Murray family factory in Coromandel Valley of Adelaide Hills supplies jam/biscuits from 1850s to South Australia

The Alex Murray and Son jam and biscuit factory (pictured by Ernest Gall in 1898) in the Adelaide Hills' Coromandel Valley. Growing to four storeys, the factory had advances such as  steam rather than the traditional horsepower and biscuits cut by new imported machinery.
Image courtesy State Library of South Australia

The Murray family built up an extremely productive jam and biscuit factory from the1850s at Coromandel Valley in the Adelaide Hills.

The factory came from an act of confidence by Alexander Murray in the South Australian province and the 10 acres in Coromandel Valley he bought from Baptist minister and teacher Samuel Gill (father of illustrator S.T. Gill) in 1844.  Murray, who'd arrived in South Australia on the India in 1840, began planting fruit trees on the valley property he called Craiglee before returning to Scotland in 1845. He went possibly to seek financial investment and backing from his brother in law and successful Glasgow draper Peter Cumming. The Cumming family arrived with Murray when he returned in 1846.

By the mid 1850s, Murray had arranged for John Weymouth to begin constructing his jam and biscuit factory on land next to Craiglee. Cumming initially owned this land but later sold part of it to Murray.

By 1865, the factory had expanded to three storeys. It was powered by steam rather than the traditional horsepower and biscuits were cut by new imported machinery. Murray’s factory was soon producing four times the quantity of jams than could be sold in Adelaide, drawing on its valley fruit trees including patriarchal black mulberries, apple, pear, and plum.

Also, by 1867, the Adelaide press was reporting that “there was now no imported biscuit in the market” and that season Murray’s factory produced 24 varieties of biscuits: 8,115 tins, each weighing 18 pounds (eight kilograms)  each and 375 cases, each weighing 50 pounds (23 kilograms). By 1880, the now four-storey factory’s capacity for making its Craiglee jam had risen to between 200 and 300 tons in a season, while biscuit production reached 40 to 50 varieties. The newspapers often referred to the factory’s use of local fruit, local labour, and huge amounts of butter, sugar and flour. The factory was rarely below full production capacity during these years.

Alexander Murray Jr. continued managing the factory after his father died in 1880. The South Australian Register  (February 8, 1883) reported on the factory’s operations and produce, noting that “350 tons of jam will be turned out…sixty-two persons are employed…most of the fruit used is of South Australian growth…[the factory] has four separate storeys…six coppers heated by steam…As soon as batches [of biscuits] are packed they are carried off by eager buyers…Mr. Murray is a very ingenious mechanician who has supreme control and oversight of every department of the business.”

Alexander Murray Jr. died in 1898 after an accident involving a cyclist and his horse. This hastened the downturn and eventual closure of the business in 1903. The factory and its homestead represent were significant buildings in Coromandel Valley’s history. Craiglee saw births, weddings, illnesses and the deaths of several Murray family members.

Much of the factory was demolished during the early 20th Century, with its stone used to construct buildings and homes in Coromandel Valley and Blackwood. It remained derelict until the mid 1970s when architect and artist John Dallwitz bought the land and started resurrecting the remaining structure to create a heritage home inspired by his time in Italy and Florence. A few years later, he sold it to Jonathon and Laura Law, a school principal and lawyer, who were long-time owners of the four-bedroom residence that had features including kitchen benchtops made from a gum tree found fallen on the property, and slate and timber flooring throughout..

• Information from from A brief history of the Murray Family and their Coromandel Valley Jam and Biscuit Factory, by Glynis Conlon, 2012.