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The Vault: Pocket Watch and Albert Chain by Australian Jeweller Henry F. Hutton

‘Henry F Hutton and the Hutton family, Victorian Jewellers’ by Teaghan Hall published in The Australiana Society Magazine, November 2023, Vol 45: No 4.

Jewellers in colonial Australia, often lured by the gold rushes, came from various parts of Britain and Europe, arriving already having served their apprenticeships. Teaghan Hall tells the story of several members of the Hutton family, who initially came to the colonial Victorian gold fields towns of Daylesford and later Ballarat. They established jewellery and watchmaking businesses catering to the local markets, and which thrived for almost a century. Hutton 1

The colonial jewellers of the mid-19th century played a most important role in the development of the decorative arts industry in Australia. Jewellery items, usually precious and valuable by nature, are often the items best preserved within a society and therefore always hold an importance in telling the history of the
people who make them. The discovery of goldfields in Australia from 1851 would forever change the country’s destiny regarding colonisation and the development of industry. Gold would not only attract prospectors seeking their fortune, but a considerable number of trained jewellers and watchmakers who immigrated to gold mining towns across the country to set-up businesses and progress their trade. The allure of the Australian goldfields proved a temptation to the Hutton family, who emigrated from Staffordshire, England to establish their trade as jewellers and watchmakers. When we came across a pocket watch in an 18ct gold case, marked on the dial ‘HENRY F. HUTTON / BALLAARAT’ and an Albert chain also bearing the name ‘HUTTON’, we embarked on a search for more information about the watchmaker and his family, exploring newspapers available on Trove, records in Birth, Deaths and Marriages, the census and other resources. We also looked for more examples of jewellery from Hutton’s workshop or retail business. H.F. Hutton is mentioned briefly in both of the standard books on Australian jewellery, one illustrating a gold bracelet. Hutton 4

Immigration to Australia

Henry Farrer Hutton (1829–1902) was born in Yorkshire and was the eldest son of Charles Hutton (1799–1866) and Hannah Farrer. The family relocated to Burslem, one of the pottery towns in Staffordshire, where his younger brother Walter Greenwood Hutton was born in 1832. Tragically in 1838, Hannah Farrer passed away, leaving the two boys and a daughter, Louisa Ann Hutton (c 1833 -1912), with their father in Burslem. The 1851 British census shows the family still living in Burslem but Charles Hutton had married again in 1842 to Rebecca Millor (1792–1863), described as a wealthy farmer’s widow [2]. (This story, reporting on proceedings at the Hanley Police Court in Staffordshire on 22 May 1858, may have been leaked to the local Mount Alexander Mail, as an ‘illustration of the working of the new Divorce Act’ to discredit Charles Hutton).

The 1851 census lists Charles Hutton’s occupation as a watchmaker and pawnbroker; his two sons Henry and Walter are listed as watchmaker assistants [3]. They had probably been apprenticed to, and trained by, their father. Henry Hutton married Jane Cooper in Burslem on 28 March 1852, before commencing his journey to Australia a week later, sailing from Liverpool on 6 April 1852 on the Anna via Adelaide and docking in Melbourne on 24 July 1852 [4]. Jane Cooper is not recorded on the journey and there is no record of her arrival any time after.

Henry Hutton’s voyage on the Anna is well documented due to the precarious journey from Adelaide, with tales of ‘mutiny’ by the ship’s crew [5]. ‘On the voyage out the crew mutinied, and with the assistance of the passengers aboard, were put in irons. Then when nearing Port Phillip heads dirty weather was experienced, and the amateur crew were prostrated and proved useless. The sailors in irons were appealed to but returned answer that ‘the ship could go down for all they cared’. 

The Anna was able to dock successfully at Port Phillip Bay. Fourteen seamen were arrested and later sentenced
to three months’ hard labour for refusing ‘to obey the lawful commands of the master’ [6]. Both Henry and Walter Hutton were among the passengers signing an appreciation to Captain William Downward, published in the Argus [7]. Henry and Walter Hutton ventured onward to the diggings at Daylesford (Jim Crow) in central Victoria. Their sister Louisa and father Charles (without his wife Rebecca) soon followed, sailing to Melbourne aboard the Asia which arrived on 2 or 6 August 1853 [8]. In 1855, a letter awaited ‘Hutton, Chas’ at Castlemaine [9]. By 1856, all three men are documented on the Mount Franklyn/Franklin goldfields, 10 km from Daylesford. Charles Hutton held a business licence and the two sons, Henry and Walter, both had miner’s rights [10].

Life in Daylesford

Charles Hutton is named as proprietor of the Golden Age Hotel at Spring Creek, now known as Hepburn Springs [11], from December 1856 [12]. The town had at least three hotels, which also held concerts to entertain the miners and other citizens. Hotels are associated with early development on the goldfields and were often set up on the outskirts of settlements along important gold routes. ‘The businesses usually were a combination of supply stores offering food and accommodation and were often the centre of gold exchange, where gold was purchased and exchanged for money prior to presentation to the Crown’ [13]. The establishment of the Golden Age Hotel would have put the Hutton family at the centre of goldfields trade along the Daylesford/Hepburn route. When Walter Hutton married Elizabeth Jane Carter on 13 July 1858, he was described as the second son of Mr Charles Hutton, Golden Age Hotel, Hepburn [14].

Henry F. Hutton, probably in partnership with his father and brother, had established a watchmaking business
on Vincent Street, Daylesford by 1865. A letter from Henry F. Hutton to the Editor of the Daylesford Express in
November 1865 clarifies his encounter with the town Mayor, George Patterson. The letter was in response to accusations of altering the time of the municipal clock to facilitate Patterson’s election. Henry Hutton refuted these allegations, signing the letter ‘Henry F. Hutton, watchmaker, Vincent Street’ [15].

While living in Daylesford, Henry F. Hutton married Sarah Eliza Halliwell (c 1842–1903) in 1863 [16], suggesting his first marriage to Jane Cooper had been annulled or that she had died. Sarah’s sister Elizabeth Halliwell (or Helliwell) married Owen Humphrey Jones in 1867 in Daylesford, and their son John Henry Jones was born in Daylesford in 1872 [17]. As Sarah Hutton’s nephew, he may have been apprenticed to Henry Hutton, as in 1904 he took over the H.F. Hutton jewellery and watchmaking business established in Ballarat.

Charles Hutton, ‘watch maker and jeweller’, died on 8 January 1866 at his home in Vincent Street, Daylesford aged 66 [18], naming as sole executor his elder son Henry, who is described as a ‘watchmaker and jeweller’ of Daylesford [19].

When Walter Hutton died on 30 October 1897, aged 65, he is referred to as the ‘oldest inhabitant’ of Daylesford and described formulaically as being ‘universally respected and his funeral carried out with Masonic honours’, [20] indicating that he lived the remainder of his life in the Daylesford area. Louisa Hutton had married William Stephens in 1861; she died aged 79 in her home ‘Taradale’ in Vincent Street, Daylesford in 1912 [21]. Hutton 3

Jeweller and watchmaker in Ballarat 1878–1902

The town of Ballarat in Victoria was one of Australia’s most significant gold mining towns of the latter half of the 19th century. In 1878, Henry F Hutton relocated to Ballarat to further his jewellery and watchmaking trade, having purchased the business of watchmaker and jeweller T. P. Gerrard at 74 Sturt Street, commencing trade on 20 April 1878 [22] Gerrard had been in partnership with J T Sleep, and moved from Lydiard Street to 74 Sturt Street ‘Between Lester’s Hotel and Bardwell’s Studio’ in 1874 [23]. Hutton was listed as a manufacturing jeweller, later operating at 96 Sturt Street [24].

Presentations were a common feature of Victorian life, where dignitaries and others were recognised with public gifts of some intrinsic value. For example, Mr H. F. Hutton supplied ‘a handsome gold locket and chain’ presented to Hugh Menzies, secretary of the City Football Club, who met at the Coram’s Royal Standard hotel, for the presentation ‘as a token of the esteem in which he was held by the club. On the locket was engraved, “Presented to Mr Hugh Menzies by the members of the City Football Club” [25]. The expansion of the railways during the 1880s connected the gold mining towns and Ballarat became a business centre of the region [26].

‘Later [Hepburn] was influenced by the railway connection with Ballarat. Not only was there a web of lines
constructed linking the small towns in the district, but the metalworking skills of the miners became important
for the expansion of railway activity in Ballarat during the 1880s.’

The railway connecting Ballarat an Melbourne was the setting for a financial scare for Henry F Hutton. A police
report from 25 March 1884 described how Hutton had reported leaving valuable stock in the carriage when
disembarking at Geelong [27].

‘ Whilst travelling by rail between Melbourne and Ballarat, he lost a parcel containing three gold hunting watches, seven silver hunting Waltham watches, and a quantity of jewellery, the whole valued at £116.’

Hutton had made an error – he had forgetfully left the parcel in the warehouse where he had bought the
watches [28]. This incident shows that, like all jewellers and watchmakers, he retailed imported products as well as manufacturing jewellery or repairing clocks and watches. Hutton rarely advertised but on one occasion did seek an apprentice, showing that he was a capable working watchmaker [29].

‘FIRST-CLASS OPPORTUNITY for respectable and Intelligent LAD to learn the WATCH and CLOCKMAKING by competent master; premium. Apply before 10 o’clock to H. F. Hutton, 74 Sturt street.’

In 1882, the jewellers of Ballarat formed a ‘Watchmakers and Jewellers’ Association,’ whose main purpose seems to have been to introduce a half-holiday on Fridays, starting on 1 September 1882 [30]. Twenty-three members are listed: W. Bennett, A. Oliver, M. Levinson, J. Logan, E. Hodgson, A. Engeler, I. Davis, W. Dixon, C.A. Welch, H.
Brown, S. Abrahams, C. Glassbrenner, J.T. Sleep, [31] Alex Marks & Co, A.T. Thompson, X. Gasser, H. F. Hutton, M. Bloustein, Louis L. Meanowski, C. Crannage, M. Hyman, H.G. Gerard and W. Peach. With so many businesses, competition was steep. Many, like Hutton, would have been involved in community, sporting and religious groups that provided them with business opportunities and press promotion. For instance, Henry Hutton donated a trophy for the Ballarat Yacht Club and a gold pocket watch to Rev. George Netherway of the Bible Christian
churches at Creswick and Clunes.

‘ We had an opportunity of inspecting the watch yesterday at the establishment of Mr H. F. Hutton, watchmaker and jeweller, Sturt Street, from whom the timepiece was purchased, and it is really a beautiful article of its kind [3]’

The following year another item was provided to the organist of the Bible Christian Church, ‘the occasion being the presentation to Miss Barclay, organist, of a beautiful gold watch from the shop of Mr. H. F. Hutton, Sturt Street’ [33]. These articles are testimony to the involvement of Henry F Hutton within the local Ballarat community and of the high standard of items he produced and retailed. While Hutton made many articles
for a variety of Protestant churches, at Daylesford Roman Catholic priest Father Slattery ‘was among his more intimate acquaintances, and [Hutton] never tired of relating his numerous good qualities, especially his charitable acts towards the poor of all creeds’ [34].  When the priest left Daylesford, protestant citizens subscribed to a ‘solid silver dinner service’, possibly made or supplied by Hutton.

In the 1890s, Hutton seems to have been a manufacturing jeweller, as this report shows: ‘At the public meeting Dr Clark will be presented with an exquisitely worked gold pin set with a diamond, and Mrs Clark with a neatly-executed brooch, each bearing the initials “C.E.,” indicative of the work so near the hearts of, and so untiringly
performed by the recipients. The above mentioned excellent specimens of the goldsmith’s art, were entrusted
to the well-known jeweller, Mr H. F. Hutton, and reflect the greatest credit on the manufacturer [35].’

products antique ring by Hutton 7098 3 A gold ring, previously retailed by Kalmar Antiques, is an example of his work. It was handmade
and stamped with his ‘HUTTON’ maker’s punch mark on the inside of the band. The marks on the inside include the ‘18’ carat stamp and ‘full-rigged ship’ stamp, representing the Victorian Manufacturers’ Jewellers Association hallmarks, promoted through public notice advertisements in newspapers [36]. Inside are Hutton’s maker’s mark, an emu, 18 and full-rigged ship, all perfectly struck. The 18 and ship both represent 18ct gold and the emu punch is a marker’s mark used by Hutton and a few other early Australian jewellers. The ring features five rose-cut diamonds which graduate slightly in size. At least two examples of gold mining jewellery attributed to Hutton are known. Neither brooch is stamped as far as we know, but both are in fitted boxes with labels for ‘Henry F. Hutton’ or ‘H. F. Hutton’, Watchmaker & Jeweller, Ballarat.

One feature which distinguishes Australian jewellery of the mid-19th century is its generous use of gold which
was so abundant. Australian gold watch chains, based closely on the type made popular in England by Prince Albert for securing a pocket watch to a waistcoat, are usually much heavier than the British examples: the same principle applies to Australian gold fob seals and brooches [37]. Crafted in 18 carat yellow gold, a gold watch chain in the Kalmar Vault Collection features two twisted chains held in place with two sliding mechanisms. At the end of the chain hangs the traditional T-bar and ornate chain tassel. Each surface of the gold
has incredible hand-engraved details which feature beautiful floral patterns. A ‘HUTTON’ maker’s mark can be found embossed on the bottom bail of the chain. Albert chains, watches and lockets were popular gifts to recognise long service, as with this Ballarat example:

‘ The employés of Dalzell and Buchanan’s mine intend to present the respected manager of the claim, Mr James Gay, with a very handsome gold albert chain with locket attached as a mark of the esteem in which he is held by those working with him. Yesterday the articles of jewellery were on view at the establishment of Mr H. F. Hutton, Sturt street, an were much admired [38]’

Henry F. Hutton continued to trade from his 96 Sturt Street shopfront and residence (jewellers often lived above
the shop, for obvious security reasons) until his death there on 20 June 1902, aged 72 [39]. An obituary notice in The Argus of 23 June 1902 reported that ‘Mr. H.F Hutton, jeweller, died on Friday after a lengthy illness. He arrived in Victoria in 1852 and was in business here for about a quarter of a century’. He had been ‘an
invalid for several years’ [40].  Henry F. Hutton was survived by his wife Sarah and his nephew J. H. Jones, the couple having no children of their own. His estate, left to his widow, was valued for probate at £5,000, a
considerable sum [41]. Sarah Hutton died aged 61, just 14 months after her husband, on 20 August 1903 [42] leaving real estate of £2,500 and personal estate of £6,170 to relatives [43]. For about six months from 12 December 1903 the trustees and executors of her estate advertised [44].

‘That magnificent stock of jewellery, watches, clocks. silver ware, etc. etc., the largest and most valuable stock in Ballarat, is to be sold at the lowest prices in order to facilitate the winding up of the estate. No reasonable offer will be refused.’

Under New Management

By July 1904, the proprietor of the firm was Mr J. Hutton Jones [45] who sometimes inserted a hyphen to become J. Hutton-Jones. Born John Henry Jones in Daylesford in 1872 [46] he was Sarah Hutton’s nephew, the son of her sister Elizabeth Halliwell (or Helliwell), who had married Owen Humphrey Jones in 1867. John Henry Jones married Minnie (Amelia) Toy on New Year’s Day 1902 at the bride’s mother’s house in Ballarat, with his uncle and aunt present [47].

In December 1904, ‘H. F. HUTTON and CO., WATCHMAKERS.JEWELLERS, and IMPORTERS. SHOPPEE SQUARE. STURT STREET BALLARAT’ advertised a ‘genuine general clearing sale’ [48]. In the 20th century, advertising and labels show that Jones changed the company style and re-invigorated its
promotion. At first it was Henry F. Hutton, later H. F. Hutton and by 1907 he promoted the business as Huttons The Jewellers, though also claiming longevity for the firm (dating its establishment back as far as 1853). Photographs of the shop in a 1917 publication show the extensive range of stock on hand – a great advance on Henry Hutton’s modest train trips to Melbourne to buy a few watches.

The Hutton Cups

J H Jones continued the firm’s tradition of supporting local community groups, generously giving cups and trophies to various clubs and other organisations. In 1907, he gave the Hutton Cup to the Golden Point Australian Football Club. Another ‘Hutton Cup, presented by the well-known jewellers, is to be competed for in the Quick Step Competition. The cup is a beautiful piece of silversmith’s workmanship, and
very ornate in design’ [49].

The Ballarat Anglers Club received a Hutton Cup as a trophy for the heaviest fish, [50] while ‘The donors of the Hutton Cup have added to their magnificent gift by donating a silver drinking cup with name, etc., engraved, to the winner of this trophy each year until finally won’ [51]. Ballarat is famous for its gardens and the gardeners didn’t miss out either. The Horticultural Society awarded its Hutton Cup for the best 24 varieties of dahlia [52]. A brass band from Warrnambool won another Hutton Cup in 1911 [53]. These trophy presentations kept on giving value to the donors, as they were regularly competed for and reported in the press.

Fobs and Medals

Prizes for students at the Ballarat School of Mines or winners of athletic contests frequently received gold fobs as prizes. Some of those surviving from around 1916 are stamped ‘HUTTON’ but may have only been engraved and retailed by Huttons as some appear to bear other makers’ punches. When Victorian Treasurer W M McPherson opened some new Nurses’ Quarters at the Ballarat Hospital in May 1922, he was
presented with a gold key made by Hutton & Co. John Hutton Jones, ‘jeweller’, changed his name officially on 19 September 1925 [54] having generally been known as that for some years. Jones was an active
businessman, advertising and promoting the shop; both he and his wife Amelia were very active in community organisations; in 1938 he was hospital president, welcoming the Governor to open a new wing to the
nurses’ quarters [55]. According to Cavill, Cocks & Grace, H.F Hutton & Co continued to trade until the 1950s.56 When J H Jones died in a private hospital in Melbourne on 15 December 1944 [57] newspapers noted his gifts to schools and amateur sporting clubs, including the Wendouree Rowing Club of which he was a member. His widow and three children Dr Basil Hutton Jones (Horsham), Lloyd Jones of Ballarat and Miss Merilyn Jones of Ballarat Girls’ School staff survived him. Amelia Hutton Jones died aged 85 in 1964 [58].

The work of Henry F Hutton demonstrates the quality of work being produced by early Australian jewellers
throughout the later 19th century, their addiction to using gold and the broad range of their activities. Its historical significance has made Australian jewellery of the 19th and early 20th centuries eagerly sought after
by collectors and museums alike. These items illustrate the colonial, goldrush and local history of Ballarat, Victoria

HuttonPocketwatch

Shop Antique Australian Jewellery

Sources:

1. Cavill, Cocks & Grace, Australian Jewellers p 127, pl 144; Schofield & Fahy, Australian Jewellery p 202.
2. Mount Alexander Mail (Castlemaine) 28 May 1858 p 7.
3. England Census 1851, Burslem, Staffordshire, Ancestry.com.
4. Argus 26 July 1852 p 4.
5. Weekly Times 28 Apr 1928 p 5.
6. Argus 25 Aug 1852 p 5.
7. Argus 26 Jul 1852 p 5.
8. Two ships of this name arrive days apart, the first from London Argus 3 Aug 1853 p 4 and the second from Liverpool Argus 8 Aug 1853 p 4.
9. Mount Alexander Mail 6 Apr 1855 p 5.
10. All three are listed as watchmakers, and sign resolutions from a meeting at the Golden Age Hotel, Mount Alexander Mail 16 May 1856 p
5; Australian Electoral Rolls, Victoria 1856, Talbot, Mt Franklin.
11. Mount Alexander Mail 26 Dec 1856 p 4.
12. Mount Alexander Mail 19 Dec 1856 p 4.
13. The Wombat Post 5 Feb 2021.
14. Mount Alexander Mail 16 Jul 1858 p 4.
15. Leader (Melbourne) 25 Nov 1865 p 16.
16. Victoria Births, Deaths and Marriages (BDM), reg no 1381/1863. Her death notice 8322/1903 transcribes her maiden name as Halliwell.
17. Victoria BDM 15651/1872.
18. Herald (Melb) 10 Jan 1866 p 2.
19. Argus 15 Aug 1866 p 2.
20. Omeo Standard and Mining Gazette 19 Nov 1897 p 2.
21. Victoria BDM 14003/1912; Argus 7 Dec 1912 p 11.
22. Ballarat Courier 19 Apr 1878 p 2. Ballarat Star 11 Apr 1878 p 3.
23. Ballarat Star 31 Aug 1874 p 3.
24. Kenneth Cavill, Graham Cocks & Jack Grace, Australian Jewellers Gold & Silversmiths -Makers & Marks, CGG Gold Pty Limited 1992 p 127.
25. Ballarat Courier 25 Dec 1880 p 2.
26. Gold World Heritage 2021, ‘Hepburn’, Victorian Goldfields World Heritage, Hepburn – Victorian Goldfields World Heritage.
27. Age 25 Mar 1884 p 6.
28. Mt Alexander Mail 26 Mar 1884 p 2.
29. Ballarat Star 28 Jan 1895 p 3.
30. Eg Ballarat Courier 10 Aug 1882 p 3.
31. See David Senior, ‘Joseph Thomas Sleep, Jeweller &c., Ballarat’ Australiana 18 no 1 Feb 1996 pp 19-21 and John Houstone, ‘Further notes on Joseph Thomas Sleep’
Australiana 18 no 2 May 1996, p 54.
32. Ballarat Star 6 Apr 1881 p 2.
33. Ballarat Star 18 Feb 1882 p 2.
34. Ballarat Star 23 Jun 1903 p 6.
35. Ballarat Star 4 Oct 1892 p 2.
36. Eg Herald (Melb) 3 Aug 1895 p 3.
37. Anne Schofield & Kevin Fahy, Australian Jewellery 19th and Early 20th Century, David Ell Pres, Balmain NSW 1990 p 3.
38. Ballarat Star 12 Oct 1892 p 2.
39. Ballarat Star 21 Jun 1902 p 2.
40. Ballarat Star 11 Jun 1902 p 2.
41. Advocate (Melb) 9 Aug 1902 p 29; Argus 23 Jul 1902 p 5.
42. Ballarat Star 21 August 1903 pp 1 & 2.
43. Age 23 Sep 1903 p 8.
44. Ballarat Star 11 Dec 1903 p 5, until 21 May
1904, p 7.
45. Ballarat Star 27 Jul 1904 p 2.
46. Victoria BDM 15651/1872.
47. Ballarat Star 4 Jan 1902 p 4.
48. Ballarat Star 10 Dec 1904 p 2; 13 Dec 1904 p 5; 29 Dec 1904 p 3.
49. Ballarat Star 24 Oct 1908 p 4.
50. Ballarat Star 27 Sep 1919 p 8.
51. Ballarat Star 6 Sep 1913 p 8.
52. Ballarat Star 21 Mar 1908 p 4; 20 May 1913 p 4.
53. Ballarat Star 25 Oct 1915 p 6.
54. Age 24 Sep 1925 p 11.
55. Age 7 Mar 1938 p 12.
56. Cavill, Cocks & Grace op cit.
57. Victoria BDM 67/1945; obituary, Horsham Times 19 Dec 1944 p 2; probate application Argus 22 Jan 1945 p 13.
58. Victoria BDM 9721/1964.
59. Ballarat and District Genealogical Society (2023) ‘Ballarat History: Pre-European Settlement’, Ballarat history (ballaratgenealogy.org.au).

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