Hotel, Railway station, Museum -
Dead finish hotel 1872, Old post office 1909, Town hall 1938.
Calendar of events
Easter: Art Show. June: Avondale
Clydesdale and vintage day. August: Annual show. November: Harvest festival.
Aeronautical museum
Shops
Train station
Hotel
Museum
Post office
St. Marks Church.
Town Hall
Silver Centenary painting
\
The Plank
Description
Beverley was
one of the first areas in Western Australia opened for agriculture after a
glowing report to
Governor Stirling by
Ensign Robert Dale. Dale made three excursions to the
York / Beverley area, the first in 1829 and the last in 1830 when he was
accompanied by Governor Stirling.
Large tracts of land were taken up following the Governor's excursion and
the first in the Beverley district was taken up by the Colonial Surgeon, Dr.
Charles Simmons.
Dr. Simmons was granted some 2,850 hectares on the Eastern bank of the Avon
River in January 1831 and it is a common belief that Beverley was named
after Beverley in Yorkshire which was Dr. Simmons' home. Beverley is an old
English word meaning beaver stream.
The official survey of the Beverley district took place in 1843. The
Beverley town site was established around 1868 and its status was enhanced
with the extension of the electric telegraph from York in 1877.
The Beverley Road District was one of the nineteen local authorities
established in 1871 under the Municipalities and Roads District Act. The
original Beverley Road District was in excess of 150,000 square kilometres
and included the present Shires of Beverley, Brookton,
Quairading, Bruce Rock,
Corrigin, Pingelly,
Narembeen, Kondinin,
Dundas and a portion of
Cuballing, WickepinWandering and Kulin.
On 31st March 1892 the Beverley townsite
became a separate municipality under the name of "The Burgesses of the Town
of Beverley". Shortly thereafter in October 1895, an East Beverley
organisation known as the Farmers and Settlers Association successfully
petitioned to create the East Beverley Road Board.
These small localities were short lived, with the East Beverley Road Board
dissolving in 1906 after eleven years and the Burgesses of the Town of
Beverley followed the same fate in 1913 after only twenty one years. Both
were absorbed back into the Beverley Road Board. The change of name to the
Shire of Beverley from the Beverley Road Board occurred in 1961.
In 1886, the Southern rail link from Perth was
extended to Beverley, which was the terminus for three years. From here
people continued their journey by horse or on foot.
A pipeline to connect Beverley with the Goldfields water supply scheme was
completed in 1908 and the first powerhouse to generate electricity for the
town was established under private ownership in 1913. (The town was only
connected to the state grid in 1966.)
In 1915 a
stock disease known as pulpy kidney (infectious enterotoxaemia) caused by
Bacillus ovitoxicus caused great concern as stock losses started to mount
alarmingly. Dr Harold Bennetts, W.A's first veterinary pathologist worked on
a cure but it was not until the 1930s that a vaccine was developed. The
Avondale research farm continues to operate
to this day and entry to the farm is free. It includes the largest
agricultural machinery museum in the southern hemisphere.
This history of the early days of European settlement was published in the
Beverley Times on 17th May 1929 as the winning entry in an essay
competition to celebrate the centenary of the founding of Western Australia.
The author was L. Wansbrough of the Dale (a district within the present
Shire of Beverley.)
"If we wished to see Beverley in her virgin state, we would have to go
back to the late (18)'30's, about this period the Government sent surveyors
to divide the land into blocks, and owing to the unfriendliness of the
natives these men were protected by soldiers to protect them and the early
settlers who later began to arrive.
The Barracks which soldiers occupied, were built, one on the Dale River near
Waterhatch, and the other at St. Aubyn's Estate. It was at this latter
Barrack that a soldier was speared and killed by natives.
Some of the first families to settle in the Beverley District were the
Smith's, Lennard's and Broun's, and on the Dale the Whittington's, Kersley's,
and Cox and Bartrams, while amongst the earliest in the Bally Bally and
County Peak district were the Blechynden's, Robins, Edward's and
Kilpatrick's families.
Concerning the townb site of Beverley, perhaps I
should say that the original place intended for same, is where St Paul's
Church at Edwards Crossing is now situated. Owing to a shortage of
Government land space, the present site was surveyed in about 1870 by the
late Sir Jon Forrest, who named the principal streets, two after himself and
the main street after his assistant Vincent. It was during this year that
the bridge over the Avon River near St. Paul's Church was constructed by
convicts, who also partly made the road from York to Beverley.
In 1872 the town of Beverley consisted of five buildings three of which are
still standing, one of these was the first hotel to be built and was then
known as the "Settlers Arms" but which is now called the "Dead Finish". The
second building is the old Police Station in Hunt Road, in 1872 the Police
Station was in charge of Police Constable Edwards, these two places coupled
with another old house on Hunt road are Beverley's oldest buildings.
In those days before the railway was connected, the mail was carried on
horseback from York to Beverley, and so on around the Dale, by Mr. Bartram
Senior, the first mail contractor and also District Registrar.
The first Anglican minister to come to Beverley was the Reverend Lynch, and
resided at Gilgering until later the Reverend Canon Groser took up his
residence at "Wannering" where he lived until St Mary's Church and the
present Rectory were built in 1890.
The first school to be erected was a small place on the Avondale Estate, in
which in later years was removed to it's present position. About 1875 the
first flour mill to serve the Beverley district was built at Yandegin, and
was of the stone process; that is, the grain was ground between stones and
driven by steam. A roller flour mill was established on the banks of the
Avon about 1896, this was destroyed by fire on Christmas Day 1906.
Beverley's first Post Office was in the old Police Station building and was
later in the Railway Station yards adjoining the present Co-Op buildings
site. About 1880 came an important step in the advancement of civilisation,
in the form of a telegraph line being built from York to Beverley. Perhaps
an even more important step was taken when in 1886, the railway line was
also constructed from York, as up to that date horse trams were the usual
form of conveyance.
Not long after this railway was completed, the small town of Beverley was
the scene of great activity, on October 20th. 1886 a train load of visitors,
including departmental heads, arrived from Perth to witness the "turning of
the first sod" of the Great Southern Railway by his Excellency Governor
Broome. Up 'till about 1902 the terminus of the Government railway was
Beverley, all trains stabling there overnight, and the refreshment rooms
were built to accommodate through passengers.
During the period of '86 there were not many business places in our town;
only two hotels. the old "Settlers Arms "and the Freemasons, Mrs. Sewell's
store in the same building, a boot makers shop, and a butchery owned by Mr.
Horace Smith.
The room now used for goods at the railway station was about this time used
for Anglican Services, conducted by Beverley's first Stationmaster Mr. Drake
Brockman. Mrs. Brockman conducted the Sunday School then, and later at the
State School, this lady's memory is reverenced by quite a number of old time
residents for the good work she then initiated and St Mary's Church is a
monument to her and her husband's early efforts.
In later years the Methodist and Catholic Churches were established, the
latter under the good Father from York and the former by a Mr. Mawson. In
the earlier periods Beverley's water supply consisted of wells and the
river, the late Thomas Edwards of Rockfield supplying residents with water
from his wells at two shillings and sixpence a hogshead for drinking
purposes. in those times the present site of the Avon Bridge on Monday
mornings presented quite a variety of colours on clothes lines when some of
the housewives dealt with the weekly wash. At that time the water in the
river was much fresher than now and, some, had to be used for domestic
purposes. It was not until 1907 - 1908 that the present supply was obtained.
The first street lights used were acetylene gas and were few in number;
electric light was adopted in about 1911 by the late Mr. P. Lambert.
The first motor vehicle to come to Beverley was a motor carriage on high
wheels, and was then popularly known as the "Joy Bird". It was owned by the
late Mr. DeLisle and it's chief characteristic was stream of fire from the
rear which resembled a comet as the "Joy Bird" careered along. The main
source of earnings to Beverley's first motor mechanic, Mr. Dean, then in his
early stages, and he later became the proud possessor of it.
Early day amusements were limited to the annual fair (Agricultural Show),
Races and Foundation day Sports, and were red letter days for young and old.
Races in those days were different from today; every horse was a trier,
punters and bookies being unknown although bets were made between man and
man, but the sport generally was clean.
Cricket at that time was the popular summer game, Beverley then, as now,
holding it's own with surrounding districts, and perhaps it would be
interesting to mention some of the best players at that game, they were the
late T. Davey, Sampee, J. Sewell, H. and E. Monger, J. Cahill, also W.V.
Brown, J. Smith, L.A. Edwards, and D. and E. Bereton, all who are still
residents of the Beverley district.
I might also mention that in those days the affairs of the town were
controlled by a Mayor and Councilors, Beverley's first Mayor being the late
Mr. William Smith. In later years the Municipality passed out of existence
and from that time the Beverley Road Board has had authority over the whole
of the district this brings me to the close of the old period or rather to
the commencement of present day businesses.
The district which has advanced with the times, in all it's avenues, stands
today among the most solid, being particularly noted for it's sheep
industry. First in both wool and mutton, it is destined to be an important
part the production of fat lambs for export besides holding it's own in
every other branch of agricultural production."
Beverley lies on the banks of the Avon River
and boasts three museums, the Aeronautical, the Dead Finish and
Ferguson's Machinery museum.
The railway station won the Heritage Council of Western
Australia award for the 'Conservation of a place on the State Register of
Heritage Places' in 2007.
The town is
popular with photographers, artists and clubs such as the Royal
Historical Society of WA.
One of the main attractions in town was located at the Aeronautical Museum which
used to house
a plane named the
Silver Centenary.
It was built by Selby Ford and Tom Shackles between
1928-30. It flew for the first time in 1930 and was later flown by Major DeHavilland and Amy Johnson. It was never licensed because there were no
blueprints of its original design - the builders had simply sketched it out
on the floor in chalk. Recently the plane was taken over by the grandson of
one of the original builders who has spent a lot of money restoring it to
original working condition. The plane has flown again and we believe it is
currently kept in the Serpentine area. it is hoped that it will make a
return flight to Beverley at some stage.
The oldest building in town is the Dead Finish Hotel which was constructed
in 1872.
In the local cemetery you will find the grave of Billy Noongale, a tracker
who accompanied
John Forrest on his expedition from Perth to Adelaide in 1870.
The caravan park is currently under re-development and
expansion and this will certainly encourage more visitors to stop and spend
at least a couple of days exploring the town and its surrounds.
