Obituaries Australia

The death of Mr. William Robertson, of Gringegalgona, Balmoral, which occurred in Melbourne on the 6th August, severed another link in the chain of men who were connected with the early pastoral days in Victoria. Mr. Robertson was born in New South Wales in 1839, and came to Struan, Victoria, in 1843 with his father, Mr. Duncan Robertson, and other members of the family. Struan was then owned by his uncles, Messrs. John and William Robertson. In 1848 his father and his uncle, Mr. Alex. Davidson, purchased Latimer, near Casterton. This partnership continued until 1860, when Mr. Robertson sold his share to Mr. Davidson, and bought Gringegalgona from Messrs. Lewis Bros. In 1882 Mr. Duncan Robertson died, and since then Gringegalgona has been in the possession of his son and daughter, Mr. William and Miss May Robertson. The latter and her sister, Mrs. Robertson, widow of Mr. Lachlan Robertson, of Barmedman, N.S.W., are now the sole surviving members of the family. Mr. Robertson had a notable acquaintance with the settlement of the Western District, and being fond of a good horse, he usually had one or two to carry his colours on the racecourse. His recollections took him back to the time when Lindsay Gordon, Cuthbert Fetherstonhaugh, and other crack riders rode over the "fields of Coleraine" and elsewhere, and he remembered clearly the events of those and earlier times. Gringegalgona has long been noted for its hospitality, and it may safely be said of Mr. Robertson that he had no enemies. No good cause ever found him other than willing to help it. This giving was done in a quiet, unostentatious way characteristic of the man.