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In 1853 Cobb & Co set up business in Australia, transporting miners 175 kilometres from Melbourne to Bendigo for five pounds a head. However, a combination of severe winters and poor management saw the company flounder, with Freeman Cobb selling out in 1856 and returning to the U.S.
In 1858, a booking clerk at the ailing company formed a syndicate to buy it. His name was James Rutherford and with a strong business vision, he turned Cobb & Co into a thriving operation.
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New routes and imported coaches soon increased passenger numbers. Cobb & Co, under the direction of Rutherford, helped this young nation spread its wings, bringing ideas and cultures together, and literally carrying the colony's economy.
Rutherford was an ethical businessman, paying his employees generously and treating his competitors with respect. He became a prominent community figure, founding the Advocate Newspaper in Bathurst, and serving as the Mayor for several terms.
The railway was eventually to put Cobb & Co out of business, but Rutherford's investment in an iron smelter would lay the foundations of Australia's iron and steel industry.
James Rutherford died in 1911.
Source: Booklet accompanying the 1995 Masterpieces in Silver - Colonial Australia - Set.
Cobb & Co. is featured on the following Australian coins:
1995 Five Dollars
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Last modified: 05 December, 2007
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