Percy Campbell MACPHERSON
Born 9 June 1882 in Greenough, Western Australia [40]
Son of "Jock" John MACPHERSON and "Annie" Ann CONNOLLY [40]
His grandparents and their children, including his father, had settled in what became the Carnamah district in 1868 [120: 9-Jan-1930]
Resided with his parents on Dongara Road in Greenough, where his father was a farmer [84]
He was baptised by Methodist Minister Rev. T. BIRD of Geraldton on 8 July 1882 [84]
Married Ellen Eugenia HADDRILL on 3 January 1905 at Saint Mary's Church in the Perth suburb of Middle Swan [129: 14-Jan-1905]
In 1906 he was working as a Labourer and living on Swan Road in the Perth suburb of Midland Junction [50]
Railway Line Repairer / Fettler for the Midland Railway Company in Carnamah 1908-1910 [19] [44]
In March 1910 the Lands Department approved his application to take up 400 acres of land near Carnamah [9: 18-Mar-1910] [44]
The land, taken up as Conditional Purchase at 10 shillings per acre, was Victoria Location 4715 [9: 18-Mar-1910] [44]
Also briefly had a 400 acre grazing lease for Victoria Location 4123, which he'd abandoned by October 1912 [31: 11-Oct-1912]
He retained and was rated by the Upper Irwin Road Board for his 400 acre Victoria Location 4715 until 1914 [44]
Railway Porter in Moora in 1911 and Night Watchman / Night Stationmaster in Moora 1912-1913 [9: 30-May-1913] [19] [50] [120: 8-Jun-1912]
Donated two shillings to the Moora District Hospital's sports held on Boxing Day in 1911 [9: 16-Feb-1912]
Participated in the fancy dress football match, dressed in a hobble skirt, in Moora on 22 June 1911 [9: 30-Jun-1911]
The match was part of Coronation Day festivities when George V became King of the United Kingdom and British Dominions [9]
Won the Hop Step & Jump at the Moora Tradesman's annual Eight Hours' Day Picnic on 21 October 1912 [9: 25-Oct-1912]
Member of the Moora Cricket Club in 1913 [9: 21-Feb-1913]
Stationmaster of the Carnamah Railway Station in Carnamah in 1913 and 1914 [6] [39: 14-Aug-1913]
He sent a lunch tin and the body of a dead dog from Carnamah to the police in Moora by train in July 1913 [39: 14-Aug-1913]
Both were in connection with the suspected poisoning of local railway fettler Henry McCLYMANS [39: 14-Aug-1913]
Member of the Carnamah Football Club in 1913 [9: 11-Jul-1913]
Won the Hop Step & Jump and came 2nd in Long Jump at the Coorow Football Club's Annual Sports in 1913 [10: 10-Oct-1913]
Railway Guard in the Perth suburb of Midland Junction in 1914 [44]
Railway Guard in Watheroo in 1916 [50]
Later resided on the corner of Afric Street and Toodyay Road in the Perth suburb of Middle Swan [119]
Engineer in the Perth suburb of Middle Swan for at least the years 1919-1939 [6]
He was listed as a Railway Conductor with the Midland Railway Company in 1927 [4: 17-Dec-1927]
In September 1925 travelled to Carnamah to take part in the annual kangaroo hunt, which was organised by his uncle [9: 18-Sep-1925]
Presumably stayed with his uncle Donald MACPHERSON at Carnamah House, at which location the hunt began [9]
He had control of a pack of fox hounds and was also in charge of the hunt, which managed to catch 25 kangaroos [9]
During a visit to Carnamah in December 1927 he set off into the bush with three other men for a horse ride [4: 17-Dec-1927]
They included Midland Railway locomotive driver George ROBERTS and Carnamah stationmaster Albert J. MORTIMER [4]
The third was Aboriginal man Tommy CARNAMAH, and they all rode horses loaned by his uncle Donald MACPHERSON [4]
They rode towards the coast and behind Winchester admiring the scenery and country near the Mulliah / Yarra Yarra Lakes [4]
After spotting a dingo (native wild dog) "they forgot scenery, distance, time and everything to give wild chase after game" [4]
The dingo won the race but not before they rode their horses to exhaustion over many miles at great pace [4]
They returned the next day and Tommy picked up the tracks of the dingo which they followed until sighting it again [4]
Another chase ensued, it again escaped and Tommy once more set upon its tracks also discovering milk drops [4]
They followed the milk drops and realised the dingo had been leading them around in a circle and had moved its pups [4]
Five dingo pups were found sleeping under a York gumtree so they killed four and left the fifth tied up along with a trap [4]
They returned the next day and found the mother dingo with one of her front feet caught in the trap [4]
After three days of hunting and two nights of camping they returned to Carnamah where grateful farmers paid them a £7 reward [4]
He was one of the chief mourners at his uncle Donald MACPHERSON's funeral at the Winchester Cemetery in 1931 [12: 20-Aug-1931]
Following his uncle Donald's death he inherited his estate jointly with his aunt Miss "Bessie" Elizabeth MACPHERSON [38]
He and Bessie sold Donald's Carnamah farmland to Mrs Beatrice M. BENTLEY and George S. FERGUSON [3] [117]
They retained 100 acres surrounding the old family homestead, Carnamah House, which his aunt continued to live in [3] [117]
Had two months off work in 1937 after being hospitalised suffering from bronchial pneumonia [129: 17-Jul-1937]
After his discharge from Saint Andrew's Hospital in Midland Junction he recovered at towns along the Midland Railway line [129]
He was one of the chief mourners at the funeral of "Bessie" Elizabeth MACPHERSON at Winchester Cemetery in 1939 [5: 28-Jul-1939]
Along with his wife spent a holiday of a few weeks duration in Carnamah during August 1939 [5: 25-Aug-1939]
He was a member of the Midland Railway Union of Workers and the Midland Junction Masonic Lodge No.972 [39: 28-Oct-1940]
Worked for the Midland Railway Company until his death [119] and was a Railway Guard until at least 1937 [129: 17-Jul-1937]
Father of three sons - Malcolm John Campbell (born 1906), Mervin Lewin William (1907) and Claude Nelson (1911) [119]
Father of four daughters - Marvel Edna (1909), Jean Lavinia (1912), Joyce Adelaide (1916) and Alvyn Grace (1918) [119]
Died 26 October 1940 in Midland; buried in the churchyard of Saint Mary's Anglican Church at Swanleigh in Middle Swan [246]
Over 200 men attended his funeral, which was officiated at by the Rev. Frederick W. GUNNING [39: 23-Nov-1940]
From The Swan Express newspaper, Thursday 7 November 1940:
Obituary - The Late Mr Percy Macpherson
"A very highly respected citizen of Midland Junction and the Swan district, and one highly esteemed by his workmates and friends in the person of Mr Percy Macpherson passed away at Midland Junction on October 26. The late Mr Macpherson was born on the Greenough Flats 58 years ago. For the last 29 years he has resided at Middle Swan. He was a son of the late John and Annie Macpherson, late of Middle Swan. He was married 36 years ago in St. Mary's Church, Middle Swan to Ellen Eugenia Haddrill, whom he now leaves with three sons and three daughters to mourn his loss. The esteem in which the deceased was held was shown by the large number of friends and relatives who attended the funeral which took place in the Middle Swan cemetery on October 28. The chief mourners were Lewin and Claude Macpherson (sons), Trevor, Bevin and Donald Macpherson (brothers), H. Templeman (son-in-law), G. Frzall (son-in-law), W. Mulbury (brother-in-law). The pall bearers were: Messrs R. Drake, D. Bain, R. Hardie, W. Yeo, H. Templeman, S. Gardiner, F. Reading, R. Rutherford."
| Reference: Carnamah Historical Society & Museum and North Midlands Project, 'Percy Campbell Macpherson' in Biographical Dictionary of Coorow, Carnamah and Three Springs, retrieved 19 April 2024 from www.carnamah.com.au/bio/percy-campbell-macpherson [reference list] |
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