Rosewood History

W. E. Thomas Aerated Water Manufacturer – 19th March 1923
Walter Thomas is 1st on left, Jim Wyatte, Col Temperley. The woman is his daughter Molly (Nolan). 
Photo: Rosewood Scrub Historical Society

Rosewood Aerated Water and Cordial Factory

Long time residents of Rosewood and district have fond memories of Thomas’s cordial and soft drink factory. It may surprise some to know that cordial making was first introduced to the town by a man named Henry Eggert.

Heinrich Franz Eggert (Henry) from Rose Cottage, Roadvale was a school teacher at Ewon State School. In 1911 he resigned his position to take another at Mungindi State School on the Qld-NSW border. Instead he took work as a representative for Atcherley & Dawson (Tea, Coffee and Cocoa Merchants) in the Brisbane Valley, Rosewood and Fassifern Districts. He must have seen an opportunity at Rosewood because in the beginning of 1912 he decided to try his hand at cordial manufacturing there.

In November 1913 he sold his business to William George Livermore, who also had an aerated water and cordial manufacturing factory in Ipswich. (1) Henry stayed on to manage the business until George Livermore built a new soft drink factory near the railway station at Rosewood in June 1914 and appointed Walter Edwin Thomas as manager. (2) His factory was located in Railway Street (No 27) three doors down from the corner of Albert Street.

The townsfolk of Rosewood were familiar with George Livermore’s soft drinks etc. The soft drinks and cordials at his Ipswich factory were made under the supervision of well-known maker John Ferguson. Robert Hodge, licensee of the Rosewood Hotel, ordered 200 dozen bottles of Ginger Beer from George Livermore for the Rosewood Show in 1889. A year later he found a few bottles left over in his storeroom and said it was as good as the day he got it. A sample was sent to the Queensland Times and they concurred.

Walter Thomas was also George Livermore’s stepson. He had worked on and off in the industry since 1894 and had been a representative for Livermore’s business in the Rosewood district. 

In 1917 George Livermore sunk a bore to a depth of 110ft at the cordial factory but the Health Department would not permit this water to be used for drinking purposes. That problem seemed to have been resolved because by 1921, when Walter Thomas took over the business, a bore was in use.

His factory is complete, with every modern device and is noted for the high class drinks manufactured. A bore, with a never-failing water supply, supplies the factory and water is laid on. (3)

A windmill on his property was used to pump the water to the tank. One day the iron tank stand and the 30 foot high 1,000 gallon tank (containing water) collapsed at the cordial factory and narrowly missed Walter Thomas. Walter had just stepped clear of the stand before it fell.

The suface condition of Railway Street was in a rough state in those days. There was a gully at the entrance to his property. As a result, Walter had been continuously suffering losses of broken bottles when he was leaving and entering his premises. He asked the Council for permission to put a temporary bridge over the invert at the front of his factory. The Council gave permission for the bridge and gravelled the road as far as the railway goodshed. (4)

In August 1921, in the Rosewood Register and Marburg Mail, Walter announced he was about to put a new drink on the market named “Fruito”. It proved to be very popular.

An incident at the factory- Mr. L. Hines, who is employed by Mr. W. E. Thomas at his cordial factory, was unloading some goods when a case of vinegar fell on his right arm, causing a fracture. (5)

Soft drinks and cordials were brewed at Thomas’s factory. Some of the flavours of the cordial were Peppermint, Clove, Monsa, Chilli Punch, Lemon Juice, Sarsaparilla, Raspberry and the soft drinks were Creaming Soda, Horehound, Ginger Beer, Dry Ginger Ale, Sarsaparilla, Hop Beer and Orange. The drinks were manufactured at the back of the shop and sold in the front of the shop.

The label on the bottles read, “This food contains not more than two grains of sulphur dioxide to the pint” or “This food contains not more than 2 grains of salioylic acid to the pint”.
See some labels here (Compliments of Spencer Yarrow)

In October 1927, Walter Thomas purchased Sawtell’s aerated water business in West Street, Ipswich and ran it in partnership with James Gordon Cornish. He ran it in conjunction with his Rosewood business. (6) The partnership was dissolved the next year and Walter Thomas continued on his own.

After he died in 1939, his son, also named Walter Edwin, became the proprietor of the Rosewood factory. He was affectionately known locally as “Teddy” Thomas.

Teddy served with the 20 Australia Works Co during WW2. He enlisted at Rosewood on 17th March 1942 aged 39 years 6 months. Works Companies were essentially construction/maintenance/labour teams. These teams were assembled and deployed to build, maintain and sometimes operate the infrastructure needed to support military operations on the Australian mainland, and in some cases, in the neighbouring Territories and Islands during WW2.

He spent a year in New Guniea and on Bouganville between March 1944 and February 1945, after which he was evacuated. The reason for this was that he was ill with stomach problems (Functional Dyspepsia). He was deemed unfit for service outside of Australia. Teddy spent time in the Holland Park Military Hospital and at 5 Australian Recruiting Depot at Camp Cable near Logan Village, where the 22nd Australian Camp Hospital was located. He was eventually discharged on 1st October 1945. 

The residents of Rosewood who remember Teddy tell of how he rode his push bike around town most of the time and how he fashioned a wooden platform on the crossbar of his bicycle to carry a crate of soft drinks. How sometimes the weight of the crate challenged Teddy to keep the bike upright. That it was commonplace to see him carrying a small port around town and how he also delivered drinks in a vintage Grey ute. How he washed the bottles by hand and filled, gassed and capped them himself. That a bottle of soft drink cost 10 cents. When Worth’s Circus came to town the elephants would enjoy a soft drink (compliments of Teddy) after they had unloaded the circus’s equipment at the railway station and towed it down to the Showgrounds. 

Teddy Thomas lived in an old building, a former shop, at 11 John Street. Residents say that cactus plants grew in the gutters and Teddy could often be seen standing in his doorway for hours watching the cars and people go by.

Sometime after his death his home was demolished and the National Bank was built on the site (now Crazy Clark’s).

Teddy was an iconic figure in Rosewood. His soft drink was well loved by everyone and so was he. He died 10th June 1988 and is interred at Warrill Park Lawn Cemetery.

© Jane Schy, 2024

Sources:
(1) Queensland Times, Saturday, 22 November 1913, page 14
(2) Queensland Times, Tuesday, 30 June 1914, page 7
(3) Daily Mail, Thursday, 3 May 1923, page 13
(4) Rosewood Register & Marburg Mail, 22 April 1921
(5) Daily Mail, Thursday, 29 October 1925, page 15
(6) Brisbane Courier, Friday, 21 October 1927, page 19
QLD Registry Births, Death & Marriages
National Library of Australia
Ipswich Cemetery Records