Rosamel Farm 1840s

Rosamel (location 22 of 560 acres), regarded as one of the leading farms in the district, was first owned by the first Surveyor General of Western Australia, Captain John Septimus Roe.

Marshall Waller Clifton leased the land from Roe in 1842 and named the holding Rosamel after a chateau in France close to where his family had lived before coming to Australind. Clifton purchased Rosamel in 1856, and the Clifton family continued its association with the Rosamel farm for close to a century.

The property was a natural landing for boats in the Leschenault Estuary.

At one point, John Allnutt Snr leased Rosamel Farm; in other years, Waller Clifton employed Hut Keepers, usually ex-convicts, to maintain the property.

His grandson, John Edward Martin (JEM or Teddy) Clifton, managed the farm for many years. Born in 1844, John Clifton resided at Rosamel as a bachelor before marrying his second cousin, Anne Emily Fanny Clifton, in 1871 in Albany.

At this time, the property consisted of 3,500 acres of freehold estate land and was worked with another farm at Wokalup for grazing. John Clifton ran mixed and dairy farming at Rosamel, plus raised swine. His dairy herd consisted of shorthorns and Jersey cows. He also grew wheat and hay and grazed more than 500 sheep.

John Clifton resided at Rosamel until he died in 1912. His wife predeceased him by 18 years.

The Rosamel barn was a focal point for the scattered families in the district, and Arthur Ernest Clifton lamented its sale in 1951 after 63 years of use.

There was a great Tuart tree on the property. Every night he hoisted a large cask out of the reach of snakes and natives and slept in peace. He also used the cask as a wardrobe and, on one occasion, a sow deposited her litter on the owner’s dress suit, much to his disgust.

Credit: Unknown

It is believed that the tree was also known as the All Nut Tree in the days of John Allnut. John moved to Bridgetown and was the first to recognise the area’s apple-growing potential.

Later, John Allnut’s son, John Jr., took a lease on Rosamel Farm. By 1865, it had become a 560-acre dairy and arable farm.

Nearby Rosamel Wetlands once belonged to the farm.