Jennifer Empey Family History

At 121 Rose Street Fitzroy is where my great-grandfather, William Arthur Empey, was born in 1866. Nearly six years beforehand, Fitzroy was proclaimed the first suburb of Melbourne. Previously, t he land of Fitzroy had belonged to the Woiworung tribe.   Progressively over time, crown land and privately owned hectares of land were sold. They were broken up into smaller lots. The swamps and paddocks were developed. Buildings and roads were built. Fitzroy became surrounded by suburbs. It developed into an inner city of Melbourne. In 1866, t he juxtaposition of brick cottages, stone houses, terrace houses, wood and tin roof cottages, interweaved the diverse character of Fitzroy’s residents.  Chimneys dotted the skyline. Wooden picket fences lined the unpaved footpaths. Roads were made of dirt with bluestone kerbs. Cast-iron gas street lamps lit the starry nights.  Wooden stables stood at the back along unpaved lanes.  Its people walked. They rode on horses. They sa...

“My father said, his father used to ride a bike with a tree attached to it,” said my dad, "to stop it from going too fast". In the 1890s bicycle riding and races were a common occurrence. Bikes were categorised as ‘machines’. They could be hired or bought new and second-hand at the local cycle agent. Cash or terms could be negotiated. Old ones could be traded in as partial payment for another. Some brands included: Red Bird, Beeston Humber, Singer, Swift, Raleigh, Coventry Cross, Dunlop, Popular Star, James, Dux, Massey Harris, and Rudge Whitworth. My great-grandfather, William Arthur Empey, was a contender in bicycle races. A fine day prevailed on 17 th  March 1898 at the St. Patrick’s Day Sports. They were held at the show grounds in Heathcote, Victoria. ‘Bookies’ and ‘Spielers’ were not welcome. Trees supplied shade. Stalls had fruit. Competitors were allocated up to 250 yards in the one mile and 300 yards in the two-mile races. In the one-mile, my great-grandf...