Mr. Arthur Montgomery Coutts, a member of a highly respected pioneering family in northern Victoria, died on 29th September at his home, Ellerslie, Fernihurst, some 50 miles north of Bendigo. He was a son of the late George and Ann Coutts and was born at Salisbury, in north western Victoria, on 23rd June 1881. With his parents he moved to Fernihurst at the age of five, when his father purchased Ellerslie, and remained there until his death.
Up till 1946 the late Mr. Coutts was in partnership with his brothers, who control other well known stations in the district, but in that year there was a readjustment of family interests and the firm of A. M. Coutts and Son was established. This partnership of father and son took over the Ellerslie Merino stud, which had been carefully built up by Mr. Coutts over the years, and it continues to be prominent at agricultural shows in northern Victoria. In particular, the late Mr. Coutts was keenly interested in the activities of the Boort Agricultural and Pastoral Society and was a consistent supporter of that show for many years. He was also a member of the Country Party and several primary producer organisations, whilst his assistance in other spheres was always gladly given.
The late Mr. Coutts, who had not been in good health for a number of years, was of a retiring nature, but nevertheless was a staunch supporter of all things that meant progress in his district. In 1923 he married Miss Mary Elizabeth Boyd, who survives him, together with one son (Robert Austin) and a daughter (Mrs. L. A. Rollinson).
'Coutts, Arthur Montgomery (1881–1957)', Obituaries Australia, National Centre of Biography, Australian National University, https://oa.anu.edu.au/obituary/coutts-arthur-montgomery-254/text255, accessed 7 June 2023.