Octogenarian and soon-to-be nonagenarian Grace Jobling delivered an engaging presentation on her family’s history and life on the Boole Poole Peninsula, Gippsland Lakes, to the Paynesville Probus Club recently.
Her maternal lineage traces back to the First Fleet, while her paternal side connects to William the Conqueror. The Barton family, including sea captains and convicts, settled in Perry Bridge after travelling from Port Albert in the early 1800s, eventually acquiring land extending to Metung.
She opened with a poem written by her father, followed by anecdotes highlighting the Barton family’s contributions to Gippsland’s development.
In the late 1890s, a Barton family member constructed a guest house at Ocean Grange, with parts of the original structure still standing. Grace Joblin’s father married Daisy Cook and built a two-storey house from a single Mountain Ash tree. The family demonstrated resourcefulness by repurposing kerosene drums for water transport and converting packing boxes
into furniture.
Grace described generational marriages and the challenges of raising a family in the isolated Gippsland Lakes region, including her brother’s responsibility at age 10 to row the boat from Boole Poole to Metung for school.
She recounted her mother’s ingenuity in making clothing from sacks and knitting by lantern light, and reflected on the difficulties of World War II, such as rationing and fuel shortages that affected travel.
The family lived off the land, maintaining an orchard of 600 apple and plum trees, a three-and-a-half-acre raspberry farm, and a pea farm, with produce delivered to Melbourne markets. Summers were spent picking fruit at their farm in Allambee.
Grace attended various schools as well as being home schooled. Life in isolation fostered creativity and outdoor play, with no store-bought toys or electronic devices. A highlight was attending church in Lakes Entrance on Sundays, where the family enjoyed ice cream, picnics and swimming.
Grace Joblin’s stories underscored the resilience and hard work of early pioneer families, whose efforts have shaped the region’s future.
