John McKiehan, Forming Member of the Municipal Association of Victoria

Mary Tuohey our July 2002 guest speaker and participating in the Shire of  Southern Grampians Heritage Study,  stated that the importance of historical buildings is potentiated by prominent persons from their past. John McKiehan is an excellent example hereof. We are now starting a new serial "From Our Archives". Here the chronologically oldest article:

1. An Excellent Vintage 1871  Yalangah Riesling

This file lent to me (ep) by Chris Kinnealy on 24/3/2002, consists of a photocopy of a barely legible handwritten note, stapled to two pages of photocopies from "The Cyclopedia of Victoria", pp 403-4.

"July 18, 1874

A few connoisseurs had a tasting of McKiehan 1871 vintage of Yulangah Riesling grown near Mt Rouse. It proved to be a very clean sample of a dry light Aust. wine without the slightest trace of acidity, clear as crystal & of a fine straw colour & possessing a nice bouquet. The wine is equal to the lighter wines of the Murray district in condition & general treatment. It is sa... to the average of them. Mr McKiehan has successfully demonstrated that good wine may be produced in these districts if only the proper attention is given to the industry."

Shire of Mount Rouse 1864-1964 Centenary Council Meeting Wednesday 9^th September, 1964, booklet.

This centenary celebration booklet includes the minutes of the first meeting of the Western Group of the Municipal Association of Victoria, held at Hamilton Town Hall on 25^th June 1879, chaired by Cr John Mackiehan, of Mount Rouse Shire Council.  Delegates from the shires and boroughs of the Western District of Victoria met to consider the formation of a Municipal Association of Victoria.  Cr Mackiehan was elected chairman of the Western Group, and together with Cr Sargeant of Hamilton Borough and Cr Bromfield of Warrnambool Shire, appointed to represent the group at a statewide meeting to be held in Melbourne on 29^th July 1879.The founding of the Municipal Association of Victoria was inspired by an article published in “The Argus” in 1879 referring to the value of a similar organisation in England.  Mr John Mackiehan of Yulangah, Penshurst, who was President of Mount Rouse Shire Council, read the article and sent a circular on the matter to all municipal councils in Victoria.  

Mr Allan McLean, President of Maffra Shire Council, convened a meeting of Gippsland councils on 12^th June 1879 at Sale.  That meeting decided that the Mount Rouse Council’s proposals should form the basis for a general municipal conference in Melbourne.  The conference, chaired by Mr McLean, was held on 29^th and 30^th July 1879 in the Melbourne Town Hall.  The Municipal Association of Victoria was formed at that conference, and Cr Mackiehan was elected unopposed as chairman of the central committee and President of the Association.  He held office from 1879 to 1885. 

  Whilst residing in Penshurst he acted as clerk of courts for a period of several years. He took a very active part in public matters, and was president of the Shire of Mount Rouse for seven years. It was during this time that he conceived the idea of forming a Municipal Association to deal with all matters of municipal law, and the Municipal Association of Victoria is the outcome of his efforts in that direction. This association has since its inception done splendid work, and is at present stronger than ever. On leaving Penshurst in 1885 to take up the management of the Union Trustee Company of Victoria, Mr McKiehan was the recipient of many testimonials from public bodies, churches etc., one taking the form of of a purse containing 100 sovereigns. Mr McKiehan has always been prominently identified with the affairs of the Presbyterian Church. He acts as hon. treasurer for the Twentieth Century Fund of the Presbyterian Church, and is a member of the board of finance and a trustee of the trusts of the Presbyterian Church of Victoria."

 JOHN MCKIEHAN. Manager of the Union Trustee Company of Australia, 339 Collins Street, Melbourne, is one of the best known commercial men in the city, and one who has taken a very active interest in the welfare of Victoria. Born in Argyleshire, North Britain, in the year 1839, he began his colonial career at the Cape of Good Hope in 1856, remaining there for three years, during which term he acquired a thorough knowledge of everything connected with the wine industry, and after a visit to Asia Minor he sailed for New Zealand. Attracted to Victoria by the facilities offered by the Duffy Land Act of 1862, Mr McKiehan bought a property at Penshurst, in the Western District, where he established a vineyard, the first in that part of Victoria, with the exception of Geelong 

Death of Mr McKiehan

Many residents of the district will regret to learn that Mr John Mackiehan, a former resident of Penshurst, and a well known man in this part of the state, died at his residence, Mercer road, Malvern, on Thursday.  In referring to his death the “Argus” says that Mr Mackiehan was twenty-seven years manager of the Union Trustee Company of Melbourne, and in that position become one of the best known amongst the business men of the city.  Prior to that he had been identified with rural industries, having taken up land in Penshurst in 1862.  He was the first man to plant vines in that district, a pursuit in which he had cultivated a knowledge and interest during three years residence in the Cape of Good Hope.  During his residence in Penshurst he occupied the position of clerk of courts for several years, and later he was a member of the Mount Rouse shire council.  During his connection with the shire council Mr Mackiehan was an advocate of joint action in municipal matters, and the present Municipal Association can be traced to a movement in Mount Rouse, of which Mr Mackiehan was the promoter.  Throughout his life he had been an active member of the Presbyterian church, and, besides being a trustee of the Victorian Presbytery, was an elder of his church in Armadale.  He was 73 years of age at the time of his death, having been born in Argyleshire in 1839. 

Source: Hamilton Spectator 30^th March 1912  

SOURCE: Penshurst Free Press, Friday 5^th April, 1912, page 2

 Eulogistic

Ed.: First uploaded to Mt Rouse & District Historical Society's website on 3/8/2002, archived in full on 27/10/02