Written by Tash, our administrator at KAW Electrical & Solar, for the MM&AA Muse.

 

In the stillness of the dark, in the roof space of Maldon IGA, sits an old shopfront "J. Thompson Grocer". 

 

My partner, a local sparky, was running cables when he noticed black, bold writing slightly poking out of the insulation up against it. As he carefully pushed aside the insulation, it revealed a perfectly preserved shopfront, kept safe from the outside elements thanks to an extension to the building.

 

Who was J. Thompson? How long ago was he a grocer? How old is this shopfront?

 

The Maldon Conservation Study by Jacobs Lewis Vines, Architects (Published: 1977), describes this site as the Former Dabb's Store. A (31 and 32). It states that James Thompson was described in the directory for 1884–1885 as a grocer. S. and J. Warnock sold section A (31) to James in January 1885. An example of his advertisement, which appeared in The Tarrangower Times on March 18, 1885, reads: "The Mutual General Store — J. Thompson, Grocer, Ironmonger &c., Main Street, Maldon."

 

Around the same time, in January 1885, Samuel Dabb purchased section A (32), and by November 1887, he had also purchased the southern section A (31).

 

James Thompson's wife was Mrs. Ann M. Thompson. She passed away at age 78 and was described in the Bendigo Independent Newspaper on Wednesday, February 27, 1918 (page 6) as one of Maldon's oldest residents. It reads:" Excepting for some years spent in Castlemaine, she and her husband had been in Maldon for over 40 years. Mr. Thompson was a grocer, and he and a grown-up family mourn the loss of a good wife and mother".

 

Since 1878, James and his Wife lived and worked in and around Maldon. By using the following timeline, gold was first discovered in Maldon in 1853. The MM&AA, which is housed in the former market hall c1859 and the old shire hall c1865, you'll see from this timeline that Mr & Mrs Thompson were around during significant change.

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In his estate" Order for Letters of Administration" - information shared by MM&AA President Derek Reid, indicates that James Thompson of Hornsby Street, Maldon, in the state of Victoria, Retired Grocer, passed away in 1919. 

 

Fast track 106 years to 2025, where each time I pass The Kangaroo Hotel and park nearby, I find myself looking towards the back of the IGA, imagining what it would have been like when J. Thompson's grocery shopfront was clearly visible around 1885 to 1887, back when he was a Grocer and Ironmonger. On my drive through to Main Street, coming from Bendigo, I often admire the beautiful old homes still standing on Hornsby Street – I wonder which one might have been his? And did he also take this same road to get to his store on Main Street, perhaps by horse?

 

So many questions come to mind when I think about James Thompson. It's been 140 years since he first purchased the site on Main Street, where he sold it 2 years later.

 

James and his wife now peacefully rest at the Maldon Cemetery, while his shopfront, "J. Thompson Grocer," still sits after all these years, safely preserved in the stillness of the dark! 

 

Written by Tash Collins.

Photos by Kirk Wojniusz.

Information sourced from MM&AA.

References:

▪️Maldon Conservation Study by Jacobs Lewis Vines, Architects Published:1977

▪️Bendigo Independent: Wednesday 27 February 1918, page 6

▪️The Tarrangower Times: March 18th 1885

▪️Grant of administration " Order for Letters of Administration" was shared by Derek Reid.