The namesake of Scottsdale’s streets

• Bonnie Heazlewood-Foster, the great granddaughter of early settler to Scottsdale Thomas Diprose Heazlewood.

By Daisy Baker
09 January, 2019

DRIVING through the streets of Scottsdale, Ellenor, Christopher, William and Mary are all names you see on street signs daily but what you may not know is the history behind them.
Prior to the railway being built in Scottsdale, early settler Thomas Diprose Heazlewood owned half of the town, and his sister Mrs Jane Tucker owned the other half.
Mr Heazlewood lived with his wife Mary and their nine children opposite the RSL Museum, where the wooden carving of Simpson and his donkey now stands.
TD Heazlewood and his sister eventually sold off their land so the railway could go through, naming the streets after their family members.
Bonnie Heazlewood-Foster, the great granddaughter of TD Heazlewood, has been collecting family history for much of her life.
“I’ll take you on a journey through Scottsdale… you’re coming down George Street, you go into Alfred Street that was named after Uncle Alf, then you come into Christopher Street, that’s Uncle Chris, then you come into Charles St, that’s Uncle Charlie,” she said.
“Ellenor Street was named after the eldest of the family, who was their only daughter. Aunty Ellenor, she was Mrs Gregory and she lived in a big house just near the Mechanics’ Hall in King Street where the new post office is.
“From what I’ve been told, when she died her will stated that her daughter ‘Lenie’ (Ella) could live at the house until she died or got married (after which she would have to vacate the premises), and the building would then be held in trust for the new post office to be built for the people of Scottsdale and that’s what they did.”
Ms Heazlewood-Foster said King and George street were named after King George.
“I stand to be corrected on this but I’ve always been told that Mary street was after my great grandmother,” she said.
“However it could also be named after King George’s wife Queen Mary, although there is no Queen Street.
“On the other side of Scottsdale, Jane Tucker built the big homestead called Beulah, and when she sold her part she named that section after her kids.”
When TD Heazlewood sold his portion of Scottsdale, he bought four 100-acre blocks at Springfield.
“He gave them to four of his sons: Arthur John, which is Grandpa, got one, then up the back was Uncle Charlie’s and that is now Robert and Belinda Hall’s private home,” Ms Heazlewood Foster said.
“Then you go next door and that was Uncle Alf’s then in the front was Uncle Chris.
“Two are still in the Heazlewood name and the other two are in the Hall name.”
The farm that was once owned by Arthur John Heazlewood has been in the family for four generations and is now owned by Ms Heazlewood-Foster’s cousin Terry.
Ms Heazlewood-Foster is concerned that when she passes on, this will be the end of the Heazlewood name in the area, so she is making sure the history is preserved.
Ms Heazlewood-Foster recently unveiled a plaque at the Cenotaph in Scottsdale, in memory of her uncle Jim, her dad’s brother, who was killed in the Middle East in 1941.
“By having that there, it’s keeping the family name in Scottsdale and I’ve done a similar one at St Paul’s church in Springfield where they’ve got a cenotaph and I donated the flagpole and another lovely plaque.”
She said TD Heazlewood’s family, who the streets are named after, formed the first orchestra on the North-East Coast of Tasmania and they played many local events and dances.
Ms Heazlewood-Foster is in the process of having her family history digitised so it can be accessed by members of the public.
“I want it to be out there, not shut in the back room where no one can read it. It’s got to be shared,” she said.
“Same with photos – I get six copies at a time and send them to whoever wants them because it must be shared and kept alive.
“I’ve been collecting family history for most of my life and I suppose it’s because my dad kept things of my mother’s (she died when I was just 15 months old) for my brother and I so we had things to remember her by.”
Ms Heazlewood-Forster said her advice to people who don’t know much about their family history is to start with writing down what they know.
“We’ve all got a history and a story to tell. You can start to write details from your lifetime: when you were born, who your parents, grandparents and great grandparents were.
“Start with that and then you can write what your first memories are of your family members, what you did at school, who your school teachers were, and you document all that and you go through life keeping note of what you do, where you travel and so forth, by the time if you get to 80 or 90 if you’re lucky enough, you have got a wonderful document of family history.”