By August 1884 the hotel had changed hands when Thomas Gunter took over from Jones. Gunter had to cope with some unlawful opposition as it was reported that the North West was infested with sly grog sellers. A few months later John Blake died from delirium tremens at Millers Creek. No doubt the poor quality of the sly grog would have been a contributing factor. By September there were three wells at Gibson's Camp. Two of them produced salt water only and the third had fresh water but only managed about 200 gallons a day. There were throughs, a windlass and buckets which made it a lot easier for the teamsters to satisfy the thirst of man and beast.
A year later though, there were many complains again, mainly about the poor quality of the water and some people wondered why the government did not employ some of the many unemployed in deepening the wells. After all, lack of good water stopped all traffic in the area. In March the Conservator of Water promised to call tenders for digging a new well about three kilometres south of the camp. By February 1886 things had gone from bad to worse as there was now no water at all. Water was only available from the government well at the rate of five litres an hour. This meant it was only for foot travellers. The hotel was in real trouble now and Thomas Gunter had three times more liabilities than assets. He was advised to assign his estate to John Barker of Port Augusta as Trustee for the creditors. A month later though he had acquired the Western Hotel in Port Augusta. Thomas Gunter was a man who tried many different occupations. He had run a steam ferry between Port Augusta and Port Augusta West, had been a publican at several hotels, including the Alice Springs Hotel, been a prospector, teamster, butcher, shearer and even Mayor of Port Augusta West. When he died it was said that 'In him the Nor'West lost one whom it would be difficult to replace'.
The new publican at Gibson's Camp Hotel was Gustav Behr. He didn't seem to be much interested in keeping up the place and was warned that unless his premises were kept in better style his next application for a renewal licence would not be granted. In April 1889 he was declared insolvent and charged with false book entries and concealing property. He was sentenced to one month's imprisonment. The next publican was WG Beauchamp. From now on there seemed to be an improvement and even though there was a long-lasting drought during the 1890s and early 1900s the hotel remained open. In 1894 Henry Daw was the publican and with a large family to support he tried his hardest to make a success of it. His fifth daughter Mary Jane was married on 17 January 1894 to Robert Gibson of Kapunda followed six months later by the marriage of his son Henry James to Agnes Stuart. Not such a happy occasion was the attempted suicide by Charles Grates, blacksmith, while on his way to Port Augusta. He cut his throat and wrists and was taken to the hotel awaiting the arrival of Dr Wilson. In March 1896 a death body was found on the Nor'West track where it had been for some months. The identity of the man was never established. During the late 1890s Gibson's Camp gained an additional resident, who also was the new publican. His licence was granted on 6 June 1896. He had been and still was, both much liked and well respected all over the North.
His name was Samuel Gason from Beltana. Once again he was concerned about the welfare of the locals. In November 1896 he wrote that the country was in a terrible state owing to the severe drought. The stock was dying in hundreds everywhere and all the dams had dried up. Unless rain will fall shortly, he said, the whole country will be laid to waste. Samuel's stay was only very short as he died on 11 April 1897. The Port Augusta paper said, 'We regret having to announce the death of Mr Samuel Gason, at Gibson's Camp, on Sunday last. We are informed that information was brought to the police at Port Augusta West during last Sunday and that Mounted Constable Buttfield left on Monday to assist in the burial. It is stated that Mr Gason went to bed in his usual state of health on Saturday night and that on Sunday morning he was found dead in his bed. Deceased had been ailing for a long time past and only recently returned to Gibson's Camp from the Port Augusta Hospital where he had been for medical treatment; indeed, since leaving Beltana about 12 months ago he has been in bad health. Deceased was a widower and leaves two daughters to mourn their loss. Mr Gason will be remembered by many Northerners as a police-trooper in charge of various stations in Central Australia in years gone by. During Mr Gason's service in the Police Force he spent much of his time in endeavouring to find traces of the lost explorer Leichardt, and he at one time published a valuable work on the dialects of the native races of Central Australia. He also owned, while at Beltana, a most interesting and valuable museum of native curios, weapons, &c, Mr Gason was always a gentleman, and was highly respected by all who had the pleasure of his acquaintance. The best coffin procurable was obtained in Port Augusta and taken to Gibson's Camp (which is 62 miles west of Port Augusta), where the burial took place on Tuesday last. MT of Gibson's Camp had this poem published in June 1897, which summed up the feelings of many northerners.
Softly the rain on thy cold grave is falling,
Almost immediately after his death, the locals established the Samuel Gason Memorial Fund and the Port Augusta Dispatch invited subscriptions for a headstone to be placed on his grave. It received many small and large contributions, including 30 shillings from FM Buttfield. By June more than five pounds had been subscribed, followed by three more in July. Most of this had been collected by Charles Gunter who had taken over the hotel. At the close of subscriptions, enough money had been raised for a headstone and its freight, with the remainder handed over to his daughters, Beatrice-Ann and Edith.
*** If you would like to find out more,
|
---|