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Red & Blue Landing - pin swap cache
Contains log Book, pen, assorted pin, please leave a pin to take a pin. FTF Signal pin.
Please note the real name from the plaque and see if you can figure out why we called it Red & Blue Landing
Red & Blue Landing
FRED AND MARTHA’S STORY
Fred Red & Blue was born in Bethany in the Barossa in 1863 and Martha Smith was born in Port Pirie to English parents in 1867. Fred and Martha met in 1885 at a dance in Murray Bridge where Martha was visiting her sister. They fell in love but Martha’s father was not going to let his beautiful, well bought up English daughter marry a Polish immigrant’s son. So they did the only thing they could, they eloped. They married and settled in Mannum, building a home in 1888. They had five children; Daisy was born in 1889, Carl in 1892, Eva in 1894, Myrtle in 1895 (she died when she was 4 months old) and Olive in 1897.
In December 1896 Fred & another Mannum resident by the name of Paul Drabech were granted a Crown lease for 2,898 acres of farming land in the Hundred of Gordon. They arrived by a bush track with 3 ex tramway horses, a few tools and a lot of determination to make a go of the opportunity they had been given. It took them many, many days just to find the survey pegs mapping their land. Martha and the kids were left in Mannum to wait for word that a house had been built. In the mean time she would organize the sale of their house and other goods that they couldn’t take with them and give birth to Olive. By the time Martha got sick of waiting, Fred had the walls of the ‘pug n pine’ house up, but it didn’t have a roof. She loaded a cow, chickens, her goods and chattels, the kids, and the cat onto the paddle steamer “Corowa’ and headed up stream. The first Fred knew of this was the blast of the paddle steamer whistle in the middle of the night. His family had arrived, the first complete family in the entire district that became known as Lxton. This stopping spot became known as ‘Red & Blue Landing” and was the calling place for many paddle steamers traveling up and down the river. All the family goods arrived by commercial trading paddleboats. The church of England’s missionary boat the ‘Etona’ was also a regular visitor to the landing to hold church services. In bad weather the services were held under the homestead’s verandah or in the living room. Martha was well known in the area for her generous hospitality to their many visitors.
In early 1899 the partnership between Paul Drabech and Fred had been dissolved and the land held had been divided. They made their choice by drawing matches. Fred ended up with the river frontage end of the parcel encompassing a surrounding 1,444 acres. By 1902 the township of Loxton had been surveyed and Fred, along with two other residents, JF Theile and P. Drabech, set up a local trust and built the first public school. The site of this school is very close to the corner of Bookpurnong Terrace and the Paruna Road. One of the first teachers, Miss Rose Healy, stayed with the ‘Red & Blue’ family on many occasions and often walked the 4 miles back to the school with them.
Fred had a great interest in the river. He became know in the district as the ‘Man with the hammer’ and had several articles written in the Murray Pioneer newspaper about his fossiking exploits. His valuable work was recognized and placed on record by several well-known scientists of the time, Professors Stirling and Waite and Dr. Fenner. Most of the whale and shark bones, as well as the seashells he found, were given to the Adelaide Museum where he became an honoured visitor whenever he visited Adelaide.
Fred and Martha faced many hardships but stuck together and worked hard, building a life and future for themselves and their children. In 1920 Fred sold some of his land back to the government for the repatriation of the soldiers from the First World War.. The remaining 831 acres he gave to his son Carl. The lease was surrendered on the 4th of April 1921. By this stage Fred had bought several blocks of land and built a lovely home in the township of Loxton, close to where the RSL clubs stands today. He and Martha lived here until his death in 1948. Martha then moved in with her daughter, on the corner of Pyap Street and Bookpurnong Road. She died in 1954.
Fred and Martha’s legacy to Loxton was not only their own contributions but also those of their 4 children and their 4 grandchildren, all born and raised in Loxton. From this generation, their family has spread across Australia but all still have roots in this wonderful country town.
Fred and Martha were like many people of their time who took up the challenge of a new life, a chance to make a difference to not only their own lives but to play a significant roll in the establishment of a new town. They have become a part of Loxton’s history. They were lucky enough to see their district start to change and grow before their very eyes. How many people today, at the age of 33 and 29, with 4 small children would leave an established area, a nice, comfortable home and move to the middle of nowhere and start all over again? Remembering that there were no shops, no regular transport or supplies, no medical help and knowing that other settlers may be few and far between. How can we not be grateful for their efforts?
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
Vg jbbq or boivbhf