Life on the West Island - A boy and his horse

Life on the West Island recently stumbled upon a nearly forgotten chapter in the nation’s history: the story of a boy who rode his horse from Gippsland to see the opening of the Sydney Harbour Bridge. We were visiting Leongatha and were fascinated by a statue of young Lennie Gwyther and his horse Ginger Mick. Lennie is famous in Leongatha, but little known in the rest of the West Island, so we determined to find out more about him. We recognised Ginger Mick as one of the famous characters from the wildly successful 1915 verse novel book Songs of the Sentimental Bloke by South Australian author C J Dennis. But just who was Lennie Gwyther?

The story really begins on a small mixed farm about 10 km from Leongatha in south-west Gippsland, some 140km from the state capital Melbourne. The farm was owned and run by Lennie’s parents, Captain Leo Tennyson Gwyther and Clara Amelia Gwyther. At the height of the Great Depression in 1931, Leo Gwyther broke his leg and was hospitalised for a week and then was unable to work the farm for several months while his leg recovered. Lennie had just turned nine and took on the task of hitching up four draft-horses and ploughing the paddocks, while also attending to fencing, control of stock and general animal husbandry.

On his second birthday, Lennie had been gifted by his grandfather a chestnut pony which was born on the same day as him. The horse was named Ginger Mick, after his father’s favourite character from the C J Dennis book Songs of the Sentimental Bloke. Lennie’s father had been in the trenches in the First World War, when thousands of troops were given copies of the book by the federal government. In the 1920s, Ginger Mick became well-known in Leongatha, as Lennie rode him on the 20km round trip each school day.

When Leo was eventually able to resume his work, he was extremely grateful to Lennie for all of the effort he had put into the farm and asked the boy what reward he would like. From a very young age, he was fascinated by machines and engineering and had followed the saga of the building of the Sydney Harbour Bridge, which had become a national icon and a symbol of the West Island’s determination to recover from the depression and show the world just what could be achieved. It was to be the biggest, tallest and heaviest bridge ever built, and newspapers all around the nation featured regular updates on the enormous project. Leo told his father that he wanted to ride Ginger Mick to Sydney for the opening of the bridge in March 1932. His mother worried that the trip would be dangerous and exhausting for both boy and horse, but Leo and Lennie spent much time drawing up maps and planning the 1,000 km trip.

Lennie and Ginger Mick set off in the heat of summer 1932, taking with them a haversack that included his toothbrush, silk pyjamas, spare clothes and a water bottle. They travelled east to Cann River, then turned north over the mountains toward Canberra, covering an average of 50km a day, with a few rest days along the way. Each night, Lennie would call at a farm and ask to sleep in their stable and for food for Ginger Mick. But Lennie’s trip soon became big news, and he was frequently greeted by crowds and offered accommodation, sometimes even in grand hotels.

When they reached Canberra, the duo were invited to a reception at the recently built Parliament House, where Lennie was entertained by new Prime Minister Joseph Lyons. Lennie’s fame was growing, and as he headed north-east to Sydney, he was met by cheering crowds.

Having never visited a city before, Lennie was amazed at the huge buildings and sophisticated style of life of Sydneysiders. When he finally reached Martin Place, more than 10,000 well-wishers greeted him. 25 police were required to control the crowd, and local newspapers breathlessly reported that he was wearing khaki breeches, boots, and leggings, and a thick coat, and was carrying a cloth sun hat in his hand. Lennie met with the Lord Mayor, Sir Samuel Walder, was given a tour of the wonderful new bridge and also visited Circular Quay, Bondi Beach and Taronga Zoo, where he rode an elephant.

Lennie was a guest of honour at the official opening of the bridge on 19 March 1932, but interest in him soon faded after the spectacular unofficial stunt of sword-wielding Captain de Groot stunned the 300,000-strong crowd.

But Lennie was not quite finished with Sydney. Later in March, he and Ginger Mick competed in the Royal Easter Show, winning several ribbons. Two days later, he attended a test cricket match and was introduced to Sir Donald Bradman, who gave him a signed cricket bat.

Lennie’s father had travelled to Sydney, planning to take him and Ginger Mick home on a coastal steamer, but Lennie had other plans. He wanted to go home the “other way” via Albury and Melbourne and set off with his father’s blessing. Along the way, he was recognised by crowds and both boy and horse were well fed and accommodated. His journey home included talking to children at Gunning Public School about his experience as well as celebrating his tenth birthday with shire councillors. In Melbourne, there was yet another civic reception and finally back at Leongatha he was cheered home by 800 enthusiastic locals.

Lennie and Ginger Mick had completed a round trip of around 2,100 km but soon settled back into farm life and relative obscurity. At age 19, Lennie enlisted in the army and served in the Pacific Theatre with distinction. On returning to the West Island, he married and settled in Melbourne, where for many years he was an engineer with General Motors Holden. He died of cancer in 1992, aged 70. After his death, the local community raised funds for years, and in 2017 the local Chamber of Commerce unveiled a statue of Lennie and Ginger Mick in the town’s main street, attended by members of the Gwyther family including Lennie's daughter, granddaughter and sister.

Now the statue of Lennie and Ginger Mick is a West Island tourist attraction and the legend of a boy and his horse grows daily.