Langley.
1910 to 1996
Written by Jane Mouritz
Whilst our memories of the earliest days in the Nyabing district are based on hearsay, we believe that James Henry Langley and his wife Jessie and children Vivian, Violet and Ellis bought the property known as Dualling (now Harris’ property) in 1910.
Vivian Gairdner Langley, departed from the area to serve in World War One. He saw active warfare in France and other battlefields, and the trauma’s experienced stayed with him for the rest of his days. It is not known exactly when he took up the Nyabing property known as Merino Downs, Kojonup Location 4956, as after the war he did some shepherding in the Pingrup district before farming. It is understood that sandalwood cutters and bark cutters camped in the creek just behind the Merino Downs homestead in the 1890’s – harvesting sandalwood timber and Mallet Tree bark.
Viv married Ina Alethea Wallis, a Katanning girl, in 1931. Their first son, Max, was born in 1932 followed by Cliff, Ruth, Lila and Olive. Cliff died tragically in 1955. Ruth worked in the Road Board office in Nyabing before marrying Bruce Barclay and moved away. Lila married Robert Collins and moved to Perth while Olive did nurses’ training and moved to South Australia. Early on they had a terrible fire which saw the horse stables and working horses destroyed. Apparently Viv had been boiling up pig feed when the fire started. When Vivian and Ina moved to Katanning in 1958-9, Maxwell Wallis Langley continued farming on Merino Downs. He married school teacher Lesley Wells in 1958.
Lesley Langley outside Mrs Bells House in 1955
Lesley, (1955), and Peta McGuckin, (1954) had been appointed as teachers to Nyabing Primary School. These two young women lived in a caravan set under some Salmon Gums, on a block just south of Coates’ house. They used the toilet at the school and the shower at Bulla Stephens’. There was just a tilly lamp and a little blue flame two-burner stove, so cooking was pretty basic. They had a bad fire, started when Peta was dry cleaning with the blue-flame stove going, and this burnt their caravan to the ground and put Lesley in Royal Perth Hospital for six weeks or more. (Mrs George Cheetham stood in as relief teacher during this time.) After that they boarded at Bill and Cis’ Bells’, about a mile east of Nyabing. Lesley taught at the old Nyabing School for two years and transferred to Pingelly prior to marrying Max Langley in 1958.
Max Langley outside the old stables on Merino Downs
Lesley and Max had four children; Delys Jane (1959), Ian Maxwell (1961), Roger James (1962) and Jocelyn (1964). They farmed sheep, a few cows and pigs, and grew crops on Merino Downs and a new land block adjacent to the north. In 1977 they expanded their holding, purchasing Hillview at Kuringup. Lesley did some relief teaching when her children were young and went back full-time in 1972. She taught in Nyabing until 1983. In late 1979 Max Langley had a serious car accident, and was hospitalised in Royal Perth Hospital, Shenton Park and Katanning until his death in 1984.
Ruth, Olive & Lila Langley in 1958
At this time, Ian Langley, just 19, took on the responsibility of the farm with Lesley. Ian married Pamela Robinson, his high school sweetheart, in 1980. They had four children; James (1980), Anna (1982), William (1986) and Thomas (1989) and continued to farm until selling up in 1996. The end of the Langley era at Nyabing, though William and Tom have since been back to play football for the local team in 2009/10.
Langley’s always participated in community affairs. Viv had been actively involved in the RSL and had been on the Royal Agricultural Society Show committee. Ina was in Country Women’s Association (CWA). Ruth was a Miss Wool Queen. Max and Cliff were good footballers, and Max was also on the Show and Sports Day committees. Lesley was in the P&C, CWA, netball, badminton and tennis, and also, on the All Saints Church committee that saw the Nyabing Church built. Her mother, Lillian Wells, donated the baptismal font, and all four Langley children were baptised in the Nyabing church. (Jane was also confirmed there, by Father Threlfall in 1970.)
In the 1980’s Ian and Pam Langley were also contributors to the Nyabing community, with lots of involvement in sport, P&C and also St John’s Ambulance.
Ian, Jane, Jocelyn & Roger Langley in 1968
In late 1960’s the Junior Farmers were active, and Lesley remembers producing a play, “The Black Horse’, starring school teachers, Clyde Selby, Vivienne Lehmann, and Rita Tognini. This play won regional drama awards and was performed at Nyabing, Wagin and Corrigin.
Jane remembers when Brownies and Girl Guides started in Nyabing – in the old school. Mrs Rule, Mrs Ripper, Mrs Patterson and Mrs McLaren are leaders she fondly remembers when she was a “Sprite” in Brownies. Then Mrs Jo Addis was her wonderful Guide Leader until high school saw her leave Nyabing for good in 1972.
There was also a Debutante Ball in 1964-5. Jane was a flower girl. Just after this ball the Webse’ s home burnt down, and her lasting memory of this is that one of the Debutantes, Lorraine Webse, lost her beautiful dress in the fire.
Nyabing Debutante Ball 1965 – Debs and Partners
From Left to right: Terena Quartermaine & Barry McHardy, Sigrid Gratz & Phil Wellstead, Norma Batt & Ray Batt, Lorraine Webse & Kevin Shearman, Janine Addis & Wally Filmer, Maxine Altham & Peter Gillis, Sandra Reid & John Altham, Gloria Harvey & Norman Jury, Aileen Emery & Fred Batt, Christine Charsley & Keith Butcher.
Flower girls: Diane Coates, Helen Reid and Jane Langley
(photo courtesy of Jan O’Neil (nee Addis)
In 2012, at the time of the centenary, Lesley Langley lives in Swanbourne, Jane Mouritz (nee Langley) lives at Hyden, Pam Langley (nee Robinson) is near Geraldton, Roger Langley lives in Karrinyup, and Jocelyn Godwin (nee Langley) is at Gingin. Sadly, there are no Langley descendants in the Nyabing district today.
William Langley with Margaret Fewson at the Sports Presentation Night 11th September 2009
William Langley playing for KDFC May 2009
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