What did Hazor Humphrey Bodger, my 3x great uncle, say to the judges at the Strathalbyn Show on March 4 1869? Hazor was a farmer in McHarg’s Creek, South Australia, and from newspaper advertisements and articles I can see that he was breeding and showing draught horses in South Australia for a number of years.
A description of the show and underneath Hazor’s prize win.
1869 ‘THE STRATHALBYN SHOW.’, Adelaide Observer (SA : 1843 – 1904), 6 March, p. 6, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article158936062
On March 4 one of Hazor’s horses came second to that of Mr. W. Rankine. Now the Rankine name is very well known in Strathalbyn as the town was founded by two Rankine brothers William and John. I have been unable to ascertain if this is William Rankine the said co-founder or another Rankine however, I feel sure the Mr. W. Rankine listed here if not the man himself is a member of said family. Did Hazor suspect favoritism or was it simply that he could have charged a higher price for his stallion’s services had he won the competition.
Apology Requested
1869 ‘THE WEEK’S NEWS.’, Adelaide Observer (SA : 1843 – 1904), 20 March, p. 5, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article158936290
I don’t know what Hazor said but the Secretary of the Strathalbyn Agricultural Society was requested to write to him. He was informed that unless he apologised to the Committee for his conduct towards the Judges at the last show, he would not be allowed to exhibit there again. I’m guessing he used some fairly strong language.
There are no further newspaper articles showing Hazor entering horses in the Strathalbyn Show again, that I have found, so I don’t know if he gave the apology or not. He later moved to Victoria and entered horses in shows in Victoria and south eastern South Australia and unfortunately died when he was thrown from a horse at only 52 years of age in 1879.
1879 ‘ITEMS BY CABLE.’, The Narracoorte Herald (SA : 1875 – 1954), 11 November, p. 2, viewed 25 May, 2015, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article146442946
Oh dear 🙁 He must have felt hardly done by – difficult when it is not just a prize but future earnings
Tee hee – wouldn’t we love to know now what the exchange was…judging at country shows can be quite heated. I’ve only ever entered a tea cosy in the knitting category once at the local show and suffered the ignominy of being advised on the return of my entry at the end of the show – “No comment”. Sigh.
I would love to know Alex. I had pets in the Strathalbyn Show for many years as a kid and as an adult I’ve put in crocheted hats (no result either). It’s funny that we ended up living in the same area as the Bodgers and I still attend the show each year.
Kylie
Hi my name is Jaynie Bodger.
My dad and I were researching our family name for ww1, we found the great information on the web that you have done however we find it hard to follow as we may not be following the right web pages, we would love to know if you have a copy of all of the research you have done on the Bodger family our great aunty Molly Hutchinson (Dec) had a lot of info. We will pay for what every it costs to obtain the info.
My dads name is Michael his dad was Walter John Bodger he lived in Horsham next to the Wimmera River, my dad has a few pics of the family and a pic of a great uncle George Godfrey who was related to the family of Bodger, My aunty (dads Sister Carol) also has a lot of information on the Bodger family.
You can contact me via my dad at the info listed below
I look forward to your reply
Thanking you
Jaynie Bodger (aged 12)
Mick Bodger
Nightlighter Fireworks
16 Cameron Way
Pakenham Victoria 3810
Ph Fx 03 59 412 433
Mob 0418 514 123
Email nightlighter@bigpond.com
pyroatnightlighterfireworks@gmail.com
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Hi Jaynie
Thanks for getting in touch! I’ve sent you an email and I look forward to hearing back from you.
Kylie 🙂