Painting of a "Cobb & Co. No. 3, Cassidy & Co. Proprietors"
ca. 1910. The image of a Cobb & Co coach, with the scrolled initials of the Royal crest for George V who ruled from 1910 to 1936. Cobb and Co. were established in Melbourne in 1853 at the height of the excitement created by the Victorian goldrushes. Writer Sam Everingham notes that Cobb & Co was "the first great home grown service provider Australia had known... Born out of the country's gold rushes, the name Cobb & Co has come to represent the pioneering spirit, a willingness to battle against the odds, to reliably connect far-flung communities." (Wikipedia)
The style of the coach seems to be an early design, despite the crest for King George's reign. It seems to only have room for passengers to the right of the entrance, which is over the back wheel. The driver's seat has a tall footboard. There are also two additional rows of seats tiered above the drivers seat.
Written underneath the drivers seat is what appears to be "Cassidy & Co. Proprietors". We can find no explanation for this. There is a J. Cassidy of Bathurst who published stock reports in Bathurst newspapers between 1889 and 1911, including sales "on account Cobb & Co."
Watercolor, 12 1/2 x 9" on paper 14 x 10". Pencil sketching is visible underneath some painting, as well as in the margins of the picture and on the verso. This was removed from an early mount, which has caused some marginal damage and cracking along the right side of the image. Item #23334
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