Where did the name St Helena come from? It’s a question I get asked often here in St Helena. The suburb of Melbourne, not the island.
St Helena’s story begins with Anthony Beale. He once worked as a paymaster for the British East India Company. His work took him to the island of Saint Helena in the Atlantic Ocean. When the island went back to British government control in 1836, Beale retired.
He moved to England for three years with his wife and sixteen children. Imagine the logistics of that move. In the 1830s, he traveled to the Port Phillip district. This journey took him via Van Diemen’s Land. Sadly, his son Onesophorous drowned in the Tamar River during this time.
In 1841, Beale leased a large pastoral area on the Plenty River. This area included what we now know as St Helena. The Beale’s cottage was named St Helena. It was named after the island where Anthony Beale had previously lived. The area then became known by the same name.
After his wife Katherine Rose’s death, Beale built the Rose Chapel. He built it in their front garden to remember her. Anthony and Katherine Beale, along with some of their children, are buried in the adjoining graveyard.
In 1842, the chapel and three acres were gifted to the Church of England. The Bishop of Ballarat consecrated it as St Katherine’s Church. A bushfire burned it down in 1957. Luckily, architectural drawings had been made. The chapel was rebuilt and is still used today.
Major residential development in St Helena began in the mid to late 1980s. St Helena is now a thriving suburb with schools, shops and parks.
You can visit St Katherine’s Church today. It is a traditional English parish church with a graveyard. It’s set within the Anthony Beale Reserve. Walking through the grounds you can feel the history. The story of Anthony Beale and his family is a reminder of the past. St Helena has grown but its name remains. The area is a testament to the enduring legacy of its founder.