BIO: Jacob was born in Somerton, England, in 1819, where he learned to grow plants and vegetables. Jacob Young emigrated to Port Phillip with his wife Elizabeth in 1848 aboard The Lysander, arriving 13th January 1849, at Port Phillip.

Somerton, England

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The Young's went to work for Dr Edward Boyd Adams, a surgeon, of Brighton, receiving 1 Pound a week without rations. Elizabeth died in 1851. Jacob married a Margaret Campbell in 1852. Jacob worked in the Botanic Gardens Melbourne for 3 years, before trying his luck on the diggings at Ballarat, but did not remain long. After an adventurous colonial career at the digging's, he settled down at Malvern to follow the occupation as a market gardener. Jacob then went to Malvern and purchased land before proceeding to Bendigo, and, in partnership with two others, opened a store. After a time spent teaming on the roads and little business success he returned to market gardening in Malvern, continuing there until 1886 when he retired from active work, entrusting the cultivation of the land to his sons. Jacob Young held a seat on the Malvern road board for eleven years. From 1870 Jacob was a councillor on the first Malvern Council for two terms. Friends described the Young's as the stock of English farmers, in coming overseas they did not lose their rustic ways nor change their speech, full of quaint expressions to Australian ears. Jacob was a stocky thick set man, with a loud voice, that "burred" with a broad county dialect.

From the HISTORY OF MALVERN 

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Beyond the first lane, wherein Cruickshank lived, was another blind lane, that formed a picturesque pocket. Fences, along its length, were broken, but straggling dog roses held them together. A full mead of soft turf carpeted the lane. A small drain, that was meant for a miniature ditch, ran alongside the fence. In the drain plants blossomed with yellow flowers, and the children called them buttercups. The lads, and lasses, of the village, billycans and jugs in hands often went along the lane for the purpose of buying milk from a market gardener, named Young, whose cottage was in the lane (Cnr Silver St and Elizabeth St).

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The lane abutted on the market gardens of Woodmason, and Young. In the lane were three cottages, tenanted by Young, Home, and a German family named Beyers. Young, and his wife, were stock of English farmers. In coming overseas they did not lose their rustic ways, nor change their speech, full of quaint expressions to Australian ears. Young was a stocky thick set man, with a loud voice, that "burred" with a broad county dialect. His wife was a tall strong woman, the mother of two sons, and three daughters, who in strength, and height, did not belie their parents. Young owned property on the east side of Nash's (Tooronga) Road (now would include Wilson, Viva and Young Streets) that he cultivated as an additional market garden. An excellent spring gave a full supply of water. Its percolations formed a gully, and the water ran until it reached High Street, and so to Gardiner's Creek.

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Jacob Henry Young was born in 1821, in Somersetshire, where he learned how to grow plants and vegetables. In 1848, when 27 years of age, he came to Victoria, as an emigrant on the ship "Lysander." After an adventurous colonial career at the diggings, he settled down at Malvern to follow the occupation of a market gardener. At the age of 65 years, he retired from his active life as a market gardener. Few residents knew Malvern better than he. For eleven years he was a member of the Road Board., His friend, colleague, and neighbour, William Wood-mason, was nine years younger than he. Woodmason came from Devon. Young was a seasoned pioneer before Woodmason ever saw Victoria. The first rushes to the gold fields were outrun when Woodmason arrived at Malvern

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Among the first residents, in Malvern, who were serious in their settlement, as landholders, and householders, in distinction from land speculators and members of land syndicates, were John Neale Cox, Henry Cawkwell, John Hunt, Cole, Alexander Gemmell, Jacob Henry Young, Thomas Colesmith, Croft, Norburn, William James, Thomas Griffiths, Henry and Adolphus Hall, Christopher Harrison, Peter Cousins, Norton Stephen, Leonard McCoy, Caleb Turner, R. G. Benson, J. C. Fell, Richard Nash, George Withers, Leonard McCoy, James Marsh, Richard McClure, Edward Scott, R. S. Sitwell and others. In 1856 Malvern, or Gardiner, had a mere handful of residents. They were a scattered community, but the hamlet at first showed a disposition to group itself in Malvern Road leading up to the crown of the hill, at the corner of Glenferrie Road, where the Malvern Hill Hotel was built.

The Woodmason family were successful market gardeners and dairy farmers, with substantial land holdings throughout the Malvern district. From 1859 the family owned land at the corner of Glenferrie Road and Malvern Road, where William Woodmason cultivated a highly successful market garden. Woodmason was Shire President and a long serving member of the Malvern Council. On his death in 1892, his son, William James Woodmason, took over the dairy and his father’s prize winning jersey herd. Woodmason became a breeder of pure breed jersey cattle and the herd was noted as one of the best in Victoria, winning several championships at the Royal Melbourne Show. Woodmason’s Melrose Dairy was established at the corner of Glenferrie Road and Malvern Road. Jersey cows were also kept at Twickenham in Waverley Road, where Woodmason had established a second Melrose Dairy. He used land at the corner of Malvern Road and Waverley Road to grow maize in order to feed his famous Melrose jersey herd. It is said that Woodmason named this area Coolgardie, according to his belief that land represented a fortune sound as gold. In 1922 Woodmason released the Coolgardie land for subdivision and Coolgardie Avenue and Melrose Street were created. The same year he also put up for sale a large area of grazing land east of Warrigal Road where he retained a section for his new home, Green Gables, in Waverley Road. In 1923 Woodmasons Ice Works were built in Glenferrie Road. Elaine Woodmason Meyer (1915-1995), the great grand-daughter of William Woodmason, was instrumental in forming the Malvern Historical Society in 1972.

(LYSANDER - 1848
Master: George Lulham, 3rd Class masters certificate, aged 34.
Tonnage: 476 tons.
        Construction: 1834 in Leith , Large repairs had been made in 1848 , when a new deck was built anf the hull copper sheathed.
In July 1848, the London Times advertised the Lysander as a fast-sailing first class coppered and copper fastened ship, lying at the Jetty, London Docks, to take on cargo for Port Phillip, commenting that she was remarkably lofty and airy between decks.
(Owners: Marshall & Co of London Port of registry: Glasgow )

         1850 - August 5th The "Australian Colonies Government Act" receives royal assent in Britain - providing for the separation from New South Wales of the Port Phillip District, to be known as Victoria, and for the eventual self-government of the Australian colonies.
November 11th The ship "Lysander" brings news to Melbourne of the passing of the Australian Colonies Government Act, which sets off four days of general rejoicing.

          In 1853 this vessel was bought by the Victorian Government and used as a hospital ship at the Quarantine Grounds at Port Phillip Heads, later still she was used as a prison hulk in Port Phillip Bay.

The Ticonderoga .

A floating horror was the disease-stricken emigrant ship Ticonderoga , 90 days out from Liverpool , which anchored at the Heads on April 3, 1853 .  News of the fearful conditions on the Ticonderoga was brought to Williamstown by Captain Wylie of the brig Champion, from Adelaide , who reported that the vessel had left Liverpool with 714 immigrants on board, that disease, principally typhoid fever and scarlatina, had spread among the passengers and that 100 deaths had occurred during the voyage.  The ship’s surgeon and his assistant had been unable to stop the spread of the disease, and the surgeon was so ill that it was feared that he, too, would die.  All the medicine and medical comforts had been exhausted, and the ship was urgently in need of fresh provisions.  In the midst of all this sickness nineteen births occurred, and more children were born as the ship lay at anchor.  The authorities at Williamstown dispatched the schooner Empire with live stock and supplies of beef and mutton, milk, vegetables, porter, wine, and spirits, and a medicine chest in charge of a doctor from the ship Ottilia to the relief of sufferers.  The doctor was faced with 300 cases of sickness, principally scarlatina, and he had to send for more aid.  The ship Lysander was requisitioned and converted into a hospital ship, and with the aid of sail and spars tents were erected on a quarantine area marked out at Port Nepean.  In addition a house occupied by Messrs. Sullivan and C ann on, lime-burners, was purchased and turned into a hospital.  It was hoped that fresh air, a liberal diet of fresh food, and healthy exercise would restore the sick, but there was further mortality.  Five deaths took place on one day, and for nearly three weeks two or three persons died daily.  The total loss of life must have been nearly 150.

For six weeks, the survivors were in quarantine.  Then, just before Christmas, the healthy passengers re-embarked on the Ticonderoga .  Their berths had been taken down and burnt, and the passengers, more than 500, had to lie on the decks for a few nights.  The Ticonderoga anchored in Hobson’s Bay on December 22, and when a steamer came alongside to take the immigrants to the pier there was a rush to leave the ill-fated ship and go ashore

  Somerton is a lovely mellow town with a wide, 17th Century market square with an octagonal, roofed Market Cross as a focal point in the centre. The square is surrounded by the town hall, elegant houses and inns which create the attractive townscape that draws visitors from all over the world. The parish church, dedicated to St Michael, is quite plain externally but contains one of the finest wooden roofs in the county, carved by the monks of Muchelney Abbey

HUNT & CO.'S 1850 DIRECTORY & TOPOGRAPHY OF THE TOWN OF SOMERTON.

Is a parish and market town in the hundred of its name and union of Langport, 123 miles W.S.W from London 30 S.S.W. of Bath, 17 E. by N. from Taunton, the like distance from Bridgewater, the two latter places being railway stations. This town is situated south of the river Cary, over which is a stone bridge, the houses are principally built of blue lias stone, as this strata is abundant in the locality; some of the buildings in the principal street are erected in good taste and have a neat and pleasing exterior, but generally throughout the town the houses are low and irregular. The church dedicated to St. Michael is a fine ancient building, possessing an octagonal embattled tower. Somerton is of great antiquity, and abounds with objects and reminiscences of an interesting character; formerly Ina, one of the best and wisest of the west Saxon kings resided here, the site of his palace is still ascertainable, and it is evident it must have been spacious, if not splendid, some portion of the building still remains, and a porch of sculptured stone work was standing within these last 9 or 10 years; but some of its most beautiful parts were lately taken away, and are now in possession of a gentleman, who deposited them in his museum on Holden Hill. The palace contained a frontage of 270 feet, and was formerly known by the name of the castle. A report is current, that at one time it had within its walls many illustrious prisoners, among whom was John, King of France, confined by order of Edward III.; but Hume and many other of our historians make no mention of it. In the Saxon era, Ethelbald king of Mercians, besieged and took the place, at that period the chief town in the county. Asurius who was chaplain of Alfred the Great, and abbot of Banwell in Somerset, wrote the annals of that monarch, which are still extant, this biographer repeatedly calls the county Somertonshire. Not far from the town the river Parret glides along with its collected waters, and associating in its progress with another river from the east, which passes by Somerton. There are almshouses here for four aged men, and an endowed Charity School. The market days are on Tuesdays, and fairs are held on the last Monday in January, on Palm Tuesday, and the Tuesdays 3, 6, & 9, weeks after it. On September 30th and November the 8th, a great quantity of superior cattle, sheep, hogs, and corn, are brought here, and the fairs and markets are very numerously attended; the rearing of and dealing in cattle are much thought of, and to the frequency of its fairs and the business transacted here, Somerton is much indebted for still being able to retain in some degree its importance. The government is vested in constables chosen by the inhabitants. There are branches of the west of England and South Wales district bank, and also of Stuckey's banking company, and a Saving's bank. At the last census in 1841, the population consisted of 1,981 persons.