Darlinghurst Gaol - Taylor Square - Bourke Street - Forbes Street - Burton Street - Darlinghurst Road -

Darlinghurst Gaol - Taylor Square - Darlinghurst 

Ten Things  You May Not Have Known About Darlinghurst Goal. 

1. In The Early 1820's, The NSW Colonial Administration Decided To Invest In A New Prison Facility. A Site was Identified At Darlinghurst Hill & The Architect Francis Greenway Was Asked To Design It. Darlinghurst Goal Was To Overlook Sydney As A Constant Reminder That Sydney Town Was A Convict Settlement. 
——————————————————————————————————
2. In 1822, Construction Of The Walls Began Using Convict Labour. After An Early Flurry, Funds Eventually Ran Out And Work On The Site Stopped. Sydney's Existing Jail At The Rocks Eventually Suffered From Intense Overcrowding & Public Pressure Led The Darlinghurst  Goal Project To Restart In 1835. 

The Later Designs Of The Prison By Architect Mortimer Lewis, Were Radically Changed by George Barney, Who Then Took Over The Project. After 1841 Even George Barneys Designs Were Changed By The Administration To Fit In More Prisoners In The Complex. 

In The Original Plans, Each Cell Was To Accomodate 1 Prisoner, But That Was Changed To Each Cell Holding 3 Prisoners. Outside The Walls, Near The Front Entrance, Effluent & Sewage Collected In A Big Pond, With The Stench Rising Up To Greet Anyone Who Came Past It.

———————————————————————————————————

3. The First Prisoners Were Housed In 1841. However, The Prison Itself was Not Completed Until 1881. 
———————————————————————————————————

4. Over The Decades, The Darlinghurst Goal Hosted Some Significant Prisoners, Including - 

Poet Henry Lawson. Lawson, Who Did Time For Drunkeness & Non Payment Of Alimony, Recorded His Experience In His 1908 Poem, One Hundred & Three - His Prison Number 

- Captain Moonlight

———————————————————————————————————

5. Makeshift Public Gallows Were Locates Outside The Main Gate In Forbes Street. A Permanent Gallows Was Located Inside The Main Wall Near The Intersection If Darlinghurst Road & Burton Street. Among The 79 People Executed Was Notorious Bushranger Captain Moonlight In 1880.

Also Executed - John Knatchbull - Hanged in 1844

- jimmy Governor - Hanged in 1901

- The Last Woman Hanged In NSW Was Louisa Collins in January 1889

———————————————————————————————————

6. Conditions In The Goal Deteriorated & It Was Plagued With Drainage, Security & Disease Problems. The Long Bay Goal Superceded Darlinghurst When It Opened In 1914 With Such Mod Cons As Cell Lighting & A Prison Library. 
——————————————————————————————————

7. The Jail Was Used As An Internment Camp During World War One. In 1921 The Buildings Were Converted Into The East Sydney Technical College. 
———————————————————————————————————

8. In 1921, The National Art School Also Took Up Residence In The Old Prison Buildings. Students Who Passed Through The NAS Include -

 Margaret Olley, Ken Done, Max Dupain, Reg Mombasaa & The Sculptor Raynor Hoff, James Gleeson, John Coburn, Fiona Hall, Wendy Sharp, Jeffrey Smart, John Olsen, 
————————————————————————————————

9. Also Within The Complex Is The Cell Block Theatre Which Was Announced In 1955 By Hollywood Legend Katherine Hepburn. Hepburn Made a Speech Noting How Appropriate It Was That A Member Of The Second Oldest  Profession In The Business,  Should Open A Building Which Had Housed Women From the Oldest Profession. 
——————————————————————————

10. Darlinghurst Goal Is The Oldest Surviving Large Jail Complex In Australia. 
——————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————
——————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————
Prisoners Were Marched In Chains From The Decaying Prison In Old George Street North To The Big New Goal In Darlinghurst In 1841. 
There were 159 fillings in the cavalcade, 119 men and 40 women.
Three years later a crowd of 10,000 were outside the Gaols Great Stone Wall To  Watch Murderer John Knatchbull hang on the public gallows. Until 1852 All Hangings Were public. The last hanging out the jail was in 1907, of the 67th Person to die on the gallows there.
The Goal Had Been Planned In 1835, was a long time building. 13 years earlier, convicts had begun to dig stone for its wall On Goat Island & in the Woolloomooloo Quarries. Some of the marks they carved in the blocks, So That A Tally could be kept Of Their Quota in the cut stone, Is Still Legible. 
The Gaol Was Planned by Mortimer Lewis, After The Original Designs From Francis Greenway Many Years before.   On An American Model, As A Series Of Curved buildings Grouped Around A Chapel. In 1840, A Time Of Depression, Free Labour Was Used On the Chief Gaoler's House And Two Cell Wings Under A Scheme To Ease 
"The Great Destitution Among The Working Classes."
Strenuous But Not Always Successful Efforts Were Made To Extract  Useful Work From The Prisoners, Who Worked At trades Seven hours A Day. Discipline Was Severe. 
One Of The Few Amenities Was the Fact That No Cell Had A Ceiling Less Than 10 Feet High. 
In World War 1, German Prisoners Of War Were Housed in the Gaol, & Long Bay Gaol Took Over The Criminals. In 1921 The Massive Buildings Threw off their Ugly Past - Darlinghurst Gaol Opened Its Gates To Hopeful youth & Became East Sydney Technical College. 

2022 - The Latest News About The Darlinghurst Site 

 Darlinghurst Law Courts To Become Centre Of New Cultural Precinct

St Peter's Church - Watson's Bay

Known About.....

St Peter's Church.... Watson's Bay NSW

1. The Chirch Will Celebrate It's 150th Anniversary In June 2014. It Was Formed On June 22 1863.

2. St Peter's Was Built To A Design By Edmund Blackett. Since It's Establishment, It Has Played  A Pivotal Role In Community Life In Watson's Bay.

3.  The Pipe Organ In The West Gallery Is Among The Oldest in Sydney. It Was Built In 1796 By Robert And William Gray From London. Legend Suggests It Was Lent To Emperor Napolean, Long Before It Was Installed In The Church In 1920. 

4. Records Indicate That Support For An Anglican Church Dates From 1847. At A Meeting On June 27, 1847, Bishop Broughton, The Bishop Metropolitan, Expressed His Desire That The Proposed Watson's Bay Church Should Be Named St Peters. But It Then Took 17 More Years To Build. The First Church Built In Watson's Bay Was An Independent Chapel Built Near South Head Lighthouse In 1839. 

5. The Gates Were Added In 1929, Signalling The Completion Of The Church As A Full Parish. The Gates Were Dedicated To The Memory Of Those Killed In The Greycliffe Ferry Disaster

6. The Original Hall Was Built As An Addition On 1911. The Church's Rectory Was Built In 1923.

7. For The First 10 Years Of St Peter's History, It Was A. Branch Church Of St Marks In Darling Point. With The Opening Of All Saints Church  In Woolahra, In 1876, The District Of Watsons Bay Was Transferred To That Parish. It Remained There For 25 Years. 

By 1900, The Congregation Had Built Up To 17 Families Paying Pew Rents, Which Enabled St Peter's To Be Properly Furnished And To Establish A Sizable Sunday School. 

8. John and Janette Howard were Married There In 1971. The Former Prime Minister And His Wife Wed On April 4

9. St Peter's Church Was Officially Consecrated Almost 150 Years Ago On December 27, 1864. It Was Consecrated By Dr Barker, Who Was Then Bishop Metropolitan Of Sydney. Dr Barker Was Assisted By Dean Cowper, Dean Of Sydney, And Rev Kemmis. Rev Kemmis Saw St Peter's Constructed And Then Consecrated During His Time Looking After The Church Between 1864 &1876.

10.

Woolloomooloo Wharf - Woolloomooloo - Sydney

My 16th 2014

10 Things You May Not Have Known About......

WOOLLOOMOOLOO WHARF

1. The Finger Wharf Or Woolloomooloo Bay Is The Longest Timber Piled Wharf In The World & The Longest Finger Wharf.

2. It Was Built By The Sydney Harbour Trust Between  1911 & 1915. It Was Designed By The Trusts Engineer In Chief... Henry Walsh

3. The Wharf Has A Length Of 410 Metres & A Width Of 64 Metres, & Is Composed Of Two Side Sheets Running Almost The Length Of The Jetty,  Connected By A Covered Roadway. 

4. The Finger Wharf Was An Operational Working Wharf For Much Of The 20th Century. During Its working Life, For About 70 Years, It Primarily  Handled The Export Of Wool. It Took Overseas Shipping From Europe & America As Well As From The Pacific. 
It Also Acted As A Staging Point For Troop Deployment To Both World Wars, As a Well As A Disembarking Point For New Migrants Arriving In Australia.

5. By The 1970's, New Container Ports With Larger Wharfing Facilities And Cruise Liner Terminals Around The City Meant The Use If The Wharf Declined.
By The 1980's The Wharf Lay Derelict & In 1987, The NSW Government Decided To Demolish it.

6. A New 440 Berth Marina & Resort Was Approved To Replace The a Wharf But When The Demolition Work Was Due To Begin In January 1991, Locals Blocked The Entry To The Site. 

7. Public Sentiment Was For Retention, & A Host Of Public Meetings Were Held Before Unions Imposed A Green Ban Which Stopped Demolition Crews From Undertaking Work

8. Other Uses For The Site Were Canvassed & Included A Museum Of Work & Industry. 

9. In 1999, The Walker Corporation & Multiplex Completed A 300 Million Makeover That Created 300 Apartments, A Hotel, & A Marina. The Development Has Attracted Famous Tenants... Among From Russell Crowe & John Laws. 

10. Woolloomooloo Wharf Is Among One Of Sydney's Best Dining Strips With Otto, Manta & China Doll Among Those Restaurants To Call It Home. The Blue Hotel Is a operated By The Taj Hotel Group. 

St Mary’s Cathedral - College Street & Art Gallery Road

 ST MARYS CATHEDRAL 

Cnr Of College Street & Cathedral Street 












The dramatic beginnings of Roman Catholicism in Australia lie on Church Hill. Where St Patrick’s college stands, next to the old church of the same name, was the cottage of ex-convict William Davies, Irish rebel. For two years in 1818 to 1820, he secretly sheltered the sacrament consecrated by A priest deported from New South Wales for saying mass without permission.

There had Been Roman Catholics in New South Wales from the time of the first fleet, but their religion as prescribed. They were obliged, on penalty of flogging for absenteeism, to attend protestant services. Sacrament on Church Hill kept hope alive At a time when the felling of persecution Was intense. 

Macquarie had deported the unauthorised father Jeremiah Flynn as he feared  that designing artful priest might stir up a spirit of resentment among the Irish in the colony.
But it was Macquarie who, three years later, magnanimously laid the foundation stone of St Mary’s chapel, the first Roman catholic church in Australia.





This was on the side where the great basilica now stands, opposite Hyde Park. Macquarie, a mason of many years standing made a neat joke about the fact that he had trowellef the stone into  place.
St Mary’s Became A Cathedral after the first Bishop, Dr Polding arrived in 1835.






The enlarged Gothic building burnt down in
1865, and the temporary wooden church also destroyed by fire.
Another wooden pro cathedral  was built and was used until the first part of William Wardell’s Great perpendicular gothic Cathedral could be opened in 1882.
Work went on until 1928, but Unfinished Between spires  that were planned for it




















The  First St Mary's Church Was A Much Smaller Building Than The One We Know Today. The First Mass Was Held In Its Simple Stone Structure In 1833. 
In the Years Later After A Bellflower. offices, Cloister & Library Were Added. 
4. The Church Was Destroyed Fire On June 29, 1865. Plans For The Construction of A New, Larger Cathedral Were Immediately Put Into Place.
Architect William Wardell, A Man With A Reputation For Building In The Gothic Revival Style, Designed The New Building. 
5. Archbishop Polding Had Given William Wardell A Completely Free Hand On The Design. "Any Plan, Any Style, Anything That Is Beautiful & Grand, To The Extent Of Our Power," The Archbishop Wrote To The Architect. 
The Cathedrals  Nave Was Completed In 1928, Which Ended The Construction Period which Had Taken 60 Years & Cost 700,000 Pounds. 






Yet For Almost Another 75 Years, st Mary's Cathedral Remained In Many Peoples Minds Unfinished. Two Squared Off Towers, Rather Than Wardell's Original Plans For Spires , Framed The Building.
With The Assistance Of A Grant From The NSW Government, The Spires Were Built In 2000. 






The Bells Of St Mary's Cathedral Were The Only Feature To Survive After The June 1865 Fire. Cast at The white Chapel Foundry In London, They Were Traded In For A New ring Of Eight Bells, Which Were Installed In1881. 





Three Popes Have Visited St Mary's Cathedral Including Pope Paul XI In 1980, Pope John Paul II In 1986 & 1995, & Pope Benedict XVI, As Part Of World Youth Day Celebrations Held In Sydney In 2008. 







A House For God In Old Sydney Town - Catholic Weekly

Elizabeth Bay House - Elizabeth Bay - Sydney - New South Wales

Elizabeth Bay House - Elizabeth Bay - New South Wales 

10 Things You May Not Have Known About Elizabeth Bay House...

1. It Was Built Between 1835-1839 In The Regency Architectural Style And Was Originally Surrounded By A 22 Hectare Garden In What Was Then The Fashionable Suburb Of Woolloomooloo Hill. The Area Has Evolved Into The Densely Populated Suburb Of Elizabeth Bay. 

_________________________________________________________________

2. The Rooms, Sweeping Staircase And Lavish Furnishings Reveal The Tastes Of Its Original Owner, Alexander Macleay, The One Time Colonial Secretary Of New South Wales. Magnificent Gardens Expressed His Passion For The Natural World But In The 1840's Downturn Ushered Him Towards Financial Ruin 

_________________________________________________________________

3. Macleay Arrived In Sydney From England In January 1826, With His Wife Eliza, Nine Of Ten Surviving Children, And His Extensive Entomological Collection. At The Time, He Possessed The Finest And Most Extensive Collection Of Any Private Individual In England. 

_________________________________________________________________

4. Architect John Verge Produced A Design For A Splendid "Marine Villa" In The Greek Revival Style, Which Was At Its Peak Of Popularity Then. 

_________________________________________________________________

5. A Nearby Grotto With Accompanying Stone Walls And Steps, Plus Several Trees, Are All That Remain Of The Original Extensive Garden. It Held Macleay's Considerable Native And Exotic Plant Collection, An Orchard And Kitchen Garden. 

_________________________________________________________________

6. The Main Axis Of The House Is Aligned With The Winter Solstice. Though No Documents Are Known To Discuss This Feature, It Is Not Likely To Be An Accident. 

_________________________________________________________________

7. For The Remainder Of The 19th Century And Well Into The 20th Century, Elizabeth Bay House Had A Chequered History. With The Property Being Subdivided. THE gardens Were Reduced To A Small Fragment. The House Became Home For A Succession Of Tenants, Including Many Artists. 

_________________________________________________________________

8. In 1961 The National Trust Started To List And Publicise Important Historic Places. Elizabeth Bay House Was One Of The First 50 Places Named. 

_________________________________________________________________

9. In 1977, The House Was Extensively Restored And Refurbished, Initially So It Could Become The Official Residence Of The Lord Mayor Of Sydney. Later Elizabeth Bay House Became One Of The First Properties Acquired By The Historic Houses Trust 

_________________________________________________________________

10. THE property Was Used As The Setting For A Jessica Mauboy Music Video In 2010

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

"A Few Days Ago I Saw One Of The Most Perfect Places I ever Saw In My Life"
Mrs Robert Lowe Wrote To Her Mother In 1842. 

"The Drive To The House Is Cut Through Rocks Covered With The Splendid Wild Shrubs And Flowers Of This Country. Here And There An Immense Primevil Tree. The House Is Built Of White Stone And Looks Like A Nobleman's Place. In The Garden Are The Plants Of Every Climate From Rio To The West And East Indies, China And Even England. Bulbs From The Cape And Beautiful Roses Are To Be Seen. Oranges, Lemons, Citrons, Guavas And Pomegranites Are in Full Bloom"

But There Were Drawbacks To the Garden  Of Elizabeth Bay House, Home Of Alexander Macleay, Colonial Secretary Of New South Wales, As Seen Through the Eyes of An English Woman Accustomed To Soft Greeness. it Was Too Dry; The Plants Grew out of Sandy White Soil. "A few English Showers" She Observed "Would Improve It."
Macleay's Domain Was 54 Acres And Was The Wonder Of the Colony.
The Land Had Come To Him In 1828 As A grant From Governor Darling, Who Respected his Knowledge As A Naturalist And Horticulturalist. Macleay Completed Elizabeth Bay House In 1837, But Lived There Only 9 Years. 
His Heirs Used Pistols & Bloodhounds To Guard The Treasures Of the Garden Against Despoilers. But In The Long Run There Was no Defence Against Land Hunger.
A Great Slice Of the Garden Was Sold In 1875; And The Rest Of The Estate Was Cut Up In 1927. 
Today.... A Few Yards Of Earth Are the Only Setting Left For One Of The Finest Examples Of Regency Architecture in Sydney... 

***** %%%%% Juniper Hall - Paddington

10 Things You May Not Have Kown About.... Juniper Hall - Paddington - Sydney

1. Juniper Hall Was Built In 1824 By Emancipated Convict & Father Of 248, Robert Cooper. He Had Promised His Third Wifew Sarah That She Would Have The Finest House In All The Colony.

2 cooper, a Gin Distiller, Named His New Home Juniper Hall, After The Juniper Berry Used In The Spirit's Distillation. 

3. Cooper Leased The Property To An Irish Lawyer & NSW Attorney General John Kinchela In 1831. Kinchela Renamed The House Ormonde House. The "e" Was Dropped Shoprtly After & To This Day The Street To The West Of Juniper Hall Bears The Name Ormond Street. 

4. Cooper Was Declared Bankrupt In 1849 & By 1852 The Property Was Leased To The Society For The Relief Of Destitute Children. Up To 130 Children Called Juniper Hall Home During This Time. 

5. In 1885, The House Was Bought By The NSW Government & Extended With A Large Addition To The Eastern End.  The Extension Was Built In A Similar Style To The Original & Used As The Probation Office For The Metropolitan Shelter For Children & The Children's Court. 

6. The Building Was Eventually Sold To A Shoemaker, Joe Gardiner, & In The Early 1920's He Proposed To Demolish It & Build Flats   (WHO WOULD'VE THOUGHT.....) After a Public Outcry, Gardiner Instead Converted The House To Flats & Built A Row Of SHops On The Oxford Street Frontage. 

7. In 1984, After 60 Years As Residential Flats, The Building Was Bought By The National Trust Of Australia. A Restoration Project Demolished The Row Of SHops.

8. Juniper Hall Is The Oldest Surviving Mansion From The Time Of Governor Lachlan Macquarie (1810 - 1821). It Is Also The Oldest Building East Of The City. The Positionj Of The House On The Top Of A Ridge Line Means It Has Views Across The Harbour To The North & To Botany Bay To The South. 

9. In September 2012, The Home Went Under The Hammer & A 99 Year Lease Was Secured By The Moran Family. The Moran's Bought The Titral For More Than $4 Million & Have Since Restored The Ground Level. 

10. The Moran Family Is Related To The Original Juniper Hall Inhabitant's, The Cooper Family.

Central Station - From Cemetary To Train Station

10 Things You Might Not Have Known About

 - Central Station

1. Central Station Was Built On Top Of A Cemetary. Devonshire Street Cemetary Was Acquired By The Government To Build The Station in 1901. 

2. Central Station As It Stands Was Sydney's Third Station.The Original Station Was Built In Redfern in 1855. An Upgraded Station Was Built In 1870 But Both Were Considered Too Small & Too Far Away From The City Centre By 1885. 

3. The Station Opened on August 4th, 1906. Stage Two, Incorporating two Additional Floors, Began In 1915 But World War 1 Slowed Construction Considerably & It Was Not Completed Until 1921. 

4. The Foundation POf Central's Sandstone Clock Tower Was Laid On Setember 26th, 1903.It Was Not Completed Until 10.22amon March 3rd, 1921, When The Clock Started Ticking

5. Prior To Electric Trains & Underground Lines, Central Consisted Of 19 Terminal Platforms.,.In 1926 , New Platforms (16-23) Were Built At A Higher Level To Service The City circle & North Shore Lines Over The Sydney Harbour Bridge. 

6. Platforms Servicing The Eastern Suburbs Were Built In 1979.  They Are Platforms 24 & 25

7. The First Train To Leave The New Station Left From Platform 12.  It Made A Special Run To Parramatta. 

8. central Is The Busiest Station In Sydney.  It Services About 146,000 Travellers Per Day. 

9.Many Sites & Plans Were Put Forward Before The Old Devonshire Strret Cemetary Was Chosen. A Hyde Park Station Was ALso On The Drawing Board

 

10. Pitt Street Was Widened  & Eddy Avenue Created As Part Of The Station Master Plan. The Plan Required The Relocations Of Major City Infrastructure, Including A Tram Depot, The Police Superintendant's Residence In Pitt Street, The Police Barracks, The Benevolent Society & Christ Church Parsonage.

Advance Australia Fair - Australian National Anthem

Advance Australia Fair - The Australian National Anthem

Australians All Let Us Rejoice, 
For We Are Young & Free
We've Golden Soil & Wealth For Toil
Our Home Is Girt By Sea
Our Land Abounds In Nature's Gifts
Of Beauty Rich & Rare;
In History's Page, Let Every Stage
Advance Australia Fair
In Joyful Strains Then Let Us Sing.... Advance Australia Fair
 
Beneath Our Radiant Southern Cross,
We'll Toil With Hearts & Hands;
To Make This Commonwealth Of Ours 
Renowned Of All The Lands;
For Those Who've Come Across The Sea
We've Boundless Plains To Share;
With Courage Let Us All Combine
To Advance Australia Fair......
In Joyful Strains Then Let Us Sing..... Advance Australia Fair...
**************************************************

The Original 1879 Advance Australia Fair
 

Verse 1
Australia's Sons Let Us Rejoice, 
For We Are Young & Free;
We've Golden Soil & Wealth For Toil, 
Our Home Is Girt By Sea;
Our Land Abounds In Nature's Gifts Of Beauty Rich & Rare;
In History's Page, Let Every Stage, Advance Australia Fair.....
In Joyful Strains Then Let Us Sing.......... Advance Australia Fair
 

Verse 2
When Gallant Cook From Albion Sailed,
To Trace Wide Ocean's O'er,
True British Courage Bore Him On, 
Till He Landed On Our Shore. 
Then Here He Raised Old England's Flag, The Standard Of The Brave;
"With All Her Faults We Love Her Still"
"Britannia Rules The Wave"
In Joyful Strains Then Let Us Sing...... Advance Australia Fair 

Verse 3 
While Other Nations Of The Globe Behold Us From Afar, 
We'll Rise To High Renown & Shine Like Our Glorious Southern Star;
From England Soil & Fatherland, Scotia & Erin Fair
Let All Combine With Heart & Hand To Advance Australia Fair
In Joyful Strains Then Let Us Sing...... Advance Australia Fair 
Verse 4 
Should Foreign Foe E'er Sight Our Coast Or Dare a Foot To Land
We'll Rouse To Arms Like Sires Of Yore, To Guard Our Native Strand;
Britannia Then Shall Surely Know, Though Ocean's Roll Between, 
Her Son's In Fair Australia's Land Still Keep Their Courage Green
In Joyful Strains Then Let us Sing...... 
Advance Australia Fair.........

The Cadigal People And The Eastern Beaches

Every Day Along The Eastern Beaches Of Sydney We Speak Words That Continue To Connect Us With The Cadigal People, The Traditional Owners (TO's) Of Cadigal Country

Aboriginal Place Names Are Spread Across Australia From Coast To Coast, Derived From The Various Languages & Dialects That Once Dominated Their Respective Landscapes. Some Of The Names Were Adopted By Colonisers & Have Been Subsumed Into Mainstream Australian Culture, Others Are Still Used By TO's, Some Are No Longer Used At All, But Have Been Recorded Historically, & There Are Many That Have Been Lost From Memory.

When You Lay Asleep Last Night & Hear The Sound Of The Ocean, of Waves Breaking On The Shore, That Sound We  Need  A sentence To Describe Is Expressed By the Cadigal In One Word "BONDI"

Historically Bondi Was Spelt Variously As Boondi, Bundi, Bundeye & Boodye. With Such A Beautiful & Poetic Meaning, It Is Surprising That It Is Not More Commonly Known. 

Alternatively, The Australian Museum Has A Record That Bondi Means The "Place Where A Fight Of Nulla's Took Place." It Has Been Suggested That This Latter Meaning May Derive From The Dull Wet Crack. A Nulla (An Aboriginal Weapon) Would Have Made As If It Hit Someone In The Head In Warfare Or Payback Ceremonies; A Sound Analogous To Be The Wet Crack Of Waves Breaking On Rocks. 

Tamarama Has Two Distinct Spellings As "Gamma Gamma," & Elsewhere As "Cramarama." It's Original Phonetic Pronunciation Must Lie Somewhere Between The Three Variations. Despite Maroubra Folklore, Historical Evidence Suggests That It Is Tamarama That Means "Thunder" Or "Thunder Clap" Or "Thunder Storm" 

Unfortunately For Coogee, It's Name Doesn't Have Quite The Poetic Sensibility That Bondi Does, Though It's Great For Sledging Coogee Residents In Sport Or Pub Banter. The Name Coogee Has Been Derived From The Aboriginal Word "Kudjah" (Kudjii), Meaning "Smelly" Or "Bad Smell". It Is Believed That The Name Derived From The Smell Of Large Deposits Of Rotting Seaweed That Once Built Up Along The Shoreline. There Is Good Historical Record That The True Name Of Coogee Bay Is "Bobroi"

"Boora" Is The Name Of Long Bay. The Traditional Word For A Pathway Was Recorded As "Mo-Ro" & Elsewhere As "Maru". Maroubra Is Believed To Be A Combination Of The Words "Maru" (Pathway) & "Boora" (Long Bay). Long Bay Was An Important Camping & Ceremonial Ground For The Cadigal, And The Traditional Pathway That Led There Passed Right Through Present Day Maroubra. 

For TO's, The Importance of Place Names Is Obvious. It Would Be Difficult To Find Significant Geographical Features In Australia That Don't Have An Original Name That Forms Part Of Greater Narratives Of Creation And Lore, Which Us Whitefellas Have Called Dreamtime these Stories Weave Their Way Across The Country Along Song Lines Often So Vast In Distance That Even Distinct Language Groups Are Custodians Of Only Part Of The Story. 

Since 2001 The NSW Government Has Committed To Recognising Aboriginal Cultural Heritage By Registering Original Place Names So That They Are Set Aside With Existing Names. Already 20 Locations Around Sydney Harbour Have Been Formally Gazetted As Dual Names Under The NSW Geographical Names Board Dual Naming Policy. 

But The Significance Of Aboriginal Place Names Is Not Just Important For TO's. They Are A Defining Element Of The Cultural Identity Of Australia. Many Are So Commonly Used, Subsumed Into Our Daily Lives, & Others So Subtle That We Fail To Recognise Their Significance. However, To Foreign Ears These Names Cleary Distinguish Themselves As Exotic; They Are Uniquely Our Own. As Such Defining Characteristics Of Our Nation In The Growing Cultural Monotony Of Globalisation, They Are Features We Should Celebrate. 

The Cadigal Have Left The Eastern Beaches Of Sydney A Greater Cultural Legacy Than The Place Names we Speak Of Daily

And when I Feel Up To Writing Again I Will Follow Up With The Greatest Gift & Legacy That The Cadigal Left Us. 

The Convict Stain

the convict stain

January 23, 2014 at 8:26am

the First Officially Recordee Incidence Occurred 60yrs Before European Settlement in 1727. The Dutch Ship Zeewijk. . . 

Captain Arthur Phillip 

"There Are Two Crimes That Would Merit Death - Murder & Sodomy" 

The First Trial For Sodomy Took Place In 1796, With The Accused Francis Wilkinson Was Acquitted. 

The First Person Hanged Was Alexander Brown In 1828. 

1839 - Camping By A Billabong 

In 1828 Samuel Cox Was Sentanced To Death 

convict Stain Part 2

January 23, 2014 at 8:47am

Tasmanian Executions 

Heindrick Whitmalder - in Hobart 

Dennis Collins In Launceston in 1863 

Robert Hughes - the Fatal Shore 

1803 - georgette lee -the Portland. -

Vaucluse house

            VAUCLUSE  HOUSE

VAUCLUSE House commenced  as a small stone cottage built in 1803 for an Irish Knight, Sir Henry Brown Hayes (1780 -1872).  In 1827 the property was bought by William Charles Wentworth, a gifted but restless lawyer & politician, was one of the most influential Australian Borne Colonists. His achievements included the first European Crossing if the Blue Mountains west if Sydney, in 1813; campaigning for civil rights (such as trial by jury) & co-publishing the Colony's first independent newspaper, "The Australian" in 1824; the formation of Australia's first University (The University Of Sydney) in 1852; & had agitation for Representative Government, achieved in 1856. 

His wife, Sarah (Nee Cox, 1805 - 1880), the daughter of Ex Convicts, worked as A Milliner before her marriage in 1829. Letters show her to have been an astute manager of the house & estate at VAUCLUSE.  

Wentworth, who proposed an hereditary Upper House for the New South Wales Parliament, dreamt of building a family Mansion In The Gothic Revival style of Sydney's Government House to suggest his ancient family lineage. Despite this, Sarah Wentworth suffered social isolation for having borne two of their children  before their marriage. Wentworth's attacks on the "Exclusives" In  Colonial Politics put him at odds with leading colonial families. In addition to this, his own legitimacy, convict mother & Father's near conviction for highway robbery were also known. VAUCLUSE House is very Unresolved in terms of its internal layout, owing to its construction. Over many years for a growing family that was forced to socialise outside of Colonial society. 

VAUCLUSE House was purchased by the State Government In 1911 to provide Public access to the Sydney Harbour Foreshores. By 1912 the ground floor was open to the public. The adjacent Tea rooms were built In the 1920's when VAUCLUSE house became a popular tourist destination. Today 9 hectares (23 acres) of the original 208 hectares(515 acres) estate survives  & VAUCLUSE house is one of Australia's most important intact homesteads with stables, carriage drives, pleasure garden, kitchen garden and service yards. The restoration of gravelled paths, iron fences & planting compliment the house interiors, which are furnished to reflect the Wentworth's Family occupancy from 1827 - 1861

As Vaucluse House is an historic site, care should be take. With floor surfaces, stairways and the low lighting levels. The only exit for the house is the entry point. Exit from the upper floor is from The Main Stairs. 

GROUND FLOOR

1. KITCHEN - The kitchen is at the centre of the large two storey service wing, constructed I. 1829. As In most Colonial houses, the service wing was a separate building to distance the risk of fire from the main house. Here the cook & her staff prepared all the meals for the family, guests and servants. The dresser, food safe & cast Iron cooking range are original 

2. SCULLERY - The Scullery Is Where The Washing Up Was Done. Dirty Water Was Emptied Into The Slop Drain. 

3. DAIRY AND LARDER - The Dairy (For Milk, Butter And Cheese Preparation) And Larder (For Food Storage)  Reflect  The Operation Of Vaucluse House As A Self Sufficient Colonial Estate.

4. CELLARS - The Two Roomed Cellars Were Used a For The Cool Storage Of Good Food & Wine. The Inner Room Retains It's Arched Brick Bins For Bottled Wine While Hooks For Hanging Salted And Cured Meats Survive On The Original Lath & Plaster Ceilings. 

5. HOUSEKEEPERS ROOM - The Housekeeper's Room Was The Centre Of Domestic Operations. The Housekeeper Was Responsible For Linen & The Supervision Of Female Domestic Servants 

6. BUTLER'S PANTRY - The Pantry Was An Office Strategically Located For The Head Of The Household Staff To Oversee Activities In The House & Arrivals At The Property. Here Lamps Were Cleaned, Re Fuelled & Wicks Trimmed; & China, Glass & Silverware Cleaned, Polished &Stored. 

FAMILY HISTORY ROOM - In 1900 This Room Was Used As A Library. Today It Houses An Exhibition Of The Wentworth's Family History.

8. BREAKFAST ROOM - The Breakfast Room Is The Part Of The House Built From 1837 To 1840. Most Large Colonial Houses Had A Second Dining Room For The Informal Family Use. The Decorative  Paint Scheme By The Firm  Lyon, Cottier & Co Dates From The 1880's While The Carved Oak Furniture Was Purchased By Fitzwilliam Wentworth In England Around 1872. 

9. DINING ROOM - The Dining Room Is Hung With Family Portraits In Keeping With The Early 19th Century Practice. The Oak Furniture Belonged To The Wentworth Family. The Fine Gothic Revival Side Drawers & Cupboards Date From 1845, While The Dining Table & Chairs (With Their Embossed Spanish Leather Upholstery) May Have Been Part Of  A Consignment Of Furniture Sent From Europe In 1859. The Floor Of Mid 19th Century Italian Glazed Tiles Is Unusual & Possibly A Concession To The Australian Climate. The Chimney Piece Is Of Marble From Marulan In Southern New South Wales. 

10. LITTLE TEA ROOM - The Little Tea Room's Joinery Suggests That It Was One Of Wentworth's  First Additions To The House After 1828. It Had Been Furnished To Reflect Its Use As A Small Informal Sitting Room To Keep Cool In Summer, In Winter The Rooms Small Size  Ensured It Was Easily Heated. 

11.  THE DRAWING ROOM - The Drawing Room Was Formed Partly Within The Walls If Sir Henry Brown Hayes Original Stone Cottage & Was Completed In1847. The Floral Wallpaper Border Plaster Cornice, Italian Marble Surround & Cast Iron Grated Are All Original. The Drawing Room Was Intended As A Setting For Potential Suitors To Meet The Wentworth Daughters, Owing To Sarah Wentworth's Social Isolation. By 1853 When The Original Contents Were Sold Before The Wentworth Family's Departure For Europe, The Room Contained Brazilian Rosewood With Crimson Damask Upholstery. Today The Room Contains A Collection Of Copies Of Old Master Paintings Acquired By The Wentworth Family In Italy, Including Copies Of Flora & The Titan, A Penitant Magdalerie After Guido Reni And A Madonna & Child After Marillo. 

FIRST FLOOR 

12. SECOND ROOM - The Second Room, As It Was Called In 1853, Was A Private Family Sitting Room. The Fireplace & Grate Are Original. Furniture Has Been Acquired Based In An 1853 Inventory Of The House. 

13. PRINCIPAL BEDROOM - In 1853 The Principal Bedroom Contained A Winged Wardrobe, Chest Of Drawers & Marble Wash Stand. The Four Post Bed Has Been Hung With A Reproduction Of A Glazed Chintz 1860 Known To Have Been Used In Another Gothic Revival House, GreenOaks At Darling Point. The Bed Has The Typical Arrangement Of Three Mattresses Filled With Straw, HorseHair & Feathers. (Bottom To Top) 

14.  FITZWILLIAM'S ROOM IN THE HALL - Vaucluse House Was Left Incomplete In The Mid 1840's &The Large Open Upper Hall Was Partitioned By Cupboards To Create A Bedroom For Wentworth's Second Son, Fitzwilliam. 

SECOND FLOOR 

15. CHILDREN'S ROOM - The Nursery Was Probably Used For The Four Youngest Wentworth Children Aged Between Five & Twelve In 1853. The Room Is Furnished As A Typical Children's Room In The Mid 19th Century With Children's Furniture & Toys the Metal Beds Are Hung With Gauze & Mosquito Nets. 

16. MISS WENTWORTH'S ROOM - Miss Wentworth's Room Was Named After The Eldest Unmarried Wentworth Daughter. In 1853 It Was Shared By Sarah Eleanor & Eliza Sophia Wentworth. 

1803 - Original Cottage Built On The Site By Sir Henry Browne Hayes

1827 - Wentworth Buys The Cottage And Estate. Buys A Further 7 Acres

1853 - Wentworth and Family Leave For Europe

1861 - Family Returns To Renovate House

1873 - Wentworth Dies

1910 - State Government Purchases Property

1915 - Vaucluse House Opens As A PublicMuseum 

1981 - Bought By The Historic Houses Trust

VAUCLUSE 

1. It has convict roots. Former convict Sir Henry Brown acquired two land grants in 1803 - the Laycock & Cardell grants  - & built a house he named "VAUCLUSE" after a locality in Provence

2. William Charles Wentworth was one it's famous sons. The house VAUCLUSE was acquired by Wentworth, who subdivided the estate in 1838. He retained the are punt Parsley Bay, which was dominated by rock (near today's Memorial Church), from which he admired tr view

3. VAUCLUSE house and grounds was acquired by the State Government in 1910. It is now administered by The Historic Houses Trusg. 

4. Macquarie Lighthouse is the site of the longest continuously operating navigational beacon in the country. Built in 1818, it was the first light house in Australia.

5. Set on 5 hectare with 180 degree view, Strickland house is reguarly used as a film set. 

———————————

Sir Henry Kissed - 

Sir Henry Kissed - 

Sir Henry Kissed The Quaker

And What If He Did? 

You Ugly Thing

I’m Sure He Did Not Ate Her 

So Sang The Wags Of Sydney, 

He Was A Naughty Knight, Formally Sheriff Of Cork, Transported For Abducting A Quaker Heiress, But Did Not Behave Like A Convict. 

In 1803 He Created What Was Called a “Rustic Little Paradise” On About 100 Acres Of Crown Land Near Watson’s Bay, Naming His Estate Baucluse

Serpents in his garden. It is played with snakes.

So important for the barrels of genuine Irish pub, and had Irish girl into a trench around his house, bird them on by singing songs and pray to Saint Patrick’s power over vipers. According to the legend.

Henry can Captain John Piper, controllers customs, but his tenancy dispute.

On 27th I’ll talk to you then it’s land to build on Charles went worth.

Building on his beginnings, which she described as a very uncomfortable residence, Wentworth

Building on hazels beginnings, which she described as a very uncomfortable residence, oceans of his dignity.

1910 Hawkins has passed and went with descendants of the kind state Museum,.

Rangehood, including the floor tiles in 40 from Pompeii and the Saltair left there from his electric dining room suite which came from the garage is palace in Venice.

You Say You Belong To Australia My Friend

You Say You Belong To Australia My Friend,

And Like Me You'd Die For This Land Defend

But Let Us Be Honest

It's Sad But True

Australia My Friend, Doesn't Belong To You

Our Country's Been Sold ByThe Powers That Be. 

To Big Wealthy Nations Over The Sea

They Couldn't Take Us With Lead Or Bayonet

So They Decided To Buy Us Instead 

and tAlking Of Wars And Blood That Was Spilt

And I Wonder If They're Gjosts Can See What's Happening To Their Native Land 

I Wonder If The Fallen Can See The Crime Corruption And Poverty

With A Lost Generation On The Dole

Adrift On Life's Ocean Without Any Goal

I Once Had A Dream Of Our Country So Grand

Where Rivers Outback Irrigated The Land

With Dams And Canals

And Big Inland Cities With Work Everywhere

Profit From Farm Factory And Mine 

Was Used To Build A Nation So Fine

When I Woke From My Dreaming TonTge Areality

That The Wealth Of Out Nation Goes Over The Sea... 

Sydney's First General Hospital - Old George Street North - The Rocks

Sydney's First  General Hospital 

George Street North, In Front Of Police Station

The First Location Of The Canvas Hospital Tents Is Not Known. But By March 1788, The Hospital Buildings 

The precise location of the laboratory and sick Teds First directed is not known but by March 1788 hospital buildings on this site were in use a garden was also established John why was the principal search and apply corrected by the Royal Australian Historical Site Society On The Wall Of The Police stage and station reads The Site The First General Hospital in Australia from 1788 to 1816 Dr John White recorded on 29 January 1788 that the Marines their wives and children together with all the convicts were landed the laboratory and sick tents were erected and I'm sorry to say was soon Philby patients afflicted with the true Camp Justin Shray and The scurvy more pitiable objects were perhaps never seen not it was a comfort or convenience could pick up for them besides the very few we had with us the sick of increased since our landing to such a degree that spot for the General Hospital has been marked out and artifices already employed on at Captain Collins describes the feeding of the sick with Wild celery spinach parsley which the sick and the well enjoyed as a pleasant addition to the Russians of the soul provisions great governor Philip in the Dissen treat the red gum of the tree which abounds on this coast was found to be very a very powerful remedy the Yellow gum has been discovered to possess the Same Property but to an inferior degree the resources of the tiny hospital were taxed to the limit when The Transport surprise arrived from Portsmouth in Sydney Cove on the 26 June 1790 after a journey of 158 days during which 36 convicts died out of 256 who had embarked after the surprise drop anchor she was visited by the Reverend Richard Johnson the chaplain who stated a be held Site truly shocking a great number of convicts laying on deck some half and others nearly naked without bedding unable to help themselves spoke to them as I passed but the smell was so offensive I could scarcely Barrett the landing of these people was truly affecting great numbers were not able to walk nought to move handle Foote such was slung over the side in the same manner as they would sling a cask upon being brought up to the open air some fainted some died upon the deck and others's others died in the boat before reaching the sure some crept up on their hands and knees and some were carried on the backs of others All Where It Filthy state such was Sydney's First hospital In June 1790