BERTIE BATTYE AND BUSHRANGER BEN HALL

BERTIE BATTYE AND BUSHRANGER  BEN HALL

From the 1863 New South Wales Police Gazette. Bushranger Ben Hall strikes again; This tiny snippet was the only mention of the robbery at that time, and no-one was ever charged. In those days, travelling the country’s rural roads was a dangerous business and outlaws led the

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MAIL COACH DRAMAS IN THE BLUE MOUNTAINS AND BEYOND

MAIL COACH  DRAMAS IN THE BLUE MOUNTAINS AND BEYOND

CROSSING THE MOUNTAINS  BY COACH AND HORSES In the 1850’s  the journey across the Blue Mountains of New South Wales  was truly daunting.    On Sunday, November 27 1853, Thomas Simons was driving the Bathurst mail coach from Sydney when he came to the top of Mount Victoria. Ahead was

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AIMEE EDOLS PAYS THE PRICE

AIMEE EDOLS PAYS THE PRICE

CONTINUING THE STORY OF SYDNEY SOCIALITE AIMÉE EDOLS . CLICK HERE FOR  PART ONE   In 1932, bankrupt Sydney socialite  Aimée Edols evaded police for nearly  six months.  She had turned for help  to an old  friend, Amy Styles, from nearby Vaucluse. Mrs Styles was a widow, whose husband  had drowned

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MRS EDOLS; SYDNEY’S MISSING SOCIETY MATRON

MRS EDOLS; SYDNEY'S MISSING SOCIETY MATRON

THE GOOD LIFE FOR MRS EDOLS The reception for the couple was held at the prestigious Australia Hotel . In 1930, 47 year old Aimee Edols was living  in  Sydney’s  fashionable  Eastern Suburbs.  Her husband  Ernest was a retired grazier, whose family had once owned  Burrawang, an extensive property at

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Parkes College

Parkes College

AN ENTREPRENEUR Early in 1894, schoolmaster George Ratten arrived in Parkes,  New South Wales,  from the Victorian coastal town of Port Fairy.   He was accompanied  by his wife Eliza and  the couple’s six children.   Mr Ratten set about  building a private, co-educational  college in Mitchell Street, opposite

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