Acknowledgements
Much of this material is based on a book written by Harold T Barkla in 1978 “The Barkla Families from Cornwall”, and if not for his efforts, much of this earlier material would have been lost.
Richard Barkla 1807-1897
Richard Barkla
Born:Wendron Cornwall 22/4/1807
Died: Newstaed Victoria 28/1/1897
Father’s Name: Richard Barkla (B) 1777
Mother’s Name: Jane Cornish
Married Catherine Martin in Parish on Wendron Cornwall on 11/11/1832
Catherine Martin
Born: St Stithanas Cornwall 10/1/1812
Died: Newstead Victoria 21/4/1896
Father’s Name: Edward Martin
Mother’s Name: Johanna Bishop
Wendron, the birth place of Richard, is near the most south west tip of England and Cornwall. It is three miles NNE of Helston which itself is about 20 miles east of Penzance. There are Barklas in the St Agnes area, 20 miles to the north, as is Barkla Shop, a small village outside St Agnes, on the Mithian Post Office road. Redruth is about ten miles away from Wendron, and believed to be the home of the Cocking family. Ellen Cocking married Richard’s fifth son James.
St Stithanas (four miles SW of Redruth) is a few miles to the east of Wendron. Richard and Catherine were most likely staunch Methodists. Their eighth son Joseph was closely associated with the Strangways Wesley and Methodist Church. John Wesley visited Stithians in 1744-50 and brought Methodism to the parish. Richard’s great grandson, C.A. Barkla, has a recollection of mention of this Methodist connection.
Richard and Catherine arrived in Australia on 19th August 1852 with seven children and moved to Forrest Creek, later known as Wesley Hill, now part of the City of Castlemaine. A new chapel was operating at Wesley Hill in February 1854, by the Wesleyan Ministry, so it could have provided the new name to this hill.
Gold was discovered in July1851 at Forest Creek, on the ‘Mount Alexander’ pastoral run owned by William Barker, and by 1852 the number of people had swelled to 25,000. The discovery of Gold and the opportunities for a new life it presented would seem to be clearly the reason for the decision of Richard and Catherine to emigrate. For a number of years, the only accommodation on the diggings was under canvas, so life must have been very hard for the new arrivals. Cornish town was nearby, which may provide a clew to the origin of many of the new settlors. Eureka was also with in walking distance. Bendigo is about 35 km to the north.
Richard and his eldest son, also named Richard were engaged in transporting supplies from Melbourne to the Forrest Creek diggings by horse and dray. From that day until the present day (1978) members of Richard’s descendants have been engaged at least part time in transporting the needs of Central Victoria.
Richard and his wife and family moved to Newstead on 4th October 1857 and selected Crown Allotment Nos. 1,2 & 8 Section C Parish of Strangways; County of Talbot. They purchased other surrounding land, built a home and called the property ‘Penrose’ the name by which the property is known today even thought the land has passed out of the family some ten years ago.
Richard and Catherine had another three children born at Castlemaine. Of the ten children, all except two, James and Edward Martin who both moved to Queensland, remained in the district and were engaged mainly in farming pursuits, the youngest Charles being a Jeweller Watchmaker in Castlemaine. Many large clocks including the Castlemaine Post Office bore the name ‘Barkla’ on its face.
The children of Richard and Catherine were:
James Barkla 1850-1933
James Barkla was the seventh child and fifth son of Richard and Catherine.
Born: Wendron Cornwall 10/1/1850
Died: Chinchilla, Queensland 23/8/1933
Married: Amelia Ellen Cocking at Ballarat 16/7/1874
Born: Probably Redruth Cornwall about 1853.
Later married: Jane Haswell
James left Newstead Victoria and went to a farming property at Donald Victoria and as he had four boys he thought the property would be too small, so in 1896 he left Donald and returned to his father’s property ‘Penrose’ at Newstead for a short time to shoe all the drought horses and prepare for his trip North.
His mother Catherine had passed away five months earlier and his father was to pass away also in another four months.
James moved North to a property called ‘Glen Echo’ on the Lachlan River at Cowra N.S.W. where he lived for about ten years. James and his brother Edward Martin purchased (selected?) a property ‘Taralla’ near Chinchilla Qld, and traded as a partnership known as ‘E & J Barkla.’ This may have been about 1906, when new blocks were opened up for settlement in the Parish of Burncluith.
James and Edward brought 600 dairy heifers at Goulburn N.S.W. and his sons Ernie and Ted pooled their resources and were able to buy 100 dairy heifers. Sons Ernie, Ted, Victor and Harold with two Cowra men, Charlie Chapman and Jack Beasley left Cowra with 700 dairy heifers, three bulls, 20 horses, two wagons, one dray and several dogs on their first droving trip to Chinchilla Qld to their father James at ‘Taralla’. James had not given his sons any money to buy provisions, Ernie being the eldest used what little money he had and this ran out at Parkes N.S.W., where he had to sell 30 head of cattle at 25/- and 30/- per head. They slept on their swags in the wagon or dray and camped with the cattle each night. Ernie was the damper maker and still says to this day ‘Without boasting I am the best damper maker ever known.’
Ashton, James grandson, remembers mention of the fact that James and neighbours had to resort to boiled wheat or barley with molasses when times were hard, but doesn’t know if the boys had to resort to this ration for their trip north.
Some of the heifers calved on the trip. This slowed them down and the trip took them six months. When they arrived in Chinchilla the family were still living in an old shanty and James and Edward started to build a house. Neither of them could be called ‘handymen’. “Taralla” was north east of Chinchilla, three miles along the Pelican Road.
The place had no improvements and they had to start fencing amongst the Prickly Pear, this made it very expensive and frustrating as the pear when it was cut down, dried and burnt, would quickly grow again.
James remained on his property “Taralla” at Chinchilla until his death on the 23rd August 1933, aged 84. James and Edward Barkla traded as ‘E. & J. Barkla’. Edward Martin Barkla died about 1929 and is buried at ‘Reedy Creek’ Station, Taroom.
James and Ellen had six children as listed below:
Ashton Barkla (b 1918) remembers his grandfather as someone who was hard on his family and too careful with money where his family was concerned, but could be generous to outsiders. He was about 5ft 8 inches, with a stocky build. The first hut James lived in at ‘Taralla’ was a slab hut that could not keep the snakes out. Snakes were particularly bad with the pear so thick, particularly Death Adders. It is thought that the pear protected them from birds that would normally restrict their numbers in open areas. Those unfortunate enough to have to camp out in the pear would try and find a sheet of roofing iron to role out their swag. It was not uncommon to wake up next morning with up to 3 Death Adders for company, but under the iron.
At night paper was spread on the dirt floor at “Taralla” and the hurricane lamp turned down to sleep. The sound of a snake on the paper woke James or his sons, who turned up the lamp before leaving the bed to kill the snakes.
James held thousand of acres of land, unfortunately all in his own name. His leases expired about the time the cactoblastis was finally recognised in the 1930’s, and James was left with a living area of only 2,500 acres.
The homestead, with the trees they planted, is still there, and being lived in by the present owners. This area is now reduced to 1000 acres, and the paddock with the Washpool has been sold off.
The property was very busy in James time, with a blacksmiths shop, and a underground cellar for stores.
Ashton lived and managed
“Tarella” as a dairy farm for 6 years, for his father Ted. Ashton went there as
a 16 year old in about 1934, and stayed until he enlisted in the Army in 1940.
He is not sure when the property was sold, it was most likely sold while Ashton
was away at the war. A family called Carmichael purchased it. Ashton recalls
that it had the biggest Olive tree he had ever seen.. Other trees included
Bottle and Apple, with a big fruit orchard. The ceilings were pressed metal,
and the house had been added to a number of times.
Charles Edwin (Ted) Barkla 1880-1959
Born: “Donald” 6 September 1880
Died: Taroom Queensland, 28 September 1959
Married: 16 April 1916 to Dulcie (Dolly) May Nielsen at Taroom.
Part of Teds earlier life, covering his droving epic north with his brothers, is in his father, James’s story. Ted moved to Taroom about 1912, we think, so did not spend much of his life at “Taralla”
Ted and Dolly’s Family:
Brothers Ernie and Ted selected
the property ‘Malara’ at Taroom, Qld which was part of ‘Palm Creek’ Station,
their uncle Edward selected ‘Binghi’
subsequently Ernie sold his share of ‘Malara’ to his brother Ted and bought out
his Uncle Edward at ‘Binghi’ on the Dawson River, near Taroom Qld.
Ted lived on at ‘Malara’ until it was sold in 1956. He had bought the adjoining property ‘Bundulla’ in 1937, which property he retained. His brother Ernie left the Taroom District and bought and took possession of Dunmore Station, Cecil Plains on 3rd February, 1918, where he was still living in 1978.
Dolly died in 1936, and Dolly’s unmarried sister, Noel, moved in as housekeeper to assist the family. She and Ted were subsequently married, but had no children.
Ted was a man of some determination, and this was shown by one event that took place very early in his time at Taroom 1930’s when he had trouble with some local aboriginals.
He was instrumental in starting and running the Taroom Bowls club, and was involved in other community projects. A older resident from the district told the writer that he remembered Ted as someone who knew his own mind, and was very independent. Ted is mentioned in a newspaper article on the “Hornet Bank” massacre. A black worker on “Malara”, who Ted maintained was the most intelligent aboriginal he had ever know, told Ted that the Fraser family were killed on “Hornet Bank” because the younger Fraser boys had been abusing the native girls from the Blacks camp on the property.
Ted was of medium stature at 5ft 8inches, but thick set and physically strong. He attempted to enlist in the Great War, but was not accepted due to a minor heart problem the Army detected. This didn’t appear to impact on his capacity for hard physical work as a young man. He was a strong horseman.