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The Martin family occupied Viewbank homestead during the formative years of Melbourne. Over this period, dramatic changes took place in the settlement culminating in a ‘budding metropolis’ by 1880 (Davison 1978:6). This chapter provides historical background on Melbourne, the genteel Heidelberg area and Viewbank homestead.
In 1835 an unsanctioned treaty was made by John Batman and elders of the Wurundjeri to exchange yearly provision of supplies of blankets, knives, tomahawks, mirrors, axes, clothes etc. for approximately 600,000 acres of land (Broome 1984:20; Kociumbas 1992:190–191; Attwood 2009). While there had been a very limited European presence in Port Phillip prior to this, it was in 1835 that permanent settlement commenced (Boyce 2011:9–12). By this time, the Aboriginal population had already suffered from the effects of introduced diseases, particularly smallpox from Asia, and the British colonists brought tuberculosis, measles and venereal diseases (Campbell 2002:216). The Aboriginal population declined rapidly (Shaw 1996:20; Campbell 2002:xii). Disease was not the only plight of the Aboriginal people in Port Phillip. Encounters between settlers and Aboriginal people were often confused and violent (Broome 2005:14). Pastoral settlers displaced Aboriginal people from their land, particularly on Melbourne’s fringe and in many cases this forced Aboriginal people to seek European food in Melbourne (Broome 2005:20–21). Displacement, exploitation and death were rife.
Following the treaty, the grab for land in the Port Phillip district commenced initially with squatters from Van Diemen’s Land (now Tasmania) encouraged by Edward Henty, John Batman and the Port Phillip Association, John Fawkner and others. They were followed shortly after by ‘overlanders’ from New South Wales following in the footsteps of Major Thomas Mitchell who first made the journey in 1836 (Broome 1984:20). While ‘overstraiters’ and ‘overlanders’ continued to make the journey, when news of the adventure and fortune that could be had in Port Phillip reached Britain, another wave of immigrant squatters made their way to the colony (Broome 1984:22; Dingle 1984:21–22). The need for labour was initially filled by ex-convicts, but labour shortages were so severe by the mid-1840s that in Britain the working class, and in particular the agricultural poor, were actively encouraged to migrate (Broome 1984:40–41; Boyce 2011:155–156).
In England, middle-class men, although possibly influential in their profession, had little power in the political or social arena (Davidoff and Hall 2002:73). However, a middle-class man who left England for the new settlement at Port Phillip could become wealthier and more influential in society. For some, the desire to escape scandal or unhappiness functioned as a catalyst for emigration. In addition, farming families from England and Scotland were under pressure due to the recession following the end of the Napoleonic Wars in 1815 and many viewed emigration to Australia and other British colonies as a way of stretching their capital further (Broome 1984:19). These early settlers were mostly men of considerable wealth, along with their families and servants. Many were doctors, lawyers, clergy and ex-military men. Most were English, but there were also a large number of Scots and some Irish (Broome 1984:23). Arriving first in Sydney, the squatters undertook the long and hazardous overland trip from New South Wales within a short period of arriving in Australia and often with stock (Broome 1984:20–21).
Prior to the gold rush, medical men like Dr Martin far outnumbered other professionals in the colonies (Mackay 1934:476). A significant number of these doctors were Scots, as was Dr Martin himself. The universities of Edinburgh, Glasgow and Aberdeen were producing a high number of graduates, exceeding local demand. Surgeons were required on every vessel that made the voyage to Australia and many signed up for the journey, but once in the colony they found only limited opportunity for medical practice. Many turned to pastoral pursuits, and their medical background along with their good education put them in a position to take up influential roles in society such as magistrate, or president of a range of societies (Mackay 1934:476).
Conditions were hard during the first years of the Port Phillip district. Melbourne was a ‘primitive village’ (Davison 1978:6) and services were limited. By 1840, however, Melbourne had a population of around 4,000 and had become an administrative centre servicing the pastoral interests of the Port Phillip district (Brown-May 1998:1–2). In spite of an economic depression in the early 1840s, by 1843 shops and hotels were steadily emerging 8(Dingle 1984:27; Priestley 1984:23–24). From the outset, the settlement lauded respectability and distanced itself from the ‘convict stain’ in spite of the undeniable presence of ex-convicts in the district (Boyce 2011:56).
In 1851, the Port Phillip district became an independent colony named Victoria. It was also at this time that the first discoveries of gold were made, bringing great upheaval and transformation to the colony (Cannon 1971:180). It also brought a fresh influx of arrivals from working-class backgrounds who sought their fortune and to establish themselves in the new society. The population of Melbourne increased from 29,000 in 1850 to 125,000 ten years later (Davison 1978:6). The gold rush continued throughout the 19th century, but was declining in influence from the 1870s (Serle 1971:1). From this time, wool, wheat, and manufacturing were the primary industries in Victoria (Serle 1971:45–85). Two periods of economic depression affected the colony while the Martins lived at Viewbank: one in the early 1840s and another in the mid-1850s (Broome 1984:35, 87). In spite of this, the legacy of the gold rush enabled Melbourne’s growth into a major commercial centre, not only because of the wealth it created, but from the demand for services required by a growing population (Davison 1978:11). By 1891, Melbourne’s population had expanded to 491,000 and it had become a true metropolis: a bustling, global city (Serle 1971:77; Davison 1978:7).
The Woiwurrung people occupied the area drained by the Yarra River and its tributaries, including Heidelberg, at the commencement of European settlement. There were five clans of Woiwurrung speakers, and it was the Wurundjeri-willam who occupied the river flats (Barwick 1984:124; Presland 1994:36). In the early years of European settlement, Woiwurrung people in the area continued their traditional rituals. However, as European settlers took up the land along the Yarra River for farming, it became impossible for the Woiwurrung to live as they had done in the area (Presland 1994:72). There is little historical information about the experiences of the Woiwurrung people in Heidelberg, but it is likely that their experiences were much the same as elsewhere in Victoria, characterised by displacement, exploitation and violence.
Early European explorations of the Heidelberg area noted the beautiful, well-watered and fertile land. As with much of Port Phillip, the first to take up the land did so to graze sheep (Garden 1972:3–5). This was short-lived, with the first subdivisions of land for sale in Heidelberg by the Crown in 1838. The area was divided into nine portions and a village reserve. Further subdivisions continued shortly after with farms and estates being established (Garden 1972:11).
A large number of the estates in the Heidelberg area served as town residences. Advertisements for land in the area emphasised the gentlemanly estates and the prestige of the area, along with its fertility and beauty (Garden 1972:13–15). This gave Heidelberg a different character to the rest of Port Phillip. For example, one advertisement promoted the land as: ‘… adjoining the romantic Village of “Heidelberg”, adjacent to the highly improved Estates of Joseph Hawdon, Esq., … etc etc; and within half an hour’s ride or drive of the rising and populous city of Melbourne’ (The Australian, 5 October 1839). Hawdon’s Banyule Homestead was an impressive two-storey mansion completed in 1846, which still stands today. The area was suitable for those required to go to the city on a daily basis, but also allowed for the pursuit of farming, dairying and market gardening, for which there was an increasing demand in the colony (Garden 1972:15). The area became something between suburb and country: an area of country-style residences for the influential men of Melbourne.
Heidelberg from the 1840s onwards was also home to independent and itinerant workers, employees on the estates, small farmers and those working to supply services in the growing Warringal village. From 1845, the land in the Warringal village reserve was sold and in 1848 there was a scattering of shops including a butcher, baker, wheelwright and blacksmith. The village met the basic needs of the population of Heidelberg. By the 1850s, the Old England Hotel, Church of England, Wesleyan and Roman Catholic churches had been established, along with two schools (Garden 1972:70–75). Heidelberg relied on a coach service to link it to Melbourne until 1888 when the first, albeit indirect, rail route opened. A direct rail line to Melbourne opened in 1901 (Cummins 1971:47). The area had the feel and characteristics of an English rural community. Heidelberg was also popular for day trips from the city for picnicking and leisure, and as a meeting place for Melbourne’s hunt clubs (Garden 1972:74). Towards the end of the 19th century the area became increasingly popular among artists and is still renowned for the works of the Heidelberg School of Artists.
The first European occupation of the Viewbank land appears to have commenced in 1837 when Edward Willis occupied a run at the junction of the Plenty and Yarra Rivers (Billis and Kenyon 1932:141; Spreadborough and Anderson 1983). The first official record of ownership of the Viewbank land was when subdivision took place in Heidelberg in 1838. Richard Henry Browne purchased the portion of land on which Viewbank was to sit (PROV, VPRS 460/P, Unit 1102, 150140/16440). The land was divided into four lots and advertised for sale in The Australian newspaper on 7 March 91840 with the advertisement promoting the beauty of the landscape and the ‘gentlemanly society’ of the area.
James Williamson purchased the eastern-most 192 acres of Browne’s estate in December 1839 (PROV, VPRS 460/P, Unit 1102, 31 January 1839). In 1841 the New South Wales census listed a weatherboard house at Viewbank (Peters 1996:14). Later that year Williamson was having financial difficulties and was forced to convey Viewbank under trust to pay off his debts. In August 1842, the Viewbank mortgage and Williamson’s debt were conveyed to Dr Martin. In October 1842, Viewbank was advertised for sale in its entirety:
The above beautiful and highly valuable property, situated at Heidelberg, on the banks of the Yarra, about six or seven miles from town, consisting of 192 acres, three roods, twenty-four perches, mostly alluvial flat land, with a genteel residence detached. Stables, coach-house, garden, &c., in every respect calculated for the reception of a respectable family. If not sold by the 1st September next, it will on that day be sold by auction, and parties desirous of purchasing are strongly recommended to inspect the property, which in beauty of scenery, richness of soil, elegance of its buildings, and respectability of situation, cannot be surpassed by any other in the colonies. (Port Phillip Gazette, 3 October 1842)
Two years later, on 23 August 1844, Robert Gear Esq. of England purchased Viewbank from Browne and conveyed the land, under the care of trustees, to his daughter, Mrs Martin (PROV, VPRS 460/P, Unit 1102, 150140/16440). Subsequent deeds refer to Dr Martin as the owner of Viewbank. The Port Phillip Gazette recorded on 22 May 1843 that ‘Dr Martin is removing to his property at Heidelberg, his house at Moonee Ponds would be let’.
When the Martins moved to Viewbank with their children they required a larger and grander homestead than the original weatherboard house. The will of Lucy Martin states that additions were made to the homestead after 1840 (PROV, VPRS 7591/P2, Unit 87, File 26-805, 11 January 1884). The architect John Gill was employed to undertake extensions. The employment of a well-known architect indicates that substantial additions were to take place (Peters 1996:18). In 1850, a tender notice appeared in the Melbourne Morning Herald:
To Carpenters and Joiners
Persons willing to tender for the carpentry and joinery work (labour only) required in sundry alterations and additions to the residence of R. Martin Esq. Heidelberg. May inspect the plans and specification, and obtain all necessary information at the office of the undersigned, to whom tenders must be delivered on or before Wednesday, the 4th of December next. John Gill, Architect. (The Melbourne Morning Herald and General Daily Advertiser, 28 November 1850)
An earlier tender by Gill appeared in the Port Phillip Herald (5 August 1845) for builders and stonemasons for work on a house in Heidelberg, which may well have also been for work at Viewbank.
The house was situated on a hill with good views to the south-west. In spite of the prolific work of the Heidelberg School of Artists in the area, no drawing or painting of Viewbank homestead has been found. However, official documents and oral histories provide some information on the appearance of the house. An affidavit to Mrs Martin’s will in 1884 records that on the now 195 acre Viewbank property there was a ‘… brick house containing 12 rooms slate roof & leaden gutters wooden out houses and stabling – fencing …’ (PROV, VPRS 7591/P2, Unit 87, File 26-805, 19 January 1884). Oral histories taken by the Heidelberg Historical Society (HHS Viewbank file) give some indication of the house at Viewbank. One records that:
Mrs Alma White, a long time resident of Heidelberg described the house as built of handmade brick, single storey with verandas on either side of the dwelling and across the front. Windows from floor at the front of the house, and the front door had coloured glass panels on either side of door and etching on glass. (HHS Viewbank file)
Mr T. Rank, who grew up near Viewbank and was a child when the homestead was demolished, gave oral testimony in 1974 which records that the house was:
… a substantial residence made of handmade bricks and foundations of local stone. Where the stone was excavated on the property [sic] formed a large cellar and a big, square underground tank. The roof was slate and it was a single storied dwelling with hip roof and low gable. There were French windows opening onto a front verandah, and on either side of the front were two wings, with bedrooms on one side and living room on the other. The house contained marble fireplaces and Mr. Rank remembers his mother commenting on the beautiful wood paneling in the house. (HHS Viewbank file)
There is no direct evidence of the Martins’ contact with the local Wurundjeri (Woiwurrung) people while at Viewbank, however it is possible that conflict emerged out of the competition for resources. A large Wurundjeri settlement was located at the junction of the Plenty and Yarra Rivers, not far from Viewbank (Willacy 1981). The activities at Viewbank 10must have displaced these people from their land. Pastoralism certainly had a devastating impact on Aboriginal people in Victoria and Dr Martin’s extensive properties would have contributed to this throughout Victoria.
Aboriginal people were often employed as stockmen by pastoralists, but probably on an unpaid basis with only food and accommodation provided. There is some suggestion in the historical records that Dr Martin employed Aboriginal people. Evelyn Pitfield Stirling Sturt of Lonsdale Street, Melbourne in a letter to Lieutenant-Governor Charles La Trobe on 20 October 1853 discussed the ‘dangerous’ Aboriginal population:
I knew a fine young lad whom Dr Martin had civilized; he was a stockman, and a very intelligent lad. He accompanied a party with fat stock to Melbourne; at Buninyong he fell in with a tribe of natives, and, in the act of giving them tobacco, was basely speared, and died in the greatest agony. His only offence was that he belonged to a strange tribe. (Bride 1969:368)
This man would have worked for Dr Martin at one of his pastoral runs, and was probably travelling from Dr Martin’s Mount Sturgeon pastoral property. Unfortunately there is little more that can be gleaned from the history of Viewbank on the interactions between the Martins and the Wurundjeri people.
After Dr Martin’s death in 1874 (PROV, VPRS 7591/P2, Unit 17, File 12-586, 22 October 1874), Mrs Martin left Viewbank and leased 63 acres of the property, including the house, to Cecilia H. Cockburn Campbell in 1875 (PROV, VPRS 460/P, Unit 1102, 1 June 1875). The remainder of the land was leased to Joseph Bond (Peters 1996:11). The property continued to be leased for a number of years to various tenants, the last of whom was Thomas Robinson, a dairy farmer, who occupied Viewbank from 1911 to 1920 (Peters 1996:12). It is unclear whether these later tenants were occupying the homestead or just using the land.
The oral history given by Mr Rank (HHS Viewbank file) indicates that the Viewbank homestead was demolished and the materials sold off during World War I. However, Heidelberg rate books indicate that the homestead was still standing until Harold Bartram purchased the property in 1922 or 1923 (Peters 1996:12). Bartram was a dairy farmer who also owned land in Heidelberg, Bulleen and Templestowe. It appears that the Viewbank homestead was demolished when Bartram purchased the property (Peters 1996:12). Bartram farmed the land and built a house near Banyule Road in 1942 (HHS Bartram Family file). From the 1950s, Bartram began to subdivide and sell his land. In 1971, Viewbank was sold to the Melbourne Board of Works and is now part of the Yarra Metropolitan Park (HHS Bartram Family file).
Over the period that the Martin family lived at Viewbank homestead, Melbourne grew from a ‘primitive village’ towards a global metropolis, Heidelberg went from grazing land to a genteel village, and Viewbank from a modest, four roomed cottage to a substantial 12 roomed estate. It was a time of great opportunity and dramatic change.