Father of eight crushed by falling log
- Samantha Elley
- Nov 11
- 2 min read
When George Edward Tonkin left for work 6th September, 1916 he would have no idea it would be his last day on earth.
George worked at Wellington Mills, in the south-west of Western Australia as a 'hookman'. He was responsible for hooking the logs up to then be hauled away. He was very involved in the timber industry having lived at Augusta and was connected to the Karridale Mill nearby. He was a well respected resident of the area.
George was born in Fremantle in 1875 to Edward Tonkin and Emma or Emily Stevens. He married Emma Thurkle in Busselton in 1897 and they went on to have eight children. It would be these children who would end up fatherless on that fateful day.
As a hookman, he had just signalled for the log he had hooked up to be hauled away, when its movement released another log which passed over and killed him in an instant. He was only 42 years of age.
George's body was taken to Bunbury where an inquest was opened before the coroner. Eventually, he would be taken the short distance to Busselton where his body was interred in the local cemetery. The officiating Reverend Scott Clarke held the service at St Mary's Church and at the graveside. Many people were on hand to express their sympathies to Emma and her children.
References
'Bunbury', The West Australian, Sat 9 September 1916, Page 10
'Fatal Accident at Wellington Mills', The South-Western News, Fri 8 September, 1916, Page 3
'George Edward Tonkin', Deaths, BDM Western Australia, accessed 7th November, 2025, Online Index Search Tool
'George Edward Tonkin', Births, BDM Western Australia, accessed 7th November, 2025, Online Index Search Tool
'George Edward Tonkin', Marriages, BDM Western Australia, accessed 10th November, 2025, Online Index Search Tool
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