“FIRST CLASS COLONIZING MATERIAL”
“FIRST CLASS COLONIZING MATERIAL”
CHAPTER 14: PETER FLETT HENDERSON, FIFTH SON OF JOHN ANDMARY, AND HIS DESCENDANTS
Peter Flett was the fifth son born to John and MaryHenderson. He was born at Wangoom on 1 September 1867 and was called"Flett" after one of the Wangoom families, close friends of theHendersons. When the family moved onto their selection at Ballangeich, Peterwas almost four years old. He started school when the Ballangeich West Schoolopened in January 1873 and attended there until it closed in December 1879. Ithad been a half-time school for all but its first year. During 1880 and 1881Peter, Christina and Albert may have attended the Cooramook school, which washeld in a temporary building in 1880, then in 1881 the Ballangeich West buildingwas moved to Cooramook and the Henderson children would be back in their oldclassroom, until their move to Grassmere in July 1882, by which time Peterwould be almost 15 years old, and ready to leave school.
Peter probably worked for his father on "Rosemore"for a few years (probably cheese-making), then took farm labouring jobs in thedistrict until his marriage. He married Catherine Alien at the PresbyterianChurch at Woodford, 28 January 1891. Catherine had been born at Carrick Fergusin County Antrim, Ireland, daughter of John Alien (farm labourer) and Elizabethnee Hamilton. Peter's occupation is given as "farmer" and usualresidence "Grassmere", Catherine's occupation is "servant"and usual residence "Grassmere" also. Witnesses at the wedding wereJohn McCall and Annie Johnson.
The South Australian Sands and McDougall Directory for 1891lists Peter Henderson as manager of a cheese and butter factory at Strathalbynbut Catherine and Peter's first two children were, born in the Grassmeredistrict, Peter Hamilton Henderson being registered at Mailor's Flat in 1892and Elizabeth registered at Woodford in 1894. It would seem that their stay inSouth Australia was for at most one year, 1891, at this stage, but theyreturned to South Australia in mid 1896. In the meantime Peter may have workedas a cheese-maker at one of the local factories, probably Allansford. MarjorieTwentyman, Peter's granddaughter, recalls that her mother Rene often said thather father, Peter Flett Henderson, worked at the Allansford Cheese Factory at atime when he also milked 100 cows night and morning. This might well have beenduring the period 1892-96, while he was still a young man.
Only two letters from Peter to his father have been retainedin the collection. The first of these was a short note written in 1895 and isheaded "Glen Forbes June 6th '95". Peter asks John for a list ofitems which John has sold for him so far and asks him to sell "the safeand the cheese plant and the 6 head of cattle if you can get a fair price forthem. Tell Albert he can have the writing desk for 6A and you can sell the bedalso, I don't want anything else sold at present, it would only be giving themaway." Peter adds a P.S.: "Tell JA- he ought to get some rye hay forTed and the pony".
It would seem from this letter that Peter had recently leftthe district and was arranging for the disposal of his furniture and the stockand equipment from a small farm in the neighbourhood, possibly at Woodfordsince the horse and pony seem to be under the care of "J A", who nodoubt was John Alien, Catherine's father, at Woodford. Peter and Catherine hadprobably been renting a cottage and a few acres, while Peter worked for wagesat Allansford or Grassmere. His move to Glen Forbes in West Gippsland in mid1895 perhaps signals his elevation to manager of a Butter Factory, as there wasone nearby at Jeetho and one at Bass at that date.
The second of Peter's letters was written to his father fromMillicent on 17 July 1896, where he had just arrived with his family to take upthe position of manager of the Murrimbum Factory which had just been vacated byhis brother George. Mr McCourt had found Peter and his family a seven-roomedhouse and lent Peter his cart "to shift his furniture from the siding".The factory was doing well "having cleared close on £500 this year".George's management had apparently guided it out of the red. Peter reports thatthe two directors had declared themselves "thoroughly satisfied" withthe testimonials he had shown them and told him not to bother about gettinganother.
Peter's father, John Henderson, died in May 1897, and Peter,along with William and Mary, took his share of the estate in cash, leavingGeorge, Tom, Albert and Christina holding the farm.
The Hendersons remained at Millicent from 1896 to 1900.Peter and Catherine added two children to their family while resident there,Catherine, registered at Mt Gambier in 1897 and Albert John in 1899.
Some time during late 1899 Peter must have become interestedin the Closer Settlement Scheme being proposed by the Victorian Government atWando Vale, and decided to apply for an allotment when applications were calledfor. Wando Vale is a farming area in the valley of the Wando River about 12 kmnorth-east from Casterton. There were earlier two pastoral runs in the valleyand it had never been closely settled.
The Wando Vale Estate of 10,446 acres was the first landacquired by the Government for closer settlement and the "Wando ValePurchase Act" of 1900 was the first of its kind in Victoria. TheGovernment paid £6 2s 6d per acre for the land which was divided into 66blocks, and no block was to be priced above £1,240, repayment to be made over31 1/2 years at 4 1/2 per cent, with instalments and interest being payablehalf-yearly. A report on the land's agricultural potential prepared for theGovernment in December 1899 said:
This is a very fine property; the bulk of the soilis of black loam, heavily grassed and well adapted for the growth of Englishgrasses. Many of the paddocks are sown with rye-grasses, giving evidence of thesuitability of the soil for such culture. Rabbits are troublesome and needattention.
Stock carried was given as 15,000 cross-bred sheep inexcellent condition, 300 cattle and 23 horses.
The scheme was very successful and encouraged the Governmentto open other settlements. Descendants of the original settlers still live onthe original blocks at Wando Vale. (1)
According to the Casterton News, 13 July 1900, there were303 applicants for the 66 allotments and applicants were personally interviewedby the Land Board in Casterton until 11.30 a.m.; the Board then deliberated andtheir decision was announced at 2 p.m. The paper published the names of thesuccessful applicants and the acreages of the allotments they had applied for.Peter Flett Henderson, aged 32, of Millicent, married with four children, wassecond on the list. He had successfully applied for Allotment 217 in the Parishof Casterton, 244 acres at £5 2s per acre. It had formerly been owned and occupiedby C.W Milburn. Peter's block was the largest in the parish but the price peracre was low compared with some. The smallest block of 96 acres was priced at£10 6s 2d per acre.
A booklet published by the Casterton News in 1950gives some further details: Most of the settlers took shares in the ColeraineButter factory, butter-fat bringing 6d per lb at the time. A Creamery wasopened near the township. There had been 120 children in the families of thenew settlers and 70 of them started school in the building that had formerlybeen the men's hut at the homestead of the Wando Vale Station. "Schoolpicnics used to be held in P. Henderson's paddock among the pine-trees at thetop of Wando Vale hill", we are told.
In 1902 there was a severe drought in northern Victoria butat Wando Vale they had a very good season - a splendid harvest of oats andbarley with a high yield was obtained, needing four threshing mills to bag it. (2)
Unfortunately the subsequent history of Wando Vale is of norelevance here, for the Henderson family did not remain there for long. Peterand Catherine's youngest child, a girl married Mary, was born at Wando Vale on3 May 1902 and registered at Casterton. Peter gave the information stating thathe was a farmer and that Mrs Alien (probably Catherine's mother) was present atthe birth. Catherine died 13 days after the birth; her baby lived for sixweeks.
Teenie Peters recalls that it used to be said that Catherinedied as the end result of a fall from a horse. However the Death Certificatestates that Catherine died of "septic phibritis" - probably meant tobe "septic phlebitis", phlebitis being inflammation of a vein. Itcould become septic if thrombosis occurred either after parturition or frominjury. It is possible that Catherine's condition had been caused by an earlierfall, and resulted in a difficult birth, resulting in tragedy for both motherand babe. Catherine was buried in the New Cemetery, Casterton, on 18 May 1902.
Her unfortunate husband, Peter, was left a widower, aged 35,with four very young children, Peter Hamilton aged 10, Elizabeth 8, Catherine5, and Albert John, 3 years old. His sister Teenie Wilson apparently took themotherless baby and cared for her at her home in Terang, for the baby's deathwas registered in Terang by "Alfred Wilson, Uncle", six weeks afterher birth. Teenie herself had, in 1902, five little girls under eight years ofage, including her own baby Dot, not yet a year old, so that it is unlikelythat Teenie was able to care for any of the other children for any length oftime.
Peter apparently stayed on at Wando Vale for some monthsafter Catherine's death in 1902, for the 1903 Electoral Roll lists him as"Peter Flett Henderson, grazier, Wando Vale". He probably completedhis first three years lease of the block, by which time he was obliged to haveimproved to the value of one tenth of the purchase price, and was entitled tohave the lease auctioned and be compensated for the improvements. This would befinancially preferable to simply forfeiting the block after Catherine's death.
Peter probably moved back to the Grassmere-Woodford area assoon as was practicable, for clearly he would need some help from his family orfrom the Aliens at Woodford in caring for his youngsters. His mother Mary wouldbe the one most capable of offering assistance, since she was living on"Rosemore" with only Albert, who was still single at that time.George, Isabel and their five young children including their year-old sonGordon were also living on "Rosemore" in the second house, while Tom,Janet and their six, including the newly-born Harold Raymond, were juststarting out on their selection in the Otways. But William and Sarah, in thefarm cottage on "Carrakoorte", were well settled and their family wasgrowing up, ranging in age from Minnie, 18, to Teenie, 8. Peter could count onthem for some child-minding, and of course there was Mrs Alien, Catherine'smother at Woodford. A letter from Tom to Albert dated 6 December 1905 says:"Fletts told me that Peter was at Willie's. I suppose it will be Katienow".
That Peter had moved to the Grassmere area seems to beconfirmed by our next official sighting of Peter five years later when hemarried Rachel Glen at Camperdown Presbyterian Church on 9 October 1907. Themarriage certificate gives Peter's occupation as "cheese and butterfactory manager" and his usual address as Grassmere. If Teenie Peters iscorrect in her belief that her father managed Grassmere factory at one time,this period, 190307 would seem to be the most likely, though his name does notappear on the list of managers given in Agnes Ryan's book, Grassmere. (3)His four years' experience at Murrimbum, South Australia, would qualify him forthe position, but possibly he was managing only the cheese-making half of theenterprise. It would certainly have been a great advantage for him to be backin the midst of his own family and Catherine's throughout that difficult andunhappy time.
Rachel Glen was the widow of Archibald Glen, a grazier atKariah near Camperdown. Her maiden name had been Pratt, and she was born inDundee, Scotland, where her father had been a grocery merchant. Rachel was themother of seven Glen children ranging in age from 12 years to three years andshe had been a widow for one year when she and Peter married. Her family andPeter's four, then aged between 15 and seven, totalled eleven, but they werenot daunted; Peter had his farming and cheese-making expertise and Archie Glenhad been a wealthy man, leaving his wife well endowed.
Peter seems to have moved into the Glen household at Kariahfor the first year of the marriage; both he and Rachel are listed on the 1908Electoral Roll as graziers at Kariah. However in 1908 Peter and Rachel bought alarge house to accommodate them all in Warrnambool. This was historic "TayHouse" on the corner of Henna and Koroit Streets and the combined familiesmoved into it shortly after Peter and Rachel's daughter, Christina PrattHenderson, was born on 12 October 1908 at Kariah.
Unfortunately this promising new chapter in the lives ofboth families was a short one for Rachel and Peter's second baby wasmiscarried, leading to Rachel's death from septicaemia on 12 December 1910. Shewas buried in Warrnambool Cemetery among the Pratt graves on 13 December 1910.
The Glen children were taken by their grandmother, Rachel'smother Mrs Helen Pratt, and Rachel's sister Miss Jemima Pratt, who were livingin their spacious home in Canterbury Road, Warrnambool. Little TeenieHenderson, Rachel and Peter's 2-year-old daughter, was also cared for in herearly years by the Pratts for the most part, though Teenie remembers spendingtime at 'Tay House" with Peter and his family, and being watched over byher older half-brother Peter, who had appointed himself her guardian. Peter was18 years old when Rachel died, Elizabeth was 16, Catherine (Rene) 13 and Albert(Bert) 11.
Mary Henderson, Peter Flett's mother, was living in herBanyan Street house while Rachel and Peter were at 'Tay House", but Marydied of "senile decay" on 12 January 1911, only one month afterRachel's death, so it is clear that she was unable to help Peter and his familyat this time. In fact she was herself being cared for at 'Tay House" whenshe died, apparently, for her funeral service was held at the house, thecortege departing for the cemetery from there, according to her deathcertificate as well as the Warrnambool Standard's obituary. It was"Peter Flett Henderson, son" who registered Mary's death.
Peter and his family continued to live at 'Tay House".The two girls, Elizabeth and Rene, were attending Hohenlohe College inCanterbury Road, Warrnambool, a select girls' school which at that time wasbeing run by Misses Tait, BA, and Fraser, MA, and offered a variety ofmatriculation subjects. It was housed in a lovely old home set in gloriousgardens. Marj Twentyman has several books won as prizes by her mother Rene,while a student at the College. Elizabeth was very friendly with anotherHohenlohe girl, Edie Adams, and often spent time at the Adams' home at Wangoom,according to Lil Mahood nee Adams.
During these "Tay House" years, Peter was nolonger working as a farmer or cheese-maker. His name appears on the Rate Bookfor Victoria Ward of the Warrnambool Town Council in the years 1914, '15 and'16 as landowner of several town allotments, two in Lava Street, three inOsburne Street, one in Kruger Street and two in Ryot Street, apart from 'TayHouse" in Henna Street. His profession is listed as "MotorProprietor". In 1915, his brother Albert, having just sold a share in"Rosemore" to Chas Sedgley and moved to Warrnambool, replaced PeterF. in the Rate Book as owner of the two Lava Street allotments and in 1916Albert assumed the profession of "Motor Proprietor" in the Rate Book.
During these years as Motor Proprietor, 1914-16, Peter wasalso serving as the member for Victoria Ward on the Warrnambool Town Council.In his first year, 1914, he acted as Chairman of the Hackney CarriageCommittee, and was a member of the Gasworks Committee, the Sanitary Committeeand the Public Works Committee. In 1915 he served on the Finance Committee, theHackney Carriage Committee, Public Works Committee, the Sanitary Committee andthe Library, Museum and Art Gallery Committee. In 1916 he was on the FinanceCommittee, Public Works Committee, Sanitary Committee, Hackney CarriageCommittee, Town Hall Committee and Manager of the Municipal Common. (4)
Meanwhile Peter and Catherine's children were progressingtowards self-sufficiency. By the end of 1916 Rachel's child Teenie, now 8, wasstill with the Pratts, but Peter Jnr, 25, was already a married man, havingbeen wed at 24 to Isobel Landmann, daughter of Warrnambool's mayor in 1915.Elizabeth was 22, Rene 20 and Bert 17.
The Gallipoli campaign was virtually over but the war inFrance was entering a critical phase and recruitment at home was at feverpitch. Peter Flett, aged 49, enlisted as Private No. 7255 in the 14th Battalionon 11 October 1916, and left for overseas after initial training. GermanU-boats were inflicting disastrous damage on allied shipping at this stage ofthe war, and the troopship Ballarat on which Peter was voyaging was torpedoedin the English Channel as it was approaching Plymouth on 25 April 1917. Therewere 1,600 troops on board but all including the crew were saved, as the shiptook many hours to sink. Patrol boats from Plymouth ran a shuttle servicerescuing the troops, many of whom had a long wait. Eighty per cent of them losttheir kit-bags with all their possessions and a few hospital cases were wearingonly their pyjamas. After the last men were got off, the ship was taken in towfor Plymouth but sank before she could be beached. The troops were eventuallytaken to their destination, the camp on Salisbury Plain.
Press reports of this calamity reprinted in the WarrnamboolStandard, praised the bravery of the men as they awaited rescue, displayingthe same spirit of fortitude, cheerfulness and camaraderie that had establishedthe Anzacs' reputation at Gallipoli exactly two years before. They were visitedat the camp by the Ying shortly after their rescue and commended for theirbravery.
On 8 May the Warrnambool Standard printed a news itemunder the heading "Cable from Cr Henderson". It read:
The many friends of Cr P.F. Henderson who enlisted afew months ago will be glad to learn that he is at present in good health. Hecabled the Standard office yesterday from England the words "All'swell". Pte Henderson was with the troops on the steamer Ballarat who wondistinction by their dauntless behaviour when that vessel was torpedoed andsunk recently in the Channel. Pie Henderson is evidently none the worse for histrying experiences.
However this optimism was ill-founded for the shock of thetorpedo blast and the ensuing events had shattered Peter's nerves and affectedhis health for the rest of his life. Added to this was the severe bout ofmuscular rheumatism he suffered later when on active service in France, afterthree months training with his unit in Britain. The Standard reported on22 December 1917 that
Mr Albert Henderson has received a letter dated 17Oct. 1917 from his brother, ex-Cr P. F. Henderson of Warrnambool, in which hestated that he had been laid up with muscular rheumatism. He was in France forseveral weeks after which he was 14 days in hospital. He has been invalidedback to Australia and expects to land here soon.
Peter was hospitalized in Britain for many weeks after hisfortnight in hospital in France and one of his letters written at this time isin the possession of Marjorie Twentyman, daughter of Rene. It is headed"Littlemoor Rest Camp" which was apparently near Weymouth in Dorset,since a card he later sent to Rene has a picture of Weymouth Harbour and theinscription "Greetings from Littlemoor Camp". His letter dated 17 October1917 speaks mainly of news contained in mail received from home, especially aletter received from Peter and Isobel which apparently told of Elizabeth, now23, having gone to work as a milliner at Tonkin's General Store at Thoona, nearBenalla. He comments: "I felt very sorry to think Lizzie went so far away,but I suppose she is getting a good place and good salary". He tells Renenot to write again to that address as he expects to "be home in January ifnot before (all being well)". He mentions a friend who "expected tomeet me in France but as you see I have left there for good. My word, I am notover the knocking about I got over there yet, but am getting on well, so don'tworry."
Following Peter's arrival back in Warrnambool, along withtwo other "war heroes" on 2 January 1918, the Standard printedthis paragraph about his return:
RETURNED SOLDIER.
Pte P. Henderson, who arrivedhome from active service last week, suffered severely from muscular rheumatismwhile in England and France, and is still much below his usual standard ofhealth. He has to report to the Base Hospital on the 15th inst. After beingrescued from the torpedoed troopship, Ballarat, he was in training for threemonths in England, and then proceeded to France with his unit. When within thesound of the big guns and a week or two before he would have proceeded to thefiring line, he had the bitter disappointment of being ordered into hospital toundergo treatment for rheumatism. He was a fortnight in the hospital in France,where he was put on the massage table twice daily, and the medical board thenordered his return to a hospital in England, where he underwent treatment forsome twelve weeks. The medical board in England then said that the only chanceof his recovery was a return to the Australian climate, the northern climatebeing too severe for him. While on the troopship he was also under treatment,but he only began to recover when under the influence of the Australian summerHis many friends trust that he will soon enjoy good health again. They allrecognise that it was not his fault that he missed the fighting, and the factthat he was prepared to take his chance with his brave comrades will alwaysstand to his credit.
Peter apparently was under medical treatment for most of therest of his life. His name is listed by Sands and McDougall as resident inWarrnambool during 1918 and 1919, but what he was doing between 1920 and 1925,when he took up a Soldier Settlement block in Gippsland, is not clear. TeeniePeters recalls visiting him as a teenager while he was living at Officer nearDandenong, so it would seem that he had left Warrnambool and moved nearer tohis family, his son Peter at Camberwell and his daughters at Thoona.
In the early 1920s the Government launched their badlyover-rated Soldier Settlement Scheme which promised veterans they would be onclover after six years on the land and by the end of ten years they couldexpect to have made a fortune and be able to retire to a seaside home. Theex-soldiers had to be unemployed to qualify for a block of land and 80 per centof them had been wounded, were sick, or had been gassed in the war. In fouryears 30,000 had been settled, mostly on land that was either too small, toomarginal or too steep. In Gippsland the Government had bought land atover-valued prices, creating a minor land boom, so that the soldiers had aheavy burden of debt to pay off even though the butter price was at first good.By the time their herds were producing, the butter prices had dropped. A RoyalCommission showed that the settlers had been under-capitalized from the outset.Those in difficulty were given the choice: Take £300 and leave their block, orstay on under a debt re-adjustment scheme. Those who stayed were able toacquire extra acreage from the forsaken land and many in the long-runprospered. (5)
Peter Flett Henderson, apparently persuaded that he hadregained full health, took up a soldier settlement block at Gormondale, nearAlberton in Gippsland, an area with excellent dairying prospects. His name islisted under "Farmers" in Sands and McDougall in 1925 and 1926 asP.F. Henderson, Gormondale, though he may have begun there prior to 1925. Forsomeone in his fragile state of health it was a very brave and optimisticventure.
His youngest daughter, Teenie Peters, remembers staying withPeter from time to time while he was at Gormondale. Teenie would be 17 yearsold in 1925 and was living in Thoona with her sister, Peter's eldest daughter,Elizabeth, and her husband Harry Kronborg, whom she had married in 1921. Renetoo married a Thoona man, Christian Paulsen, in 1926, while Peter was still atGormondale. Peter Jnr and his wife Isobel had produced two grandsons for Peter,Peter Henderson 3rd and Robin (Bob), and Elizabeth and Harry Kronborg also hadtwo sons, Jack and Royce, before Peter Flett left Gormondale.
However the hard work and stress of developing his soldiersettlement block was not good for Peter and his health progressivelydeteriorated until he was unable to manage his affairs and suffered a nervousbreakdown in 1927. He had to be admitted to Kew Asylum where many of the war'sshell-shocked victims were cared for. He remained there until his death, beingvisited whenever possible by those members of his family who lived in Melbourne,who included his son Peter and sister Teenie Wilson and their families, andalso by his country daughters Rene, and Bess, and brothers George and Williamwhenever they were in town. His daughter Teenie Peters and her family wereliving in Euroa, but Graham Peters remembers his mother being absent forseveral weeks, in order to be in Melbourne during Peter's final illness. Peterdied from pneumonia on 7 December 1941, aged 74 years.
Teenie Peters remembers her father as a "tall, eventempered and very gentle person, deeply grieving the loss of his two wives intragic circumstances, but a loving father to his children".
Kath Laxton, daughter of Peter's brother Albert, remembershim from her childhood years when Peter and Albert were "Motor Proprietors"in Lava Street. Kath writes:
Always a welcome visitor, he would arrive at ourhome unexpected and unannounced. He was rather unpredictable and somewhatdisorganized. We children enjoyed his company and our parents seemed to takehis presence for granted. He liked discussing topical issues and could be quiteargumentative, though always in a polite way. He was very well mannered andgood-natured. Everyone liked him.
Peter Flett Henderson was buried in Springvale Cemetery on 9December 1941. His brother Albert had died at Warrnambool in 1930, Tom at Colacin 1936 and William was to die two years after Peter in 1943. George lived onuntil c. 1954 and their only sister Teenie Wilson until 1958.
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The Descendants of Peter Flett HENDERSON and Catherine neeALLEN
1. Peter Hamilton HENDERSON, b. Mailor's Flat 1892,first son of Peter and Catherine Henderson, spent his teenage years at"Tay House" in Warrnambool. After finishing school he became a driverof his father's hire-cars and at 23 years of age married Isobel Landmann, whosefather had been Mayor of the town while Peter's father was serving on theCouncil.
After his father gave up the hire-car business, Peter andIsobel moved to East Camberwell where they lived for the rest of their lives.Peter obtained a position with Pioneer Travel Service, driving hire cars oninterstate trips, until World War II which brought a halt to such holidays.Peter then switched to driving for Melbourne suburban bus companies. Peter diedin 1968 or '69 when in his eighties and Isobel died a year or two later, c.1970-71.
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2. Elizabeth KRONBORG nee Henderson, b. 1894Woodford, the elder daughter of Peter and Catherine Henderson was educated inWarrnambool, finishing her schooling at Hohenlohe College. Elizabeth trained asa milliner and when 23 years of age she left Warrnambool to take a position atTonkins' General Store at Thoona, near Benalla. Here she met and married HarryKronborg from a local farming family originally from Denmark. Harry andElizabeth (who seems to have been called Lizzie by her father but Bess byothers) had their own farm at Thoona and it was here that Elizabeth'shalf-sister Teenie spent her teenage years.
Harry and Elizabeth had three sons, Jack Allen (b. Benalla1923), Royce Harry (b. Benalla 1925) and Eric Hamilton (b. Benalla 1928). Whenthe boys were approaching secondary school age, the family moved to anotherfarm on the outskirts of Wangaratta and the boys completed their education atWangaratta High School. Harry and Elizabeth moved in the late 1960s toMelbourne and lived first at South Caulfield and later at Moorabbin. Elizabethdied in 1967, Harry in 1968. They were both buried at Fawkner Cemetery.
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3. Catherine PAULSEN nee Henderson, (b. 1897 MtGambier, SA), second daughter of Peter and Catherine Henderson was called"Rene" for short. She finished her schooling at Hohenlohe College inWarrnambool and later joined her sister Elizabeth in Thoona, working in OliverGilpin's store there. 0. Gilpin had over a hundred stores throughout New SouthWales, Victoria, South Australia and Tasmania, and Rene became manager of theWangaratta store and later regional manager over the New South Wales andVictorian stores.
In 1926 Rene married Christian Paulsen from Thoona ' wherehis father, another Dane, had a sheep and cattle grazing property. Chris andRene acquired their own wheat and sheep farm at Goorambat East, near Benalla.Their two children Marjorie Ellen Paulsen and Keith Christian Paulsen were bornin 1927 and 1928 respectively and went to school at Benalla until the familymoved to Mansfield in late 1939, after which time Marjorie attended MansfieldConvent and Keith Mansfield Elementary School. Rene and Chris Paulsen gave upfarming and moved to Melbourne when Marjorie was transferred from her bank jobin Mansfield to the Ormond branch.
Rene died in 1964, aged 67, and Chris died in 1974, aged 79.They were buried in the Springvale Cemetery.
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4. Albert John HENDERSON, youngest of Catherine andPeter Henderson's family was called "Bert" and remained a bachelor.He lived in the country, in Victoria and the Riverina, working on stations, anddriving from place to place in a smart jinker. He was always well dressed andaccording to his niece Marjorie Twentyman, his great pleasure was in attendingrace meetings and trying to outwit the bookies. Marj remembers "UncleBert" as a kindly, amiable man who visited them frequently in later years.He lived in retirement at Auburn, but spent his last few years with his brotherPeter and his wife Isobel at Camberwell. Albert John Henderson died in 1974 atBox Hill Hospital.
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This concludes our account of the descendants of PeterHenderson and his first wife Catherine nee Allen.
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The Descendants of Peter Flett HENDERSON and Rachel GLEN neePratt
1. Christina Pratt PETERS nee Henderson was the onlysurviving child of Peter's marriage to Rachel Glen, widow of Archibald Glen.Her mother died when she was only two years old and she was brought up by hergrandmother and aunt, Mrs Helen and Miss Jemimah Pratt of Warrnambool. Latershe lived with her father Peter Flett Henderson for a time after his returnfrom World War I, but when he was admitted to Kew Asylum Teenie was made theward of her half-sister Elizabeth Kronborg at Tboona. There in 1929 she metKenneth Peters, a builder, who was working at that time in the area.
Clifford Edward Kenneth Peters was the son of William JohnThomas Peters, a grazier at Spring Creek in the Alexandra district. Ken andTeenie were married on 20 May 1930 at the Church of England, Camberwell, with agathering at the East Camberwell home of Teenie's eldest brother Peter HamiltonHenderson and his wife Isobel.
Ken Peters' building contracts kept the family moving aroundcountry towns including Euroa, where four sons were born between 1931 and 1934- Trevor, William, Lindsay and Douglas; Alexandra, where Graham was born in1935; back to Euroa where Glenda was born in 1937; then to Swan Hill whereBarbara was born in 1939, then back to Euroa.
Ken joined the AIF in 1940 and served in the Middle East,and in New Guinea and the Islands. He suffered leg injuries and was stricken bymalaria which was never cured successfully. He was repatriated and dischargedin 1944 but both disabilities plagued him for the rest of his life.
While her husband was on active service, Teenie Peters andher children had been living at Euroa and on his return they lived together atDromana where a third daughter, Ruth, was born. When Ken obtained a positionwith the Housing Commission as Clerk of Works, the family moved into aCommission home in Ashburton. Their youngest child Jeanette was born inCamberwell in 1948.
Soon after this Kenneth was sent by the Commission toWoomera, South Australia, to help supervise construction of the township there.This separation, so soon after the war, did nothing to heal Ken and Christina'sfailing marriage and in 1952 they agreed to separate. Christina moved toToowoomba, Queensland, with her four daughters, and Ken moved back to his jobin Victoria. In 1956 Ken moved to Queensland where he remained until his deathin 1984 at Wynnum. He was buried at Albany Creek, Brisbane.
Since the family has become independent and her own healthis less than robust, Christina, aged 83, now lives in retirement at theSinnamon Retirement village, Jindalee, Queensland.
(FOR PRIVACY, DESCENDANT DETAILS HAVE BEEN OMITTEDFROM THE WEBSITE – FOR DETAILS, BY FAMILY MEMBERS, CONTACT MICHAEL BROCK)
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This concludes our account of the descendants of Peter FlettHenderson and his second wife Rachel nee Pratt.
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Endnotes
1. Council ofthe Shire of Glenelg, Shire of Glenelg Centenary 1863-1963.
2. Bilston,Thos FL, A History of Wando Vale.
3. Ryan, Agnes,Grassmere.
4. MunicipalDirectories, Warrnambool Town Council 1914,1915,1916.
5. Sillcock,pp. 89-90.
ÓJeanMcDonald – “First Class Colonizing Material” 1992