Rachel Mills

BIRTH 1855: born female Burton, at Bulla, Victoria. Mother Emma Clark, father James Burton. Reg No. 5730. From Gail Hillbrick's collection: Broadmeadows, No. 12 in Register. Rachel Girl. Born on thirteenth day of September. Father: James Burton, Farmer, thirty seven years old, born Essex England, married first in 1841 Essex England. issue one boy, five girls, one boy deceased. Mother: Emma Burton, formerly Clark, thirty three years. Born at Cambridge England, married first in 1841 at Essex England. Issue one boy, five girls, one boy deceased. Informants: George S Harris (Deputy Registrar, James Burton (X his mark). Registered on 13 September 1855 at Bulla Bulla.

MIGRATION The passenger list of assisted migrants on the "Royal George" (left Plymouth August 1849, arrived 28th November 1849) lists James Button, age 31 yrs, farm labourer, born Creshall, Essex, of an Independent Church, unable to read or write; wife Emma, age 28 yrs, born Cambridgeshire, Independent Church, able to read; daughter Mary, age 8 yrs, born Creshall, Essex, able to read; daughter Hannah, age 4 yrs, born Creshall, Essex, able to read; and son Able, an infant, born Creshall, Essex. There can be no doubt this is our "Burton" family. It matches the Family Reunion claims re their ship, names and ages of family, and where they all came from. Name spelled Button, Crishall misspelled Creshall.

EARLY LIFE From Rachel's handwritten notes in old age. Fifth daughter of James Burton. Left school age 14 yrs at Romsey. Father bought a farm on the Goulburn River at Tabilk. She commenced housekeeping for him and cooked for 11 men, harvesters for 2 yrs. The crop was cut by hand with a mower, gathered into sheaves and stooked, then stacked when dry. The carpenter was also there building the house. She carried water from the river up a steep bank. Cooking was done outside on the open fire and served in a shed made of boughs as a dining room. Married Thomas Mills in 1879.

MARRIAGE Rachel Last name Burton Sex Female Marriage year 1879 Spouse's first name(s) Thomas Spouse's last name Mills State Victoria Country Australia Record set Victoria Marriages 1836-1942 Registration number 2805

BW: After the death of Rachel’s parents at Nagambie, in 1906, she used her share of their Estate to purchase farmland at Buchan South. This was later sold to purchase the farm at Coalville, for Walter & his family. Walter Valentine Mills followed Winifred Horsnell to Duneeden, in New Zealand, where they were married on 20-7-1909. Their son, Stanley Walter Irvine Mills was born there on 24-11-1909. Walter and his family returned to Australia and set up farming on the farm at Coalville near Moe in the Latrobe Valley region of Gippsland in Victoria.

26 October 1916: Rachel writes a letter to Billy Hughes, the Prime Minister re prisoners of war. At the time it was believed that Leslie was a prisoner. See docs along with the reply from the PMs office.

DEATH & BURIAL Gippsland Times, Thu 19 May 1938, Page 1, PERSONAL: At the advanced age of 82 years a highly regarded resident of Briagalong in Mrs Rachel Mills passed away on Tuesday last. The late Mrs Mills was born at Bulla Bulla and at the age of 24 years married Mr Thomas Mills at Tabilk. Fifty two years ago she came with her husband to Gippsland where they reared a large family, all of whom are well esteemed. One of her sons, Leslie, enlisted for active service in the Great War at the age of 17 years. He was killed in action. The funeral will take place today at Briagalong. Much sympathy is felt for Mr Thomas Mills in his great loss he has sustained in his advanced years and also for the family in their sad bereavement.

PURSUANT to the Trustee Act 1928, notice is hereby given that all PERSONS having CLAIMS against the ESTATE of RACHEL MILLS, late of Briagolong, in the State of Victoria, Married Woman, deceased, who died on the seventeenth day of May, one thousand nine hundred and thirty-eight, and probate whose will was granted by the Supreme Court of the said State in its probate jurisdiction on the thirty-first day of October, one thousand nine hundred and thirty-eight, to Walter Valentine Mills, of Coalville, in the said State, farmer, and Thomas Alonza John Mills, of Maffra, in the said State, farmer, are hereby required to SEND PARTICULARS in writing of such claims to the undersigned at his office hereunder mentioned, on or before the first day of May, one thousand nine hundred and thirty-nine, after which date said Walter Valentine Mills and Thomas Alonza John Mills will proceed to distrlbute the assets of the said Rachel Mills, deceased, which shall have come to their hands amongst the persons entitled thereto, having regard only to the claims of which they shall then have had notice. And notice is hereby further given that the said Walter Valentine Mills and Thomas Alonza John Mills will not be liable for the assets so distributed, or any part thereof, to any person of whose claim they shall not have had notice as aforesaid. Dated this twenty-third day of January, one thousand nine hundred and thirty-nine. EUGENE M. ALLMAN, of Raymond-street, Sale, Proctor for the applicants.

From Briagalong Cemetery records. 352 MILLS (nee BURTON) Rachael, 83y, born 1855, died Maffra May 17 1938, buried by Rev Shannon May 19 1938, Section F, lot 26. Daughter of James Burton and Emma Clark.

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From Rachel's handwritten notes in old age. Fifth daughter of James Burton. Left school age 14 yrs at Romsey. Father bought a farm on the Goulburn River at Tabilk. She commenced housekeeping for him and cooked for 11 men, harvesters for 2 yrs. The crop was cut by hand with a mower, gathered into sheaves and stooked, then stacked when dry. The carpenter was also there building the house. She carried water from the river up a steep bank. Cooking was done outside on the open fire and served in a shed made of boughs as a dining room. Married Thomas Mills in 1879. Lived on a farm at Girgarre near Tatura for 9 yrs. 4 children born there. Sold farm and bought at Bushy Park, Angus McMillan's former station, in 1888, 7th April, 94 acres. 5 children born. Bought 84 acres, Shady Vale.

From Brian Worseldine, 5 April 2016. "Thought you might like to have this. A lot of the family make this every Christmas. Many of the older ones remember their parents always making it, & remember the taste when they try it again. It was always made at Millbank when the family got together with the grandparents. Boxing Day the left over was served cold with home made icecream from the churn, all the men took turns to turn the handle while sitting on the back porch, til the fresh made icecream was ready. (the ladies had time to clear the dirty dishes from the main course roast, & set the table for dessert.) Jessie will likely remember." Brian is referring to the Mills family recipe for Christmas pudding, although I would make a fair bet it was a Burton pud since women mostly got their recipes from their mum, and Thomas was here on his own. The recipe is in documents for anyone who wants to try it.

According to Brian Worseldine again: "Rachel Burton's cousin, William Burton, lived on a farm called Abbey Farm, in West Ham near Alonzar." Very hard to confirm this because the farm is not referenced except in an 1886 trade directory when Arthur Kemsley was the farmer. We don't know when William might have been there. Checked census records. There are many William Burtons of the right age in the right place who could be Rachel's cousin, working in a range of farming activities like cow man, ag labourer etc. None shown as 'farmer', so probably William was working for someone else, such as Arthur Kemsley. Since the Burton name in Essex was Button, this might not be Rachel's cousin. I have been unable to identify a William Button/Burton who could be Rachel's cousin. Rachel's uncle, William Button had a son, also William born Chrishall, who is in the right age range, but he was a plumber living in London. William is the only male Button/Burton still living in England at this time since the others had died young or migrated to Australia, so I begin to think that Brian was mistaken because he was not aware of the Button connection, or that if a relationship existed, it was quite remote. Rachel's father had plenty of cousins in England and Australia.

Notes marked BW: are from "Mills Short History" by Brian Worseldine (deceased) who held a cache of documents rescued from a loft on the farm at Briagalong, now held by Amanda Mills, his niece.

FROM VICTORIAN PLACES Bulla is a small township with rural surrounds, immediately north-west of the Melbourne Airport, Tullamarine, and 25 km north-west of central Melbourne. The township is on Deep Creek, a tributary of the Maribyrnong River, and the creek has carved a sinuous course through a valleyed landscape.

An early settler in the Bulla township area was William ‘Tulip’ Wright, former Chief Constable of the Melbourne township. He built the ‘Settlers Home’, later the ‘Bridge Inn’ near Deep Creek in 1843. In the same year the ‘Woodlands’ homestead was built by William Greene, to the east in Greenvale. It is on the Victorian Heritage Register, along with stables and outbuildings, situated in the Gellibrand Hill Park.

The Bulla village was surveyed in 1851. The name is derived from an Aboriginal word of uncertain meaning. A church and a government school were opened in 1854. Anglican and Presbyterian churches were opened in 1858, and are on the Register of the National Estate. The township also had a store and post office (1850), a flour mill, brickworks and pottery works based on the local kaolin reserves.

In 1857 Walter Clark built a Classical Revival homestead, Glenara, south of the township. His son Alister was founder of the Moonee Valley Racing Club and was a noted rose breeder. Alister Clark roses were nearly lost to horticulturists during the postwar years, but rose growers have found them in out-of-the-way country places and reintroduced them for rose collectors. Glenara is also on the Register of the National Estate.

In 1903 the Australian handbook described Bulla:

The Bulla Road District (1862) was proclaimed a shire on 9 March 1866. Its boundaries extended only as far east as Woodlands, but north-west to Sunbury, which became the rival township. The shire offices were transferred from Bulla to Sunbury in 1956.

In 1946 the shire was described in the Australian blue book:

Whilst the township is in a valley the surrounding land was suitable for dairying. The name was given to the Bulla Cream Co, a dairy (1910) in Moonee Ponds, and later to Bulla Ice Cream, to be found in most Melbourne supermarkets. Passing motorists cannot fail to notice the narrow heritage listed bluestone bridge (1869) at the bottom of the steep road through the township. A short distance away from the bridge is School Lane, the access way to the bluestone State School (1870). Beyond the school there was a suspension bridge (1872) over Deep Creek, with tracks fanning out from it over the hillsides, along which children journeyed on foot for over 100 years. The Bulla reserve has a community centre and sports facilities. The remainder of the township has St Mary's Anglican church, the general store and some houses. The Presbyterian (now Uniting) church and the cemetery are further east, near Woodlands and the flight path for the Melbourne Airport.

In 1955 the shire's boundaries were enlarged by absorbing Cragieburn, Greenvale, Mickleham and Yuroke from Broadmeadows shire. The shire had acquired another rival to the Bulla township, Cragieburn on the Hume Highway. On 15 December 1994, most of Bulla Shire was united with most of Broadmeadows city and parts of Keilor and Whittlesea cities to form Hume city.

AREA CENSUS DATE POPULATION Bulla 1861 136

	1891	306

	1933	174

	1966	181

	2001	375

	2006	398

	2011	349 Bulla Shire	1871	2234

	1881	1978

	1891	2150

	1901	2125

	1911	2422

	1921	2601

	1933	2890

	1947	2656

	1954	3232

	1961	4824

	1966	5711

	1971	8243

	1976	13,399

	1981	18,624

	1986	28,347

	1991	39,301 Further Reading Alan Gross, History of the Shire of Bulla, 1862-1962, Shire Council, c1962 I.W. Symonds, Bulla Bulla: an illustrated history of the Shire of Bulla, Spectrum, 1985 City of Hume heritage study: former Shire of Bulla district, 1998