Thomas Martin
From Our Contribution
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| Headstone Information | |
|---|---|
| Date of Birth | 16 April 1863 |
| Age at Death | 84 years |
| Transcription | In Loving Memory of Thomas Martin. Died 26th November 1947 aged 84 years. "Thy will be done". |
Contents
Early Life
Thomas Martin was born in 1863. He was the fourth son of Jesse and Martha (nee Kersley) Martin who settled in Kelmscott. His parents and their five children arrived in Western Australia on the ‘Fitzroy’ on 5 October 1869 after leaving their tenant farm at Compton in Surrey. Brothers were George Kersley and Jesse Jnr (One remaining brother’s name to be ascertained and shown here!) and a sister Alice. Initially his father Jesse Martin established a market garden in Burswood and then in 1882 bought an 11 acres property on the junction of Wright’s Creek and the Canning River in Kelmscott and developed an orchard on it.
Property
In the 1890s Thomas bought Location 670. His orchard was called “The Mount” which he slowly expanded and also kept a few horses. Initially Tom lived in his parents’ little mud brick house at the foot of the hill in Turner Road. By 1949 200 acres of Thomas Martin’s estate was selected, together with five other major sites at Fremantle, Melville, Bassendean, Midland and Belmont, to build housing for the thousands of migrants arriving in Western Australia.
Community Life
Thomas never married and lived all his life in Kelmscott. He was a recluse and intolerant of company and his only companion was an Afghany, Black Charlie, who helped him round up his horses. He had a good relationship with the Tilly family and their three daughters who moved across the river from his orchard. He taught the girls everything he knew about nature and the environment and they thought of him as their guardian angel. They roamed round the hills under his watchful eye and that of his offsider, Black Charlie. He kept the family supplied with fruit and told them when to find the first wildflowers and where to find the best mushrooms and orchids. They took mulberries home to their mother to make jam and the leaves for their silkworms.
Death
He died aged 84 on 26 November 1947.