On the evening of Monday 20th October 1896, three men of Kanowna, Open Call stockbroker Thomas Moore Fletcher, 22-year-old photographer John Minden Caulfeild, and Richard Baugh, cycled out to Lake Gwynn and set up a camp on the western shore of the lake about 5 miles from Kanowna. They had hired ‘The Gwynn’, a flat bottomed punt which was 17 ft in length and 4ft 6in wide. It was already lakeside and everything was in place for an early start to their duck shooting the following morning.
The Gwynn – a flat bottomed punt – Photo Robert Baugh
Early next morning, the punt already prepared with boughs and branches placed along its side to camouflage the shooters on board was readied at the edge of the lake. Baugh positioned himself on a narrow isthmus that projected out into the lake about 30yds away to act as a spotter, while Fletcher and Caulfeild waited in the boat, their guns lying in the stern. Baugh suddenly shouted, “Look out there are some ducks coming!”.
‘On hearing this Caulfeild stooped to pick up his shotgun, but in doing so the left barrel exploded when a twig from one of the camouflage branches came into contact with the trigger.’
The sound of the discharged shot and the shouting that followed caused Baugh to race back to the punt where he found his friend in a terrible state, bleeding profusely from a gaping wound in his lower abdomen. Fletcher was immediately dispatched to town to fetch Dr. Brown, while Baugh stayed with Caulfeild to dress the wound as best he could and to comfort his friend. Help arrived at 7:45am and Caulfeild was immediately loaded into a buggy and the trip back to town was commenced. Sadly his injury was so severe that he died before reaching town.
In the days which followed, an inquest was conducted by Constable Smith of the Kanowna police and his finding was as follows: the deceased met his death from a gunshot wound accidentally caused by himself. There was no blame attributed to Baugh and Fletcher.
‘A sadness descended over the town as young Caulfeild had made an impression on the town with his ‘gentlemanly spirit’.
He had endeared himself to the people of the town by always being at the forefront of any initiative to further the advancement of the town. His interest in charity work, especially in relation to the local hospital, was but one of the organisations to which he devoted his time and effort. In addition, his active membership in other associations included the Literary and Debating society and the local cricket, tennis, bicycle, and gun clubs.
A crowd of 300 townspeople, the largest gathering to that point in the town’s short history, followed the heart to the local cemetery where a number of the town’s civic leaders bore Caulfeild’s coffin to its final resting place. Richard Baugh had a marble tombstone erected over his good friend’s grave in the ‘old cemetery’.
The newly erected memorial on the grave of John Caulfeild in the Old Kanowna Cemetery – Photo Robert Baugh
Over a period of several months, Baugh acted as executor of Caulfeild’s estate, and a great deal of correspondence was exchanged with Caulfield’s father in Berkshire, England, and Baugh in the ensuing months. Eventually, the estate matters were settled and when this time came, Caulfeild senior made an offer of £120 ($15,992) to the town of Kanowna to establish some sort of memorial to the memory of his son. He did not specify what form this should take but wanted to record the family’s gratitude for the respectful way their sons affairs had been handled and hoped whatever was decided would benefit the people of the town. At first, erecting and naming a pavilion at the Recreation Ground in Caulfeild’s honor was favored but after many meetings and much discussion, the decision was reached to build a memorial library, a decision that was warmly received by the deceased man’s family.
The Caulfeild Memorial Library – Photo Richard Baugh
It took some time for the planned memorial library to become a reality, owing to the fact that an expected £200 ($25,980) government grant to construct a separate building failed to materialise in the short term. After several delays, the money was paid and in March 1900, the Caulfeild Memorial Library was operating in a large room attached to the Municipal Chambers. Shelving held some 400 books including classic novels and anthologies of poetry and a separate reference section secured behind glass doors. Initially, the membership of the library was strong, but as the population declined, library use fell away accordingly.
All that remains of this memorial today – Photo Danelle Warnock
John Minton Caulfeild was the son of Francis William Caulfeild (1843-1934) and Anne Charlotte Eliza nee Bunbury (1844-1934). He was born on Aug 29th 1874 at Crowthorne, Berkshire, England, and was a twin to his sister Dorothy Caulfeild.
Francis William Caulfeild (1843-1934) and Anne Charlotte Eliza nee Bunbury (1844-1934). Photo Ancestry.com
Ref: Wealth for the Willing: The story of Kanowna by Robert Baugh
This book can be purchased directly from the author willettonbob@hotmail.com mobile 0428 824 208 pr from the eastern Goldfields Historical Soc in Boulder.
Moya Sharp
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