Piesse Family. Piesse Family. Piesse Family. Piesse Family.
Three of the most important men in the development and advancement of Katanning would have to be Frederick Henry Piesse, his younger brother Charles Austin Piesse, and Elijah Quartermaine. Quartermaine, because he was the first person to permanently settle here. Frederick Piesse was the first official resident of the town, and he and his brother Charles built both the town’s first store and the iconic flour mill.
Frederick remained in Katanning and set the foundation for rapid economic growth while Charles moved to Wagin and became an equally important member of his community. Quartermaine, after obtaining his initial block of land, expanded his land holding over the years and his descendants continue to live, work and farm in the area today.
PIESSE, Frederick Henry JP, MLA, CMG
Frederick Henry Piesse JP MLA CMG
Photo courtesy Dome Coffee Group
Frederick Henry Piesse (1853-1912), merchant, agriculturist and politician, was born on 6 December 1853 at Northam, Western Australia, eldest of twelve children of William Roper Piesse, who had migrated in 1842 from London, and his colonial-born wife Elizabeth Ellen, née Oxley.
Educated at Guildford and Northam State schools, Frederick worked in the Northam general store of George Throssell, a self-made man establishing an awesome financial empire. Frederick Piesse copied his employer’s methods and community involvement. His younger brother Charles Austin (1855-1914) also worked for Throssell. Continue reading
Mary Jane Elizabeth PIESSE (nee Chipper)
Mary Jane Elizabeth Piesse
Katanning’s “First Lady”
Mary Jane Elizabeth Chipper was born in Perth in 1854, and died on 5 April, 1936. She was laid to rest at Katanning Cemetery. She was married to Frederick Henry PIESSE on 18 October, 1877, at Kojonup by the Rev. W. Wardell Johnson. Continue reading
Charles Austin PIESSE MLA
Charles Austin Piesse
Born at Northam on 11th November 1855, Charles Austin Piesse was the second son of Mr. William Roper Piesse, of Toodyay. He was educated at Guildford and Northam, and subsequently proceeded to the pearling grounds at Shark Bay with older brother Frederick and Ernst von Bibra, where he was engaged during 1872-3. Continue reading
Arnold Edmund PIESSE MLA
Arnold Edmund Piesse MLA
Parliamentary Photo
Arnold Edmund Piesse (2 April 1872 – 21 July 1935) was an Australian politician who served as a member of the Legislative Assembly of Western Australia from 1909 to 1914 and again from 1930 until his death, on both occasions representing the seat of Katanning.
Piesse was born in Guildford, Western Australia, to Elizabeth Ellen (née Oxley) and William Roper Piesse. Three of his brothers, Alfred, Charles, and Frederick Piesse, were also members of parliament. Continue reading
Edmund Stephen Roper PIESSE
Edmund Stephen Roper Piesse
Edmund Stephen Roper Piesse, farmer and businessman, was the first of the ‘squires of the Katanning district’ to be elected to the federal Parliament. His father and three of his uncles had served in the Western Australian Parliament at various times from self-government in 1890 to 1935. Continue reading
Francis Earnest PIESSE
Francis Earnest Piesse
Francis Earnest Piesse was born in Northam on May 14, 1869, the third child of William Roper Piesse and Elizabeth Ellen Piesse. He died in Katanning on December 22, 1943. He married Sarah Matilda Osborne and the couple had one daughter, Ethel Elizabeth Jane Rodgers.
He was the brother of Frederick Henry Piesse; Charles Austin Piesse; Eva May Piesse; Augustus “Willie” William John Piesse; Elizabeth “Minnie” Mary Piesse; and Alfred Napoleon Piesse.
Alfred Napoleon PIESSE
Alfred Napoleon Piesse
Alfred Napoleon Piesse (17 July 1866 – 15 June 1939) never resided in Katanning. He was a brother of Frederick, Charles and Arnold and was also an Australian politician who served as a member of the Legislative Assembly of Western Australia from 1911 to 1924, representing the seat of Toodyay. He joined the Country Party upon its formation in 1914, and served as state deputy leader from 1915 to 1921, initially under Francis Willmott and then under Tom Harrison. Continue reading
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Melville PIESSE
Death of Melville Piesse
Southern Districts Advocate
3 January 1921 – P2
On Friday last the sad news arrived in Katanning, per cable from the New Guinea Trading Co., at Rabaul, New Guinea, of the death, by accidental drowning, or Mr. M. Piesse, youngest son of Mrs. and the late Mr. F. H. Piesse. Deceased had been managing a rubber and copra plantation for the company.
He was one of the first to enlist for the front from this district and saw service in Gallipoli and France, where he received his commission. Deepest sympathy is expressed for the family.
Death of Mr. Melville Piesse
Great Southern Herald
1 January 1921 – P4
On Friday morning, Mr. F. T. R Piesse received a cable from the New Guinea Trading Company, Rabaul, New Guinea, intimating briefly the sad news that his brother Melville H. Piesse, the youngest son of the late Hon. F. H. Piesse, C.M.G., had been accidentally drowned at Stephansort, Madang, New Guinea. Mr. Piesse is endeavouring to obtain further particulars of the tragedy, but so far, this brief message is all that has been received.
Melville Piesse was in his thirtieth year when the accident occurred and had gone to New Guinea as manager of a rubber and copra plantation for the New Guinea Trading Company. He was one of the first to enlist from the Katanning district, and saw service on Gallipoli with the 8th Battery, A.F.A., later in France receiving his commission and joining up with the 43rd. Bat. A.I.F.
His mother (Mrs. F. H. Piesse), and the family are to be sympathised with in their sad bereavement.
F & C PIESSE ROLLER FLOUR MILL
The Piesse Flour Mill c1898
The Piesse family story would not be complete without mention of the iconic F & C Piesse Premier Roller Flour Mill built in the centre of Katanning in 1891. The mill was a three-storey, electrically powered flour-mill, the first of its type in Western Australia. Read More
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KOBEELYA
Frederick Piesse’s Family Home – Kobeelya
Frederick built for his family a mansion, Kobeelya, overlooking the town, and consciously assumed a ‘big brother’ role in local affairs, especially encouraging and assisting newcomers. The family lived and entertained lavishly to their ultimate detriment; their name became almost synonymous with Katanning.
In 1922 Kobeelya was sold and became a private school for girls. Today it is owned by The Katanning Baptist community who have restored it to its former glory. Read More
GREAT SOUTHERN WINERY
The old winery ruins c1960’s
Frederick had a vast orchard and vineyard on his Kobeelya property. His initial foray into the field of wine making returned average results however, after 1902 the firm’s wine industry improved outstandingly under the management of a German-born wine-maker, Carl Bungert. Bungert was enticed west from the wine producing areas of South Australia. The firm’s wines won prizes at the Perth Agricultural Show, and received gold medals in London and Paris.
Piesse’s Great Southern Winery in Katanning c 1905
A battlemented brick distillery (pictured above), built in Piesse’s vineyard on the town’s outskirts, eventually became a historic landmark. Read more
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MORE READING
Australian Dictionary of Biography HERE
Wikipedia HERE
Wikisource HERE
Kobeelya. A Piesse of History HERE
Revolvy HERE and HERE
Piesse Family. Piesse Family. Piesse Family. Piesse Family.