The Turners were once a prominent family in Goulburn, who built many of the beautiful surviving buildings in the city.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Apart from being expert stonemasons, the Turners also had the first motor car dealership and bicycle shop in town.
They also introduced wool sales in the city and established the former Farmers and Graziers Building, where Woolworths now stands.
Robert Blackwell Turner was a stonemason who came to Goulburn to work on St Saviour’s Cathedral.
The great-great granddaughter of Robert Blackwell Turner, Grace Middleton made a special visit to Goulburn recently to find the family grave at the St Saviour’s Cemetery.
She said four generations of her family had worked on St Saviour’s Cathedral, over an 80-year period.
Robert Blackwell Turner arrived in Australia on the “St Helena” in 1854, with his wife Mary. He spent the first six years working on the Wellington to Dubbo Rd.
They came to to Goulburn in 1860 and Robert worked on the Cathedral from 1874 until he died of tuberculosis in 1878.
His two sons, James and Robert (Henry), carried on his work at the Monumental and Masonry Works after Mary Turner asked the diocese whether they could return to complete his contract.