Dongara Heritage Trail

WELCOME TRAIL WALKERS!

ISBN 978-0-9804993-3-9

Design and printing by Delta Print, 23 Boulder Road, Malaga WA 6090.
Published with the kind financial support of a local philanthropist who chooses to remain anonymous.

© Copyright IDHS 2020

Introduction

Over tens of thousands of summers the Wattandee group would follow the Irwin river to the coast to get relief from the heat, to gather seafood, and to follow Wattandee’s beliefs and culture of the Wattarn Borungar (Sea Totem People).

“The Wattandee tribe called Dongara a place where Australian fur sea lions meet. Dhunga or Thunga meaning Australian Sea Lions and ‘Arra’ for a place. Wattandee is the Tribe and Totem which is Kanyongoo (spirit) of Wathoo/Thunga (Snake).” (Source: Thomas Cameron, Wattandee tribal elder and Winjarroo speaker, 2020).

Lieutenant George Grey was the first Colonial explorer to visit the area after he was shipwrecked at Gantheaume Bay (near present day Kalbarri) in 1839 while exploring the coast at the mouth of the Murchison River. With his party, he walked down the coast to the Swan River settlement at Perth. He named the area the Province of Victoria and the Irwin River after his friend Major Irwin.

In the 1840s, due to droughts and overstocking in the Avon Valley, pastoralists there were looking for new grazing land. The Gregory brothers applied for permission to explore the Province of Victoria and set out on 7 August 1846. They returned to the Swan River settlement with good reports and some samples of coal, which they had discovered, in the upper reaches of the Irwin River.

The first grazing leases on the Irwin River were granted to the Cattle Company. The shareholders were Edward Hamersley, Samuel P Phillips, Lockier Burges and B Urban Vigors. Burges set up camp on the banks of the Irwin River and was soon bringing married yeomen to the district to work. A townsite was surveyed in 1852.

John Smith was granted the first tillage lease in 1859. His 100 acres was located on the south side of the Irwin River, close to the river mouth. With the aid of John S Maley, Smith built the first flourmill on this site in 1865. From the mid-1850s ships began calling at the mouth of the Irwin River, where Lockier Burges had established Edward Downes and his family. Downes was employed to signal passing ships to their collect cargoes, which were manhandled onto two rowboats, then rowed to the ships anchored beyond the reefs.

Travellers and teamsters came into Dongara from the east and south along a Road from Yardarino. Their route took them through the small farms along the Irwin Valley, past the settlement at East End, then across the river. Continuing along the south side of the river they came to William Criddle’s Hotel, now Priory Lodge, past Russ Cottage and then to Smith’s Flour Mill. Between Russ Cottage and the mill, travellers crossed back over the river at Walton’s Crossing into Waldeck Street, the main street of Dongara which continued as the road north to Bookara, the Greenough Flats and Champion Bay.

A jetty was built at Port Irwin (now Port Denison) in 1867 with three warehouses being constructed shortly after. Several ships visited the port on a weekly basis, bringing in supplies to the settlers and taking away products of the district – wheat, flour, wool, sandalwood. The district began to prosper but did have its setbacks. The disease ‘red rust’ which affected wheat crops and caused major losses appeared in the late 1860s. This, along with bush fires, floods and a locust plague in 1873 severely affected the district’s economy.

The Irwin Roads Board was established in 1871, to manage roads and public works in an area which extended to the South Australian border. The introduction of better agricultural management and rust resistant strains of wheat meant that by the 1880s the district once again began to flourish. In 1894 the Royal Steam Roller Flour Mill opened in Dongara, an economic milestone in the town’s history both for farmers and the employment of labour. Later in the same year, the completion of the Midland Railway which connected Perth to Geraldton through Dongara meant the decline of sea transport and Port Irwin.

The economy of the area has fluctuated over the years, but many of the early settlers persisted in their labours and today the town can boast many fifth generation West Australians among its community.

1. Old Post Office

Dongara Library

Waldeck Street

This building was the third post office in the Dongara townsite. Prior to its construction, mail was delivered to Maley’s Mill in 1866 and later to the Police Station. The building was designed in 1891 by Chief Architect of the Public Works Department George Temple Poole and built by WH Linthorne in 1894. The building incorporated the telegraph office and manual telephone exchange run by a government appointed postmaster. Postal services were transferred to a new building in Batavia Boulevard Shopping Centre in 1989. The building is currently owned by the Shire of Irwin and is used as a library and visitor centre.

Telephonist Roma Tonissen inside Dongara Telephone Exchange, Dongara Post Office, 1947. I IRME1956

2. Old Police Station and Courthouse

Irwin District Museum

Open Monday to Saturday 10 am – 12 noon (entry by donation)

Waldeck St

The police station was built in 1870 by expiree Joseph Walton, the owner of the Irwin Arms Hotel (now Dongara Hotel). It was made of jarrah shipped into Port Irwin and local limestone rubble bound with lime. The building was used as a police station, courthouse, gaol, ticket of leave hiring depot and police quarters. In 1874 the building had a lean-to addition built on the north side which served as a post and telegraph office. The native cell to the west, stable area and courtyard walls were demolished (c1955). The building served the district as a police station, quarters and courthouse until 1983 when the present police station was built.

Prior to the opening of the police station, the magistrate’s court sat in several places in the town, including the first school and the parlour of the Irwin Arms Hotel. After the formation of the Irwin Roads Board, board meetings were held in the courtroom. When the building ceased functioning as the police station, it was restored in 1985/86 by a volunteer community committee. It currently houses the Irwin Districts Historical Society and Museum, with exhibits detailing the police and justice system of the nineteenth century and life in a rural community.

Dongara Police Station with post and telegraph office, c1940. I IRME0523

3. Western Australian Bank, Dongarra Branch

Corner of Hunts Road and Waldeck Street

Private property. Please view from the street.

Local merchant and mill owner Francis Pearse built this bank chambers and residence in 1894 for the Bank of Western Australia. The bank leased it from him until 1921, and following his death purchased the building from his estate. Dongara property owners Samuel Moore, George Shenton and Edward Hamersley were on the Governing Board of the Bank. The West Australian Bank amalgamated with the Bank of New South Wales in 1927 and the bank became an agency of the Geraldton branch, operating on Wednesdays. In 1950 the building was sold to private interests. It is a rare surviving example of a bank and attached residence built in a totally residential style. It still has the iron-barred windows and solid vault installed for the bank.

Bank of Western Australia, c1930 | IRME1337

4. Pearse House

Corner of Waldeck Street and Hunts Road

Private property. Please view from the street.

This large house built in 1870 was once the home of prominent merchant Francis Pearse. It was originally a seven roomed house (later extended by three room) that had terraced gardens down to the river’s edge. Pearse arrived in Dongara in 1867 to open and manage a store at Port Denison in partnership with Edward Newman but on Newman’s death Pearse bought out the other partners. He was the local agent for Adelaide Steamship Co and went on to be a businessman, farmer and grazier in the area for over 30 years. On the block to the east, Pearse had a general store which burnt down in 1903. Pearse House was designed in the Victorian Georgian style and has considerable historic value as an early residence built for an early settler and prominent identity in the district.

Pearse House 1964 | IRME1741

5. Delmage House and Herbert’s House

Hunts Road

Private property. Please view from the street.

James Delmage built this two-storey house to the plans of the headmaster’s house. Delmage was a blacksmith turned builder and undertaker and built many of the fine homes in the Irwin District. He was Chairman of the Irwin Road Board from 1903 to 1918.

The small stone cottage to the west, partly obscured by a wall, is known as Herbert’s Cottage. It was built in the 1870’s and was used by neighbour Francis Pearse to house employees. In c1940 it was bought by retired farmer and Irwin Road Board secretary Frank Herbert. During World War II Annie Herbert ran the Red Cross War Comforts Depot across the road from this home.

Delmage House with Herbert’s House at rear | IRME1151

Annie Herbert in front of her house, 1944 I IRME1970

6. Irwin River

Point Leander Drive

The Wattandee tribe/people had permanent habitations along the Irwin River at Dhungarra/Thugarra (Dongara) Trawberrie (Strawberry), Irwin, Pedowangi (Peterwangy), Gnoolawa, Depo Hill, Coalseam and Minya-Noo (Mingenew). In the summer, Wattandee tribe/people would follow the river to the coast to get relief from the heat to gather seafood and to follow Wattandee’s beliefs and culture of the Wattarn Borungar (Sea Totem People). (Source: Thomas Cameron, Wattandee tribal elder and Winjaroo speaker, 2020).

The river was given its present name by George Grey after his friend Frederick Irwin, Lt Governor of the Swan River Colony. The southern riverbank toward the estuary was the site of the first tillage lease and flour mill, and in the 1870s a footbridge and Walton’s Ford were constructed close to the present bridge.

The river floods occasionally due to cyclones dumping rain inland. The 1872 flood was of a dimension no one could have imagined. Mrs Eliza Moore, wife of a storekeeper, recalled the scene… “anxiously watching the moonlight shining on a vast expanse of river, rushing furiously along, bearing haystacks, alive with wretched fowls, furniture, pigs, and a regular jumble sale all being carried out to sea.”

Irwin River in flood, view from the bridge, 1971 | IRME0624

7. Russ Cottage

Russ Historic Cottage

Open Mon-Wed Fri-Sat 10-noon (Entry by donation)

Corner of Point Leander Drive and St Dominic’s Road.

Titus Russ, who built this cottage in 1868, had arrived in Fremantle on the Sabina in 1853 with his parents, and came to Dongara to work for The Cattle Company. Titus married Caroline Wintle Smith and built this cottage on land owned by his employer out of stone quarried up the river and pushed to site in a wheelbarrow. It is a fine example of a rural worker’s home. The kitchen floor was made from crushed anthill, packed down to make a hard surface, the walls were built by the random rubble method, with jarrah shingles on the roof and timber flooring.

The Russ family occupied the cottage for many years. Robert Russ used the ground to the rear of the cottage as a market garden and operated the newsagents and store on a nearby site.

Russ Cottage was restored by the Irwin District Historical Society in 1970 and furnished as an 1870s yeoman’s cottage.

Johnson siblings and Elizabeth Russ outside Russ Cottage, c1893 |IRME 1174

8. St Dominic’s Priory

St Dominic’s Road

Priory Hotel

The Dongara Hotel was situated on the original main road to Dongara and the Port and was s built as a single storey limestone rubble structure by William Criddle in 1881. The Dominican Sisters purchased the building in 1902 for the purpose of opening a school, added a second storey, and renamed the building St Dominic’s Priory. The large building to the west was opened in 1926 and named the Dominican Ladies College. The new building incorporated both classrooms and boarding facilities.

Boys and girls attending the school could receive primary education; girls could also receive secondary education as day pupils or boarders. The school operated until 1971, when a flood from the Irwin River destroyed the tennis courts, school playground and inundated the building with mud. The sisters closed the college, ending 70 years of devoted teaching in the area. After being restored the building had its historic inn licence reinstated. It ceased business operations in 2019.

Students on front step of the Dominican Ladies College, c1920. | IRME2562

9. Nun’s Private Cemetery

St Dominic’s Road

The former cemetery is a small walled enclosure and is closely associated with the former Dominican Priory (Site 8). It was used a cemetery by the Dominican Order from 1902 to 1961. The grave of the founder of the order in Western Australia, Reverend Mother Gill, was located in this cemetery. In September 1996 the headstones were removed due to vandalism and the deceased were reinterred in Karrakatta Cemetery. A beautiful memorial wall of salvaged headstones was built by volunteers and can be viewed in the Dongara Cemetery. The plinth at this site previously supported a statue of St Dominic and resided in the garden of St Dominic’s Priory. When the priory and school closed the statue was returned to the Dominican Order and Perth and the plinth was moved to this site to serve as a memorial structure.

Cemetery, looking west, before exhumation, 1996.

10. Old Port Road

When Lockier Burges of “Irwin House” stationed a harbourmaster at the estuary to signal passing vessels in 1857, this path was used to access the river mouth where coastal boats anchored. In the 1860’s the Dongarra village grew around the estuary, with a flour mill and store, blacksmith and several cottages. There was a small footbridge across the river that allowed people to cross to Francis Pearse’ store in Hunts Road. With the opening of the Denison Port, goods were landed for the people of Greenough, but the cutting at the Denison Bridge site was very sandy and the hill on the north bank was almost impossible for bullock teams to climb. When the rust hit the crops and the farmers were starving, the government introduced ‘sustenance work’ for family men and this was to build a heavy traffic crossing in line with the road to Greenough. This became known as Walton’s Ford, and it was built across the river a little to the east of this plaque. Some of its remains can be seen when the river is very low. The first bridge over the Irwin was built in 1889 giving greater access to the township.

Map showing Port Road south of Irwin River, 1867 and development of Dongara village eg blacksmith in centre, ‘Chimney’ indicating mill (now Denison House).

11. Denison House

Smith’s Mill was built on the first tillage lease in the Irwin District by John Smith and John Maley in 1865. The mill went into decline after shipping stopped calling at the port due to bad anchorage and unwilling insurance companies and was closed in 1894. The property was sold to Dr George Bartlett who used the stone from the mill to build Denison House. Dr Bartlett ran his medical practice from this building and his wife Florence designed and constructed the terraced gardens, work which is said to have been carried out under lamplight.

The property was purchased by the Benedictine Community of New Norcia in 1944 and served as a summer retreat for monks, nuns and students. Shire of Irwin purchased the building in 2004 and it is currently used by community groups.

Tea party at Denison House c1900 I IRME0981

12. Old Road’s Board Office

Poppies by the Park Cafe

Corner of Hunts Road and Point Leander Drive

This single room building was constructed of local stone by Ned Carter in 1910 to house the Irwin District Roads Board office. Previously the Roads Board, which was formed in 1871, had conducted its meetings in the Dongara Courthouse and later in the Mechanic’s Institute Hall. This building served the Roads Board until 1958 when new offices were built alongside the town hall. It was then used as the headquarters of the Dongara Returned Services League, and later had various purposes such as Red Cross Shop, real estate office and music studio. A well to the north of the building was the first public water supply to the town and operated from 1906 to 1965.

Irwin Roads Board members outside office, 1910 I IRME0027

13. War Memorial and Memorial Park

Corner of Point Leader Drive and Moreton Terrace

The granite War Memorial obelisk was donated by the Pearse family in 1919 as a tribute to Francis Pearse and was originally erected in the Dongara Cemetery. In 1938 Thomas Clarkson donated the land for Memorial Park to the Irwin Roads Board and the War Memorial was moved from the cemetery to the park. The obelisk is decorated with traditional wreath designs carved into opposite faces beneath which are inscribed the names of local men killed in the World War I and World War II. Plaques to commemorate those who served in Korea, Vietnam and other conflicts were erected on the pillars of the entry gate in 2000.

Erecting World War I Memorial in Dongara Cemetery, 1922 I IRME0703

14. SF Moore & Co Building

Pannarai Cafe

Corner of Moreton Terrace and Point Leander Drive

This building was constructed in 1912 as a shop and storehouse for local businessman Samuel Moore. He was a significant Westralian politician and the moulded black swan on the pediment reflected his patriotism. Pearce & Herbert’s store operated in the shop from 1916, and in 1920 the Carlton Tearooms opened with an open-air dance hall and a billiards room in the main west wing rooms. In 1927 a branch of the Elite Supply Company (drapery) of Geraldton began operating in the corner shop. In the early ‘30s it was renamed The Cabaret and it may be from this time, combined with the cellar beneath the ‘tea room’, that it acquired a reputation as a sly-grog venue. In 1934 it was purchased by Jack and Betsy Brennand who ran Brennands Tearooms from the corner shop for nearly 20 years, while their son Jack junior ran the garage next door. In the early 1950s the building became a temporary branch and staff quarters of the National Bank, followed by a succession of food and café ventures, and in c1983 Tokos Restaurant was opened. After many years of vacancy the building was reopened as Pannarai Café in mid 2020.

Mrs Williams and Iris Brand in front of Elite Drapers and Tearooms, 1926 I IRME1881

15. Old Sikh Quarter

Block around and behind Tyford & Co
Moreton Terrace

This block in Dongara was once known as the ‘Sikh Quarter’ for the shops and residences owned by Sikh businessmen. When Sikh brothers Sojan and Pola Singh came to the Irwin in 1901, they operated a hawker’s cart around the area dealing mainly in drapery, selling to and taking orders from local housewives. Sojan Singh purchased several adjoining town blocks (Lot 73) facing Irwin Road and built a new store of brick and stone with an iron roof and a residence at the back, opening in 1907. A Sikh store operated from here for the next forty years. Two lots behind the stores were also owned by Sojan Singh and he seems to have kept horses and stock there. In the subsequent decade other Sikh men followed and worked in the district as labourers, gardeners and hawkers using Sojan’s store as their base. After Sojan died in 1922, Rur Singh bought his premises and took over the store operations, expanding the business with a new gallon licence, as well as continuing the drapery and silk lines and adding crockery, patent medicines and kitchen wares. He operated businesses in Moreton Terrace and Old East End until 1947, and he eventually retired to Perth. In 2025, the area was recognised for its importance, with the name ‘Sikh Lane’ being officially registered for a small lane running behind the existing shops.

See following the brochure “Sojan Singh and the Early Sikhs of Dongara”, produced by IDHS in 2025. Further information is available in the Sikh Heritage section of the Irwin Districts Historical Society webpage.

16. Brand Store

Beached Boutique

Moreton Terrace

Brand’s Store has high historic significance for its associations with the State significant person Sir David Brand, who operated the business and was recruited into State politics in the original shop. It was constructed in 1903 and operated for many years as a grocery store. In 1944 it was taken over by David Brand, later Sir David Brand, KCMG, MLA for Greenough (1945-1975) and longest-serving Premier of Western Australia (1959-1971). Brand was recruited to the new Liberal Party at a meeting held in the original shop, below the skylight, in 1945 with Sir Ross McLarty, Premier 1947-1953. The original building is largely encased within the present structure, but the high raked timber ceilings and central skylight can still be seen inside, as well as other features.

Sir David Brand, c1970 I IRME1690

17. Dongara Hotel & Irwin Arms

Moreton Terrace

This was the first inn in Dongara, built in 1867 by expiree Joseph Walton, and was known as the Irwin Arms. The original structure forms the core of the present building. The hotel licence was gazetted on 28 April 1868 and was licensed to sell only liquor and meals with no accommodation being available. Court proceedings were held in the Irwin Arms prior to the construction of the Courthouse. The Irwin Arms was purchased by William Criddle the Younger in 1902 after selling the first Dongara Hotel. At the time the hotel had 12 bedrooms and 3 sitting rooms. He re-named the Irwin Arms as the Dongarra Hotel and immediately had a billiards room built on the east end. In 1908 he completely renovated and extended the old building, engaging architects Oldham & Cox of Fremantle to design the new range of bars and public rooms facing Irwin Road (now Moreton Terrace) in an Edwardian Italianate style. The new hotel was the first building in Dongara to be lit by acetylene gas lights. When it was completed, a visitor described it as “not only an up-to-date hotel, but one of the most substantial and presentable buildings in that cosy little township.” (Geraldton Express, 2 October 1908). Dentists and doctors used the ‘Commercial Room’ as late as 1963 as a consulting room and the barber and illegal betting shop were located at the east end of the building.

Dongara Hotel formerly Irwin Arms, 1910 I IRME1674

18. Plester House

Coffee Tree Cafe
Moreton Terrace

This house was built for the Plester family about 1915. The building housed a hairdressing salon for many years and in recent years was used as a popular outdoor café, which closed in 2020. It has historic significance for its connection to the development of Dongara and the commercial evolution of the centre of town.

Bride Muriel Hughes nee Plester with brother Geoffery outside the Plester house 1930. I IRME1581

19. Moreton Bay Fig Trees and Town Park

Hosken Street

The Moreton Bay Fig (Ficus macrofylla) and Port Jackson Fig (Ficus robinosa) were planted in 1906 by Robert Russ for the Irwin Roads Board at a cost of 16 shillings and 4 pence. The original trees were planted some 20 metres, although over the years, trees have been removed to accommodate vehicles and underground petrol storage tanks. In 1999 replacement trees grown from cuttings were planted by the Dongara Denison Townscape Committee. The trees have high historic value forming a rare example of the City Beautiful philosophy that was current in Western Australia at the time. From Brand Highway to Waldeck Street roundabout

This street, previously named Irwin Road, was the main road to Geraldton. It was renamed Moreton Terrace because of the Moreton Bay Figs (Ficus macrofylla) which lined the street. Moreton Terrace connects the historic precinct around the intersection of Waldeck Street to the Brand Highway.

This recreation area was originally the playground for the second Dongara State School. Students grew vegetables in the garden (on the site of the rotunda) and sent produce to the Royal Show for exhibition and competition. They grew wheat, oats, barley and vegetables in rows and used the yields to determine bags to the acre and other mathematical equations. Prior to World War II, students planted trees on the perimeter of the block and many are now mature trees. The rotunda was designed by the Townscape Committee to reflect the architectural features of early Dongara buildings and was completed in 2001 as part of the Centenary of Federation celebrations.

Wedding of Elizabeth Clarkson and George D Brand at the Methodist Church, 1903. View looking east along Moreton Terrace before planting of trees. I IRME0477

20. School Master’s House

Corner of Waldeck and Smith Streets

Private residence. Please view from the street.

This house was built in 1893 by Mr Cummings for Francis Kelly, an accountant and later partner with merchant Francis Pearse. The Education Department purchased it in 1897 and after renovations Headteacher Mr Ward and his family moved into their new residence. The Education Department vacated the building in 1977 and it was sold in c2011 to private owners. The building is a good example of a well-designed and executed building in the late Victorian Georgian style whose aesthetic characteristics demonstrate the town’s growing prosperity at the time.

View looking south down Waldeck St with Headmaster’s House on right, 1910 I IRME2926

21. Dongarra Star Bakery

Corner of Smith and Waldeck Streets

The original stone section of this building was constructed in about 1904 by James Criddle, who rented the premises out. The first reference to it as a bakery was in 1906 when it catered for a wedding at the Dongara town hall. In 1910 the property was purchased by Francis Newman Pearse and the business became known as the Star Bakery and Butchery Company. The premises have accommodated many different bakers over the years, including WT Rowland and William McGuie who accidentally almost burnt the building down while refilling a lamp in 1927. However, the baking ovens remained intact and the bakehouse was rebuilt. There have been numerous modifications to the front façade however the original form of the building is still evident in the twin gable roof structure and the side stone wall.

Burnt out remains of bakery and butcher shop, 1927 I IRME0393

22. The Bungalow

Waldeck Street

Private property. Please view from the street.

The original rear section of the building was probably built by a member of the Criddle family in the 1850s. Around 1880 Francis Pearse purchased the property and the front rooms were added, and it then became the home of Alexander Forrest, the first miller at the nearby flour mill. Subsequent owners of this lovely house have extended it since. At one stage it belonged to William Bedford Mitchell, the manager of the Royal Steam Roller Flour Mill, who was married to the mill owner’s daughter, Frances Priscilla Pearse. Sir James Mitchell, a premier of WA, was WB Mitchell’s brother. In about 1899 the Nairn sisters used the two front rooms as a private girls’ school. In 1901 the Dominican Sisters occupied the house for six months before moving to ‘Six Chimneys’. The Bungalow became the home of Isabella Waldeck and her daughters in 1902 after she retired from Bonniefield.

Next to The Bungalow were the old Showgrounds which were used each year for the district’s annual agricultural show. The tennis courts were located here and the grounds were also used for cricket and hockey. Dongara had both ladies’ and men’s teams in the early 1900s.

Show Day at the showgrounds, 1912. The Bungalow roof is visible over the crowd on the left. I IRME1134

23. Royal Steam Roller Flour Mill

Waldeck Street

Not open to the public.

Merchant Francis Pearse built the Royal Steam Roller Flour Mill in 1894 from plans by Henry Simon of Manchester, England. Powered by huge steam engines, the mill ground wheat produced in the district until its closure in 1935. The mill had a large floor space and receiving sheds capable of holding 8,000 bags of wheat. Flour milled here was shipped to the north west by the Adelaide Steamship Company or freighted south by Midland Railway, to which the mill was connected by its own private line. The mill was capable of producing six tons of flour per working day, at a rate of about seven to eight sacks per hour.

During World War II the mill was used as an army camp; much of the timber was removed to be used for gun emplacements in the coastal dunes. With the shortage of materials, much of the internal timbers were removed following the war.

The mill changed hands several times, with the olive trees planted in 1970 by the then owner Mr Herriman. Sir David Brand requested the building be made available to the National Trust of WA for preservation in 1975, and it was classified by the Trust in 1983. The mill was sold in 2007 to private owners who have restored and adapted the place for use as a family home.

Frank Herbert’s car in front of the Mill, 1930 I IRME2676

24. Methodist Manse

Lecaille Street

Private residence. Please view from the street.

Four young ladies of the Methodist Congregation – Fletcherina Waldeck, Amy Clarkson, Maud Brand and Frances Priscilla Pearse – laid the foundation stone for this house in 1900. The limestone was carted by horse and dray from local quarries, and the finished building opened by Mrs Isabella Waldeck in 1901. She was presented with a silver key by the ministry as a mark of appreciation for her gift of the land and her substantial financial contribution which cleared the debt incurred in the construction of the building. The manse is a good example of the style of its era, with its decorative quoining and gable treatments.

Methodist Manse c1973 I IRME0442

25. Old Rectory

Waldeck Street

Private residence. Please view from the street.

The Rectory was the first major financial undertaking of the Anglican community in Dongara and was essential to attracting and keeping a resident clergyman. It was built by WH Linthorne in 1882 from solid 46cm blocks of limestone quarried from the local quarries. The first occupant was Rev Thomas Friel and for many years the Anglican Ladies’ Guild held their meetings in the building. A new rectory was constructed in Church St in 1977 and the following year this building become a private residence. It is one of the grander residences in Dongara and its large size, high-pitched roof, raised siting and prominent location in the town make it an important element in the built fabric of Dongara.

Reverend Ernest Gill with wife Sylvia and children, 1916 I IRME2505

26. St John the Baptist Church of England

Corner of Waldeck and Church Streets

A public meeting held in 1866 resolved that an Anglican Church and cemetery be built. When Mrs Eliza Moore arrived in Dongara six years later, she wrote to her father, a congregational minister in Perth, that “there is no church, no school, nothing”. On her father’s advice, she established a Sunday School. Bishop Hale visited Dongara in 1873, conducting a confirmation ceremony in Dongara School and consecrating the cemetery. The foundation stone was laid in 1884, jointly by Miss Clementine Nairn, Mrs Jane Plester and Mrs Eliza Moore, and the building was consecrated by the Rev Harry Dutton. The building was designed by Francis Bird, an important colonial architect based in Perth, and was built by WH Linthorne. The stone font was installed in 1913 in memory of S and F Burges. Some pews have been made from ships’ timbers collected from the beach, and the bell which hangs from a timber cross member in the garden was used at Fremantle Gaol to remind convict ticket of leavers that they had to be indoors by 10pm. It came from Mrs Eliza Moore’s father, Rev Johnson, who was Chaplain at Fremantle Gaol between 1860 and 1870. The stained-glass altar window was broken by a falling tree and was replaced in 1980 with a window depicting John the Baptist designed and made by the renowned Gowers & Brown of Greenmount.

Reverend Barry May in front of new stained glass window, 1980 I IRME1250

27. Old State School

Offices of Local Rag and Dongara Pottery Club
Corner of Waldeck Street and Moreton Terrace

The first Dongara School was built in 1870 on the site of the present police station, but by 1906 increased student numbers led to the construction of a two-room school with a verandah and shelter shed in the grounds. Many rural school buildings were built to this design from the turn of the twentieth century. The separate brick classroom was built in the early 1960s as school enrolments rose with the growth of the fishing industry. The school served the town until 1972, when new district high school was built in Cave Way, an aptly named street as Henry Cave was Dongara’s first school master. The building remains relatively intact and is representative of small, simple rural school buildings from the turn of the century.

Dongara Second School, 1912. Pupils were going to swimming classes near the jetty I IRME0698

28. Dongarra Wesleyan Church

Corner of Waldeck Street and Moreton Terrace
Not open to the public.

Early church services were held in the original schoolhouse (the site now occupied by the police station) but in the early 1880s the congregation decided to build their own church. Local builder WH Linthorne donated the block of land and won the contract to build the church, which was designed by Isaac Walker. The church was opened on Sunday 14 December 1884, with more than 200 people attending the morning and evening services. The church bell was originally the convict bell from Northampton. The Church Hall was constructed in 1988 adjacent to the church. It is a well composed church in the rural Victorian Rustic Gothic Style, and illustrates the rise and strong influence of Methodism in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, particularly in the Victoria District.

Dongara Wesleyan Methodist Church and parson, 1912 I IRME0422

29. Dongara Hall (site of Mechanics Institute)

Corner of Waldeck St and Moreton Terrace.

The Mechanics Institute was built in 1881 by to help working men to self-education as a place where they could attend lectures, read the newspapers and periodicals of the day, or enjoy a game of chess or cards. These limestone rubble and corrugated iron buildings, known as the ‘greater’ and ‘lesser’ public halls, were destroyed by fire in 1950.

The present hall was designed by significant Western Australian architect William G Bennett and constructed using bricks made at the Irwin Brick Works. The hall was opened in 1953 by local member David Brand MLA who later became Premier of WA and became the hub of Dongara’s social life, hosting meetings and dances. The original roof was built with an innovative Arcon tubular steel roof truss system. The Dongara Hall is of high aesthetic significance for the extensive use of Irwin warm red bricks in its construction, of which there are only a few examples in the Shire, and as the only post-war Art Deco public building in the shire. In 1958 a new Road Board/Shire office was built on the south side of the hall in a similar style. This replaced the 1910 office (place No 9). It was largely demolished in 1974, although parts remain incorporated in the present offices. The Pensioner Hall was added to the south-west of the main hall in 2000.

Dongara Mechanic’s Institute Halls, c1900 I IRME0155

30. Dongara Cemetery

In 1868 the citizens of Dongara petitioned the Governor for a port, hotel and cemetery, but cemetery land was not granted. The Dongara Cemetery began as three town lots, in c1880, each one being purchased by and designated for a denomination, Catholic, Anglican and Wesleyan. Along with a fourth block designated Independent the lots were combined in 1934 to form the Dongara Cemetery. The oldest burial is Titus Russ, dated 28^th March 1874. Dongara Cemetery contains the graves of many of the district’s pioneers. Of special interest are the graves of Police Constable Watson, and Sophia Mitchell, nee Dent, believed to be the first white female born in WA. The central pathway of the cemetery is still a gazette road – Scutt Street. Mr Scutt was a bank manager in Dongara about 1908. In Dongara the day of reckoning also includes a reminder of one’s financial obligations. Also buried in this cemetery in unmarked graves are paupers and Aboriginal people.

Entrance Gate and Niche Wall

The entry and memorial wall were built on behalf of the Country Women’s Association of WA Inc, Dongara Branch, to commemorate the 60^th Anniversary of the formation of the branch 4 July 1992. The tree planting, reinstatement of the original style picket fence and the construction of the arbor was a project of the Dongara Townscape Committee in conjunction with the Shire of Irwin.

The First Cemetery

In 1875 Father leCaille built a small bat brick church with a thatched roof and small cemetery on Gum Tree Hill at the east end of Dongara (Loc 1867 Reserves 1871, 896). The only known burial in this cemetery is that of Robert Fitzgerald of Strawberry, died 30 July 1883. The first church later became home to the Ventura family, and the place became known as Ventura’s Hill. The cemetery was used until 1885 when the small stone presbytery was built in Waldeck St. The cemetery was inadvertently excavated during the building of the Eneabba railway line in 1975. The pioneers were subsequently re-interred in the Dongara Cemetery with an appropriate memorial.

Early Cremations

There were four recorded Sikh cremations in the Irwin districts. The first occurred in 1909 at the Back Beach after Sikh hawker Easa Sing was run over by a cart. Businessman Sojan Singh was first buried, then exhumed and cremated, still in the coffin, on cemetery grounds. The last cremation was Pola Singh in 1934, being cremated near Seven Mile Beach.

The Hearse

In the early part of the last century, Mrs F. Waldeck decided that the town needed a hearse to take the deceased on their final journey. She set about raising funds and a horse drawn hearse was purchased and kept in a shed at the cemetery. Being little used it fell into disrepair, white ants attacking the timber of the wheels. The remains of the hearse were taken to Irwin House where it was used as a pigeon loft. Later parts of the hearse were used to fix a windmill, proving that little is wasted in the farming community.

Historic Graves and Sites

Watson Family

Born at Guildford in 1932, Joseph Watson became a police officer in the 1850s and was sent to establish a police station at Strawberry in 1863, with his wife Anne and four young children. He built a small pug cottage with a thatched roof on the right bank of the Irwin River, near Strawberry Island. In 1872 the river flooded and swept away the Watson cottage, his wife and family escaping with difficulty to Irwin House. His district covered a vast area, and he spent most of his time in the saddle on patrol, and distinguished himself by his expert dealing with troublesome aboriginals on the Murchison. His unique success in capturing ‘aboriginal delinquents’ made his name a household word, earning him the nickname of ‘Immortal Joe’. Watson died of old age in 1897, having lived in the Victoria District for 40 years. Joseph’s son Charles died of typhoid fever and is buried near his parents.

Clarkson Family 

A family of three brothers arrived at the Swan Colony in 1830 from Yorkshire, England. Edward W Clarkson, a son of one of the brothers, came to Dongara in 1888 and set up a business as blacksmith, wheelwright and coachbuilder. He also assembled furniture crated from England and then sold it to settlers. He purchased ‘Spring Farm’ of 700 acres, now the subdivision of Springfield, and also farmed Tyford, building accommodation for his growing family. Tyford became one of the most profitable farms in the district. Two Clarkson brothers were speared by Aboriginals in the Murchison and their bodies were brought to Greenough Cemetery for burial.

Rowland Family

The family arrived in 1830 aboard the Tranby and leased land in the Irwin district in the 1860s. Richard (snr) qualified as a juror having £150 of real estate and was a juryman at the Coroner’s Inquest into the deaths of Brandis, Bagshaw, Jackson and Rogan. Richard (jnr) was a farmer/grazier and leased land with his brother Michael in the Irwin District in the 1860s. John (Jack) Rowland was an assistant to the police and mail contractor. He accompanied the police to the site of the Clarkson Brothers and brought their remains to be buried at the Greenough Cemetery.

Charlotte Downes 1858-1900 

Charlotte was the daughter of Edward and Amelia Downes and was believed to be the first European child to be born in the Dongara area. Her father was a farmer and was appointed by the Cattle Company to look out for ships, raising a signal requesting  to call into Port Irwin. Charlotte, who did not marry, was a dressmaker for most of her adult life and lived in a small cottage near Six Chimneys at the east end of Dongara.

David and Susan Brand 

David and Susan Brand married in 1869 at Greenough and farmed at Mount Pleasant near Dongara. Records show David Brand delivered 38 bags of wheat and 20 bags of barley to Irwin Steam Mill in early 1877 to be ground for the family’s use. The Brands were the grandparents of Sir David Brand, Premier of WA 1959-1971.

Nairn Family 

James Nairn, born in 1816 in England arrived in the Colony with his parents in 1829. He and his wife Sarah (nee Pettit) had 11 children, moving to Irwin in the 1860s and farming near Obawara at Claremont. He became active in community affairs, serving as Chairman of Irwin Road Board in 1874. It is believed Nairn was a signatory to the nine-point petition to be presented to the Governor setting out the needs of the fledgling district and town. All were granted within a year, except a ‘form of entertainment’ and the establishment of a church and cemetery.

Criddle Family

The Criddles, originally spelt Crittal, were among the first families to settle at Dongara. William, born 1943 at Toodyay, became a farm labourer at Greenough before applying for a licence as Victualler of Dongara Hotel, later Priory Lodge, 1884-1886. He also held licences for the wayside house and to run billiard and bagatelle tables at the Dongara Hotel. Williams was hit by a train at Guildford in 1912 and his body brought home to Dongara for burial.

Sophie Mitchell (nee Dent)

Sophie is believed to be the first white girl born in the Swan River Colony – on the beach at Fremantle. She came to Dongara late in life to be near her daughters, both of whom had married into the Oliver family and Sophie became the postmistress at Irwinn. Sophie first married William C Ellery, an American sailor who jumped ship at Fremantle. He died after being scalded on a steam boat on the Swan River. She then married William Mitchell in 1861 and had a second family.

Pell Family

The Pells were a pioneering family who arrived in the colony in 1850. After working for SP Phillips at Toodyay, John Pell moved to the Irwin, living in a small cottage on the river at Pell’s Crossing. It was here that Robert Cousins built the bridge across the Irwin in 1873, now named Pell Bridge. John Pell took up a pastoral lease, now known as Cadji Cadji, east of Morawa  then built a stone house, naming it Wimpole, after the names of the village in Cambridgeshire, England, from where the family came. Wimpole is situated at Bonniefield a few kilometres north of Dongara.

Russ Family

Titus Russ arrived in WA as a 12-year-old in 1853, the family taking up tillage leases. By 1868 Titus owned two blocks at Dongara and built a small cottage on the banks of the Irwin River just east of Smith’s Mill, on land owned by his employer Edward Hamersley. Limestone was carted, probably by wheelbarrow, from a quarry on the riverbank near the flour mill and in 1870 the cottage was completed. This same cottage is now a museum administered by IDHS. Titus died as a result of an accident at the young age of 33, inn 1874, possible from a fall off a horse, leaving a wife and four young children.

Francis Sojan Singh

Sojan was born in 1868 in India to a non-commissioned officer in the Indian Army. He was a prominent businessman and storekeeper in Dongara. His headstone is in the Catholic portion of the cemetery, but it is aligned north-south, unlike the east-west alignment of all other graves in the cemetery, for reasons unknown. 

Carroll Family 

Michael Joseph Carroll was born at Mingenew, farmed in the Irwin District, and died at a relatively young age. His family consisted of three daughters and two sons, both whom were killed at Gallipoli, World War I, their names listed on the town War Memorial.

Pioneer Memorial 

After accidental excavation of the first Catholic Cemetery at the East End of Dongara in 1972, the remains of the pioneers were re-interred at this site.

Dominican Nun’s Memorial 

The Dominican nuns arrived in 1899 from New Zealand in 1902 William Criddle sold his hotel to them. The nuns soon transformed the old hotel into a school and within a few years they had established an almost self-sufficient community – school, boarding house, garden, dairy. There were also a chapel and cemetery where the nuns would be laid to rest after their earthly tasks were complete. In 1971 a cyclone crossed the coast north of Dongara bringing heavy rain to the source of the Irwin River, causing it to flood. It inundated the Priory and destroyed the gardens and tennis court. The building was sold and the nuns moved to Perth. Eventually the building dried out and was returned to its original life as a hotel, now the Priory Lodge. After the building was sold, the remains of the sisters were exhumed from the cemetery nearby and re-interred at Karrakatta Cemetery in Perth. Past pupils and friends built the Memorial in the Dongara Cemetery in 1999, with the original headstones placed on the wall. Also commemorated is the Rev Constantine O’Hare who collapsed and died during a service in the chapel at the Priory. Clare Punch, aged 17, was a student as the school and sister to one of the nuns. Clare’s family chose that she be buried with the nuns at Dongara and hence her mortal remains were transferred to Karrakatta with the remains of the sisters.

The Dongara Heritage Walk was developed by the Irwin Districts Historical Society.

Copyright 2020 IDHS.

Sources/Further Reading:

IDHS Database

Sr Mary Albertus Bain Ancient Landmarks. (UWA Press, 1975)

Irwin District Historical Society

Old Police Station Building

5 Waldeck St

Dongara 6525

99 271 323

idhs@midwest.com.au

Website: www.irwinhistory.org.au

The Society was formed in 1964 by a group of people who were keen to preserve and maintain the history of the district. Some of the activities of the Society include:

• studying and writing of the history of the district
• collecting, classifying and preserving records relating to that history
• publishing articles and selected records in special bulletins
• exchanging information with members of the Society and other organisations with similar interests
•  promoting public interest in and support of historical relics, including buildings and sites
• maintaining a library and resource centre which can be accessed by members of the public
• managing Old Police Station and Russ Cottage Museums.

© Copyright IDHS 2020