DID BLACKHEATH REALLY NEED A BOBBY? During the summer of 1892 the cash box was stolen from the general store in the Blue Mountains village of Blackheath. There was an immediate call to appoint a policeman. Not everyone was in favour of this step, as the following
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THE MYSTERIOUS DOWNFALL OF PROFESSOR CHAPMAN It is 1918 and Sydney University’s Professor of Pharmacology Henry Chapman has set up a unique test for his senior students. Their task is to identify the deadly poison present in a mixture he has prepared. He is amused and delighted when even the most brilliant
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I am an Aussie who voted for a republic, but despite this I have a nostalgic affection for Empire Day. It was celebrated during my 1950’s Tasmanian childhood on May 24th, Queen Victoria’s birthday. A bag of boiled lollies was distributed to each of us after we
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Wentworth Street in the Blue Mountains village of Blackheath is filled with tourists during April and May, when the deciduous trees put on a spectacular display of autumn colour. I live just around the corner and it’s always a pleasure to walk along the street on my way
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THE FUCHSIA Fuchsias were discovered growing in the Caribbean in the 17th century, by a French monk called Charles Plumier. He named them in honour of German botanist, Leonhart Fuchs. There are so many varieties it would be impossible to list them here. Anyway, there is only one, very
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A WEDDING GIFT On November 3 1807, 29 year old Elizabeth Henrietta Campbell married 46 year old Lieutenant Colonel Lachlan Macquarie at Holsworthy, in the English county of Devon. Their wedding marked the end of a long separation. Macquarie had just returned from military service in India,
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TO CHICAGO – ON A MEDICAL MISSION On September 3 1906, a wealthy young dentist from Brisbane boarded the passenger ship Aorangi. He disembarked in Vancouver, then entered the United States and made his way to Chicago by train. His name was Victor Richard Ratten. Soon after he
Read more →THE ASYLUM As the name suggests, Yarra Bend was established in a curve of the river outside Melbourne. Completed in1848. It was Victoria’s first, purpose built mental asylum. There was an initial intake of ten patients; THE CEMETERY Burials at the asylum in the 1870s were horrific,
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MATES AT GALLIPOLI HAUNT A SHELL-SHOCKED ANZAC My great-uncle, Anzac veteran Arthur Singleton, was admitted to a Tasmanian mental asylum in 1926. He constantly spoke of being tormented by the voices of his dead mates on Gallipoli. After enlisting in the 12th Battalion at the outbreak of
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Private Arthur Singleton (Service No. 301) was one of the first young Australians to volunteer in WWI. He was a farmer’s son, from South Road, Ulverstone. Aged 20, he joined the Tasmanian 12th Battalion, sailing off to Egypt aboard the troopship Geelong on October 20 1914. He
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