VOLUME 6 NO. 4 APRIL 2013 ISSN 1835-7628

FROM THE EDITOR both here and overseas, with whom we share a common interest in local history. As you can see there Thank you again to everyone who has sent in a piece, of is a lot of work remaining till we reach a position with whatever form, for the Newsletter. If it has not as yet which we can be happy. been published it is not that I have censored or overlooked it. It is simply that I wish to keep the Increasingly, the electronic information that we provide publication at a maximum of eight pages and so there is has to be readable on a mobile phone which then raises some juggling to be done but all submissions will appear issues of legibility. For a voluntary group the various in due course. Please don't be dissuaded by a short channels of communication, ranging from snail mail delay. Keep them coming! through to mobile phones, raises issues that 10 years ago were not present. The issue of security also raises In this issue, Tony Dawson - perhaps not for want of its head not only to prevent outside interference but trying - has not forgotten us and has sent in a also to preserve the benefits of being a member of our substantial piece of research on Dr. Grace Boelke, while society. We are getting there but we also need your George and Shelagh Champion revisit that first visit of input . Europeans to our part of the world. The Heritage Festival has started and we are participat- Richard Michell ing with all three councils. We are also working with a number of community groups in presenting talks on the FROM THE PRESIDENT history of gardening. It is interesting how gardening and gardens, while being a very popular household activity, do not figure largely in heritage discussions or As I have mentioned, the website of the society has in historical literature. I watch “ Downton Abbey ” and been undergoing a transformation. Unfortunately the am constantly amazed how little reference there is to old website did not give us the ability to directly provide lawns that sweep out into the distance, with no information and needed someone from within the evidence of their groundsman, or gravel drives that are Society to keep it relevant. David Sawyer gave the raked to an inch of their lives by an unknown carer. Society the opportunity to at last rescue the old site There must be a garden equivalent of Carson and a from obscurity and get some grip on the domain name supporting team but they are obviously too busy to and the host of the website. Bill Slessor has now partake of dinner beneath the stairs or instructions enabled us to move beyond this position and be able to from his lordship. use it for day-to-day communication. Jim Boyce The new website is at www.mwphs.com and all mem- Jim may have to switch from Downton Abbey to Lady bers should have a look at it as to whether it meets Chatterley's Lover if he wants to see more of the Estate their requirements. In any organisation, the position of staff in action in these period pieces - Ed . webmaster is increasingly important as technology is constantly providing challenges as to how a voluntary group such as ours can provide effective electronic Diary - Monthly Meeting communication. The website is still in a state of creation so that the various section headings are May planned to cover the full range of our activities. Sat 11 Annual General Meeting, and Another important factor is how we link with other Talk on Gardens on the Peninsula organisations, such as the Local Studies Librarians in the Tramshed Narrabeen three local government areas which we cover. Then there are the five historical societies with whom we Jim Boyce share LGA borders. There are also tertiary institutions,

Peninsula Historian Vol 6 #4 April 2013 page 1 NEWS AND VIEWS the lack of public transport but nevertheless the very poor record of our area could not be excused. It was an Next meeting attitude problem that was not just confined to the young. There were now Liquor Accords in place to When: 11 May 2013, 2.00pm control the operation of licensed properties but unfor- Where: Tramshed Narrabeen tunately these issues involved behaviour of individuals.

Topic: AGM, followed by There were many questions from the floor during the talk and some of these focused on the history of Gardens on the Peninsula Neighbourhood Watch and its present status. Kylie explained that there were still some Neighbourhood Speaker: Jim Boyce Watch community groups in operation - viz Freshwater, Report on the April meeting Forestville and Terrey Hills - but much of their activities had been absorbed in Resident Action groups or Senior Constable Kylie Boss gave us an interesting Precinct Committees, in the case of the Manly area. insight into policing on the Peninsula from her perspec- tive at the Dee Why Command. In over an hour Kylie It was a most illuminating talk on a subject that many touched on the multitude of support units that to- of us had only a general idea. gether with General Duties make up the modern police station. She also made mention that the Manly and Jim Boyce Dee Why Commands are in the process of amalgama- Birthday best wishes tion, effective in May. The Manly Command currently has about 100 officers and Dee Why about 215. Our sincere congratulations and best wishes to Life Member, Gloria Carroll, on celebrating her 90 th Birthday In relation to the Dee Why Command, Kylie summa- in March. rised the Crime Prevention Unit which she leads. The Crime Prevention Unit has a number of subunits Gloria has been a member of the Society since 1993 and dealing with specific crime issues. One is young is known to all members who attend our regular offenders and she gave an overview of this function monthly talks as the lady who provides the excellent which will involve the establishment of the PCYC at Dee afternoon tea. Why, although this is still in the planning stage. One of the special surprise celebrations Gloria had was Kylie also described the various units stationed on the a “water ballet” performed in the Mona Vale pool Peninsula but which operated within the larger metro- around her by her swimming companions at her regular politan structure - units such as the Highway Patrol early morning swims. Gloria still swims every morning (based at Frenchs Forest) and the Water Police (Broken all year round and perhaps that is what makes her such Bay). a vital and happy lady.

Kylie detailed the main issues that presently occupied Gloria, we all wish you many more “Happy Birthdays” the police on General Duties. Mostly these were and look forward to seeing you at many more of the alcohol related. She said that this was partly due to Society’s meetings. Barbara Davies

Ken Gardner As I mentioned last issue, Gloria Campbell had also sent me some reminiscences about working with Ken. Ed.

"I was surprised to learn that Ken Gardener has been hospitalised - his wife tells me that he had a fall, broke his hip and is now convalescing in Chesalon Nursing Home at Beecroft.

I first met Ken when I volunteered to help transcribe grave inscriptions at Waverley Cemetry, combining with other history groups that had already spent 10 years at Rookwood. A small team of us from MWPHS started at Waverley in about 1992. It not only gathered valuable history but served as a pleasant social event. We then moved on to Northern Suburbs (Macquarie Park) in 1997, Frenchs Forest in 1998 and finally Mona Vale in 2000.

Ken and Bob Pauling performed their duties as group leaders with efficiency and good humour. I certainly enjoyed working with them and regret that the group disbanded after such a successful union. I wish Ken the very best."

Gloria Caroll, March 2013.

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POT POURRI

Memorials

Further on this topic, Tony Dawson has written to me as Tony's sample sheet - and there is a separate sheet for follows: each monument - is a very complete listing of all the relevant facts about the Brooklyn monument and in- "You mentioned the idea of compiling a list of the cludes the photo reproduced here of its unveiling. The memorials and monuments erected by the Society over sheet is too detailed for the Newsletter but if you wish the years. In fact, I did that some years ago and am to see the information on any of the 14 monuments, pretty sure that I gave a copy to Graham Gough for the contact Barbara Davies. Now we just need to organise archive at that time. I also sent the information to a tour! Barbara recently so she has a copy on disk.There were 14 monuments in total some of which have since been lost. Anyway, I've attached a sample sheet for the one As threatened - more on Governor Phillip at Brooklyn which will give you some idea of how the information is laid out. Nagle and the Missing Link

Sorry to hear about Ken Gardner. He's been a great For decades there was much uncertainty as to the servant to the society and I hope that he is well cared route taken by Captain (proclaimed for." Governor 7 Feb 1788) and his exploration party when it first entered the heads of on 21 st January 1788. This led to much speculation and guesswork, particularly on the part of many of our local historians, who seemed determined to claim that Phillip visited present Manly Cove before Sydney Cove. Fortunately, it was seaman Jacob Nagle who gave us the correct explanation.

Jacob Nagle was born in 1761. He could both read and write and his fascinating exploits around the world were recorded in what is now known as The Nagle Journal . This became available to the public in the 1980s. The journal manuscript was acquired by the NSW State Library in 1995.

Nagle arrived with the in 1788 and was employed rowing Phillip about on his many excursions. Of particular interest to us are the extra details Nagle provides relating to our peninsula’s history. His original spellings have been retained.

Having found unsuitable for a settlement Captain Phillip, Captain Hunter, Captain Collins (the Judge Advocate), James Keltie (the Master of the Sirius), David Blackburn (the Master of the Supply) and others, including seaman Jacob Nagle, left Botany Bay on 21 st January 1788 at 6 o’clock in the morning in three open boats (a longboat and two cutters), in search of a better place for a settlement. They rowed northward against the wind, and did not reach Port Jackson until early in the afternoon.

Nagle reported the following in his journal:- “The Governor wished to see Port Jackson before any improvement was made in Botany Bay. Three boats

Peninsula Historian Vol 6 #4 April 2013 page3 was got ready with three days provisions to go round to Botany Bay.” to Port Jackson, a number of officers, and sum marines. In the morning we started, it being about five leagues Nagle’s route is further confirmed by the order in by water, but we found afterwards it was not more which the various coves were named after the officers than 5 or 6 miles across by land. present in descending order of rank. Hunter’s Bay in Middle Harbour was first followed by Collins Cove, now We arrived in the afternoon and run [sailed] up Middle North Harbour. After leaving Camp Cove, Keltie’s Cove Harbour to the westward and then a sircular round to and Blackburn’s Cove were named as the party pro- a bay on the north side, which Governor Phillips call’d ceeded up the harbour to Sydney Cove. Manly Bay, [all of present North Harbour] and survey’d round till we came into the S.W. branch. Coming into The following description by Phillip in his first dispatch the heads of the harbour on the north side is a high dated 15th May 1788 is in agreement with Nagle’s clift of rocks, and on the south side a low point, but route. rocks, and abreast the harbours mouth on the opposite “The Boats, in passing near a point of land in this side of the harbour is a high clift of rocks and flat on Harbour, were seen by a number of Men, and twenty the top. It coming on dark, we landed on a beach on of them waded into the water unarmed, received what the south side and there pitched our tents for the was offered them, and examined the Boats with a night. This was call’d Camp Cove. The marines were put curiosity, that gave me a much higher opinion of them, on there posts. The sailors were variously employed, than I had formed from the behaviour of those seen in some kindling fires and some shooting the seen for Captain Cook’s voyage. And their confidence, and fish, others getting out utensils for cooking. By the time manly behaviour made me give the name of Manly we got our suppers, was late in the night, and by four Cove to this place.” in the morning we had every thing in the boats again, and on our oars, with one man at the lead sounding The point of land mentioned by Phillip was Dobroyd out one cove into the other, Capt Hunter, Mr Bradley Point, and the place where twenty Aboriginal men [he was not present], and the master taking a draught waded out to Phillip’s boats was at present North and of the soundings, likewise the distances. We eat Harbour Reserve. Before land reclamation this cove our breekfasts on our seats and pulled all day. consisted of firm mud or sand tidal flats. It should be noted that Phillip did not land at all on this occasion. The harbour was large and extensive, and the Governor anxious to get to the head of the harbour, but we As stated by Phillip in his May dispatch, Hunter placed could not, but we got as far as where the town is now, the name ‘Manly Cove’ at this location on his signed called Sidney Cove, about 7 miles from the entrance of map compiled in 1788. the harbour. We landed on the west side of the cove. A long shore was all bushes, but a small distance at the We now know that Phillip did not land in Manly Cove head of the cove was level, and large trees but or elsewhere in North Harbour on January 21 st 1788. He scattering, and no under wood worth mentioning, and did not land in present Manly Cove until 15 th April a run of fresh water running down the center of the 1788, in order to explore the land from Manly Cove to cove. The Governor, officers, and seamen went up to upper Middle Harbour and beyond. However that’s see it. another story!

I being boat keeper, I had to remain in the boat. I hove George and Shelagh Champion my line over, being about 4 or 5 fathom water along side of the rocks. I hal’d up a large black brim and hove it into the stern sheets of the boat. The Governor (Spelling in the above is as per Jacob Nagle. Nagle coming down, verry much pleased with this cove and a deserves an article to himself. He was actually born in situation for a town, he was determined to settle in America and fought the British in the War of Independ- this cove. Coming into the barge, he observed the fish ence, first in the and then in the I had ketched and asked who caught that fish. I . He became a , was cap- inform’d him that I had. ’Recollect,’ said he, ‘that you tured by the British, freed by the French but immedi- are the first white man that ever caught a fish in Sidney ately re-arrested by them for helping British sailors. Cove where the town is to be built.’ This link must have been strong because on release in 1782 he joined the and in 1788 sailed with We could not remain longer than three days for want the First Fleet on the Sirius . The rest of his life was just of provisions. Therefore we returned the next morning as full and colourful, including serving with Nelson. Ed. )

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WHAT'S ON ARTICLE Manly Art Gallery and Museum A Brace of Doctors – Paul and Grace Boelke Tel. 9976 1421 In April 1893 Iza Frances Josephine Coghlan and Grace GALLERY EXHIBITION - COURAGE TO CARE Fairley Robinson became the first two women to graduate in medicine from the University of Sydney. Dr Exhibition dates: 14 March - 21 April 2013 Coghlan went on to be the first woman doctor to establish herself in private practice in NSW while The smallest act of kindness makes a difference twenty-two-year old Dr Robinson took a job as resident medical officer at the Sydney Benevolent Asylum, Manly and Northern Beaches residents and school stu- though not before being rejected for a position at the dents are encouraged to visit the Manly Art Gallery & Hospital for Sick Children on the grounds that the Museum from 15 March to 21 April to experience the hospital authorities objected in principle to employing renowned Courage to Care exhibition. Courage to Care a female doctor. aims to inform and educate Australians of the dangers of prejudice and discrimination. It educates visitors, in In the same cohort of medical graduates as Dr particular students, towards an understanding of the Robinson was 28-year-old German-born Paul Wilhelm roles of victims, perpetrators and bystanders by expos- ing them to survivors of the Holocaust and their rescu- Rudolf Boelke who had come to from Berlin in ers. 1887. Upon graduating he had no problem in securing appointment as a resident medical officer at the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital. However, he clearly had no Museum of Sydney prejudice against women doctors for in May 1894 he Cnr. Phillip and Bridge Streets, Circular Quay married Grace at her mother’s home in Double Bay, beginning what was to be a thirty-year partnership in GADIGAL PLACE which both Drs Boelke became leading figures in their Gadigal Place explores the traditional lives and early chosen fields. contact experiences of the Gadigal and other Aboriginal clans of the Sydney basin. It reveals fascinating stories Their early years together were spent not in the city, as about how Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people inter- one might have imagined, but in the small mid-north- acted in the early days of the colony. coast town of Port Macquarie where Paul Boelke accepted a post as resident medical officer early in On display are bush foods and traditional cultural tools 1895, his wife joining him in March that year. Why they and weapons representative of the lifestyles of local chose Port Macquarie is not known. It hardly seemed people, made by Aboriginal people today using tradi- the place where their medical careers might blossom, tional materials, techniques and designs. Members of but no doubt they had their reasons. Boolarng Nangamai Aboriginal Art and Culture Studio created the suite of objects for the museum using As well as working at the local hospital Paul ran a materials harvested from areas known to have been private practice and, as expected of a general practi- frequented by their ancestors for generations tioner, dealt with the whole gamut of medical prob- lems. His name appeared regularly in the local newspa- per, telling how he had set broken limbs, tended to a variety of injuries, treated respiratory and cardiac complaints, administered antidotes for accidental poi- sonings, and taken measures to combat threatened outbreaks of tuberculosis, scarlet fever and bubonic plague. He performed post-mortem examinations and on at least one occasion was called upon for veterinary work, diagnosing cancer in a cow. One patient whom he treated during his time in Port Macquarie was Constable Richard Harris who was shot through the thigh by Jimmy Governor during a skirmish at Yarras in the upper Hastings Valley. Jimmy was the leader of a gang known as the Breelong Blacks who were wanted for murder. In October 1900 they were on a rampage through the Manning and Hastings districts and Consta- Bob Pauling, Dorothy Blake and Ken Gardner on cemetry duty in 1997 (see p.2) ble Harris had been sent from Sydney to join the

Peninsula Historian Vol 6 #4 April 2013 page5 search. His injury proved minor and he quickly recovered but Jimmy, who was also wounded in the exchange of fire, was less fortunate. Shot in the mouth, he was captured soon afterwards and was hanged at Darlinghurst Gaol in January 1901. His story formed the basis of Tom Keneally’s book ‘The Chant of Jimmy Blacksmith.’

Throughout their six years in Port Macquarie, Grace Boelke assisted her husband in his medical practice, although her professional work was rarely formally recognised. Paul, a man of quiet disposition, made a significant contribution to the cultural development of the community as President of the School of Arts. Grace, by nature a more forthright character, also contributed, but along the more domestic lines expected of women, and probably not greatly to her liking. By early 1901 her health was said to be causing concern, though it was probably less to do with her physical condition than with frustration at being unable to pursue her professional aspirations. Nevertheless, it provided a convenient excuse for them to pack their bags and return to Sydney. The town was sorry to see them go, but at the farewell function, the leading dignitaries implicitly acknowledged that Port Macquarie was too small a stage for two talented and ambitious physicians.

Back in Sydney, Paul and Grace Boelke established a practice in Hunters Hill and as the years passed Paul began to specialise in the study of tuberculosis, becoming an advocate for the creation of special clinics to mitigate what was then a rampant but controllable disease. In 1912 he was instrumental in setting up the Anti-tuberculosis Dispensary in Liverpool Street, the first of its kind in Sydney, and it became his life’s work from there on.

Grace, meanwhile, headed in a different direction, turning her energies towards a variety of social issues, especially women’s and children’s health, treatment of the mentally handicapped, the importance of hygiene, and the advancement of women in society and the professions. In August 1901, not long after her return to Sydney, she delivered a lecture to the Womanhood Suffrage League of on the subject of ‘Women Workers’, and a few weeks later she lectured on ‘The Brain and Nervous System’ at a meeting of the Sydney Ladies Sanitary Association. The following year she spoke to the same group about the development and disorders of speech, and her regular appearances at the lectern continued throughout the rest of her life.

Grace was also actively involved in the women’s branch of the British Empire League and the Society for Child Study. She was a delegate to the Birth Rate Conference in 1904 and the Australasian Massage Conference held in Adelaide in 1908. She was appointed as a medical officer in the Department of Public Instruction and spoke to the Society of Professional Women Workers on censorship and the influence of films on children’s minds. In 1912 she formed the Professional Women's Association, an organisation aimed at improving social conditions for women and children. Although busy as the new Association’s leading light Grace did not let up on her other work, assuming the role of convener of the standing committee on health for the National Council of Women of New South Wales, and later becoming a founding member of the State branch of the League of Nations Union.

By 1913 the Boelkes had left Hunters Hill for Double Bay where they remained throughout the duration of the war. Afterwards they moved to Manly, into a house at 67 Fairlight Street, close to the residence of Ernest Farrar MLC. Paul continued his work at the dispensary while Grace immersed herself in a merry-go-round of medical practice, social research, instructional work- shops and lectures. It seems very likely that she knew Fanny Furner, another prominent social worker and Manly resident. Fanny was one of the first two women Grace Fairley Robinson as a student

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candidates for election to local government in NSW when she stood, unsuccessfully, for Manly Council in 1922.

Grace appears to have enjoyed Manly’s relaxed atmosphere. In 1919, when the National Council of Women met to discuss the immodest dress of the modern woman, Grace departed from the tut-tutting tone of earlier speakers, remarking that most girls in Manly wore short skirts, low necks and thin blouses, which she thought rather a good thing, and on the side of health and hygiene. Her liberal, forward thinking was also exposed in her opposition to prohibition, suggesting that, based on history, the craving for alcohol was natural. She did, however, recognise the evils connected with the trade in liquor and was an advocate for tighter regulation including a social strike against indiscriminate “shouting” and drastic penalties against adulteration and serving intoxicated people with alcohol.

In 1921 Paul Boelke relinquished his duties at the Anti-tuberculosis Dispensary because of ill health. During the previous year the number of patients attending the dispensary had exceeded four thousand, including 251 new patients, an indication of the size of the problem. The National Association for the Prevention and Cure of Consumption, in its annual report, praised him, saying that ‘no words could express the appreciation of the unremitting work he had done.” Sadly, Paul Boelke never recovered his health and he died at Manly in September 1923. Three months after his death an article he had written describing a new treatment for tuberculosis was published in the prestigious British Medical Journal, a lasting tribute to his professional work.

Despite the loss of her partner, Grace still had things to do. In 1922 she had been appointed Medical Superintendent at Berlei Ltd, formerly Unique Corsets Ltd, not only to act as medical officer for the factory but also to ensure that Berlei garments were 'anatomically correct'. Reflecting on her earlier work, The Advocate , a Tasmanian newspaper, wrote: ‘Those were the pioneer days of professions for women, and Dr. Grace gave the knock-out blow to the deeply rooted idea that a blue-stocking must be prim-looking, be-spectacled, and badly dressed, for she was bright-cheeked, well-dressed, healthy and happy.’

On 27 December 1923, not long after her husband’s death, Grace left Sydney for San Francisco on board the RMS Tahiti , the ship that was later involved in Sydney’s worst maritime disaster when she collided with the ferry Greycliffe off Bradleys Head, and then, in 1930, sank in the mid-Pacific when one of her propeller shafts broke and opened a large hole in her stern. Fortunately, Grace’s voyage was uneventful and she arrived safely for a two-month investigation of American industrial hygiene conditions. Afterwards she sailed to England, then travelled to Copenhagen and Geneva for international conferences before returning to Sydney in August 1924.

In addition to her other commitments Grace Boelke was a member of the Town Planning Association of New South Wales and in January 1927 she represented the association at the Pan Pacific Science Congress held in Tokyo. From there she went to Shanghai and then sailed to San Francisco on the President Cleveland before moving on to Europe. Interviewed in London in 1928 she expressed her view ‘that the empty spaces of Australia may within 10 years prove too powerful a magnet to be resisted by the over-populated countries in Eastern Asia’ and advocated strongly for greater immigration from all of Europe in order to preserve a White Australia.

It was late in 1930 that Grace eventually returned to Australia to report on what she had learned during her four year absence and to continue expressing her views on matters such as abortion, birth control, compulsory social insurance, mental deficiency and moral character, and, of course, the status of women in society. However, while she largely remained in the vanguard of social thinking, as she moved through her seventh decade of life she became, not surprisingly, more of an A-list guest than a vigorous social activist.

During the 1930s Grace Boelke lived at Neutral Bay and then Darlinghurst, but in 1943, suffering from asthma, she moved to Leura and little more was heard of her. She later returned to Manly where she died in February 1948. By then she had become an obscure figure in people’s memories and her passing occasioned no special comment – just a short notice in the press and a private cremation.

Paul and Grace Boelke had no children but left a social legacy of which both could be proud. Most of Grace’s estate, sworn for probate at £31,429, was bequeathed to the library of the Royal Society of Medicine, London, for the endowment of medical research.

Tony Dawson . —Ω—

Peninsula Historian Vol 6 #4 April 2013 page7 Tail piece

I trust that you recall the item by Jim Boyce in the January Newsletter about Emil Voigt, the London Olympian, Dee Why resident and radio pioneer.

I have received a letter from Susan Pinson - a long standing Member of the Society since 1977 - who advises that Emil Voigt's son Eric was a good friend of Manly, Warringah and Pittwater her husband Richard Pinson. They had many fishing Historical Society Inc. trips together and she enclosed the photo that is Established 1924 reproduced here. The one on the right is Eric and the one on the left is a 41 lb Jewfish, caught off West Head. Patron Alan Ventress BA DipLib Eric was a mechanic at the Brookvale Depot. He unfortunately died at a relatively young age, in his President fifties. He was not married. Jim Boyce Susan and her husband met Eric's father Emil - the 0402 096 080 subject of the earlier article - in 1972 when they were [email protected] holidaying in New Zealand. Treasurer Thanks very much Susan. Ed. Barbara Davies 9997 6505 [email protected]

Minutes Secretary Clive Halnan 0410 867 685 [email protected]

Archivist Vacant

Editor Richard Michell 9401 4525 [email protected]

Postal Address PO Box 695 Manly, NSW 1655

Website www.mwphs.com

History is the witness that testifies to the passing of time; it illumines reality, vitalizes memory, provides guidance in daily life and brings us tidings of antiq- uity. Cicero, writing in about 50 BC.

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