In June 1889, an American woman called Edith O’Gorman (her married name was Auffray) visited Launceston while on a world lecture tour. She professed to be an ‘escaped nun’, who had fled a New Jersey convent in 1868 and converted to the Protestant faith. The most colourful
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The remote ‘Hydro Electric’ town of Bronte Park had two events to celebrate in June 1953; the Coronation of Elizabeth II and the official opening of the Pine Tier Dam. For two local youngsters it was also a celebration of their birthdays. Margaret Fiddes turned 8 and
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In 1906 there were rumours spreading on Bruny Island and mainland Tasmania that one rural Bruny family had 23 children, and that the youngsters had never seen an illustration in any form. The secretary of the charitable Victoria League’s Book Committee had expressed her concern at their
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Recently I came across a wonderful letter from my late father-in-law, Alan Conolly. In the early 1960s he was travelling the world for Silk and Textiles, the Hobart based company he worked for. Silk and Textiles was founded by Claudio Alcorso in Sydney. The factory relocated to
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The luxurious Hotel Metropole was built at the intersection of Young, Bent and Philip Street, Sydney, opening on January 14 1890. The following image appeared in the Sydney Mail on January 18; Along with mosaic tiled floors in the entrance areas and lavish stained glass windows,
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In 1895 Edward and Alice Young were living on a property called Lennonville, located on North Bruny Island, just off the south-east coast of Tasmania. The Aboriginal name for the Island is lunawanna-allonah. It seems Edward was managing the farm for its owners, as his father Charles
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Mead is arguably the world’s oldest alcoholic beverage. It dates back to the Neolithic era, prior to the advent of agriculture. It was very popular in medieval times and was called ‘nectar of the Gods.’ People kept bees to provide wax for candles so naturally there was
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This story of the historic Lord Howe Island diorama in Sydney’s Australian Museum highlights the importance of a back-story in engaging people like me. 😎 I love birds, but I live in the Blue Mountains, and seabirds are not on my radar….unless it’s seagulls harassing me for
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Dr John Yeo and Dr Robert Costa are two men I feel extremely privileged to have met. Co-incidentally, they are both medical men. Dr Yeo is retired now, but he was a highly respected spinal surgeon at Sydney’s Royal North Shore Hospital. I first met him in
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