Daughter of Conrad and Louisa
It is possible that Louisa Keziah (1874) may have been the first child born at Barraba as the 1875/1876 Electoral Roll shows –
‘Conrad Simshauser, “Slatey Gully”, Freehold Barraba’.
(Ref: “Early Settlers in the Nandewars”, Nandewar Historical Society, 1979)
Louisa, sixth child of Conrad and Louisa, was born at Barraba on 1 July 1874, at about the same time as Conrad and his family moved to “Slatey Gully”.
Louisa, at the age of 10 years, was enrolled at the newly constructed Hawkins Creek Public School in 1884, along with Charles and Annie. (ref: M. Crowley)
At 28, Louisa married Ernest Johannes Brodbeck – twin and fourth of the six sons of Christian Brodbeck and his wife Louisa. Ernest’s twin brother, James, died in a fire at Tipperena, Barraba at age two. Other brothers included Frederick, Jacob, Christian and Gottlieb.
Louisa Keziah and Ernest Brodbecks’ family of seven children included a male who died in infancy, Lilly, Arthur, Mary Katherine (k/a Kate), Edward, Violet and Norman. Louisa Keziah died at her residence at 81 years of age.
Lilly Head (nee Brodbeck) lives in Tamworth. Arthur Brodbeck lives in Barraba. Violet Simpson (nee Brodbeck) lives alone in her Edward Street home, Barraba.