Henry Rankin and Rankins Lane

RANKINS LANE, MELBOURNE
(Great and 2nd Great Grand-daughters visit in 2012)

Well, what a year that was! Let me introduce my story with ‘In the beginning . . .’

When Covid-19 hit the collective consciousness and the Victorian lockdown was in it’s nascency, I decided to direct my angst towards a project that I could sink my teeth into, guide me along ‘the unknown’ path we were all walking whilst being a useful and productive way to spend my time.

There was a family folklore about Rankins Lane situated off Little Bourke Street, between Elizabeth and Queen Streets. It was said to be the namesake of my 3rd great-grandfather Henry Rankin whom, in 1838, came with his family to the Port Phillip Settlement.

Along the way there were discoveries, roadblocks and mysteries spattered with false memories that managed to pique and hold my interest. I spoke to anyone and everyone that might help a novice such as I find ‘the story,’ There were times when the ‘data’ proved to be a challenge, though it was not nearly as frustrating or exciting as learning the historical context! Little was known of Henry, his joys, experiences, trials and tribulations. A long year later, it is with great satisfaction that I am now thrilled to have the chance to share with you what I found out about this interesting character. I do hope you enjoy the read.

Born in Falkirk, Scotland in 1806 to John and Christian Rankin, Henry Johnstone Rankin had four sisters and one brother, growing into a fine young apprentice wright. The next we know of this young lad, was that by the age of 22, things went awfully awry. Henry, with his parents, found themselves in the Edinburgh High Court of Justiciary accused of ‘theft and resell’ from the house of a well known socialite and author. The crime was such that the judge considered a death penalty. Taking into account the witness statements, the good character of Henry and his mother and as the group pleaded guilty by confession, they instead attained a free ticket to Australia for life on the convict ship “Layton.”

Lucky for me!

Arriving in Sydney in 1829, Henry set about securing his future and regaining his character. In three short years, a letter of recommendation was made to the Colonial Secretary stating “Henry is now employed as Carpenter onboard the “Bath Ruth.” I am directed by His Excellency to request that Rankin may be discharged to Hyde Park barrack accordingly.”

Another year passes by when an offer was received to move to his employers residence. This fortunate event led him into the arms of a free young woman by the name of Eliza Bird. Marriage bells were ringing in 1835 when the governor gave permission to marry. A character reference from his employer had noted his hopes that Henry and Eliza would stay on in his employ. And, they did. All was well with the joyous occasion of their first child in 1836, and although he sadly passed within a short time, two more were to follow in quick succession.

The year 1838 brought with it a ticket of leave and move to the Port Phillip settlement. Whilst Eliza cared for the children and made new friends, Henry purchased land on the corner of Bourke Lane and Elizabeth Street, building a simple wattle and daub hut. His business grew steadily, however the creek running along Elizabeth Street, famous for flooding, was proving costly. Thus, in 1841 with pennies and pounds scraped and saved, the family moved further up the hill along Bourke Lane. It was here Henry bought four perches of land from the brewer John Mills, building a two story brick dwelling and double shopfront where he, and later his children, would run the family business over the next 50 years.

In 1845 there was a frightening and destructive fire nearby Henry’s property. Due to “the energy beyond all praise and active exertions of a few individuals led by Henry, a dwelling-house, brewhouse, stabling and company were saved” (“Melbourne Courier,” Page 2, 16 July, 1845). Although the fire was contained to Henry Condell’s properties (the first Mayor of Melbourne), the heavy loss of barley and lack of insurance, led the Melbourne Fire Prevention Society to raise funds in reward for those who had rendered effectual service during the fire. Henry was soon to become one of the first paid firemen in Melbourne.

This was a busy time for Henry, not only raising a large family, and running a general trade shop with side businesses in Iron Mongering, Cabinet Making even providing Coffin building and Undertaker services; 1850 saw Henry found ‘The Waltonian Club.’

There were concerns of over-fishing in the Yarra Yarra and Saltwater Rivers so it was decided a Protection Society be established to prevent poaching and promote the healthful and invigorating sport of British Angling (“The Chronicles of Early Melbourne,”Garryowen, Vol 2, page 751).

The same year saw the birth of an annual gathering, as a means of fostering a taste for the useful and salubrious exercises of the gymnasium. It was taken up with much favour, and nearly as many persons were assembled to witness them as the great (horse) race. According to the newspaper report, there must have been from five thousand persons on the course. The Stand was filled with ladies, and the carriages opposite gave brilliancy to the meeting; which, “Judging from the eager smiling faces, the event was one of very pleasurable excitement.” Henry was noted to have won first prize in Quoits at 21 yards (“The Chronicles of Early Melbourne,”Garryowen, Vol 2, page 746).

Between the hustle of the 50’s and fervour of early 70’s, Henry dedicated himself to sheer hard work. Tragically, in 1861 he lost his 43y/o wife (dropsy) leaving him with nine children to care for. Not long after in 1867, he also suffered the loss of his 13y/o daughter, Helen (typhoid).

By way of passive reward for his steadfast nature, his portrait was commissioned for Chuck’s Shield (“The Argus,” 7 Dec 1872, page 5, column 5). The shield only included colonists who arrived prior to 1843. The significance was noted in an 1890 advertisement for the reproduction of the shield now available for all to purchase. (“The Argus,” 22 Apr 1890, page 5, column 4,

paragraph 5)

.

HENRY JOHNSTONE RANKIN
‘The Explorers and Early Colonists of Victoria’
( Chuck’s Shield )

As you may recall, I started this article noting my search had begun with Rankins Lane. Thus, I’d like to now beg a little more of your time to reflect upon what I learnt about the significance of the little unrecognised lane.

Throughout the transient nature of early Melbourne, with shop owners around Rankins Lane coming and going every few years, to street name changes where undesirable associations were said to deflate property prices and reputation, to the politics of ideologies and to the excitement of the gold-rush bringing opportunity and wealth and expanding boundaries. Along with a population surge, there was also a terrible turn of events with a wave of communicable diseases, a property bubble that spectacularly burst, the Bank of Scotland collapse and coinciding recession, sound familiar? There is a synchronicity in the comparison of our times. A quote oft said by Rankin “Show kindness in others troubles and find courage in your own.”

When looking back at the ebbs and flows of streets and laneways, residential living and businesses that made our city, it is stirring that Rankins Lane has survived. In 1856 there were but 80 named lanes in Melbourne including Rankins. Not more than forty years later there were signposts for 158 lanes (“Essential but Unplanned,” Weston Bate, page 12). And, although not much had changed through to 1965, with only twelve lanes being added, a little over a decade later however, developers started to move in and consolidate titles. Massive office blocks and a department store wiped out elements of urban ecology back to the 1830s. Four lanes were lost to Melbourne Central, Collins Place and three to the Hyatt Hotel and so forth. The city’s celebrated Victorian streetscape character was being undermined.

By 1991 the realisation came that this escalation and lack of protections had caused a significant loss of character, diversity and heritage significance prompting the Cities Planning Branch to publish a laneway study. The outcome was a range of financial incentives, technical guidance, and policy change to encourage residential and street-life development (“Revitalizing Melbourne’s Laneways,” September 18, 2015).

This is telling when today Rankins Lane is only known for the ‘fairly intact example of an Edwardian architecture’ as built by Warburton and Sons in 1895, the celebrity of bohemian artist Mirka Mora in 1978, and the popularity of modern coffee culture with Manchester Press that opened in 2011.

To date, Henry’s story has not been told, and it is in it’s telling that I hope to shed light on our own connections to place and to each other.

Additional Sources:
Sale Mills/Rankin 1841
‘Fire in Rankin’s Alley’ “The Argus,” 1857;
“1864 Directory” Sands and McDougall
Land Title (Vol.1033 Fol.206573, 1778)

Contributed by PPPG Member No. 1516 )