Carl Frederick Schmeider

Carl Frederick Schmeider was born on the ship 'Fanny Kirchner' in Botany Bay in 1858. His birth would have been registered in Germany, but due to bombings in WWII, these records are not available.

Carl was the eldest son of Fredoline (Frederick/Fredonline) Schmeider and Elisabetha (nee Kohlmann). The couple immigrated to Australia in 1858, where the ship was placed into quarantine at Port Jackson because of a small-box outbreak onboard.

The Schmeider family lived at Bundanba (now Bundamba) before moving to Peak Mountain, where Fredoline farmed.

Carl had a fundamental education attending Peak Crossing school, and he learned carpentry until he was 17 years of age. Upon turning 17, his father Fredoline passed away from TB. Carl took over the family farm and his father's bullock team and he bought wool from the western downs to the famous Jondaryn Woolshed.

Carl married Marie Apollonia Zittlow, daughter of Christian Zittlow and Julianne nee Schultz. Marie was born in February 1864 in Scheelanke, Prussia.

Maria would travel with Carl by horseback, and knowing how much the bullocks would travel in one day, she would go ahead and have a meal prepared for when Carl arrived. Camp was set up under the bullock wagon after he attended to the horses and bullocks. Upon waking, she was the last to leave the campsite after her husband started with the bullock team to the next place. It is understood that a round trip would take 14 days, with the load being delivered to Ipswich wharves and later to a railhead in the Kalbar/Fassifern area. This continued until their second son was born and it was no longer possible to run the team.

Carl then selected land and built himself the normal 24 x 12 slab hut with an earth floor and farmed successfully for some time. He was encouraged by a businessman (merchant) in the area, to build a decent house for his wife and family, to be financed and repaid in due course. Due to floods and droughts, bad crops, they sold up and moved to land up Rosedale Road, which was selected in 1892/1893.

Carl was the son of a pioneering family in the Fassifern area and also pioneering family/early settlers to the Rosedale area. Being unable to farm on the selection due to lack of depth of the topsoil, which was unsuitable to agriculture, he turned his hand to cutting timber for the railway (Hume timber/piles or girds and he used his ability and horse team to extend the NC line). As this land was unsuitable for the type of farming he was used to, he selected another area 108V off Three Chain Road. There was a large scrub with fertile red soil which was cut into three blocks. He selected 108Vm the first selection down the Road which is now known as Richter's Road. Later an opposite block was selected by McGhee. The third block was purchased by Manning.

Carl also purchased land and resided in the Ipswich area where all of his children were born. In the late 1890s he moved to the Watalgan area, near Bundaberg where he lived until his passing.

The property at 'Hillside' was transferred to Carl and Maria's son, Alfred Schmeider in 1904. The electoral rolls in 1903, 1905 and 1908 show Alfred living at 'Hillside' Peak Crossing.

Marie died on 6 June 1949 in Bundaberg, Queensland. She had previously been lived at "Seaview" in Watalgan, and before that at Berajondo on the North Coast Line. Carl Francis Schmeider was the sole executor of her Will.