Weston Creek - History

History

Weston Creek was named after Captain George Edward Weston, a former officer of the East India Company who arrived in Australia in 1829 and was granted land in the Weston Creek area in 1831. The 'four-square mile' (2560 acre) grant to George Weston at the 'Yarrow-Lumla plains' was completed on 31 October 1831. The land was originally settled by James Martin, a former soldier in the NSW Corps, who in August 1827 applied to the government for permission to rent 2,000 acres (8.1 km2) of land on which he had already built a dwelling and barn, was grazing cattle and sheep, and had sown 12 acres (49,000 m2) with wheat. Martin's claim, however, was not successful.

Along with the adjacent Woden Valley, the area later became part of the 40,000-acre (160 km2) Yarralumla Station owned by Frederick Campbell until it was resumed in 1913 as part of a land acquisition scheme after the Federal Capital Territory was declared in 1911. In 1920, over 9,000 acres (36 km2) were then subdivided for soldier settlement leases.

The earliest homesteads in the valley were Weston (in the present suburb of Holder), Cooleman (on the southern edge of Chapman), The Rivers (corner of Uriarra Rd and Coppins Crossing Rd), Blundell's Homestead (off of Coppins Crossing Rd, near the large bend in the Molonglo River), and Taylor's Hill (between present day Waramanga and Pearce). The homesteads of Illoura (present suburb of North Weston) and Avondale (present day Holder) were also built in the 1920s.

John and Ellen Fox were amongst the first settlers in the Weston valley, living at the Weston homestead from about the 1860s. Several of their nine children were born at Weston, and their son David Fox and his wife Margaret later took over the property. A 1914 map of Canberra shows D. Fox residing at the property, located between what is now Dixon Drive and Hellyer Street, Holder. Later electoral rolls show Margaret continuing to reside at the property following David's death at age 49 in 1926. The Avondale homestead was further to the east, closer to the centre of current day Holder. David's brother, Owen Fox, is shown on the 1914 map as residing at Taylor's Hill.

The Weston and Taylor's Hill leases were purchased by a Mr Dent in October 1932, and used for mixed farming and grazing. The Weston lease was then purchased in 1937 by Rudolph and Eileen De Salis. Rudolph was born at Cuppacumalong homestead near Tharwa, and had lived at 'Bondo' near Cooma and 'Yarrawa' near Adaminaby before moving to Weston. Rudolph remained at Weston until he died in February 1957, aged 70. Members of the De Salis family continued to live at Weston up until the late-1960s. Cooleman was farmed by Heather and Philip Champion from about 1932.