Walter William Bult, Timber Buyer & Expert, Sunshine Harvester Works (1842-1923)

Summary

Biography of Walter William Bult, a timber buyer and expert employed at Sunshine Harvester Works between 1897 and 1923.

The Bult family had the longest association with the Sunshine Harvester Works, beginning in the 1890s until the 1960s. Four generations of the family accumulated over 500 years of service to the firm. D.B Ferguson, an executive at Sunshine Harvester Works, jokingly likened the family to cockroaches, 'every time you turn something over you find one!' (Sunshine Review, September 1952, p.10).

Walter William Bult and his sons John and George were amongst the first to be employed by the company in the 1890s when it was based in Ballarat.

Walter was born in 1842 in Twickenham, England. By 1866, he had migrated to Victoria and settled in Ballarat where he married Elizabeth Ann Cox. The couple had 12 children together:

Elizabeth Jane, born in Miners Rest, Victoria in 1867
Francis John, born in Miners Rest in 1869
George, born in Miners Rest in 1871
John, born in Miners Rest in 1873
Frank, born in Miners Rest in 1877
William Walter, born in Ballarat in 1879
Fred, born in Miners Rest in 1881
Percy David, born in Ballarat in 1883
Elsie May, born in Ballarat in 1886
Gertrude Lily, born in Ballarat in 1888
Albert Edward, born in Ballarat in 1890
Violet Maude, born in Ballarat in 1892

In 1897, Walter joined the Sunshine Harvester Works where his sons George and John had been working since the early 1890s. Prior to this, Walter had been working as a cooper in Ballarat's Leggo Brewery. Walter worked as a timber buyer and expert at the Sunshine Harvester Works. He held this position until his death in August 1923, aged 80.

Besides John and George, Walter's other sons also worked for the Sunshine Harvester Works. Frank, Fred and Albert were shop foremen, while William and Percy established themselves as a labourer and moulder, respectively.

In addition, Walter's ten grand-children and three great grand-children were employed by the company. They entered into various roles in Sunshine's factory and office, including those of a storeman, turner and fitter, toolmaker, foreman, assembler, electrician and carpenter. Female members were also employed by the company. For instance, Walter's grand-daughter Vera Lillian worked as a nurse, while great grand-daughter Beverley Ann was a timekeeper.

Walter's grandsons Raymond and Reginald and great-grandson Kenneth were amongst the last members of the Bult family to be employed by the company. They left the Sunshine Harvester Works in the early and mid-1960s.

References:
1. H.V McKay & Massey-Ferguson Employment Records held at the University of Melbourne Archives.
2. HT 31999, Notes - George Bult Speech, 1929. H.V McKay Sunshine Collection, Museums Victoria.
3. HT 31998, Notes - Memories of George Bult, 16 June 1948. H.V McKay Sunshine Collection, Museums Victoria.
4 . '447 Not Out!', Sunshine Review, 1946, vol.3, no.6, p.4.
5. 'It's a Family Affair', Sunshine Review, 1952, no.17, p.10-11.
6. Transcript of interview with Vernon Bult. Held at Living History Museum of West, registration no. VLMW 87.15.
7. Victoria, Registry of Births, Deaths & Marriages. Digger - Death Index. Victoria 1921-1985.
8. Victoria, Registry of Births, Deaths & Marriages. Digger - Edwardian Index. Victoria 1902-1913.
9. Victoria, Registry of Births, Deaths & Marriages. Digger - Federation Index. Victoria 1889-1901.
10. Victoria, Registry of Births, Deaths & Marriages. Digger - Marriage Index. Victoria 1921-1942.
11. Victoria, Registry of Births, Deaths & Marriages. Digger - Pioneer Index. Victoria 1836-1888.