JAMES William Garner was killed in a bull attack in 1913.
He was a father of seven children and a well-respected man and his death shocked the tight-knit community.
During the late 1800s he’d worked as an undertaker at 10 Walker Street, Dandenong, ran a mortuary in nearby Crump Lane and was also involved in a blacksmith business based in Lonsdale Street.
The family name was originally spelled Garner but James altered it to Garnar to distinguish himself from other people associated with the Garner spelling.
His widow Margaret continued the family business after his death, promoting “first class hearses, mourning coaches and all accessories for local and suburban funerals at short notice”.
She struggled to continue the family business in the tough post-war years – the onset of the era of ‘motor-funerals’ seemed to create difficulties for her as the farm-based horse-drawn equipment became obsolete during the 1920s.
In 1927 James’s eldest son, William James, and grandson Len, 15, took over the business.
They changed the business name from JW Garnar to WJ Garnar and Son.
The business relocated and operated from 44 Walker Street and it was behind this premises that Garner Lane was located until 2009.
William was known for leading funeral possessions on foot along Lonsdale Street.
His numerous sisters contributed to the family business, primarily in trimming and decorating the pine coffins.
In the 1930s, a severe flood hit Dandenong and William opened his mortuary to discover that two coffins – one empty and one occupied – had been swept away.
They were later recovered from the creek in Mordialloc.
Len eventually replaced his father and continued to run the business until he sold it to Le Pine Funerals in 1950.
Garnar Lane is now on the southern side of the new Dandenong Civic Centre, providing a pedestrian and vehicle connection between Lonsdale and Thomas streets.
