The second owner of the Scott chest was Henry Scott, the third child and second son of Peter and Isabella Scott. Born in Scotland, Henry was ten when the family migrated to Victoria in 1851.
According to his obituary, Henry worked first as a carrier in the Western District. He married locally, although the name, and fate, of this wife is unknown.
In 1869, Henry became the keeper at the ‘old’ Minhamite Hotel on the Hawkdesdale-Penshurst road, but the following year moved to the ‘new’ Minhamite Hotel a couple of kilometres away. On Boxing Day 1870, after Henry had moved out of the old hotel, it burnt down in suspicious circumstances. The Hamilton spectator filed the following report on the fire inquest:
'On Saturday, Coroner Learmonth held an inquest, at Penshurst, touching the origin of a fire that occurred on Boxing-Day, whereby the old Minhamite Hotel was burnt down. It appeared, from the evidence, that the premises were not insured. They were untenanted at the time, but the proprietor had made arrangements to let the building, and had given instructions for certain repairs to be executed. The hotel was formerly occupied by Henry Scott, the present landlord of the new Minhamite Hotel, which was about a mile distant. Evidence was given which appeared to establish the fact that the fire was not accidental, but there was nothing to implicate any person. The jury found that the old Minhamite Hotel was wilfully set on fire on Monday, 26th December last, but by whom there was no evidence to show.'
After only a further year in the new Minhamite Hotel, Henry decided to take advantage of a Land Act passed by the Victorian government in 1869. Under its terms, would-be settlers needed only a small amount of capital to license, lease and eventually turn a selection into freehold.
The Wimmera region in the northwest of the colony was thrown open to closer settlement under the 1869 Land Act. Henry’s brother, Peter Jr, was the first member of the family to select land in the Parish of Natimuk. He made the application to license Section 77 in October 1871, while working as a labourer for Major Firebrace at Vectis Station. Henry obtained a licence for nearby Section 85 in October 1871.
There were only two houses in Horsham and none at Natimuk when Henry arrived in the area, and the land was covered in native vegetation.
The traditional owners of the Wimmera region were the Wergaia and Jardwagali. By the time the Scotts moved to Natimuk, most surviving tribes people had been moved onto Ebenezer Mission, although there may still have been some living at the edges of settlements. The name Natimuk comes from the local Aboriginal language and means little lake.
Henry’s first allotment, like his brother Peter’s, had frontage to the Wimmera River. By 1875, he had built a two-room dwelling of 30 feet by 13 feet from palings. In addition he built a cart shed, stable, store, fowl house, stock-yard and pig-sty, established a vegetable garden and cleared and grubbed land for crops. The total value of these improvements was £345.6.0.
In 1878, Henry married for a second time. His bride was Clara Durham, eldest child of James Durham and Catherine née Cormakan. Clara was born en route from Scotland to Australia in 1854 and was named after the ship, Clara. The first of Henry and Clara’s nine children, Catherine, was born on their farm at Natimuk the following year.
Henry went on to acquire about 1,500 acres of land in the Parishes of Natimuk and Darragan, a significant holding for the area.
Natimuk selections
1. Section 85 (309.2.30), licensed by Henry Scott October 1871, leased February 1875, freehold 6 December 1881.
2. Section 84 (144.1.3), licensed by Peter Scott Sr November 1872, leased July 1877, transferred to Henry Scott November 1878, freehold 6 April 1883.
3. Section 77 (320.0.0), licensed by Peter Scott Jr September 1871, leased April 1875, freehold 20 February 1878, sold to Henry Scott February 1879.
4. Section 83 (95.3.10), licensed by Peter Scott Sr May 1876, leased October 1879, transferred to Henry Scott March 1880, freehold August 1886.
5. Section 78 (141.0.21), licensed and forfeited by Charles Miller, transferred to Alexander Wilson. returned to Grace Miller May 1876, leased March 1880, transferred to Margaret Scott October 1880, transferred to Henry Scott, March 1882, freehold 26 August 1886.
6. Section 86 (276.3.16), licensed by James Durham Jr, leased August 1879, transferred to James Durham Sr January 1880, transferred to Henry Scott February 1887, freehold 15 April 1887.
7. Section 86A, grazing license to Henry Scott November 1887.
Darragan selections
1. Section 93 (62.1.29), licensed by James Nelson Waring April 1883, leased March 1886, transferred to Henry Scott November 1890, then several other parties.
2. Section 29 (99.3.33).
3. Section 94 (35.3.15).
4. Section 94A (11.1.1).
Most of Henry’s land transactions were straightforward, and he ended up purchasing land from his father, Peter (when he struggled to pay necessary rents), and brother, Peter Jr (when he sold out and went to New South Wales), including the Vectis Hotel (see separate blog).
Henry also acquired Section 86 from his brother-in-law James Durham Jr, but this was more problematic. In February 1879, Henry submitted a ‘Form of statutory declaration in support of application for forfeiture’ against James on the following grounds:
'That the said James Durham at the date of his application for the license of the said land was under the age of eighteen years that is to say of the age of sixteen years and three months only.
After examining a birth certificate for James (born 11 December 1859, Koroit), the Horsham Land Board found for Henry.'
On 19 September 1879, James submitted a ‘Form of appeal against the recommendation of the local Land Board’:
'On the grounds that the applicant for the forfeiture of my lease did not prove that I made the declaration when I applied for my selection wilfully and that the applicant admitted that in making the application for the forfeiture of my lease he was actuated simply by a motive to injure me.
The Department of Lands agreed to reissue the licence for Section 86 to James bearing the date 1 January 1878, which meant that it fell within the required rules as to James’s age.'
The victory for James was short-lived and on 6 January 1880 his father, James Durham Sr, wrote to the Minister for Lands:
'I beg to inform you that my son James Durham … has been missing since July last, and although I have advertised for him and made very enquiry, I have failed to ascertain his whereabouts. His lease is now due, and I herewith forward an application on his behalf … .
James Durham Sr duly assumed responsibility for Section 86, but transferred it to Henry Scott in February 1887. No information on the fate of James Durham Jr has been found.'
In 1882, Henry advertised in the Horsham times that he was ‘giving up farming and going in for dairying’, and held a sale for much of his land and stock. He supplied milk to the ‘Natimuk Dairy Company Limited’, a precarious venture that eventually went into liquidation in 1901.
Henry’s wife, Clara, died on 16 August 1904. ‘Although she had been an invalid for the past twelve months, suffering from partial paralysis and dropsy, she was able to move about a little until lately. Deceased was of a cheerful disposition, and had borne her long illness with singular patience free from the peevishness of the invalid.’
Henry himself died about 4 o’clock in the afternoon of Friday 5 December 1913. He had been suffering from sciatica for many years, but otherwise ‘possessed a very strong constitution.’ Nine months prior to this death he contracted diabetes and was bedridden for six months. After a funeral on 7 December, he was buried in the Natimuk Cemetery.
References
Hamilton spectator, 8 February 1871, p. 2 (items of news—Minhamite Hotel fire).
Horsham times, 19 August 1904, p. 2 (obituary—Clara Scott).
Horsham times, 16 December 1913, p. 3 (obituary—Henry Scott).
Horsham times, 16 December 1913, p. 4 (no settlement at Natimuk when Scott arrived).
West Wimmera mail, Natimuk and Goroke advertiser, 12 December 1913 (Death of Mr H. Scott).
Yule, Peter ([1988]) From forest, swamp & stones: a history of the Shire of Minhamite, Warrnambool Institute Press, Warrnambool, Vic.
Peter and Henry Scott land file, section 83, Parish of Natimuk, No. 3773, unit 1159, VPRS 626/P/0000, Public Record Office Victoria.
Peter and Henry Scott land file, section 84, Parish of Natimuk, No. 34580, unit 463, VPRS 625/P/0000, Public Record Office Victoria.
James Durham and Henry Scott land file, section 86, No. 6477, unit 1214, VPRS 625/P/0000, Public Record Office, Victoria.
Henry Scott land file, section 85, Parish of Natimuk, No. 20718, unit 305, VPRS 625/P/0000, Public Record Office Victoria.
