Alfred Ronalds

From eurekapedia
Jump to: navigation, search

Background

Alfred Ronalds married and produced six children with his first wife.

Mary Ann Harlow and Alfred Ronalds emigrated with family members on the Lord Hungerford arriving in Williamstown on 10 February 1849. They married at Christ Church Geelong in 1849.

Alfred established a business as an engraver, lithographer, printer and surveyor. He struck a medal to commemorate the formation of the Colony of Victoria in 1851. His book The Fly Fishers Entomology (first published in 1836 and running to 12 editions and various reprints) shows examples of his artwork. His printing presses were later used by F. W. Niven, who is known for his printing and publishing business in Ballarat.

Around 1852 the Ronalds family came to Ballarat. It was a trip that they described in letters recording that it took almost two weeks with Mary carrying their baby most of the way.

Goldfields Involvement, 1854

Post 1854 Experiences

They bought 6 acres 2 roods 0 perches (2.6 hectares) of land facing on to "The Swamp" (now known as Lake Wendouree, and established a nursery which later supplied plants to the new Botanical Gardens. Alfred died suddenly in April 1860.

Mary Ann Ronalds brought up ten surviving children aged between one and 13. (Six of these children were from Alfred's first marriage. Mary ran the nursery with the help of her older step-children and they won various prizes at the horticultural show in November 1860. Mary was awarded life membership of the Ballarat Horticultural Society in 1886. [1]

In the News

See Also

Alfred Ronalds wrote a letter to the Ballarat Council on the occasion of the 1920 Jubilee Celebrations.[2]

A. RONALDS


24/9/1920 Warrenheip Street Buninyong Mayor Hill 20-9-20 Ballarat


Dear Sir, I notice in the press of today, that you are issuing invitations to a reunion of old identities (presuming they are limited to Ballarat old fogies), which I claim to be – although living out of Ballarat for a little over 20 years in Buninyong. Up to that time I had resided in Ballarat (with only two exceptions of absence for about 3 years each, at Corindhap and Clunes). Since the year 1852 - coming from Geelong with my parents. I have a vivid recollection of seeing the Soldiers sitting on the stumps at our back door at the Lake, and drinking rum out of pannikins, also of being lost “possuming” with my brothers where the Savings Bank now stands and my father getting a young Golden Eagle out of a nest in a very tall white gum tree in Bridge Street. (Trusting you will not deem me impertinent to ask you to extend your exceeding generosity to beyond the limits of Ballarat a little space, for I, for one, would be very pleased – in fact feel it an honour – to attend.) I am a little over seventy – and the last surviving out of a family of 10 brothers and sisters.

Yours Faithfully

A Ronalds.

Further Reading

Corfield, J.,Wickham, D., & Gervasoni, C. The Eureka Encyclopaedia, Ballarat Heritage Services, 2004.


References

  1. Letter from Bev Ronalds dated 24 February 2012.
  2. VPRS 2500

External links



File:File name.jpg
Caption, Reference.