Lower Beulah Rd begins under Mt Gog where it separates from Beulah Rd and follows the Minnow River downstream until it joins the Dasher River at the bottom of the Kentish Bridle Track hill. First it passes through the heart of Minnow goldfield which was intensely mined, leaving behind many concealed shafts and tunnels. On the north side of the Minnow River, a site was surveyed for the Minnow township, but it was never settled. The Minnow mining boom was short lived. A score of prospecting parties took out mining licences but were disappointed with their results, most losing money. When the Star of the West Co tunnels found no gold reef, the mine closed at the end of 1882. Gus Jessop (15) found a damp box of detonators in the old mine site and put one in his pocket to play with. After a couple of weeks, it dried out and exploded in his left hand, blowing off his thumb and two fingers. It was a long wagon ride to Deloraine’s doctor to get his injuries treated. For three weeks in Jan 1893 Chas Manning and George Edwards had been sinking a shaft at the Minnow. George Edwards (24) was digging at the bottom of the shaft when he felt overcome with noxious fumes and signalled to be hauled up in the bucket. Edwards put one foot into the bucket and held onto the rope, but six inches from the top, lost his grip and fell 40ft back down the shaft to his death. Today this entire goldfield is covered by pine plantation.
Lower Beulah’s first settlement
About 1882 Edward (Ted) & Christiana Sharman (7chn) crossed the Mersey River to become the first real settlers at Lower Beulah. They purchased 54 acres along Dynan’s Bridge Rd. Several of Ted’s married brothers followed, including Charles & Isabella Sharman (10chn), Fred & Emma Sharman (10chn) and Edis & Ann Sharman (2chn). Ted & Charles Sharman both served on the Beulah Road Trust. In 1903 Ted & Christiana moved with their son Ben Sharman to Watts Rd, Paradise.
854 Lower Beulah Rd. In 1885 Thomas & Mary Ann Jessop arrived next with Anna (25), Clara (22), Alfred (20), Mary Ann (18), Augustus (14) and Cecil (11). Thomas Jessop selected 200acres at the junction of Lower Beulah Rd and Dynan’s Bridge Rd, where he built their house Palmerville (after Mary‘s maiden name), close to the Minnow River. In 1890 Thos Jessop became chairman of the first Beulah Trust. He lost two yoked bullocks down a mine shaft. The Jessop family were very clever with a strong Christian convictions. Daughters became schoolteachers, their three sons all literary & mechanically minded. Alfred Jessop m Mary Sharman in 1886 but had no family. In 1888 Alfred built Beulah’s first sawmill, where he and brother Cecil invented a way for their two vertical pit-saws to be powered by a steam engine. Alfred moved to Scottsdale and opened an engineering works where he built the district’s first steam-power motor vehicle. Augustus (Gus) Jessop who lost half his hand as a teenager became a schoolteacher. Later he joined in the printing office of the Seventh Day Adventist magazine Sign of the Times, but eventually left the Adventist movement. In 1895 Cecil Jessop bought an old printing press to Beulah to publish reading books for school children. Cecil married a Smithton girl, moved to Queensland and set up an engineering business. About 1908 Thomas & Mary Ann Jessop left their Palmerville property to live with their son Alfred in Scottsdale. All of them eventually moving to Queensland.
Charles Frankcombe and cousin Wm Frankcombe from Blackwood Creek purchased blocks adjoining Thos Jessop and in 1886 both married Jessop daughters. Chas & Anna Frankcombe had five children, but Vida (7) burnt to death when her cotton dress caught a on fire. After Charles’ wife Anna died of lung disease in 1901, he married Amelia Hooper in 1904 and moved to Paradise but she too died in 1910. Wm & Mary Ann Frankcombe took over her parents Palmerville property when the Jessops had left. Mary Ann became the local midwife for Lower Beulah. One son Vernon (24) was killed at Gallipoli in 1915. Between 1918-1922 William operated a barytes mine with ore sent to the EZCo in Hobart. Wm Francombe (70) d1933, Mary Ann d1966 in her 100th year. William‘s grandson Tom & Irene (McCarthy) Frankcombe succeeded his grandfather at Palmerville . Tom leased 2000 acres on Gog Range and for a time ran a sawmill. After Tom Frankcombe died, Gary Huett purchased Palmerville property, renovated probably the oldest house in Beulah and rented it out.
About 1900 Edward (Ned) Hooper (24) from Blackamoore bought 50 acres on the east side of Francombe’s property. He was joined by his widowed mother Eliza Hooper and his two married brothers Arthur and Alfred. In Aug 1911 Eliza (73) having bought her groceries at Best’s store, walked two miles towards home in the rain, only to find the Minnow River in flood. She was forced to spend a cold wet night on the riverbank. In 1922 Alfred Hoopers sold out to Herb & Millie Oliver.
Lower Beulah Post Office & Shop. The first Beulah PO was opened at Lower Beulah on 15 Oct 1887 in Mrs Clara Sharman’s home. The mail carrying contract from Dunorlan to Lower Beulah was held by Thomas Jessop (1887-1895) and Ed (Ted) Sharman (1895-1904). In 1904 mail delivery route changed to come from Railton via Lowe’s Bridge to Beulah township. Clara Sharman’s PO was renamed the Lower Beulah Post Office. Two years after Beulah farmers Gilbert & Bernice Loone opened their shop at Lower Beulah, the PO was transferred to their shop. Gilbert Loone ran the shop/PO from 1918 to Aug 1921, Claude Campbell to May 1943, and Millie Oliver to Mar 1971when it closed.
Lower Beulah school was built by Sheffield builder Arthur Bailey on land donated by Gilbert Loone almost opposite his shop/post office. It was opened in 1917 with 17 children, which quickly rose to 24. First teacher was Miss Irene Townsend, daughter of the manager of the Shepherd & Murphy Mine at Moina. She remembers the ink freezing in the ink wells. Irene boarded with Mrs Wm Frankcombe and married her son Kit Frankcombe. The school closed in 1942 and became a private residence. On 29 Aug 1998 Rolly McCarthy lost his life in the old schoolhouse when it burnt down.
Dawkins Rd (originally Sharman & Birchalls Rd)
This road cut straight through Charles Sharman’s & Geo Sharman’s properties to reach the surveyed Minnow township site whose three main streets were named Sharman, Jessop and Birchall. Young Henry Birchall, managing director of Launceston’s oldest bookselling firm, had purchased a 152acre property adjoining the Minnow township, but in July 1894 died aged 36 of lung disease. His unmarried brother Frank Birchall, also Company director, took over the Beulah property but in 1907 he died aged 45 of typhoid. Later Tas von Steiglitz and Maurice Dawkins farmed along this road.
694,734 & 765 Lower Beulah Keith & Marj (Hooper) Huett (5 chn) moved from Dynan’ Bridge Rd about 1966 onto part of 250acres previously purchased by Keith’s father Arthur Huett. Keith & Marj’s 3 sons: Leslie (Tommy), Neville (Shorty) and Gary helped develop their dairy/cattle farm. Gary & Veronica Huett built a new house at 694 Lower Beulah Rd, while Tommy & Mavis lived at 734 Lower Beulah Rd. Tommy was active with the Beulah Hall committee for over 40 years and as Chief Fire brigade officer.
Sharmans Rd
In1906 Fred & Emily (Hodgkinson) Duncan purchased William Hoare’s 112acre on top side of Sharmans Rd. In his early days Fred leased a 50acre cattle run on top of Mt Gog. After Fred Duncan (68) d1939, Emily moved to Sheffield and became a tireless worker for the Church of England. Son Allan & Valerie Duncan took over his father’s farm.
Augustus & Sarah von Steiglitz came from Avoca to Lower Beulah in 1903 with three sons Tasman (1880-1928), James (1882-1929) & Owen b1892. Sarah d1913 and Augustus in 1928. Tasman von Steiglitz m Henrietta Sharman in 1909 and had child Trevor. In 1905 James held the state record for the number of field peas found on one stalk. His winning stalk had 272 pods containing 1088 peas. After Owen & Florence von Stieglitz married in 1921, they purchased Duck Marsh Farm along old Paradise Rd. Trevor Von Stieglitz became a trapper and snarer on Mt Gog, collecting about 3000 skins each year. His dog once fell down a mine shaft.
George & Hannah (Dodd) Edwards from Lowe’s Bridge took up 94acres up Sharmans Rd. A road overseer for the Kentish council, George was justly proud of his six sons (James, George, Charles, William, Albert & Harold Edwards) who volunteered for the AIF in WWI.
George died 1924 age 66. Most Edward children moved to the mainland.
Harry & Myra Frankcombe raised their family at Ivanhoe off Sharman’s Rd where youngest daughter Barbara b1935 won her Diploma of Music at age 14 and a scholarship to Melbourne Conservatorium in 1954. Sharman’s Rd was named when Frank & Elvie Sharman farmed up this road.
629 Lower Beulah Rd Oma Frank & Mary Ann Hodgkinson with 8 children came to Upper Beulah about 1890. For a period Frank Hodgkinson acted as Chairman of the Beulah Road Trust. Frank’s emmigrant father Joseph Hodgkinson died soon after settling in Westbury, leaving behind his young wife Frances with 3 small children: Frank, Tom & Mary Ann. One year later Frances Hodgkinson (24) married Victor Newton (25) grandson of John Newton, English author of famous hymn Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound . Frank was raised in a blended family of 3 Hodgkinson and 8 Newton children. Two of Frank’s sons Ernest & Walter Hodgkinson went to the Boer War, where after Walter’s horse broke its leg, he was captured, tied to a wagon-wheel in a Boer village and abused by the locals. During the night, a compassionate young woman bought him food to eat and cut him free. Several sons settled around Beulah, including Arthur & Lydia Hodgkinson who farmed this Oma property. They were followed by son Fergus & Lissel Hodgkinson who in Sept 2006 sold out and moved to Sheffield.
555 Lower Beulah Rd A Gospel Hall was erected on this junction of Lower Beulah Rd with Beulah Back Rd after combining two separate Sunday schools. One had begun in Mrs Clara Jackson Sen’s dining room at Bulls’s plains in 1928, the other started in the Lower Beulah school in 1931. Land was purchased from Victor Walker and a 30ftx17ft hall opened in Oct 1935 by Hugh McNeilly. A group of Beulah Christians began monthly worship services from Feb 1937. After 50 years Sunday services finished in 1984/85 when the building was sold and moved to Tommy Huett’s property. In its place Kerry & Debbie Huett relocated a house from Tullah.
528 Lower Beulah Rd About 1920 George & Hilda (von Stieglitz) McCarthy moved to Lower Beulah Rd where they raised their large family: Ernie, Joan, Irene, Roly, Aileen, Jim, Athol, Frank, Barbara & Harvey. A family of axemen, they fell trees for the sawmillers. George McCarthy won the 1922 championship chop in Devonport, while sons Ernie & Roly won trophies at Henley-on-Mersey. In Sept 1950 George and son Ernie built the Beulah Memorial Hall. When George McCarthy moved to Railton, German immigrants Helmut & Erika Kursawe purchased his property about 1970. After his Kursawe parents passed on, Helmut Jnr & wife Judy (Huett) Kursawa moved from Nook to Lower Beulah in 2016 and built themselves a new house in 2019.
Further north along Lower Beulah Rd, James & Clara Jackson settled at Bulls Plain where they also raised large family. James (67) d1926 & Clara Jackson (77) d1935. Son James Jnr & Gladys Jackson took over the property.
496 Lower Beulah Originally owned by Bert Hardy and later Jacksons, this property has been recently purchased by Italian Remedial Massage Therapist Diego Pellegrinni whose professional services are in great demand. Further down Lower Beulah Rd, we enter pine plantations, so lets double back and conclude our survey by travelling west along Beulah Back Rd to the Beulah township.
90 Beulah Back Rd About 1880 James & Ellen Murphy from Deloraine purchased 298acres on the south side of Beulah Back Road where they raised their seven children. Three Murphys married three Gannons from Ashgrove Elizabeth Town. Sons James Jrn & Ann (Gannon) Murphy moved to Circular Head and brother Jack became a publican. Jack’s grandson Graeme Murphy founded the famous Sydney Dance Company. Wasyl & Katerina Jedyn from Poland/Ukraine, purchased this property in the 1950s. They were naturalized in Nov 1959. Chn: Peter, Ray, John & Mary (Mrs Tony Spillane). Today Ray & Veronica Jedyn farm two Beulah properties
63 Beulah Back Rd Levick & Emmie Spillane bought this property from McCarthys about 1944 and raised their three sons Tony & Robin (twins) and Neil who all purchased their own Beulah Rd farms in 1960s. Levick died 1984. Since Emmie died in 1996, Tony’s son Nigel Spillane took over the farm. This means since 1897 five generations of the Spillane family have continuously farmed properties in Beulah for 128 years, which could be a record.
Today the Beulah district is surrounded by great swathes of pine plantations, but has no Sharmans, Hodgkinsons, McCarthys, Jacksons or von Steiglitzs. Nor any schools, churches or shops. But today’s residents still have the Beulah Memorial Hall to remember their Past and a well-equipped fire station to protect their Future.