Man of Vision

 

In 1887, John “Jack” Henry Horace Jackson was born in Kidds Gully, Daylesford to Horace Jackson & Lilias "Lily" Jackson Nee Harris. Jack was one of three boys.

 

Growing up in Daylesford and attending State School, Jack from an early age had a vision for the arts, engineering, radio, photography and moving pictures.

 

In 1897, Jack became interested in oil painting and by the early 1900’s he found a job at the Daylesford’s Advocate Printing Shop

 

Soon his attention was turning to engineering and he built a petrol engine, and a scaled model steam powered engine. This led to him opening his own engineering business in Smith St, Daylesford where he repaired the local mining equipment and the district’s first automobiles.

 

By the early 1910’s he was rapidly developing an interest in cinematographic movies.

 

In 1912, Jack purchased his first movie camera, a hand cranked model and made his first movie in Daylesford. He then became a partner in the “Star Theatre” which hosted movie nights in the Daylesford Town Hall.

 

During the First World War he was declared unfit for the Army, so Jack went to England as a munition worker and was soon working on aircraft.

 

After returning to Australia in 1919, Jack married Agnes Mary Phillips.

 

The pair moved to Sunshine in 1919 where Jack found employment at H.V. McKays. He worked in the engine shop, drawing office and in the experimental shop.

 

Jack & Agnes first lived in Islington St corner Hampshire Rd before moving to 18 Clarke St in the mid 1920’s and lived there to the early 1940’s

 

In the early 1920’s wireless radio technology was on his mind and he became a partner in a radio shop in Hampshire Rd, Sunshine. In his Clarke St home he installed a radio and aerial outfit and also set up a part time business to develop and produce tools and components for the assembly of radios and paper speaker cones.

 

In 1924, Jack demonstrated this marvellous and rapidly developing technology in his Clarke St home by broadcasting from loudspeakers to the lucky Sunshine crowd. They could hear a choir of 1000 voices singing in the Sydney Town Hall.

 

In 1925, he played over the loudspeakers from his residence, 3LO’s broadcast of the results of the Federal Election. The owner of the Sunshine Advocate Clarrie Carlton reported that he could distinctly hear the results from the door of his office in Dickson St. He also broadcasted over the loudspeakers the Test Cricket from England.

 

The 1920’s also saw the birth of his two daughters, Gladys Mary (b16/11/1920 d30/8/1988) & Ina Agnes.

 

In 1935, he started his own engineering and brass finishing business in Clarke St working after hours as he was still employed at H.V. McKays. As his business grew he has to leave H.V. McKays so he could work full time. He specialised at first for fittings for steel frame windows but expanded this to produce clothes pegs, knives, collapsible wall mounted clothes dryers, glue spreading machines for the local Sunshine Cabinet works.

 

In 1936, he held a movie night at the St. Albans Presbyterian Church with a collection of movies with many of them taken by himself. During the night he explain to the audience the manner of how many of the special effects and sequences were made.

 

Jack founded the Sunshine Amateur Movie Association and they began showing movies in his house in 1939

 

In 1939, the business outgrew his home workshop and he had to open a larger workshop at 26 Devonshire Rd, Sunshine. The business was known as “Jackson Tools Pty Ltd” and during the Second World War they made parts for Aircraft.

 

In 1941, John designed and built his new two storey English style house at 9 Withers St.

 

By the mid 1940’s Jack was one of the first amateurs in Australia to use 16mm color movie film. For the developing of this film, it had to be flown to America. Later in life he was quoted as saying “Black and white is only a shadow, color lives.”

 

In 1946, he turned the attic in his house into an exact replica but on a reduced scale, of an interior of a cinema including a stage and proscenium. He fitted out the cinema with the latest equipment including gramophones and speakers. He named his little cinema the “Gladina Theatrette,” named after his two daughter’s Christian names Gladys and Ina. He even produced little invite cards and issuing them to people to view a private screening of his films. He never charged for these screenings however for any of the organisations that organised the night, he would allow them to charge admission. He could entertain up to 40 people in his private theatre. The house has fondly known as the “Picture House”

 

John toured the Northern Territory making small short movies of the area including some scenes being shot from a light aircraft. He was sure that many people would visit the Territory after seeing his movies.

 

In the 1950’s he started to develop Three Dimentional “3D” films and equipment for the projection in his theatrette.

 

In 1951, he produced the “City of Sunshine Film”.

 

Jack’s first wife Agnes Mary Phillips died on the 15th May 1956. He then was remarried in 1959 to Violet Adelaide Jowett Nee Hogan.

 

Jack’s other hobbies included wood working, cabinet making, wood turning and metal spinning and making of his own tools. He made a large swinging boat in his Withers St house backyard.

 

Jack was a significant member of the community of Sunshine and was the foundation president of the Sunshine Elderly Citizen Centre located on the corner of Corio and Watt Street and a Board Member of the Sunshine Community Hospital.

 

Jackson’s Lookout, the tower at Hepburn Springs was erected in his honour after his films raised considerable funds for the location Daylesford Progress Association.

 

Jack lived in Sunshine for over 50 years and he died on the 26th June 1972. His cremated remains are beside his 1st wife Agnes, in the Garden Of Remembrance, Fawkner Cemetery.

 

Today in a newly built home, a theatre room is almost a standard requirement together with its high definition wide screen TV and surround sound system but Jack was well ahead of us when you consider that it is 65 years that he started showing movies in his own home.

 

Year     No       Street                            Side of Street   Name

1920                Devonshire Rd             North Side       Jackson, John "Jack" Henry Horace

1921                Devonshire Rd             North Side       Jackson, John "Jack" Henry Horace

1922                Devonshire Rd             North Side       Jackson, John "Jack" Henry Horace

1923                Devonshire Rd             North Side       Jackson, John "Jack" Henry Horace

1924                Devonshire Rd             North Side       Jackson, John "Jack" Henry Horace

1925                Clarke St                      East Side         Jackson, John "Jack" Henry Horace

1926                Clarke St                      East Side         Jackson, John "Jack" Henry Horace

1927                Clarke St                      East Side         Jackson, John "Jack" Henry Horace

1928                Clarke St                      East Side         Jackson, John "Jack" Henry Horace

1929    18        Clarke St                      East Side         Jackson, John "Jack" Henry Horace

1930    18        Clarke St                      East Side         Jackson, John "Jack" Henry Horace

1931    18        Clarke St                      East Side         Jackson, John "Jack" Henry Horace

1931    26        Devonshire Rd             South Side       Burke, John Maurice - Undertaker

1933    18        Clarke St                      East Side         Jackson, John "Jack" Henry Horace

1935    18        Clarke St                      East Side         Jackson, John "Jack" Henry Horace

1938    18        Clarke St                      East Side         Jackson, John "Jack" Henry Horace

1940    18        Clarke St                      East Side         Jackson, John "Jack" Henry Horace

1940    26        Devonshire Rd             South Side       Jackson, John "Jack" Henry Horace - Engineer

1940    26        Devonshire Rd             South Side       Jackson, John "Jack" Henry Horace - Engineer

1942    26        Devonshire Rd             South Side       Jackson Tools Pty Ltd - Engineers

1942    9          Withers St                     West Side       Jackson, John "Jack" Henry Horace

1945    26        Devonshire Rd             South Side      Jackson Tools Pty Ltd - Engineers

1945    9          Withers St                     West Side       Jackson, John "Jack" Henry Horace

1950    26        Devonshire Rd             South Side      Jackson Tools Pty Ltd - Engineers

1950    9          Withers St                     West Side       Jackson, John "Jack" Henry Horace

1955    9          Withers St                     West Side       Jackson, John "Jack" Henry Horace

1960    9          Withers St                     West Side       Jackson, John "Jack" Henry Horace

1965    9          Withers St                     West Side       Jackson, John "Jack" Henry Horace

1970    9          Withers St                     West Side       Jackson, John "Jack" Henry Horace

1974    9          Withers St                     West Side       Jackson, John "Jack" Henry Horace

 

Ref: The Advocate 27th September 1924

Ref: The Advocate 14th November 1925

Ref: The Advocate 9th April 1936

Ref: Allan Advocate – Alice Springs 20th September 1957

Ref: Footscray Mail 12 May 1960

Ref: Exhibition Panels by David Templeton, son in law of John Jackson

Ref: Ailsa Alchin Nee Armour

Ref: Sands & McDougall Directories

Photos: Exhibition Panels by David Templeton, son in law of John Jackson

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