Month: November 2017

Camden Gasworks · Camden High School · Contamination · Gas · Heritage · Historical Research · History · Local History · Place making · Sense of place · Utilities

The phoenix rises from the ashes at the old Camden High site

camdenhistorynotesLeave a comment

As the old Camden High School disappears under a cloud of dust and rubble a new precinct called Camden Central will rise like a phoenix from the ashes of the past.

 

Camden High demo 29Nov2017 MWillis
What goes up must come down and so it is with the old Camden High School building. This image captures the essence of rise and fall of the high school that served Camden for over 50 years. It met its demise from its location. Yet it will rise from the ashes as a retirement village. Like a rebirth from the womb of the disaster that has been the contamination of the site from the gasworks. (MWillis, 2017)

 

The original Camden High School was moved off its in John Street site due to concerns around contamination from the old Camden gasworks.

A disaster in the making

A New South Wales Government Fact Sheet stated in 2013 that an investigation of the old Camden High School site in 1995 found piping from the gasworks and identified contaminated waste the following year. The school had been located on this particular patch of ground from 1970 to 2001 after being purchased earlier by the state government.

In July 2013 ABCTV reported that there were three cases of cancer in former students attending Camden High School. A follow-up report included further details of former students and a teacher with cancers or tumours. There have a number of other media stories. 

The NSW Environmental Protection Authority states:

Over 60 former gasworks sites have been identified in NSW. The gasworks produced ‘town gas’ for heating, lighting and cooking. Most ceased operating in the early- to mid- 1900s and the last of the known gasworks was decommissioned in 1985. They were often also close to the centre of the city, to minimise the size of the network of pipes used for gas distribution. The soil and groundwater at these former gasworks sites are invariably contaminated by materials produced during the gas-making process even though operations ceased many years ago.  

 

Camden Gasworks 1900s CIPP
Camden Gasworks in the early 1910s (CIPP)  Mr Murray the gasworks manager reported that construction at the gasworks had been completed, the retort had been lit and he anticipated full supply by the end of the month. (Camden News, 4 January 1912) Throughout 1912 there an ongoing dispute between Mr Alexander, the managing director of the Camden Gas Company, and Camden Municipal Council over damage to Argyle Street while laying gas pipes and who was going to pay for it. (Camden News, 12 September 1912)

 

A New South Wales Government Fact Sheet about the Camden gasworks stated in 2013

The operation of gasworks has left a legacy of soil and groundwater contamination, in some cases extending to adjoining sites. The major contaminants include tars, oils, hydrocarbon sludges, spent oxide wastes, and ash. While many of these materials were recycled or reused, it was common for some to be buried on or near the gasworks site (for instance in underground tar wells, liquor wells, pipes and purifier beds) and not removed when the gasworks were decommissioned.

Some of these contaminants are carcinogenic to humans and toxic to aquatic ecosystems and so may pose a risk to human health and the environment if significant exposure were to occur. As a result, many former gasworks sites require remediation before they can be put to other uses.

 

The Camden Gas Company

The former Camden gasworks started in private ownership as the Camden Gas Company in 1911. In 1946 Camden Municipal Council purchased the gasworks and started operating the facility. The gasworks closed in 1965 according the fact sheet from the state government.

 

Gas Cover Durham Camden1
Gas Utility Cover Durham Argyle Street Camden 2016 (I Willis)  The Durham cover is for the Camden gas supply which was installed in 1912 by the Camden Gas Company.The gasworks was built in Mitchell Street and made gas from coal. There were a number of gas street lights in Argyle Street which were turned on in early 1912. The Camden News reported in January 1912 that many private homes and businesses had been connected to the gas supply network and were fitted for gas lighting.

 

The Department of Education purchased land next to the gasworks for a school in 1934. Enrolments at the  Camden Central School had grown beyond its site capacity in the early 1950s. The state government built a new high school and it opened in 1956 at 2 John Street, adjacent to the still then operating gasworks.

Finding the making of  a disaster

In 1970 the state government built a library and science laboratory block on former gasworks land it purchased from Camden Municipal Council.

The Department of Education then purchased additional land off AGL which had acquired the site from Camden Municipal Council.

When the Department of Education started preliminary investigations in 1995 for new building works at the school workers uncovered pits and pipes from the old gasworks.

During 1996 as additional demountable classrooms were being installed in the school grounds strong odours were detected from disturbed soil on the site. The contaminated area was sealed off and further examinations were conducted by the NSW Environmental Protection Authority.

 

Camden High School 2004 CIPP
Camden High School at 2 John Street Camden as it appeared in 2004 (PMylrea, CIPP)  The first headmaster was John Brownie in 1956 and served in that position until 1967. Before coming to Camden High he had been deputy headmaster at Sydney Boys High School. He had an emphasis on providing academic opportunities for students for the 300 students enrolled at the school.

 

These concerns about the John Street site contamination led to the action by state government to look for a new location for the school.

Other factors that contributed to the state government’s decision to move Camden High School were the predicted growth of the school population to twice 1996 enrolments and the school’s flood-prone site.

Together these factors prompted the state government to build a new school away from the John Street site. The new Camden High opened at Cawdor Road in 2001.

The makings of a rebirth from the womb

The John Street site was sold in 2007 to a development firm, the AEH Group, which proposed decontaminating the soil and building apartments.

According to the AEH 2017 fact sheet:

AEH Group  and has secured approval from Camden Council to develop the site into a mixed-use facility focused on seniors living. Camden Central Lifestyle Estate (Camden Central) will be located right in the heart of historic Camden and will revitalise a site that has been unused for more than 15 years.

The AEH Group website states that in 2016 the development of the retirement complex was being pre-sold off the plan. The AEH website states:

Situated in the heart of the historic township, Camden Central Lifestyle Estate is soon to commence construction.   AEH Group is sensitive to Camden’s proud heritage, its beauty and its unique town atmosphere. Camden Central Lifestyle Estate will enhance the site with a new vitality and energy and deliver more housing and economic benefits to the Camden community.  

A bucolic paradise

The AEH Group is offering the first stage for sale with 54 apartments. The Camden Central website boasts about the towns history and heritage and the town’s special character. The ‘tranquillity of the landscape’ is evident to AEH copywriters who have maintained that the town ‘retains a peaceful rural feel’.

 

Camden Aerial View 1990s CIPP
The AEH Group is using images like this to promote their development at Camden Central. This image was taken in the early 1990s by PMylrea and shows the town with Argyle Street to the right of the photo. St John’s Anglican Church is in the left of the image. The old Camden High site is to right of the town centre. This image clearly shows how the town centre is surrounded by the Nepean River floodplain. (CIPP)

 

The developer is using the bucolic scenes from the local countryside, the town centre and the vibrant café culture to promote the development. Let’s hope it stays that way for a while.

British colonialism · Colonial Camden · Colonialism · Cowpastures · Elderslie · England · Farming · Heritage · History · Local History · Macarthur · Newspapers · Place making · Sense of place · Settler colonialism

John Hawdon of Elderslie and his English origins

camdenhistorynotes3 Comments

James Pearson of Staindrop History of County Durham in England has recently written to the CHN blogger and brought to his attention information about the English origins and connections of John Hawdon of Elderslie.

John Hawdon arrived in New South Wales with his family and servants in 1828. He took a six year lease on John Oxley’s former grant of Elderslie and became a colonial identity. He later took up a grant in the Moruya area of the New South Wales South Coast and built Kiora homestead in 1836

John Hawdon image
John Hawdon [Australian Town and Country Journal (Sydney), Saturday 18 January 1879, page 17]

The village of Wackerfield in County Durham, England

England Wackerfield hamlet signage ODixon 2009
The signage on the approaches to the hamlet of Wackerfield County Durham England  (ODixon 2009)

John Hawdon of Elderslie was born in the village of Wackerfield. The village is also known as Wakefield or Walkerfield in Country Durham. According to James Pearson the accent  in the north-east reduces this pronunciation to ‘Wackerfield’ and it appears on maps under either spelling.

James Pearson writes that Wackerfield sits on the slope of Keverstone bank just above Raby Castle and the ground begins to descend, though not steeply, towards the river Tees.  It looks flat area in places and is located  on the ‘spine’ of England.  The area is on the eastern side of the north Pennine range so areas of moorland.

The hamlet of Wackerfield is about half a mile from Raby Castle in County Durham.

Raby Castle websites states:

Built for the mighty dynasty of the Nevills, this great fortress stands proud and defiant, its history rolling back almost a thousand years. King Cnut (also known as Canute II the Great) owned the Estate, then known as ‘Rabi’ (derived from ‘Ra’, Danish for a boundary, and ‘Bi’, a settlement or dwelling) in the early 11th Century. The Viking King and self appointed ‘Emperor of the North’ may well have built a manor house here, but it was the Nevills who built the 14th century castle which still stands today.

England Raby Castle Co Durham 2017 RCastle
Raby Castle Co Durham England. The Raby estate includes the hamlet of Wackerfield (2017 RCastle)

Raby Castle was the property of the Nevill family and royal connections until 1569 when they led a rebellion against Elizabeth I  for which hundreds were executed in the north,  a number from every village and town.  It then became the property of the Vane family who were prominent in the English Civil War.

Raby Castle websites states that:

Raby Castle, the private home of Lord Barnard, sits at the heart of the Raby Estate, which spreads across Teesdale, County Durham and Northumbria. Agriculture is an important source of income for the Estate. As well as the Estate’s own Home Farm in Raby Park, there are many tenanted farms and a large number of houses and cottages in villages around Teesdale, many are whitewashed farmsteads and houses where families have been tenants for several generations.

Raby Estates have several residential properties and agricultural holdings which become available from time to time. Houses owned by Raby can be found in many Teesdale villages near Barnard Castle and Darlington such as Staindrop, Piercebridge, Wackerfield and Middleton-in-Teesdale.

Wackerield Hall in the main building in the village and there are a number of outbuildings.

England Wackerfield John Hawdon 2017 JPearson
The hamlet of Wackerfield County Durham where John Hawdon of Elderslie grew up. The hamlet is part of the estate linked to Raby Castle. (JPearson, 2017)

Next to the Hall is a row of 4 cottages and, according to James Pearson, this is about the extent of the village. There are only one or two other isolated cottages

Today they produce a lot of hay in this area, and during harvest period tractor and trailer loads of baled hay come through the village.

 

The Hawdon family of Wackerfield

John Hawdon, the father of John of Elderslie, was a yeoman farm.    A yeoman farmer between the 14th and 18th century as a farmer who owned land. The social rank of the yeoman was between the land owning gentry and labourer

John Hawdon of Wackerfield was born in 1770, son of John Hawdon and Mary Watson.  He married Elizabeth Hunt of Gainford, a village about three miles away, in 1798.  John’s children included sons John (b.1801), Joseph and William (b.1812), who stayed on the family farm.

John was a ‘Cornet’ (2nd Lieutenant) in Staindrop Gentlemen and Yeomanry (1798—1815), raised by John Ingram which was renamed as the Staindrop Troop of Volunteer Cavalry, disbanded in 1815.  The was cavalry raised in 1798 in the face of a threatened Napoleonic invasion.  John was promoted to a lieutenant and eventually served as captain of the troop.

Officers Jacket Staindrop Cavalry 1798-1815 DLI
This is an Officer’s Full Dress Light Cavalry Jacket, Staindrop Cavalry, 1798-1815. This scarlet wool jacket has black velvet facings (collar and cuffs), white cord ‘frogging’, and plain silver domed buttons.(Durham Light Infantry Collection)

The Durham Light Infantry Museum Collection website states:

The Staindrop Gentlemen and Yeomanry was raised in 1798 by John Ingram of Staindrop, with a strength of 54 officers and men. In 1803, the Regiment changed its name to the Staindrop Volunteer Cavalry. It survived until 1815, when it became part of the Durham Yeomanry. This is a rare surviving example of Napoleonic Volunteer cavalry uniform from County Durham.

Officers Helmut Staindrop Cavalry 1798-1815 DLI
Officers Helmut Staindrop Cavalry 1798-1815 (Durham Light Infantry Collection)

 

John Hawdon of Wackerfield died in 1845.

John of Elderslie’s parents are buried in the churchyard in Wackerfield and there is a gravestone.

John Hawdon, grandfather of John of Elderslie, was born in the parish in 1742 son of Christopher and Ann Hawdon.  Christopher was born in 1710 in the same parish.

 

The Hawdon farm in County Durham

John Hawdon’s farm was 520 acres and is still a working farm with the original farmhouse. It was primarily concerned with breeding and growing sheep.

John Hawdon, (b.1770) was a member of the Staindrop Farmer’s Club where they discussed the latest developments in farming and other issues. In 1862 John felt that the steam plough and threshing machine would be a great improvement for farming.  John was quite an expert on raising sheep and presented a paper at the Club on the issue in 1863. In 1865 John spoke the Club on the subject of fattening sheep during the summer months.

On the death of John Hawdon (1770-1845) in 1845 his third  son William Watson Hawdon was in possession of the farm.

Brother William (1812-1879) stayed and farmed at Wackerfield.    William married and had several sons, one was an engineer, another  was a director of ironworks, and one died young aged 16yrs.

England Wackerfield Moorland looking to the Hal 2017 JPearson
A country lane on the Moorland looking east from the hamlet of Wackerfield (JPearson, 2017)

When William Watson Hawdon died in 1879 aged 67yrs, he had no son in the farming business to follow him.

William’s widow left the farm  and moved into Ormuz house on the village green and died there in 1891.

James Pearson came across a speech their father John Hawdon (1770-1845) gave to the Staindrop Farmers Club in 1844 and he was discussing the breeds of sheep and what is best for the local area.

Today the farm has some sheep, dairy farming and some cropping.

 

John of Elderslie

John Hawdon of Elderslie did duties in the Staindrop Volunteer Cavalry before coming out to New South Wales.

Elderslie2
The scene at Elderslie New South Wales on an autumn day showing the site in 2014 of the original Elderslie lease that John Hawdon took out in 1828 (IWillis)

John’s younger brother Joseph Hawdon followed his elder brother, John, out to Australia. He too had an eventful life eventually moving to New Zealand where he became famous as an outlander.

Brother Joseph had died in 1871 in New Zealand, and brother John of Elderslie was the surviving brother.  John of Eldersle returned to England in the late 1870s.

James Pearson located an interesting newspaper article about John of Elderslie’s return to England. The local newspaper reported the visit and John’s return to New South Wales in 1880.

In the course of a few days Mr John Hawdon, of Wackerfield, will sail for the antipodes, and the last link of a family long associated with agricultural pursuits in this neighbourhood will be severed. Mr Hawdon’s family for centuries have farmed at Walkerfield, and the name is familiar in most market towns in the north.  At a period contemporaneous with the reign of Queen Elisabeth the farm at Wackerfield belonged to the Hawdons, the property subsequently having been purchased by one of the lords of Raby, and the farm being now held by the Duke of Cleveland. The lot of the farmer has been beset with difficulties during the past few years. The English agriculturist has had to cope with foreign competition. Bad trade has long depressed all industries, and, what is even more significant to the farmer, bad crops for a succession of years have been reaped. There is every prospect, however, this season, that good crops will uniformly be gathered. Let us venture a hope that in his new home Mr Hawdon may prosper, and that he may soon be surrounded by as many friends as now regret his departure from these shores.

[The Teesdale Mercury—Wednesday  July 14, 1880 at Barnard Castle]

 

 

Read more:

S G P Ward (1962), ‘Faithful: The Story of The Durham Light Infantry’ provides an overview of the Napoleonic Volunteers in County Durham.

 

Camden · Fashion · Interwar · Local History · Modernism · Sense of place · Weddings

A wedding and a little bit of 1920s modernism

camdenhistorynotesLeave a comment

Some photographs from the Camden Images Past and Present came the attention of the CHN blogger from the early 1920s. One from 1922 and, a second, the Duesbury-Burford wedding from 1925.

The images speak of the forces modernism and the fashions of the Interwar period. They illustrate how even the small country town of Camden did not escape the global transnational fashion trends of 1920s.

In 1925 the Adelaide News  reported on the wedding of 30 year old Frank Duesbury, the son of Lewis and Catherine Duesbury of Camden. Frank married 28 year old Ethel Burford who came from  Semaphore near the Port Adelaide district located on the St Vincent Gulf coastline.

Camden Ethel Muriel Burford, wedding to Frank Garnet Duesbury, 16 May, 1925, Enmore NSW CIPP[1]
The wedding of 28 year old  Ethel Muriel Burford to 30 year old Frank Garnet Duesbury, 16 May, 1925 at Enmore NSW (Camden Images Past and Present)
Frank was one of five children of Lewis and Catherine, the others being Esther, Ruebell, Jessie and Lewis. The family lived at 64 Harrington Street, Elderslie then by 1918 in Menangle Road Camden. The family later moved into Balmacarra at 35 Elizabeth Street. Lewis worked for CT Whiteman from 1893 after running general stores in Dungog, Kempsey and Sydney.

Elderslie 64 Harrington St[1]
The Duesbury family lived at 64 Harrington Street Elderslie in the years before the First World War. This cottage is a typical of the Edwardian style in the Camden district. There are a number in the Elderslie area built and owned by the Bruchhauser family who were local viticulturalists. (I Willis, 2017)
In June 1918 Frank volunteered for service during the First World War. At the time he was employed as an assessor with the Federal Taxation Department.

Frank and Ethel became engaged in 1922. Ethel embraced modernism and the fashions of the 1920s and all they represented to her. The image of her at her engagement says it all.

Ether Muriel Burford 1922 Engagement CIPP
This a lovely hand-tinted photograph of  25 year old Ether Muriel Burford in 1922 on her engagement to Camden fiance Frank Duesbury (Camden Images Past and Present)

An engagement is a betrothal and in most cultures is period before the marriage ceremony where the couple get to know each other and is considered a trial marriage. The engagement ring in European cultures dates back to the Roman period and more recently influenced by marriage practices of the middle ages.

In the tradition of British culture, including Australia, the wedding is one of the big days of a woman’s life, the others being baptism and funerals. The wedding was a big day in Ethel’s life.

The wedding day, according Elizabeth Davies on her website A Brief History of the Wedding Dress in Britain, is one of the great public occasions when the people involved can fully appreciate the glory of their central role. She maintains that the bride has always tried to make the wedding a special day, a fairy tale come true for many.

In the British Empire royal weddings were very influential on fashion trends and in times gone past were of great political importance. The young princess had to uphold the national prestige and present herself as a symbol of the power and wealth of the nation.

One of the most important in the modern period was the marriage of Prince Albert to the reigning Queen Victoria in 1840. Both 18 years old and smitten with each other. The marriage was of immense political importance to Great Britain and its position in the world at the time. It was the first wedding of a reigning English queen in 300 years.

The marriage of Victoria and Albert is currently the subject of the TV series called Victoria.

The Duesbury-Burford wedding in 1925 was of great importance to the families of those involved. The wedding was reported in the Adelaide News and took place in Sydney. The wedding took place at the Church of Christ Tabernacle at Enmore.

Enmore Church of Christ Tabernacle
The Enmore Church of Christ Tabernacle in the early 20th century where Frank and Ethel were married in 1925. (Jubilee Pictorial History of the Church of Christ)

The bride, Ethel, was dressed in ‘a charming tube frock of crepe stella’ reflecting the fashions. The 1920 flapper style was reflected in the wedding styles at a time and was a revolution in women’s clothing. The hemlines rose and the wedding dresses followed suit. The corset had disappeared and the sense of freedom for women was a rebellion against the excesses of the First World War. Ethel’s wedding gown reflected all of these notions.

Ethel’s outfit was described this way by the News:

The court train was lined with georgette, and was handsomely embroidered with pearls and orange blossom. Her veil of cut tulle was held in place with a wreath of orange blossom, and she carried a shower bouquet of roses and sweet peas.

The orange blossom in the wreath was a symbol of fertility, and was also used in 1840 by Queen Victoria.

Edith’s gown of georgette would have been quite expensive particularly as it was embroidered with pearls. Goergette fabric has been described this way on Utsavpedia:

Georgette is a light-weight, crinkled and sheer fabric, displaying an overall bouncy look. A strong absorbent, Georgette is easy to dye and has dull-rough texture. Georgette is woven in highly twisted yarns of S & Z, in both warp and weft. Georgette is woven in two forms: Pure and Faux. Pure Georgette is woven out of Silk yarns, while the Faux Georgette is woven from Rayon and Polyester.

The wedding party was dressed in marocain fabric which is described on the Sartor All About Silk website this way:

Silk crepe marocain (heavy silk) is a luxurious heavy silk fabric with a nice drape. It is similar to heavy satin but in contrary to super smooth and lustrous satins it has a somewhat grainy surface and dull finish. Silk crepe marocain wears very well and is a favorite fabric for women blouses, shirts, summer dresses, skirts, scarves and of course luxury lingerie, tops, evening and bridalwear. It combines well with airy semi-transparent and dull georgettes.

The press report of the wedding in the News stated:

Miss Edith Burford (niece of the bride) was bridesmaid. She was frocked in powder blue marocain, with flared tunic edged with silver lace. A silver bandeau was worn round her head, and a bouquet of pink carnations was carried. Little Marjory Dumbrill, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Harry Dumbrill, formerly of Semaphore, was train bearer. and looked pretty in pleated pale pink georgette trimmed with pale pink and blue rosebuds. A wreath of silver leaves was worn round her head. The bridegroom was supported by Mr. Stanley Taylor.

At the reception the bride’s sister-in law received her guests in a smart gown of navy marocain with Oriental trimmings.  She carried a sheaf of autumn leaves and flowers. The bride travelled in a smart frock of penny brown jacquard marocain. with cloche hot to match. Mr. and Mrs. Frank Duesbury are residing at Gordon, New South Wales.

Gordon of the 1920s was an on the rural-urban fringe of Sydney and had a number of real estate subdivisions where young couple could buy a first home. The suburb was an expression of modernism. It was accessible to the city by the railway which had arrived in 1890 and encouraged the breaking up of local farms for housing. The Interwar period was a time of change and there was rapid housing growth.

Newly weds Frank and Ethel were an expression of modernism and they embraced it and all it stood for in their lifestyle and their family life.

Read more

(Adelaide) News 22 August 1925.

Camden · Campbelltown · Communications · Community identity · History · Interwar · Local History · Macarthur · Newspapers · Picton · Settler colonialism · Sydney's rural-urban fringe · War

The history of the local newspaper in the Macarthur region

camdenhistorynotes3 Comments

Local historian and author Dr Ian Willis has had a proposal accepted for an article in Media History, an international media journal published in the UK.

IMG_3939[1]
Macarthur Signage
The article outlines the history of local newspapers in the Macarthur region  and covers the towns of Campbelltown, Camden and Picton.

Local newspapers were rationalised, corporatised and consolidated from the 1950s as  Sydney’s urban growth moved into the region.

By the late 20th century changes in technology and innovations set in as the local newspapers were re-shaped  by the growth and arrival of Sydney’s rural-urban fringe.

Macarthur_Advert_1958
Macarthur Advertiser 1958

The article will show that is recent times digital disruption has taken a toll, but there are green shoots with new mastheads appearing in some of the new suburbs in the region.

Media History is an international academic journal published in the UK. Its website states that:

Media History is an interdisciplinary journal which welcomes contributions addressing media and society from the fifteenth century to the present. Its perspective is both historical and international. It explores all forms of serial publication in manuscript, print and electronic media and encourages work which crosses the boundaries of politics, culture and communications.

Abstract for journal article in Media History (UK)

Provincial and regional newspapers have been defined by parochialism and localism. They have pandered to local sensibilities and a need to serve their community.  Some have argued that local newspapers are a subset of their cultural environment, a form of structural functionalism. For others regional newspapers play a part in placemaking and community identity. The stories they carry are critical to the memory making. They act as a mirror to the values and attitudes of the local community.

This article will test these propositions and others by an examination of a number of regional newspapers that have been published in the Macarthur region of New South Wales. The discussion will analyse the historical continuity and change in the landscape of the area’s regional press and the actors who were part of it.

Colonial newspapers appeared in the late 19th century in the three market towns within the region at Campbelltown, Camden and Picton. The local press reflected the nature of the settler society and mirrored the British provincial press in these small rural outposts of the British Empire. By the early-20th century the Campbelltown News, the Camden News and the Picton Post, were the face of these thriving communities. During the Interwar period this trio were joined by the Camden Advertiser.

The forces of war and depression influenced the regional press as it did local communities. Nostalgia, the doings of local politicians, and the tension between profit making and journalism have all played a part in this story, while the inverted pyramid arrived mid-century.

Corporatisation, consolidation and rationalisation re-shaped the regional press with the arrival of Sydney’s rural-urban fringe in the 1950s. Competition from radio, new technology and innovations brought more changes and by the 21st century digital disruption was in full swing.

The owners of the Macarthur regional press were local identities and opinion leaders. Their editorial positions reflected their political allegiances. They encouraged patriotic loyalty in wartime and the war at home. Editor owners practiced a type of censorship and their silence around a number of social issues was deafening. Their publications re-enforced the status quo, and existing social divisions, cultural norms, while acting as a form of regional voice.

As technology and local demographics have changed so have the nature of Macarthur regional press. Where once black and white newspaper were sold for pennies there are now colourful free publications, and circulations which are still a guide to the sphere of influence of the local newspaper. While in recent times some of the highest rates urban growth in Australia have encouraged green shoots with the appearance of new mastheads in the form of newsletter newspapers.

Dr Willis recently posted an item on this blog about local newspapers in the Macarthur region. 

In this post Dr Willis wrote:

The local in local newspapers

In the Oran Park Gazette Lisa Finn-Powell maintains that the community newspaper does have a future. She argues that it provides a way for members of the community to support each other by celebrating local events, anniversaries and traditions. Local newspapers make people feel good about their neighbourhood.

This post was also the subject of a post on the Professional Historian’s Association webpage.

The post states:

…this post introduces PHA NSW and ACT member, Ian Willis’ blog, Camden History Notes. Camden is a town southwest of Sydney, situated on land belonging to the Dharawal (Tharawal) people.

Ian’s blog presents stories about the district’s people, its history, heritage and traditions. He draws on the memories and experiences of local families, local identities, community organisations and local institutions.

First World War · History · Local History · Menangle · Menangle Army Camp · Red Cross

Menangle Australian Light Horse Camp

camdenhistorynotesLeave a comment

A little known military facility in the local area during the First World War was the Australian Light Horse Camp based on the Menangle Park racecourse in 1916.

Drunken riots at Liverpool

The establishment of the camp was the result of drunken unrest amongst the troops at the Casula and Liverpool military camps in February 1916 that was later called the Battle of Central Station. These events also contributed to the success of the campaign for 6.00pm closing in New South Wales that was not repealed until 1955.

After the soldier riots the Casula camp was closed and the ‘troops in training’ were distributed to other camps, including one at Menangle Park in February 1916.

Menangle race track

Military authorities leased the race track off the Menangle Racing Club.

The racetrack was first surveyed by military authorities in January 1916, although Campbelltown Showground had been inspected in September 1915.

Poor conditions in camp

The conditions of the Menangle camp in March 1916 were less than adequate. One correspondent to the Sydney press complained the camp was unprepared  and the men had to grub out stumps and  prepare the site for a permanent camp.

The writer complained that the men were busy on labouring duties when they could have been busy doing military training.

It would have been more effective, the correspondent felt, for a private contractor to clear the camp site.

The ‘discontentment’ amongst volunteers was caused by  ‘wasters’ who, apparently, were quite happy for labouring duties to continue for up to 6 months.

Manoeuvres

Training involved forced marches in the local area. In mid-1916 over 1000 men, accompanied by over 100 horses, marched to Camden through Campbelltown on manoeuvres headed by a military band.

They were marched to  Camden showground where they were dismissed for an hour where they had lunch.

Menangle Army Camp men on manoeuvres marching through Camden 1916 CIPP
Soldiers in training from the Menangle Army Camp on a forced march passing along Argyle Street Camden 1916 (CIPP)

The Camden press reported that it was an imposing spectacle having such a large number of troops marching through the town area. The mayor, GF Furner, welcomed the troops to Camden and he then hosted the officers at lunch.

1917 Officers of Light Horse Camp, Menangle. European War CIPP lowres
Officers of the Light Horse Camp, Menangle. European War, November, 1917. Back Row: Lt J Kemp-Bruce, Lt F A Jacobs, Lt R T Williams, Lt H W Veness, Lt R L Gates, Lt R V Moore, Lt N Cope. Second Row: Lt C H Bate, Lt M C Bowley, Lt D Drummond, Lt G D Donkin, Lt S L Molesworth, Lt R E McClelland, Lt J Bailey, Lt C Hely, Chaplain Capt Cock. Front Row: Lt M D Russell, Capt S F Betts, Capt RH Monro, Brig-Gen G L Lee, C M G, D S O, Lt-Col R W Lenehan, V D, Lt C A Mayes, Capt R A Lovejoy, Chaplain Capt Black. (Camden Museum)

 

According to the notes on the photograph:

Officers of the Light Horse Camp, Menangle. European War, November, 1917.
This photo was donated from “Camelot”. The Lt Clem Bate on the left end of the middle row was a friend of the Anderson Family and he probably gave them a copy. He was the uncle of Mr Jeff Bates who was an MHR for the Camden area for many years (as well as previously an MLA). The Lt R.V. Moore in the back row is Mr Val Moore of Glenmore, Camden. The Lt Veness in the back row is the other local in the photo. He came from Menangle.

Camel Corps

In June 1916 reinforcements for the Camel Corps were posted to Menangle camp  for training and exercises. The Sydney press stated the Abdul Wade of Bourke had lent 6 camels to the army for training exercises at the camp for members of the Camel Corps. Four of the animals were for riding, while the other two were pack animals. They were sent to Menangle camp by rail from Bourke under the care of an Afghan camel driver.

The Australian War Memorial states that the Imperial Camel Corps (ICC) was formed in January 1916 in order to deal with the revolt of pro-Turkish Senussi tribesmen in Egypt’s Western Desert. The first four companies were recruited from Australian infantry battalions recuperating after Gallipoli. Four battalions were eventually formed up and units saw action in Palestine in 1917 and 1918. Units were disbanded in mid-1918.

Menangle Army Camp Camel Corps 1917 [2] AWM
Camel Corps at Menangle Army Camp 1917 (AWM)
In July 1916 a further 1000 men from the Australian Light Horse and Trench Mortar Batteries at Menangle Camp did a route march through Camden. They stopped for lunch, after which they gave a demonstration of high explosives, grenades and bomb throwing for the amusement of the local community.

In July 1916 Colonel Lenohan, the officer in charge, stated the military band played at the camp every Sunday afternoon. He reported in the Camden press that he would welcome visitors and he offered to show them around the camp.

Red Cross

In early 1916 the Menangle Red Cross decided to donate a badly needed hospital tent to the Australian Light Horse at a of cost £34. It  measured 20 x 30 feet (6×10 metres) and  could be partitioned off and used for several purposes, or used as a whole for a camp hospital with a capacity of 14 beds.

The press report noted that it would ‘prove a boon to those recovering from sickness, or to any one ‘off colour’ and in need of a quiet rest and medical attention’. The cost of the tent ‘considerably diminish[ed]’ the cash reserves of the small Menangle Red Cross branch but was felt that it was greatly needed by the men.

In May 1916 Brigadier General Ramaciotti inspected the camp and stated that there was a fine billiard room for 10 tables under construction and a well-appointed canteen.

The Camden and Menangle  Red Cross branches supplied the camp hospital with eggs, cakes, scones, pyjamas, hand towels, pillow slips, sheets, towels, and cakes of soap in 1916 and 1917.

The men’s Red Cross branches at Menangle and Camden sent across trays and bed rests that they constructed at their carpentry workshops.

Closure

As the hostilities on the Western Front wound down there was less need for training facilities and  Menangle camp closed in May 1918.

Art · Attachment to place · Campbelltown · Campbelltown Art Centre · Colonialism · Convicts · Cowpastures · Entertainment · Heritage · Leisure · Local History · Macarthur · Myths · Sense of place · Tourism

2017 Fisher’s Ghost Art Award

camdenhistorynotesLeave a comment

2017 Fisher’s Ghost Art Award

The CHN blogger was out and about at Campbelltown Arts Centre recently on a Friday night at the opening of the 2017 Fisher’s Ghost Art Award.

A packed Campbelltown Arts Centre was filled with keen supporters of the award. They walked around and viewed the art works that had survived the culling process and made it onto the walls and displays.

Campbelltown Arts Centre Fisher Ghost Art Award 2017
There was quite a crowd the Campbelltown Arts Centre for the opening night of the 2017 Fisher’s Ghost Art Award on Friday 4 November.

55 Years of History

2017 is the 55th year of the prize and the finalists had some pretty stiff competition.

There were a diverse range of works. The categories include Open, Contemporary, Traditional, Sculpture, Photography, Primary Students, Secondary Students, Surrealism, Macarthur award for a local artist, Aboriginal, Mentorship Macability award for a work by an artist with a disability.

The Award has a total prize pool of $38000 supported by a range of local sponsors.

Campbelltown Arts Centre is well regarded art institution in the Sydney area under the leadership of director Michael Dagostino.

Camden artist survives cull at the Award

One entrant at this year’s award was Camden artist Sandra Dodds. She survived the cull with her sculpture work Eclipse.

Camden artist Sandra Dodds with her entry Eclipse in the sculpture category of the 2017 Fisher’s Ghost Art Award on the opening night of Friday 4 November. (I Willis)

Bringelly artist Brian Stratton had his work Shoalhaven Tapestry hung in the Traditional category.

Campbelltown Arts CentreFishers GhostArt BrianStratton Shoalhaven Tapestry 2017
Brian Stratton and his watercolour ‘Shoalhaven Tapestry’ hung at the 2017 Fisher’s Ghost Art Award at Campbelltown Arts Centre (L Stratton)

Brian said about his painting:

‘One of my watercolour paintings of Crookhaven Heads on the south coast of NSW.  Over the past three decades I would have painted more than 200 paintings of the north face of this headland.  To me this work has more of a feeling of a tapestry, as opposed to a watercolour; hence its title.’

Award proceedings

The proceedings on the opening night got under way just after 6.00pm with the official announcements around 7.30pm. The announcement of the winners was introduced by a welcome to country by a local Dharawal elder.

The 2017 judges were curator Tess Allas, artist Dr Daniel Mudie Cunningham and artist Ben Quilty.

The full list of prize winners in all categories can be found here.

Campbelltown 2017 FishGhstArt Awd Signage

The Fisher’s Ghost Festival

The art award is part of the Fisher’s Ghost Festival which is held in November each year and started in 1956. The festival is named after the local 19th century legend of Fisher’s ghost.

The festival website states that celebrations are held over 10 days (4-12 November). The major features of the festival are a street parade,  a fun run, a street fair, craft exhibition, foodie festival in Mawson Park, open days and a giant carnival with fireworks.

In 2017 the carnival was held on Bradbury Oval and was in full swing as the art award winners were announced at the art centre.

The street parade moves along Queen Street and has a variety of community, sporting and business groups with floats and novelties.

Each year the festival has a theme and in the past they have included  The Ghost with the Most, The Spirit of Campbelltown, the International Year of the Volunteers, the Centenary of Federation, the National Year of Reading and most recently, the 30th anniversary of the Campbelltown-Koshigaya Sister City relationship.

The Miss Festival Quest, which ran up until the early 90s, was adapted to form The Miss Princess Quest, which has now been running for more than two decades.

Campbelltown Art Centre forecourt on the opening night of the 2017 Fisher’s Ghost Art Award (I Willis)

The story of the ghost of Fred Fisher

The festival is based around the story of the ghost of Fred Fisher.

The story of Fred Fisher is one full of mystery, murder and mayhem. It really shows the dark gothic influences in Australian history around the former convict turned farmer who was murdered in Campbelltown. The Dictionary of Sydney website tells this story and the grizzly demise of Fred.

The ghost story of Fred Fisher is part of Australian gothic literature and the country’s colonial past.   These stories make a statement about the white Australian psyche and the monster within. The landscape is portrayed as a monster in the genry of  Australian gothic now and in the past when the early colonials viewed the bush as evil and threatening.

The National Library of Australia outlines the story of Fred Fisher and the songs, stories and legends that flow from it. They claim that it is the most forgotten ghost story in Australia..

The Fred Fisher ghost story is an apt ghost story to tell around the time of Halloween. Some even go looking for the Fred ghost today.

There are many who swear that there is a presence around the area of Fishers Ghost Creek in Campbelltown. Is this just a lot of rot or is there something to the story?

The story receives the official sanction of Campbelltown Council and its public library where it is told in all its detail.

The Campbelltown History Buff has many interesting stories about Fred and his ghost. One of the best is about the ghost post from the road bridge and the curse that is linked to it. Or maybe not.

The dark stories of colonial times about Aborigines and convicts fit neatly into  the Australian gothic genre, as does Fred Fisher, a former convict.

2017 Fishers Ghost Festival runs from 4 November to 12 November.

The festival website tells the story from the colonial days of Campbelltown and the festival is fitting to remember the ghostly and ghastly past.

The festival celebrates and embraces the Australian gothic.