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The original Welcome Home was owned by Joseph Meldon[1] from 1865[2] (renewal of licence in 1866). In 1866 they were selling small allotments from Frederick Moles property on the Highfields Road "directly opposite the Hotel of Joseph Meldon" (DDG 01/02/1866), suggesting it was on the current Downlands property[3]. Meldon originally owned the land on which Tyson Manor was built. Meldon's became an insolvent estate in about 1867, and when Mrs Joseph Meldon advertised for the sale of the licence, it was stated it was about one mile from Toowoomba.
At Cabarlah (Five Mile Camp), the hotel appeared to start as a sly-grog shop at Bearkley’s house in 1867. A licence for the Welcome Home was bought from Mrs Joseph Meldon in 1871 to Archibald Bearkley. The publican's bush licence was used to sell spirits etc from 1871 (advertised as 12 miles from Toowoomba). A newspaper article states a renewal of Bearkley’s licence in 1878. Bearkley extended his land (por. 318, 319, 329 & 330) to became an orange orchard in 1879 (see section on businesses), so as you can see from the map on the right Bearkley's land was to the south of the old Farmer's Arms Hotel (por 317) (now the shop and Cuckoo Clock shop). "Close by where the hotel then stood are now some very large Bunya trees, given to him by Mr. Primrose, then manager of Emu Creek Station—just fifty years ago." (DD Gazette, 7 March 1929, page 5)
A governor’s visit in 1879 was catered for by Bearkley in a marquee at the front of the hotel.
In 1883, the licence (now a country publican licence) was then transferred “20 chains away” (400 metres) to the Railway Tavern Hotel[4] (when the railway came to what is now known as Cabarlah). This new pub was located on the corner of the highway and Costello Rd. The photo on the right is of the "Long House" which was the original Welcome Home pub. The shop was pulled down in 1928.
Interestingly, in October 1866 there was another insolvency of Martin Meldon (Joseph's brother) of the Railway Hotel on Highfields Road (leading to the railway camps) at “Stony Pinch” (trig station) which is now Mt Kynoch.
In front of the Long Shop (formerly Welcome Home Hotel)
Bunya trees about 140 years old where the Welcome Hotel stood (photo by L Galligan Oct 2019)
An article in the Toowoomba Chronicle dated 7 January 1928 (p. 3) gives us more information about this pub:
What old Highfield’s resident fails to remember Archie Bearkley’s old pub. It was there before Cabarlah and now it is going to be demolished to make room for up-to-date buildings: The old pub was built in the middle sixties, what time Henry Harge ran the first steam sawmill out towards Crow’s Nest. When that mill was burned down, and E W Pechey erected a more modern and expensive mill nearer Toowoomba.
Archie’s hostelery still served as the halfway house, where refreshments, mostly liquid, could be procured by the carriers and travellers going to and from Emu Creek, Crows Nest and the Albert Mills. It still held its own when Waraker and Bond set up the Aubigny mills, afterwards run by Cameron and Hebel [or Hebbel]. Waraker was a son of that grand old pioneer, the Rev. J. T. Waraker, and Bond was a brother-in-law of Pechey. .....The brothers Munro set up the Argyle Mills[2] in 1874 but in that case Archie’s pubbery was not a halfway house. It was within two miles of the mill on Geham Creek - too close in Duncan Munro’s opinion. Some Monday mornings at the old Argyle, two or three of the hands wouldn’t hear the whistle - they would be up at Bearkley’s getting the customary hair of the dog that bit them, or sleeping off the potency of Archie’s tipple. Of course, they had a plausible excuse for patronizing Bearkley’s with a regularity worthy of more sacred cause.
After preaching a strong temperance sermon to a millhand on one occasion, he explained to me that the sawdust caught in the bronchial tube, and only an occasional swilling of liquor would dislodge it and Archie dispensed liquor that would dislodge anything.
He was an ideal bush publican, ever ready to help a chap who was stoney. The old tavern was a necessity as it was the only hotel on the sixty-five mile stretch from the Spring Hill Hotel [the current Royal Hotel in Toowoomba North] to Emu Creek.
Mat ‘Mildon’ set up a pub now on the Stoney Pinch[3] in the closing years of the sixties, but it was too close to Toowoomba and it disappeared in a few years of struggle. But Archie kept on and saw the district around being settled by a sturdy band of pioneers settled upon the fertile lands stretching to the northwards of your city. Saw the giants of the forest uprooted and the land made reproductive, and cosy cottages dotting the entire length and breadth of the tableland.
[1] Emu Creek was just north of Crows Nest
[2] Next to Argyle Homestead, Geham (on the main road)
[3] Stoney Pinch is now Mt Kynoch, but we do not know where pub actually was.
[1] From Kilbeggin Westmeath http://boards.ancestry.com.au/thread.aspx?mv=flat&m=65&p=localities.oceania.australia.qld.darlingdowns
[2] Qld Licencing index 1848-1900
[3] Tyson Manor | Environment, land and water | Queensland Government Certificate of Title No 18478, Register Book Volume: 137 Folio: 225, dated 1868, DNRM. [9] Certificate of Title No 18479.
[4] TC 01/05/1883 p2
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