heritage newsletter jan-feb 2009

1HERITAGE July - August 2011

HERITAGENEWSLETTER OF THE BLUE MOUNTAINS ASSOCIATION

OF CULTURAL HERITAGE ORGANISATIONS INC. JULY - AUGUST 2011 ISSUE No. 16

This beautiful and delicately designed sheet musiccover for the Katoomba Waltz is held in the National

Library of Australia, Canberrawhich has approved the publication of this image

nla.mus-an 10996145-1-v

The Katoomba Waltz dedicatedto an early chief justice

They lived at “Lansdown” in Edgecliff Road, and werefrequent guests at Government House and AdmiraltyHouse garden parties, and at lord mayoral receptions.Her sister Blanche was a semi-professional actress inthe 1890s.

Sir Frederick Matthew Darley was born on September18, 1830 in Dublin, Ireland. The first child of HenryDarley of Wingfield, Bray County Wicklow and his wifeMaria Louise nee West.

At Hunsdon, Hertfordshire on December 13, 1860,Darley married Lucy Forest Brown, from Melbourne, adaughter of Captain Sylvester Brown (master mariner)and his wife Eliza Angell nee Alexander.Continued page 4

By John Leary, OAMNSW HAS A NEW CHIEF JUSTICE, Tom Bathurst.With the delay in announcing a replacement for theincumbent, Jim Spigelman; barrister cum journalistRichard Ackland, published in the Sydney MorningHerald a speculative piece as to who might fill the officeand if in fact there is a need for such an office.

Enchantingly, chief justices still live with us, in name. ASydney ferry was named after Sir Leslie Herron’s wifeand Mary McCarron Maguire composed The KatoombaWaltz in honour of Sir Frederick Darley. 1

Asked to name a popular waltz, most will recall themagic of Andre Rieu’s presentations around the worldof either the The Blue Danube Waltz or the EmperorWaltz.

However, few other than local historians would beaware of Mary McCarron Maguire’s, Katoomba Waltzdedicated to Sir Frederick Darley (then LieutenantGovernor of NSW) and Lady Darley who lived in“Lilianfels”, Katoomba.

Published in 1895, The Katoomba Waltz was firstperformed at Government House in Sydney and wasperformed at the Tivoli Theatre in August 1895. Themusic was added to the repertoire of the NSW ArtilleryRegiment Band.

The Sydney Morning Herald of the day pronounced it ‘adashing composition admirably suited to ballroompurposes’

The rediscovery in 1989 of Mary McCarron Maguire’s,Katoomba Waltz has led to speculation about a ‘lostschool’ of popular composers whose works wereinspired by the natural splendours of the BlueMountains.

Little is known about Mary McCarron Maguire but shepublished two other waltzes, The Antonina and theCommonwealth during the decade 1890 - 1900, theCommmonwealth evidently inspired by the comingFederation in 1901. Two other musical items from 1890- 1910 are a mazurka, Leura Falls by Alicia Nolan andThe Cascade Waltz by Louis L Howarde.2

Very few details are known about Maguire’s life, otherthan that she was one of two daughters of a Woollahrafamily.


From the editor’s pen......

John Leary, OAM - Past President,Blue Mountains Association ofCultural Heritage Organisations Inc.

Contents.........HERITAGE

July - August 2011

* P1 The Katoomba Waltz dedicated to an early chief justice * P2 Council’s call for public participation in heritage advisory role welcomed * P3 Local history blog * P3 Grant awarded to BMACHO * P3 Telstra grant for workshops * P5 Evans opened the way to the west * P9 What would you keep in an empty jar?

* P11 Dear old golden rules days * P13 Crumbled chimney stack only reminder of Polar explorer who lived in Woodford * P14 Special days in World War 1 * P16 Historic 1880s Carrington Hotel to be venue for BM history conference * P16 Jean Arthur in BM Hospital* P17 School of Arts or Mechanics Institutes have their origin in early 19th century

* P18 Council explains LEP processes * P20 Heritage briefs around the world * P21 The Domesday Book

Council’s call for publicparticipation in heritageadvisory role welcomed

THOSE INTERESTED in theprotection and conservation of ourheritage will welcome Blue MountainsCity Council’s recent decision toestablish a heritage advisorycommittee of council.

The prompt action of council staff incalling for nominations from thecommunity soon after the decision isalso worthy of commendation.

Blue Mountains Association of CulturalHeritage Organisations (BMACHO)has for several years been advocatingthe establishment of a heritageadvisory committee of council.

BMACHO has on occasions expressedconcerns at what seemed to be delaysin the process of having council acceptthe proposal for such a committeewhich are not uncommon in other localgovernment units around the state andin fact in Australia.

On this occasion credit is due to theelected members of council and it’splanning staff for the decision whichshould ultimately benefit council in itsdeliberations on heritage issues.

It is pleasing to BMACHO that councilhas acceded to some of the requestsmade by those in the heritage sector,both volunteers and professionals.

Council’s decision to establish aheritage advisory councilacknowledges the wealth ofknowledge concerning the region’sheritage and history, gained over manyyears by members of historical andheritage societies in the region.

In BMACHO’s view there are still someissues that its members would haveliked to have seen included in theterms of reference for theestablishment of the committee.

However, within the wide parameter ofcouncil’s objectives those who councildecides to appoint to the committeeshould be able to provide somevaluable expertise in matters ofheritage advice.

Those who apply to be considered forappointment to the heritage advisorycommittee need to be very much awarethat heritage is but a small part of thesometimes lengthy process of planning,a point that BMACHO has been statingfor many years.

One of council’s stated objectives forthe heritage advisory committee, is areview of the heritage component ofLEP 1991. This is the type of activity onwhich those in the heritage sector of ourcommunity are well equipped toprovide.

Council recently released a quitecomprehensive and easily understood,clear language document dealing withLEP processes and again this has beena worthwhile initiative of council’splanning staff.

In welcoming council’s decision to workmore closely with the community itserves, (and in particular the notinsignificant number of residents whohave an abiding interest in our heritageand history) --- it is suggested there area number of important ingredients to theultimate success of this heritageadvisory committee.

These are the need for those electedfrom the community to understand theirwork is limited to heritage issues onlyand that there must be an acceptanceby them of the necessary and legalprotocols council and its staff mustobserve.

There is also a need for council’s staffto accept the limitations and ambitionsof those who volunteer for thiscommittee.

These community members need to begiven dignity with tasks that allow themto believe they are contributingsomething worthwhile to the communityin which they live, so they may sharepride in achievement and not left to feelthey just ‘rubber stamp’ the work ofstaff, without having had any real inputinto the processes.


FOR THE FOURTH YEAR insuccession, BMACHO has beenawarded a CommonwealthGovernment grant of $2,300 by theDepartment of Sustainability,Environment, Water, Populationsand Communities under its 2010 -2011 GVEHO Program.

The program is intended to helpcover administrative operationalcosts.

BMACHO is most appreciative ofthis continued generousCommonwealth support.

It is both recognition of the value ofBMACHO to the heritagecommunity and a practicalcontribution that makes theorganisation’s work possible.

The GVEHO grant is invaluable inhelping to meet the routineadministrative costs of theAssociation.

It has also supported workshops,the newsletter and other activitiesand allows the committee toconcentrate on finding funding fromother sources for special projectssuch as the Journal and majorworkshops.

Overall, BMACHO has a soundrecord (80%) of success in its grantapplications.

This year it has applied for two newproject grants that would enable itto serve its membership moreeffectively and to contribute evenmore to heritage work in the region.

Grant applications require time andcare in their preparation and, ifsuccessful, in the responsiblemanagement of the fundsreceived.

There are, however, some usefultips on how to minimise theworkload and increase the chancesof success.

A workshop is being planned toassist members in the grantprograms for their own societies.

Anybody interested in participatingin the workshop, is asked to contactBarrie Reynolds by phone:4757 4725, or by email:[email protected].

Grant awarded to BMACHO

MEANTIME, advice has just beenreceived of BMACHO’s successwith another grant application

Telstra has generously awardeda grant of $5,025 under its TelstraConnected Seniors GrantProgram, to enable BMACHO toprovide a series of trainingworkshops on the use of theinternet for on-line historicalresearch and informationservices in the heritage field.

Anybody interested pleasecontact Barrie Reynolds: [email protected] 4757 4725.

Telstra Connected Seniors® is atailored program created to helpolder Australians learn moreabout technology.

It offers individual self teachguides, fun interactive workshops,and also offers eligible communitygroups with the opportunity offunding to run successful trainingcourses around technology.

It is anticipated these workshopswill be conducted betweenFebruary and May 2012.

TELSTRAGRANT FORWORKSHOPS

Professor Barrie Reynolds,BMACHO’s grants officer and

former inaugural secretary

JUST over six months agoSpringwood Historians launcheda public/social history blog, orweblog.

One of the newer forms of‘engaging and interacting’ with awider audience, the blog orweblog aims to disseminate andgather historical facts andinformation related to the BlueMountains.

The content is eclectic andchanges regularly as new storiesand information are addedalmost on a daily basis.

Some of the content, like thepersonal profiles of theSpringwood Historians, andmaps and general informationrelated to the area - remainstatic, while older posts, whichhave been archived, can beaccessed through the searchfacility on the weblog.

A ‘comment’ feature on the blogprovides visitors with the abilityto interact, which is somethingthat Springwood Historians arekeen to encourage. Anotherobjective is to engage localschools.

So far the weblog has beenviewed by more than 2,500visitors from countries like theUSA, UK, Canada, Russia, NewZealand and South Korea, andattracted favourable commentsfrom local historians,genealogists and publichistorian, Cathy Stanton.

Pamela Smith, the editor of theblog, stated that although theblog is primarily focused on theSpringwood area at present, theyare eager to include stories onthe wider Blue Mountains.

The address of the weblog ishttp://springwoodhistorians.blogspot orsimply type SpringwoodHistorians into the GoogleSearch engine.

LOCALHISTORY

BLOG


Darley came to Australia on advice ofanother chief justice

Continued from page 1Darley and his wife came toAustralia in 1862, on the advice ofSir Alfred Stephen (the Chief Justiceof NSW) who convinced him that hewould further his career in thecolony.

Sir Frederick was knighted in 1887and served five times as theLieutenant Governor of NSW. Thelongest and most important beingfrom January 24, 1900 to May 27,1902, spanning the creation of theCommonwealth of Australia in 1901.

In August 1888, Sir Frederick Darleypurchased more than 11 acres ofland adjacent to Echo Point inKatoomba and enlisted VarneyParkes, the architect son of closefriend, Sir Henry Parkes to design“Lilianfels” as a summer home.

The Darleys had seven children, sixdaughters and two sons and it wasLilian, who died at age 22 sufferingtuberculosis, for whom theKatoomba property was named: theending ‘fels’ has a Germanmeaning, ‘rocky ground’.

“Katoomba will in the future be historic from having as a resident oneeminent Chief Justice, Sir Frederick Darley and his family at Lilianfels.Sir Frederick has spared no pains in laying the foundation of a finegarden and is said to have trenched a large portion of his property inorder to grow fruit successfully.” Illustrated Sydney News 1890

During the years in which SirFrederick and Lady Darley residednear Echo Point, nearly every notedvisitor to Australia accepted theirhospitality and enjoyed themagnificent outlook.

Royalty, vice-royalty and princes ofstatesmanship, jurisprudence,

science and art came in turn to viewthe mountains from the magnificentvantage point of Lilianfels.3

Footnotes1. Ackland, Richard, The SydneyMorning Herald May 6, 20112. Leves, Kerry Blue Mountains –Pictorial Memories by John Low3. HERITAGE November-December2009

CANCELLATION OF MEETINGDue to severe storm damage ongoing this week in Mt Wilson & Mt Irvine

the mid-year general meeting planned forSaturday, 16 July, 2011

has been cancelledThe following bulletin issued today, July 6 by Beth Raines, Captain of the local Brigade of the Rural Fire Service

will give some idea of the extent of the damage:

On Tuesday afternoon the twoMounts were hit with a massivewind storm with pretty devastatingresults. High winds have continuedand are expected to abate onFriday. There have been major treelosses along all roads and Mt IrvineRoad, Mt Wilson Road and TheAvenue were finally cleared

yesterday morning with all minorroads (except Waterfall Road) beingcleared by Wednesday evening.Telephone (landline) services havebeen interrupted but are nowrestored in places. Power has beenoff since Tuesday afternoon and isnot expected to be restored for days

yet - realistically not until next week.We have had Council crews workingalongside Brigade members toremove trees off the road to allowaccess. Conditions here are verycold and windy, there is a hugeamount of debris everywhere andpower lines are still down in manyplaces.

I am sure all members and friends of the Historical Society will join with me in sending warm wishes of support toall those affected by the widespread storms throughout the region.

Florence Smart Secretary Tel. 9416 1957 [email protected]

Mt Wilson & Mt Irvine Historical Society Inc.


EVANS OPENED THE WAY TO THE WESTBy John Leary, OAM

THERE IS A SERIES of inter-related events immediately afterLawson, Blaxland and Wentworthcrossed the Blue Mountains in Mayand June 1813.

George William Evans began hissurvey of a roadway across theBlue Mountains in November 1813and went as far as the futureBathurst.

William Cox then supervised theconstruction of the road from July1814 to January 1815. GovernorMacquarie travelled along the newroad in April and May 1815 andselected the site of Bathurst.

There is however, a body of opinionthat in fact Evans was ‘the firstEuropean to cross the GreatDividing Range’ the three explorers,Blaxland, Wentworth and Lawsonnot actually having crossed themain range.

What is uncontestable is the factthat in surveying a roadway fromEmu Ford on the Nepean River toBathurst and the subsequentbuilding of the road by William Cox,opened up the interior to ensure theprosperity of the colony.

It allowed the creation andmaintenance of a strong nationaleconomy based on pastoral andrural industries well into the secondhalf of the 20th century.

Severe drought in the yearsimmediately before the ‘crossing’almost forced the small settlementwhich would eventually becomeAustralia’s largest city to beabandoned.

The crossing of the mountains, thesurveying of the road and itsconstruction in quick successiongave new found impetus to thecolony.

Instructed by Governor LachlanMacquarie, Evans the then Deputy-Surveyor of Lands was — “toproceed in the Attempt of Effectinga Passage over the great Rangeand to discover what Description ofCountry lay to the Westward ofthem.” 1

Governor Lachlan Macquarie sentEvans across the Blue Mountainsinto the Wiradjuri nation of central-western New South Wales toconfirm the findings of theexploration party of Blaxland,Lawson and Wentworth.

He was the first European to recordmeeting with the Wiradjuri people ofthe region.2

Evans generally followed the routeof Blaxland, Lawson andWentworth, reaching the end oftheir route at a point Evans namedMount Blaxland.

Evans’ party then moved on anddiscovered the Fish River area andfurther west near the junction of thenow named Fish and CampbellRivers and described two plains inhis view, the O’Connell Plains andthe Macquarie Plains.

Evans had made a significantdecision, by determining to carryout the second part of Macquarie’sinstructions first, i.e. by surveyingbeyond the explorers’ terminalpoint, which he did by starting at thefoot of Mt York. Here he marked atree on November 25, 1813 andmeasured westward to his later

selected objective at the MacquarieRiver, reaching there on December9, 1813.

Returning to his Marked Tree at theRiver Lett, which is described in hisSurvey Field Book (see AONSWRef. Reel 2623) … “About 10chains from the River Lett, and themouth of a drain about 4 chains left”he then started on December 31,1813, the survey of the explorerstrack, which he completed to EmuFord on January 8, 1814.

Even today, with a team ofsurveyors using modern surveyingequipment including GPS, digitaltheodolites and laser distancemeasures, such a feat would bedifficult to emulate in a similarperiod of time and particularly asEvans had little qualifiedassistance.

Evans’ party included Richard Lewisand James Burns, both ‘Free Men’and three convicts, JamesCooghan, John Grover and JohnTygh.

Their names were recorded forposterity by Arthur J Hand, as streetnames when he subdivided theLapstone Estate.Continued page 6

George William Evans image courtesy National Library ofAustralia pic - vn 3509777 - v

“the first

European

to cross

the Great

Dividing

Range”


Continued from page 5Macquarie rewarded Evans with£100 and a grant of 1000 acres(405 ha) on the Coal River nearRichmond, Van Dieman’s Land.Evans and his family sailed forHobart in May 1814, but Macquarierecalled him in March 1815 to actas a guide on a tour of the recentlydiscovered country through whichWilliam Cox had constructed a roadto Bathurst. 3

By 1814 Evans was no stranger tothe Australian bush and the hazardsof surveying in uncharted territory.

Born on January 5, 1780, the thirdchild and eldest son of WilliamEvans, secretary to the Earl, ofWarwick, of the Parish of St James,Westminster, England and his wifeAnn nee Southam; young Georgeserved an apprenticeship with anengineer and architect and gainedsome elementary training insurveying.

In 1798 he married Jennett,daughter of Captain ThomasMelville, commander of theBritannia in the Third Fleet andmigrated to the Cape of GoodHope.

He was employed in the NavalStore-keeper’s Department at TableBay and remained there until May1802 when, in compliance with thetreaty of Amiens, British forces werewithdrawn.

Evans then aged 22 was persuadedby Captain William Kent to go toNew South Wales and arrived atPort Jackson in HMS Buffalo onOctober 16, 1802.

Initially Evans was given theposition of store-keeper in charge ofthe receipt and issue of grain atParramatta, but in August 1803 hewas appointed by Governor King asacting surveyor-general in theabsence of Charles Grimes whowas on leave in England.

In September 1804 he discoveredand explored the WarragambaRiver, penetrating upstream to thepresent site of Warragamba Dam.

Discharged from the SurveyDepartment by Governor PhilipGidley King in February 1805, hebegan farming at the Hawkesbury

settlement on land granted to himthe previous year.

This venture failed during thedisastrous flood of March 1806, buthe remained in occupation untilLieutenant-Governor WilliamPaterson appointed him assistantsurveyor at Port Dalrymple in 1809.However, his services were neededin Sydney and he did not leave totake up this office.

In March 1812, he surveyed theshores of Jervis Bay whence he leda small party overland on foot toAppin. This journey of two weekswas conducted under most arduouscircumstances and resulted in thesettlement of the Illawarra districtduring the drought years that soonfollowed.

His success probably inducedGovernor Lachlan Macquarie tolater select him for the task ofpenetrating the interior of NewSouth Wales.

In September 1812 he went to VanDiemen’s Land with the actingsurveyor-general, James Meehan,to remeasure grants made byformer lieutenant-governors. Thesegrants were in a deplorable statethrough the inefficiency andmisconduct of deputy-surveyorsGeorge Harris and Peter Mills.4

While thus engaged he wasappointed in November 1812deputy-surveyor of lands, VanDiemen’s Land, but in August 1813he was recalled to Sydney andinstructed to try to find a passageinto the interior.

In May and June 1814, Evans ledanother expedition from Bathurstsouthward to within sight of theAbercrombie River, explored themiddle reaches of the BelubulaRiver, discovered the Lachlan Rivereight miles (13 km) downstreamfrom Cowra, and traced its courseas far as Mandagery Creek.

In July 1815 he returned to Hobart,remaining until 1817 when he wasrequired to act as second-in-command to Surveyor-GeneralJohn Oxley in an expedition thensetting out from Bathurst todetermine the course of the LachlanRiver.

Though forced to return by floodedmarsh country when about ninemiles (14 km) below Booligal; Oxleypaid tribute to Evans’ able adviceand co-operation, and the accuracyand fidelity of his earlier narrative.

In September 1817 Evans returnedto Van Diemen’s Land, but sixmonths later he was again recalledto fill the position of second-in-command to Oxley, this time in hisattempt to trace the MacquarieRiver to its termination.

Once again flooded marshesproved too great an obstacle, so theparty turned eastward to PortMacquarie and thence southward toPort Stephens. After twenty-threeweeks the exploration wascompleted in November 1818.

Evans returned to Hobart and forthe first time since his appointmentas deputy-surveyor was able toconfine his attention to his duties inVan Diemen’s Land, where landsurveys were in serious arrearsthrough inadequate staff andcontinual demands for his serviceson exploration.

Evans’ reward — £100 and 1000 acres of land

EVANS’ WATCH. Astronomicalobservation are made to determineazimuths, latitudes and longitudeson the earth. Evans’ watch wouldhave been used in the timing of theobservations to determine thethe direction of true north and thelatitude and longitude ofBathurst using solar or starobservations. A watch errorcorrection is applied to adjustthe azimuth observation related tothe true north meridian based onGreenwich mean time.

Continued page 7


Continued from page 6William Sorell had a high opinion ofEvans, but the administration waslax and the surveyor had greatpower. Not only were mistakes oftenmade but, in the issue of grants, acertain discretionary power wasgiven to surveyors to ‘throw in’additional pieces of land.

Sorell also sanctioned theacceptance of ‘presents of office’ bysurveyors to supplement theirinadequate pay.

This practice understandablybrought complaints and accusationsof corruption from disgruntledsettlers and these were supportedby (Sir) George Arthur, whoreplaced Sorell in May 1824.

The new lieutenant-governor sent tothe secretary of state a lengthyaccount of Evans’ allegedinvolvement in bribery and hisillegal disposing of crown lands inan attempt to force him from office.

When Evans asked to retire on apension, Arthur, in order to expeditehis removal, was prepared toconcede that his practices had beencondoned by Sorell, but the stigmaeffectually prevented all furtherpromotion of Evans’ assistant,Thomas Scott.

Evans resigned in December 1825on the ground of ill health, eightmonths after his wife had died.

A despatch from London in May1826 appointing him the firstsurveyor-general of Van Diemen’sLand had only recognised hisposition as the Colonial Office knewit when revising the establishmentof the Surveyor-General’sDepartment; soon afterwards EarlBathurst wrote welcoming hisresignation, confirming his pensionand agreeing to abandon furtherinvestigation of his past conduct.

Evans sailed for England with hissecond wife, Lucy Parris, daughterof Thomas Lempriere, in November;while there, he supplemented hispension of £200 by teaching art, butin November 1828, when he heardof Oxley’s death, he applied forappointment as surveyor-general inNew South Wales, claiming that hishealth was fully recovered.

He was unsuccessful but in 1831 hesurrendered his pension for a lumpsum of £600, and returned toSydney the next year.

Arriving in August he set up as abookseller and stationer, and soonbecame drawing master at TheKing’s School, then housed inHarrisford, George Street,Parramatta, while his wifeconducted a finishing school foryoung ladies.

He returned to Hobart in 1844 tolive with his family in WarwickLodge, his home in New Town. Afterhis wife died in August 1849, hemoved to Macquarie Street, Hobart,where he died on October 16,1852,aged 72, and was buried in StJohn’s churchyard, New Town.

He had at least twelve children,seven by his first marriage and fiveby his second.

As well as being a competentsurveyor and a resolute explorer,Evans was an artist of some note.

His aquatint view of Hobart in 1820was published as a frontispiece inhis Geographical, Historical andTopographical Description of VanDiemen’s Land … (London, 1822;second edition, 1824; and a Frenchedition, Paris, 1823).

The original, with another aquatintof Hobart in 1819, is in the DixsonLibrary of New South Wales, wherefour of his views of Sydney are alsohanging.

He appears to have drawn anumber of sketches and

water-colours, both of the settledareas of the colony and of theinterior, when he journeyed withOxley.

His artistic skill may also havehelped him to win Paterson’s favourin 1809 and so to restore him toofficial life at that time.5

Move forward into the 20th centuryand in the decade before 1988,across Australia towns, cities andvillages were planning projects tocommemorate the 200th anniversaryof the first European settlement atPort Jackson in 1788.

In the Blue Mountains, JohnYeaman, BEM, the city engineerhad been considering a project torecognise the significance ofEvans’ surveying exploit from theRiver Lett at the base of Mount Yorkeast to Emu Ford on the NepeanRiver at Penrith .

In 1982 after having carried outresearch for the Blackheath RotaryClub’s Historic Blackheath book,Yeaman put forward the idea thatsome action should be taken toremark the line of survey traversecarried out by Evans in 1813-14.

John Yeaman was another tocontend that the work of Evans hadbeen overshadowed by therecognition given to Blaxland,Wentworth and Lawson.

Evans’ alleged bribery involvement

Continued page 8

“South West View of Hobart Town, Van Dieman’s Land ca.1819”, a watercolourby Wiliam George Evans. Reproduced with permission of State Library of NSW.

V6/1819/1

Footstepsin time


Continued from page 7It was the Blue Mountains section ofthe survey that interested Yeaman

On February 26, 1983 Yeamanpresented a paper to the MountVictoria and District HistoricalSociety which provides a detailedpicture of those who forged the linkbetween the, then modestsettlement at Port Jackson and thevast resources of the inlandcontinent.6.

The remarking of the survey lineestablished by Evans which Coxfollowed closely, was conceived aspart of the 1988 celebrations.

Evans’ Field Book is stored in theState Archives (Book No.96AONSW Ref. Reel 2623) anddespite its age and poor condition, itwas possible to obtain details fromit.

There are about 500 survey points,but initially it was decided to limitthe number of points to 12, perhapsthe most important watering holes7.

An Australian Bicentennial grant of$45,000 was obtained by BlueMountains City Council in 1986which permitted 14 pillars to be builtmarking some of Evans’ campingsites.

Mt York was the first pillar unveiledin 1988. Mr AK Weatherburn, agreat, great grandson of GeorgeEvans and author of two books on

the surveyor and his works,unveiled the Mt York pillar.

Footsteps in Time pillars are locatedat Mt York, Mt Victoria, Blackheath,Katoomba, Wentworth Falls,Wentworth Falls West, Lawson,Hazelbrook, Faulconbridge,Springwood, Warrimoo, Blaxland,Glenbrook, Lapstone and EmuPlains.

Each marker is identical to the baseof a trigonomical survey pillar, asused throughout NSW for majorsurveys and contains four plaques;one giving details of the project, onegiving details of Evans and hiswork, one giving reproductions ofrelevant pages of his field book andextract from his diary and one givingdetails of the individual unveilingceremony.

An engraved steel plate on top ofthe marker completes theconstruction.

Over time some of the pillars havebeen vandalized, while others needrefurbishment.

The Restoration of the Footsteps inTime pillars was a projectundertaken by the Seniors GroupInstitution of Surveyors NSW Inc.funded by the Blue Mountains CityCouncil, Perith City Council, Landand Property Management Authorityand Institution of Surveyors NSW8.

The Seniors Group, Institution ofSurveyors NSW Inc. conducted a

Evans’ pillars restoredby surveyors group

Mike Rutlidge chairman andGraham Hunt , survey

monuments curator, SeniorsGroup Institute of Surveyors NSWInc. at the recent unveiling of the

Lapstone pillar.

ceremony at the Lapstone pillar inMay 2011 to mark the restoration ofthe 14 pillars .

FOOTNOTES1. General Order 12 February 18142. Lowe, David (1994). “Chapter 1.Winddradyne of the Wiradjuri”.Forgotten Rebels: Black AustraliansWho Fought Back. Sydney: ICS andAssociates Pty Ltd. pp. 4–9. http://www.acr.net.au/~davidandjane/frebel_20000416.pdf.3. Australian Dictionary of Biography– Online edition, Evans GeorgeWilliam (1780 – 1852) http://adbonline.anu.edu.au/biogs/A000103430b.htm4. ibid.5. ibid.6. Footsteps in Time – A roadacross the mountains brochure7. ibid.8. Hunt, Graham (2011) surveymonuments curator, Seniors Group,ISNSW Inc. - George William Evans(1780 – 1852) a briefing paper.

The asistance of Graham Hunt, inproviding material for this articleand the image of Evans’ Azimuthwatch is acknowledged andappreciated.

The assistance of Jan Koperberg infacilitating the National Library ofAustralia’s image of Evans andother graphics is alsoacknowledged and appreciated.

“Sydney from the western side of the Cove ca.1803” a watercolour by WiliamGeorge Evans. Reproduced with permission of State Library of NSW .

XV1/1803/1


CHRISTOPER ROBIN’S friend,Eyeore, thought that an empty jarwas good place for dead balloons.

But what if the jar was bigger thanthose in the Arabian Nights thatheld rivers of gold and jewels?

What if they were as big as aperson standing up and there werehundreds of them scattered aroundthe landscape, some in groups ofscores or more, some standingalone?

What if they were two thousandyears old? What use can youimagine?

Would you want to research them ifthe area in which they are foundhas been a war zone for most of thelast hundred years?

In the last decade or so most of thecluster bombs and other ordinancessurrounding them have beendestroyed and only shell holes andbomb craters remain.

Now is a good time to carry outresearch. In the Lao PeoplesDemocratic Republic there arethousands of stone jars.

No one really knows what they wereused for. They are thought to becarved out of stone by iron tools.Perhaps they were used for burials– but did they hold raw corpses,mummies, ashes or only goods foruse in the after life? If so, whereare the lids?

The jars are there, but why arethere virtually no lids? What is themeaning of the infrequently foundcarved human figures withoutspread arms found on someexamples?

What would you keep in an empty jar?by Dr Peter Stanbury, OAM

The puzzle is one of the foremostopportunities for prehistory studiesin South East Asia. Xieng Khouang(pronounced Sieng Kwang) in thecentral eastern region of Lao is aplateau about 1200 metres abovesea level.

It has a wonderful climate for thetropics, warm during the day andcool at night. Many minerals arefound nearby.

The area is a military strategic point– like a medieval castle with a viewof the surrounding countries and anexcellent position from which tocontrol the neighbouring peoples.

Although the area is popularlyknown as the Plain of Jars, manyjars are found on hilltops and inwooded areas.

Some sites have up to 300 jars;some sites have a single jar. Thejars are made of a variety ofmaterials: sandstone, granite,

limestone or a mixed conglomerateof material.

Some sites seem to have a nearbystone quarry; others appear remotefrom a source of stone.

So how were the jars transported?By elephants? By pushing themover rolling logs?

The mouths of some jars areessentially round; others have arectangular or square shape.

The few flat stone discs that remainare about the right size for lids, butthey may also have been used tocover holes in the ground thatcontained corpses, ashes or objectsof worth such as offerings.

It is interesting that the rims of thejars vary: some have an internalniche around the circumference,others have an external niche andyet others have no niche. Just onejar has a human(?) carved on theoutside; at least one lid has asimilar carving.

Since 1998 UNESCO and theGovernment of Lao PDR have beenattempting to safeguard andresearch the remaining jars.

Some are now broken; either inrecent wars or by human vandalismover the ages. On many jars bulletmarks can be seen - what is betterthan a big jar for target practice?This jar shows an internal niche at its opening

Hundreds of these jars of unknown origin are scattered across thelandscape


The first work recently carried outconsisted of mapping the position ofthe individual jars, proclaiming asprotected areas the sites wheremany jars are found and clearing(blowing up or removing)unexploded ordnance.

After that local people have beeninducted into recording andarchaeological practices. Someexcavations have also taken place,underneath and in the vicinity of thejars.

The finds, however, are meagre. Arelatively small number of ironknives have been found, as well asthe remains of bracelets of bronze,necklaces of glass beads andpottery.

These are either stored in theregion or a few items are on displayin the National Museum of Lao PDRin Vientiane.

Unfortunately none are on displayat the sites; of which four or fivemajor ones are accessible to thepublic.

Furthermore, the items in storageare deteriorating due to lack ofconservation knowledge.

The only conservators in thecountry are the occasional visitorsfrom overseas.

The major site on an actual plain ison the outskirts of Ponsavan (fromwhich airplanes and buses disgorgetourists) and is becoming hemmedin by farms and other undesirabledevelopments.

Richmal Crompton’s famousschoolboy hero, William,philosophised that he would be aninventor except that the radio, the

telephone, TV and movies had allbeen invented so there was nothingleft to invent.

Some times it seems that researchprojects are equally elusive. Butthe jars are crying out to beresearched. Is this an opportunityfor you to take one small step?

Jars crying out to be researched

to HERITAGE is a member ofAustralian Business Volunteers.Peter is also vice chair, UMAC(ICOM’s International Committee forUniversity Museums andCollections) and librarian, RichardBailey Library, Australian Society ofAnaesthetists

As a volunteer he often travelsoverseas to give freely of his adviceparticularly in museum collections.

On one of his recent trips when inLaos, Peter visited the Plain of Jarsto inspect these 2000 year old mansized jars of uncertain origin andfunction. As Peter says this is aninteresting research program just

waiting to be tackled.

. .

Dr PeterStanbury,OAM anexecutivemember ofBMACHO’smanage-mentcommitteeand aregularcontributor

About the author

The Plain of Jars has been a war zone as seen from this newspaperclipping which show soldiers reading maps with the large jars in the

background

At the top of this jar there is an external niche


I WAS BORN IN 1926 and had attended five differentschools by the time I turned twelve years of age.

This was due to the fact that my father was apostmaster and was moved around by the PostmasterGeneral’s Department during my childhood.

I think my most enduring memories are of BlueMountains Grammar School, Springwood where I was aday pupil from fifth class in 1935 to 1938 when myfather’s move to Sydney resulted in my transfer toSutherland Intermediate High School.

After starting me off at Springwood Public School(second and third classes), Dad decided that I shouldhave the opportunity to develop as a “young gentleman”and enrolled me as a day pupil at the Blue MountainsGrammar School whose motto was “Nihil sine labore” (nothing without work).

At that time it was located near Springwood RailwayStation on the corner of Macquarie Road and HomedaleStreet, Springwood.

The school was established by its first headmaster,Edward Kenneth Deane, in 1918 in the grand,Italianate home known as “Homedale”, built in 1882,and which was demolished in 1975.

I think my father was influenced in this regard by theGreyfriars stories, written by Frank Richards, which hehad read during his own pre World War 1 boyhood andby friends in the close knit Springwood community.

I attended Blue Mountains Grammar School from 1935to 1938 inclusive and apart from undergoing the usualbullying by a couple of older day boys enjoyed itimmensely.

I have very happy memories of my days at BMGS. Iremember well the masters, the old classroom building,the pre-school morning hymn (usually hymn number 1 -“Now that the daylight fills the sky ….. “) being beefedout by the boys as the headmaster, Ken Deaneaccompanied us on the piano, the daily fill of the threeR’s, the camaraderie of the students around me, and, ofcourse, our periods of play.

Having been brought up on the type of schoolboynovels which encouraged certain qualities in their boys,I saw BMGS in some way as the local Greyfriars or St.Jim’s of Frank Richard’s creation, preparing us to bemen worthy of the title of gentlemen.

The words of the first verse of Sir Henry John Newbolt’sVitae Lampada were especially meaningful to me, andthe afternoon cricket match never failed to remind methat:

Dear Old Golden Rule Days

This faded photograph is of Rex Turner in his fullBlue Mountains Grammar uniform. Photograph

courtesy of R Turner and C MacDonald

EDUCATION is something which has, at some time, in some place, touched us all. Whether we leftschool before matriculation, attended a tertiary education institution or are one of a growing communityof ‘life-long learners’, we have all been influenced by education at some time and at some level.…Elissa MacDonald, Editor In Chief, aMUSine. The museums, galleries and collections zine byinteresting people for interested people.

HERITAGE is indebted to aMUSine for this first hand account of life by a young boy at Blue MountainsGrammar School 75 years ago and before it became an exclusive boys school.

There’s a breathless hush in the Close tonight -Ten to make and the match to win

A bumping pitch and a blinding light,An hour to play and the last man in.

And it’s not for the sake of a ribboned coat,Or the selfish hope of a season’s fame,

But his Captain’s hand on his shoulder smote –“Play up! play up! and play the game!”


As I have mentioned, the headmaster was Ken Deane.He was short, rotund, stern and respected by all hispupils. I remember him as a fun man.

He had an old, noisy Ford flat top truck (his beloved“Tin Lizzie”) which he used to take the boys to theroadside swimming hole at Valley Heights, and tofootball matches at the Springwood Sports Ground, andincidental tasks such as towing the school’s dead cowfrom where it had succumbed to an enormous holewhere it was to be interred.

A peach tree planted atop the grave later yielded loadsof magnificent fruit. Ken Deane was instrumental ininculcating in me a realization that I could become agood student and, in due course I would have the“makings of a gentleman”.

His ability to mould boys into men of worth and resolveset me an example which I have tried to emulatethroughout my life.

Another of my teachers was the red headed Irishmanand sportsmaster, Mr Russel who also taught me Latin(I was quite a dab hand at it) and frightened me on thesports field (“Who kicked that football back into thescrum?” – me of course, as I didn’t want the bloodything or been told what to do with it), and later after Ihad been chased over the try line with the ball in myhands and scored a couple of tries (“Good boy Turner, Ididn’t think you had it in you!”).

There was however, one teacher who I consider wasone of the greatest influences on my life - the part timeelocution teacher, Mr Gorman.

I know my elocution and language in my early schooldays was basic and was a take off of the western filmstars who used to entertain me at the local picturetheatre on Saturday afternoons.

He had taken me in hand shortly after I became aBMGS pupil. One day, I was in the Springwood PostOffice talking to Dad when, for some reason or other Iused the word “Garn!”, meaning of course, “Go on”.

I happened to look at the customer side of the postoffice counter and standing there was Mr Gorman.

I cringed and repeated what I had just said – this timesaying it correctly. Mr Gorman smiled, nodded and wenton his way. My interest in his teaching was immediateand far reaching.

He taught me that syllables, consonants and vowels allhad a purpose, and should be uttered clearly so that mylisteners would understand what I wanted to say.

He taught me not to slur my speech, and to enunciateevery word and sound properly. In essence he taughtme to speak, which has been a wonderful attribute inmy progression through life.

My feelings of nostalgia for my old Alma Mater are wellcaptured in the words of the old school song:

“Mother kind, our pride and treasure,Bold our voices cry, and free,

Moulding us through days of pleasureFor our struggles yet to be;

Fate on blackest waves comes surgingTriumphs from our tasks may rise,

Still we strive, her proud words urging,Labour, labour, wins the prize.

Hers the race we run to dyingHers our triumph’s ringing cheer,

Hers the ball to victory flying,Hands that strain, the line is near;

Work and play their trophies bringing,Labour on, our school replies,

Words like bells forever ringing:Labour, labour, wins the prize.

Glorious school, we laud thee proudly,Giver of our fairest days,

Masters, playmates, singing loudly,In our swelling song we praise;Banner ever proudly bearing,

That our school waves in our eyes,Banner direct battles daring,

Labour, labour, wins the prize.”

Ours was not a political song. “Labour” in its contextmeant “Effort”, or, as Calvin Coolidge would have put it,“Persistence and determination”. I commend itssentiments, and as Grantland Rice wrote before me,that . . . “when the One Great Scorer comes to markagainst your name, he writes - not that you won or lost -

But how you played the Game .”

Life at Blue Mountains Grammar School75 years ago

75 years later

HERITAGE is indebted to his granddaughter,ElissaMacDonald, editor In chief, aMUSine who arrangedfor this recent photograph of Rex who providedaMUSine his

Rex Turner a veteran of World War 2, now aged 85considers himself a ‘gentleman of leisure’ though inthe past he was chief executive of HCF Australia

memories ofhis schooldays in theBlueMountains 75years ago.

Rex believesthere may onlybe three of hiscontemporar-ies still living.


MANY NOTABLE POLITICIANS,successful business people, warheroes, and inspiring educatorshave lived in the Blue Mountains atone time or another.

One of these was renownedgeologist, polar explorer anduniversity lecturer Sir TannattWilliam Edgeworth David KBE CMGDSO DSc FRS with wife Caroline.

The couple purchased twenty-sixacres of land at Woodford in 1898;naming the two-roomed cottagethey built ‘Tyn-y-Coed’ (meaninghouse in the wood).

The name reflected Sir David’sWelsh birth. Born in 1858 at therectory of St Fagan’s in Wales, hewas the eldest child of Rev WilliamDavid a fellow of Jesus CollegeOxford. Sir David graduated BAfrom Oxford in 1881.

He arrived in New South Wales totake up the position of assistantgeological surveyor following thedisappearance of Lamont H Young(his predecessor) on a field trip toBermagui in 1880.

Sir David arrived in Sydney in 1882and in July 1885, married Englishborn Caroline Martha (Cara) Malletwhom he met on the voyage toSydney.

There is a suggestion that Caraemigrated for reasons of health,however it is more commonlybelieved that she came to NSW totake up an appointment as foundingprincipal of Hurlstone TrainingCollege for female teachers.Interestingly, she is thought to havebeen appointed by Sir HenryParkes.

Cara, an orphan from a workingclass background received hereducation by scholarship fromWhiteland College London andlater, she trained as a teacher.

She was a lecturer at the collegeprior to applying for the position atHurlstone. Cara, a bright intelligentwoman, became interested in andassisted with the introduction of thefree kindergarten movement in theinner suburbs of Sydney.

She was aided by other earlyfeminist educators like LouisaMacdonald and MaybankeWolstenholme.

Sir Edgeworth David was appointedprofessor of geology in theUniversity of Sydney in 1891.

Sir Ernest Shackleton appointedhim as leader of the scientific teamaccompanying him to the SouthPole in 1907 - 9.

Sir David led the party thatdiscovered the South Magnetic Poleand he and his team scaled theactive volcano Mount Erebus.

At the outbreak of the First WorldWar, Sir David recruited and formedthe Australian Mining Corps thatwas composed of tough individualsfrom the gold, copper, coal andsilver mines of Kalgoorlie, Bendigo,Tasmania and South Australia.

Although little is known about thecorps the most successful operationcarried out by the men servingunder Lieutenant Colonel David wasthe mining under and explosion ofMessines Ridge, in 1917.

The cottage was expanded to meetthe needs of the family andorchards and gardens wereestablished. In 1909, following hisreturn from the Antarctic, the Davidsentertained the crew of the polarexpedition ship, Nimrod.

They were community minded andsociable, and members of the localWoodford Anglican Church.

In August 1934 the media of the dayannounced the death of the worldfamous scientist. Sir David wasgiven a State funeral.

It is unfortunate that the crumbledchimney stack of ‘Tyn-y-Coed’(destroyed by fire) is the onlyreminder of the David’s time inWoodford.

References* The Journal of the Women’sCollege, Vol. 26 No. 1, winter 2010-11-09, p. 8.* T.G. Vallance & D.F. Branagan,‘David, Sir Tannatt WilliamEdgeworth (1858-1934),’ TheAustralian Dictionary of Biography,Volume 8, Melbourne UniversityPress, 1981, pp 218-221.* Ken Goodlet, Hazelbrook &Woodford, Ken Goodlet, 2006, p 40.* The Argus, 29.8.1934.* Jennifer Carter, Portrait of a Lady:Caroline Martha David, NationalLibrary of Australia, September2002, Vol. XII No. 12.* Daily Telegraph image

Crumbled chimney stack only reminderof Polar explorer who lived in Woodford

By Pamela Smith

In the early part of the twentiethcentury the Blue Mountains and‘Tyn-y-Coed’ became the David’smain place of residence.

WilliamEdgeworthDavid led

firstexpeditionto reachSouth

MagneticPole

Mackay, David and Mawson raisethe flag at the Magnetic South

Pole January 16, 1909


PATRIOTIC FERVOUR was high attimes during World War I and thecivilian population of Australia waseager to contribute to various ‘relief’funds.

Volunteers often organised specialdays which became formally namedafter the particular cause, andprocessions1, shows, etc. wereorganised to attract the populacewith the aim of relieving them ofmoney.

Whilst some special days were onspecifically designated dates, it wascommon for small communities tohold them on a convenient nearbyday - usually a Saturday whenmany were not at work; Sundaybeing off-limits due to religiousobservances.

This flexibility meant that the samespecial day was held on differentdates at different places acrossAustralia and not all communitieswould respond to a particular cause.

Belgium or Belgian Day, variouslyreported as having been held forthe Belgian Relief Fund or to raisefunds to provide food for children inBelgium, was on May 14, 1915 inthe Blue Mountains, May 15, 1915in Sydney2, but seven weeks earlierin Victoria on March 26, 19153 andalso in Tasmania4; in SouthMelbourne it was called Belgian

Rose Day and reputedly was heldon April 8,19155. Note that it wasnot held on the National Day ofBelgium, which is July 21, andmarks the accession of KingLeopold I in 1831!

A few special days were held insuccessive years, e.g. Red CrossDay.

Towards the end of the war theremust have been some negativereaction to continual appeals fordonations, and when the Armisticewas declared local residents wouldhave resisted these appeals withthe intention of donating to theexpected welcome homeceremonies for the volunteers fromtheir community - many of whicheventuated.

Some of the names of these specialdays in the 1914 - 18 period wereunusual, and would not be knownby many 21st Century residents, soI have attempted to compile a list.

The intent was also to show which‘days’ were observed in whichplaces in the Blue Mountains, butobservances held in some villagesmay have been missed as mostevents were not advertised innewspapers, and post-celebrationreports were often brief andconcealed in articles with titles thatdo not convey all of their content.

Special days in World War 1by Dr Peter C Rickwood

Not all villages in the BlueMountains observed any particularspecial day and there was greatinconsistency of effort, butKatoomba and Leura would appearto have been the most co-operative.

Some of the designated specialdays are not known to have beenobserved by any of our BlueMountains villages e.g. Sand BagDay.

I am grateful to Mr John Merriman,Local Studies Librarian, Springwoodfor steering me to the AustralianWar Memorial website which has alist of these days. (http://www.awm.gov.au/findingaids/special/Souvenirs/Appeals.xml )References(For brevity, authors and titles ofarticles in newspapers have beenomitted.)

Australian troops resting from the battle in Peronne (Somme) duringWorld War 1. Image courtesy Australian War Memorial.

The author, Dr Peter C Rickwood,a former president of the BlueMountains Historical Society Inc.is the inaugural editor ofBMACHO’s Blue MountainsHistory Journal the secondedition of which will be publishedonline later this year.

Peter is a visiting senior researchfellow at the School of Biological,Earth & Environmental Scienceat the University of New SouthWales.

The article first appeared in theBlue Mountains HistoricalSociety’s newsletter Hobby’sOutreach Volume 23 Number 2 –June-July 2011

THE AUTHOR

1 e.g. p.41 in Smith, N., 1996.Grandfather worked on the pool;tales of Old Blackheath. BlueMountains Historical Society Inc.,Wentworth Falls. 59pp.; BlueMountains City Library, LocalStudies Image PF 493. Thecelebration at Katoomba isrecorded in a photograph in BlueMountains Historical Societycollection, No.786.2 Sydney Morning Herald 17 May1915, p.8, col.8.3 Kalgoorlie Western Argus, March30, 1915, p.8, col.1. 4

The Mercury, 26 March 26, 1915,p.4, col.3 & March 27, 1915, p.7,col.3. 5 The Argus, July 8, 1916,p.20, col.8.


SPECIAL DAYS CELEBRATED IN THE BLUE MOUNTAINS

Date From the Australian From other sources Celebrated at ReferencesWar Memorial

1 Feb 1914 Red Cross Day

14 May 1915 Belgian Day Blackheath, Katoomba, Leura & BME 30 Apr 1915, p.4, col.5;Wentworth Falls 7 May 1915, p.3, col.3; p.3,

col.4; p.5, col.3 & 14 May1915, p.3, col.3.

30 July 1915 Australia Day Blackheath, Katoomba, Leura, BME 30 Jul 1915, p.4 col.2Lawson & Hazelbrook etc.

4 Nov 1915 Allies Day SMH 5 Nov 1915, p.4, col.2.

19 Nov 1915 Allies Day Leura BME 19 Nov 1915, p.5, col.3.

10 Dec 1915 Sand Bag Day

12 Apr 1916 Allies Day

7 Jul 1916 War Chest Day Blackheath BME 7 Jul 1916, p.3, col. 2.

15 Dec 1916 Repatriation Day

23 Feb 1917 Win-the-War Day Katoomba BME 23 Feb 1917, p.2, col.4;2 Mar 1917, p.1, col.5.

24 Feb 1917 Win-the-War Day

14 Jul 1917 France’s Day (sic) Blackheath, Katoomba & Leura BME 20 Jul 1917, p4., col.4;p.6, cols.2-3.

28 Sep 1917 War Chest Day Leura, Lawson & Hazelbrook; BME 7 Sep 1917, p2., col. 3;Sydney 21 Sep 1917, p.4 col. 3; 5 Oct

1917, p.3, col.4 29 Sep 1917 War Chest Day Katoomba BME 7 Sep 1917, p.2, col.3.

6 Apr 1918 Red Cross Day Medlow Bath BME 26 Apr 1918, p.4, col. 3.

24 Apr 1918 Red Cross Day Leura BME 10 May 1918, p.4, col.4

c. 4 May 1918 c. 4 May 1918 Red Cross Day Blackheath, Glenbrook, Mt Victoria BME 12 Apr 1918, p.5, col. 4;SMH 8 May 1918 p.10, col. 6

29 Jun 1918 Italy or Italian Day Katoomba BME 28 Jun 1918, p.2, col.4; 5 Jul 1918, p2. col. 4.

14 Jul 1918 France’s Day Katoomba BME 19 Jul 1918, p.3, col.3..

26 Jul 1918 Australia day

2 Aug 1918 AIF Memorial Day

13 Sep 1918 Soldiers Homes Day

14 Sep 1918 Soldiers Homes DayLeura BME 20 Sep 1918, p.1, col. 2

1 Nov 1918 Jack’s Day Katoomba, Leura, Wentworth BME 1 Nov 1918, p.2, col. 4;Falls 8 Nov 1918, p. 4, col. 3; p.5,

col. 4. 2 Nov 1918 Jack’s Day Hazelbrook BME 1 Nov 1918, p.4, col. 4;

8 Nov 1918, p. 4, col. 3.

5 Nov 1918 Jack’s Day Blackheath BME 8 Nov 1918, p. 4, col. 3.

30 Nov 1918 War Chest Day Katoomba, Leura, Wentworth BME 22 Nov 1918, p. 3, col.Falls 4; 29 Nov 1918, p.3, col. 3;

p5, col.6; 6 Dec 1918, p.1,col. 5; p. .6, col.3.

Key: Jack’s Day = Sailors’ BME = Blue Mountain Echo Day SMH = Sydney Morning

Herald


HISTORIC CARRINGTON HOTEL,Katoomba has been chosen as thevenue for the 2012 Blue Mountains’history conference

“The early years of the colony” isthe title chosen by the BlueMountains Association of CulturalHeritage Organisations for its firstconference to be held on Saturday,October 20, 2012.

The conference follows earlier BlueMountains history conferencesorganised under the auspices ofBlue Mountains City Council’s localstudies section.

BMACHO, president Pamela Smithwho was involved in theorganisation of earlier conferences,said the event would focus on life inthe early years before the colonywas explored west of the BlueMountains.

The Association is planning topresent an affordable event with arange of well-informed speakers.

Closer to the event more details andcost to participants will bepromoted.

The keynote speaker is expected tobe well known historian, Dr ShirleyFitzgerald.

Dr Fitzgerald was the City Historianfor the City of Sydney from 1987 -2009, when she delivered aprogram connecting the communityto their history using diverseformats from radio chats to formallectures.

She has taught in NSW schools,lectured at the University of NewEngland, and established theinaugural Master of Letters degreein Public History at the University ofSydney.

Dr Fitzgerald has held a number ofprofessional positions, includingpresident of the History Council ofNSW, 1996 - 99 and chair of StateRecords NSW, 2001 - 2007.

She was the inaugural chair of theDictionary of Sydney Trust andcontinues to be involved in thisexciting project.

Historic 1880s Carrington Hotel to be venuefor Blue Mountains history conference

She is currently Adjunct Professorin the Faculty of Humanities andSocial Sciences at the University ofTechnology, Sydney.

Topics will focus on:* Fashions from frockcoat andcrinolines to convict canvas andcabbage palm leaf hats;* Convict Women, prostitution,imbalance of women - their fearsand fate in a foreign environment;* Indigenous history – Firstencounters, food, language.Indigenous interaction - Fromgenocide to government arrogance.

The above are only working titlesand obviously wil be refined both by

the committee and the speakers asplanning progresses.

Each speaker will be asked tospeak for 45 minutes and there willbe question and discussion time of15 minutes at the end of eachpaper.

Included in the program will be amusical interlude with Jim Low afolk singer, historian and writerguaranteed to wake the audienceafter lunch which will be served inthe Carrington’s grand dining room.

For further details contact JanKoperberg [email protected]

JEAN ARTHUR, the secretary ofMount Victoria & District HistoricalSociety; a remarkable woman witha wealth of knowledge about theMount Victoria district, had a falllast month and fractured hershoulder, which resulted in herbeing admitted to Blue MountainsDistrict Anzac Memorial Hospital.

On the evening of the fall, Jeandid not feel like cooking dinnerand crossed the highway to thegarage to buy fish and chips.

On the way back she tripped in apothole on the corner of Mt YorkRoad and the Great WesternHighway and there she lay till agentleman from the Talisman

Jean Arthur in Blue MountainsHospital

Gallery found her and called theambulance.

This chap had closed his shop inHartley Valley and had gone for abicycle ride up Berghofer’s Passand along Mt York Road and wasgoing back down Victoria Pass.

This was fortunate for Jean,because she had been lying on theroad for some time, waiting for help,cold and in pain.

Jean is a member of BMACHO’smanagement committee

Some members have alreadyvisited Jean in hospital or sent get-well wishes. All wish Jean all thethe best for a speedy recovery.

The 1880s heritage Carrington Hotel at Katoomba


School of Arts or Mechanics Instituteshave their origin in early 19th century

IN THE EARLY YEARS of the 20th

century Mechanic’s Institutes or aSchool of Arts building was acommon feature in most BlueMountains villages.

However, as a “movement” theirhistory is much older.

The first was established inScotland in 1821, with the aim ofimproving the intellect of itsmembers through the “diffusion ofuseful knowledge” and to nurture“literature, science and art.”1

It was not too long before these“civilising institutes” appeared in thenew colony.

With a land grant courtesy ofGovernor Richard Bourke theSydney Mechanic’s School of Artsopened its doors in 1833 and stillexists to this day.

Springwood was not so luckybecause even though a committeeformed in 1901, fund raisingactivities and a promise of land byJames Hunter Lawson (owner ofBraemar and the Oriental Hotel)came to nought.2

In fact one of the members of thatearly committee is thought to haveabsconded with the funds.

The Springwood School of Artsfinally opened its doors in 1913,with Mr Brinsley Hall MP officiating.

A commemorative bookletpublished for the event stated thecommittee overcame “greatdifficulties” and “discouragement” tobring about the end result.3

The graceful Federation stylebuilding was well-ventilated and litwith Benzoli air gas lights.

As well as a well stocked library, thebuilding contained reading andcommittee rooms, and a “finebilliard room” - lined in Australiantimber - containing two excellentbilliard tables.4

When barely twelve months old thebuilding provided overnightaccommodation and comfort formen who took part in the Co - eeMarch.

Later, the institute became thescene of World War 1commemorations when capturedenemy machine guns and thehonour roll were placed in theirkeeping.

A newspaper article in 1919suggested the Springwood Schoolof Arts was “indispensable” and afine institution “for our young men”because no signs of gambling orobjectionable behaviour weretolerated within the “cosy comfort”of its walls.

Mothers and wives were beingasked to encourage their sons andhusbands to join.

Research indicates however thatdespite these overtures to thegeneral community the institutiondid not realise its primary objectivesuntil the 1940s.

Until then it had functioned morelike an elite men’s club catering tothe upper-class demographics ofthe area at that time.

But, by the 1940s all that hadchanged. In 1943 the AustralianLabor Party held meetings thereand Red Cross ladies conductedfund raising activities from theveranda of the building.

During the 1940’s Horace Lindrum,Australia’s first professional snookerand billiards player was a regularvisitor.

Lindrum (who would go on to winthe world snooker title in 1952) wasfeatured in a competition to aid theAustralian Comforts Fund in 1944.An amount of £56 was raised.

In 1946 an essay competition heldby the institution was judged byone-time resident, Supreme CourtJudge and patron of the Arts, RaeElse Mitchell.

Continued page 18

by Pamela Smith, Springwood Historians

‘... like an elite

men’s clubcatering for the

upper class...’

Pictured are the Coo - ee marchers as they marched past theSpringwood School of Arts on their way through the Blue Mountainsfrom Gilgandra in the central west to Sydney to enlist in World War 1

in 1915 . Local photographer, Jo Booker.


Continued from page 17Over the ensuing years the buildingwas used by a range oforganisations like the local historicalsociety, Boy Scouts & Guides,dance and musical groups, The OldAge Pensioners Association,Citizens Recruitment League, RedCross and Children’s Library Groupconducted by caricaturist, cartoonistand artist George Finey.

During its lifetime it provided avenue for community celebrations,entertainments as well as charitableand wartime efforts.

Springwood School of ArtsIn the years following World War 2the institution, which had neverbeen strongly supported, facedcompetition from new technologylike the advent of television.

Nevertheless, the building was usedright up until its demolition in 1969.The Foundation Stone now gracesthe School of Arts Town Square.

ENDNOTES 1

The Dictionary of Sydney,

www.dictionaryofsydney.org2 Nepean Times, 31.8.1901.3 Booklet in the ownership of thelate Ern Lesslie.4 Nepean Times, 10.5.1913.Springwood images courtesy ofSpringwood Library and localstudies collection

Springwood School of Arts ... agraceful Federation style building

Council explains LEP processesAN INFORMATION SHEET on LEPprocesses has recently beenreleased by Blue Mountains CityCouncil

The following information providessome background on previouscouncil processes, planninginstruments and heritage studiesand why Council is moving towardsa review of heritage items underLEP 1991.

Council currently holds three LocalEnvironmental Plans which apply toland throughout the LocalGovernment Area. They are:

∗ Local Environmental PlanNo.4 (LEP 4). This planapplies to limited sitesthroughout the LGA, is theoldest plan operating inthe LGA and was gazettedin 1982.

• Local Environmental Plan1991 (LEP 1991). Thisplan applies to outlyingareas, land on the edgesof towns and villages andrural sites throughout theLGA. It was gazetted in1991.

• Local Environmental Plan2005 (LEP 2005). Thisplan applies to the corevillages and townsthroughout the LGA andwas gazetted in 2005.

History on LEP 2005The development and gazettal ofLEP 2005 took a number of years tocomplete and there were a numberof draft LEP documents publiclyexhibited and commented upon.

In all the LEP 2005 instrument wentthrough two exhibition processes,before it was finally gazetted by theDepartment of Planning in 2005.

Blue Mountains Draft LocalEnvironmental Plan 2002 (DLEP2002) was placed on publicexhibition between October 16 andDecember 13, 2002.

Council went through an exhaustivepublic review of DLEP 2002 inresponse to the submissionsreceived from the community,internal review of the document andchanges in government legislation.

The review of the DLEP 2002resulted in council making a number

of alterations to to the draft plan.The substantive bulk of thealterations were minor changes thatdid not change the role, operationand purpose of the LEP.

Consequently council adoptedthose changes. However, therewere a number of alterations whichwere more substantive and councilresolved to defer these issues andseek public comments on thesedeferred matters.

A second public exhibition ofdeferred matters was undertakenbetween October 16 andDecember 13, 2002 and theexhibition period was extended untilJanuary 17, 2003.

Following exhibition, councilconsidered submissions and madeappropriate changes to the DLEPand it was sent to the NSW StateGovernment for gazettal.

The LEP was named LocalEnvironmental Plan 2005 and wasgazetted on October 7, 2005.

Heritage listed site ... LennoxBridge, Glenbrook

Heritage listed site ... NormanLindsay Gallery and gardens,

FaulconbridgeContinued page 19

This article has previously beenpublished on website of SpringwoodHistorians.www.springwoodhistoriansblogspot.com


Continued from page 18Standard LEPOn March 31, 2006 the NSWGovernment gazetted a standardinstrument for preparing new LEPs,also known as the LEP template.

Local plans across NSW will nowuse the same planning language,making it easier for communities tounderstand what is proposed fortheir local area.

Blue Mountains City Council isusing a staged approach toachieving a standard LEPinstrument.

The first stage is to review LEP 4and LEP 1991 and bring theseforward into the LEP 2005instrument, therefore creating oneLEP for the entire LGA.

The second stage will involveconverting LEP 2005 into theStandard LEP instrument thereafter.

It is important to understand thatcreating an LEP is a lengthyprocess and may take a number ofyears to complete.

For example, the expected timeframe for creating one LEP for theentire LGA is expected to becompleted at the end of 2013.

Heritage is only one component of an LEP

Heritage listed site ... ChimneyCottage, Mt Wilson

Heritage listed site ... Bills horsetrough, Glenbrook

Review of LEP 1991Heritage is only one component ofthe final comprehensive LEP .

and reviews related to LEP 1991items and seek councilendorsement of these documents.

The second stage of the process isto carry forward the proposedamendments into an LEPamendment to LEP 1991.

Heritage listed site ... KnapsackZig Zag, Lapstone

Heritage listed site ... WoodfordAcademy

BMACHO’s webmaster, PeterHughes has placed the followingmessage on the BMACHOwebsite for Calendar of Events:“If the file shows the previousmonth click on the refreshbutton on your browser orpress F5 on the keyboard”

This message also applies toarchived copies of theHERITAGE newsletter.

The webmaster has alsoupdated the “Contacts” on thewebsite and you might have touse the refresh button or pressF5 on the keyboard to update toview.

HAVINGTROUBLEWITH THEWEBSITE?

Council has received support fromthe Department of Planning thatamendments to heritage items beundertaken to LEP 1991 before it isamalgamated into LEP 2005.

Therefore council staff are workingtowards updating and revising LEP1991 Schedule 2 – Heritage and itsassociated mapping before it isrolled into the revisedcomprehensive LEP 2005.

Previous Heritage StudiesThe first comprehensive heritagestudy undertaken in the BlueMountains Local Government Areawas a study completed in 1982 byCroft and Associates which appliedto numerous sites throughout theLGA.

This study was later used as a basisfor further heritage work.

Professor Ian Jack and Associateswas engaged by council toundertake various heritageassessments and reviews to updateheritage listings.

Dr Jim Smith was engaged byCouncil in 2010 to undertake aheritage study on natural areascovered by LEP 1991.

These include walking tracks,lookout and other heritage items ofnatural value.

A number of the heritage reviewswhich have been undertaken overthe years, have not been publiclyexhibited and the information hasnot been carried forward into anLEP instrument.

This is where some confusion maylie with community members, in thatinformation from previouscommunity consultation may nothave resulted in amendments to thestatutory LEP instrument.

Council is now working towardsenacting previous heritage reviewsundertaken and community inputand carrying these forward into arevised and updated heritageschedule.

The first stage of the process is toconsult with land owners ofpotential heritage items, publiclyexhibit the heritage assessments


THE MAY-JUNE EDITION ofHERITAGE , published an article byShirley Evans about the design in1965, by Norman Lindsay of whatwas described as a coat of arms.

The Springwood Chamber ofCommerce decided it was apropitious time for the town to haveits own coat of arms which couldthen be permanently displayed inthe new hall.

However, it could not be regardedas a genuine coat of arms, the rightfor which needed to be granted bythe Royal College of Arms inLondon.

The Blue Mountains City Councilalready had a coat of arms so it wasdecided to call it the Springwoodemblem or crest.

It also happened to be the 150thanniversary of the naming ofSpringwood by Governor LachlanMacquarie

A reader and contributor to thisnewsletter, Dr Peter Stanbury OAMhas correctly pointed out that coatof arms and crest has quite specific

meanings; they are notinterchangeable.

The crest is the top part (oftenanimal, piece of armour orsword) on or of a coat of arms

The blazon of arms for the abovecoat of arms would be as follows:

Arms: “Argent, a saltire azure,cantoned with four markings ofermine sable.” (Silver or whiteshield with a blue saltire or ‘X’ andin four-equidistant places themarking of the ermine ‘fur’ in black.)

Crest: “A lion’s head erased azurelangued gules.” (A lion’s head cutoff at the neck with a flourish, inblue with a red tongue.)

.

Springwood emblemcontroversy

Heritage briefs from around the worldGreeks resist sale ofheritage sitesA ROYAL PALACE where PrincePhilip was born has been the focusof protests against the sale ofGreece’s national heritage to pay offits debts.

The Greek government has plans tosell state assets in a bid to raise 50billion Euro.

Mon Repos Palace in Corfu one ofthe largest Greek islands, wherePrince Philip, the Duke ofEdinburgh, was born 90 years ago,is one of several state-ownedproperties to be auctioned.

The fear is that places such as thiswill be sold off to private foreignbuyers and closed off forever to thepublic. Telegraph, London

Fears for prehistoric artCAVES containing some of theworld’s best prehistoric art are to beopened to the public despitewarnings that human breath willdestroy the 20,000-year-oldpaintings.

Scientists have said the decisioncarried ‘immeasurable’ risks.

The vast Altamira caves, discoveredin 1879 in the Cantabria region ofSpain have been called the SistineChapel of Paleolithic art.

They are covered in paintings ofEuropean bison, bulls and otheranimals.

The site is a UNESCO declaredWorld Heritage Site. Telegraph,London

Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh

Bligh’s medals up forauctionTWO GOLD MEDALS (pictured)awarded to Bounty captain, WilliamBligh have been put up for auctionby his descendants.

The botanist Sir Joseph Banks waskeen to transplant the crop to theWest Indies as a food source forslave labourers.

The first medalwas awarded in1794 by the RoyalSociety inEngland forBligh’s workstarted on thevoyage on theBounty, relating tobread-fruit, whichhad beendiscovered in Tahiti.

The second is the Naval GoldMedal 1795 awarded to ship’scaptains.

Bligh won his for his role at theBattle of Camperdown, a majornaval action on October 11, 1797

between the Royal Navy and theDutch Navy in which the Britishcaptured 11 Dutch ships withoutloss of any of their own. The SydneyMorning Herald


THE ORGANISATION Blue Mountains Association ofCultural Organisations Inc. (BMACHO) was establishedin April 2006 following a unanimous response to aproposal from Professor Barrie Reynolds at the 2004Blue Mountains Local History Conference which soughtfrom Blue Mountains City Council the creation of acultural heritage strategy for the city.

BMACHO in its constitution uses the definition: “Culturalheritage is all aspects of life of the peoples of the BlueMountains which was later changed to cover Lithgow andthe villages along the Bell’s Line of Roads. It thereforeinvolves the recording, preserving and interpreting ofinformation in whatever form: documents, objects,recorded memories as well as buildings and sites.”

The objectives of the organisation are: i. To raise public consciousness of

the value of cultural heritage. ii. To encourage and assist culturalheritage activities of member organisations. iii. To initiate and support culturalheritage activities not already covered bymember organisations.

One of the aims of BMACHO is to bring the variousbodies into closer contact, to encourage them to workmore closely together and to provide a combined voiceon matters of importance within the heritage sector.

HERITAGE BMACHO’s official newsletter is edited byJohn Leary, OAM.

MEMBERSHIP The following organisations are members ofBMACHO: Blue Mountains Botanic Garden, Mount Tomah,Blue Mountains City Library, Blue Mountains Cultural HeritageCentre, Blue Mountains Historical Society Inc., BlueMountains Family History Society Inc., Blue MountainsTourism Limited, Blue Mountains World Heritage Institute,Cudgegong Museums Group Inc., Everglades Historic House& Gardens, Friends of Norman Lindsay Gallery, Glenbrook &District Historical Society Inc., Kurrajong-Comleroy HistoricalSociety Inc, Lilianfels Blue Mountains Resort, Lithgow andDistrict Family History Society Inc., Lithgow Mining MuseumInc., Lithgow Regional Library – Local Studies, Lithgow SmallArms Factory Museum Inc, Mid-Mountains Historical SocietyInc, Mid Western Regional Council Library, Mt Victoria andDistrict Historical Society Inc., Mt Wilson and Mt Irvine HistorySociety Inc. (including Turkish Bath Museum), MudgeeHistorical Society Inc., Mudgee Regional Library, NationalTrust of Australia (NSW) - Blue Mountains Branch (includingWoodford Academy), National Trust of Australia (NSW) -Lithgow Branch, Scenic World – Blue Mountains Limited,Springwood & District Historical Society Inc., SpringwoodHistorians Inc., Transport Signal and Communication MuseumInc., The Darnell Collection Pty Ltd, Valley HeightsLocomotive Depot and Museum, Zig Zag Railway Co-op Ltd.The following are individual members: Ray Christison,Associate Professor Ian Jack, Joan Kent, John Leary OAM,John Low, Ian Milliss, Professor Barrie Reynolds, and Dr PeterStanbury OAM.

COMMITTEE The committee for 2011-12 is: Pamela Smith(president), Ian Jack (vice president), Jan Koperberg(secretary), Joan Kent (treasurer), Jean Arthur, DougKnowles, John Leary, Dick Morony (public officer), KathieMcMahon-Nolf, Barrie Reynolds and Peter Stanbury.

HONORARY AUDITOR: Sue McMahon, B Comm CPA.

AFFILIATIONS BMACHO is a member of the RoyalAustralian Historical Society Inc.

BLUE MOUNTAINS ASSOCIATION OF CULTURALHERITAGE ORGANISATIONS INC.

REGISTERED OFFICE 14 Bunnal Ave, Winmalee 2777E-mail: [email protected] or [email protected]: www.bluemountains.heritage.com

Blue Mountains History Journal is edited byDr Peter Rickwood.

The Domesday Book

Domesday Book and chest at theNational Archives, Kew, London

THE DOMESDAY BOOK wascommissioned in December 1085by William the Conqueror, whoinvaded England in 1066.

The first draft was completed inAugust 1086 and contained recordsfor 13,418 settlements in theEnglish counties south of the riversRibble and Tees (the border withScotland at the time).

The original Domesday Book hassurvived over 900 years of Englishhistory and is currently housed in aspecially made chest at TheNational Archives in Kew, London1.

“…While spending the Christmasof 1085 in Gloucester William haddeep speech with his counsellorsand sent men all over England toeach shire to find out what or howmuch each landholder had in landand livestock, and what it wasworth,” according to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle.

One of the main purposes of thesurvey was to determine who heldwhat and what taxes had beenliable under Edward the Confessor;the judgment of the Domesdayassessors was final—whatever thebook said about who held thematerial wealth or what it was worth,was the law, and there was noappeal.

It was written in Latin, althoughthere were some vernacular wordsinserted for native terms with noprevious Latin equivalent, and thetext was highly abbreviated.

Richard FitzNigel, writing aroundthe year 1179, stated that the bookwas known by the English as‘Domesday’, that is the Day ofJudgement “for as the sentence ofthat strict and terrible last accountcannot be evaded by any skilfulsubterfuge, so when this book isappealed to ... its sentence cannotbe put, quashed or set aside withimpunity.

That is why we have called the book‘the Book of Judgement’ ... becauseits decisions, like those of the LastJudgement, are unalterable.”

In August 2006 a complete onlineversion of Domesday Book wasmade available for the first time bythe United Kingdom’s NationalArchives2.

References1.www.domesdaybook.co.uk/2.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Domesday_Book

heritage newsletter jan-feb 2009

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