"Bill" / "Will" William MUTTER
Born 30 April 1880 in Balaklava, South Australia [55]
Son of Henry MUTTER and Martha Bailey BROOMFIELD [55]
He was the third child of seven children - his six siblings were Mary, Thomas, William, John, Frederick, Albert and Arthur [P331]
His mother was profoundly deaf and he acquired her love of reading and attended literary meetings in Balaklava [P331]
Educated at a the small Preston State School situated five miles away from Balaklava until leaving school in grade six [P331]
After leaving school he worked for a couple of years at a retail business in Adelaide, during which he met his wife-to-be [P331]
Married Amy Louisa SAMPSON on 27 September 1905 at the Methodist Church in Whitwarta, South Australia [55]
Following their marriage they shifted to Balaklava [P331]
Farmer of one of his father's farms in Balaklava for about 14 years and then of his own Hillslope Farm in Everard West [P331]
Along with his wife and children took holidays in Western Australia over two successive years looking for farmland to buy [P331]
On the second holiday in 1926 they purchased a 1,400 acre farm at Dudawa in East Arrino [39: 11-Dec-1926] [P118] [P331]
The farm was purchased from Charles A. NOLAN and previously belonged to Cornelius SHEAHAN [4: 3-Dec-1927] [39: 11-Dec-1926]
Returned to Everard West and after selling everything left South Australia by train with his wife and daughters [P331]
Arrived in Dudawa during March 1927, and named his new farm Noalimba after an Aboriginal word meaning "belonging to us" [P331]
Farmer of Noalimba Farm in Dudawa, East Arrino 1927-1938 [P118]
The farm was 1,427 acres in size and consisted of Lots 21, 27 and 28 of the Dudawa Estate [44]
Always employed a permanent farmhand, who lived with he and his wife at their home on Noalimba Farm [P331]
It was reported in April 1927 that he'd recently purchased a Case tractor [4: 23-Apr-1927]
During 1927, his first year in Dudawa, he cropped 500 acres which yielded an average of six bushels an acre [32: 10-Aug-1928]
He increased his crop to 800 acres in 1928, which achieved the best yields in the district [32: 10-Aug-1928] [144]
His 1928 crop included 200 acres which averaged 30 bushels, with 46 of the acres averaging 35 bushels [144]
Member of the Arrino Hall Committee in 1929 and 1930 - was Chairman in 1929 [4: 20-Apr-1929, 10-May-1930]
Attempted to start a Literary Group in Arrino however it was unsuccessful due to lack of interest [P331]
Inaugural Member for Dudawa on the Three Springs District Road Board in 1929[120: 26-Dec-1929]
The Road Board had been formed after he and Edward HUNT had rallied to get the support of the community [P331]
In early July 1929 he was confined to his bed suffering from a severe chill, and was later admitted to a hospital in Perth [4: 6 & 20-Jul-1929]
He is believed to have caught a chill when bogged in a muddy and dirty creek and then became sick [P331]
Dr Mario A. MAYRHOFER of Three Springs had been out to see him and immediately arranged for him to be sent to Perth [P331]
After recuperating at a convalescent home in Nedlands he spent a few weeks staying with his brothers in Northam [4: 9-Nov-1929]
He subsequently spent time at the hospital in Kellerberrin before holidaying with his wife, son and daughter in Cottesloe [4: 8-Feb-1930]
He was unable to fulfil his duties as Road Board member for a number of months in 1929 due to his serious illness [4: 26-Oct-1929]
He and his wife returned to Dudawa in April 1930 after an extended holiday in the Perth suburb of Cottesloe [4: 26-Apr-1930]
A 100 acre paddock of his farm near the Dudawa State School produced nearly 10,000 bushels of wheat in four years [5: 10-Feb-1933]
The paddock produced record yields of 40 bushels per acre in 1929, 27 bushels in 1930 and 30 bushels in 1931 [5: 10-Feb-1933]
During the depression their tractor remained parked in the shed and they went back to using horses for farm work [P331]
Vice President of the Three Springs Agricultural Society 1933-1937 [5: 26-May-1933, 17-May-1935, 1-May-1936, 25-Mar-1937]
In November 1934 sold 12 bales of wool for 10¼d. per pound through Goldsbrough Mort & Co [5: 7-Dec-1934]
Wrote to the Three Springs Road Board in 1935 complimenting the excellent work done on the Arrino-Morawa Road [5: 1-Feb-1935]
Sold 11 bales of wool for 15¼d. per pound through Westralian Farmers Ltd at a wool sale in Perth on 7 October 1935 [5: 11-Oct-1935]
Seven weeks later, on 25 November 1935, sold through Westralian Farmers Ltd seven bales for 15¾d. per pound [5: 29-Nov-1935]
In May 1936 purchased a new 16-33 rigid tyne Horwood Bagshaw combine from Westralian Farmers Ltd [5: 8-May-1936]
Sold 65 wethers through Westralian Farmers Ltd in early July 1936 - 49 of them for 22/10, and 16 for 19/1 per head [5: 3-Jul-1936]
Sold Ltd 109 shorn wethers at 15/1, 37 shorn wethers at 13/4 and 5 sheep at 12/1 per head in late September 1936 [5: 2-Oct-1936]
During the 1930s had some of his sheep shepherded by Herbert F. FAWCETT on the sandplain west of Arrino [144]
Purchased a seven acre block on Belgravia Street in the Perth suburb of Belmont for £700 [P118]
In 1939 he and his wife retired, left Dudawa, and shifted to their seven acre block in Belmont [P118]
Resided at Preston on Belgravia Street in Perth suburb of Belmont 1939-1946 [P331]
Father of Ethel Louisa Maud, "Ken" Wilfred Kenneth and Dulcie Martha [55]
Died 26 April 1946; buried at Karrakatta Cemetery in Perth, Western Australia (Wesleyan, IA, 717) [2]
From The Irwin Index newspaper, Saturday 8 June 1946:
Obituary - Late Mr W. Mutter - Passing of Old Dudawa Farmer
"The death recently occurred in a metropolitan private hospital of an erstwhile resident of Dudawa in the person of Mr W. Mutter, who for many years followed farming pursuits in that locality. The deceased gentleman came to this state from South Australia in 1927 and settled at Dudawa, in which district he was a very successful farmer. Many years ago he initiated an agitation for the formation of the Three Springs Road Board, and with the achievement of this objective he became a member of the Board as the representative of the Dudawa Ward. Failing health, however, compelled him to resign after having held the seat for a few years, and in 1939 he retired from active life and together with his wife left the district to reside at Belmont. In February last he was stricken with a serious illness and entered a city hospital in which he remained until death intervened. The late Mr Mutter is survived by a widow, one son and two daughters and there was quite a large assemblage of relatives and friends at the funeral conducted in the Methodist portion of the Karrakatta Cemetery."
| Reference: Carnamah Historical Society & Museum and North Midlands Project, 'William Mutter' in Biographical Dictionary of Coorow, Carnamah and Three Springs, retrieved 20 April 2024 from www.carnamah.com.au/bio/william-mutter [reference list] |
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