From Devon to South Australia
George Frederick Bales, son of William Thomas Brown Bailes and Georgina Knapp, was born on 25 September 1840 in Longford, South and was christened on 1 November 1840 in Adelaide, South Australia.
George spent the first three years of his life in the Adelaide Hills where his father worked as a carpenter. When George was about three years old his mother’s health started to fail and the Bales family moved back to the city of Adelaide. Georgina Bales died five years later on 3 May 1848. George was just seven years old. His older sister, Mary Ann, helped to take care of George and their younger sister, Elizabeth, until their father remarried a year later. In 1854 George’s father took up the lease at the newly established Tea Tree Gully Inn. At 14 years old, it is likely that George was occupied helping out around the Inn. In March 1855 George’s stepmother died suddenly and shortly afterwards the family left the Inn. |
It is known that by about 1866 George Bales had settled in Saddleworth, South Australia and on 11 April 1866 he married Mary Jane Jones at Mintaro, South Australia. Mary was born in about 1839 in Cymtoyddwr, Radnorshire, Wales, England. Mary Ann Jones was one of eight children born to Thomas and Margaret Jones: Thomas, William, Rice, Margaret, Mary Jane, John, David and Ann.
Thomas Jones jnr immigrated to South Australia in 1853 and married Margaret Browne on 2 July 1856 in North Adelaide, South Australia. They had a family of eight children. William Jones married Sarah Williams on 25 June 1873 in Llansaintffread, Radnorshire, Wales. They had two daughters: Alice and Margaret Sarah. Rice Jones may have immigrated to Australia and was living in Bendigo, Victoria in 1894. Margaret Jones also immigrated to Australia and in 1894, she was living in Glenelg, South Australia. John Jones was living in North Adelaide, South Australia before 1894. David Jones was living in California, United States of America in 1894.
Thomas Jones jnr immigrated to South Australia in 1853 and married Margaret Browne on 2 July 1856 in North Adelaide, South Australia. They had a family of eight children. William Jones married Sarah Williams on 25 June 1873 in Llansaintffread, Radnorshire, Wales. They had two daughters: Alice and Margaret Sarah. Rice Jones may have immigrated to Australia and was living in Bendigo, Victoria in 1894. Margaret Jones also immigrated to Australia and in 1894, she was living in Glenelg, South Australia. John Jones was living in North Adelaide, South Australia before 1894. David Jones was living in California, United States of America in 1894.
The Advertiser (Adelaide, SA: 1889 - 1931) 14 February 1894, p.4 c.4 "On the 20th December. 1893. at Radnorshire, South Wales, England. William, the dearly beloved eldest brother of Thomas Jones, Saddleworth, also Rice Jones, Bendigo, Miss M. Jones, Glenelg, Mrs. G. F. Bales, Hawker, the late John Jones, North Adelaide, and David Jones, California, also leaves a wife and one daughter to mourn their loss."
[Source: BELLMAN, Elinor A, Saddleworth, Hub of the Wheel, 1995]
On 16 March 1867, George Bales was declared insolvent. George, a butcher at the time, assigned all of his estate and effects to his creditors, Nicholas Sowton an auctioneer of Auburn and Arthur Coleman, a farmer of Saddleworth. With his business and all of his assets gone, George had to start all over again to provide for his wife and baby daughter. Georgina Laura Bales, named for her grandmother, was born in Saddleworth on 2 April 1867.
George Bales became a carter and on 23 March 1869 he purchased a property on Belvidere Road, Saddleworth. In 1873, George purchased another property in Saddleworth, 16 Bit Street and the following year he purchased 8 Minden Street after the sale of the Belvidere Road property. By this time, George and Mary Bales had another three daughters, Florence Edith born 29 August 1868, Lena Annie born on 7 May 1870 and Agnes born on 1 March 1872. Agnes died at two weeks old.
George Bales became a carter and on 23 March 1869 he purchased a property on Belvidere Road, Saddleworth. In 1873, George purchased another property in Saddleworth, 16 Bit Street and the following year he purchased 8 Minden Street after the sale of the Belvidere Road property. By this time, George and Mary Bales had another three daughters, Florence Edith born 29 August 1868, Lena Annie born on 7 May 1870 and Agnes born on 1 March 1872. Agnes died at two weeks old.
When agricultural land became scarce in the settled districts of South Australia, the government decided to allow farmers to buy land north of Goyder’s Line. The Strangways Act of 1869 had made it much easier for farmers to take up land as they were able to purchase up to 1 square mile of land on credit with 20% deposit and the balance payable at the end of four years. The "Great Wheat Drive" of the 1870's and 1880's resulted in pastoral properties being subdivided into farming allotments of approximately one square mile (640 acres).
The price of unsold sections was gradually reduced at regular intervals until the minimum price of £1 an acre was reached. Selectors were required to reside on their land. They also had to cultivate their land and to make specified improvements. On 20 September 1877 George Bales took up sections 27N and 28, comprising 357 acres, in the Hundred of Arkaba in the Central Flinders Ranges, South Australia. The purchase price was £362 - £1 per acre plus £5 for improvements. He purchased another 283 acres a fortnight later on 9 October 1877 for £283 giving him a total of 640 acres. The Crown Lands Consolidation Act was passed in 1877 and raised the limit for purchase on credit from 640 acres to 1000 acres. George Bales was then able to purchase another 189 acres for £194 on 9 March 1878. |
George was employed as a contractor (limeburner) around this time and he seems to have remained in Saddleworth until about 1879. Possibly he was trying to earn enough to pay the balance owing on his land purchases. Five more children were born in Saddleworth , William Frederick Wesley on 28 March 1873, twin daughters Charlotte Maud and Wilhelmina Blanche born on 13 October 1874, Frederick Austin born 28 July 1963 and Rebecca Olive born 7 April 1878. William Frederick Wesley Bales died on 28 October 1874, two weeks after his twin baby sister’s birth. He was eighteen months old.
The Bales family eventually made the long trek north to the Central Flinders Ranges. The journey could have taken up to three weeks by horse-drawn wagon. Most of the selectors had farmed previously in the Adelaide Hills or around the Clare Valley. But a few entirely lacked farming experience. Whether or not George Bales had any previous experience as a farmer in Saddleworth we don’t know but he, like many others, was willing to give it a go.
The Bales family eventually made the long trek north to the Central Flinders Ranges. The journey could have taken up to three weeks by horse-drawn wagon. Most of the selectors had farmed previously in the Adelaide Hills or around the Clare Valley. But a few entirely lacked farming experience. Whether or not George Bales had any previous experience as a farmer in Saddleworth we don’t know but he, like many others, was willing to give it a go.
Source: MINCHAM Hans, Hawker: Hub of the Flinders, 1980
The first year or so bought good rains and good wheat crops but from 1880 to 1883 drought struck. Locust plagues and red rust disease ruined the crops. As the poor seasons continued it was eventually accepted that the lands beyond Goyder’s Line were more suited to sheep grazing than agricultural crops. Some farmers walked off their land but others were able to revoke their agreements and re-select in more suitable areas. George Bales surrendered his 829 acres in 1885 and re-selected over 800 acres of land at Willow Plains on 11 March 1885. He also purchased another section in the Hundred of Arkaba three years later.
George Bales called his property "Amberley Farm."He built a 9-roomed stone cottage on the property, as well as a 2-roomed iron and wood house, a barn, a dairy, a coach house, stables and sheds. The land was divided into 14 paddocks, all securely fenced with posts and wires. There were two underground water tanks and two wells with a windmill on each.
The summers were hot and dusty. Water was precious and had to be carted from wells or dams. Fresh fruit and vegetables were scarce and the family’s diet would have consisted mostly of meat, bread and jam. There was a small settlement at Wonoka Creek with a blacksmith’s shop, two stores and a hotel but the railway didn’t reach the area until 1880. George and Mary Bales had two more children at Arkaba, a daughter who was born on 8 January 1880 and died the same day, and a son, George Thomas, born on 27 October 1881. Of their eleven children only eight survived beyond childhood.
George Bales called his property "Amberley Farm."He built a 9-roomed stone cottage on the property, as well as a 2-roomed iron and wood house, a barn, a dairy, a coach house, stables and sheds. The land was divided into 14 paddocks, all securely fenced with posts and wires. There were two underground water tanks and two wells with a windmill on each.
The summers were hot and dusty. Water was precious and had to be carted from wells or dams. Fresh fruit and vegetables were scarce and the family’s diet would have consisted mostly of meat, bread and jam. There was a small settlement at Wonoka Creek with a blacksmith’s shop, two stores and a hotel but the railway didn’t reach the area until 1880. George and Mary Bales had two more children at Arkaba, a daughter who was born on 8 January 1880 and died the same day, and a son, George Thomas, born on 27 October 1881. Of their eleven children only eight survived beyond childhood.
Source: MINCHAM Hans, Hawker: Hub of the Flinders, 1980
The town of Hawker arose on a bend in the railway line, it was proclaimed on 1 July 1880. Centrally situated with roads radiating in all directions, it was truly the Hub of the Flinders. The Bales children may have attended school in Hawker. When the new public school was opened in 1883 there were sixty-three pupils enrolled. Many children would have had to travel long distances to attend although dust storms, occasional floods, illness and the need to help at home would have prevented regular attendance. An inquiry into the history of wheat growing in the Hawker district up was held in April 1888. The investigation found that due to of the lack of rain and the size of the holdings, wheat-growing had proven to be unprofitable. A minimum of 5000 acres was needed to permit grazing as well as wheat growing to be able to provide a living from farming in the area. Many farmers had been forced to find work away from their farms for part of the year to support their families.
George Bales was still trying to keep his farm going in 1888 and although the harvest of 1889 was exceptionally good due to long awaited drenching rains, by 1889 George had opened a boarding house in Hawker to supplement his income; he also took on some building work. The Salvation Army church barracks at Hawker, officially opened on 7 April 1892, was built by George Bales. He also was responsible for building a pair of cottages on the corner of Sixth Street and the Wilpena Road next to the Barracks.
By 1895 the four eldest daughters of George and Mary Bales had married and left home. Two sons and two daughters were still at home; Charlotte, who never married, nineteen-year-old Frederick, Mabel, seventeen-years-old and George who was fourteen. Over the next ten years, the three youngest left home – Mabel married in 1901 in Quorn, South Australia, Frederick moved to Mount Gambier in the South East of South Australia and George went to Perth in Western Australia.
In 1911, George Bales advertised "Amberley" for sale by tender. He stated that it was without exception, one of the best wheat and grass growing farms in the north and could be inspected at any time. The property, consisting of 828 acres, was to be sold subject to the consent of the Commissioner of Crown Lands, with half to be paid in cash and the balance within twelve months. At the Hawker council meeting in March 1911 it was recorded that Mr. H.C Pyman had taken over the land.
In 1911, George Bales advertised "Amberley" for sale by tender. He stated that it was without exception, one of the best wheat and grass growing farms in the north and could be inspected at any time. The property, consisting of 828 acres, was to be sold subject to the consent of the Commissioner of Crown Lands, with half to be paid in cash and the balance within twelve months. At the Hawker council meeting in March 1911 it was recorded that Mr. H.C Pyman had taken over the land.
After the sale and due to their advancing ages, George and Mary Bales left Hawker, with their daughter Charlotte, and moved closer to the city of Adelaide. They moved to Harrington Street in Prospect, South Australia where George died on 8 January 1915 at the age of 74 years. Mary Bales died at their home in Prospect two years later on 2 February 1917. They are both buried in the West Terrace Cemetery, Adelaide, South Australia together with Charlotte who died on 29 October 1957. Charlotte Maud Bales bequeathed £300 each to the children of her sister Lena McKenzie.
The graves of George Frederick Bales, Mary Jane Bales and Charlotte Maud Bales, West Terrace Cemetery, Adelaide, 2013
Descendants of George Frederick Bales
George Frederick Bales was born on 25 September 1840 in Longford, South Australia and died on 8 January 1915 in Prospect, South Australia at age 74 years. George married Mary Jane Jones on 11 April 1866 in Mintaro, South Australia. Mary was born in about 1839 in Cymtoyddwr, Radnorshire, Wales and died on 2 February 1917 in Prospect, South Australia at age 78 years. They had 11 children: Georgina Laura, Florence Edith, Lena Annie, Agnes, William Frederick Wesley, Wilhelmina Blanche, Charlotte Maud, Frederick Austin, Mabel Rebecca Olive, an unnamed infant daughter and George Thomas.
- Georgina Laura Bales was born on 2 April 1867 in Saddleworth, South Australia and died on 11 January 1939 in Norwood, South Australia at age 71 years. Georgina married William Henry Pearce on 26 June 1890 in Arkaba, South Australia. William was born on 16 May 1868 in Mintaro, South Australia and died on 10 June 1959 at Eden Hills, South Australia at age 91 years. They had four children: Elsie Irene Ruby, William Adolphus George, Ambrose Stanley and Marguerite Jeanette. Ambrose Pearce died at Gallipoli in April 1915 aged 21 years.
- Florence Edith Bales was born on 29 August 1868 in Saddleworth, South Australia and died on 1 December 1950 in Hilton, South Australia at age 82 years. Florence married William Cook on 22 October 1890 in Arkaba, South Australia. William was born in about 1868 in Swanage, Dorset, England and died on 25 October 1933 in Southwark, South Australia at age 65 years. They had seven children: William Gilbert, Florence Lena Millicent Talbot, Frank Cyril, Elfreda Elizabeth, Gladys Mary, Marie Gwendaline and Irene Ray.
- Lena Annie Bales was born on 7 May 1870 in Saddleworth, South Australia and died on 29 April 1936 in Adelaide, South Australia at age 65 years. Lena married John Cail McKenzie on 3 April 1895 in Arkaba, South Australia. John was born on 18 November 1869 in Ballarat and died on 24 February 1951 in Magill, South Australia at age 81 years. They had five children: Agnes, Frederick Hugh, Lillian M, Hazel Christabel and Emma Jean.
- Agnes Bales was born on 1 March 1872 in Saddleworth, South Australia and died on 15 March 1872 in Saddleworth, South Australia at age two weeks.
- William Frederick Wesley Bales was born on 28 March 1873 in Saddleworth, South Australia and died on 28 October 1874 in Saddleworth, South Australia at age one year and seven months.
- Wilhelmina Blanche Bales was born on 13 October 1874 in Saddleworth, South Australia and died on 19 July 1950 in Adelaide, South Australia at age 75 years. Wilhelmina married William Hunt on 30 December 1901 in Hawker, South Australia. William was born on 29 April 1870 in Shoreditch, Middlesex. England and died on 19 September 1932 in Quorn, South Australia at age 62 years. They had two children: Mary Isabel and Minnie Beryl May.
|
- George Thomas Bales was born on 27 October 1881 in Arkaba, South Australia and died on 26 October 1955 in Perth, Western Australia at age 73 years. George married Heloise Estelle Mesnil on 7 February 1908 in Perth, Western Australia. Heloise was born on 8 August 1882 in Adelaide, South Australia and died on 9 August 1956 in Nedlands, Western Australia at age 74 years. They had four children: Eloise Marcia, Gladys Mary Thirza, Kathlyn Juliette and George Lampier.