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Henry Tilley
Henry Tilley was born at Hilcot Wiltshire, England and after losing
his wife Jane and 2 children, David and Elizabeth, through sickness,
decided to come to Australia with his son John who was then only 11
years of age.
They left Plymouth in the migrant ship "Asceola"
(also known as �Osceola�) on the 24th December 1850 and
arrived in Adelaide on April 5th1851 and the "Asceola"
never completed the return trip to England and it was presumed sank
at sea.
In
1853, Henry and his son John, then only 13, went off to the
Victorian gold‑fields. As Henry Tilley on his return was able
to pay ₤800 for a 77 acre section of land (Section 2131) at
Upper Dry Creek in 1854.
The
home Henry Tilley built on the section he named HillcottFarm,
after his native village of Hilcot in Wiltshire. The homestead was
built close to a branch of Dry Creek, near the south‑west
corner of Yatala Vale Road and Golden Grove Road, This house existed
until it was demolished in 1998 to make way for a new housing
development.
Henry died in 1877 and was
buried at Golden Grove Cemetery
John
Tilley (son of Henry)
After
Henry's death belonged to John and like his father he continued to
increase his working land and in the year 1900 he was farming 648
acres over 10 different sections.
John & his wife Anna lived and farmed
Farm all their
lives raising the family while growing wheat,
barley and oats.
Milk from the dairy herd was another source of income.
John
was active in local council affairs and in 1881 was elected to
council and served as Councillor for 20 years.
He was chairman for two terms 1884 -1888
and 1892 - 1898. He
served on the district School Board of Advice and was a Judge of
horse stock at the Royal Agricultural and Horticultural Society's
Show and at local shows. John Tilley died at Golden Grove, in 1907.
After
Henry's death Hillcott Farm
belonged to John and like his father he continued to increase his
working land and in the year 1900 he was farming 648 acres over 10
different sections. John & his wife Anna lived and farmed Hillcott
Farm all their lives raising the family while growing wheat,
barley and oats. Milk from the dairy herd was another source of
income.
After Anna Tilley died in 1909 Hillcott
Farm was passed on to the Tilley brothers who together worked
the farm until 1912 when StanleyTilley purchased the farm outright. He continued to work the farm
until his death.
His wife
Amanda, with the help of their son Grove carried on
the farmwork with the
main emphasis on the dairy herd. It was a common site to see traffic
on Golden Grove Road stopped to let the cows
cross on their way to the milking sheds. When Grove passed away Amanda went to live with her daughter
Phyllis.
John
and Anna had 9 children:-
John Henry
Alice Jane
George Casper
Lewis Goddard
Arthur Golden
Charles Robert Grove
Anna Doras
Frank Hillman
Stanley Septimus
John Henry Tilley (Son
of John & Grandson of Henry)
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John
Henry, (John Tilley�s eldest son,) and his wife Hannah
started married life at Hillcott Farm then
moved to the Coleman property (app 70 acres) on Yatala Vale
Road. They later moved in to Greenwith Farm
in 1908.
Greenwith Farmhouse, Golden Grove Rd was almost opposite
Greenwith Church and along with a further 450 acres (in
1913) produced Wheat, Barley, Oats and Peas while Sheep,
Cows, Pigs and Poultry were raised both for sale and to
supply the household.
John Henry also served as a district Councillor and
represented the Modbury / Golden Grove Ward of the
amalgamated councils from 1935 - 1944., He
retired after 22 years of service as Councillor, Chairman,
Auditor and District Clerk., |
John
Henry and Hannah had 8 Children
Dorothy Anna
Ethel Reta
Mabel
Emily
John Thomas (Jack)
Rhoda Vera
Frank Garfield
Hilda Alma
Clarice Audrey
John Thomas
Tilley ��Jack� (Son of John Henry & Great
Grandson of Henry)
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Jack Tilley married Reta Bowey in the little Methodist
Church at Modbury in 1925.
When John Garfield was born they were living in an
old house known as �Barbary�s
Cottage on Cobbler�s Creek for 12 months. They moved
out when Jack bought 80 acres of land and a house called
�Brooklyn Villa� from the Gregory family.
That house
is now owned by Brian Tilley (son of Jack and brother of
John ) and still stands on the corner of Golden Grove Road
and Yatala Vale Road, now known as The Grove Way.
There are
only 4 acres left now, but there were 240 acres which joined
onto that original section which Jack had bought and was
named Greenwith Farm.
Jack
and Reta had two boys
John Garfield and Brian Thomas
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John
GarfieldTilley (Son of Jack Tilley & Great, Great Grandson of
Henry)
In
1965 John Garfield Tilley decided to follow family traditions and
was nominated and elected as Councillor for the Golden Grove Ward
serving in that capacity until 1974, when in July the City of Tea
Tree Gully gained its first local‑born Mayor, John Garfield
Tilley,. He was Mayor of the City of Tea Tree Gully for 7years and
then re-elected for a further 7 years, after which he continued with
the council until his retirement in 1993. In all he committed 27
years to the council.
Along the way he
gained enormous respect in local government for his guiding hand
during a period of rapid growth in the area, including such projects
as the O-bahn and the Golden Grove Developments.
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Planning the O-bahn Route |
Opening the Golden Grove
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John�s
wife Jean, as well as being Mayoress, was Patron of several local
women's organisations, President of another, and served on the
committee of Meals on Wheels and of the Royal District Nursing
Society.
The
Old Barbary Farmhouse
This house was used by
the various members of the Tilley family, over the years and was
situated on Cobbler's Creek but has since been demolished.
Alongside the home was
and still is a pine tree now well over a century old, It was
brought out from England in 1847 on the first Immigrant Ship that
left England, it was then only 6 inches high and growing in a jam
tin, Probably the oldest pine tree in South Australia
The
Tilley Recreation Park
The
Tilley Recreation Park was named after the Tilley family, after
Hannah Cooper Tilley (nee Steven) gave the 7 acres of land to the
community in 1946. Thirty nine years prior to this the land was
virtually in private ownership and it was used as a showground and
cricket oval, as well as the hall being used for local
functions.
After
the grounds were handed over to the public, a trust deed was formed
and later they became an incorporated body and many of the
facilities were upgraded, firstly the tennis court site was
excavated and levelled and over the years many improvements were
effected. Prior to that, the present old hall was built in 1916
after a previous hall had burnt down in 1915. Both these halls had
been built and used by the community. The lean-to or supper room was
added in the late 1940's.
In
addition to the initial 7 acres , Council purchased a further 7
acres in the late 60's early 70's to double the size of the area and
to confirm it as a major reserve of our city. The Golden Grove joint
ventures added a further 7 acres to make further expansion possible.
The
Trust which had been managing the park from 1946, handed over the
park to the Council in 1973.
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