WHAT HAPPENED TO SHERWOOD?
Author Graham Patterson says in his latest book, Coastal guide to nature and history 2, in the section on his walk from Blind Bight to Tooradin. “The railway didn’t quite reach Tooradin in 1888. The closest it came, avoiding the inlets near the coast, was the station at Sherwood.” Graham led us to the Fisherman’s Cottage Museum in Tooradin where we found a photo of the old Sherwood Hotel in 1907.The description under the photo says the photo was donated to the museum by Richard Poole in January 2003. The Sherwood Hotel was destroyed by fire in the 1950’s. Its Site was the Tooradin-Baxter intersection with the South Gippsland highway. Pictured are the proprietor, George Poole, flanked by his two daughters Kate and Amy. The small boy on the horse, second from right is believed to be Alfred George Poole, late of Berwick. Alfred was born at the Sherwood Hotel in 1899 and was the son of Kate. Richard is Alfred Poole’s son. George Poole, with his two brothers, Frederick and Thomas immigrated from the UK in the 1850’s . The three brothers were all prominent in the development of large tracts of land from Lyndhurst to Lang Lang in the latter half of the 19th Century. Many thanks to Polly Freeman, Gerry, Beverley and Peter at the Fisherman’s Cottage museum. Why don’t you pop in one Sunday afternoon (12-4pm) amd have a look, you’ll love it.