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HEWISON William & Helen Research by Gordon Freegard William and Helen Hewison were pioneers of the Pickering Brook district
from 1914 till 1943. William A. Hewison was born
on 5th September 1858 in Kirkwall on the Island of Orkney, Scotland.
ORKNEY ISLANDS OF SCOTLAND #1 |
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MAINLAND COAST, ORKNEY ISLANDS #2 |
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WESTRAY COAST, ORKNEY ISLANDS #3 |
SKARA BRAE PREHISTORIC VILLAGE #4 William Hewison later lived in Lossimouth near Elgin, where he
worked in a solicitor' office In 1890 he
married Helen Duff Mackenzie who was also born in Scotland on 19th
August 1867 at Urquhart, Moray. Helen came from a large family with 10 Brothers and sisters all born in Morayshire, Scotland. Her parents were Duncan MacKenzie (1827 – 1900) and Ann Pirie (1828 – 1902) of, Scotland. Her father was a coachman at Innes House in Loch Hill near Urquhart and Elgin in Scotland. It is said that when he retired the owners of Innes House gave him a small cottage at Coppies Hill |
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The eleven MacKenzie children were: Ann (1850 -
? ) Married James Reid Agnes Hay (1868 – 1939) Married Bob Harris and lived
in England. Helen’s Grandparents were; John MacKenzie and Flora Gillanders – John was a merchant seaman. The family lived
in Locharen, Rosshire.
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HELEN & WILLIAM HEWISON #5 |
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William Hewison was working
in a solicitor’s office but was studying to be an accountant, when he was lured
by the gold rush that was happening in Western Australia. His Scottish wife
Helen, was working as a dressmaker in a factory there, and was not keen on shifting
to Australia. However it was decided that William would head off to Australia
leaving behind his wife and young son in care of her parents. If all turned out
well he would send for her to come and join him. William migrated to Western Australia in 1896 during the Gold Rush. His
knowledge of accounting, however made him invaluable to the timber mills, and
he did not reach the Gold Fields. He had no difficulty in finding a position. Many businesses were thriving because of the gold rush and
William found work at a saw mill called Lion’s Mill, at Mount Helena in the
Darling Range just outside of Perth. He knew nothing about the timber mills but
was a genius with figures and very familiar with office work. After two years
there he became quite settled and sent for his wife and six year old son
Robert. They arrived in Fremantle in 1898 and traveled up to Mount Helena
where they saw for the first time the house in which they were to live. Helen was surprised at the harsh conditions which were foreign to her. Young Robert was not impressed and vowed not the step inside
saying it looked more like a barn. They had no other option and eventually
moved in. |
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LION'S MILL, MOUNT HELENA #6 |
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William had already applied for another mill job in the small
town of Kirup in the south of the state. So shortly after the family joined him
they all moved south. In the eight years they were at Kirup the family grew. Their first daughter, Annie, was born at Kirup in 1899, and three years
later, in 1902, Doris was born in Bridgetown. In 1905, another daughter, Flora
arrived, in Bunbury. Helen had been trained as a professional dressmaker and
made her own and the children's clothes. She had a great love of music and saw
that her children had a musical education as well as attending the various mill
schools. William's services were much
in demand, in his capacity as book-keeper. It was usual for mills to move on
when the timber "cut out". In
1906 the family left Kirup and moved to the thriving saw mill settlement of
Canning Mills, near Pickering Brook in the Darling Ranges. Having only been
there for a short time he was offered an office job at another smaller mill in
Pickering Brook. The mill that had been owned by the Patterson Family was about
to close down but instead sold to a young couple, Alice and Alexander Barton-Bruce. |
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CANNING MILLS #7 |
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The mill was moved six miles
to the east to the spot known as Barton's Mill. William was given the job of
office clerk and a few days later his wife moved there with their four
children, the youngest was Flora, only three months old. The mill houses, or
huts, were made of bush timber with no conveniences whatever. However, within a
short time William had settled into his job and Helen took in dressmaking for
all the mill families. Coming to such a place as Barton's Mill was then, must have
been an ordeal for her because not only did she have four children to look
after in the primitive conditions, but a year later she opened a little shop,
attached to her house. The very industrious Helen sold homemade hop and ginger
beer, biscuits as well as tobacco and cigarettes to the workers. She brewed the
beer out in the yard in kerosene tins which must have taken hours, but she did
it to enlarge her husband’s pay packet which was fairly meager. |
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BARTON'S MILL, PICKERING BROOK #8 |
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A fourth daughter, Alice Thelma, was born at
Barton's Mill on 13th July 1909 - the day Alexander Barton died. There are many
records of what injuries he received and how he died. This is one such story. He
had been badly injured in a mill accident two days before and as the Hewison
house was the nearest to the mill he had been taken there. He must have known
he was dying as he made Mrs. Hewison promise to name her baby, if it was a boy,
Alexander and if a girl, Alice, after his wife. Alice and Mrs. Hewison were
best friends and they continued to be friends until Mrs. Hewison died in 1943.
When Alex was taken by train to Royal Perth Hospital where he later died. The Barton's had two children,
Jessie and Ken. Jessie married a Professor Massey, an American. Jessie came back
many years later and was taken to the mill by the Hewisons to show her where
the old house was. Mrs. Barton
conducted the mill business for a time, but as had
the children to take care of, she and her brothers decided the best thing for
them was leave and the Millar's Timber and Trading Company took over. The Bartons
left the mill but the Hewison family stayed on. The mill operated until late 1937 or early 1938. At the start of World
War 11, it became a prison, with security, for a time, provided by Home Defence
5th Garrison Battalion "B" Company. |
LOADING RAILTRUCK. WILLIAM HEWISON EXTREME RIGHT #9 |
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Many families lived at the mill with two boarding houses operating
to cater for the workmen. One was run by the Brown's, who have two children
buried at the mill. There was not much to do by way of entertainment but there
were dances and football matches between the mill and Pickering Brook and
Mundaring. Later there
were tennis courts. Alice Hewison was friendly with the Manager's daughter,
Florie Thompson, and still went to the mill to stay with her after they left
the mill and went to Pickering Brook. In the end there was a fairly large
population and this was how Mrs. Hewison made her money by running a small
store there. |
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Mrs. BROWN'S BOARDING HOUSE, BARTON'S MILL #10 |
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In February 1910, William Hewison was involved in writing to the
Education Department requesting a school to be built at Barton’s Mill. Although
the mill owners were prepared to supply all the timber and the workers were
going to build it, the Department was relucent to remit the 10 pounds ($20) for
the school building and 10 pounds ($20) for the teacher’s quarters they
promised until after it was built and the attendance numbers were proven. Many
letters including plans for the school building and teachers quarters, were
exchanged over many months with the school finally opening in August 1910. |
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LETTER BY WILLIAM HEWISON REQUESTING SCHOOL #11 |
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PLAN OF SCHOOL BY WILLIAM HEWISON #12 |
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BARTON'S MILL SCHOOL BUILDING #13 |
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The three older Hewison girls, Annie, Doris and Flora attended the
little school at the mill but Robert left school at fourteen and worked for the
railways. His first job was as porter at Dumbleyung, in the south west. As
there were no more boys in the family the girls had to be proficient at all the
jobs around the place. St.
Paul's Presbyterian Church was the scene of a very pretty wedding on Wednesday,
12th March 1913, when Doris, eldest daughter of Mr. and the late
Mrs. Logan, of Perth (late of Albert Street, West Northam), was united in the
holy bonds of matrimony to Mr. Robert Hewison, of Pickering Brook. The Rev. W.
F. Turton was the officiating clergyman. In late 1915, Frederick Lindley, who had a little shop eight miles
nearer Perth, at Pickering Brook, approached Mrs. Hewison. He had bought it a
couple of years before from Mr. Thomas Humphries who had built it himself with
timber from Barton's Mill in 1903. He had volunteered to join the war effort
and signed up with the Australian Infantry Service
Army, as did a lot of other local lads also. Although
Fred had three sisters, Lucy, Ruby and Florrie, and a brother, none of them
were interested in running the shop. Mrs. Helen Hewison, from Barton's Mill, was asked to manage the business
while Fred was away. Unfortunately two years later Fred Lindley was
killed in action on the 20th September 1917, in the big offensive
in the historic battle of Possieurs, France. William agreed, on one condition - he would do the books and accounts
but would not serve in the shop behind the counter! |
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HUMPHREY'S PICKERING BROOK STORE #14 |
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So in 1915 the Hewison family loaded their possessions into a horsedrawn cart - kids, cats, dogs, pots and pans,
etc, for the 8 mile drive over a rough bush track to their new home and
business. At Pickering Brook there was only six houses including the shop.
There were three in a row, the shop, the Humphrey family, the Lindleys and the
Sextons, and a hundred yards away were another three houses, all belonging to
the Weston families, who in 1876, were the first settlers at Pickering Brook.
There were five sons and four daughters in the Weston family. Their first son
died when two days old and his grave is in the bush near Masons Mill. It was
tended at first by his brother Greg. When Greg died his son Niel continued to
care for the grave. It is now a National Heritage Listed Site and is still
maintained by descendants of the Weston Family. The arrival of the four Hewison children was good news for the residents
as there were now sufficient pupils to open a school - Robert, by the way, had
already left school and joined the railways as a cadet. Alice, who was only 5 years old, remembers the day they moved very
well. By the time they had driven the horse and cart to Pickering, the horse
was choking with thirst so they pulled up at the water trough, near the shop,
to give him a drink. She had her prize cat in a sugar bag and when she took him
out and he promptly jumped out of my arms and ran into the bush. She performed
a terrible din and continued crying until they went into the shop. She can
remember the round oak table in the middle of the living room floor and the tin
of boiled lollies on the table and only stopped crying when I was allowed to
eat the lollies. The living accommodation was attached to the shop. There were two
big bedrooms, a very big kitchen and a tiny room at the end of the lounge room.
There were two big open fireplaces that had to be cleaned with pipe clay and
one little pokey stove in the kitchen. The shop was just one room with a counter right up the centre. But
it had a little room on the end that was later converted into a butcher shop.
Right above it was a loft that was all padded with sawdust to keep it cool,
there was no refrigeration as there was no electricity. They had kerosene
lanterns. The butcher, a Mr. Hummerston came from Midland. Hummerston and
Watson had the first shop in Kalamunda opposite the station. The store building had neither water laid on, nor electricity connected;
wood fires were used for cooking and heating; and washing was done in iron tubs
under a big gum tree. Housework was not easy. The railway station was 100 yards
(approx. 90m) away opposite, over Barton's Mill Road (now Pickering Brook
Road). Mrs. Hewison assisted
by her husband, William, then purchased the store and Post Office and
remained the proprietor of the business until 1943 when her daughter Alice
Beard (nee Hewison) and son-in-law Bert Beard then took over the business and
operated it until 1959. |
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HAZEL, NIEL & MERLE WESTON #15 |
As time went by and the parents were busy
with the shop and post office. As the family grew up they
all helped - it was truly a family effort. The eldest daughter, Annie virtually
became a second mother to the younger ones. Their Mother always managed to get
our dinner and breakfast until Annie took over. When she was eighteen Annie married Gregory Phillip Weston, third son of Mr. and Mrs. R. Weston, of Springdale, Pickering Brook on 23rd November 1918, at Canning Mill Schoolroom, at 4.30 p.m. by Rev. Father O'Gorman, of Guildford. Greg Weston was a fire wood cutter working around the Barton's Mill area. He carried it by horse and cart to Pickering Brook Station to load onto the railway trucks to take to Perth. He continued to cut wood until they could buy a little property two miles from Pickering Brook where they built a four roomed house. Greg then started a vegetable garden and orchard. They had two daughters and one son, Hazel, Merle and Niel. When the Hewisons first came into the shop at Pickering Brook they delivered to Barton's Mill three times a week - Monday, Wednesday and Friday. On Tuesday, Thursday and Friday, Mrs. Hewison did a smaller round. William went to the mill by horse and cart at ten o'clock in the morning. He started the delivery at the first house in the circle and continued all around the mill. He took butter covered with wet sacks but on the hot days it was just dripping by the time he got there. In wet weather it was difficult to keep goods dry. The bush roads were rough and boggy in places. He often got home late at night and then had to unharness the horse before he could eat. |
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Sometimes he went by train if the horse absconded. Helen ran the Post Office and the shop as well as the house, feeding and caring for the family - including making their clothes! Sometimes she also acted as local midwife. In addition, she helped newly arrived Italian families who had language problems - there was a big influx of Italians at this time. On days when Bill was not delivering, Helen took her turn, loading the cart and delivering groceries to Karragullen, Canning Mills and Roleystone. It was tiring work, in all weather, climbing in and out of the spring cart - her days were filled with a multitude of jobs. Sometimes the horse would get out in the night and she had to go up on the train taking all the orders in baskets. It was a battle to do the deliveries until they bought a "T" Model Ford truck. This was a great help and made deliveries so much easier to maintain.
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The shop catered for a growing population and the changing scene as the
years went by and motor cars and trucks came into the district, a petrol bowser
was installed, first serviced by Plume and then by the Shell Company. It was
the first petrol pumps in the Kalamunda area and Kosteras at Kalamunda were
second. It was hard work pumping the petrol by hand to
fill 44 gallon drums for the orchardists. The petrol bowser pumped only 4
gallons at a time, so each time they emptied the pump they put a stone on the ground
to remind them how many times they had pumped. When a "T" Model Ford Truck was purchased, deliveries were faster.
Family members learned the good and the bad habits of a "T" Model
Ford - firstly the right way to "crank" to start it. Most roads were
atrocious, especially two of the steep hills - Munday's Brook and Tait's Hill.
If the fuel level in the petrol tank was low, the truck had to be turned to face
the other way then backed up the hill, as the fuel was gravity fed to the
carburetor. Once level ground was reached, it was turned to face forwards
again! At night, driving was very slow due to the rough roads. As the lights
were powered directly from the motor, they dimmed as the speed dropped, making
the going even more difficult. Alice started to drive the "T" Model Ford when she was
fifteen and used it to get firewood. But they had to get a boy, one of the
French boys, from behind the school, to help in the shop as the area grew and
he could drive and do the deliveries. Only two others families had cars at the
time, the Temby’s and the Catchpoles Times were hard and all the children had to help do the work, cleaning
and washing and ironing. Alice was doing all her own washing and ironing at
twelve. The washing was done in three big iron tubs under the big gum tree in
the backyard. The tubs were on a wooden bench, one had the suds, one the rinse
water and one the blue. The clothes lines were up in the bush - so were the
toilets. They never had a toilet near the house until later when Bert and Alice
took over and had the back of the house rebuilt and included a toilet. They had
no water or electricity either. There
was some sort of carbide lighting, a kind of powder that had to be lit with a
match, it was very smelly. All ironing was done by the old flat iron. |
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MRS HEWISON IN PERTH PAYING HER MONTHLY BILLS #17 |
All stock for the shop had to come on the train from Midland. All
the meat and bread also came that way. Sometimes, if they couldn't get into Barton's
with the horse and cart they caught a ride on the little mill loco. When they first took over the shop Mrs. Hewison only had fifty pounds to buy groceries with. She went down to the wholesalers, D. & J. Fowlers. The only ones who would give her credit and bought six pounds of tea and a bag of sugar, enough just for the few families around. As she used that and made a little money she bought more. Of course, customers were few and far between then. It just grew from there. There was only one shop in Kalamunda and no one had transport to go far for shopping. To start with the Pickering Brook Shop only sold basic food items, cigarettes and tobacco with stamps etc available in the Post Office area but later they began stocking work clothes, leggings and boots for the men around. There was no grog for sale. This store was a great help to the locals as it gave credit. The men had to go to Kalamunda for it. If the men wanted a drink they would catch the five o'clock train to Kalamunda, get their tummies full and catch the eight o'clock train back, carrying a sugar bag full of bottles. |
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Tommy Roads and his wife had twelve children. She died
shortly after having their twelfth child, at Pickering Brook. They lived next to
the shop where the people of Pickering Brook had built them a little house. He
used to be on the Weston property in the early days but I think he had a heart
attack or something and couldn't work. They were very poor. Tommy Roads used to
buy claret by the huge keg and he and Harry Hawkins would bottle it up. Doris had a very bad accident one afternoon as her father was taking her into Kalamunda in the horse and cart. Coming down Tate's Hill the horse shied and she was thrown out. She was taken to Perth Hospital from Carmel by two sisters of the church, Methodist Deaconesses, Sister Rose and Sister Alice Rutherford. She was unconscious for a long time with a fractured skull. They took her down in their horse and buggy. There was only one doctor in Kalamunda, a Dr. Ewell and then later Dr. Barber came |
Mrs. TOMMY ROADS WITH BABY #18 |
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PICKERING BROOK (CARILLA) SCHOOL #19 |
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Started school at Pickering
Brook, about a mile and a half from home. The school opened in 1915. The first
teacher was Miss Seymour, a little old lady of over sixty. She walked to school
from Carmel, near where the Post Office was later, in Union Road. She talked to
herself all the way to school as she walked along the railway line. They often
walked behind her to try to listen to what she said. She had to walk along the
track as there were too many snakes to walk through the bush. There were only
enough children attending Pickering Brook to keep the school open. There were
three Frenches, three Hewisons and four Westons. This was the total. After the
war there were fewer still. The school was only one little room, just an
unlined wooden shell with a fire place. When she was eight she went to Carmel
School. Mrs. Hewison did not think her children were making progress at
Pickering Brook School so she wrote to the Education Department to ask if she
could change schools. |
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The rule was that the children had to attend the school nearest to
them and that was Pickering Brook. Mrs. Hewison was not having this so she
borrowed a chain measure from Mr Owen and she and Ernie Mason made a track all
the way to Carmel school and measured it. It came out to be the same distance
to each. She was taken to court for sending me to Carmel but they decided as it
was the same distance we could go there, they still fined her a shilling for
it. Years later, the story is told be Ray Owen and he said "Yes, when I
was building this house I wondered why nothing came out right with the
measuring. He then realised Mrs. Hewison had taken a foot off the end of the
chain, to make the distance come the way she wanted". There were very few children at Carmel school. Just Molly Owen,
Edna and Grace Wallis and Alice in her class, then other children were the
Mitchell girls, Nellie Martin, Herbie Annetts, Mervin Blamire, Basil Blamire
and the Loarings, Popsie, Barbara, Linda and Kevin. The teacher when then was
Reg Gilchrist, he taught the bubs, then Gertie Elson and later, E. A. Jackson. |
CARMEL SCHOOL #20 |
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On the 23rd November 1918, at Canning Mill Schoolroom,
at 4.30 p.m. by Rev. Father O'Gorman, of Guildford, married Gregory Phillip
Weston, third son of Mr. and Mrs. R. Weston, of Springdale, Pickering Brook, to
Annie, eldest daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Hewison of Pickering Brook Post Office. When Alice turned thirteen she left Carmel school and went to
Perth Girls School which meant catching the early seven o'clock train arriving
at Perth at nine. Then she had to cross the bridge to North Perth, so she was
always three or four minutes late for school. Jean and Peggy Shaw also went
down to town on the train with her every day. Jean worked in Perth but Peggy
went to Perth Modern School. The Shaw's had the orchard just up from Owen's at Carmel.
As well as school work Alice was learning music, so after about six months her
mother decided she should board near the school. She found board with the
parents of Roy Gray who later became my brother-in-law as he married Doris. |
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BRIDESMAIDS FLORA & ALICE HEWISON #21 |
The social event of the season at Karragullen was the marriage of
Doris, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Hewison, of Pickering Brook, to Mr. Roy Gray,
of Karragullen, on Christmas Eve 24th December 1924. The marriage
was solemnised by the Rev. Tom Allan, at the pretty little Carmel Church, which
had been decorated by girl-friends of the bride.
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WILLIAM HEWISON WITH DAUGHTER DORIS |
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Alice did not like school very much but she loved music. All the
school exams and music exams seemed to come at the same time. Her mother could
see she was not progressing too well with school and asked her what she wanted
to do. Alice said she felt she could not catch up with the other girls and would
prefer to concentrate on music. After two years at Perth Girls School she gave
up and concentrated just studied music and took all her exams by correspondence.
She excelled in her music studies and by the age of seventeen was playing for
all the dances everywhere. When Alice was sixteen there was a big ball over at Roleystone
with a talent competition. Her mother said if she would sing in it she would
take her and Doris to the ball. Alice said she would right up to the day then changed
her mind and said she wouldn't. There was a terrible fuss from Doris as then
neither of us could go. In the end she decided to sing and they were both
allowed to go. She sang "Memories" and won the competition.
Afterwards the judge, Peter Roxby, said he was very impressed and said that
Mrs. Hewison should get someone to train her. So for two years Alice and Doris
were both sent to Perth to be trained by Hugh Torrence. Alice went on and won
several competitions. At nearly seventeen she started playing for the dances at
Pickering Brook. Mrs Bevan who had a band of piano, saxophone and drums and
played at Carilla a lot helped teach her further and that really got her
started playing in the band. One night there was to be a big ball and as Mrs. Bevan got out of
the car she jammed her hand in the car door. She came into the hall with her
hand all swollen and of course everyone wondered what was going to happen. She
came over to Alice and said she may be able to persuade her old pupil to play.
Of course Alice was very shy in those days and said refused. "Yes you
can" she said "Look at my hand, I can't play. I will stay beside you
and stamp my foot to keep time. I shan't go home." She tapped her foot for
Alice all night and after that everything was alright and now with confidence
she went and played all over the place. |
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You couldn't always get people up from Perth to play with you in the Band in those days as it was such a long way. For years she was paid only five pounds ($10) a night. She used to give the saxy twice what she got. Many things for free, every Christmas tree, every kitchen tea and wedding in the area. Most of the kids whose weddings she played at, now have kids of their own. To start with a violinist, old Augustus Kaiser, joined her. He had
an orchard next to Owen's at Carmel. He was the only one she could get to play
with her. They played for all functions around here but as the place grew a bit.
About that time a friend Molly Owen was going with a chap called Bill Kirkham
from Perth and he used to play for a lot of dances down there. One day he came
up to a dance at which Alice was playing and Molly told him she was looking for
a sax player. He said he would like to come up to play with her and it would
earn him a few bob as well as let him visit Molly. Bill was the first
saxophonist to join her and then she got a drummer from Perth. The three of
them played for quite a few years. Later on she had the same drummer, but was
joined by her my husband Bertie, and Ted Riggs was on the sax. They played for
weddings all over the place, Armadale, Perth, Cottesloe. They had a lovely life
doing this and because of their playing they were very welcome at all kinds of
events in the district. To start with she was only paid five pounds ($10) but with
the popularity, by the end that went up to twenty pounds ($40). |
ALICE HEWISON AGED 17 #23 |
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Every second Friday in the month she played for the Kosteras
Garage dance at Kalamunda. The old man Kostera had the garage then. The dance
was for all the drivers from the buses and their friends but anyone could go.
Admission was two shillings. Alice never charged them for playing but they gave
her some lovely gifts. The dances were in the big R.S.L. hall. She also played
for the ANZAC day dances there too. They continued playing all over the
district until they disbanded the band after Bert and Alice sold the Pickering
Brook Store and Post Office in 1959. Growing up in Pickering Brook was wonderful. There were Tennis
courts opposite the shop built by volunteers on busy bee days, and they were
always having surprise parties. They were real surprise parties too, no one
would ever tell. Many dances were held at Harry Weston’s house. He had married
Lucy Lindley. When the Lindley family sold the shop, Harry moved their barn. It
was originally near the shop but he moved it to the back of his place and this
is where the dances were held. This was just over the road from where the
Pickering Brook Shopping Centre shop is today. |
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PLAYING TENNIS AT FRED WALLIS'S PROPERTY #24 |
The sisters often walked all
the way to Walliston to play tennis at the home of Fred Wallis. Sometimes the
day would end in a musical evening. Mrs Wallis was able to play the piano
beautifully and her niece next door, the Halleen girl, used to sing. As Alice,
being younger, was still going to school but sometimes she was allowed to catch
the half past four train to Kalamunda and get off at Walliston. Her sister
would walk through the bush to meet her. Sometimes she was allowed to stay at
Walliston, with Grace Wallis, for the weekend and then she would come to
Pickering Brook to stay with her. The Wallis' grew the most beautiful dahlias
and flowers of all kinds. Grace (now Earp) and Alice were the same age and Edna
(now Padgett) and Flora were the same age and they have been mates for years.
Charlie Padgett was a local boy too, his family came to Patterson Road,
Pickering Brook, when the soldier settlements started after 1918. Charlie was a
policeman. Another Padgett son, Eddie, worked at Barton's Mill. Fraser went to
the war in 1914 and Nell, who married a Neave, lived in Kalamunda. |
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As Pickering Brook was such a small isolated place, it is no wonder the
few families seemed to inter-marry. Ruby, the sister of Fred Lindley, who's
mother bought the shop from, married Fred McCullough and they ran the first
Post Office in Kalamunda. Their cottage is now in the Kalamunda Historical
Society’s Village. Two of the Weston boys married into nearby families. Harry
Weston married Lucy Lindley and Greg married the eldest Hewison daughter Annie. Alice Thelma Hewison married Albert (Bert) John Beard, eldest
son of George & Martha Beard, New Zealand, of
Carmel on 4th October 1930.
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ALICE & BERT BEARD ON THEIR WEDDING DAY #25 |
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DOCKET FROM HEWISON'S STORE #26
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Anyway as it happened Bob Portwine from Kalamunda heard about them getting married and said he had heaps of work if Bert would work for him until he decided what he wanted to do permanently. Bob was a baker in Kalamunda and needed work done on his property, windmills erected and so on. Raymond Cecil Owen, son of Oliver and Mary Owen, of Pickering Brook married Flora Margaret, daughter of William and Helen Hewison of Pickering Brook at the Carmel Methodist Church on the 22nd March 1933. This was followed by a small reception at her parent's home. Ray later became Chairman of the Darling Range Roads Board, local MLA and then Freeman of the Kalamunda Shire.
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RAY OWEN & FLORA HEWISON #27
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BEARD'S PICKERING BROOK POST OFFICE AND STORE WITH THE 16th BATTALION CAMERON HIGHLAND PIPE BAND #28 |
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In the meantime, Mrs. Hewison asked her daughter Alice and husband
Bert to come back to the shop as she was getting too old to manage and was too
ill. Her daughter Alice Beard (nee Hewison) and son-in-law Bert Beard then took
over the business and operated it until 1959. Sadly, in 1935, Bill suffered a stroke but still did the books and small
tasks until bedridden by a subsequent series of small strokes. Helen and Alice
cared for him for many years at home, until Helen herself became ill, first
giving up work in the store and then needing care herself. Alice and Bert had
by then taken over running the store. In addition, Alice cared for both her
parents as well as her growing family. Bill died on his 85th birthday, 5th September 1943, spending his
last few days in Royal Perth Hospital. In 1940 Helen had an
operation and never really recovered. She died
of cancer less than 2 weeks later, on 26th September 1943 aged 77
years old - also spending only the last days in hospital. In her
will the shop was left to Bert and Alice who ran the shop until they sold out
in 1959. |
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BERT & ALICE BEARD #29 |
Helen and Bill gave decades of sterling service to
the residents of Pickering Brook, Barton's Mill, Canning Mills, Karragullen and
Carmel. Helen worked tirelessly, running a business and a Post Office, and
rearing five children. It was well known that the girls were always well
dressed and set the fashion. Her dressmaking talents were not wasted. Their
youngest daughter, Alice, excelled at music and singing. The store was operated by the Hewison/Beard family until 1958 when Mr. Bendell took over and later George Spriggs. In 1969, the Water Board resumed land in the district for water conservation and the shop closed about 1972 and eventually the building was taken down. Many residents had fond memories of this building. On 27th September
1992, family and friends gathered together to pay tribute to the family who ran
the store and provided so much to many. A plaque was placed on the spot. Close
by was a rose growing in all its beauty, which could well be called an
Australian Heritage Rose. We hope it will bloom forever. Hewison Road in
Pickering Brook was named in remembrance of them. Well done, Helen and William!
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Descendants and their families gathered at the Carilla Hall on the 6th
May 1984 to honour the pioneer couple, William and Helen Hewison. Seventy-five
people attending covering four generations. Of their five children, two were still living (1984), they were Flora
(Mrs. Ray Owen) and Alice (Mrs. Bert Beard). They were present at the gathering
along with Children, grand-children and great- grandchildren. The twins Nicole and Kim Beard, aged two months, were the youngest
family members present. |
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HEWISON GATHERING 1984 #30 |
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All three generations of Annie (Mrs. Weston) attended. Doris Hewison died
in 1973, and had no living descendants. Robert Hewison, the only son of William and Helen, died in 1968. Present
at this gathering were his widow, Caroline (Carole) (nee James), two of his sons, his elder
daughter and five grandchildren. His eldest son, William, who lives in Albany,
was unable to attend. The Hewison name is carried onto William's son, another
Robert. A strong family spirit was shown by the many people who attended on such
a stormy day. It was a happy occasion despite the weather. Thanks were due to Malcolm and Pamela Beard, who did much of the
planning and preparation. |
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Every endeavour has been made to accurately record the details however if you would like to provide additional images and/or newer information we are pleased to update the details on this site. Please use CONTACT at the top of this page to email us. We appreciate your involvement in recording the history of our area. Reference; Article: Gordon Freegard Images: 1 Internet
Copyright : Gordon Freegard 2008 - 2023
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