SMALLACOMBE, Alice Elspeth

Name – SMALLACOMBE, Alice Elspeth
Born – 02/12/1849
Died – 13/07/1924
Location – No 10 Old Methodist Section
Mother – Elspeth Lamb
Father – George Greig

Notes – Alice Elspeth (or Elspeth Alice) was born in Scotland to parents Elspeth (nee Lamb) and George Greig. The family immigrated to South Australia in 1863.

On the 2nd of October, 1868 Alice married Thomas Smallacombe at Kapunda, South Australia. Alice came to Tara with her family and stayed here farming and home duties until she became ill, in the years after Thomas’s death.

Alice has census records of 1851 to 1861 resided at Peterhead, Aberdeenshire, Scotland with parents. In  1905 and 1906 at Lillimur, South Australia and in 1913 at The Grove, Warra ( north of Tara) but Thomas is listed at 26 Mile Creek, the first place where they lived in 1910.

She moved back to Victoria where she died in Melbourne. Alice was obviously a strong willed woman, as she wanted her body to be bought back to be buried with Thomas in Tara. And so it was done, all the way from Melbourne to Tara.

A family story has it that while she was at the Melboune horse races, she was accidently stabbed in her nose by a hat pin and this became cancerous leading to her death.

Alice Elspeth shares a headstone with her husband Thomas that reads – In loving Memory of Thomas Smallacombe Died 30th August, 1920 Aged 76 Years and Also his beloved wife Alice Died 13th July, 1924 Aged 76 Years.

Newspaper Article – Obituary

War Service File  –

Learn more about the Tara Cemetery here.