Thornlie Homestead Revisited ; Part 2

This week it was absolutely necessary to have a midweek blog on the new information I have found on the original Thornlie Homestead, the ruins of which are located in the Homestead Park on Glenbrook Road.

Digging a little deeper, I visited the Thornlie Library this evening to check out the "Thornlie Living History" collection. There are a range of A4 binded paper books with photocopied records of various historical topics relating to the history of Thornlie. They also have a range of "Oral History Interviews" which I did not get a chance to dig through on this visit, but will certainly be visiting again soon.

To bring some dimension to the photos from my Thornlie Homestead post, I managed to photocopy some images of the Thornlie Homestead from circa 1925. And what a magnificent homestead it was!

Pay close attention to the large trees to the right of the homestead in the following picture, and you will see the very same Olive Trees planted in 1837 and photographed in the June 16 blog.

http://thethornlieblog.blogspot.com.au/2013/06/heritage-listed-olea-eurpoaea-at.html

 At the time of this photograph, the Olea Europaea would have been over 80 years in the ground and well established trees.

Captain Thomas Bannister, the same Thomas Bannister who was credited with the plantation of the Glenbrook Rd Olive Trees, was the original owner of "Canning Location 17", and is believed to have been granted the land as an early settler.

There are comments throughout the documents which indicate the homestead had underground water tanks, chambers for the keeping of convicts who helped to shape the land and numerous outhouses that were built between the 1830s and 1920s. There is mention of chinese labourers clearing the land and various experimental farming ventures that were trialled on the river banks.

Below you will see a map from circa 1900s with the Lot numbers and occupiers of the land. 

Standing in the park today, it is difficult to imagine the building that was established there over 170 years ago. With a little more digging, here's hoping it wont be so difficult to imagine afterall!

Forever 6108!


Know Your Suburb Thornlie Leaflet
Yvonne henderson MLA Member for Thornlie
Sourced from Thornlie Living History Collection June 2013

Photographs of The Thornlie Homestead Circa 1925

Sourced from Thornlie Living History Collection June 2013

Thornlie Development Document

Hon G.P. Wild M.L.A; Minister for Water Supplies

DD 4th April 1963

Sourced from Thornlie Living History Collection June 2013

Thornlie Homestead

After intending to visit for many weeks now, I finally made it down to the Thornlie Homestead site :)

Located in Homestead Park to the left of the community centre on Glenbrook Rd, it is quite literally a line or two of foundation brick poking out of the grass like a row of teeth.

Its so inconspicuous and understated that I suspect many walk straight past it without any realisation as to it's significance. 

I met a man and his son at the park who were collecting rubbish. I asked him if he worked with the community centre, and he explained that he was simply a local resident who spent some time cleaning up the park on the weekend. How remarkable! I was so impressed by this- how generous a local resident was with his time.

He kindly pointed me in the direction of the Thornlie Homestead remnants, of which I have taken photographs to illustrate.

As you can see- there really isn't much left at all! Interestingly, it is suspected that the site may have archaeological value as much of the original building and farming equipment was pushed into the cellars and the flooring when the building was destroyed by fire in the 1970s. If this is true- then much of the history remains buried in this very location! How magical to think about what may lay below.

 When researching online, I found a listing with the State Heritage Office, however there is also a book published in 1975 called 'Thornlie Homestead' by Madge and Ernie Lankester which will make for some interesting reading.

What I have been able to find out, is that the area by the Canning River (now known as Homestead Park) was owned by Walter Padbury, one of the founding members of Thornlie. The homestead was built in the 1880s and originally inhabited by Frank and Amy James. The name "Thornlie" originated from a business house in India Madras which was run by the grandfather of the original inhabitant Frank James.

My favourite photograph of the day however is the next one, which shows the view of the river from the vantage point that would once have been the homestead frontage.

With a little imagination, you can envision standing beside the homestead with the glorious views of the river and the gum trees over 130 years ago.

Forever 6108!

State Heritage Office ; Retrieved from http://inherit.stateheritage.wa.gov.au/Public/Inventory/Details/5c1eb1c6-cc93-41aa-b81b-336efa12f3d2

Thornlie Homestead;Retrieved from http://trove.nla.gov.au/work/157835690?versionId=172057523