Carroll, Matthew Luke

DESCRIPTION

NameCarroll, Matthew LukeOccupationBlacksmithPlace of ResidenceShellharbour Village, Albion Park.BiographyMatthew Carroll was born in 1863, to John and Margaret Carroll (nee Kirby) and they had several children, Johanna b.1861 (Raftery), Matthew Luke b.1863, Mary b.1865, Bridget b.1868 (McKinnery).

Matthew left school at 12 years of age to help his mother rear the family. He was apprenticed to Henry & Louis Mood of Shellharbour in 1878. Their blacksmiths shop was where the Shellharbour Garage is today, in Addison Street, Shellharbour.

When Louis Mood moved his half of the business to Albion Park, Matthew moved too, and continued working for Louis for many years.

Matthew married Teresa Timbs, daughter of Gabriel Timbs Snr.

In the 1920s Matt left Moods and started his own shop, in a shed on a block of land in Tongarra Road, (opposite WG Harris & Sons Garage today)

During the depression, Matt moved the business to a vacant block next to his home, and built a simple bush shed of timber and corrugated iron. He couldn’t afford to buy new steel & used old sulky wheels and cart rims, which he heated and folded over, to make horse shoes.

His shed had a large leather bellows over eight feet long with brass buttons. He used a long bush pole suspended from the rafter as a handle, to pump the bellows. Local identity Jack Martin recalls the pleasure of passing by the smith’s shops and hear him tinkering on the anvil. By the different tones of the anvil, one knew whether he was using a heavy or light hammer. The tapered horn on the anvil was used mainly for shaping horseshoes, the narrow end for shaping ponies’ shoes, and the thicker base for draught horseshoes.

Matt had an extra-large anvil, over 100 kilograms in weight. For several years, Matt shod Jack Martin’s three ponies until he retired in 1947. He was 81 years old. He also made Jack’s fathers livestock firebrand in 1939. He passed away in 1950 aged 84 years.

Information - Jack Martin.

External LinkAlbion Park - Matt Carroll Win 1931Matt Carroll as Secretary 1938Golden Wedding 1942Life on the South Coast 50 Years Ago 1947Obituary Matthew Luke Carroll 1950Obituary Mrs TE Carroll 1953

Matthew and Theresa Carroll's house, Terry Street, Albion Park.

CONNECTIONS

CollectionPeopleFamilyTimbsMoodLocalityAlbion ParkShellharbour VillagePersonMood, Louis RobertMartin, JackRelated ItemMatthew and Theresa Carroll's house, Albion Park

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Carroll, Matthew Luke