George Payne, Free Settler "Lady Peel" 1848

George was illiterate as his marriage certificate only has his mark. He immigration to Victoria (Melbourne) on the Lady Peel in February of 1848. He was the first of the five Pain siblings to emigrate.

George spent 2 years in Heidleberg in the employment of Mr. Stevenson and did the first piece of fencing through Croxton Park and Broadmeadows

He took a farm at Preston (known then as Irishtown) on a 7 year lease from a Mr. Thomas Short. He stayed there for over 15 years. At the same time he owned bullock teams carting to the Ballarat & Ovens goldfields.(starting, or continuing, a strong family involvement with carting). This is the result of extensive research through various documents and family papers. Claire Hughes 5/11/2005

He owned the Bridge Inn, Merina near Woodstock, and gave management of it to his brother John.

PAYNES HOUSE See picture at http://www.geni.com/profile/edit_about_me/5056678910520028702?tab=about

5.19 Paynes House was built about 1890 for George and Zillah Payne. The Payne’s had previously farmed nearby on the Yan Yean Road at Woodstock. George’s brother John also lived in the district and at different times operated both the Bridge Inn Hotel at Merinda and the Sir Henry Barclay Hotel at Woodstock.

In about 1873 George took the family from Preston to Woodstock, where they farmed until he and Zillah retired to their newly erected stone house just north of the corner of Epping and Summerhill Roads.

George died before 1893 when Shire of Darebin rate records list Zillah as occupier, the home being in the hands of George’s executors. After Zillah’s death the property passed to a son who later sold it to Daniel and Agnes Bodycoat, who retired there from their nearby dairyfarm. Daniel died in 1927 and Agnes in 1933. In 1934 the house and its ten acres was purchased by another local resident, Arthur Yann, who still lives there today. Unlike the majority of the bluestone houses in the Wollert Region, this building has a suburban quality, addressing the main road rather than a farmyard precinct. Its combination of rough faced ashlar blocks and bichrome chimneys is unusual. By the 1890s very few suburban buildings were using bluestone for walls. Polychrome brick, render or weather- boards were the favoured materials. This building carries on the local tradition of bluestone construction despite the change in fashion in the City and indicates the rural character of Wollert despite its close proxim- ity to Melbourne. H ISTORICAL R EFERENCES Payne History of Wollert State School 1877-1977, 1977. Shire of Darebin/Epping Rate Books Victoria and its Metropolis 1888.

• Reference: FamilySearch Genealogy - SmartCopy: Feb 27 2024, 2:17:25 UTC