The Eldorado Hollows - The third generation in Australia.

Alfred Hollow (1868-1943)

Alfred HOLLOW born 22/05/1868 at Eldorado (died 10/08/1943) married Margaret LEITCH (died 19/01/1959) at Moondarra Vic. on the 27/12/1899.
 

Alfred and Margaret were married at Moondarra on 27th. December 1899. The couple were married by George Samual Lloyd a Wesleyan minister the marriage taking place in the bride's family home at Moondarra. Margaret's father Neil Leitch had died only three months previously in September. Her mother, Mary, was 61 years of age at the time of the wedding.

Alfred was living at North Prentice three miles from Rutherglen at the time of his marriage and was a miner. It would be fair to assume he was working in the mines at Rutherglen although we know he did work at Eldorado later. He worked as a powder monkey at the Cock's Pioneer mine at Eldorado until 1930, when the mine closed.

Margaret was born in Walhalla and lived at Moondarra, ten miles out of Walhalla. One of her sisters (Isabella) married Erich Bohnholtzer and their first child Neil Bohnholtzer was born at Eldorado in October 1894. The next Bohnholtzer child, Hilda Mary, was born in Moondarra in 1896. However the Bohnholtzer family, were in Rutherglen in 1898 when their third child,Sylvie Violet, was born. Margaret was sent up to help her sister at the time of Silvie's birth and presumably that is when the courtship blossomed. Alfred was probably working at Rutherglen at the time as he seems to have left Eldorado Dorado early in 1894. He didn't attend the Eldorado Lodge after November 1993.

Alfred and Margaret made their first marital home in North Prentice, all their children were born at Rutherglen. In about 1919 they moved to Wangaratta, firstly living in Baker St. and then moving to Ovens St. They lived in two houses in Ovens Street, their eventual home was at 45 Ovens Street. After leaving Cock's Pioneer in 1930 Alfred worked at Irving's Timber yard in Wangaratta.
 
 

Alfred and Margaret photographed at their Oven's Street home in 1943.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

William Charles Hollow (1870-1936)

Leslie A. HOLLOW b 01/12/1901, d 1936

William Henry HOLLOW b 18/09/1903,

Charles Rupert HOLLOW b 19/10/1907 d 1916

Flora died on 12/08/1910.

William was to marry again, this time to Anne DOBSON to whom two more children were born.

Rupert HOLLOW b 31/10/1918, d 14/6/1990

Shirley HOLLOW

William Charles Hollow ran a Drapers store in Eldorado, the family left for Carnegie in 1928.

Joseph Henry Hollow (1872-1928)

Joseph moved to Western Australia and was known around Southern Cross at about the turn of the century. He joined the AIF on 5/2/1916 at the age of 43, his enlistment papers describe him as having a bronzed complexion with blue eyes and brown hair, he was 5'4" tall and weighed 140 lbs. He was a sapper in the army and was attached to the 2nd. Reinforcements of 3rd. Company of the 1st. Mining Battalion.

The Mining Corps was made up of men that..

"were on average older than most infantrymen but were marked by a capacity for very fast work and the willingness to take great risks".

It is interesting to note that there were two other Hollows who were members of the Australian Tunnelling Coys. during WWI. [Pte. John Hollow (Army no. 5756) and Sgt. William James Hollow (Army no. 593)]

Joseph arrived at Marseilles aboard the "City of Edinburgh" on 17/5/1916 and marched in to the troop depot at Etaples, near Boulogne, on 1/6/1916. On the 24th June Joseph was admitted to hospital with pharyngitis, an infection of the throat and was subsequently shipped to England on the H.S. Newhaven.

On the 3rd of September, 1916 he was taken on strength of the 1st. Australian Tunnelling Corps. At that time the Tunnelling Corps were on active duty at Hill 60, 2.5 miles SE of Ypres. The mines at Hill 60 were active from 1915 to 1917, they were started by the British and in April 1916 were taken over by the 3rd. Canadian Tunnelling Company, many Australians worked with this unit.

The 1st. Australian Tunnelling Company took over on the 9th. of September so presumably Joseph Hollow saw active duty there. The mines were dug to undermine the German lines as part of a plan to capture Messines. The mines were finally blown up on the 7th. June 1917 and although the Australians remained until that time Joseph Hollow was hospitalised in December 1916 with influenza, taken back to England and admitted to the 1st. General hospital with bronchitis. When he recovered Joseph was joined the nursing staff, he returned to Australia on , the troop ship A54. He left England in December 1917 and was discharged from the army on the 6/3/1918.

Aunty Gwen remembers Joe visiting the family one Christmas, Ivy gave him a present and he said it was the first Christmas box he had ever received. Once during the visit the men were drinking beer and Uncle Joe offered some to Col, who accepted it gladly. Grandma was most upset about it as Col was only a youth at the time.

For more than 25 years Joseph prospected in the Yilgarn and the Phillips River area and was once described as "the Yilgarn's most reliable and best known prospector". He discovered a number of new finds but left little material wealth when he died. He discovered "the Banker", 10 miles SE of Marvel Loch and took over the lease of the "Francis Furnace". He also discovered gold in the Forrestiana area 40 miles S of Southern Cross.

Joseph was best known for discovering a new field in the Glenelg hills area 30 miles SW of Southern Cross in 1924. This field was originally known as "Hollow's Find" but was later changed to Holleton to include the names of both finders, Joseph Hollow and his partner Alfred Heaton.

The following extract from "The Holleton Story" compiled by Iris Bristow for the Narembeen Historical Society explains the discovery:

" Rumours had been rife, prior to 1924, that gold existed somewhere near the Rabbit Proof Fence. Prospectors, Mr. Joseph Hollow and his mate, Mr. Alfred Heaton decided that they would have a look and see if they could locate any of the gold that was supposed to be there.

Starting out with a prospecting outfit and a load of provisions, they went down the line from Southern Cross, and struck the Rabbit Proof Fence at Burracoppin. They altered their course and came south for about 50 miles, travelling along the fence. When they struck the grandstone country they gradually worked east for about 2.5 miles, where they found traces of gold. After considerable work they succeeded in locating a leader, "which was to rich to leave". The date was September 5th, 1924.

The Reward lease of 24 acres (Number 3280) was approved by the Governor in Executive Council on the 15th. of July, 1925, and rent for 5 years was remitted (the maximum number of years allowed). It was described as being 3 miles North East of the 50 mile peg on the Rabbit Proof fence. The Mining Registrar referred to the locality as Glenelg Hills, and reported that Hollow and Heaton were working with the assistance of the State Prospecting Board.

The find was known as Hollow's Find, and sometimes as Hollow and Heaton's Find. The name was finally fixed as Holleton in 1927, as it was quite a euphonious name, and also perpetuated the names of the original finders.

On locating the gold in September 1924, Hollow and Heaton dollied about half a ton of stone for a result of 12 ozs of gold worth 3-19-6 ($8) per oz. Later they treated a further 25 tons for 8 oz per ton at the Coolgardie Battery. ......"

Joseph Hollow eventually sold his share in the Reward mine to his partner Alfred Heaton.

Joseph died in Southern Cross on 20/9/1928 and was buried on 23/9/1928 in grave no. 120 in the Anglican section of the Southern Cross cemetery.