Paynes Find Cemetery

Payne’s Find A Sad Drowning Fatality – A gloom was cast over Payne’s Find on the 6th inst when it became known that Mr and Mrs Godfrey had lost their infant son Fredrick John who was accidentally drowned while his mother was engaged in domestic duties. The little chap was playing with other children a little older than himself and wandered away. About 15 minutes later, the mother, going in search of her child, was horrified to find him floating in about 2 ft of water in an abandoned costeen. The mother gave the alarm and in a few minutes there were a number of residents on the spot whose efforts at artificial respiration were fruitless, the child being past human aid.
Much sympathy is felt for Mr and Mrs Godfrey in their sad bereavement; The little boy was only 16 months old. The funeral took place on the 7th ifcBt. and was largely attended, all work being abandoned. At the graveyard, the remains were preceded by schoolchildren. The Chief mourners at the graveside were father and brother. The pallbearers Were Messrs G. Leach, T. Payne, F. Martin and F. Robertson. Mr Diokeon officiated at the grave, the deceased being buried according to the rites of the Church of England

PAYNE’S FIND SUICIDE –  INQUEST

On Tuesday afternoon Mr J. W. Atkinson, J.P., acting coroner, conducted an inquiry into the circumstances surrounding the death of Horace Clement Green, aged 43 years, part owner of Pindabunna Station, Payne’s Find, who was found dead in an Austin car at a spot 100 yards off tho Payne’s Find-Youanmi road on June 24th last. Constable Flanders examined the witnesses John PringJe Clarke, Pastoralist and principal of Pullargaroo Station, stated that his homestead was 10 miles from Payne’s Find. He visited Payne’s Find on June ’24, as his son and his son’s wife were to go to Perth with Mr W. J. Green. They loft the homestead at 11 a.m. for Payne’s Find, travelling along the wet weather road as the other road was impassable. At a windmill 2 miles, from the homestead and 100 yards off the main Youanmi road, he saw the Pindabunna car parked on the far side of the windmill. Thinking the car had broken down, he called out ”Clem” but got no reply. The witness stopped his car and went towards the other vehicle.  The witness then saw the deceased and caught him by the left leg and immediately realised that the deceased was dead, as his leg was cold and stiff. As it was still dark, he struck a match and saw a rifle, which he identified when produced in Court he resumed his journey to Payne’s Find and informed Mr W. J. Green of the tragedy.
About 8 a.m., on returning to his homestead, he sent word to Mr Tennyson Green, the brother of the deceased and also a part owner in Pindabunna Station. At 3 30 p.m. he saw Constables Flanders and Taylor near the scene of the tragedy and accompanied the police to the car The deceased’s feet were near the accelerator and head near the left-hand door. He saw a bullet wound in the deceased’s forehead, and three fingers of the left hand were holding the barrel of a 22 calibre rifle, the stock of which was resting on the deceased’s knee. He had known the dead man for 20 years. From his own observations, he was positive, that deceased had shot himself. He had no idea what might have caused the deceased to take his own life. The deceased was married with one child and was 43 years of age.

Grave of Clement Horace Green and William John Green – Paynes Find Cemetery – Photo Shire of Yalgoo

JOHANSSON Carl — 48yrs, d 15 Oct 1937, 3 miles East of Payne’s Find, Occ: Miner, Cause: Suicide while temporarily insane, Born: Stockholm, Sweden, Reg 3/1937 Yalgoo, Buried at the Paynes Find Cemetery.

Fatal Accident at Paynes Find – On Friday morning, the 7th of April last, the small community of Payne’s Find was shocked to know that a fatal accident had happened in their midst early that morning the result being the instantaneous death of Mr John Lacey — a well-known and highly respected resident of the town.
Mr Lacey, who with Mr Robert Anderson, was working a mining claim at Payne’s Find, went down the mine first thing Friday morning to bale out water when a large piece of stone weighing some hundredweights must have become dislodged and fallen, without the least warning, full on to him. Mr Anderson, who was on the surface, awaiting the signal from his mate to pull up, became alarmed at not receiving any signal and at once went below. He found Mr Lacey at the bottom of the shaft in a fearfully mangled condition and quite dead. His head had been greatly lacerated, one arm was completely severed, and his side and legs crushed. Help was at once forthcoming, and the body was brought up and removed in a vehicle to a vacant room at Mr Green’s hotel. Subsequently, during the afternoon, an informal inquest, presided over by Mr James Halligan, J.P., and a jury of three — Messrs. Genge, Cocking and Hallman — was held and proceedings were temporarily adjourned. Universal regret at the sad occurrence was felt by all the residents of the town and evidence of the respect in which the deceased was held was fully demonstrated at the funeral on Saturday morning, with almost the whole of the residents following the remains to the local cemetery, where the Burial Service was read by Mr Dickson.
Not only was Mr Lacey held in great esteem by the Mining community of the town, but he was also held in high honour by reason of his having served at the front throughout the recent war and although suffering severely at times from the effects of such an experience, he was, nevertheless, able to engage in his mining duties and was a consistent and hard worker. It is understood that the deceased has a mother living in the Old Country and to her, the deepest sympathy goes from one and all at Payne’s Find.

Payne’s Find – Obituary
Very sincere sympathy was felt last week by the residents of Payne’s Find, when it became known that, during the early hours of Thursday morning  Arthur Marriott had died after a very short illness. The little child was two and a half years of age.

MT. MAGNET – Hurtling 200 feet down a shaft, a pulley roller killed instantly 56 year old Thomas Henry Vanstan, mine proprietor at Payne’s Find, on Friday afternoon. Vanstan’s body, which was dreadfully injured, was shot from the platform where he was working and sank in 30 feet of water. For three hours the victim’s partner searched frantically in the waterlogged shaft before the body was recovered. Vanstan was part owner of the Marigold gold mine at Payne’s Find, 98 miles from Mt. Magnet. Recently with the assistance of Stanley Oliver, his partner, he decided to re-open the mine, which had been closed for about nine months. Investigation revealed that a large quantity of water had seeped into the main shaft, and on Friday, Vanstan established himself on the platform at the 250 feet level, from where he commenced bailing- operations. The shaft extended to a depth of 280 feet, the last 30 feet being filled with water.
On the surface, Oliver supervised the working of the horse winch with which the buckets of water were being drawn to the surface over a pulley. Operations were proceeding smoothly when one of the rollers which kept the pulley wires from fraying on the side of the shaft broke loose from its bearings. It was only 40 feet from the surface, and, gaining terrific velocity in its descent the shaft struck Vanstan full in the head. The force of the blow knocked Vanstan from the platform and his body sank into 30 feet of water. Hurriedly descending the shaft, Oliver commenced fishing for the body in the dense water, using a grappling iron attached to 40 feet of half-inch piping. Three hours later the probing iron caught hold of Vanstan’s clothing and brought the body to the surface. Constable L. Taylor, of Mt. Magnet, proceeded to Payne’s Find, where he carried out an inquiry into the mishap. Vanstan was a well-known and popular figure in the Payne’s Find district. He was buried at the township on Saturday.