Victoria, Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, Defender of the Faith, &c., to Her trusty bailiffs John Moleskin, Alexander Broadsloth, and Richard Mercery, and Her well-beloved Stewards, &c., of Her Housegold James Hosiery and Elizabeth Drapery, GREETING :------------ We command you and every of you to Summons Every Man Woman and Child in your Borough, Town and Vicinity, to attend a Court to be holden from DAY TO DAY, for the especial interests of all her Majesty’s subjects until further notice at the shop of our well-beloved subject M.CASHMORE, Victoria House, corner of Great Collins and Elizabeth streets, Melbourne, in the County of Bourke, to examine, decide, and give judgement, according to your several opinions of the superior qualities of the said M. CASHMORE’S HOSIERY, DRAPERY, SLOPS, &c., &c., which he challenges the competition of New South Wales to excel. Witness our Hands, HENRY MAKEWEL, CHARLES WEARWELL, GEORGE VERY CHEAP, God Save the Queen
Advertisement - in the form of a facetious Summons by Her August Majesty, commanding potential customers to attend forthwith the habadashery shop of Michael Cashmore. situated at the corner of Collins and Swanston Streets -- on the North-East corner of what came to known as The Block. This add appeared in March 1845, in the Port Phillip Herald, a newspaper otherwise of five dull columns of text.
Sketch of the view from what the Paris end of Collins Street, looking West. The Yarra can be seen to the top left, following its original, meandering route.
Collins Street 1839
Walter Withers illustration for The Chronicles of Early Melbourne 1835-1852
by 'Garryowen' (Edmund Finn)
Published by Fergusson & Mitchell, Melbourne, in 1888
The view is from what is now the Paris end of Collins Street, looking West. The
Yarra can be seen to the top left, following its original, meandering route.

Michael Cashmore, born in 1815 in London, set forth to Sydney in 1836, where he established a drapery business in the "Rocks" district to the West of Circular Quay. This shop in Lower George Street continued until 1840, when he re-established his business in "Port Phillip". His Melbourne shop, on the north-east corner of Elizabeth Street and Collins Street. was in the first four storey brick building erected in the city.
Photo circa 1910 of Cohens Furniture Emporium

The northern end of George Street, Sydney, was very much a centre of Jewish commerce in Sydney, starting in the convict era, throughout the Colonial period, and well into the twentieth century.

The photograph above, taken circa 1920, is of Cohen's Furniture Emporium, 187 George Street, very close to Circular Quay. At that stage the business was conducted by Herman Cohen, (born Kaganovich), who left his small home town (Rokiskis) in Lithuania circa 1883 to escape the infamous May Laws. The business expanded to cover 185-193, and passed to his eldest son, Bernard (Ben) Cohen, and then onto his grandson Neville Cohen. A few doors further north, from 1933, at 177 George Street was Harmony House, a music store, conducted by Bernard's brother John Cohen. Post WWII, John's son Ron established behind the store a commercial recording studio that is of importance in the history of Australian jazz. Next door (at 175 George Street) was the editorial office of the Jewish newspaper The Hebrew Standard. In the same block was a tailor shop conducted by Mr Dobrinski. The entire block (Essex to Globe Street) was demolished during the redevelopment of the Rocks in about 1973. Cashmore's 1840 shop in "Lower George Street" was located further north , where some early Rocks buildings remain.


This web page is a stub. Instances of Jewish pioneering merchants in both NSW and Victoria country towns are scheduled. And did somebody mention Sidney Myer, founder of the leading department store chain?