HENRY HUNTER TYRER was born in Victoria in 1868. He came to Lawlers, in the Shire of Leonora, around 1896. It was situated 8 kms from Leonora.
The town was gazetted in July 1896 so he was one of the first to set up business here.
The town grew quickly in the first 12 months, with stores, hotels and a blacksmith, to serve the miners who settled here.
He formed the 1st aerated water factory here with Alexander Burns Gloster and it traded as Gloster and Tyrer.
The company only advertised in the Mt Magnet Miner and Lennonville Leader newspaper, from February to June 1897 although Tyrer is listed at Lawlers as a cordial maker until 1911 in Wises Post Office Directories.
In 1911 the lease of the Victoria Hotel at Lawlers was due to expire in September so Tyrer changed occupations and is listed here in 1912 but then his name disappears from the Directories.
He died in Sydney at the home of his son in May 1953.
Did Gloster finance this aerated water company and Henry Hunter Tyrer produced the cool drinks as Gloster is not mentioned in Lawlers, other than in the company name?
Many bottle collectors have travelled to Lawlers over the years and most collectors have added bottles to their collection from this area.
ALEXANDER BURNS GLOSTER
ALEXANDER BURNS GLOSTER was a little younger than Tyrer and was born in Seymour, Victoria in 1873.
In 1897 his name is linked to Tyrer at Lawlers producing aerated waters but in 1898 he is secretary of the hospital committee at Yalgoo. He opened a store in Fields Find in 1902 and sold aerated waters.
Also, in the town was Thomas Robert James and wife Grace who owned the local hotel. When James went on holiday Gloster took over the hotel whilst still running his store and aerated water business.
In early 1908, Gloster had a change and moved to the South West to Harvey. He had a store here and applied for a gallon license.
In 1911 he left Harvey and was at the Freemasons Hotel in Busselton, when he applied for a license to be a JP for the Sussex district.
By Xmas 1913 he was at the Commercial Hotel, Busselton.
He married widow Grace James in 1916 who he had met at Fields Find. Her husband Thomas Robert James had died suddenly at Claremont in 1915 and they were the owners of the Moora Hotel.
Alexander and Grace had a short time together before he left at nearly 41 yrs of age, to join the armed forces in WW1. He was a prisoner of war in Germany and arrived home in 1919.
In April 1923 Grace and Alexander went to Moora where the Hotel had been managed for a number of years and now called the Commercial Hotel and commenced to build up the trade after the war years. He transferred the licence to Harry McNamara on 14 April 1928.
Sadly, Grace died in England from a fall whilst attending celebrations for the Kings Coronation in 1937.
A B Gloster died in Claremont in 1948.
I don’t know of any bottles connected to this company.
Author – Vivienne Sinclair.
