Canberra 1913
PICTURE: The above digital photo was taken in December 2001 (146 years after John Gale’s vision) from the lawns of Parliament House, Canberra, during the “Centenary of Federation–Peoplescape Exhibition,” which celebrated 100 years of Federation in Australia (1901-2001). Annie-Mercy Gale was one of the Peoplescape images. Annie-Mercy bought her own newspaper, “The Observer” in 1894 – and employed her father, John Gale, as editor. Gale used Annie-Mercy’s newspaper to lobby for the Queanbeyan-Canberra Capital Site. 1
Queanbeyan nominated Canberra Site 1899
In 1901 the Australian Colonies had federated (joined together) to become the Commonwealth of Australia; this was the reason there was a search for a federal capital-site; a place to build a federal capital-city; for the new Federal Government to meet; in a new Federal Parliament House; Queanbeyan was proclaimed in 1838 and was 63 years old in 1901. And although the townsmen had nominated the Queanbeyan-Canberra area as the site for a Federal Capital City in 1899 there was a lot of political-fight before they came out winners.
In 1855 John Gale sat on his horse amongst the trees and sheep on Kurrajong Hill 2 in the Queanbeyan District, and imagined an inland city spread out before him.3
Kurrajong Hill is now known as Capital Hill; it is the site of the 1988 Federal Parliament House, in Canberra; and from the same vantage point, where John Gale had his 1855 vision, we can now see the built reality of his 1855 vision, the city of Canberra. 4
Girls and boys
John Gale was journalist and proprietor of The Queanbeyan Age (established 1860) until a business associate sent him bankrupt and he had to sell his newspaper business and all his property – Gale then left Queanbeyan to start a new life and a newspaper (with other members of his family) in Junee, NSW.
John Gale trained all his children (girls and boys) and as they grew up they worked in his newspaper business in some form or other.
His eldest daughter Annie Mercy Gale was her father’s agent and in charge of The Gunning Leader when she was just 17 years of age. Annie later managed a stationary business with her sisters.5
Annie Mercy Gale married Edward Henry Fallick in 1878 and had five children (one child died very young). Annie’s children were also trained in the newspaper business – and were the main stay of the newspaper business in Canberra-Queanbeyan into the 1960s.
John Gale was not a businessman but he invested wisely in training his children who established many papers. It is Annie Mercy, and it is her business acumen that supports the family and gives her father, John Gale the support which makes his dream come true.
Fantastic woman
After her father’s bankruptcy Annie purchased The Queanbeyan Observer newspaper from John Allen O’Neill in 1894 and made plans with her parents for their return to Queanbeyan.
Later in the same year (1894) Annie employed her father, John Gale as editor of The Observer. In the position of Editor, John Gale had the opportunity to make the residents of the Queanbeyan District aware of the search for a capital site; and bring them together through relevant news items of interest to lobby for, and support, his original 1855 concept.6
In October 1899 John Gale wrote about his 1855 vision of an inland city in The Queanbeyan Observer newspaper and described his 1855 vision, which has elements that describe the Canberra we see today; Gale also instigated and fought for the site known today as Canberra; these events were 13 years before the joint combination of American Walter Burley Griffin (design) and Marion Mahony (water-colour drawings depicting Griffin’s design) were submitted and became the winning design for Canberra, which were announced and published in 1912. 7
Dalgety or Canberra, Which?
Gale had published his 1855 vision, in The Queanbeyan Observer in 1899 to excite the imagination and in 1907 he wrote and published Dalgety or Canberra, Which? a pamphlet (it is more like a small booklet) and distributed it to advance the Canberra site by engaging the intellect of those who would make the decision..8
Gale didn’t do everything by himself, he was the composer and the conductor of a willing orchestra – the numbers were there from the Queanbeyan District and they helped with the work of lobbying and the physical touring in sulkies, food preparation and site parades to sell the concept to the people, the politicians, and the general populous, during the period 1899-1909.
It is therefore timely to bring out the facts of Queanbeyan’s historic past as Queanbeyan will celebrate its 175 birthday on October 3, 1913 when Canberra celebrates its first 100 years, its centenary on March 12, 2013.9
Instigator – initiator
The Before Canberra website will showcase the Queanbeya District, as the instigator for the Queanbeyan–Canberra Federal Capital site submission with the stories of the Queanbeyan District’s past and the keeper of this heritage through the Queanbeyan newspapers, which existed for 53 years (1860-1913) Before Canberra was proclaimed. 10
The Queanbeyan newpapers continued to publish Canberra’s news after 1913 as Canberra had no newspaper of its own – but that’s another story for another day. 11
Queanbeyan is alive and anxiously awaiting for its tourism potential to be discovered by Australians interested in the truth of their national capital, Canberra’s historical background.
The Father of Canberra-John Gale sculpture by Peter Corlett, is located on the site of the 1861 Courthouse 12 (demolished 1976) and the new Courthouse built on the same site (corner of Farrer Place /Monaro and Lowe Streets, Queanbeyan, 2620) where John Gale and eleven men from the Queanbeyan District gave evidence on June 11, 1900 to NSW Commissioner Alexander Oliver that the Queanbeyan-Canberra site is where the Federal Capital should be built. 13
END
Footnotes / Resources
1. PICTURE: Copyright © Connee-Colleen, 2001: Digital photo taken from Capital Hill, of John Gale’s 1855 vision in December, 2001, during the “Centenary of Federation–Peoplescape Exhibition”, on the lawns of Parliament House, Canberra, to celebrate 100 years of Federation (1901-2001). The Australian Colonies were part of Britain before they federated and joined to become the Commonwealth of Australia after receiving Queen Victoria’s consent. What were the Australian Colonies are now the States of Australia: New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, Western Australia, plus two territories: The Northern Territory and the Australian Capital Territory.
2. Gale, John. Canberra It’s History and Legends. Queanbeyan, 1927, p. 5.
3. Sheedy (BEM) P.B. and E.A. Percy. Monaroo to Monaro – History of Monaro St, Queanbeyan 1830’s-1995. Queanbeyan, 1995 (pp. xii – xiii, Queanbeyan was proclaimed and named in 1838.)
4. (i) John Gale, journalist: “Naming of Canberra,” March 13, 1913, The Queanbeyan Age, March 15, 1913. (ii) Google “Canberra,” (search within result for) Capital Hill (select) map.
5. (i) Withycombe, Susan Mary Woolcock. Gale Force-John Gale and the siting of the National Capital. Queanbeyan, 2001, pp. 53-54, 74. (ii) The Queanbeyan Observer. AM Fallick & Sons, Queanbeyan, 1894-1920s.
6. Ibid. p. 74.
7. National Capital Project Team: Stuart McKenzie, Ian Wood-Bradley, David Headon, Christopher Vernon. The Griffin Legacy, Canberra the Nation’s Capital in the 21st Century, © Commonwealth of Australia, 2004. Historical Background, p. 26.
8. Gale, John. “Dalgety or Canberra Which?” Queanbeyan, 1907.
9. Lea-Scarlett, Errol. Queanbeyan District & People. Queanbeyan. 1968.
10. “Mr John Gale–Veteran Journalist,” The Queanbeyan Age. 1929.
11. John Gale, his daughter Annie Mercy Gale (married Fallick) and her four children, Reginald, Alfred, Mable and Benjamin (Lily died in infancy) all kept excellent records of the newspapers, which are now on film and available for research (1860-1969). This record keeping has continued with subsequent owners.
12. Heritage-culture Arts Promotions Inc (HAPI) PO Box 987 Queanbeyan (a charitable institution managed by a voluntary community group) commissioned Melbourne artist, Peter Corlett to sculpt and cast the bronze sculpture of John Gale, unveiled in 2001.
13. Lea-Scarlett, p. 50.
Copyright
All content on Before Canberra Copyright © Connee-Colleen unless otherwise noted – apologies extended if inadvertently a copyright has not been acknowledged – please inform so this can be rectified.