Neil and the Bean

In the first half of the 20th century Neil Phelan's father, Roy, operated a general store in the small town of Mitiamo north of Bendigo in Victoria. Their home was right next door. (I've written about the store, Mitiamo and the family a number of times in this blog and the links are in the tags on the right.) The store had been previously operated by Neil's grandparents, Charles and Euphemia Sims who lived nearby.

Quite a few family snaps were taken in the backyard of the Phelan home and the store and it's interesting to see what is in the background of the photos. In this case I'm looking at a particular car. Neil was photographed in their car, a Bean, in about 1925. He's wearing a pair of sunglasses that must have belonged to uncle Chas Sims I think - he was a bit of a lad. The Bean was owned by his grandfather Sims who bought it new.

Young Neil Phelan in his family's Bean car, c1925.

The Bean and Neil Phelan c1925

The Bean vehicles were manufactured in England. This one could be either the model 11.9 four-seater that started rolling off the production line in 1922 or a Fourteen Tourer, that was produced in 1924. I'm thinking it's the latter but I'm happy to be told one way or the other.

Company catalogue

From the 1919 Bean catalogue.

Neil Phelan, backyard of the Phelan home in Mitiamo c1925.
The Bean car is in the background.

A restored Bean 11.9, England.

A restored Bean Fourteen Tourer, England

This post has been in response to the Sepia Saturday theme photo for this week, a film crew on an Australian beach. I've chose to match the element of people wearing sunglasses.

Trove Tuesday: In which the Sims holiday in Hepburn Springs

In the 1930s Charles and Euphemia Sims were living at Mitiamo and had operated a busy general store there as well as a farm and store at Pine Grove. They dabbled in other business enterprises as well - an ice store, a butter factory, providing electricity, running a cafe and selling icecream at the Mitiamo railway station.

They and their family were very busy in work and community activities in the farming community on the hot plains north of Bendigo. So it is natural that they would look to the cooler climate of Hepburn Springs in central Victoria when they purchased a holiday house and there was the added attraction of the mineral springs that abound in the Hepburn Springs/Daylesford area. It was a popular health resort. Maybe they had holidayed there a number of times before they decided to purchase - we'll never know - but at some stage they bought a house in Church Avenue and called it 'Mitiamo House'.

'Mitiamo House', Church Avenue, Hepburn Springs

I didn't know what street the house was in until I found several advertisements using the resources at Trove. 'Mitiamo House' was advertised as a holiday rental during the 1930s and early 1940s. I found out that it accommodated four to eight people, was furnished, had all conveniences including electric light, sewerage, had a garage and was situated in a favourite position in Church Avenue near the springs. It was also next to the Grand.

From a tourist folder: 'The Grande' guest house, Hepburn Springs

The Argus, 5 August 1933

The Argus, 22 January 1938

The Argus, 27 April 1940

The female Sims were meticulous and proud housekeepers so there are stories of the daughters having to travel down to Hepburn Springs to clean the house after the holidaying tenants had departed. There are also stories of fun times when the family holidayed there themselves.

Family members at one of the springs, 1937

From a tourist folder: Locarno Springs, Hepburn Springs

From a tourist folder: Wyuna Spring, Hepburn Springs

From a tourist folder: The suspension bridge, Hepburn Springs

Joy Phelan on the suspension bridge, Hepburn Springs

The Blowhole, Hepburn Springs

Ina, Neil and Doug Phelan at The Blowhole, Hepburn Springs

Some time in the 1940s the house was sold. Reluctantly and resentfully. Apparently there was a government regulation about holiday houses that had to be complied with but I have yet to identify what that regulation was.

The house still exists, and so does 'The Grande' next door. Both have been altered but not so that they are unrecognisable.

The former 'Mitiamo House', 5 Church Avenue, Hepburn Springs. [Google Maps, Street View, 2014]

Sepia Saturday: Outside the country store

The theme photo for this week's Sepia Saturday is a shopfront and I found a photo to match the theme in our family's album.

A small country town in the early part of the 20th century needed a good general store because the nearest big town was Bendigo and getting there and back took all day. Not exactly convenient, especially in the days when horse-drawn vehicles were more common than cars. In Mitiamo the store was run by Charles W Sims and then his son-in-law Roy Phelan. As well as food and haberdashery they provided everything from petrol to insurance and delivered around the local farms every fortnight. There was a train station in Mitiamo so they were able to bring their goods to town on the rail system. It was a very busy place.

During WW2 the shop and the adjoining residence burnt down but I'll save that story for another day.

Outside Sims store, Mitiamo

Charles William SIMS, son of Samuel SIMS and Elizabeth CARTER was born on 21 May 1869 (Coliban, Victoria, Australia). He died on 20 Apr 1942 in Mitiamo, Victoria, Australia. He married Euphemia YEAMAN, daughter of Charles YEAMAN and Sarah PAYNTER on 16 Jun 1892 in Pine Grove, Victoria, Australia. She was born on 12 Aug 1866 in Cobaw, Victoria, Australia. She died on 01 Sep 1941 in Mitiamo, Victoria, Australia.