How to make an ordinary name a little bit "posh"
Today's blog is about an
entrepreneur who via marriage, gave his rather ordinary name a touch of class.
His name is associated with railways, a tourist resort and one the of most
palatial venues for a wedding in Sydney.
HARRY “CURZON” SMITH
Harry was the born in
Toronto Canada the eldest son of Hugh Thomas Smith and his wife Rebecca. Hugh
was an engineer and was extremely successful in the gas and soda water
manufacturing business. His improvements to the aerated water machinery in
Toronto soon made him the leading manufacturer of soda fountains and dispensing
machines in Canada and the USA.
In 1877 Hugh moved with his
family to Australia and set up a firm in Sydney that secured contracts to
install gas lighting in Victoria, South Australia, Queensland and Tasmanian railway
carriages.
Harry commenced working with
his father as a travelling salesman. Aged 23, in 1884, he married Isabella
Curzon Webb. Isabella was related to George Curzon, First Marquess Curzon of
Kedleston and Viceroy of India from 1898 to 1909 where he oversaw the
restoration of the Taj Mahal. He later became the Leader of the House of Lords
and from December 1916 served in the War Cabinet of David Lloyd George. He went
on to serve as Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs at the Foreign Office
from 1919 to 1924.
It seemed a great idea for
the Smiths to adopt his wife’s ancestral name and become the Curzon Smiths,
adding some class to their name.
(Of course, it wouldn't be
fitting to mention that Cynthia, the second daughter of George Curzon was the
first wife of Oswald Mosely, the British Fascist Leader and the family became
enmeshed with the British Fascist Party.)
Later in the year of his
marriage Harry established a cordial manufacturing business in George Street
Sydney. By 1894, with his experience in drinks and cordials as well his
father's contacts in the railway, Harry had taken control of 16 NSW Government
Railway Refreshment Rooms (RRR) north of Singleton, as well as those on the
Narrabri line and at the Sydney Terminal
In the early 1890’s Jenolan
Caves House became a place to visit and be seen in the Blue Mountains area.
Although it took some arrangements to reach the remote resort and its intricate
cave system, it proved to be very popular attracting royalty and the cream of
society. However, in 1895 some of the accommodation burned down. The NSW
Government decided to take over the Jenolan accommodation, building a grand hotel alongside the caves
with manicured gardens and improved road access. No expense was spared.
The Government Architect,
Walter Liberty Vernon, designed the first wing of Caves House which was
completed in 1897. It included a limestone bridge that would allow horse-drawn
carriages access from Jenolan Caves Road into the Grand Arch. The following
year the NSW Government called for tenders to lease the new hotel. Harry Curzon
Smith won the tender taking over the lease on 1st July 1898.
For many years
Harry and his family lived in Enmore, an inner western suburb of Sydney. He had
purchased 270 acres of land in Marsfield in the Ryde area in the 1890’s and
built a 20-room mansion which he named Curzon Hall, including a separate
ballroom and large stables which was completed in 1900. The architect was David
Thomas Morrow whose resume included the Grace Building, the AWA tower, Grace
Brothers Broadway store and Babworth House, the home of Samuel Hordern.
The Grace Building 1930 - Wikipedia
Curzon Hall still
stands today and is considered to be one of this State’s finest reception
centres.
Harry Smith gave back to
Society by founding the Marsfield School of Arts and was President of the local
progress association. He was a member of the Commercial Travellers Association
for 22 years.
He envisaged the area where
Top Ryde shopping centre is located as a tourist destination and by 1909 had
commenced building a five storey tourist resort and envisaged large picnic
grounds but this wasn’t to be.
Harry Curzon Smith died at
Curzon Hall on 20th June 1913 at the age of 52, He had been ailing
for many years. Harry is buried in the Anglican section of the cemetery. Extensive
enquiries of the internet and the Rookwood Cemetery Office had failed to find the
exact location of his grave even using varied versions of the spelling of his
name. Records on another site advised that he and Isabella are buried in the large Section 3 area of the old Anglican portion and that there was a headstone stating it was erected by
his son and daughter. Isabella joined him in the plot in 1920. I have since found the exact plot site but unfortunately the headstone was obscured.
I did manage to locate Harry’s
parents Hugh and Rebecca who are located in the Independent Section in a modest grave a few
minutes' walk away having died in 1907 and 1910 respectively.
Harry was a man with a nose
for business and proved to be in the right place at the right time with his
leasing of the Railway Refreshment Rooms and Jenolan Caves House. He had
unfinished business with his latest venture prior to his death but the resort
was never built.
I have used a number of
references for today’s blog such as Ancestry.com; newspaper reports sourced
from Trove, Wikipedia, Jenolan Caves. Org and Macquarie University – Fauna Park
history. I have also used the Everlast search engine and Findmypast.
If you have any comments
regarding this blog, please enter them below or if unable to, feel free to add them
to the Group Facebook page which can be found under
rookwoodcemeterydiscoveries
Or simply send me a message
via
lorainepunch@gmail.com
Until next week
Another interesting read
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