Henry William Holmes

Sugar Growing Pioneer in the Cannon Valley District

Henry William Holmes was born 13th April 1873 in Stableford, Wiltshire England. His father, a village blacksmith, died in an accident when William was nine. When eleven, his mother remarried. Henry went to live on a farm where his Holmes’ uncles were tenants, then worked on the railways for several years.

Desirous to see the world, at age 18, he applied for assisted passage to Australia, sailing on the "Geelunga" arriving at Bowen in May 1892 with only five shillings in his pocket. Luckily, new migrants were given rations by the government until they found work.

Will Holmes’ first job was at "Breadalbane" Station, owned by Messrs. Waite Bros. He was a boundary rider for 20 months and was paid 10/- per week plus his keep. Will moved to Mackay for a short time, working on a sugar plantation before returning to Proserpine. In January 1894, he selected two blocks of land at Cannon Valley under the government homestead system, paying 2/6 per acre, and 10/- per acre for improvements. The block, beside Brandy Creek, was 160 acres of virgin bush. He had to fence it, build a hut, live on it and develop it - and complete payment within five years. Will named the land “Windermere”.

To pay for the land, Harry (as he had become known in the district) accepted a position for four years managing a farm for Mr. R. Carson of Bowen. He paid someone to do his fencing, and so gained the freehold of his property. In 1902, he returned to Cannon Valley to grow sugar cane, cutting his first crop in 1905.

Harry was married three times; sadly, losing his first two wives early on in life. He had six children; two from his first marriage and four from his second.

In 1925, Will had a severe accident whilst loading cane. His injuries left him with a permanent limp, and he used a walking stick for the rest of his life. He never fully recovered, though he still did a lot of the easier work, retaining his involvement in the farm up until the death of his third wife, Matilda, in 1957.

His son, Albert, by his first marriage, had been working full time on the farm for some nine years by then, and John, a son from his second marriage, joined him in 1928. After the successful application for a larger cane assignment, the farm ownership was divided three ways, making Albert and John equal partners with their father.

William (Harry) was very active in community affairs. In 1922, he donated ten acres for a school at Windermere and was Chairman of the Cannon Valley Hall committee. He was on the original hospital committee and the ambulance committee. In 1931, he served on the Canegrowers’ Executive and was on the local Cane Prices Board for ten years. He was a Shire Councillor for thirty years and a representative on the Bowen Harbour Board. He also became Grand Master of the Masonic Lodge.

A keen cricketer, he never missed a match on the Cannon Valley pitch next to his farm, sometimes umpiring. As he grew older, he indulged his love of reading and cultivated a good vegetable garden. He died in August 1963, aged 90 years, having gone to hospital only the previous day. A few years later, Holmes Street in Proserpine was named in his memory.

Postscript: The farm at Brandy Creek is still owned by the Holmes family. Henry William Holmes’ great grandson, Andrew Holmes, now works the land having taken over from his father, Keith, who was Albert’s son.

Story and photo courtesy Proserpine Historical Museum and “Memories” written by Madge Holmes.

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Henry William Holmes. Photo supplied.

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