30. Merildin Railway Station & Yards
The Mintaro Station is between six and seven miles from Manoora, and here there is a combined shed as at Riverton, with the addition of a master’s house. At most of the other stopping places the Stationmasters have not residences erected on the spot, owing to the contiguity of neighboring townships, which give the necessary accommodation to the officials in question. This station, however, is four miles east of the Township of Mintaro, and hence the necessity of quarters being built for the Stationmaster.[1] This little known Railway Station complex is historically important for the manner in which it reflects features of the development of the railways in South Australia. The design and detailing of the buildings also mean that it is of architectural interest. The station was built in 1870 when the northern railway line was extended from Roseworthy to Burra.[2] Merildin railway station (once known as Mintaro) sits in solitary splendour in a paddock with the living legacy of the station master’s garden. It too is State heritage listed, but is so remote from the rest of Mintaro that it’s unlikely to find a new purpose in life.[3] “…the last passenger train to use the remaining line to Burra was a SteamRanger tour hauled by former SAR steam locomotive 621 on 19 September 1992. … In theory the line remains open in a dormant condition but has not seen a train in many years.”[4]
02. Mintaro Post Office
The Mintaro Post Office was built in 1883, although the township has had a postal service from 1866. The simple sandstone and brick building was built to a standard design repeated in many country towns. The sandstone is tuck pointed with black lining and red brick curved plinths are used. The Post Office Building is listed as a State Heritage Place on the State Heritage Register. It passed from The Commonwealth into private ownership in 1930 when it was sold to Frank McNamara for £4100. The McNamara’s continued to operate the postal agency until 1979 when it was sold to Stephen and Marilyn Geier. Since then, the building and postal agency has changed hands on four occasions. Various additions to the building were added over these years but recent conservation work has seen these removed. The postal agency continues to operate as the town’s distribution centre for letters and parcels, now for one hour a day, Monday to Friday. Banking agencies and other services are no longer provided.
04. Central Business Complex
The row of shops across the main street from the Post Office and Devonshire House was built in the 1850’s to service Mintaro’s commercial needs. The traditional ground floor commercial layout was complemented by upper floor living accommodation. In 1853 Joseph Gilbert sold Allotment No. 37 to shoemaker John Huxtable and then sold the northern section to James McWaters, a farmer, in March 1857. Lot 36, to its north, was originally owned by Frederick Leighton, a blacksmith who operated a forge and had stables behind the main building, the sections of the buildings over time were used for a variety of services and retail enterprises including fodder stores, a fruit and vegetable shop, a delicatessen that provided lunches to the Slate Quarry workers, a butcher and a branch of the ES&A Bank. Various families occupied the living areas until the 1980’s when both buildings were purchased by ‘entrepreneurs’ and renovated and converted to a small general store, tearooms, a restaurant and small conference centre and Bed and Breakfast accommodation, incorporating the attic bedrooms. Slate, a feature of many Mintaro buildings, has been used extensively to construct walls and paving on the ground floors and verandas. Stone horse mounting steps, originally located in front of the Post Office, are now a feature at the front of the shops, between an incredibly old Pepper tree and equally ancient Moreton Bay fig tree.
07. Reilly’s Boot Shop
This allotment was one of the earliest sold after Mintaro was subdivided in 1849, which suggests that the core of this building could date from the early 1850s. The 1857 rate assessment described the building as a shop and two rooms, occupied by Hugh Riley (sic), and owned by John Gurry. Hugh Reilly is known to have purchased the property in 1870, and although the land transaction lists his occupation as farmer, he was also listed in the almanacs of 1870 and 1871 as a shoemaker.[1] Hugh Reilly, a shoe and bootmaker from Cross Keys, County Cavan in Ireland, emigrated to South Australia at age 18 on the Lady Ann, arriving in Adelaide 2 October 1859 with his parents and siblings. Two older siblings had arrived two years earlier and had purchased land near Mintaro in their fathers name, allowing the family to emigrate on an assisted passage. Records suggest that Hugh opened a boot and shoe making business at the Blinman Mines in 1864.[2] Clare rate assessment records from 1865 to 1868 show that he operated a bootmakers in Mintaro alongside saddlers John Gurry and Philip Lane[3], and then purchased the title over Lot 34 from Dymphna Lester in November 1871.[4] He ran his boot and shoe making business here until 1876 when he sold up the ‘very Valuable Business Premises situated on Allotment No. 34, consisting of substantial Stone House of four rooms, and commodious Shop, Coachhouse, Stable, and Outbuildings, the whole of which are excellently finished and in thorough repair.’[5] It is possible that he may have travelled to London in 1877. The South Australian almanacs of the time list Hugh Reilly as working at Monarto in 1878 and 1879 but this may be a misspelling of Mintaro. He married Mary Lee and in 1880 opened a bootmakers shop in Yongala, where they raised a family of five children. Tragedy struck the family twice in 1894, first in May when the shop was destroyed by fire, and again in November when 10 year old daughter Eliza fell down a well and drowned. Hugh’s father, Michael Reilly, died 20 August 1885 at Farrell’s Flat and is buried in the Mintaro general cemetery. Hugh and Mary Reilly later removed to Adelaide, about 1900. Hugh died in 1919 and Mary in 1926. They are both buried in the Catholic section of Adelaide’s West Terrace Cemetery. After leaving Mintaro the property was sold to Michael Tobin, who also owned the general store on the adjacent corner on Hill street. The title transferred to his four unmarried daughters on his death in 1883, who later sold it to Richard Mortimer, stone cutter, in 1885. Purchased by Justin and Julie Ardill in 1993, today Reilly’s Cottage is home to Reillys Wines Cellar Door and Restaurant.
09. Flour Mill
This once important steam flour mill, constructed in 1859, is a tangible reminder of Mintaro’s role as an agricultural service and supply centre. It was first owned by John Smith, a substantial property owner in the town and district who purchased the adjacent Mintaro Hotel (now the Magpie and Stump) in 1858. The mill was used for grinding and dressing grain. The four pairs of grinding stones and two sets of rollers were driven by a twenty horsepower steam engine. It ceased operating in the mid 1870s and the machinery was transferred to the Jacka brothers’ mill at Morgan. The mill today has been substantially restored, including the reinstatement of its barrel-vaulted roof. Unfortunately the distinctly square chimney, which the mill had originally, has been lost.[1]
10. Wakefield Cottage
This building started as a simple four roomed cottage with rear skillion roofed lean-to. The projecting southern gable front was added some years later. The northern wing, attached by a breezeway was added in 2016. The original owner was John Smith, who also owned The Magpie and Stump Hotel and the adjacent Flour Mill. The properties were advertised for auction in February 1900 and described as ‘Allots. 76, 77, Township of Mintaro, containing 2 Acres, with 6-roomed Stone House thereon, known as the Mill House.’[1] Following Smith’s death in 1876, the house had a number of owners, including James Torr, the owner/publican of The Devonshire Arms, who donated the land on which the playground and bowling green sits today to the community. Another owner was William Skuse, an early Mintaro settler. Both Torr and Skuse are buried in the local cemetery. Their headstones reflect their differing wealth and station in life. Initial conservation work was carried out in the 1980s, and this included restoration of the shingled roof, some internal modifications and external consolidation work. The cottage was modified for its role as a restaurant in the 2000s and operated as such for a number of years. It has been a private residence undergoing ongoing extension and conservation since 2011.
16. Original School & Cottage
Former Allotment No. 10 (now Lot 66) was purchased by Isaac Duance, a labourer, in 1855. Storekeeper Richard Lathlean who already owned shops and residences on Lot 38 became the new owner in November 1869. In 1872 the same year that the Mintaro Primary School was opened teacher James Fry acquired Lot 10 and four years later also the adjoining Allotment 22 (now Lots 63, 64, 65). This building indicates several construction stages progressing from the western round chimney to the projecting 1870s villa front.[1] Isaac & Mary Duance, both from Cornwall, the newlyweds arrived SA 13 Aug 1852 on the Gloucester by assisted passage.[2] They arrived in Mintaro about 1853/54. When Isaac Duance and family left Mintaro in 1869 the property was purchased by Richard Lathlean, Secretary to the School Committee in Mintaro. He had advertised less than two years earlier for a schoolmaster for the town[3] and was possibly securing it for the schoolmaster’s accommodation. By March the following year, 1870, James Fry and his wife had been appointed ‘conductors of the Mintaro School’ and were advertising that ‘in a short time be prepared to take a limited number of Boarders.’[4] Lathlean and Fry were both devout Wesleyan Methodists and members of a local Board of Trustees which was established to secure the adjoining properties (lots 11 & 12) and advocate for the building of a public school. This was approved by the Board of Education on the 2nd of October 1871.[5] Shortly after the new school was completed, in May 1872, James Fry became the owner of Lot 10. He then purchased the old Primitive Methodist Chapel (lot 22), next door, in 1876.[6] Fry continued as the headmaster until his retirement in 1902 and passed away at Mintaro in 1909, aged 77. The building had many changes over this time. The property transferred on his death to his third wife Lucy Stewart Fry and son-in-law Albert Clayer and then after Lucy died (1929) it was sold in 1933 to Ruby May Grace, married daughter of John George Midwinter and Mary Ann Dew. The property had been in the Fry family for over 60 years. It is suggested that the building became a rental property during the mid 1930s through to the 1980s by which time it had been transferred to Ruby’s daughter Lois May Hobbs. In 1990 Ian McDermid, in partnership with Luis Mendoza, obtained the property and set about restoring it to its original condition, while also installing a bore, electricity and an effluent system as well as developing the garden.[7]
17. Old Primitive Methodist Chapel
The building is locally known as the first Primitive Methodist Church this fact has not been established (see below). The Anglicans were the first to purchase the property in June 1856 and the small structure could well have been erected soon afterwards to serve perhaps as a combined residence and church. The Gothic windows at the front as well as this building’s location in Church Street tend to suggest ecclesiastical function. Reference to an Anglican place of worship in Mintaro are scant but relevant snippets of information which appear in the official Church of England Year Books are worth repeating here. Mintaro’s Anglicans were under the clergy of Reverend W. Wood of St. Barnabas, Clare, and first mention of Mintaro was made in the 1856-57 Year Book. In the 1869-70 issue the remark was made that there was a lack of church attendance in the whole district and by 1876 schoolmaster James Fry became the new owner of the property. In the 1889-90 Year Book first mention was made of a building in Mintaro with a seating capacity of 30. Four years later it was noted that greater efforts were being made to re-establish Sunday services at Mintaro but response was low and a suitable building was not feasible. Rosina Mortlock of Martindale was instrumental in resurrecting Anglicanism in Mintaro and as a result of her persistence and financial backing the former Primitive Methodist complex across Young Street in Lot 23 was purchased by the Anglican Church in 1905. This is a simple hip-roofed sandstone cottage with charming lancet windows to the front elevation, …[1] The property, Lot 22 Mintaro, was sold by Joseph Gilbert to The Right Reverend Augustus Short D.D. Lord Bishop of Adelaide in 1856, also with Lot 9 Mintaro.[2] Locally known as the first Primitive Methodist Church, this is recorded in Ian Paull’s 1961 book ‘Methodism in Auburn and district’ where he states ‘The original meeting place of the Primitive Methodists is now the home of Mrs. Albert Grace whose late husband was a Methodist local preacher.’[3] The certificate of title for the property confirms this as it transferred to Ruby May Grace (nee Midwinter) in 1933.[4] It should also be noted that on the earliest map of the Mintaro subdivision allotment 22 is designated as ‘Church.’ After only a few years the Primitive Methodists found the property too small and in 1858 it was reported in the South Australian Register of 15 October that they ‘are now about to erect a chapel as their present room is not large enough.’[5] This new chapel was opened on December 23, 1860[6] and the old chapel is thought to have reverted to a schoolroom. James Fry, licensed teacher, purchased the property in 1876 and it remained in the Fry family for 64 years, transferring to his wife Lucy Stewart Fry and son-in-law Albert Lionel Clayer after his death in 1909. After Lucy Fry died in 1929 Albert sold the property to Mrs. Grace. During her ownership it appears to have been a rental property for some of the time with names such as Laskey, Marston, Fisher and Pearce being associated with it.[7] Ian McDermid, in partnership with Luis Mendoza, obtained the property in 1997 and set about restoring and renovating it as bed and breakfast accommodation to complement their adjoining property, Lot 10, which they had acquired in 1990.[8] A key feature of the restoration was removal of the verandah on the eastern face of the building and the reinstatement of the original peaked portico and the gothic windows.
18. Mintaro Primary School
In 1853 the licensed country schools return listed a school at Mintaro with Edward James as teacher and an enrolment of 36 pupils (15 boys and 11 girls). The licensing of teachers and inspection of schools was under the charge of the Central Board of Education at this time. Thomas Gibson took over in 1854 and taught in Mintaro until 1860 by which time the enrolment had increased to 44 and the curriculum extended. There is no record of where this early school was located but it continued until a Government primary school building was erected in 1872 on Lot 11. The new school building which cost £445, could accommodate 76 pupils and may well have been constructed to counteract the competition of the Jesuit sponsored school established by James Horan in 1867. James Fry, who was the teacher of the licensed school in 1872 and as such had instigated the approach to the Central Board of Education for the new building, was appointed headmaster of the primary school. He remained in that position until 1902. The original school building consisted of a schoolroom (34 ft x 18 ft) with an attached residence. The residential section was enlarged some time during the 1890s presumably as Fry’s family increased in size. In 1922 when the school enrolment reached 105 pupils modifications were undertaken and the residential section converted to classroom use. A new residence was built a short distance from the school at this time. The number of pupils enrolled at the school has continued to fluctuate, the peak was 106 pupils in 1923, but the average number has been between 30-40 children. The building is well maintained and survives substantially intact apart from later unsympathetic corrugated iron lean-to additions. It retains a simple belfry and a well detailed stone and slate chimney.[1] With the closure of the school in 2006 it was sold into private hands as a residential property.
19. Miller’s House
Thomas Miller purchased Mintaro Lot 21 as well as the adjoining Lots 20 and 40 in February 1853 and … the choice of construction materials and general form of the house suggest it was built shortly after his land purchase. Inspection of the house indicates that there were at least two building stages and the original timber shingle roof was a lower hip and valley arrangement. The present pyramidal roof on the northern wing evolved when the house was re-roofed and the four ridges were continued to the present height. This building at the top of the hill forms a major landmark in Mintaro and is of great significance. It typifies an early domestic building which changed and evolved through a number of years of alteration. The stone walling associated with the house and the slate paving to verandahs is also significant.[1] ‘Thomas Miller with his devoted wife Rebecca and one son arrived in Adelaide, SA, on the Fairlie on 7th July 1840.’[2] By 1853 they had moved to Mintaro and bought the property on which they built their house. A newspaper notice in 1956 suggests he owned four sections of land near Mintaro, in the hills to the west and northwest of the town.[3] This is confirmed in the Clare Council Rate Assessment book for 1866-67 where Thos. Miller snr., of Burra St, Mintaro is recorded as having rateable properties in sections 187, 337, 344, 329 and 330. Thomas Miller and his wife were devout Wesleyan Methodists and were, among a number of early residents, instrumental in having the original chapel built in 1853 and the ‘mission house’ in 1858. As well as a trustee for the church Thomas was also a trustee for the Mintaro Institute Incorporated. In 1873 Thomas acquired two new sections of land adjacent to his original holdings (on the left as you leave Mintaro for Sevenhill) and then in 1892, not quite ten years later, he sold most of his holdings to South Australia’s Chief Justice, Samuel James Way. ‘Thomas died on 26th November 1895 while visiting son Charles at Yongala, and was buried in the Yongala Cemetery. Rebecca remained in Yongala with her family, dying on 9th March 1907. They had eleven children, nine sons and two daughters, all surviving to adulthood.’[4] The house and properties in Mintaro transferred to Rebecca in 1896. She then transferred them to widow Agnes Brinkworth (nee Nelson) who, a year later in 1897, married Walter Norris Rowe, blacksmith, son of William Matthews and Jane Rowe. Rebecca Miller died at age 88 on 9th March 1907. The house has changed hands numerous times since then. Recent work undertaken includes repairs to the dry stone walling on Young Street and the sympathetic construction of a small studio facing Burra Street. Remains of an old cellar unearthed during construction were thoughtfully incorporated into the new studio.