...a place in the KellyGang story
Areas
Wangaratta was known as Ovens Crossing Place from 1838 until 1859.
The first settler was George Faithfull. He called his home Wangaratta from the aboriginal words 'wanga', a cormorant and 'ratta', to sit or nest. Others suggest that it means meeting of the rivers. The area was the home of the Pangerang Aborigines
Hear the story of Billy the Puntman (Sadleir)
The headquarters of police trying to control the Greta mob and those watching the Hart and Kelly homes. The town grew rapidly in the 1860s and 70s because mixed farming. There were a large number of selections in the area. The arrival of the railway line in 1874 added to the area's prosperity.
Wangaratta was a substantial town with, by 1884 four churches, three flour mills, a tobacco factory, two breweries, several foundries, a tannery, a hospital and a town hall.
It would seem that the last corroboree in full war dress was held by the local aboriginal community in 1870
Police Station
in Murphy St dates from 1873
Railway
Station
Henry Laing
Robert Spaven
The railway arrived in 1873
Morgan engine driver (RC8998)
Post
Office
A postal outlet was opened in 1843.
William Shields
Mail route between Wangaratta
and Cobram via Kilawana,
Peechelba, Bandalong, Yarrawonga
, and Burramine
And between Wangaratta and Estcourt
And between Wangaratta and Milawa, via Oxley
, then to Moyhu Post Office, Taylor's Gap, Murmungee, Beechworth
Bank holiday, 23/1/79 (Argus22/1/79)
Businesses
By 1884, Wangaratta had three flour mills, a tobacco factory, two breweries,
several foundries, tannery, hospital and town hall.
Cemetery
Wangaratta Cemetery -contains Dan 'Mad Dog' Morgan's
headless body.
William Bickerton , James Sloane and George Powell Trustees
of the Cemetery
Doctors
Dr Hutchinson practiced
in the 1860s- 70s
Dr Crouch
Dr William H Miller
Funerals
Simpson William
Hospital
The hospital was gazetted in 1876
Land Board
The Wangaratta Land Board consisted of Mr ET Dunn (of the land office Benalla),
Mr Wm Ward (Chairman of the Beechworth
Mining Board), and Mr Andrew Byrne
(President of the Oxley Shire
Council) (OMA5/4/1879)
Lawyers
Thomas Notcutt
Licensing Magistrates
Alexander Tone
William Harte Miller
Newspaper
Wangaratta Despatch
Pound
Pound Keeper HY Miller
Shops
William Jarvis, a storekeeper, and Irving loaned Mrs Jones
money to build and furnish the Glenrowan Inn
Social Clubs and Societies
Wangaratta Amateur Dramatic and Musical Club; news of a performance (OMA5/4/1879)
Wangaratta Athenaeum (OMA5/6/1880)
Wangaratta Cricket Team
Wangaratta Racing Club
Water supply
OMA15/3/79
Other
Mr Lewis was the Inspector of schools based in Wangaratta
(RC1511)(Argus20/7/80)
Steve Hart's family lived
out the back of the racecourse.
The Delaney, Daniel
and John brothers lived
near the railway station
In 1874 and 1875 Det Ward
was stationed at Wangaratta.
Sgt Steele , Const Armstrong
were stationed at Wangarratta.
St Patrick's Roman Catholic Church, most of the church was constructed from granite that came from the Warby Ranges between 1865 and 1871. The church had a number of linnks with the KellyGang.
Petre Martains Star Hotel is mentioned in the Jerilderie
Letter.
Ketts Bulls Head Hotel, Henry Ketts was married to Catherine Green.
Henry Kett was a former police officer, who became publican at 3 Wangaratta
hotels.
Insp Brook Smith consulted Dr Hutton for his condition. (RC17465)
On 4/6/1878 Insp Brooke Smith had 6 constables in Wangaratta (RC14072)
This included Const Dickson (RC439)
Soon after the Murders at Stringy
Bark Creek
The KellyGang
passed under the One Mile Railway Bridge early on the morning of Sunday 3/11/1878.
They were on their way back from the Murray River, heading for the Wombat
Ranges. They passed at the back of the Wangaratta Hospital See also(RC8856)(RC13960)(RC17415)(CHC)(BWC)
Ovens River was in flod (Argus7/11/78)
Brooke Smith took out a search party to Lake Rowan on 6/11/1878 and returned on 8/11. He returned to Kitts Hotel. Mr Laing and Const Twomey tried to get things moving much earlier.
On 11/12/1878, the morning after the Euroa robbery Ass Com Nicolson and Sup Sadleir returned to Wangaratta. Sadleir took a search party down to the area around Glenrowan. (RC16697)
Military from the Garrison Artillery sent to Wangaratta to protect banks in town after the Euroa robbery in December 1878. (RC Appendix 8)
Was Joe Byrne in town playing billard? (Argus21/12/78)
In July 1879 Nicolson stationed a small body of men at Wangaratta under Sgt Steele. There was barely strength enough for a search party, but they could make up a fair party - seven or eight - by calling in men from neighboring stations. (RC 2nd reportXII)(RC713)
Ass Com Nicolson met Jack Sherritt at the Wangaratta show on 12/9/1879. (RC15225)
Cave Party
Ass Com Nicolson called a meeting of police in Wangaratta in about Feurary
/ March 1880 because the police cave party watching Mrs Byrne's might have
been discovered. Const Cox 2810 was accused of pumping his colleagues
for information. (RC5276)(RC1717).
(RC13558)
Const Cox produced a report on his duty at the cave party watching Mrs Byrnes
place. (RC5440)
Const Faulkiner travelled through Wangaratta on 26/6/1880 and saw police parties that were there to cut off the KellyGang and sympathizers communication. (RC5485)
Day of the Glenrowan Siege
The first shots of the siege in
Glenrowan were heard in Wangaratta.
According to Mr Laing the train
with the police left Wangaratta for Glenrowan at 5.20am (RC13955)
According to Const Dwyer it arrived at the place where the track was taken
up at 4.40am. He gave other times. (RC9395)
There were 4 passengers and 12 constables on the train from Wangaratta to
the Glenrowan siege. Sgt Steele
rode and Consts Dwyer, Caussey,
Walsh, Montiford,
Moore and Healey,
and Mr Marsden went to Glenrowan
by train (RC2880)(RC9402)
Thomas Bullivant, a saddlier made the saddle that was on Ned Kelly's horse at the Glenrowan Siege.(Argus30/6/80)
Jack Jones who had been shot at the start of the siege was taken to the Wangaratta Hospital where he arrived at about 11am. He died there at about midnight. The Wangaratta Hospital played an important part in the story of the siege. Young Reardon was also taken there for treatment.
John Grant, the undertaker was employed by the friends to provide coffins of a first class description. He arrived with them in a buggy at Glenrowan on the afternoon of the siege. The lid of the one coffin has lettered “Daniel Kelly, died 28 th June 1880 , aged 19 years,” and the other “Stephen died 28 th June 1880 , aged 21.years.” (Argus30/6/80)
Inquiries
Mr Tone, JP, held a magisterial inquiry at the hospital today on the
body of John Jones and found that the
boy was accidentally shot.
The inquiry on the bodies of Hart
and Dan Kelly was not held.
Mr William Bickerton, with Mr Ell to act as clerk, was in readiness
to start at nine am., as appointed, when it turned but that police had not
provided a conveyance, and that they could not procure one in the town. After
some delay Superintendent Sadleir
telegraphed to get a magisterial certificate authorising the burial of the
bodies. This was obtained from Mr Tone and sent out to Greta. (Age
1/7/80)
Royal Commission
The Royal Commission into the
KellyGang outbreak conducted hearings
in Wangaratta in 1881.
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