heritage in trust august 2014
DESCRIPTION
There’s plenty of interesting reading in this August 2014 edition of Heritage in Trust. Catch up on the current status of various heritage issues in the ACT in Heritage Happenings and in the separate article on Ginninderra Falls. Read articles on The West Block ‘Bunker’ and the Cable Girls, a little known piece of Canberra’s war-time history, on the restoration of Sts Peter and Paul’s Old Cathedral in Goulburn, and on the exciting new ANU History Learning Community which has been established by ANU history students. There are several dates to be noted in your diary including the Trust’s AGM on Thursday 16 October. See Travels and at home with the Trust and the Heritage Diary for more dates and more information on forthcoming events.TRANSCRIPT
NATIONAL TRUST OF AUSTRALIA
Heritage in Trust (ACT) August 2014
_________________________________________________________________
The Bunker today Peter Dowling
The West Block ‘Bunker’ and the Cable Girls
The May edition of Heritage News contained a short article by Peter Dowling on the West Block ‘Bunker’. Here, Peter
expands on the story.
West
Inside
Notice of AGM p 6
Heritage Happenings p 9
Travels and at home with the Trust p 12 An evening with Bill Gammage p 15
Sts Peter and Paul’s Goulburn p 17
A small, innocuous and often ignored building in
Canberra’s Parliamentary Triangle has quite a remarkable
story to tell. The building is located in the West Block
curtilage and today is used as an electricity substation and
a place for the staff of the main offices to park their
bicycles. During the Second World War this small building,
tucked away behind the main building which once housed
the Prime Minister’s Department, was known by its
occupants as the ‘Bunker’.
Cont p2
Heritage In Trust August 2014
Heritage in Trust www.nationaltrust.org.au Page 2
The West Block ‘Bunker’ and the Cable Girls cont from p1
West Block and its sister building East Block were
erected in 1926. The proposed move of the seat of
government from Melbourne to Canberra, along with
the relocation of government departments and staff to
the capital, was proving to be a major logistic problem
for those involved. As a way out of the difficulty the
Advisory Committee overseeing the moves suggested
abandoning the original plan for the complete transfer
of departments. Instead, they opted for a secretariat
or nucleus of each department to be temporarily
established in Canberra, sufficient to assist the
Ministers with Parliamentary work. Two purpose-built
office blocks were constructed behind Parliament
House (now Old Parliament House) near enough to
provide immediate support for the administrative
needs of the Ministers and heads of departments.
These two buildings, originally named as Secretariat
Buildings One and Two, soon became known as East
Block (east of Parliament House) and West Block (west
of Parliament House).
West Block housed the secretariat staff of several
major government departments including the Prime
Minister’s Department. Within the Prime Minister’s
Secretariat was a section responsible for the
encryption and decryption of Prime Minister’s
Department and External Affairs communications. In
days before highly secure online decryption of
messages the main means of communication between
the Prime Minister and foreign heads of state was by
cablegrams, often sent overseas on cable links, which
were subject to interception. One way to provide
security for these communications was to encrypt the
plain language messages at their source, and then
transmit them via the cable links to their destination
where they would be decrypted back into plain
language by the recipients. The Prime Minister’s Cable
Branch staff, ensconced in the secure environment of
the Bunker, did the encryption and decryption. The
process was done on a ‘Typex’ rotor machine similar in
function to the more well-known commercial ‘Enigma’
machines used by Germany in the Second World War.
Plain text messages were encrypted into five-letter
groups by these machines using daily changing settings
of its rotors and incoming messages were decrypted
using the same daily settings.
Typex machine similar to those used in the Bunker (from Wikipedia)
From the editors
There’s plenty of interesting reading in this
August 2014 edition of Heritage in Trust. Catch
up on the current status of various heritage issues
in the ACT in Heritage Happenings and in the
separate article on Ginninderra Falls. Read
articles on The West Block ‘Bunker’ and the Cable
Girls, a little known piece of Canberra’s war-time
history, on the restoration of Sts Peter and Paul’s
Old Cathedral in Goulburn, and on the exciting
new ANU History Learning Community which has
been established by ANU history students.
There are several dates to be noted in your diary
including the Trust’s AGM on Thursday 16
October. See Travels and at home with the Trust
and the Heritage Diary for more dates and more
information on forthcoming events.
As usual we welcome your views on the contents
of Heritage in Trust. Are there subjects you
would like us to cover? Are there items of news
we should be including? Please email
[email protected] or write to the
Editors with your views and suggestions.
Heritage In Trust August 2014
Heritage in Trust www.nationaltrust.org.au Page 3
Contents
The West Block ‘Bunker’ and the Cable Girls ___ 1 From the President ________________________ 5 People and Places _________________________ 6 Notice of AGM ________________________ 6 Trusted Recipe ____________________________ 6 Heritage Diary ____________________________ 8 Heritage Happenings _______________________ 9 Ginninderra Falls proposals - update __________ 11 Travels and at home with the Trust
Local and interstate ________________ 12 Overseas __________________________ 14
An evening with Bill Gammage _______________ 15 ANU History Learning Community_____________ 16 Sts Peter and Paul’s, Goulburn ______________ 17
Cable girls 1942 from Nancy Metcalfe private collection
The Cables Branch had begun as a small group of
officers, mainly female, who dealt with the daily
encryption and decryption of communications traffic.
But during the Second World War, with the escalation
of the conflict into the Pacific area and the southward
advance of the Japanese forces, the number of high-
level security cables that had to be processed in the
Bunker increased, putting pressure on the efficiency of
the current staff. Subsequent staff increases and extra
space in the main West Block building had to be made
while still maintaining strict security requirements.
Prime Minister Curtin saw the importance of the
Cables Branch and their capacity to maintain the
enormous load of encrypting and decrypting as
absolutely vital to the war effort. A letter from the
Prime Minister to Senator Joseph Collings, Minister for
the Interior, regarding overcrowding and
unsatisfactory working conditions for the staff in West
Bock, particularly the Cables Branch, expresses the
concerns at the highest level1:
Minister for the Interior
11 January 1943
As you are aware there is a considerable lack of office
accommodation in the Commonwealth Offices West
block, and, I shall be glad if immediate steps can be
taken to remedy, as far as possible, this defect.
Without setting out the requirements of other
Departments in the building I mention the case of the
Cables Branch which has increased its staff tenfold since
the war commenced and must continue to expand. At
the present time its staff of nearly 100 is located in
rooms (some of which are makeshift rooms) which
should not be expected to carry a third of that number.
The conditions are unhealthy and in any ordinary
industrial undertaking would not be tolerated by Health
authorities. The additional accommodation for this
ever-growing staff has been temporarily met by taking
accommodation from other sections of the
Department. This is an unsatisfactory method of
solving the problem and has an upsetting effect on the
rest of the Department.
Because of manpower difficulties there has been a
change-over to female labour and the conditions under
which these girls have to work are most unhygienic. In
any ordinary business establishment there would be
suitable rest rooms and associated accommodation for
girls. The staff of the Cables Branch work continuously
throughout the seven days of the week and because of
the strain imposed upon the people some provision
should be made in the direction of providing a suitably
furnished rest-room controlled by a qualified nursing
sister. In addition, because of the erratic hours and
shiftwork, the staff has difficulty in securing meals. This
important phase should not be disregarded.
John Curtin
Prime Minister
Heritage In Trust August 2014
Heritage in Trust www.nationaltrust.org.au Page 4
The small Bunker and the ‘cable girls’ played a part in
one of the defining moments in Australian history and
its relationship with Britain. Following the fall of
Singapore to Japanese forces on 15 February 1942,
Curtin who had only been in office since October the
previous year cabled Churchill requesting that the 6th
and 7th Divisions then serving in North Africa be
returned home to defend Australia. However,
Churchill, mindful of the potential threat to India by
the Japanese, tried to divert the Australian troops to
Burma. What followed was a tense period of terse
cables exchanged between the two leaders with the
United States President, Franklin D Roosevelt siding
with Churchill. Curtin maintained his ground against
these two powerful leaders and the Australian
Divisions were returned home. The cables exchanged
between these leaders were encrypted and decrypted
by the Cables Branch in the Bunker.
Nancy Metcalfe, one of the ‘cable girls’ recalls2:
The typex machine was revolutionary, as the
cypher could then be put in by typing and also
deciphered … A number of girls were chosen to
help stick down the tape which emanated from
the machine with message. There was one
required for the operator each time the machine
was used… Cables were pouring in. Some were
far from interesting but I felt proud to be doing
the few which were addressed ‘Most Immediate.
Most Secret. Churchill to Curtin. Himself Alone.’
There was no doubt that the war was on when I
also read before me the news of such things as
submarines in the Sydney Harbour, the bombing
of Darwin and the sinking of HMAS Sydney… I
had been put in charge of the Typex girls and
organising a roster. Several more had to be
trained on the machine as the number of cables
grew. Early on, I always had to do the most
secret ones. I have since wondered if I had been
security checked before hand. Perhaps my 2
years with the Navy gave me an ‘all clear.’
Prior to working on the high level security cables Nancy
had been called into the office of the Department
secretary:
… so I climbed the stairs to his office. After a few
pleasantries he told me that I must swear an
oath that I would not disclose any of the
contents of the cables which I might handle. He
then produced a large bible on which I had to put
my hand and swear an oath. He then asked me
to kiss the Bible. This came as something of a
shock. It was all a new experience for me.
Somehow I think it gave me a feeling that I was
about to tackle something really serious.
Copy of cablegram from Curtin to Churchill Peter Dowling
Heritage In Trust August 2014
Heritage in Trust www.nationaltrust.org.au Page 5
Nancy at the Bunker 1998 from Nancy Metcalfe private collection
Today, the Bunker, the West Block building and the
Parliamentary Triangle are on the National Heritage
List and are under statutory protection. But a visitor to
the West Block site would scarcely cast a glance at the
small innocuous building at the rear nor realise the
vital operations that occurred there during the days of
the Second World War. The Bunker surely deserves a
wider recognition.
Peter Dowling National Heritage Officer, ACNT
1 NAA A292 C21630 part 1 West block Extensions 2 Nancy Metcalfe (nee Ward), Memories of War Time, HMAS
Torrens 1939-41, Gorman House & Prime Minister’s Department 1941-43, unpublished memoir, privately held, Canberra.
From the President
Hello Members
The Trust will be holding its Annual General Meeting on Thursday 16 October 2014 at the National Archives from 6.30pm onwards. I mention this because it is important for a number of reasons but two in particular. Firstly, it is a great opportunity to hear first-hand how your Trust has been going and what we have planned for the year/s ahead and to ask questions of your Councillors. Secondly, we expect to have a couple of Council vacancies and I would be interested to hear from anyone with an interest in nominating for a position on the Council to help us with the continued work of ensuring that NTACT remains a vibrant organisation. So please come along and have a glass of red with us and share your views. One of our fundraising activities has involved NTACT volunteers manning weekend BBQs at a number of commercial outlets around Canberra in recent months. Our most successful one so far was at Bunnings Fyshwick in June where the Dowlings (Dianne and Peter) and I and youngest daughter Georgia cooked and served approximately 650 sausages for a total net profit on the day of $1,250. This was an outstanding result and all goes into building up our depleted bank balances. Sincere thanks to Bunnings and my able co-workers (and the weather gods!). I’d love to hear from you if you’re interested in assisting us with one of these BBQs. It’s a fun day and an easy way for the Trust to raise much-needed funds. I’ve spoken previously about volunteers helping with events etc but I have been remiss in not mentioning some of the great work being done in the office. In particular, Alan Kerr has provided some invaluable assistance (in between cheering from the sidelines for his beloved Majura Avengers U15 girls soccer team in which his grand-daughter plays!) in cleaning out decades of paperwork and scanning relevant material for storage on hard drive and discarding irrelevant papers. (Hard copies of statutory papers and those deemed important for our history have, of course, been retained.) Thanks mate.
Scott McAlister President
The National Trust acknowledges the support of our Corporate Members and Benefactors:
Museum of Australian Democracy ContentGroup
Benefactor: Mr Rob McL. Johnston
Trust Office opening hours 2014
The Trust Office is open Monday to Thursday, from 9.30am to 3.00pm.
Heritage In Trust August 2014
Heritage in Trust www.nationaltrust.org.au Page 6
People and Places
Trusted Recipe
On your next trip to National Trust properties in
England you might sample scones made to this UK
National Trust recipe.
Traditional sweet scones
Serves 8.
Ingredients
225g/8oz self-raising flour
Half a teaspoon of salt
55g/2oz cold butter, diced
30g/1oz caster sugar
150ml/5fl oz milk
Method
1. Preheat the oven to fan 200C and lightly oil a
non-stick baking sheet
2. Sift the flour and salt into a food processor.
Add the butter, whiz to fine crumbs, and
then tip the mixture into a bowl. Otherwise,
sift the flour and salt into a bowl and, using
your fintertips, rub the butter into the flour
until it resembles fine breadcrumbs.
3. Stir in the sugar, then add the milk and mix
until it forms a soft, spongy dough
4. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface and
gently knead until it is just smooth. The
raising agent starts to work as soon as the
liquid is added, so it’s essential to be quick.
5. Roll out the dough to about 2.5cm (an inch)
thick
6. Dust a 7cm (2 3/4 inch) diameter pastry
cutter in flour and quickly stamp out your
scones
7. Place the scones on the baking sheet
8. Bake for 20 minutes or until well risen and
brown
Serve with jam and cream or try out a National
Trust (UK) variation such as cheese scones.
http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/article-
1356399794537/
YOUR 2014 TRUST COUNCIL
Scott McAlister - President and Treasurer Lisa Norman - Vice President Graham Carter Graeme Crocket Dianne Dowling Mary Johnston Peter Lundy Eric Martin AM Jim Nockels John Tucker
NOTICE OF ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING
The 39th Annual General Meeting of the National Trust
of Australia (ACT) will be held in the Menzies Room at
the National Archives of Australia on Thursday 16
October 2014, 6.30pm for 7.00pm.
Council vacancies will be notified in accordance with
the Memorandum and Articles of Association prior to
the meeting. If you wish to receive an individual
notification please advise the National Trust office on
02 6230 0533 or email [email protected].
Members are invited to nominate persons for election
to Council. Nominations must be made and seconded
in writing and signed by current members of the Trust
accompanied by signed consent from the nominee.
Nomination forms can be obtained from the Trust
office and must reach the office 30 days before the
AGM.
For further information please check our news page
on the website www.nationaltrust.org.au/act/news or
phone the Trust office on 02 6230 0533.
Heritage In Trust August 2014
Heritage in Trust www.nationaltrust.org.au Page 7
People and Places
New members
The National Trust (ACT) warmly welcomes the
following new members:
Greg and Aina Crawford
Adrian and Raelene
Dikmans
Kevin Playford and Robert
Dolamore
Michael Dowsett
Gayle and David Ginnane
Wendy and Richard
Holland
Kia Holmes
Helen and Laurens Jensma
Michael Hess and Marian
May
Susan McIntyre
Julie McKinnon
Noel Montgomery
Danica Browne and Don
Nordblom
Megan and Ian Pearson
Alyson and Ian Robinson
Chris Bourke and Julie
Ryder
Rosemary and Glynn
Shepherd
Don Taylor
Bronwyn Cooper and
Peter Thomson
Alan and Sue Williams
Trevor and Chris Wilson
ACT & Region Annual Australian
Heritage Partnership Symposium 2014
“The Future of Heritage”
This important symposium was held on 19
July 2014 and was well attended by
professionalheritage experts and interested
lay persons. A full report will feature in our
November 2014 issue.
(Photos by Wendy Whitham)
Helen Cooke opening proceedings
Audience settling
Members of the panel
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Heritage In Trust August 2014
Heritage in Trust www.nationaltrust.org.au Page 8
Heritage Diary 2014 A selection of heritage-related events in Canberra
Details of National Trust (ACT) events are provided in Travels and at home with the Trust, starting on page 12.
Date and time Event and location
Organiser Contact
On-going Find of the month. Each month a novel, interesting or quaint
topic from ACT Government archives is highlighted
Archives ACT www.archives.act.gov.au/
educational_resource/find of
the month
From 4 August Centenary Projects and First World War Galleries Australian War Memorial
www.awm.gov.au/1914-1918
Until 17 August
Canberra: Then and Now – an exhibition of historic photos
matched with modern day photos. National Library of
Australia
National
Library
www.nla.gov.au
Wednesday 20
August
6.30 for 7.00pm
CAS/CAR lecture – 'Common Indians', 'Negroes', and
'New Hollanders': Dampier, Buffon, and the 'Varieties of
the Human Species' in the South Seas. Bronwen Douglas
Department of Pacific & Asian History Manning Clark Centre, Theatre 6, Bldg 26A, Union Court, ANU
CAS www.cas.asn.au
Wednesday 17
September
5.30 – 7.00pm
National Trust Speaker’s Night – A Light in the Window,
Harper’s Mansion – a talk by Ann Beaumont
National Archives
National Trust RSVP 11 Sept to 6230 0533 or
Wednesday 17
September
6.30 for 7.00pm
CAS/CAR lecture – Lake Victoria Project Place Stories,
Keryn Kefous Manning Clark Centre, Theatre 6, Bldg 26A,
Union Court, ANU
CAS www.cas.asn.au
Sunday 21
September
1.00-4.00pm
Visit to Callum Brae National Trust 6230 0533
Saturday 27
September 8.45am – 2.00pm
Conservation Management Planning:
the What, Why and How for Historic Gardens,
Landscapes and Buildings. Workshop
AHGS
(ACT/Monaro Riverina Branch)
Program and Registration
Wednesday 1
October National Trust Speaker’s Night – The Luck of the Irish
An evening with Babette Smith
National Trust RSVP 25 Sept to 6230 0533 or
Wednesday 15 October
6.30 for 7.00pm
CAS/CAR lecture – Vanuatu historic mission. James
Flexner, School of Archaeology & Anthropology, ANU
Manning Clark Centre, Theatre 6, Bldg 26A, Union
Court, ANU
CAS www.cas.asn.au
Thursday 16
October
6.30 for 7.00pm
National Trust AGM, National Archives. Guest Speaker Allen Mawer on Jack Doolan of Castlemaine
National Trust 6230 0533
Sunday 2
November
1.30 – 4.30pm
Reid Open Houses National Trust 6230 0533
Sunday 9
November
Day Trip to Harper’s Mansion, Berrima and Joadja ghost
town
National Trust 6230 0533
Wednesday 19 November
6.30 for 7.00pm
AGM followed by CAS/CAR lecture – Elephant tongues for breakfast: sealing in Antarctica in the 1820s. Dr Mike
Pearson AO Manning Clark Centre, Theatre 6, Bldg 26A,
Union Court, ANU
CAS www.cas.asn.au
Wed 26 - Sat 29 Nov Wed 3 - Sat 6 Dec
6.30pm
Anthology – a theatrical journey performance through Westlake created by Pip Buining and Louise Morris
Tickets are available onsite prior to the performance or on-line at
www.anthology.net.au
December
Date to be advised National Trust Christmas Party. Details to be advised National Trust 6230 0533
Note: CAS is the Canberra Archaeological Society. CAR is the Centre for Archaeological Research. AHGS is the Australian Garden History Society. Information on
events run by organisations other than the National Trust (ACT) is provided in good faith, but readers should check dates and times with the contacts indicated above.
Heritage In Trust August 2014
Heritage in Trust www.nationaltrust.org.au Page 9
Heritage Happenings The Heritage and Grants Committee has a number of heritage issues under consideration at the moment. Eric Martin reports below on the status of the various locations of potential concern.
1 Dickson/Lyneham Flats These are significant buildings that have been left to deteriorate over the past decade. Recently the tower blocks were vacated and a construction fence erected around them.
The ACT Heritage Council has had a nomination for these buildings for about 14 years and is only now considering it. The ACT Government wants to demolish these buildings and sell the land for multi-unit development to increase population densities closer to the proposed light rail system.
The Development Application (DA) will be commented on by the National Trust.
The National Trust is concerned that: - the ACT Heritage Council has not completed
its assessment; - the ACT Government is pre-empting an
outcome without due process; and - no real opportunity has been considered for
alternative and adaptive reuse.
2 Kingston Arts Precinct Masterplan The National Trust supports the Masterplan concept and the development of the Arts Precinct but is concerned that: - the multistorey car park to the west of the
Power House (Glassworks) will block significant views from the west (corner of Wentworth Avenue and Telopea Park West); and
- the heritage values of the Fitter’s Workshop which were recognised as a result of a National Trust appeal on the previous development proposals (ie the acoustic values for music) are not clearly identified or mentioned.
3 City to Lake This project is starting to evolve but it is unclear how the plans for the area between Civic and the Lake will address and respect the heritage values. The heritage sites include:
- Civic Square - City Hill - Legal Precinct - Civic Swimming Pool - Lake Burley Griffin West Basin - Acton Hotel Precinct - Canberra Avenue and Bridge - Commonwealth Park - Ian Potter House and - Shine Dome.
4 Canberra Brickworks While the Land Development Authority has a Masterplan proposal for land rezoning and development, the future of the Brickworks remains in the balance as it is not the focus of the development, and funding for work on conserving it appears minimal.
The quarry reclamation is a positive but the former railway easement and its interpretation is only marginally considered.
5 Ginninderra Falls Although the Falls are located in NSW the ACT National Trust is involved in their future.
The Falls are significant as a feature of aesthetic beauty and for natural values. The area adjacent is within the West Belconnen rezoning proposals which will be available shortly for comment. There is a need to protect the heritage values, and NSW National Parks and the NSW Government are not particularly interested (or it has a low priority with them).
Current proposals indicate a special Trust, established by the developers, to manage the area. This may be the best outcome but will need consideration of the detail as it evolves.
(See also the separate article p11 on Ginninderra Falls by Doug Finlayson from the Ginninderra Falls Association.)
6 ACT Supreme Court This is a significant building and part of a significant precinct which is under threat of substantial demolition and redevelopment with the ACT Government’s proposed private/ public partnership for the Courts. This issue needs careful monitoring as any detailed design evolves.
Heritage In Trust August 2014
Heritage in Trust www.nationaltrust.org.au Page 10
7 Oaks Estate Masterplan The Masterplan is available for comment and the National Trust will respond.
8 Hill Station This valuable heritage site in Hume is being forgotten. The National Trust is keen to see this heritage place conserved and used.
Hill Station Photo Eric Martin
Other Committee activities
Significant Trees The National Trust has just completed the development
of a National Register of Significant Trees through a
National Partnership Programme with the
Commonwealth Government. This lists trees throughout
Australia that are considered significant by the National
Trust. The ACT has about 30 entries in the register which
is accessible from www.trusttrees.org.au. The register will
provide a valuable information base and further
nominations are welcomed. The ACT work was largely
undertaken by Barry Cameron. A full report on the
register will be provided in our November issue.
National Trust (ACT) Heritage Awards We received a number of nominations for these Awards
which are currently being assessed. We are aiming to
announce the results in early November. A full report will
be given in a later issue.
This place matters
Don’t forget that if you're a non-profit group with
a mission to save historic or important places or
an individual looking to spread the word, feel free
to use the ‘This Place Matters’ message in your
campaigns, conferences, or promotions by
downloading our sign.
Take a photo of your important place and upload
the photo to our Facebook page adding a brief
statement as to why the place matters to you, or
post or email the information to
‘This Place Matters’ is a trademarked property of the National Trust (ACT) and cannot be used by for-profit entities without express permission.
National Trust (ACT) walking tours iphone app
The ACT National Trust has developed an app to help iphone users to explore Canberra's best heritage areas via self-guided walking tours.
There are five walking tours in the app, covering the beautiful areas of Reid, Blandfordia, Commonwealth Park and the Northern and Southern Borders of the ACT.
You choose the tour you want to take and follow the locations on the map. You can view historic photos and information about each important location on the tour.
The app was developed by local group Imagine Team Solutions and was supported with funding made available by the ACT Government under the ACT Heritage Grants Program.
The App is available now for iphone HERE and will have a formal launch in November. Learn more about the walking tours on the National Trust website by clicking HERE.
Eric Martin, AM
Heritage In Trust August 2014
Heritage in Trust www.nationaltrust.org.au Page 11
Ginninderra Falls parkland proposals –
July 2014 update
In 2011 a north Canberra community group developed a proposal to create an outstanding regional park in NSW just north of the ACT border around the confluence of Ginninderra Creek and the Murrumbidgee River that included the Ginninderra Falls. The Association’s aims were:
to restore public access to the Ginninderra Creek and Murrumbidgee River corridors and Ginninderra Falls, and
to create a sustainable public park for recreational, educational and ecological purposes.
For several years now the Riverview Group urban development company has been preparing plans for the West Belconnen township that involves housing construction in NSW south of Ginninderra Creek and adjacent land in the ACT bordering the Murrumbidgee River corridor. Over the last few months the Riverview Group has held planning workshops and cross-border government discussions to finalise planning proposals for the development in both the ACT and NSW. These have now been completed and a Cross-Border Services Committee that included NSW and ACT government and local authorities has, for the time being, been discontinued. Riverview Group planning proposal documents for land use rezoning in NSW and ACT are now complete and have been submitted to ACT and NSW Government planning departments for comment. Once issues raised by Government departments are addressed, these documents will be made available for public comment and feedback prior to rezoning approval being considered. The Ginninderra Falls Association maintains that current maps in the public arena for the footprint of the West Belconnen Urban Development indicate that the parkland along the Murrumbidgee River and Ginninderra Creek corridors is compromised and inadequate for long-term viable and attractive public parkland development. The Association contends that it is very important that the urban footprint be revised to include wider river and creek parkland corridors. When planning proposal documents become available to the public, the Ginninderra Falls Association urges
National Trust members in the ACT and NSW, and other community groups, to make representations to the ACT and NSW planning authorities to ensure that the river and creek parkland corridors are at least 300 m wide along all stretches of the waterways and that urban development does not intrude into areas with significant natural heritage. During an assessment of the area in 2013, the NSW Parks and Wildlife Service conducted an investigation into the feasibility of developing a national park centred on the Lower Ginninderra Falls and adjacent Murrumbidgee River corridor. Although the NSW Government was unwilling to fund a national park whose principal beneficiaries would be residents of the ACT, the National Parks and Wildlife Service acknowledged that:
Based on population projections for Canberra to 2050, the Ginninderra Falls Association suggests that a national park for the Ginninderra Falls area could see in excess of 50,000 visitors per annum. The Ginninderra Falls area of interest contains significant scenic as well as natural and heritage values. The area of interest has a range of recreational opportunities for the increasing population of the ACT and Yass Valley Council areas. Establishment of any reserve would require significant commitment from the NSW, ACT and local governments, the community and potentially private enterprise.
The Ginninderra Falls Association contends that there are compelling arguments for strong cooperation between the ACT and NSW Governments, together with the Yass Valley Council, to create a regional park that will preserve an area of outstanding natural beauty along parts of the Ginninderra Creek – Murrumbidgee River corridor, including the Ginninderra Falls, and greatly enhancing the region’s tourist potential. This development will create commercial opportunities that will significantly improve the value of the surrounding area as a focus for cross-border enterprises with links to existing vineyards and broad acre developments. Doug Finlayson Ginninderra Falls Association
Heritage In Trust August 2014
Heritage in Trust www.nationaltrust.org.au Page 12
Travels and at home with the Trust Local and Interstate
Speaker’s Night – A Light in the Window: Harper’s Mansion Wednesday 17 September 5.30 – 7pm
The National Trust is pleased to announce that former
Canberra journalist Ann Beaumont will visit us to talk
about her latest book A Light in the Window, Harper’
Mansion Berrima – the place and its people. The book is a
lively narrative which brings to life the story of James and
Mary Harper who built Harper’s Mansion and
the Surveyor-General Inn, the only pub still operating in
Berrima today. It also gives an insight into the 120 year
ownership of the house by the Catholic Church and
introduces the reader to the priests, nuns and
tenants who lived there. She also highlights the Trust’s
restoration of the property, the creation of the garden,
and the countless hours given by volunteers to keep the
house open.
Published earlier this year by the National Trust in May
Anne received a National Trust NSW heritage award for
her fine work. Copies of Anne’s book will be on sale and
she will be pleased to sign copies.
Meet: National Archives, Queen Victoria Terrace Cost: $10.00. Drinks and nibbles included. Bookings essential: RSVP 11 September to 6230 0533 or online at www.nationaltrust.org.au/act/events
Visit to Callum Brae Sunday 21 September 1– 4pm
Callum Brae was a soldier settler lease success story due to canny Hector McIntosh and hard work. While the property was leased in 1919, Hector finally moved his family here in 1925. The afternoon will start with an easy walk through the reserve which is an important link in the chain of woodland reserves that extend from Red Hill to Wanniassa Hills. Come and inspect this still much-loved working farm—heritage listed in 2011. Afternoon tea will be served before returning through the reserve.
Meet: At entry of Callum Brae Woodland Reserve, Narrabundah Lane, Symonston Cost: $25 members and $35 non-members Bookings essential: 6230 0533 or online at www.nationaltrust.org.au/act/events
Speaker’s night The Luck of the Irish An evening with Babette Smith Wednesday 1 October 5.30 – 7pm
Babette Smith is one of Australia's most respected experts on convict history and author of the bestselling Cargo of Women and Australia's Birthstain. The Luck of the Irish is a fascinating portrait of colonial life in the mid-19th century, which reveals how the Irish helped lay the foundations of the Australia we know today. The luck of the Irish was chronic bad luck, as their sad history attests. That's how it looked for 250 Irish convicts when their ship, the Hive, sank ignominiously off the NSW coast in 1835. Miraculously all survived, guided to safety by local Aboriginal people.
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They landed at a time when the so-called slave colony was at its height, ruled by the lash and the chain gang. Yet as Babette Smith tracked the lives of the people aboard the Hive, she discovered a very different story. Most were assigned to work on farms or in businesses, building a better life than they possibly could have experienced in Ireland. Surprisingly, in the workforce they found power, which gave rise to the characteristic Australian culture later described by DH Lawrence: 'Nobody felt better than anybody else, or higher.'
Meet: National Archives, Queen Victoria Terrace
Cost: $10.00. Drinks & nibbles included.
Bookings essential: RSVP 25 September to 6230 0533 or online at www.nationaltrust.org.au/act/events
National Trust (ACT) AGM Thursday 16 October 6.30 for 7.00pm Guest speaker at this year’s Annual General Meeting will be well known Canberra author and historian Allen Mawer who will take us on a search for Jack Doolan of Castlemaine. He was, as the song says, a teenage bushranger, but not quite the one we know.
Meet: National Archives, Queen Victoria Terrace
Reid Open Houses Sunday 2 November 1.30–4.30pm
This popular event is to be held again in collaboration
with the Reid Residents’ Association. The program
features a guided walk and visits to three houses and
gardens in this heritage-listed residential precinct, which
have been selected for their sympathetic restoration or
renovations. There will be an introductory talk on Reid
and its heritage significance by a heritage expert and the
opportunity to hear the owners provide a short talk on
their homes and gardens which can then be inspected at
leisure. A delicious afternoon tea will be served at the
Reid Pre-school.
Meet: Corner of Dirrawan Gardens and Currong St, near
the Reid Tennis Club Pavilion. A guided walking tour with
a total distance of approx. 1.5 kms (return).
Cost: $25 members; $35 non-members
Bookings essential: 6230 0533 or email:
Bus trip to Harper’s Mansion in Berrima and Joadja Sunday 9 November - all day bus trip from 7.30am
We invite you to
join us on one of
our interesting
regional heritage
tours, this time to
the Berrima
region where we
will explore one
of Berrima’s fine
old homes, Harper’s Mansion via the historic Joadja valley
and Joadja ghost town for morning tea, a visit to the
operating whiskey distillery and a BBQ lunch. Joadja
town was founded by Scottish workers brought out to
mine the local shale deposits. The mine closed early in
the 20th century, and the town was abandoned but the
ruins tell the story of those that lived, worked and
perished there.
Harper’s Mansion (c1834) is an excellent example of a
colonial Georgian residence, furnished in period style and
set in two acres of strolling gardens of cool climate
heritage plants overlooking the historic village of Berrima
including one of the largest hedge mazes in Australia.
Bring some spending money for the National Trust shop.
Meet: 7.30am in Deakin (car park behind the Deakin
Fitness Centre, Deakin Shops) OR 7.45am northside at the
bus stop on Northbourne Ave (outside the Southwell Park
netball courts).
Cost: $80 members; $90 non-members (including bus,
morning tea, BBQ lunch and Joadja entry)
Bookings essential: 6230 0533 or email:
[email protected] Please specify pick-up point
when booking, plus any dietary requirements.
National Trust (ACT) Christmas Party December Date and venue to be advised.
Joadja Town
Heritage In Trust August 2014
Heritage in Trust www.nationaltrust.org.au Page 14
Overseas
Germany
A fort on the Roman border
19 May- 10 June 2015 for 22 days
http://www.nationaltrust.org.au/act/GermanyTour
This exciting tour will focus on selected UNESCO World
Heritage listed places, but other places of national
significance to the history and cultural development of
Germany will be included.
Cost: $10,200 pp Land Tour only $13,200 Package price including return economy airfares (Singapore Airlines)
(Single supplement $1,620)
The Theme: A tour covering the history and culture of
Germany from the Neanderthal period of the deep past,
the Bronze and Iron Ages, the Celtic and Viking periods, the
Roman period through the Renaissance to modern times. A
focus of the tour will be visits to UNESCO World Heritage
places.
The tour will be at a leisurely pace. We will be based 5
nights in Trier, 6 nights in Berlin, 4 nights in Hamburg, 1
night in the World Heritage city of Bamberg and 5 nights
in Munich. We will have time to explore these cities and
from there venture into the heart of the country to visit
the historical, archaeological, and cultural places that
represent the development of Germany over a period of
40,000 years. We will also have free time in these cities to
explore by ourselves and to experience the food and the
shops.
Some of the highlights will include: the site and museums
of the first identified Neanderthal skeleton, sites from the
Roman period, Heidelberg and the Rhine Valley region,
Lübeck, the Viking settlement of Hedeby, Dresden, World
Heritage Gardens, Museum Island in Berlin, Potsdam and
San Souci, Wittenberg where Martin Luther challenged
Roman Catholicism and began the Reformation, the Celtic-
Roman Museum in the heartlands of the early Celts at
Manching, Nuremberg, Bamburg and more.
Brandenburg Gates
Historical archaeologist, Dr Peter Dowling will
accompany the tour and an accredited English
speaking guide will be with us at all times.
Come with us. Contact the ACT National Trust on
(02) 6230 0533 Monday – Thursday or
Travelscene Canberra City
(02) 6247 6544 Monday – Thursday
Tour inclusions
Professional English-speaking guide throughout the tour and sightseeing with local tour guides where applicable
Twin/double share 4-star accommodation throughout the tour including hotel taxes, service charges, state and local taxes
Breakfast daily, some lunches and dinners as per the itinerary
Air-conditioned coach, as per itinerary.
All touring, as stated in the itinerary
Sightseeing as outlined in the itinerary with inside visits (including admission charges)
Gratuities to the tour manager and coach driver • Tips to baggage porters and hotel staff
Tour cost not included
• Meals not specified on the itinerary • Excess baggage charges • Meals not specified in the itinerary • Beverages including tea and coffee except at breakfast
and hotel dinners, wines, liquor, soft drinks, etc • Items of a personal nature such as phone calls, laundry,
mini bar, internet access, etc • Gratuities to local guides • Transportation to/from hotels or venues if travel is
separate to that of the group
Heritage In Trust August 2014
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Speaker’s Night Report
An evening with Bill Gammage
Wednesday 16 July 2014 at the National Archives of
Australia
The meeting room was packed out and many people were left on the waiting list. Those who attended had an enjoyable evening and may have had their beliefs challenged. Peter Dowling reports. How ‘natural’ are our natural landscapes? That was the
question that many of us took away from Professor Bill
Gammage’s talk at the ACT National Trust members’ night.
A large audience, around eighty people, attended this
event - a testimony to the interest in the history of our
landscapes by our members and the high regard Bill
Gammage is held in as one of Australia’s eminent
historians.
For many years Professor Gammage has looked closely at
our rural and ‘natural’ landscapes with a discerning eye,
taking nothing for granted, not just here in Canberra but
across the continent. Professor Gammage has spent over a
decade examining a vast amount of archival and visual
records, conducting fieldwork expeditions, studying the
biology and ecology of our native flora and fauna and
looking closely at traditional Indigenous hunting and
gathering techniques. From this research he has pieced
together a convincing theory relating to an extraordinarily
complex system of human land management practices that
has shaped our landscapes and biota for many thousands
of years.
Much of the landscape we are familiar with when we travel
beyond our cities and towns is not the result of ‘natural’
causes but is to a high degree anthropogenic, caused by
the human hand. The Indigenous populations managed
the landscapes by selective burnings and with an
understanding of native plant ecology created patterns or
mosaics of open grasslands and woodlands to ensure a
plentiful and reliable source of animal and plant foods. In
doing so, it can be argued, they influenced the life-cycles of
Australian flora and fauna.
Professor Gammage stressed that where Indigenous land
management practices have ceased, particularly in our
nature parks and national parks, the ‘natural’ areas are
overgrown with competing flora species, which are subject
to the bushfires we now experience.
Archaeologists have been aware that many of the pre-
1788 landscapes of Australia have been strongly influenced
and formed by Indigenous activities. We have seen
evidence of this in the archaeological deposits dating back
through the millennia. But it has taken the work of
Professor Gammage and the rigour and detail he has
applied to his research for us to understand the true
nature and complexity of Indigenous land management
across the continent.
His book, The Biggest Estate on Earth, How Aborigines
Made Australia, is a fascinating read and has won several
awards since its publication including the Prime Minister’s
Prize for Australian History.
Bill Gammage and Aboriginal elder, Mrs Jannette Phillips
Photo Di Johnstone
Do you have a friend travelling overseas? Tell them about the advantages of joining the National
Trust including free entry into over 2000 National Trust
properties around the world.
Heritage In Trust August 2014
Heritage in Trust www.nationaltrust.org.au Page 16
ANU History Learning Community
The best thing about history is that there is something to
interest everyone. From the clash of arms in the Roman
gladiatorial arena, to the machinations of the Tudor court,
through to the dusty plains of frontier Australia, stories
abound of the billions of lives long since lived. Curiously,
however, schools and even sometimes universities do a
good job of making this all seem dull. That’s what the ANU
History Learning Community intends to counteract – to
invigorate some of these stories and to champion and
stimulate the power of curiosity to make history come
alive.
The ANU History Learning Community is a student-led
collective of like-minded individuals who share a passion
for history and seek to encourage a greater understanding
of our shared past whether it encompasses local, national
or global history. Through active collaboration with
academics, local institutions, organisations like the
National Trust and other students, the learning community
aims to promote all things history so that we can learn to
love our shared past – and see where those stories can
take us.
Each year two co-ordinators are selected to guide the
learning community in the direction they see fit, the
challenge being not a lack of resources or opportunities,
just the coherent organisation of all this potential. So this
year, we’ve sought to bring out the jumper-leads to give
the Learning Community a kick of life. Our two main
objectives were to increase the breadth of the History
Learning Community and to give greater publicity to
history-related events at ANU and in Canberra. In a way,
we have been seeking to act as curators, selecting some of
the best ‘goings on’ in the history world to promote to
students and the wider ANU and Canberra community.
Some of our initiatives have been very well received.
Our foray into social media led us to create a Facebook
page, enabling us to connect easily and quickly online –
attracting over 200 followers already. Our monthly
newsletter has also been a winner with several hundred
subscribers.
Also, our curated series of ‘History Highlights’ has been
especially successful - promoting several excellent local
events including a debate held at Albert Hall for Women’s
History Month and a public lecture at the ANU by the
Chichele Professor of the History of War at Oxford
University, Sir Huw Strachan.
Happily, support for the History Learning Community exists
aplenty. Our first event ‘Indiana Jones and the Temple of
Coombs’ was attended by between 60 and 80 people
including undergraduates, graduates and history school
staff. The keener students delved into the labyrinthine
depths of the Coombs Building to find as many of the
‘golden idols’ as possible while other students chatted
among themselves and with academics. It was a very
relaxed affair which was designed to be a ‘meet and greet’
and a bit of fun.
We’ve also been fortunate enough to secure some
excellent guest lecturers including Associate Professor
Frank Bongiorno who gave a lecture called ‘Sex: A Raunchy
History of the Sex Lives of Australians’ based on his award
winning and acclaimed work The Sex Lives of Australians.
Not only was this shortlisted for the Australian History
Prize in the 2013 Prime Minister’s Literary Awards, but it
also won the 2013 ACT Book of the Year Awards.
Throughout the rest of the year, we’re aiming to showcase
some of the excellent historical research being done at the
ANU, by visiting academics and local Canberra historians.
So please keep an eye out – the more the merrier. On top
of this, plans are underway for exploring how we can
promote career options for students studying history, as
well as working on an undergraduate history prize. Lastly, if
you would like to connect with the History Learning
Community please like our Facebook page or send us an
email at [email protected].
Matthew Allanby and Daniel McKay
Heritage In Trust August 2014
Heritage in Trust www.nationaltrust.org.au Page 17
Saints Peter and Paul’s Old Cathedral, Goulburn
Completed at last! It's been a long time coming. Sts Peter and Paul’s Old Cathedral in Goulburn was built in two stages. The first stage, the nave, was built in 1871 -1872, and the second, transepts, sanctuary and tower, over the period 1886 - 1890. Now, with the new spire, it can be said that the building was built in three stages.
The cathedral is unique in that it is constructed with green porphyry, a hard igneous rock of a beautiful olive green colour. It is not generally used for building as it is very hard and not plentiful. The church is finished with sandstone. The original architect was Andrea Stombucco, himself a stone mason, responsible for stage one. Charles Spadaccini completed stage two. Garry Dutaillis, architect of Goulburn, designed the new spire following original drawings. It is steel framed and roofed with copper shingles. This all came about because in the current major restoration of the whole building, the original Murphy bell purchased in Dublin in 1869 was out of tune and its tower housing needed replacing. With scaffolding in place on the tower for stone restoration, to complete the building was an opportunity not to be missed.
Twenty-four tonne of stone has already been replaced on the tower. Heritage NSW provided a $70,000 grant for the bell and housing restoration on a dollar for dollar basis. The Restoration Committee is grateful for the continued support from the National Trust (NSW) through the Sts Peter and Paul’s Old Cathedral Restoration Appeal.
The tower costs so far are approximately $1,080,000 and with funds exhausted, the scaffolding will remain in place for quite some time.
Garran's Picturesque Atlas of Australasia shows a sketch of the "completed" Cathedral with its short Romanesque type spire. The same edition also shows Goulburn's sister, St Saviour's Anglican Cathedral by Edmund Blackett, with its magnificent tall spire (maybe one day!)
Father Dermid McDerott (Photographs and text)
Spire in position
Refurbished bell
1886 engraving St Saviour’s Cathedral
Heritage In Trust August 2014
Heritage in Trust www.nationaltrust.org.au Page 18
_______________________________________________ National Trust of Australia (ACT) Office
PO Box 1144 Civic Square ACT 2608 Telephone 02 6230 0533 Fax 02 6230 0544 Email [email protected] Net www.nationaltrust.org.au ABN 50 797 949 955 Opening times: 9.30am to 3.00pm Monday to Thursday Office Location: 1st Floor, North Building Canberra City [above Canberra Museum & Gallery],
Patron
The Hon. Margaret Reid AO
President
Scott McAlister
Office Manager
Liz McMillan [email protected]
The e-magazine, Heritage in Trust, is produced and edited by Maree
Treadwell and Wendy Whitham assisted by Dianne Dowling and Mary
Johnston.
Visiting England? Make the most of your National Trust of Australia (ACT) membership. Here is a selection of images
of National Trust properties from the beautiful south west of England which you can visit for free with your ACT Trust
membership, and where you can taste a classic cream tea or cheese scones (see Trusted recipe this issue).
Cotehele, Cornwall Dovecote Cotehele Buckland Abbey, Devon Lanhydrock House Photos Maree Treadwell
A full report on my visit to these favourite properties will be in given in a future issue. We’d love to hear about your visit too. Send photos or reports to the editors at [email protected].
Maree Treadwell
About Heritage in Trust
Heritage in Trust is published quarterly as an electronic
magazine in conjunction with the national magazine
Trust News in February, May, August and November.
The editors invite articles and letters from Trust
members with an interest in the heritage of the ACT
and these should be addressed to The Editor,
Heritage in Trust, at [email protected].
Deadlines for copy
mid January (February issue)
mid April (May)
mid July (August)
mid October (November)
The views expressed in Heritage in Trust are not
necessarily those of the National Trust of Australia
(ACT). The articles in this e-magazine are subject to
copyright. No article may be used without the
consent of the ACT National Trust and the author.