I have been really slack & neglecting my project.
Hoping to get inspired & continue with it 😊
The St James silos, in rural Victoria, were painted by artist, Tim Bowtell, telling story of the beginning of Coles first store in Australia.
George Coles Snr. purchased the north Eastern Stores in St James and Lake Rowan in 1882 and GJ Coles was born in 1885 attending the St James State School. The shops sold a great variety from household goods, fresh produce and farm supplies. GJ’s mother died in 1900 so they sold up and returned to Geelong in 1902. George Coles remarried and returned to St James in 1905, where once again the children were re-enrolled for schooling. GJ went to Melbourne to learn how to run a business and on his father’s deteriorating health returned to St James, purchasing the business in 1910. He paid £4,500 @ 5% over 3 ½ years. By 1913 he had made a profit of £2,000 and decided to sell out and open his first store in Smith St Collingwood. He never forgot where he came from and his generosity to the town earned him a portrait on the main Silo.
Such an interesting story & I had no idea that this is where G J Coles bagan.
St James is near where some of my family come from around South Pelluabla, Lake Rowan and Tungamah (where there are also silos, the first painted in Victoria by a female artist.
May 23rd, 2022
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Ian
Glad to see you back.
St James is near where some of my family come from around South Pelluabla, Lake Rowan and Tungamah (where there are also silos, the first painted in Victoria by a female artist.