Rosegreen- Home of John and Isabella

Rosegreen was the 2500 acre property, located about 6 miles from the township of Temora, owned by John and Isabella Hingerty from about 1888.

(Image above was taken around Temora but is not Rosegreen).

Temora Station was 'taken up' as a sheep run in 1847 by Mr John D Macanash.

He called the station Temora after another property he had lived on in another part of the colony. There is some speculation as to the origin of the name.

Macanash stated in a letter to the Warwick Argus newspaper in 1880 (reprinted in the Newcastle Morning Herald 16 Sep 1880) that he believed the name to be Aboriginal in origin though not of the language of the people in the area now called Temora. Others quote the passage in the epic poem "Ossian" " The mighty are dispersed at Temora...soft by they rest in thy cave, O chief of Erin's wars....' and thus claim an Irish heritage. The later is more likely and Macanash was mistaken in his belief that the name was Aboriginal in origin.

The lease on Temora Station was later broken up (except for 17,000 which were left in tact) into smaller lots of 50-60 acres sold at 2 pound per acre in 1888. Was Rosegreen part of this previously much larger station?

The first record I have found indicating the move to the Temora district is an 1888 application to move the Hingerty cattle brand from Yass Plains to Rosegreen Temora. This would seem to fit the Temora Station timeline, however further research is needed to be certain.

NSW Govt Gazette 11 Sept Issue 586 Supplement

In the Government Gazette of September 1888, John Hingerty registered a sheep brand for "Rose Green near Temora".

It is interesting to note that John was about 75 years old in 1888. That is if you accept a birth year of 1813 calculated from his arrival records- if you take the birth year as reported by his son on his death certificate i.e 1805, then he would have been 83 years old in 1888. Quite an advanced age to be taking on a new venture.

John died 14 Aug 1889 at Rosegreen.

On his death record the cause of death is listed as senile decay. A Dr Hunter had been treating him at intervals for the last 2 years. It would be useful to know if Dr Hunter was a Temora or a Cootamundra doctor. If he was a Temora doctor, this would indicate that they moved to Rosegreen at least 2 years prior to 1889.

The Informant for the death record was John's son John Alexander Hingerty who is listed as living at Rosegreen. So we know that John and Isabella did not run the property alone. Younger son Thomas is likely to have also been living at Rosegreen at this time. Older brother William was married in 1886 and soon after took up his own selection of 100 acres so would have been occupied with his own property, although not living too far away if required. William seems to have also taken up a later selection of 50 acres at "Fairfield", Temora- I am unsure of it's location and if he ran this in addition to his 100 acres. More research required.

John Hingerty death record 1889

John had made a will ten years prior to his death in 1878. He left everything to his wife Isabella. Probate was granted in December 1889.

NSW Government Gazette

Isabella, with the assistance of sons John Alexander and Thomas ran the farm after John's death.

It is most likely that they ran sheep for wool, some crops for feed and for sale as well as having household animals such as pigs, cows and horses.

There are newspaper reports for wool sales for Rosegreen for 1889, 1892, and 1895 . I am not sure exactly how the numbers work, but assume they indicate the price received in pence per pound weight.

1889 12 @ 10 1/2 pence

1892 19 @ 7 1/4 pence

1895 22 @ 7 3/4 pence

Stock returns were reported in the local newspapers. I have found returns for Rosegreen for 1891, 1893 and 1894. While the numbers shift around a small amount, the picture of farm stock remains fairly consistent across the years.

Note: a = acres, h= horses, c = cattle, s= sheep, p= pigs

I have found no indication of crop types or yields.

In 1893 Thomas Joseph Hingerty, 'of Rosegreen' married Elizabeth Amanda Trefle from the neighbouring farm "Melrose".

The newspaper report of the wedding noted that Mrs Hingerty Snr wore "black silk costume with ribbons'. Was this the same outfit as she wore in her photo? Isabella would 67 years old at the time of the wedding...so, can we date this photo as about 1893?

The next document that makes mention of Rosegreen is the NSW Government Gazette of January 1895. Mrs Hingerty has found some stray horses in a 'growing crop'. The horses have been impounded and a fine is to be paid by the owners.

NSW Government Gazette Jan 1895

The following year, 1896, there is a long article in the Freeman's Journal (11 Jan p21) describing a correspondent's ramble around visiting various properties and families from Temora to Cootamundra. In one section he mentions:

Freeman's Journal 11 Jan 1896

The Correspondent goes on to mention Melrose:

Rosegreen was sold to Mr T J Reynolds about 1900 for 3900 pounds as reported in a newspaper article about Mr Reynold's property (renamed Gundarooey) in 1908.

Albury Banner & Wodonga Express 6 Mar 1908 page 19

In preparation for moving off Rosegreen, Isabella held a large sale of goods as listed in the Temora Star of January 24.

Note the large number of turkeys and fowls- domestic animals not listed on the Stock Returns- the machinery required for crop production and a prize winning ram.

Temora Star 24 Jan 1900

From the proceeds of the sale of the farm and all its machinery, animals and contents, Isabella bought the Commercial Hotel in Cootamundra as noted in her son, William's, death notice of 1901.

The Catholic Press 5 Jan 1901

By 1905 Isabella was the Licensee of the Westminster Hotel in Temora and a few years later John Alexander became licensee of Hingerty's Railway Hotel at Wollenbeen (1907)

Were all three hotels purchased from the sale of Rosegreen?

A closer study of the hotels owned by John and Isabella and their children will be the topic of a later blogpost.

What we don't know:

* Was Rosegreen pre-existing and thus purchased or was a Selection 'taken up'?

* When was Rosegreen acquired?

* Exactly where was Rosegreen located?

* Are there any photos of the property at the time of the Hingerty occupation or soon after?

* Why did they call it Rosegreen?

(There is a location named Rosegreen in the Cashel area of Tipperary, Ireland.... however it is further south than John Hingerty's reported home at Templemore... is there a connection??)

If you have any information, please

Acknowledgement:

When our ancestors 'took up land', that land had prior owners.

The land on which Rosegreen sat was Wiradjuri land.

I acknowledge the ongoing connection to this land by the Wiradjuri people and pay respects to their Elders past, present and emerging.

Note: Newspaper articles and Gazette entires were found on TROVE- the free data base of Australian Newspapers and Gazettes operated by the National Library of Australia. trove.nla.gov

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