History
Rosetta Downs was first settled in 1869 by Charles Chown.
Charles Chown was born in Exeter, Devonshire, England in 1827 and was the youngest son of Charles Chown and his wife Mary (nee Copp).
Initially apprenticed as a builder to his father, young Charles travelled first to France and then later to the USA (Chicago) to learn his trade and reduce the term of his apprenticeship, as overseas experience enabled a reduction to the normal 7-year apprenticeship term.
On his return to England from America, Charles was a qualified tradesman, proficient in every aspect of building – brickwork, stonework, plastering, tiling, tuck pointing and slating – skills to be of great importance to him and his family in the years to come.
In the late 1850s, Charles Chown married Eliza Chapple, the daughter of a Bristol butcher and in 1859 emigrated aboard the Charlotte W. White to the booming city of Melbourne, Australia. The voyage took 6 months and on arrival in Melbourne, Charles and his wife took up residence in Richmond with Charles finding work as a bricklayer on Scott’s Hotel.
In early 1861, Charles joined the “gold rush” and journeyed to Ballarat, leaving Eliza in Richmond. However, fortune did not favour him and he soon returned to Richmond before proceeding to recently discovered goldfields at Stringers Creek (now known as Walhalla).
In 1863, he left Walhalla intending to return to Richmond to his wife and son, William Henry born in Richmond on 28 December 1861. However, on his way to Port Albert to catch a ship to Melbourne, he passed through Rosedale and obtained work on Paul Cansick’s Rosedale Hotel. With work in hand and impressed by Rosedale, Charles sent for Eliza and William Henry to join him in Rosedale, which they later did travelling by ship to Port Albert and then by coach to Rosedale along the “Old Rosedale Road”.
On the way to Rosedale, a young female passenger of 18 years of age was knocked from the top of the coach by an overhanging tree limb and killed – testament to the hazardous nature of travel at the time. She was buried where she fell.
With his family now in Rosedale and plenty of work around for skilled tradesman, Charles established a building contractor business – taking on projects both solely and in joint venture with carpenters William Allen and Thomas Anderson both of Rosedale, and George Wynd and Mr. Fidler both carpenters living in Sale.
Some of the buildings on which Charles did the brickwork or roof slating were:
- The Exchange Hotel Rosedale
- The Rosedale Post Office
- The Anglican Church – Rosedale
- The Presbyterian Church Rosedale
- The Catholic Church Rosedale
- Summerlea at Newry
- Bank of Australasia in Sale
- Kilmany Park Racing Stables (for William Pearson)
- Holey Plain Homestead (for Edward Menzies Crooke)
Whilst living in Rosedale, Charles and Eliza had additional children – Eliza (18 December 1864), Jane (27 March 1867), and Lucy (1869).
Around the same time as the birth of Lucy, Charles selected land on the Latrobe River in the Parish of Holey Plain and as per the requirements at the time, erected a house on the selected land as part of “developing” it.
Being a bricklayer, the dwelling that was erected was made of brick – which was unusual for the time – and still stands on the property to this day. In time the simple structure first erected was developed into a settlers cottage with a kitchen and washing facilities separate from parlour and sleeping quarters – at which point Charles, Eliza and family took up residence, truly settling the selected land. On 14 July 1871, another daughter Emily Charlotte was born in the newly constructed house, followed by Charles on 24 February 1874, Annie on 4 September 1875, Alice Mary on 6 June 1877, Fanny Louise on 29 June 1879, Arthur Edward on 11 March 1882, and Alfred John on 30 June 1887. There were 10 children in all – 6 girls and 4 boys.
When first settled, the property was a wilderness. Water was drawn from a “dipping log” specially adzed to make the surface flat, that stuck out into a natural waterhole, and whilst hard to imagine now the whole area was rugged bush.
In the 1870s, the railway was built through the district truly opening Gippsland up.
On the death of Charles Chown on 2 March 1897, the management of the newly established farm fell to Eliza, assisted by her sons and daughters – especially William Henry who returned from gold mining in Coolgardie and Kalgoorlie when his father died.
In 1940, William Henry Chown died and another William Henry – known to all as Bill, the third son of Alfred John and Rosetta Trainor Chown went to work the farm. Bill Chown enlarged and improved the property, purchasing Robert Tanner’s place next door and on Bill’s death in 2002, his nephew Alfred John Chown took over the property, maintaining uninterrupted Chown family involvement with the land since its original selection. Alfred, greatly assisted by his father Alfred James Chown, has overseen the recent improvements to the property and named the property Rosetta Downs in honour of Rosetta Trainor Chown, his grandmother. The logo for the property reflects the green fertility of the river flats, the main production of beef cattle and the dipping log from whence the early Chown settlers drew their water.
As part of the ongoing improvements to the property, Alfred and his wife Donna have to restored the original settlers’ cottage to its original condition as part of the larger project building a substantial Homestead on the property.
GENERAL DESCRIPTION
Rosetta Downs is a cattle and sheep grazing property located in the Shire of Wellington some 5 kilometres east of Rosedale on the Rosedale-Longford Road.
The stated aim of Rosetta Downs is to establish and maintain a profitable and innovative livestock and fodder production business that produces livestock and fodder of high quality in an environmentally friendly and well organised way that leads Rosetta Downs to be known nationally as a leading producer of cattle, lambs and fodder
Rosetta Downs encompasses 600 acres consisting of river flats fronting onto the Latrobe River and terraced country running along the Rosedale –Longford Road. It is made up of mostly grey clay loams in the southern part of the property (the terraced areas) falling away to alluvial to heavy type loams on the river flats. A small area of the low-lying terraced country has peat type soils. The topography is basically level to very gently undulating river flat interspersed with lagoons and some gullies. The Melbourne to Bairnsdale railway line runs through the property and crosses the Latrobe River via a series of wooden bridges built in the 1870s.
The property has some 320 acres under centre pivot irrigation and some 180 acres under traveller irrigation serviced by permanent water rights from the Latrobe River and from the extensive billabongs that serve as water storage dams.
The property is capable of running some 200-250 breeder cows and 300-500 ewes – breeding lambs for meat production as well as producing hay and silage fodder.
Infrastructure and Pastures
PASTURES
Irrigated pastures are typically made up of fescues and red and white clovers and Lurerne Dryland pastures consist of a blend of Holdfast Phalaris, Australian II Phalaris, Kara Cocksfoot, Lincoln Perennial Ryegrass, Tahora Super Superstrike, Paradena balansa Super Superstrike, Denmark Sub Clover Superstrike, Laura Sub Clover Superstrike, and Gosse Sub Clover Superstrike.
The property is generally fertilized heavily with super, or rice hull organic chicken manure and urea / minerals mix at the rate of 100 kilograms per hectare.
Crops are planted annually with brassica, chicory, oats, triticale and sorghum in the main used to fatten lambs and steers and to make hay an silage.
YARDS & SHEDDING
The property has “Prattley” steel cattle yards to accommodate 500 head and “Prattley” steel sheep yards for 1000 sheep.
There are two large machinery sheds (30x60m and 30x90m) each with a large and well- appointed workshop, two large hay sheds and a three stand shearing shed on Rosetta Downs.
Residences
The property has two residences the “Managers residence” and the Homestead.
The manager’s residence is a three bedroom recently renovated weatherboard /cement sheet dwelling of ample size.
The Homestead residence consists of the original settlers cottage which has been fully renovated and upgraded, a stables which houses an upstairs modern living area and the Homestead itself, surrounded by landscaped gardens.
Cattle Production
Rosetta Downs has a line of 200 certified Angus breeders. Breeding cows are joined with selected bulls to breed weaners that meet the requirements of the export feedlot market. Only quality certified black Angus bulls or semen are used in the breeding process to produce angus cattle focusing on sires that produce low birth weight and fast growing “solid” good looking calves with length.
Each year the “pick” of Angus heifer calves are retained and inserted into the breeding program to build breeder numbers and replace culled breeders. Steers are generally sold at 12-14 months of age between 280 – 320kg in weight and heifer calves not retained for breeding are sold at 14 – 16 months at 280 –320kg in weight.
Cattle Traceability
Via use of the National Livestock Identification Scheme and on property scanners linked to Stock and Pasture Management software, Rosetta Downs has full traceability of its stock both for breeding and market.
Lamb Production
The aim of the lamb breeding program is to maintain a composite breeding flock turning off solid export weight lambs at 6 months of age. Lambs are sold at above 52 kilograms live weight (24-26 Kg carcase weight).
In January /March each year lambs are also bought in for finishing and sale.
Crop / Fodder Production
The property aims to produce enough fodder in the form of hay and silage each year to satisfy its own requirements as well as sell hay and silage as fodder.