Charles COWLAND ca 1813-1877 & Sarah KENT ca1810-1885, London & Dartmoor, Victoria, Australia

Charles COWLAND ca 1813-1877 & Sarah KENT ca1810-1885

London & Dartmoor, Victoria, Australia

Charles COWLAND b. ca 1813 Staffordshire, England, son of Joseph COWLAND and ___ married in ___ in England to Sarah KENT b. ca1810 ___, England, daughter of John KENT and ___.

Charles COWLAND, aged 40, Sarah COWLAND, aged 42, Alfred COWLAND, aged 18, Charlotte COWLAND, aged 14, Thomas COWLAND, aged 13, George COWLAND, aged 9, and Henry COWLAND, aged 6 arrived on the "Severn" at Portland in December 1856.

Charlotte COWLAND appears to have been later known as Ellen COWLAND who married Samuel HUTCHINSON in 1860.

Charles COWLAND and Sarah KENT appear to have had the following family:

Alfred COWLAND b. ca1836, London, Eng, m. 1877 Margaret SPENCER (nee WHATMOUGH);
Charlotte 'Ellen' COWLAND b. ca1842, London, Eng, m. 1860, Samuel HUTCHINSON;
Thomas COWLAND b. 1844, London, Eng, .........?;
George COWLAND b. 1846, Brixton, London, Eng, m. 1876 Mary Margaret PRATT and they had the following family:
1. Arthur George COWLAND
2. Charlotte COWLAND
3. Alfred Charles COWLAND
4. Mary Margaret COWLAND
5. William Percy COWLAND
6. James Gordon COWLAND
7. Phoebe Ward COWLAND
8. Esther Jane COWLAND
9. Henry John COWLAND
10. Louise Ellen COWLAND
11. Cecil Hutchison COWLAND
12. Stanley Thomas COWLAND
Joseph Henry COWLAND b. 1849, Brixton, London, Eng, d. 1942, m1. 1877, Margaret McFARLANE (1855-1882), m2. 1884, Mary BATTEN (1854-1893) and he had the following family:
1. Ellen COWLAND
2. Henry Charles COWLAND
3. Robert Alexander COWLAND
4. Bessie COWLAND
5. Thomas COWLAND
6. Sarah Kent COWLAND
7. William George COWLAND
8. Esther Jane COWLAND

"Dartmoor and District Centenary Celebrations,
Dartmoor, December 18, 19 & 20, 1936
Souvenir Program, Price: One Shilling"

A Page from the Past
by Henry Cowland

I was born on October 29th, 1847, at Brixton, in England, and landed at Portland with my parents after a voyage of 90 days in the good ship Severn. During the voyage we were becalmed on the line for several days. The first settlers in Portland-the Hentys-were still in Portland when we arrived, their house being on the site where the Richmond Hotel now stands. The government of the day built large sheds of galvanized iron in which immigrants could live while they were arranging for work. One of these community houses stood where the present jail now stands. Later we lived in a house between the Royal Hotel and the Pumps. The blacks by this time were friendly towards the settlers, and apart from domestic quarrels, lived very peacefully-on one occasion I witnessed the tribe carrying out a corroboree.
As no work was offering, my father and my eldest brother took a steamer to Melbourne in hope of finding work; but here they were disappointed, and had to return on foot. On the return journey they secured a job on a farm near Branxholme, owned by Mr. Raymond and John Gough, where the other members of the family joined them. We remained here for two years, after which we returned to Portland, where my father built a little house in which we lived for several years. During this time I went to school at West Portland, to John Hill's School-all scholars paying 1/- per week. Hill taught the boys while his wife taught the girls. Mrs O'Bryan, who died recently at Mumbannar, went to this school while I was going. Later we moved into Portland, and lived at the Victoria Hotel, which stood where the Masonic Temple now stands. While here I went to Butler's School, which stood at the rear of the Church of England. I went to this school until I was 12 years old, and then left to go to work, my first job being with road contractors at Sandford.
Shortly after, I worked for John Coldham, at Grassdale, building sod fences to keep back the wallabies and kangaroos, which roamed about in thousands. These proved ineffective; but the remains of some of the fences are still to be seen. While I was there, the Land Act of '65 was passed, enabling people to select blocks.
The day that Grassdale was cut up, my father, brothers and I, together with two other men, went to the land sale in Hamilton. The sale was conducted in a big open yard, surrounded by a galvanized iron fence about nine feet high. Hundreds of men wishing to select, had ridden or walked many miles to be present. Others, and there quite a few of them, were there as dummies for the squatter. Soon the yard was full, and the gates were locked to prevent others from entering. I was not allowed to enter as I was under the age allowed to become a selector-18 years-so I, in common with many others carried refreshments for those shut in and who gave their orders by climbing to the top of the fence. The mud in the yard was ankle deep, and scenes like these were responsible for the song which ran"
"A scene in the yard was truly fine,
Especially whenever the sun did shine;
Some going heavy with whisky and beer,
Ham and biscuit and other good cheer."

Father waited all day but never got a call, his number not having been drawn from the lottery box.
The next day, Merndale [sic] Station was similarly treated and Mr. Murphy was successful in getting a block.
Shortly afterwards, the Land Board visited Portland and the Glenaulin Station was cut up. A man by the name of Kelly selected the property now owned by J. Emmerson-this accounts for the paddock still being called Kelly's Paddock.
My father and elder brothers came to Greenwald to fence this selection for Mr. Kelly, and on the completion of the job, shifted his family to Greenwald, to look after the selection, and while at Kelly's my brother selected an adjoining block, and we worked both properties. This block was really a part of Egan's Station, but as it was on the south side of the road it was surveyed and thrown open for selection with Glenaulin. While we were fencing in Kelly's block, we helped Mr. Minogue and Mr. T. Lightbody to reap their crop in the property they were renting from Kittson. For some years I carted wool from Ardno East and Woodford, both stations being managed by Mr. Minnett for Mr. Robertson. Sometimes afterwards Woodford was owned by Mr. McPherson, who later had the Dartmoor Hotel. I made two trips for wool to Lemon Springs, between Apsley and Goroke. This station was then owned by J. B. Broughton. I helped to cart the sleepers and bridge material for the Portland-Hamilton Railway line. Most of these were cut at McDonald's Mills on Ascot Heath. I also carted the stringy bark timber for the first pleasure steam boat, which ran on the Glenelg at Nelson. This boat was built by a Mr. Matheison, who later sold it for use at Port MacDonnell; but in shifting it to the latter place, it became wrecked at the mouth of the Glenelg, where it still remains.
The first Greenwald School was held at Egan's; but later the residents built a school which was rented by the Department. Two of the earliest teachers were Mr. Murnane and Mr. Lindsay.

Source: "Dartmoor and District Centenary Celebrations, Dartmoor, December 18, 19 & 20, 1936 - Souvenir Program, Price: One Shilling"

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