organised fully Methodist ownership of the Subscription Chapel in Perth. Soon after his arrival he negotiated for land in Fremantle and Perth with Governor Hutt. He obtained the 1.6 ha on William St which retains its Wesleyan associations today. A chapel was opened in Fremantle in 1841. Smithies' preaching led to some dramatic conversions among both Aborigines and colonists, and in 1844 there was a small revival. 'The feeling and fire are spreading from house to house. O may it run through the land' (Smithies' journal, 24 April 1844). With the central strategy of training Aboriginal young people to live by farming, Smithies moved the mission to farmland outside Perth at Wanneroo in 1845. The mission struggled against declining finances, poor soil, bad seasons and the proximity of immoral Perth settlers. Smithies moved the mission yet again in 1851 to York, 100 km west of Perth. Aboriginal people were reluctant to move so far away, and were increasingly deterred by the number of deaths among them. With the number of residents dwindling, Smithies closed the mission in 1854. The Smithies then moved to Tas, where they ministered to Wesleyan congregations. A jovial, popular and hard-working man, Smithies was among those many early Australian missionaries whose work was severely hampered by circumstances beyond their control. Smithies, however, believed it to have been worthwhile. 'I do not feel that the mission has been to no avail ... Some twenty of the natives have reached the heavenly state and a good many more are in the bush and have the fear of God within their hearts and read the scriptures' (Smithies' letters, 15 July 1854, Battye Library, MN172). J Harris, One Blood (Sutherland, 1990); W Mcnair and H Rumley, Pioneer Aboriginal Mission (Nedlands, 1981) JOHN HARRIS

Henry Trigg- Australian Dictionary of Evangelical Biography

My Granny, Mavis, always claimed we were related to this guy. She used to point at the Rottnest lighthouse and say 'You're ancestor built that' and of course I was proud. However, I don't think we are. I know John Kemble in South Australia married a Trigg, but I can't find a family connection yet. Trigg was a prominent builder here though, and he and George Lazenby would have come into contact often. Trigg had convened with the Methodists early in the colony's history, but apparently fell out with the Reverend Smithies and became a leading Congregationalist. I'm not particularly sure of what separates these different Protestant sects but I'm sure I'll find out soon enough. TRIGG, Henry (1791-1882) Stuart M. Bonnington, , TRIGG, HENRY (b. Gloucester, England, 30 June 1791; d. Perth, WA, 15 Feb 1882). Clerk of Public Works and founder of the Congregational Church in Perth. Trigg was born into a generation in England that had been dramatically shaped by the eighteenth-century evangelical awakening. Among his earliest memories were those of his attendance at a Sunday school in Gloucester, organised by Robert Raikes, whose lay ministry seems to have been an influence on Trigg. The Christian faith flourished in Trigg from his early days. He was trained and worked as a carpenter. In 1813 he married Amelia Ralph, with whom he had ten children. In 1829 the newspapers of Britain were full of 'Swan River Mania'. Among those who sought a new life there, were the Triggs who moved to the new colony of Western Australia, in its first year of existence. Trigg quickly came to the attention of the pioneers who recognised his abilities as a builder, and Trigg began a career that would see him eventually responsible for the erection of many government buildings after his appointment as Clerk of Public Works in 1838. Trigg had arrived in Perth with £200 capital and he was granted nearly 3000 acres of land. From this he developed the financial basis from which he was able to support various Christian and charitable causes. From their arrival in Perth the Trigg family worshiped with the 'Dissenters', but this association was ruptured in 1841 when John Smithies (q.v.), the Wesleyan Minister arrived. Trigg 'moderately Calvinistic in his views' (Cox, 1916, 9) began the work of the Independents in Perth, opening his home for prayer meetings. Trigg persevered and gradually a congregation gathered, a site obtained in William Street, Perth and on 6 Sept 1846 the Congregational Chapel opened. Within twelve months the building was enlarged to seat nearly 200 people. Trigg's willingness to support himself while leading the congregation ensured the survival, and growth of the 'Independents' in Perth. 'As a preacher ... Mr Trigg was very earnest, emotional and sympathetic, appealing both to the head and intellect, strong in faith, very decided in action. He had a poor opinion of unsanctified human nature, but unbounded confidence in the Love of the Father, and in Mercy and Grace through our Lord and Saviour ... He usually ... rose at about 4 a.m. to study and write. In winter the material for a fire would be got ready overnight, which he would light, and then engage in prayer and the study of the Bible ...' (Cox, 1916, 9) In 1852, after many representations to the Colonial Mission Society for help, the Rev James Leonard arrived in Perth to become pastor of the Independents. His years in Perth were marked by initial growth but then rapid decline: he left the congregation in 1855. Internal difficulties in 1854 had led to Trigg himself leaving the congregation to worship again with the Wesleyans and in 1858 the Congregational Church closed until the early 1860s when Trigg again set about reviving the cause. While events in Perth had taken this unfortunate turn, Trigg helped in the opening of Congregational works at Fremantle (1853) and Guildford (1855). In 1862 the Rev James Innes (q.v.) became pastor of the Perth congregation and in 1865 a new building was opened on St George's Tce, Perth. More difficulties, mainly linked with financial matters, ensued which led to Innes leaving in 1868. However Trinity Congregational Church (as it had begun to be called) weathered the storm. Trigg continued to serve as a deacon (as he had from the earliest years) until he was well into his eighties. In 1869, Trigg proposed the formation of a Congregational Union, which came into existence in November of that year. Because of the Congregational aversion to any form of state aid to religion, Trigg's leadership, devotion, practical skills and financial assistance were essential to the early establishment of this strand of free church life in Western Australia. He was well known, too, for his devotion to the spiritual and moral well being of all with whom he came into contact. When he died at the age of 91 (as Perth's oldest citizen) he was eulogised thus: 'To those who are at all familiar with the history of the capital of this colony, and who feel interested in the social and religious welfare of the community, no name has been known better; and certainly none has been more honoured than that of Henry Trigg.' (Inquirer and Commercial News, 22 Feb 1882) S H Cox, The Seventy Years History of the Trinity Congregational Church (Perth, 1916) STUART M BONNINGTON

Joseph Hardey- Australian Dictionary of Evangelical Biography

This guy kept a diary! And its in the BAttye! Gold! I know what I'll be reading in the future. HARDEY, Joseph (1804-1875) James H. Cain, , HARDEY, JOSEPH (b. Barrow upon Humber, Lincolnshire, England, 29 April 1804; d. Perth, WA, 1 Sept 1875). Methodist pioneer in WA. Third son of Robert Hardey MD of Hull, a longstanding Wesleyan, Joseph Hardey was converted in his thirteenth year during revival meetings in his parish but it was some time before the certainty of Christ's atoning death fully possessed him. Six years after his conversion he became a local preacher and served in this capacity for more than 50 years. In 1829 Barnard Clarkson, a Yorkshire banker, Joseph Hardey and his brother John Wall Hardey, chartered a ship, the 500 ton Tranby and had her refitted to carry a party of Methodist migrants to the Swan River Colony (WA) arriving 3 Feb 1830. As soon as they had erected their tents, Joseph Hardey raised a family altar on the beach and conducted a service of thanksgiving for their safe arrival in their new home. He was quickly recognized as the leader of this little Methodist community of immigrants. The group seriously considered moving on to Van Diemen's Land, but the governor granted the Hardey brothers a tract of land suitable for farming a few miles north of where the city of Perth is now situated. Several other Methodist families were given similar grants of land nearby. The new colonists now settled down to establish themselves in their new country. Joseph Hardey and several other local preachers regularly conducted services and classes in their homes. Soon after their arrival Hardey sought permission from the governor to conduct open-air services and an entry in his diary reads, 'Sunday 6 June 1830, preached under a tree'. Today a plaque, placed in the pavement of Hay Street pedestrian mall, marks this very important spot. For some time the Methodists continued to meet under that tree. Then in June 1834, Joseph Hardey officially opened the first permanent Methodist chapel in the new colony. It was situated in Murray Street where the Tranby Day Centre for homeless people is now situated. Joseph kept a well documented diary and besides recording developments on his 'Peninsular Farm' in Maylands there are frequent references to his religious activities. It was 10 years before the first ordained Wesleyan minister arrived in the colony and throughout all these years Joseph Hardey stood out distinctly as the spiritual leader of the Methodists. Through his leadership that church grew to the stature of the Methodist Church in WA. On the morning of 1 Sept 1875 sudden illness, a heart attack, prostrated him. Ronald E Turner, Foundations Not Made with Hands (Perth, 1984); Wesley Lutton, The Wesley Story (Perth, 1970); Joseph Hardey, Diary (Battye Library, Perth) JAMES H CAIN

John Wall Hardey - Australian Dictionary of Evangelical Biography

The Hardey's of Tranby. That's Maylands now in Perth. They picked a nice location, and according to this piece they had over 16000 acres up the Avon. Prime WA agricultural land I would think. John ended up in the care of George Lazenby and his wife in his last years. Apparently he suffered paralysis. HARDEY, John Wall (1802-1885) James H. Cain, , HARDEY, JOHN WALL (b. Barrow upon Humber, Lincolnshire, England, 19 March 1802; d. Perth, WA, 14 May 1885). Methodist settler in WA. First son of Robert Hardey MD of Hull and brother of Joseph Hardey (q.v.), John Hardey married Elizabeth Davy shortly before leaving England for WA in 1829; their marriage produced 3 daughters and a son. Like his brother, John Hardey was a Methodist and a regular local preacher in the colony. John Hardey received a substantial land grant at the same time as his brother Joseph and their properties were adjacent to each other on the peninsula. He went on to become a large property owner in WA. In August 1830 he participated in a vital second expedition over the Darling Ranges which opened up the fertile Avon Valley. Michael and James Clarkson were also included in the expedition party. Hardey forthwith applied for a large tract of land on the right bank of the River Avon. The Hardey brothers were assigned this land, 16 342 acres in all, in Dec 1830 just 2 months after the expedition returned to Perth. John wrote home enthusiastically to England about the Avon Valley and likened it to the kind of land around the family home in Yorkshire. He soon acquired extra land in Perth across the River Swan from Peninsula Farm which became known as Grove Farm, and later he acquired the adjoining property known as Belmont Farm. John Wall Hardey was exceptionally active in civic affairs. At various times he was president of the Agricultural Society of WA, a JP, and later a magistrate, a commissioner of the Children's Friend Society, a body that looked after minors sent out from the UK to the colony. He was active in the formation of the WA Chamber of Commerce. At the time of the building of the first bridge across the Swan, known as the Causeway, he was chairman of the powerful General Roads Trust and exerted all his influence and energy to see the project completed. Hardey and his family returned to England at the end of 1836, returning to the colony 2 years later. He was apparently one of several landowners who went to England to voice their criticism of land allocation in the colony. In 1855 the governor appointed Hardey to the Legislative Council and he developed a close relationship with several governors, and especially Governor Hampton. When Legislative Councillors were elected by the people he was not elected gaining only a few votes. His lack of popular support was no doubt due to his deep conservatism and open support for the governors. It appears that Hardey took a less active part in the life of the Methodist Church as his other interests grew and demanded more of his time and energy. However he was always a liberal supporter of the Methodist Church and at times displayed great interest in its Sunday schools and foreign missions. In his declining years he was attacked by paralysis and was nursed and cared for by Mr and Mrs George Lazenby in whose home he died in his sleep. At a memorial service in Wesley Church, Perth, the Rev R V Campbell said of him, '... he was a faithful Methodist who though called to pass the ordeal of extreme old age, the eye of his faith never dimmed'. His wife, Elizabeth, although 10 years his junior died in 1873. Ronald E Turner, Foundations Not Made with Hands (Perth, 1984); Wesley Lutton, The Wesley Story (Perth, 1970); Joseph Hardey, Diary (Battye Library, Perth) Ruth Johnston, The Tranby Hardeys (Perth, 1987) JAMES H CAIN

Francis Fraser Armstrong - Australian Dictionary of Evangelical Biography

Another in Lazenby's Methodist circle. The Methodists were very active amongst the local Aboriginals with some success in baptisms etc. Whether they did anything to materially improve their lives I have no idea as yet. ARMSTRONG, Francis Fraser (1813-1897) James H. Cain, , ARMSTRONG, FRANCIS FRASER (b. Dalkeith, Scotland, c.l8l3; d. Perth, WA, 22 May 1897). Methodist pioneer and missionary to Aborigines in WA. Youngest son of Captain Adam Armstrong, Francis Armstrong arrived in the Swan River Colony with his father, four brothers and sister (his mother had died in Scotland) on 15 Dec. 1829 aboard Gilmore from Dalkeith, Scotland. The family settled on the banks of the River Swan between Perth and Fremantle and named the locality Dalkeith after their home village in Scotland. While Francis Armstrong helped with the work associated with establishing themselves he met and befriended a number of the local natives. He felt strongly attracted to these primitive people and at once set out to learn something of their customs and dialect. A little later Armstrong went to work in Perth for Fletcher Moore who kept a small store. Then, for a number of years, he managed a store for George Shenton (q.v.) in St George's Terrace. Still later, he entered into business for himself as a grain and produce and commission agent. From this business and several others he ventured into he acquired sufficient wealth to give him a modest retirement. The young Francis Armstrong quickly associated himself with the Tranby Methodists and helped to establish the first Methodist Society in WA. In 1836 he married Mary Mews, second daughter of T W Mews. Mary was a devout Anglican and like her husband was greatly interested in the welfare of the local Aboriginal peoples. They had four sons and five daughters. Francis Armstrong never forgot his early contact with the local natives and it became his overriding ambition to do all he could to improve their lot. He became so proficient in the language of the Aboriginal people he wrote or assisted in the writing of two books translating some of their dialects into English. Before either government or church interest was stirred to the plight of the Aboriginal people, Armstrong and his wife were seeking to improve their circumstances and better their lives. Eventually his lone attempts to help the natives came to the notice of Governor Hutt. In 1841 the governor granted to the Methodists an annual subsidy of £75 to help establish a mission for the Aboriginal people on the foreshore near the Mt Eliza Bay area. It was to Francis and Mary Armstrong, that the Rev John Smithies (q.v.), the first minister of Wesley Church, turned to entrust the superintendency of this mission. Aged 21, Armstrong had already been appointed the official Government Interpreter and Moral Agent for Aboriginal people on a salary of £90 a year. At one time Governor Hutt appointed him to investigate the treatment of Aboriginal prisoners on Rottnest Island. In spite of a previous enquiry, complaints of the treatment meted out to Aboriginal prisoners continued to come to the governor's ears. Armstrong reported, 'It is refusal to work that brings on the punishment they complain of. This has been with the worst characters some of them who have robbed the store, killed the poultry and run off into the bush ... The number of strips is limited to 36, and I would respectfully suggest that it might he reduced to half that number and that only in extreme cases and immediately under the direction of Mr Vincent.' However complaints from the Island continued and Francis Armstrong was involved in yet another enquiry, and for a short period was appointed Storekeeper and Moral Agent on the Island 'to improve the habits and morals of the prisoners'. Considering the fact that Vincent, the government manager of the prison did not co-operate willingly with the Moral Agent it is not surprising that Francis Armstrong soon transferred back to Perth. Judged by the light of the time, the Methodist Aboriginal Mission under the superintendency of Francis Armstrong was quite successful. The baptismal register of Wesley Church records a number of natives received into the church by baptism. Francis Armstrong was one of the foremost men in Wesley Church and, with other equally devoted Methodists, his name is associated in the founding of the Wesleyan Methodist Sunday school in the colony. He also laboured in the same quiet way in the cause of temperance and other social reforms, and in his own modest manner displayed the finest qualities of a good citizen. Gradually the years took their toll on his health and he was aware that his strength was beginning to fail, then he was attacked with influenza. Ronald E Turner, Foundations Not Made with Hands (Perth, 1984); Wesley Lutton, The Wesley Story (Perth, 1970); Thomas Farmer, Journal (Battye Library); William McNair, 'Righteousness Developed into Intelligent Goodness' (Western Methodist, Sept 1965); William McNair and Hilary Rumley, Pioneer Aboriginal Mission (Perth, 1981) JAMES H CAIN

George Shenton Snr ADB

George Shenton was another early arriving Methodist. He and George Lazenby are, like Hardey, mentioned often together in the trove.n;a articles I have been reading. Shenton was a chemist, like the Birch family. And like Vernon Birch, Walter Cope and Thomas Rowe he was involved with Geraldton in the 19th Century. If I was to get in a time machine and head back to Perth in the 19th Century it would be impossible not to fall over an ancestor! Like Lazenby, Shenton was involved in temperance, another movement that my family was involved in. Great Grandfather Minchin was a Methodist- he might even have tried for the clergy- and a teetotaler according to my Mum. Rosa Smith was, of coure, a leading figure in the WCTU and the Fremantle temperance movement in the late 19th and early 20th Century. Very different from my family now! Other interests of Shenton were the Mechanics Institute and local government. Lazenby was involved with both too. Shenton's son, Sir George Shenton, was to become probably the most famous Methodist and a Perth Lord Mayor. Shenton, George (1811–1867) by J. H. M. Honniball This article was published in Australian Dictionary of Biography, Volume 2, (MUP), 1967 George Shenton (1811-1867), chemist and merchant, was born on 2 January 1811 at Winchester, England, a son of William Shenton of Buriton Manor and his wife Anna Marie, née Young. At 15 he was articled to a Portsmouth druggist, a pious Wesleyan who strongly influenced his character. After completing his professional training he set out for Western Australia in the hope of improving his health and his fortune. He arrived in the Cygnet on 27 January 1833 and joined his cousin William Kernot Shenton, an engineer who had preceded him in October 1829. Sixteen months later he had sole charge of his cousin's flour-mill at South Perth when it was attacked by Aboriginals. Although Shenton himself was unharmed, 980 lbs (445 kg) of flour were stolen; together with other depredations the attack prompted Governor (Sir) James Stirling to retaliate and the 'Battle of Pinjarra' followed in October 1834. Shenton established himself as the first chemist and druggist in Perth and quickly prospered; in 1838 he moved to more capacious premises in Hay Street. He soon extended his trade and built up a flourishing general merchandising and agency business, employing Francis Armstrong as manager and confidential clerk. Taking a lead in the colonists' efforts to overcome the depression of the early 1840s and to boost exports, Shenton sent a sample shipment of jarrah and sandalwood to England in 1845. Timber quickly became a major export. In 1847 he advertised that he would buy 'sandalwood, wool, oil, wheat, gum and all other colonial produce'. Offices and warehouses were built on the waterfront behind his St George's Terrace home, Rose Hall, and the main shipping department was later transferred to Fremantle. From 1848 Shenton played an important part in opening the Geraldton district. With other Perth businessmen he invested in a succession of mining ventures. The output of these copper and lead mines around the lower Murchison River and Northampton fluctuated considerably, partly because of the caution of the directors and managers. Minerals, however, provided a valuable export, vying with sandalwood for second place to wool after 1859. The exploitation of the Geraldton district's potential for wool and wheat quickly followed. In 1852 Shenton exchanged his own farm at Wanneroo, near Perth, for land on the Greenough River flats. He established a store at Geraldton and gave experience in management there to his eldest son George, when he came of age. From it the mining settlements and convict road parties were victualled. In this and other districts Shenton set many a farmer and grazier on his feet, but he had less success as one of the promoters of pastoral settlement at Roebuck Bay (Broome) in 1864. His commercial career culminated in his election as a director of the Western Australian Bank from 1847 to 1867, and he was chairman at the time of his death. Shenton supported many public enterprises and activities. A man of high ideals and liberal principles, he saw his own fortunes synonymous with Western Australia's progress. As agent for various shipping companies in 1848 he joined in pressing the government to encourage overseas steam communication. He opposed the suggested introduction of female convicts. Elected a member of the Perth Town Trust in 1847, he served as chairman from 1853 until 1858 when he guided its transformation into the Perth City Council. In 1858, when the nominated members of the Legislative Council reflected landed rather than commercial interests, he joined a deputation to advocate representative government. Shenton was a trustee of the Swan River Mechanics' Institute and of the Western Australian Total Abstinence Society, and as a keen gardener was a committee-man of the Vineyard Society. Cape lilac trees which he provided were planted along the western side of St George's Terrace in 1857. Of firm religious convictions, he served the Wesleyan Methodists as secretary and trustee, lay-preacher, particularly at Fremantle, Sunday school superintendent and class leader. He was a strong supporter of the church's missions to the Aboriginals at York and Wanneroo, and he gave generously towards the building of Wesley Church, Perth. On 29 November 1838 Shenton married Ann Catherina (1821-1904), daughter of John Cousins, retired officer of the merchant marine. Of their eleven children, three sons, George, Edward and Ernest, followed their father into commerce, and seven daughters married into well-known Western Australian families. Though frail of body, George Shenton was energetic, persevering and perceptive. His honourable and successful career was cut short on 25 March 1867 when, on an intended business visit to Bunbury, he was drowned in the wreck of his schooner Lass of Geraldton near Mandurah. Select Bibliography Swan River News, 2 (1843)–4 (1847) Western Australian Almanack, 1849 Civil Service Journal (Perth), 20 July 1929 West Australian, 30 Oct 1847, 29 Mar, 12 Apr 1867 G. J. Kelly, ‘History of Mining in the Geraldton District’, Early Days, 6 (1962-65) P. U. Henn, genealogical notes (State Library of Western Australia) George Shenton letters (State Library of Western Australia). Citation details J. H. M. Honniball, 'Shenton, George (1811–1867)', Australian Dictionary of Biography, National Centre of Biography, Australian National University, http://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/shenton-george-2654/text3703, published first in hardcopy 1967, accessed online 12 September 2018.

Joseph Hardey ADB

Hardey was one of the movers and shakers in Methodist colonial WA. Just in the short week or so that I have been following George Lazenby in trove.nla his name has come up often. It seems to me that they were a tight knit unit. George in particular has seemed to be very much involved in education and self-improvement. George was a involved with the Swan River Mechanics Institute, which put on lectures and had lending library for members. A mechanic in those days was someone in the building trade. Hardey, Joseph (1804–1875) by A. J. Sampson This article was published in Australian Dictionary of Biography, Volume 1, (MUP), 1966 Joseph Hardey (1804-1875), farmer and Wesleyan layman, was born on 29 April 1804 at Barrow-upon-Humber, Lincolnshire, England, the third son of fifteen children of Robert Hardey and his wife Ann, née Wall. He was educated at home and at a Doncaster boarding school; influenced by Wesleyan teachings, he became a local preacher at 20 and thereafter religious convictions dominated his life. He acquired a farm, and on 11 August 1829 in the parish church of Hatfield he married Ann Robertson of Levels, Yorkshire, by whom he had six daughters and one son. Hardey chartered the Tranby in association with Michael and James Clarkson and his brother, John Wall Hardey; they arrived at Swan River in February 1830, bringing with them a number of indentured servants. The Tranby immigrants, all Methodists and expert farmers, settled together on 512 acres (207 ha) which they called the Peninsula, on the Swan River's banks at Maylands, four miles (6.4 km) east of Perth. In 1830 Hardey built this first Tranby House on his share, Peninsula Farm, cleared land and sowed crops. From his harvest returns he bought three English cows for £115 from Governor (Sir) James Stirling. In 1835 he built for less than £200 a substantial windmill which served to grind his wheat. By 1836 he had some thirty acres (12 ha) under cultivation, as well as cattle, sheep and horses. Next year he selected 16,000 acres (6475 ha) near York on the Avon River. Although Hardey prospered he did not neglect the furtherance of God's kingdom on earth. Soon after arrival he preached to a congregation in his house at Fremantle, and in June 1830 he was permitted by Stirling to preach under a tree in Hay Street. Regular services were held at the Peninsula, sometimes with visiting preachers, but the Tranby immigrants wanted more than lay preaching, and requested a minister from the Wesleyan Missionary Society in London. Rev. William Longbottom was sent in 1837, but after shipwreck at Encounter Bay he was persuaded to stay in Adelaide. The Western Australian Methodists had to wait until June 1840 for their first minister, Rev. John Smithies. Meanwhile in April 1834 Hardey became a foundation trustee of Wesley Church, Perth, where he was also a local preacher, class leader and Sunday school superintendent. Later he gave £600 for the new Wesley Church opened in 1870. Hardey was not attracted by politics and his public offices were few: he was appointed commissioner and guardian to immigrant minors in 1839, and a member of the Central Board of Works in 1847, and of the Central Board of Education in 1872-75. Despite his success, his courage and industry in the adversities of early settlement were appreciated by other colonists, and his sympathetic service in visiting the sick, irrespective of their creed, won him admiration. His wife died in May 1874 and his eldest daughter in August 1875. His last exhortation to his family was to 'stand side to side, shoulder to shoulder, and fight for the Lord'. He died at Perth on 6 September 1875, leaving more than £12,000 to the Methodist Church. His daughter Sarah later gave £800 to Wesley College for two entrance scholarships. Select Bibliography F. C. Irwin, The State and Position of Western Australia (Lond, 1835) W. St Pierre Bunbury and W. P. Morrell (eds), Early Days in Western Australia, Being the Letters and Journal of Lieut H. W. Bunbury (Lond, 1930) C. A. Jenkins, ‘Early Years of the Methodist Church in Western Australia’, Journal and Proceedings (Western Australian Historical Society), vol 2, part 13, 1933, pp 1-15 A. J. Sampson, ‘The Methodist Church in Western Australia’, University Studies in Western Australian History, vol 3, no 2, Oct 1958, pp 87-121 Joseph Hardey diary, 21 Jan 1830–16 Nov 1839 (State Library of Western Australia). Citation details A. J. Sampson, 'Hardey, Joseph (1804–1875)', Australian Dictionary of Biography, National Centre of Biography, Australian National University, http://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/hardey-joseph-2153/text2749, published first in hardcopy 1966, accessed online 12 September 2018.

Robert John Sholl ADB

This man seems a very interesting character. I'm pretty sure he was the translator used to communicate with the Aboriginals accused of murdering Samuel Wells Lazenby, hence why I have copied out his entry in the ADB. Also my printer has run out of ink so I'm copying articles of interest at the moment! Seems he was involved in both cooperation with the local Aboriginals of Roeburne and the surrounding areas, but was also involved in punitive actions against them. I'm hoping there's a book on him somewhere otherwise I would be tempted to write something myself. Every link in my family brings up interesting characters and stories. Sholl, Robert John (1819–1886) by Wendy Birman This article was published in Australian Dictionary of Biography, Volume 6, (MUP), 1976 Robert John Sholl (1819-1886), civil servant, administrator and magistrate, was born on 16 July 1819 at Southwark, London, second son of Robert Sholl, navy agent, and his wife Elizabeth, née Mutton. He abandoned his medical studies when his brother William inherited property in Western Australia on the death of their uncle Richard Sholl, who had gone to the colony in the Sulphur in 1829. With his mother, sister and younger brother, he arrived at Fremantle in the Shepherd on 19 November 1840 and settled at Bunbury. Sholl worked as a teacher until he became a clerk in the District Magistrate's Court in 1844. On 21 September at the Anglican Church, Picton, he married Mary Ann Berckelman (d.1889). In 1846 he became registrar for Wellington district, next year was transferred to the Postal Department, and in 1849 was a tide-waiter but resigned to join the Inquirer, edited by William. He became editor of the Commercial News and Shipping List at Fremantle in February 1855, and joint owner with Edmund Stirling when the two newspapers amalgamated in July. He was secretary of the Geraldine Mining Co. and was associated with the Roebuck Bay Pastoral and Agricultural Co. In January 1865 Governor Hampton appointed Sholl government resident of the new settlement at Camden Harbour, organized by the Camden Harbour Pastoral Co. He arrived there in February to find chaos and confusion. One ship had been wrecked, all but 1000 sheep were dead and the country was parched and dry. Some of the settlers had already gone and others were leaving. In April he set out with a well-armed party to examine the country between Camden Harbour and Roebuck Bay, hoping to find a pass through the hills to the Glenelg River. Rebuffed by rugged country at the eastern tip of the Whately Range he crossed at the western end, naming the McRae River before reaching the Glenelg. He was impressed by the excellent pastures there compared with the immediate hinterland at Camden Harbour. His account of the expedition was published in the Journal of the Royal Geographical Society in 1866. Back at the settlement Sholl was continually troubled by Aboriginal pilfering of government property and by administrative problems, especially those involving the truculent young surgeon Charles Smith-Bompas. A visit by proas from Macassar also caused alarm. Finally, the collapse of the company persuaded him to abandon the settlement in October; 'leaving behind wooden buildings, timber fencing and shingles to the value of £150, besides a tank and several horses', he moved south to Tien Tsin Harbour, which he found almost as discouraging. The settlers, members of the Denison Plains Co., were disgruntled, their supplies almost exhausted, with many suffering from bronchitis, rheumatism or scurvy. Sholl was appalled at the low standard of their dwellings and even more distressed by the misery at the Aboriginal camp. Apart from sharing his personal rations with them, there was little he could do to help. Gradually as the drought eased and conditions improved his optimism was renewed. The Aboriginal people of the region were the most friendly he had ever met and he granted one of them, Mullagough, a free passage to Fremantle. In April 1866 Sholl moved to Walcott, which was gazetted as the town of Roebourne next August. His personal losses in a severe hurricane in 1872 included his library. Because of an acute shortage of building materials he was compelled to live in cramped official quarters for many years, but the district flourished until 1877 when it was again hampered by drought, a depressed wool market, scarcity of oyster pearls and the cessation of a small copper and lead-mining venture. In 1868 Sholl appointed a group of settlers including his son, Robert Frederick, as special constables to hunt down the killers of a policeman, William Griffis, an Aboriginal tracker, Peter, and two white pearlers. The Aboriginal people concerned, the Yaburarra of the Burrup Peninsula and nearby islands, were later thought to have acted in retaliation for the alleged rape by the police officer of several of their women. The death toll of what became known as the Flying Foam massacre is not known, but one account nearly twenty years later put it at sixty. The expedition leaders, John Withnell and Alexander McRae, were later thanked for their efforts by Sholl. But when two of the alleged killers of the policeman came into Roebourne in early 1869, Sholl took no action against them, declaring: ‘Personally I am in favour of an amnesty for these natives who have received a severe lesson and much blood has been spilt’. He took similar action a year later, following the spearing of a shepherd named Griffiths on Minderoo station in the Ashburton; by Sholl’s account twenty-one were killed there by police and special constables, who again included his son. During his term at Roebourne, Sholl was justice of the peace, district registrar and deputy-treasurer; he was chairman of the Court of Petty Sessions and, from 1878, of Quarter Sessions. He was the subject of rumours concerning alleged favouritism in the pearling industry, but his informed submission advising on the 1873 Pearl Shell Fishery Regulation Act stressed the rights of Aboriginal employees. In 1879 he bought Mount Welcome station from J. Withnell and two years later left to become resident magistrate in the Swan district, where he died on 19 June 1886. Select Bibliography J. S. Battye, The History of the North-West of Australia (Perth, 1915) J. S. Battye, Western Australia (Oxford, 1924) T.J. Gara, ‘The Flying Foam Massacre: An Incident On The North-West Frontier, Western Australia’, in M. Smith (ed.), Archaeology at ANZAAS 1983 (Perth, 1983) Inquirer (Perth), 1 April 1868 Inquirer (Perth), 4 March 1874 Inquirer (Perth), 2 June 1876 Forrest, The Challenge and the Chance: The Colonisation and Settlement of North West Australia 1861-1914 (Perth, 1996) West Australian, 21 June 1886 West Australian, 22 June 1886 West Australian, 9 July 1889 Northern Times, 28 July 1966 R. M. Crawford, The Camden Harbour Settlement, and CSO, 1865-81 (State Library of Western Australia) Citation details Wendy Birman, 'Sholl, Robert John (1819–1886)', Australian Dictionary of Biography, National Centre of Biography, Australian National University, http://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/sholl-robert-john-4576/text7513, published first in hardcopy 1976, accessed online 12 September 2018.

William Shakespeare Hall ADB

Another connection to George Lazenby. Apparently his daughters were noted beauties. One, Hannah, married William Shakespeare Hall, a man who led an adventurous life. He came from a wealthy family that struggled in colonial Western Australia. He tried to make money on the Victorian goldfields but failed. It was to be in the NW of Western Australia that he made his fortune with pearling. It was from his ship, VENUS, that Samuel Wells Lazenby, would make his last trip ashore and meet his fate. William Shakespeare Hall (1825-1895), J.P., explorer, pastoralist and pearler, was born on 25 December 1825 in London and baptized at St Mary's Church of England, Lambeth, on 6 May 1827, the second son of Henry Edward Hall (1790-1859), squire of Shakerstone Manor, Leicestershire, and his wife Sarah Theodosia (1793-1858), née Branson. His parents' families both claimed connexions with the poet. He sailed for Western Australia with his parents, two brothers and three sisters in the Protector, chartered by his father and another settler, and reached Fremantle in February 1830. They safely landed many livestock, farming equipment, a 25-ton sloop and a jolly-boat, necessities and luxuries, and ten servants and apprentices. The value of this cargo entitled his father to a land grant of some 16,594 acres (6716 ha) which was taken up at Mandurah. Unfortunately the land proved unsuitable. After several years of hardship in which their first house and all its contents were destroyed by fire and their sloop was wrecked on Hall's Bank, the family moved to Perth and later bought a partly-improved property at Wongong near Armadale. Educated chiefly by Rev. John Wittenoom, Shakespeare Hall farmed at Wongong until 1852 when he went to the Victorian goldfields. After eight unsuccessful years he returned to Western Australia and joined the expedition under Francis Gregory which in 1861 explored the north-west. In 1863 for John Wellard, Hall took up the first sheep station, Andover, in the Roebourne district. His early diary gives much insight into the toil and difficulty of pioneering. At that time the only communication with the south was by occasional sailing boats and the second settlers in the district were the Withnell family who arrived in April 1864. Like his father, Hall was short in stature but had prodigious strength. By the end of his second year much of the station's development had been achieved and he turned to pearling with Malay and Aboriginal divers and later to business pursuits in Roebourne and Cossack where for some years he was chairman of the municipality. On a hot summer night on 11 February 1895 he had a heart attack while swimming in Cossack Creek and was drowned. An obituarist described him as 'one of the most brilliant, upright, honest and valued lives that has ever lived amongst us'. A wrought iron screen in the Roebourne Anglican Church and a tombstone at his grave in Cossack were erected 'as a mark of appreciation and respect by the North West Pioneers'. On 2 November 1868 he had married Hannah Boyd (1849-1911), daughter of George Lazenby, architect, and his wife Mary Ann, née Wells. Three of their children survived infancy: Henry Ernest (1869-1941), Hannah Joy (1876-1960) and Harold Aubrey (1871-1963) who like his father and grandfather was highly knowledgeable of the Aboriginals, their customs and language, and was singularly successful in his relations with them. Select Bibliography A. R. Richardson, Early Memories of the Great Nor'-west (Perth, 1909) W. S. Smart, Mandurah and Pinjarrah (Perth, 1956) A. Hasluck, Thomas Peel of Swan River (Melb, 1965) P. Hasluck, ‘The First Year in the North-West’, Journal and Proceedings (Western Australian Historical Society), vol 1, part 4, 1929, pp 1-16 H. A. Hall, A Partial Vocabulary of the Ngäloomä Aboriginal Tribe (University of New South Wales and University of Western Australia) W. S. Hall papers (State Library of Western Australia). Citation details H. Margaret Wilson, 'Hall, William Shakespeare (1825–1895)', Australian Dictionary of Biography, National Centre of Biography, Australian National University, http://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/hall-william-shakespeare-3697/text5789, published first in hardcopy 1972, accessed online 12 September 2018. This article was first published in hardcopy in Australian Dictionary of Biography, Volume 4, (MUP), 1972

George Lazenby in Design and Art Australia Online by Dorothy Erickson

Cabinetmaker, master builder, lay preacher and civil servant was born in Spalingham, England in October 1807. His parents were apparently people of means. Lazenby was musical and played the cello and the violin. His brother, a Master Mariner, owned his own ship. The family moved to Leeds where George was apprenticed as a cabinetmaker. He suffered from poor health and on medical advice, took sea voyages on his brother’s ship visiting Western Australia about 1831. The climate agreed with him and he saw opportunities for enterprise. On his return to England Lazenby prepared to migrate, sailing to the 'Swan River Colony’ arriving in January 1833 on the Cygnet. Also on board were the Methodist banker Barnard Clarkson of Foggarthorpe Hall, and chemist George Shenton of Buriton Manor in England. The Clarkson and Joseph Hardey families had arranged for the migration to Western Australia of the 'Tranby’ group of Methodists in 1830 so contacts and openings were already made. Lazenby made a success of his life in the new colony where he was a leader in the Methodist community. Lazenby arrived with a considerable amount of cash and commenced business as a master builder and cabinet-maker as soon as he arrived. Both professions were greatly sought after in the new colony. In Murray Street, Perth, near where Royal Perth Hospital stands today, he built a comfortable house for himself followed by twelve cottages for rent and a store to supply building industry needs. In 1835, together with newly arrived Anton Helmich, he took up extra lots in the town and no doubt built on them as well. Curiously Lazenby was not listed in the 1837 census and it is possible he was visiting England in search of a wife. Lazenby married Mary Ann Wells, daughter of Major Wells, on 1 January 1839 the day she arrived on the Brothers to join him. The ceremony was performed by the Rev. Wittenoom in the Old Court House. They reared ten children, eight girls and two boys. The eldest Lucy, born 1840, married James Anderton Hall in 1858 and went to join him on his farm in the Canning and later in Roebourne. Samuel was speared by Aborigines in 1871 in the Northwest, Joseph (John F.) farmed on the Canning, Adeline married carpenter-cabinetmaker Edwin Duffield and Hannah married the Northwest explorer and pearler William Shakespeare Hall. Various artefacts belonging to this family are in the collection of the Western Australian Museum. Selena, b. 1843, married W. T. King and moved to Gingin, Joseph (John F.), b. 1844, worked the property on the Canning but by his father’s death was on the Dundas goldfields, Mary Elizabeth, b. 1845, married Vernon Birch. Other children were Ellen, b. 1852, Agnes, b.1853, Jane Wesley, b.1859 who married Samuel John Rowe. Mrs Lazenby is said to have had a school in Perth for which her husband made the furniture. The Methodists were particularly keen on educating the girls in more than feminine graces and it may have been to educate their daughters that the school was commenced. The curriculum in 1845 included maths and geography. A man with a social conscience Lazenby was Chairman of the Swan River Mechanics Institute, Member of Perth Road Committee 1842-44 and Chairman of the Public Institutions Society in 1855. There was no ordained Methodist minister in the colony in the first six years. Lazenby was a Methodist lay preacher one of four with the Hardey’s and Barnard Clarkson and in 1834 formed the first Methodist 'fellowship class’. His obituary stated “In all matters pertaining to the church he took the keenest interest and there was no one more devoted than himself to its welfare.” Lazenby contributed to the cost, and was on the management committee supervising the building of the first Wesley Chapel cum Sunday School room in 1834. He was also the first superintendent of the Sunday School. Lazenby was on the building committee for the Fremantle chapel and the second and third chapels in Perth including the current Central Methodist Church when the foundation stone was laid on 25 October 1867. He had donated the pews. There was at this time a stigma attached to being 'Chapel’ in a colony controlled primarily by 'Church’ (of England). One joke of the time was the adaption of an old rhyme to read: “I diddle diddle, old Trigg and his fiddle, Old Lazenby preached to the moon; Old Molly Hutton sang psalms to her mutton And Waldeck, he swallowed the spoon.” Apparently Lazenby had a habit of looking at the ceiling while preaching. In defence the 'Chapel’ people were a close-knit group who supported each other. Lazenby employed other Methodists; cabinet and pianoforte maker Joseph Hamblin, and apprentice Benjamin Mason being most notable. As a man of enterprise he tried to establish an export market for local timber, taking samples of furniture made from Jarrah to England aboard the Victoria in 1845. Hamblin’s wife and son also sailed while Hamblin remained to run Lazenby’s business. Lazenby was in charge of the repairs to Government House in 1848 and was connected with the handsome jarrah cellarettes made at this time for Government House in Perth. These were most probably the work of Joseph Hamblyn/Hamblin who made him a sideboard of jarrah in 1846. The cellarettes have classic Regency lines – the style brought to the colony by the earliest settlers. The same people preferred their silver in this and Georgian style and as the periods represent a high period in both disciplines they retain their charm and usefulness and are treasured today. Hamblin who had undertaken a nine-year apprenticeship in England was consummate craftsman. According to Lazenbury’s orbituary he ceased in business in 1856 and in 1862 became foreman of works for the Imperial Government supervising the erection of the Barracks and the Colonial Hospital. In 1869 he became Supervisor to the Perth City Council and Town Clerk until 1881. Lazenby bought and built Cardup, near Byford. Here in the 1860s he built a two storey house, a flour mill, dammed a brook and bred cattle, pigs and horses. He also opened a claypit and burnt bricks. The brickworks later became Cardup Bricks still in operation in the 1990s. The son Joseph (John) worked the property in the 1860s. Lazenby died in his “Cedar Villa” in Lake Street, Perth, 9 June 1895 just short of eighty-eight years. He had been hale and hearty until three weeks before his death. When he died he was the oldest of the Methodists in Perth. His pallbearers included prominent Methodists Sir George Shenton, President of the Legislative Council, Walter Padbury, F. F. Armstrong and G. Glyde.

Australian Dictionary of Biography- George Lazenby by Dorothy Erickson

George Lazenby (1807-1895), cabinet-maker, builder and town clerk, was born in October 1807 at Spaldington, East Yorkshire, England. After his family moved to Leeds George was apprenticed to a cabinet-maker. The youngster was musical and played the cello and the violin. Taking ship in his brother's vessel for his health, he visited Western Australia about 1831 and saw opportunities there. Soon after, he returned to Britain and became engaged to Mary Ann Wells. Reaching the Swan River colony in January 1833 in the Cygnet, with George Shenton and others, Lazenby commenced business as a cabinet-maker and builder. He married Mary Ann on 1 January 1839, shortly after she had arrived to join him. They had ten children. Mary Ann reputedly ran a school in Perth in the 1870s. In Murray Street Lazenby built a house for himself, followed by twelve cottages to rent and later a store. A member of Perth Road Committee in 1842-44, he was sometime chairman of the Swan River Mechanics' Institute and in 1855 of the Public Institutions Society. There was no ordained Methodist minister in the colony in its first six years. Lazenby became a lay preacher—he was known to habitually look at the ceiling while preaching—and in 1834 formed the first Methodist fellowship class. He was a generous supporter of his denomination, contributing to the cost, serving on the management committees and supervising the building of at least four chapels; he was also a founder of the Sunday School. In a colony controlled primarily by 'Church' (of England) there was some stigma attached to being 'Chapel'. The Wesleyans, however, formed a close-knit group. Lazenby employed other Methodists, the most notable being an apprentice Benjamin Mason and the pianoforte-maker Joseph Hamblin, a consummate craftsman who worked for him until 1847. Attempting to establish an export market for local timber, Lazenby took samples of furniture made from jarrah to England aboard the Victoria in 1845. Hamblin's wife and son sailed with him, while Hamblin remained to run Lazenby's business. Returning to Perth in 1846, Lazenby was appointed clerk of works to the Perth Town Trust in 1850. In this capacity he was in charge of refurbishing Government House. He ceased business in 1856 and in 1862 became foreman of works for the government, supervising the erection of the barracks and the colonial hospital. In 1869 Lazenby became supervisor and town clerk for Perth City Council. Criticized for inefficiency in 1875, he resigned but, after an apology, was persuaded to withdraw the resignation. A sympathizer pointed out that as well as being supervisor, he was 'Clerk of the Council, Clerk of the Market, Caretaker of the Town Hall, Inspector of Nuisances, Inspector of Weights and Measures, Receiver of Allotments belonging to the Council, keeps labourers' accounts and pays their wages daily'. A secretary was appointed to assist him and he remained in office until 1881. At Cardup, near Byford, in the 1860s he built a two-storey house and a flourmill, dammed a brook, bred cattle, pigs and horses, opened a clay pit and burnt bricks. His son Joseph worked the property in the 1860s. In 1877-78 Lazenby and his wife again visited Britain. Mary Ann died in 1886. Hale and hearty until his last weeks, Lazenby died on 9 June 1895 in Perth. One son and six daughters, including Hannah who married W. S. Hall, survived him. Select Bibliography C. T. Stannage, The People of Perth (Perth, 1979) R. E. Turner, Foundations Not Made by Hands (Perth, 1984) Western Australian Historical Society, Journals and Proceedings, 2, pt 13, 1933, p 1 West Australian, 10 June 1895, p 3, 11 June 1895, p 5.