Frank Potts (winemaker)


Frank Potts was the founder of Bleasdale winery at Langhorne Creek, South Australia, which has remained in the Potts family to the present day.

Frank Potts

Frank was born in Hounslow, the second child of Elizabeth and Lawrence Potts, a linen draper and later a bookseller. They moved to Portsmouth around the time of Elizabeth's death. On 29 June 1820 Lawrence married again, to the widow Elizabeth Lockett who already had two children, Elizabeth and Margaretta. All four children were eventually to migrate to South Australia: Frank in 1835, Anne, on the Fairfield late in 1840, Margaretta as Margaretta Baker around 1853, and Elizabeth as Elizabeth Churcher in 1864.
Frank joined the Navy at the age of 9, serving on for three years, for six years. He then worked as a carpenter and ship's chandler until deciding to emigrate to South Australia. He was one of the original settlers of South Australia, arriving with Governor Hindmarsh on in 1836. He had carpentry skills and a set of tools, so was much in demand constructing the first houses. He next worked under Thomas Lipson, the first harbourmaster, as one of five crewing the pilot boat Mary Ann under Hugh Quinn. He bought land at nearby Albert Town and built a cottage there, which also became his father's last residence. On the property transfer document Frank described his occupation as "carpenter" so that may have been his trade in the Navy.
Meanwhile, he built for himself a sailboat Musquito then Petrel, which was eventually a two-masted ketch of 13 tons burthen. In 1842 he moved to American River, Kangaroo Island, fishing, farming, harvesting salt and trading with Adelaide on Petrel. And while there, he built the larger ketch Kangaroo with John Buick, considered the "father" of American River. In 1846 he sold Petrel and returned to the mainland, living in the vicinity of Port Adelaide, and sold his Albert Town property in 1847, having met the girl he was to marry, Augusta Wenzel. Her family had arrived on the Heerjebhoy Rustomjee Patel from Bremen on 18 September 1845. She and Frank married on 17 February 1848, and may have lived with the Wenzel family at Frewville.
In 1849 Frank, with William Carter and George Mason, built a ferry for crossing the Murray at Wellington. In 1850 he purchased two sections of land totalling 217 acres straddling the River Bremer. He built a modest home and began growing wheat and built "Travellers' Rest", a public house for the benefit of travellers on the way to the gold diggings, which he leased to one F. E. Gardiner. Augusta's father and three of her brothers, who had made some money at the Bendigo goldfields, took up land at Langhorne Creek, as did Henry Ayers, George Mayo, John Ridley, and many others who later had a part in the Potts family history.
He built a bullock-powered sawmill and began clearing the 30 acres either side of the river for a vineyard, which was watered by a bullock-powered pump. In 1858 he planted Shiraz and Verdelho grapes and built a cellar and still. As well as those he built for Bleasdale, Frank built redgum vats for other nearby vineyards: at "Montura" for Mr Hector, at "Metala" for Arthur Formby. In 1860 he built a wine-press of his own design. He built a bullock-dray to carry redgum timber to the sawmill. Around 1868 he named his property "Bleasdale" after the Rev. John Ignatius Bleasdale, a viticulturist, though there is no evidence they ever met.

Retirement

As his sons grew to adulthood, Frank was able to leave work on the vineyard, winery and stills to them, and put his energy into his first love – boatbuilding. He had already built the 57 foot Swallow for Archibald Cooke in 1859 and another for William Bowman. The paddle steamers Wilcannia for Captain Tinks of Milang and Bourke for Albert Landseer, several barges, a punt for James Rankine, and some eight sailing boats, which were used to carry wheat across Lake Alexandrina to Goolwa. First was the Souter Johnnie, then the Tam o' Shanter. He built the fast yacht Pasquin for Allan McFarlane of Wellington, then the Beltana, which proved even faster. He also sailed in races at Port Adelaide with some success. His last ship, "Noah's Ark", had a beam of 12 feet and length 31 feet; its purpose and fate are unknown, though he did sail it at the 1889 Milang Regatta, then cruised the Coorong for two weeks with sons Arthur and Dick.
Frank Potts died on 15 December 1890 after five months' illness.
Although a well-known figure in the district, he had no political ambitions, was not a churchgoer and took little part in public affairs.

Family of Frank Potts

Frank had an older sister Anne who married Henry Ayers at Alverstoke on 14 June 1840. They, with father Lawrence and his second wife Elizabeth followed Frank to South Australia on the Fairfield, arriving in November 1840, though Elizabeth died on the voyage, on 8 October 1840. Lawrence died at Port Adelaide 9 June 1845, aged 84. His stepsister Margaretta, née Lockett and her husband Arthur John Baker, arrived in July 1852 via New South Wales. Baker was a member of Peter Warburton's 1858 exploration party through Lake Eyre and Lake Torrens, worked for William Younghusband and became a successful pastoralist and South Australia's first Superintendent of Fire Brigades.
On 17 February 1848 Frank married Augusta Wenzel Their children included:
Augusta died in childbirth. In January 1872 Frank married Anne Flood and had two more sons:
With the death of his father, Frank II continued with the business, assisted by his uncle Fritz Wenzel in charge of the cellar and cooperage. Around 1904 he purchased the Bridge Hotel in Langhorne Creek, and extended his landholding. On his death, his widow Alice and eldest son Arthur continued running the business until her death in 1935.

Family of Frank II

He married Alice Elizabeth Bridgeman. Among their eleven children were:
In 1948 the brothers combined their inheritances into a company Bleasdale Vineyards Ltd. Around 1961 Bleasdale followed the demand for table wines with a Malbec and by 1967 production of spirit had ceased completely; the fortifying spirit for their port being brought in from Nuriootpa.