| [Index] |
| Julian John Edward MADDEN (1869 - 1954) |
| Miner, Timber cutter, Timber contractor, cane farmer (Ayr) |
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Pic 6. James Elworthy (?), unknown *3, Isabel Elworth, Julian Edward Madden (1869 - 1954) Atken at Ryde, Sydney |
| b. 16 Jun 1869 at Cape River, Queensland, Australia |
| m. 12 Jul 1893 Helen Mutch DIACK (1874 - 1946) at Charters Towers, Queensland, Australia |
| d. 25 Aug 1954 at Ayr, Queensland, Australia aged 85 |
| Parents: |
| Henry St.John MADDEN (1840 - 1922) |
| Isabella Bowcher ELWORTHY (1842 - 1921) |
| Step Parents: |
| Rosina WALKER (1855 - 1932) |
| Events in Julian John Edward MADDEN (1869 - 1954)'s life | |||||
| Date | Age | Event | Place | Notes | Src |
| 16 Jun 1869 | Julian John Edward MADDEN was born | Cape River, Queensland, Australia | 1869/000114 | ||
| 12 Jul 1893 | 24 | Married Helen Mutch DIACK (aged 18) | Charters Towers, Queensland, Australia | 1893/1039 Certificate | |
| 19 Mar 1894 | 24 | Birth of daughter Lillian Margaret Ann MADDEN | Millchester, Charters Towers, Queensland, Australia | 1894/006151 | |
| 14 Sep 1895 | 26 | Birth of son John Henry (Jack) MADDEN | Homestead, Queensland, Australia | 1895/C006967 | |
| 21 Jul 1898 | 29 | Birth of daughter Florence Helen MADDEN | Charters Towers, Queensland, Australia | 1898/C006462 | |
| 1902 | 33 | Residence | Charters Towers, Queensland, Australia | Note 1 | |
| 1902 | 33 | Residence | Charters Towers, Queensland, Australia | Note 2 | |
| 20 Jul 1904 | 35 | Birth of daughter Helen Nell May MADDEN | Ayr, Queensland, Australia | 1904/C006699 | |
| 08 Apr 1912 | 42 | Birth of son Edward MADDEN | Charters Towers, Queensland, Australia | cemetery record | |
| 13 Apr 1912 | 42 | Death of son Edward MADDEN | Charters Towers, Queensland, Australia | Note 3 | |
| 19 Apr 1915 | 45 | Birth of son Julian George MADDEN | Charters Towers, Queensland, Australia | ||
| abt 1918 | 49 | Residence | Ayr, Queensland, Australia | ||
| 1919 | 50 | Electoral Roll | Airdmillan, Queensland, Australia | Electoral Roll | |
| 16 Jul 1921 | 52 | Death of mother Isabella Bowcher ELWORTHY (aged 78) | Auckland, New Zealand | ||
| 1922 | 53 | Electoral Roll | Airdmillan, Queensland, Australia | Electoral roll | |
| 12 May 1922 | 52 | Death of father Henry St.John MADDEN (aged 81) | Balfe's Creek, Queensland, Australia | Note 4 | |
| 16 May 1932 | 62 | Death of step mother Rosina WALKER (aged 77) | Balfe's Creek, Queensland, Australia | ||
| 1934 | 65 | Electoral Roll | Ayr, Queensland, Australia | Electoral roll, Soper St | |
| 13 Nov 1946 | 77 | Death of wife Helen Mutch DIACK (aged 72) | Ayr, Queensland, Australia | Certificate | |
| 1949 | 80 | Electoral Roll | Ayr, Queensland, Australia | Electoral roll, Soper St | |
| 19 Feb 1951 | 81 | Death of daughter Florence Helen MADDEN (aged 52) | Ayr, Queensland, Australia | ||
| 25 Aug 1954 | 85 | Julian John Edward MADDEN died | Ayr, Queensland, Australia | 1954/004382 | |
| Personal Notes: |
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The Cape River Gold Field (1867-) was just west of Charters Towers. Cape River was named by the explorer Leichhardt when he and his party sighted it in March 1845. He named it after Captain Cape of the steamer "Soverign" which took the party from Sydney to Brisbane on the first stage of their journey of exploration 1844-45. Gold was found on the Upper Cape River in 1867.
Henry and Isabella Madden arrived here in 1867. Their daughter Alice was born at Cape River 28 Dec 1867. Henry and Isabella's son Julian Edward had a good memory and when in his 80s passed on many of his reminiscences to his nephew Norman Johnson who in tum passed them on for all of us to share and enjoy. As a small boy Julian had a playmate named "Jupiter" who, it was claimed, discovered the gold that started the rush at Charters Towers. The kudos, of course, went to others. Julian said he didn't have a chance to gain much schooling " except to use the axe and drive a team of horses". In 1883 aged just 14, his father bought him an axe and told him to go out and earn a living. Ten years later, at age 24, he married Helen Mutch DIACK. By then timber getters were busy cutting and hauling sleepers for the Charters Towers to Hughenden railway and Homestead was situated right on this line. No saw-mills were available to do the heavy work so the sleepers were cut, split and trimmed with broad axes. In later life he estimated he cut 3200 sleeper logs for the railway between Ayr and Townsville. At a shilling each that amounted to 160 pounds! Houses were built from whatever materials were at hand. Julian and his bride settled down in their house "of rough bush timber; the walls and roof made of sheets of bark, lined inside with hessian and calico, and ant-bed floors". It was here their first two children were born. By the time Julian and Helen's next child, Florence was born in 1898 the family had moved to Charters Towers where gold mining was at its peak. Although miner's phythysis was always a spectre in the background, Julian worked for several years in the mines. Demand increased for timber as pit-props so in 1901 Julian moved his family back to open country and his timber-getting trade. About 1918 the family bought a sugarcane farm at Airdmillan. Obit from 1954 "A pioneer northener, Mr. Julian Edward Madden passed away at Ayr on Wednesday at the age of 85. Mr Madden was born on the Cape River in 1869. His parents earlier had ridden on horse back through black-infested country to the Cape in North Queensland [from Sydney]. He took up residence in Charters Towers in 1872 [at age 3] when that town was only a few tents. He worked in several of the mines in his early youth and married in 1893. His wife died eight years ago in Ayr. After leaving the mines Mr Madden became a teamster at Homestead and he supplied hundreds of thousands of sleeper logs with his wagons to the Railway Department through rough uninhabited country along the Burdekin and its tributaries. He will be long remembered for his phenominal memory and knowledge of facts and incidents in the lives of early settlers in Charters Towers and along the Burdekin. He had many experiences in Burdekin floods and on one occasion he swam a flood several times to save the lives of a family from drowning at very large personal risk. In 1915 he took up sugar cane farming in the Ayr district [took over the farm of Mr j R McKenzie on the Airdmillan road] and he lived there ever since. He retired from farming many years ago. The deceased was a Past Master of the Masonoc Lodge, and a Past Chief Ranger of the Foresters' Lodge. His passing will be mourned by many relatives and friends, as he was widely known and respected throughout the north. he leaves four children." From N.Q. Register 22 July 1950. "Among the "Back to Charters Towers" visitors was Mr Julian Edward Madden who believes he is the earliest know Towers resident among them. Mr Madden was between two and three years of age when he arrived in Millchester with his parents in 1872. The main town area of Charters Towere to-day, including Gill Street and Mossman Street, was in those days virgin bushland. Leading pack horses through black-infested country, the Maddens arrived at the Cape [River goldfield] in June 1869 when Mr Madden was born." Marriage certificate shows presence of John Craigen Diack (her dad) and P.M. Johnson. Timber-getters, cutting and hauling sleepers for the Charters Towers to Hughenden Railway. The sleepers were cut, split and trimmed with broad axes. No sawmills in those days. Houses were built of materials at hand; rough bush timber, walls and roof of sheets of bark, lined inside with hessian or calico, ant-bed floors. 1897: Moved from Homestead to Chaters Towers to work in the gold mines In 1901 moved back to the open country to timber getting. Demands for mining timber-props etc had increased. Teams of 16 to 18 horses drew the big timber wagons. HOMESTEAD - Population 100 Homestead is 73km west of Charters Towers along the Flinders Highway. Gold was discovered to the north of Homestead in 1883 and was mined intermittently for the next 50 years. Two hotels, two butcher shops, two stores a bank and a cordial factory were part of the town during the railway era. A sleeper cutter sawmill operated here until 1970. This is the text of a Petition written by the Homestead school committee in 1904. Homestead July 23rd 1904 For erection of new school building Petition The Honourable The Minister for Education Sir, We the undersigned, have the honour to draw your attention to the fact that the building used as a School at Homestead is deteriorating very much by reason of the ravages made on it by White Ants. The building is not on blocks and the posts consequently are set in the ground, therefor they form a ready means of access to the floor & other parts of the building, and the floor being only nine inches from the ground makes it impossible to combat with the attack of this pest. In addition the roof and walls are built entirely of galvanised Iron and neither ceiled or painted, therefor in a climate like North Queensland where the temperature for weeks range from 100 to 112 degrees in the shade, such a building must be detrimental to the health of the children, and the Teacher avers utterly incapacitates them from afternoon lessons. The parents have expended considerable sums to keep this School in repair, but find it only wasting money. During the Summer Vacation they carried out a considerable amount of repairs, but the Ants of course have since rendered the work valueless. In addition we wish to call your attention to the fact that the Residents built this school solely by themselves without any help from the Education Department. This school was opened in 1893 and for the last ten years has had a mean quarterly enrolment of 27 pupils with an average daily attendance of 22. In view of all these facts we most earnestly beg you to grant us a Subsidy for a new school. We will guarantee a sum of £30 as a local contribution, which therefor with the Departmental subsidy in the ratio of 4 to 1 would provide £140. Trusting that you will give this your earnest & favourable consideration and that you may be spared [sic] to do justice to this memorial (as in duty bound we shall ever pray) we have Sir the honour to subscribe ourselves. Your obedient servants. Julian E Madden Chairman, Sch, Com. John Martin Secretary School Committee Myles Lyon Treasurer “ “ Edward White Member “ “ Thomas Herliky Member “ “ Residents of Homestead W F Fitzgerald, A M Maule, W Moyne, P Tierney, W Carley, I Piper, C G Peace, Jos M Clancy, P M Johnson, George Ford, Robert Johnston, E Atkinson, B Speakman, A A Gearing, G Brown, M Cuble, J Donald, j P Prior, Clarence Williams, John H Smethley, John Swan, John Blackman, Jer Young, P J Lashman, J Cable, John ?, John Reid other notes about the school. |
| Source References: |
| 2. Type: Book, Abbr: Devon to Downunder, Title: Devon to Downunder, Auth: Bettie Elworthy, Publ: Bookbound, Date: 1997 |
| - Reference = 149, 153ff (Name, Notes) |