Smith, John Matthew Esq. (1816-1898)

John Matthew Smith hails from Ludston Hall, Warwickshire where he studied law and was admitted to the Bar in London in 1843 (27 years). Shortly after this time he travelled to Australia, leaving his wife and family at home and set up the company Smith and Emmerton solicitors of Melbourne. Two years later his wife and family arrived in Melbourne on the Slain’s Castle and the family was established in Lonsdale street, opposite the Melbourne Hospital. Alice (the youngest child) was born her in 1853 and was the first child to be christened in St. Paul’s Cathedral. (The Age, 8 Aug 1931, p.17, Castlefield, Brighton)

From Lonsdale Street he moved to Moorabbin House, Brighton on approximately 80 acres. While a country estate, the area was of high standing. Mr Smith, an officer in the old Victorian Yeomancy Cavalry would ride to work each day. His wife and eldest daughter also liked to ride. In 1856, he bought Castlefield from Mr Thomas Splatt, a wooden house on about 280 acres. On this land he built the stone house and manicured the garden. (The Age, 8 Aug 1931, p.17, Castlefield, Brighton)

Mr Smith was known to be a tall and reserved man, who always wore a top hat and black shiny boots that almost reached his knees. He loved his home, profession and books. He also loved birds and would deal sternly with the boys who trespassed on his land to acquire bird’s eggs. “He was generous and helped many, but he was not an easy man to approach, and many lived in fear of “Old J.M.” On one occasion a man who was collecting for a widow in very poor circumstances called on Mr. Smith for a subscription. Mr Smith was reading in his library. To the somewhat timid request he growled back “Do you take me for a philanthropist?” The man, deciding that he certainly did not, made haste to leave. JM allowed him to reach the door, then equally gruffly he said, “Why rush away without your subscription and wrote out a cheque for 25 guineas” (The Age, 8 Aug 1931, p.17, Castlefield, Brighton).

John M Smith was also “a buyer of town lots in the early land sales, among his purchases being the block at the corner of Swanston and Collins Sts (Damman’s corner) for 75 pounds.” (The Australasian, 3 Oct 1942, p.27, In School and Out). He also owned about 200 acres in Fitzroy. The lot that Smith purchased in Fitzroy was section 85 in the Parish of Jika Jika, Fitzroy (Subdivision plan, State Library). He likely purchased this from one of the original purchasers given the land was subdivided in 1838-1839 and he did not arrive in Australia till 1843, but he owned the land by 1876 when the land was finally subdivided

Fitzroy – Melbourne’s First Suburb, ‘The First Suburb’ by Miles Lewis, talks about the ‘good’ lots, those at the top of the hill and fronting Victoria Parade and Nicholson St. This lot was likely the ‘poor’ lot, being very swampy with drainage problems that get frequent mentions in the papers at the time. In fact it is one of these complaints which sees him summoned to the Board of Health discussion in 1879, at which the Chair (Mr Tucker) suggests that he should consider giving land to the citizens of Fitzroy for the purpose of making a reserve.

John was an incredibly charitable man and on the spot at that meeting in July he confirmed that he would provide the area which is now Smith’s Reserve to the people of Fitzroy (The Age, 23 July 1879, p.3, A Gift to Fitzroy).

John was instrumental in Fitzroy, not just with his gift of land for a reserve, he also represented the Fitzroy ward in the Melbourne City Council from 1854 to 1858 and on his retirement was presented with an illuminated address to express the appreciation of the mayor (Henry J. Walsh), the aldermen, councillors and citizens of the valuable services he had rendered in particular to the improvement of Fitzroy ward under the Act 17, Victoria No.31. (The Age, 8 Aug 1931, p.17, Castlefield, Brighton).

Widely he was recorded as “a generous though eccentric, doner and literally fulfilled the injunction not to let the left hand know what the right hand doeth. Mr Smith gave largely to the Church of England, of which he was a lay reader for many years. He built St Matthew’s Cheltenham, and gave 200 pounds toward All Soul’s Sandringham, besides giving 1,000 pounds per annum for many years towards the Melbourne Cathedral Fund.“(The Australasian, 30 Apr 1898, p.36, Notes and Notices). But in the small reading I have done, I can see he was also very active in giving to St Paul’s Cathedral on Flinders Street, St Andrew’s Church, Brighton, St Mark’s Church in Fitzroy (by developing houses on his land in Fitzroy with the money these earned going to that cause), to the Melbourne Hospital and also a member of the Old Colonists Association where in 1897,he was placed on the list of honorary life governors (The Age, 5 Feb 1897, p.3, The Old Colonists Association) (The Age, 8 Aug 1931, p.17, Castlefield, Brighton).

At the time of his death, he was the oldest solicitor in Victoria (aged 82 years). One article after his death passes the mantle on reading “He was an exceedingly wealthy man, and in the profession bore an unblemished reputation. The oldest now living Victorian solicitors are Mr. Marcus Sievright, admitted 1850, and Mr Albert Read, admitted in 1851.”

John had one son and three daughters. He seemed particularly to favour his son and his eldest daughter in his will with them receiving most of the assets. After his wife died in November 1895, he married a short time later, the nurse Isabelle who had tended to his wife in the last of her life, which generated some talk in the society papers about the amount of money he spent upon her. (Launceston Examiner, 28 Mar 1896, p.3. Table Talk). Isabelle was a widow, but came from fine pedigree being the daughter of Colonel Mair (The Australasian, 30 Apr 1898, p.36, Notes and Notices).

Towards the end of his life he moved from his house at ‘Castlefield’ to Nyora, Gippsland, where he died on the 21st April 1898. After his death, the papers reported the value of his estates as almost 300,000 pounds with many properties owned in Melbourne (Collins St and Elizabeth St), Fitzroy, and Brighton.

After his death in 1904, there is record that his son John Matthew Vincent Smith purchased from the executors of his father’s estate the property at the corner of Swantston and Collins Street, the Royal Terminus Hotel, Brighton Beach and a big piece of land at Fitzroy near the gas works (Punch, 18 Aug 1904, p.15, Two famous warships). The house at Brighton remained in the family until 1931.

Note: Fitzroy the First Suburb says that Smith St, is not named after J M Smith Esq. but after the Mayor of Melbourne in 1851, who was the newly elected J T Smith. There are several other references to the street being named after this J M Smith. Either is credible with most of the streets being named after the land holders or the political figures of the time, but while it is likely JM Smith owned land in Fitzroy at the time, he did not become active in the Council until 1854, so it is likely that the reference to J T Smith is correct.