John Oxley’s anchor lost for 34 years

March 27, 2020September 30, 2023 camdenhistorynotes3 Comments

The mystery of the John Oxley Memorial anchor.

As visitors approach the Camden town centre along Camden Valley Way at Elderslie, they pass Curry Reserve, which has a quaint late 19th-Century workman’s cottage and, next to it, a ship’s anchor. What is not readily known is that the anchor disappeared for 34 years. What happened? How did it become lost for 34 years? How did it end up in a park on Camden Valley Way?

The cottage is known as John Oxley Cottage and is the home of the local tourist information office. The anchor is a memorial gift to the Camden community from British naval authorities on the anniversary of the death of noted Englishman and New South Wales colonial identity John Oxley. So who was John Oxley, and why is there a memorial anchor?

Portrait John Oxley 1783-1828 SLNSW — A portrait of Englishman and New South Wales colonial identity John Oxley 1783-1828 (SLNSW)

This tale could also be viewed as celebrating European invaders displacing and dispossessing the Indigenous Dharawal people from their country. Englishman and colonial identity John Oxley was part of the colonial settler society which, according to LeFevre, sought to replace the original population of the colonized territory with a new society of settlers.

Whichever view of the world you want to take, this tale is an example of how the past hides many things, sometimes in plain view. This story is one of those hidden mysteries from the past and is also part of the patina of the broader Camden story.

Elderslie John Oxley Cottage Anchor and Cottage 2020 IW lowres — A view of the John Oxley Memorial Anchor, the sculpture silhouette of John Oxley and John Oxley Cottage and the Camden Visitor Information Centre found in Curry Reserve at 46 Camden Valley Way, Elderslie, in 2020 (I Willis)

John Oxley Memorial Anchor

Next to the anchor in Curry Reserve is the Oxley Memorial plaque, which states:

In Memorium

Lieutenant John Oxley RN

1783-1829

Pioneer, Explorer and Surveyor General of New South Wales.

This Navel Anchor marks the site of the home and original grant of 1812 to John Oxley RN.

Elderslie John Oxley Cottage Plaque Anchor 2020 IW lowres — The plaque was attached to the John Oxley Memorial Anchor in 1963 and was originally located in Kirkham Lane, Kirkham. The 1963 site was on the original 1812 Kirkham land grant to Oxley adjacent to the Kirkham Stables. In 2020 the plaque was located on the plinth attached to the Oxley Memorial Anchor in Curry Reserve Elderslie. (I Willis, 2020)

Camden Council relocated The anchor to Curry Reserve in Elderslie in 2015 from a privately-owned site in Kirkham Lane adjacent to the Kirkham Stables. The council press release stated that the purpose of the move was to provide

greater access for the community and visitors to enjoy this special piece of the past.

Mayor Symkowiak said:

The anchor represents an important part of our history and [the council] is pleased that the community can now enjoy it in one of Camden’s most popular parks.

We are pleased to work with Camden Historical Society in its relocation to Curry Reserve. The society will provide in-kind support through the provision of a story board depicting the history of the anchor.

The anchor was originally located in Kirkham Lane adjacent to Kirkham Stables in 1963. According to The Australian Surveyor, there had been an official ceremony where a descendant of John Oxley, Mollie Oxley, of Cremorne Point, NSW, unveiled the plaque. The report states that around 20 direct descendants of John Oxley were present at the ceremony organised by the Camden Historical Society.

British naval authorities had originally handed over the anchor to the Camden community in 1929. So what happened between 1929 and 1963?

The answer to this mystery is explained in the 60th-anniversary address given by the 2017 Camden Historical Society president Dr Ian Willis. He stated that shortly after the society was founded in 1957, Camden Council was lobbied to do something with the anchor that

[had] languished in the council yard all but forgotten.

In 1929 the British Admiralty presented the anchor to the Camden community to commemorate the centenary of the death of Englishman and New South Wales colonial identity John Oxley.

The British Admiralty presented three commemorative anchors to Australia to serve as memorials. The Sydney Morning Herald reported:

One anchor, from the destroyer Tenacious, is to be sent to Wellington, where Oxley heard of the victory at Waterloo. A second anchor, from the minesweeper Ford, will to Harrington, to mark the spot where Oxley crossed the Manning River. The third anchor is from the destroyer Tomahawk, and will go to Kirkham, near Camden, where the explorer died.

The HMS Tomahawk was one of sixty-seven “S” class destroyers built for the Royal Navy as the Great War ended. The ship was built in 1918 and reduced to the naval reserve list in 1923.

John Oxley, the man

The Australian Surveyor noted that Oxley came to New South Wales on the HMS Buffalo in 1802 as a midshipman, returned to England in 1807, gained his lieutenancy, and returned to New South Wales in 1809. Oxley returned to England in 1810, was appointed New South Wales Surveyor-General in 1812, and returned to the colony.

Oxley was born in Kirkham Abbey in Yorkshire, England and enlisted in the Royal Navy in 1802, aged 16.

John Oxley was allocated the grants of Kirkham in 1812 (later Camelot) and Elderslie in the Cowpastures district. He had several convicts assigned to him who worked at the property of Kirkham.

As Surveyor-General Oxley led several expeditions into the New South Wales interior, he was also active in the public affairs of the colony.

John Oxley Reserve

The sculpture of Oxley’s profile had been originally erected in John Oxley Reserve in Macquarie Grove Road at Kirkham in 2012 after lobbying by the Camden Historical Society. The metal cut-out silhouette was commissioned by Camden Council at the instigation of Robert Wheeler of the society. The sculpture commemorated the bi-centennial anniversary of Oxley’s appointment as surveyor-general to the New South Wales colony.

Mayor Greg Warren said:

John Oxley was a major part of Camden’s history. The signage and silhoutte will be a continual reminder of [his] significant contribution to the Camden area. (Camden Narellan Advertiser 20 June 2012)

John Oxley Cottage

The John Oxley Cottage is the only remaining building from a row of workman’s cottages built in the 1890s along what was the Great South Road, later the Hume Highway (1928) and now the Camden Valley Way.

The Visitor Information Centre was opened in 1989 after the cottage and its surrounding curtilage were purchased by Camden Council in 1988 and added to Curry Reserve. The cottage was originally owned by the Curry family and had been occupied until the late 1970s, then became derelict.

The four-room cottage had a shingle roof later covered in corrugated iron. Several outbuildings, including a bathroom and toilet, alongside a well.

Curry Reserve is named after early settler Patrick Curry, the Camden waterman in the 1840s. He delivered water he drew from the Nepean River to the townsfolk for 2/- a load he transported in a wooden barrel on a horse-drawn cart.

John Oxley is remembered in lots of places

Oxley Street in the Camden Town Centre was named after Oxley at the foundation of the Camden township in 1840.

An obelisk has been erected by the residents of Redcliffe that commemorates the landing of Surveyor-General Lieutenant John Oxley. In 1823, on instructions from Governor Brisbane, John Oxley was sent to find a suitable place for a northern convict outpost.

There are more monuments to the 1824 landing of John Oxley and his discovery of freshwater at North Quay and Milton in the Brisbane area.

An anchor commemorates John Oxley’s route in his exploration of New South Wales in 1818 and marks where Oxley crossed the Peel River in 1818 outside Tamworth. In 2017 the anchor was targeted as a symbol of settler colonialism and the European invasion of the lands of the Wiradjuri people. The anchor was obtained from the Australian Commonwealth Naval Department and came off the British survey ship HMS Sealark.

A monument, the anchor from the HMS Ford from British naval authorities, was erected at Harrington NSW in honour of explorer John Oxley who explored the area from Bathurst to Port Macquarie. Oxley and his 15 men crossed the Manning River on 22 October 1818, having stayed here from 19 October in the lands of the Biripi people.

There is John Oxley Park in Wellington, NSW, on the Macquarie River on the land of the Wiradjuri people. Wellington was named after the explorer John Oxley who, according to the popular story, could not cross the Lachlan River because of dense reeds. He climbed Mount Arthur in 1817 and named the entire landscape below him Wellington Valley after the Duke of Wellington, who, only two years earlier, had defeated Napoleon at Waterloo.

Wellington Oxley Historical Museum once the Bank of New South Wales 1883 (WHS) — The Oxley Historical Museum is located in Wellington, NSW. The museum is housed in the former 1883 Bank of New South Wales. The site of the town was named after the Englishman, the Duke of Wellington, by John Oxley on one of his expeditions to the interior of New South Wales. The town is located on the land of the Wiradjuri people. (OHM)

The Oxley Historical Museum is housed in the old Bank of New South Wales, on the corner of Warne and Percy Streets, in a glorious 1883 Victorian-era two-story brick building designed by architect J. J. Hilly. Wellington’s Oxley anchor memorial is today found on the grounds of the Wellington Public School.

Updated 31 July 2023; originally posted 27 March 2020 as ‘Oxley’s Anchor away for 34 years’.

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The patriotism of the wartime sock knitter

March 10, 2020April 17, 2020 camdenhistorynotes1 Comment

Fussing over socks

During the First World War, there was a considerable fuss over socks. Not just any ordinary socks but hand-knitted socks. Camden women hand-knitted hundreds of pairs of socks. So what was going on?

As it turns out there was a good reason for all the fuss.

Soldiers on the Western Front suffered in terrible conditions in the trenches. They were constantly wet and cold. In winter there were freezing temperatures.

Fungal feet

Under these conditions, there was a constant danger of the soldiers getting trench foot. Jenny Raynor at Sydney Living Museum writes that this was

a potentially debilitating fungal infection that thrived in the wet, cold and squalid conditions, and could lead to gangrene and amputation if left untreated.

Soldiers wore stiff leather boots that were poorly insulated with two pairs of socks in freezing winter conditions to keep out the cold and wet.

Authorities recommended that troops change their socks twice a day to avoid trench feet. Reports from New Zealand maintained in 1915 that

a pair of socks lasted no more than two weeks when on active service.

So it was unsurprising that there was a constant shortage of socks.

Shortages from the start

Sock shortages commenced from the outbreak of war and illustrated how the progress of the war completely overwhelmed military authorities with their unrealistic expectations.

At the Liverpool Infantry Camp in November 1914 military authorities were advising that three pairs of woollen socks would be adequate for the duration of the campaign, while new recruits were advised by bring ‘strong boots’ and ‘knitted socks’ because the army could not supply them.

Military supply authorities never really got to grips with the problem of shortages throughout the war. Even the vast US military machine could not supply sufficient numbers of socks to their troops when the US government entered the war in 1917. The U.S. government Committee on Public Information sponsored the ‘‘Knit Your Bit’’ campaign conducted by the American Red Cross.

Keep knitting

Knitting for the troops was not restricted to the American Red Cross.

Knitting was part of the homefront response to the outbreak of war across all British Empire countries including Australia, New Zealand, Canada, and the United Kingdom.

Across the globe, millions of knitted items found their way to the trenches on the Western Front.

Socks were only one of a large list of items that women made for the war effort. Other knitted items included cholera belts, scarves, gloves and balaclavas, and this was supplemented by a considerable effort sewing hospital supplies.

Women volunteer to supply socks

Australian women volunteered to supply knitted from the start of the war. Unlike women in the United Kingdom, Australian women did not replace men in their civilian roles during the war.

In Australia, the push for knitted-socks, and other items, was co-ordinated by the Red Cross, the Australian Comforts Fund and other groups including the Soldiers’ Sock Fund.

In Queensland, the Governor’s wife, Lady Goold-Adams, established the Queensland Soldiers’ Sock Fund.

Knitted socks were part of the soldier’s bag that Red Cross volunteers signed up to supply on the foundation of branches throughout New South Wales in August 1914. Red Cross knitters in Camden and across Australia supplied thousands of pairs of knitted socks to soldiers.

In Camden, the new Red Cross branch supplied ‘a large number of socks’ in the first weeks of the war’ including supplies to the Australian Light Horse regiment and the 4^th Battalion of Infantry. By September 1915 Camden Red Cross workers had supplied 456 pairs of knitted socks to Red Cross headquarters in Sydney amongst a host of other hand-made items.

Annette, Lady Liverpool, the wife of New Zealand Governor Lord Liverpool,

Lady Liverpool instigated ‘Sock Day’, when the women of New Zealand were encouraged to knit enough socks to provide every soldier with two new pairs (around 30,000 pairs in total).

The First World War was not the first time that women volunteers had supplied knitted socks to Australian troops in wartime. In 1900 Camden women supplied 120 pairs of knitted socks to Camden troops in South Africa in the New South Wales Mounted Rifles. These were similar to the activities of British women.

Millions of socks

It has been estimated that Australian women knitted over 1.3 million pairs of socks for the Red Cross and Australian Comforts Fund for the war effort.

Often with a small personal note inside the sock informing the digger who had knitted the garment along with a brief message. (The Conversation 11 August 2014)

Knitting patterns were distributed and cheap wool was made available to knitters.

First World War Cover Knitting Book Aust Comforts Fund Vic 1918 ARC — The cover of the sock knitting pattern book ‘Directions for Standard Socks for Our Men on Active Service’. It was issued by the Australian Comforts Fund in 1918 (ARC)

In 2012 volunteer knitter Janet Burningham from Wrap with Love found that it took about a day to knit each sock. She used a rare grey sock pattern and Paton’s 8-ply grey wool and needles. Socks were knitted in the round on double-pointed needles leaving no seams.

The iconic sock knitter

The solo woman sock knitter was one of the everlasting iconic images of the war at home in Australia.

The iconic image of The Sock Knitter is a 1915 painting by Grace Cossington Smith found at the Art Gallery of NSW. The gallery states

The subject of the painting is Madge, the artist’s sister, knitting socks for soldiers serving on the frontline in World War I. Distinctly modern in its outlook, ‘The sock knitter’ counterpoints the usual narratives of masculine heroism in wartime by focusing instead on the quiet steady efforts of the woman at home.

Art AGNSW The Sock Knitter Grace Cossington Smith 1915 — ‘The Sock Knitter’ painted by Grace Cossington Smith in 1915 (AGNSW)

Knitting mediating grief

The action of Camden women and others who became wartime sock knitters was an act of patriotism. They were supporting their boys using one of their traditional domestic arts.

Knitting, sewing, and other domestic arts were unpaid war work and a form of patriotism when women in Australia did not replace men at home in the First World War, unlike the United Kingdom. Historian Bruce Scates has written that women invested a large amount of ‘emotional energy’ in their knitting and sewing.

Women were the mediators of wartime grief and bereavement and knitting and sewing groups were women-only spaces where they could comfort each other and ease the loneliness.

Sock solution

Suzanne Fischer writes that the sock problem and trench foot still existed in the Second World War for American troops stationed in Alaska. She states:

Characteristically, Americans finally reduced their trench foot casualties by throwing more technology at the problem. Thee Shoepac system, introduced in 1944, combined a rubber foot and an impermeable outer leather layer with a felt liner to keep feet dry. These boots were also stylish, which increased their use.

Updated 17 April 2020; original posted 10 March 2020.

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Reflections on the Thirlmere Lakes Science Information Day

March 5, 2020April 20, 2020 camdenhistorynotes

Thirlmere Lakes Research project

I recently attended a seminar day at Picton showcasing the latest Thirlmere Lakes Research presented at The Thirlmere Lakes Third Annual Science Day held at the Picton Bowling Club.

Thirlmere Lakes Science Day presentation 2020Feb28 lowres — Thirlmere Lakes Science Day introduction to delegates on 28 February 2020 at Picton Bowling Club, Picton. (I Willis)

There was a positive tone to the day where stakeholders were supportive of the goals of the research project. The Thirlmere Lakes Research Program aims to shed light on changes in water levels in the lakes by better understanding the land and groundwater of the system.

This was the third day in a series of seminars and was attended by a range of stakeholders including the community, researchers, and state and local government.

A team of scientists from a variety of research institutions presented a variety of papers ranging across lake geology, geophysics, sedimentation, groundwater, surface flow, chemistry, water balance, and vegetation.

Thirlmere Lakes Science Day presentation2 2020Feb28 lowres — Thirlmere Lakes Science Day Presentation on 28 February 2020 at Picton Bowling Club, Picton (I Willis)

The day was an opportunity for academic researchers to collaborate with each other and stimulate further research. Researchers were drawn from University of New South Wales (UNSW), GeoQuEST Research Centre, the University of Wollongong (UOW), the Australian Government and the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation (ANSTO), Deakin University and the NSW Department Primary Industry and Environment and NSW National Parks and Wildlife Services.

The research project was initiated by community activism started with the Rivers SOS group in 2010 and local concern about mining in the lakes area. Rivers SOS is an alliance of over 40 environmental and community groups concerned with the wrecking of rivers in New South Wales by mining operations.

The science day was very instructive from several perspectives including networking opportunities. Researchers tend to work in silos and conduct their work in isolation from other disciplines. The science day was an opportunity for researchers to interact with each other and generate new ideas from their work.

Thirlmere Lakes Science Day presentation3 Thanks you 2019Feb28 lowres — Thirlmere Lakes Science Day Presentation and thank you comments from researchers at Picton Bowling Club, Picton (I Willis)

There was a positive tone around the day where stakeholders were supportive of the goals of the research project. In the past, there are often tensions between stakeholders based on cynicism and lack of trust. There has been a mixed history of community consultations and engagement over policy decisions. In the past city-based decision-makers have shown little regard for the views of small communities. Their concerns have often been ignored.

The science days appear to have generated a significant level of trust between the community and the research team. There has been an open and transparent approach to the research project. Generally, science researchers do not like to present preliminary findings as they may differ significantly from the final results. This can prove problematic. The general community may not be fully aware of this process and can become suspicious and trust falls away.

The science day encouraged community engagement with positive comments from delegates, researchers and seminar day organisers. Before the commencement of the project, there was a high level of community cynicism about government responses to community concerns about the disappearance of the water in the lakes. The research project seems to have ameliorated many community concerns and lessened community cynicism towards decision-makers and the research process.

The second science day was held in June 2018 with five presentations showcasing preliminary findings from research partners. Feedback indicated that there was a strong interest in the early findings and the need for further community engagement – hence the 2020 day.

Thirlmere Lakes Science Day Aerial View 27Feb2020 2020Feb28 lowres — An aerial view of Thirlmere Lakes National Park 27 February 2020 after the recent rain event in February. This was part of a presentation during a break at the Thirlmere Lakes Science Day on 28 February 2020 at Picton Bowling Club Picton. (I Willis)

Announcement of Thirlmere Lakes Research project by the state government

In 2017 the Macarthur press announced the launch of the current Thirlmere Lakes Research project. The South West Voice reported

The research partners, University of New South Wales (UNSW), University of Wollongong (UOW) and Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation (ANSTO), will investigate the sensitivity of these wetland systems to external influences, such as the effects of mining activity and groundwater extraction, over the next four years. (South West Voice 20 October 2017)

Thirlmere Lakes Diarama Science Day 2020Feb28 Lowres — A diorama that was displayed at Thirlmere Lakes Science Day at Picton Bowling Club Picton on 28 February 2020 (I Willis)

The press reports detailed that the 2017 project was built on a 2014 monitoring program that has been continuously recording water levels in the 5 lakes.

The Voice stated that the areas of investigation for the 2017 project included

Geological mapping and geophysical surveys of the Thirlmere Lakes area (UNSW – Dr Wendy Timms);
Environmental isotopes investigations into periodic and recent water losses from Thirlmere Lakes (ANSTO – Dr Dioni Cendón);
Thirlmere Lakes: the geomorphology, sub-surface characteristics and long term perspectives on lake-filling and drying (UOW – Dr Tim Cohen);
Surface Water – Groundwater Interaction (UNSW – Dr Martin Andersen);
Developing an integrated water balance budget for Thirlmere Lakes to provide a detailed understanding of hydrological dynamics (UNSW – Associate Professor Will Glamore). (South West Voice 20 October 2017)

The Thirlmere Lakes Research website stated that the state government provided a significant budget for the 2017 project:

The former Office of Environment and Heritage (OEH) committed $1.9 million over 4 years for the Thirlmere Lakes Research Program to help understand the fluctuating water levels in the lakes.

The 2012 inquiry and more

The website states that research on the Thirlmere Lakes began with a 2012 inquiry. This was prompted by community concerns about low water levels in Thirlmere Lakes and the potential impacts of coal mining and groundwater extraction. The 2012 research highlighted gaps in knowledge about the lakes. The inquiry published its findings in the Thirlmere Lakes Inquiry: Final Report of the Independent Committee. The NSW Chief Scientist reviewed the 2012 findings and water monitoring was started in 2013. Following this, a workshop was held in 2016 and its findings were published in The Mysterious Hydrology of Thirlmere Lakes.

Popular with locals

Thirlmere Lakes Families Picnic 1984 DHunt — Thirlmere Lakes with family picnics with children enjoying the lake and swimming in 1984 (D Hunt)

The Thirlmere Lakes National Park is 629 acres located in the Macarthur region and was proclaimed a national park in 1972. In 2000 the national park was inscribed as part of the UNESCO World Heritage-listed Greater Blue Mountains Area. The lakes have been a popular recreation spot with local families for many decades.

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A trainee teachers’ camp in Camden in the 1920s

March 4, 2020June 3, 2023 camdenhistorynotes1 Comment

The trainee teacher mystery of 1924?

Recently the Camden Museum posted an intriguing photograph taken at the Camden Showground on the Camden Museum Facebook page. It showed a large group of young men and women identified as trainee teachers from Sydney Teachers College.

Camden resident Peter Hammond asked on the Camden Museum Facebook page: Any idea why they were in Camden?

A mystery photograph

The photograph is a bit of a mystery.

The photograph was contributed to the Camden Museum by John Donaldson and was taken in May 1924. The photograph shows 48 women, 34 men, and 2 children.

The photograph reveals more. You can see the spire of St. Johns Church in the background and the absence of the 1938 brick front on the show hall. There are no brick and iron gates on the showground. The brick building at the corner of Argyle and Murray is yet to be built.

Photographs can tell so much about the past. They are an excellent resource, and this image provides much information about this mystery.

Mysterious journey

So I set off on a journey to solve the mystery of the question about the photograph.

Camden Trainee Teachers Camp Showground 1924 JDonaldson CIPP — The group photograph of the trainee teachers from Sydney Teachers College at Onslow Park adjacent to the Show Hall in 1924. This is the image that prompted the original question by Peter Hammond on the Camden Museum’s Facebook page. (John Donaldson/CIPP) This image was photographed initially by Roy Dowle of Camden on a glass plate negative. The Dowle collection of glass plate negatives is held by The Oaks Historical Society (Roy Dowle Collection, TOHS)

A quick search of the Camden News on Trove revealed that in May 1924, a camp of trainee teachers stayed at the Camden Agricultural Hall in Onslow Park. The report in the Camden News revealed more information.

There are 109 students and some ten lecturers and authorities gathering, from the University Teachers’ College. The students are obtaining practical knowledge by attending the different schools in the district, and much good should be the result. Those in charge are to be complimented on the excellent arrangements at the camp. (Camden News 15 May 1924)

More to the story

So was this a one-off, or is there more to the story?

Further digging reveals that the first camp was in 1921; there were two camps per year, one in May and the second around August. There were between 70 and 100 trainee teachers at each camp, and they attended several local schools during their stay. The camps seem to have been for about three weeks each. There appeared to be lots of interaction between locals and visitors with sporting events, dances, lectures, and other activities.

Camden Trainee Teacher Camp 1924 Tennis MWatkins SLNSW bcp_01861h — Trainee teachers from Sydney Teachers College at the 1924 Camden camp have a game of tennis in the local area during their recreation time (SLNSW)

The first camp in May 1921 seems to have been a big deal for the town and the AH&I Society. Following the First World War, the finances of the AH&I Society were in a parlous state, and the hall hire was a welcome boost to finances.

Bright-eyed and bushy-tailed

Camden was first graced with the presence of these bright-eyed and bushy-tailed budding young teachers in 1921 when 64 of them settled in for a week at the show hall. The Camden camp provided them an opportunity to practice their teaching theory and practice of the New South Wales New Syllabus that they learned in the classroom at Sydney Teacher’s College. The 1921 trainees were all single and were made up of 49 women and 15 men, and four weeks after the Camden camp was to be placed in schools. (Camden News, 12 May 1921)

The Sydney Teachers College trainees were allocated to schools across the local region. The list included: Camden Campbelltown, Campbelltown South, Cawdor, Cobbitty, Glenfield, Ingleburn, Minto, Mount Hunter, Narellan and The Oaks. (Camden News, 12 May 1921)

The teaching practice visits were organised on a group basis, and the transport was either by train or bus. By the end of their training course, the students had had at least three weeks of practice teaching in teaching at rural schools. (Sydney Mail, 8 June 1921)

A world first for Camden

In 1920 the STC students had been based at Glenbrook, and the experiment’s success encouraged the college to extend it to Camden. According to the Sydney press, the venture was a first in Australia for teacher training, and it was believed at the time to be a world first for such a camp. During the week in Camden, the New South Wales Director of Education, Peter Board and the chief inspector, HD McLelland, visited the camp. (Sydney Mail, 8 June 1921)

Camden Trainee Teacher camp 1921 SydMail1921Jun8 — The Camden trainee teacher camp was considered such an important occasion by the Sydney press that the *Sydney Mail* devoted a complete page to the trainee teacher camp at Camden. (Sydney Mail 8 June 1921)

A party of 89

In 1921 the party of 89, comprised of students, lecturers, and their families, had arrived by train at Camden the previous Saturday afternoon. The group put up the show hall with conversion to a dormitory and construction of cubicles to accommodate the mixed sexes. The show pavilion was converted into a kitchen and dining area from 6am to 9am and then again after 4pm. The Camden press reports stated that at these times, ‘the showground was a scene of great activity’. (Camden News, 12 May 1921)

The STA trainees had some time for recreation, and in the evenings singing and games were organised between 7pm and 8pm by the music lecturer Miss Atkins and the education lecturer Miss Wyse. Games and singing were held at the St Johns Parish Hall, and sometimes, the students organised tennis games. (Camden News, 12 May 1921)

Sydney Teachers College 2011 Flkr — Sydney Teachers College is located on the University of Sydney grounds, where the Camden camp trainee teachers attended their courses. (Flickr 2011)

More mysteries?

Do you have any mysterious photographs that tell a great story about our local area?

Updated 3 June 2023; originally posted 3 April 2020 as ‘The trainee teacher mystery of 1924?’

The mystery of the John Oxley Memorial anchor.

John Oxley Memorial Anchor

John Oxley, the man

John Oxley Reserve

John Oxley Cottage

John Oxley is remembered in lots of places

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Fussing over socks

Fungal feet

Shortages from the start

Keep knitting

Women volunteer to supply socks

Millions of socks

The iconic sock knitter

Knitting mediating grief

Sock solution

Share this:

Share this:

Thirlmere Lakes Research project

Announcement of Thirlmere Lakes Research project by the state government

The 2012 inquiry and more

Popular with locals

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Share this:

The trainee teacher mystery of 1924?

A mystery photograph

Mysterious journey

More to the story

Bright-eyed and bushy-tailed

A world first for Camden

A party of 89

More mysteries?

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