Steps almost complete.
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On November 8 1916 a fund-raising day was held at tiny Wakool, in the Riverina region of New South Wales. The day’s events were of particular significance to Frank and Annie White, who ran the Wakool Hotel. A few days earlier word had arrived of their son,
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The text accompanying this picture was as follows; A public reserve which the Ulverstone Council apparently did not know was private property. Ratepayers’ money was expended in improving this area. The reserve proved to be privately owned. (Weekly Courier 1919) Yes, a half acre block within a
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During my 1960s childhood saveloys were a winter treat. We lived on a dairy farm in Tasmania, but my siblings and I did not really appreciate the fresh produce my father produced. We adored anything ready-made… and shop bought. Our saveloys were made by Lionel Johnson, a
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The rivalry between Australia’s biggest cities reached a peak with Federation. Melbourne was the temporary base for Parliament, and hence the centre of festivities when the Duke and Duchess of York arrived for the formal opening of proceedings in 1901. I love this report from a seething
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New Zealand born Cyril Ballard enlisted in the A.I.F in Sydney in 1916, aged 28. He was a records clerk, living quietly in the Northern Beaches suburb of Narrabeen with his wife Harriet and two children. Lance Corporal Ballard served in France as a machine gunner. His
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Jessie Pile was the youngest daughter of wealthy South Australian pastoralist James Pile. James had built a ten room mansion at Gawler called Oaklands, and when the rest of her immediate family passed away Miss Pile lived on at the property alone. She became increasingly eccentric, dressing
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The age-old rivalry between Sydney and Melbourne flared in 1912 over a painting by Italian born Chevalier Eduardo de Martino (1838-1912). The story began in 1901, when the Duke and Duchess of York visited Australia for the opening of the first parliament, held in Melbourne. The couple
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My home town of Ulverstone, on Tasmania’s north-west coast, was always known for its potatoes. However, in the late 1940s there was another contender for the town’s most valuable export product….. CANNED RABBITS! But before I continue with that I must share an earlier venture with rabbits
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She was an eccentric genius, credited with some thirty inventions. Many had a domestic application; including stitch-less buttons (an early press stud), boneless corsets, and a folding clothes line that could accommodate 280 ft of washing in an area of just 12ft by 6ft. Mrs Farrell claimed
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