David Mitchell

David Mitchell, Dame Nellie Melba’s father, was born in Scotland in 1829, completing a stonemasonry apprenticeship before travelling to Australia in 1852.

On arrival, he headed to the goldfields, working as a builder in Bendigo before heading back to Melbourne where he set up a building contract business and brickworks in Burnley St, Richmond in 1856. He married Isabella Dow and together they had ten children. His eldest surviving child, Helen, would become the famous Dame Nellie Melba.

His building and business ventures were prolific and his influence widespread. As a stonemason and an employer, he was prominent in the acceptance of the 1856 ‘Eight Hours’ labour movement, the procession of which is marked by the current Labour Day public holiday. His buildings included the Menzies Hotel in William St (1857); Scots Church, Collins St (1873-1874); Presbyterian Ladies College, East Melbourne (1874); the Masonic Hall, Collins St (1888); and the Equitable Insurance Building (1893). His grandest venture was the Exhibition Building in Carlton that was opened in 1880. Wikipedia