Montville's Carinya witnesses over a century of family histories

‘Carinya’, Emily and Jack Aird’s dream home, built in 1919 The children loved skating around the verandahs.

This Old House by Cate and Doug Paterson, Montville History Group

This old house at 122 Balmoral Road Montville was built immediately following WW1 and features a welcoming "Rising Sun" over the front entrance porch (an acknowledgement of the AIF badge worn on Australian soldier hats and collars during WW1). Significantly, it was called ‘Carinya’, an indigenous word meaning happy, peaceful home. 

Original owner Jack Aird settled in Montville in 1905 and began growing citrus. He courted Emily Smith, daughter of Alfred and Bessie Smith of ‘Orange Grove’ along the Back Road, Montville and they were wed in 1907. Emily and Jack lived in a modest cottage on their farm for 12 years before they approached well-known and highly respected local builder Fred Thompson and his son Arthur to build their dream home. The couple already had two sons, John and Norm, and a daughter Eva when they moved in. Their youngest son Robert was born the following year in 1920.

When the citrus industry waned, Jack grew pineapples on the slopes behind his home. The family participated in local sports and musical events. When the Montville Sportsground was established in 1925, Jack supported the Montville Football Club becoming Senior Vice President.

Young John loved singing and learnt keyboard from Elsie Skene, Montville’s renowned music teacher, but with no piano at home he made a wooden keyboard and practised on that for five years. By 1926, John now 18, was the leader of a band called ‘Gloom Chasers’, singing and playing banjo. John and Norm also played in the ‘Les Thompson Rhythm Band’, and had his own band, ‘The John Aird Brothers’, entertaining Montville and the wider district at local dances. John and Norm later established ‘Airds Bros.’ shoe shops throughout the Sunshine Coast.

To boost the family income, Emily took in boarders renting rooms in the back half of the house. She was a wonderful cook and her pineapple pie was everyone’s favourite. Granddaughter Jill McDonald remembers the rows of hedges Jack had established to try and keep the wind from the citrus trees. She also remembers sitting under the trees, ‘eating myself senseless on delicious mandarines. Grandad would go out into the orchard just with a hoe to tackle the weeds under those citrus trees.”

With the outbreak of World War 2, Jack and his three sons all signed up. Emily and Jack subdivided the farm, relocated the back half of the house to Nambour and sold the reduced size house to Pat and Joan Brown.

Pat and Joan were a couple with long-standing in the Montville community. Pat’s father, was George Brown who began farming in Montville in 1906 and raised his family at ‘Craglands’ just down the road from ‘Carinya’.

Pat’s son, Hilary remembers ‘Carinya’ had a hip roof and an unfinished understory when they bought it; with three bedrooms, a large high ceilinged living room, kitchen, bathroom and two utility rooms. In addition, a covered verandah extended the full eastern side and wrapped part way around the southern and northern sides.” 

In 1954, Pat aged 36, lost his eyesight from diabetes. He had maintained the family farms while his brothers were at war, and even when completely blind would still make packing cases for the pineapples despite a regularly hammered and bruised thumb.

Hilary explained, “The house was located on a half acre irregular shaped block with the eastern and northern boundaries bordered by Balmoral Road. In keeping with the acuteness of the road alignment and the resident owner of the time being totally blind, "Carinya" was known locally as being located on "blind man's corner".

Carinya has been a happy home for five families. It has been extended to include additional living room and an expansive western deck. This allowed for part of the back to be closed in underneath Current owners, Greg Holmes, his wife and family have lived there since 2012 and have renovated and modernised the 105-year-old home. Although they are busy with work, school and soccer commitments they can now relax and enjoy ‘Carinya’, their happy and mostly peaceful home.