No. 1553 - Hastings - Congregational 'Memorial Church' - "The Mother of the Community" (1882-1921)
Hastings is located in south-western Tasmania and lies approximately 6 kilometres west of Dover. It was once a thriving timber town built around the large Hastings timber mill. The discovery of good stands of timber in the 1870s led to the growth of the town and its port at Ida Bay.
In the early 1880s the settlement at Hastings was described in some detail by a correspondent for the Hobart Mercury:
“Hastings has, in connection with the timber, cutting business, about 21 miles of tramway, laid into almost inexhaustible and grand beds of timber, and the establishment employs, direct, from 50 to 60 hands. There are 54 buildings of one description and another dotted about, some of them surrounded with good patches of cultivation, and the entire population comprises about 254 souls. Amongst the public establishments may be mentioned a very good school, under Mr. Langley, the books of which show an average of 40; a post and telegraph office, the latter managed by Mrs. Langley. There is also in existence the Good Templar Lodge and lately erected a Congregational Church, in which Divine service is conducted by the Rev. Mr. Rivett, with occasional services by other gentlemen of the above denomination…”.
Construction of the Congregational church dates back to January 1881 when a foundation stone was laid and tenders advertised. An article published in the Mercury described the progress made by the Congregational community:
“As to Christian services we are better off than many another settlement of a larger population, having services twice every Sabbath day, which are well attended, and a Sabbath school, conducted by Mr. Wm. McDougall, numbering some 40 scholars. We are Congregationalists, having been taken care of by that denomination ever since this settlement was formed. The Rev. J. M. Bayley has visited us now for nearly seven years, and still comes monthly, alternately with his co-pastor, Mr. Rivett, and the other Sabbaths are filled up by Messrs. D. Chapman (Port Esperance) and our John Hay, who are lay readers. Last Sabbath Mr. Bayley was here and preached to large congregation, and also on Monday evening, at the close of which service a meeting of the Building Committee was held to receive tenders for the carpentering work in connection with the erection of a Congregational Church, to the memory of, the late Mrs, Hay. Seven tenders were opened, ranging from £78 to £189, the committee deciding to accept that of Alex. Jarger at £89. The church is to be a weatherboard building, on a good stone foundation, 40ft. long by 20ft. wide, with a falling floor. There is to be a porch 10ft. square, and a vestry, 14ft, x12ft., with a fireplace in it, and the whole is to be plastered. The stone foundation is already completed, and under the centre window is the memorial stone, being the words, "In Memoriam, Annie Matilda Hay, 1881." The timber is cut and ready, and the carpenter hopes to have the whole finished within four months from this, and when completed it will be an ornament to the township, and a great comfort and convenience to the people”.
Annie Hay was the wife of John Hay, the owner of the Hastings Timber Mill and a local magistrate. Her death in August 1880, at the age of 46, was deeply felt by the Hastings community:
“She was in truth "the mother" of the community, always going about doing good in the most unostentatious, pleasing, and self-denying way, and she is greatly missed by young and old, who all deeply mourn her loss”.
It is very likely that Annie Hay's role as "mother of the community" was borne out of the tragedy she experienced in her own life with the loss of three children, with two dying in 1866. She was buried at the Congregational cemetery at Franklin.
The Memorial Church was officially opened on Sunday 5 March 1882. A report in Mercury provides a description of the opening and subsequent fundraising ‘Tea Meeting”:
“Very few startling or important events occur in our little village. We keep "the noiseless tenor of our way," but an event worth recording is the opening of the new Memorial Church. This edifice was commenced in February, 1881. Four months previously it was suggested that a church be built in memory of a deceased lady who had spent many years in administering to the wants and adding to the welfare of those within her reach. The suggestion was favourably received, and a local effort to obtain funds resulted, in a few days, in gathering in about £60. The firm of Facy, Hay, and Co., greatly strengthened the hands of the committee appointed, by granting the necessary hardwood, and by making a grant of one quarter-acre of land whereon to build. The plans were furnished by Mr. J. E. Heron, who for some months supervised the work…Good progress was made during the past year, and the seating and final arrangements for opening were made during the last month. Special services were arranged for opening the church on Sabbath last. Mr. B. S. Bird preached morning and evening, and we were favoured with earnest and practical discourses, marked by close reasoning, and full of Biblical teaching. The attendance was full at both services, and the collections were good”.
The report continued:
“On Monday the tea meeting was held in the schoolroom. The tables were arranged tastefully, and the supplies of tempting articles were provided by Mr. G. Arnold, Hobart. Many visitors attended from Franklin, Shipwrights' Point, Geeves Town, and Esperance. After the eating and drinking had spoiled the people's appetites, about 150 adjourned to the new church, which was gaily decorated with flowers. The appearance of the interior especially was very pleasing. Many expressed their pleasure in viewing such a well-lit and comfortable building….”.
Fittingly, the first marriage to take place in the Memorial Church was that of Victoria Hay on the 10th of October 1882 when the eldest daughter of Annie and John Hay, married John Jefferson of Fernshawe, Victoria.
In the early 1880s the settlement at Hastings was described in some detail by a correspondent for the Hobart Mercury:
“Hastings has, in connection with the timber, cutting business, about 21 miles of tramway, laid into almost inexhaustible and grand beds of timber, and the establishment employs, direct, from 50 to 60 hands. There are 54 buildings of one description and another dotted about, some of them surrounded with good patches of cultivation, and the entire population comprises about 254 souls. Amongst the public establishments may be mentioned a very good school, under Mr. Langley, the books of which show an average of 40; a post and telegraph office, the latter managed by Mrs. Langley. There is also in existence the Good Templar Lodge and lately erected a Congregational Church, in which Divine service is conducted by the Rev. Mr. Rivett, with occasional services by other gentlemen of the above denomination…”.
Construction of the Congregational church dates back to January 1881 when a foundation stone was laid and tenders advertised. An article published in the Mercury described the progress made by the Congregational community:
“As to Christian services we are better off than many another settlement of a larger population, having services twice every Sabbath day, which are well attended, and a Sabbath school, conducted by Mr. Wm. McDougall, numbering some 40 scholars. We are Congregationalists, having been taken care of by that denomination ever since this settlement was formed. The Rev. J. M. Bayley has visited us now for nearly seven years, and still comes monthly, alternately with his co-pastor, Mr. Rivett, and the other Sabbaths are filled up by Messrs. D. Chapman (Port Esperance) and our John Hay, who are lay readers. Last Sabbath Mr. Bayley was here and preached to large congregation, and also on Monday evening, at the close of which service a meeting of the Building Committee was held to receive tenders for the carpentering work in connection with the erection of a Congregational Church, to the memory of, the late Mrs, Hay. Seven tenders were opened, ranging from £78 to £189, the committee deciding to accept that of Alex. Jarger at £89. The church is to be a weatherboard building, on a good stone foundation, 40ft. long by 20ft. wide, with a falling floor. There is to be a porch 10ft. square, and a vestry, 14ft, x12ft., with a fireplace in it, and the whole is to be plastered. The stone foundation is already completed, and under the centre window is the memorial stone, being the words, "In Memoriam, Annie Matilda Hay, 1881." The timber is cut and ready, and the carpenter hopes to have the whole finished within four months from this, and when completed it will be an ornament to the township, and a great comfort and convenience to the people”.
Annie Hay was the wife of John Hay, the owner of the Hastings Timber Mill and a local magistrate. Her death in August 1880, at the age of 46, was deeply felt by the Hastings community:
“She was in truth "the mother" of the community, always going about doing good in the most unostentatious, pleasing, and self-denying way, and she is greatly missed by young and old, who all deeply mourn her loss”.
It is very likely that Annie Hay's role as "mother of the community" was borne out of the tragedy she experienced in her own life with the loss of three children, with two dying in 1866. She was buried at the Congregational cemetery at Franklin.
The Memorial Church was officially opened on Sunday 5 March 1882. A report in Mercury provides a description of the opening and subsequent fundraising ‘Tea Meeting”:
“Very few startling or important events occur in our little village. We keep "the noiseless tenor of our way," but an event worth recording is the opening of the new Memorial Church. This edifice was commenced in February, 1881. Four months previously it was suggested that a church be built in memory of a deceased lady who had spent many years in administering to the wants and adding to the welfare of those within her reach. The suggestion was favourably received, and a local effort to obtain funds resulted, in a few days, in gathering in about £60. The firm of Facy, Hay, and Co., greatly strengthened the hands of the committee appointed, by granting the necessary hardwood, and by making a grant of one quarter-acre of land whereon to build. The plans were furnished by Mr. J. E. Heron, who for some months supervised the work…Good progress was made during the past year, and the seating and final arrangements for opening were made during the last month. Special services were arranged for opening the church on Sabbath last. Mr. B. S. Bird preached morning and evening, and we were favoured with earnest and practical discourses, marked by close reasoning, and full of Biblical teaching. The attendance was full at both services, and the collections were good”.
The report continued:
“On Monday the tea meeting was held in the schoolroom. The tables were arranged tastefully, and the supplies of tempting articles were provided by Mr. G. Arnold, Hobart. Many visitors attended from Franklin, Shipwrights' Point, Geeves Town, and Esperance. After the eating and drinking had spoiled the people's appetites, about 150 adjourned to the new church, which was gaily decorated with flowers. The appearance of the interior especially was very pleasing. Many expressed their pleasure in viewing such a well-lit and comfortable building….”.
Fittingly, the first marriage to take place in the Memorial Church was that of Victoria Hay on the 10th of October 1882 when the eldest daughter of Annie and John Hay, married John Jefferson of Fernshawe, Victoria.
The history of the Memorial church is closely bound up with fortunes of the Hastings Timber Mill. A number of bushfires and a series of three arson attacks in 1911 were to impact on the mills viability. In 1920 a report concerning the Huon Timber Company reveals that the Hastings settlement was in serious decline:
“At the Hastings Mill of this company nearly all the houses were condemned by the Government inspector as unfit for human habitation, but the mill has been shut up”.
The Congregational church was still in use at this time however a bushfire in 1921 destroyed the church and was to contribute to the rapid demise of the town. In March 1921 the Huon Times reported:
“A very destructive fire Hastings on Saturday… did a lot of damage. The fire broke out in the bush and spread to a large heap of sawdust in the vicinity of the old sawmill. The mill has been partially ‘dismantled' the roof and other parts of it having been removed some time ago. A number of houses, the State school and the Congregational church were quickly threatened by the flames. A band of workers toiled hard to save the houses and the school and were successful in their efforts but the church was destroyed. A number of women, among them Mrs McDeVitt, a very old lady, Mrs. Craig and Mrs McDeVitt jun. pluckily attempted to save the building. They managed to get out the organ and a few of the seats and books but the remainder of the contents, together with the building were consumed The building was not insured and the loss will be considerable…”.
By the late 1930s Hastings was described as a ghost town and nothing now remains of the original settlement. Perhaps the only tangible reminder of the church is the headstone of Annie Hay, in whose memory the church was built.
“At the Hastings Mill of this company nearly all the houses were condemned by the Government inspector as unfit for human habitation, but the mill has been shut up”.
The Congregational church was still in use at this time however a bushfire in 1921 destroyed the church and was to contribute to the rapid demise of the town. In March 1921 the Huon Times reported:
“A very destructive fire Hastings on Saturday… did a lot of damage. The fire broke out in the bush and spread to a large heap of sawdust in the vicinity of the old sawmill. The mill has been partially ‘dismantled' the roof and other parts of it having been removed some time ago. A number of houses, the State school and the Congregational church were quickly threatened by the flames. A band of workers toiled hard to save the houses and the school and were successful in their efforts but the church was destroyed. A number of women, among them Mrs McDeVitt, a very old lady, Mrs. Craig and Mrs McDeVitt jun. pluckily attempted to save the building. They managed to get out the organ and a few of the seats and books but the remainder of the contents, together with the building were consumed The building was not insured and the loss will be considerable…”.
By the late 1930s Hastings was described as a ghost town and nothing now remains of the original settlement. Perhaps the only tangible reminder of the church is the headstone of Annie Hay, in whose memory the church was built.
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| See the full photograph below for information and credits |
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| Annie Hay's headstone at the Maxfield Road Cemetery outside Franklin. Photo: Sue McC on 01 Sep 2022 (Find A Grave) |
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| The Tasmanian Mail (1882) |
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| Part of the extensive rail network which serviced the Hastings Timber Mill -photograph: Libraries Tasmania - Item Number PH30/1/5041 |
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| Hastings Timber Mill workers - Tasmanian Mail (1906) |
Sources:
Mercury, Saturday 30 August 1880, page 1
Mercury, Thursday 20 January 1881, page 3
Mercury, Wednesday 20 July 1881, page 3
Mercury, Saturday 11 March 1882, page 3
Tasmanian Mail, 18 March 1882, page 8
Mercury, Thursday 12 October 1882, page 1
Mercury, Saturday 15 August 1885, page 2
Tasmanian Mail, 1 September 1906, page 21
World, Saturday 5 June 1920, page 3
Huon Times, Friday 18 March 1921, page 5
Sharples, Theo E and Congregational Union of Tasmania. Congregationalism in Tasmania, 1830-1977 : a brief history / compiled by Theo E. Sharples Congregational Union of Tasmania Hobart 1977
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/179055131/ann-matilda-hay
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