MUSESEP2013email - Mudgee Historical Society Inc

THE MUSE
Published by the Mudgee Historical Society Inc
PO Box 217, Mudgee, NSW, 2850
Website: www.mudgeemuseum.com
Email: enquiries@mudgeemuseum.com
President and Editor : John Broadley 02.6372 3365
Secretary: Pauline Bassingthwaighte 02.6372 3078
NUMBER 172
SEPTEMBER 2013
The Mudgee Historical Society Inc meets on the THIRD Monday evening of every month,
except December, at the Colonial Inn Museum at 7.30.pm (DST 8pm)
WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHY
Over the last few years the Colonial Inn Museum site has been used as a unique venue for wedding
photography, with numerous items of farm machinery, the church and the two old red phone boxes
being popular backdrops.
Pictured above are post wedding photos taken at the Colonial Inn Museum on Saturday 14th September
2013. The grounds are available for wedding photography by negotiation with the President or
Secretary.
PHOTOGRAPHY WORKSHIP VISIT
On
Saturday
21st
September 2013 Sydney
photographer
Dean
Marzolla
ran
a
photography workshop
in Mudgee. In the
afternoon he brought
his students down to
the
Colonial
Inn
Museum to put into
practice the techniques
they had learnt in the
workshop: using the
various manual modes
and
adjusting
the
THE MUSE: No 172. September 2013 Journal of the Mudgee Historical Society Inc
settings to allow for variations in lighting. The old red phone boxes and the old Packard ambulance
were a popular backdrop for photographs of local model Claudia Shearman, while some participants
experimented in dealing with the challenging lighting in the church interior.
It is pleasing to see the grounds of our historic museum being used for a variety of community
purposes.
GARAGE SALE
Our next garage sale will be held at the Museum on Saturday 12th October 2013. Donations of readily
saleable items are now being welcomed and can be dropped off at the Museum during operating hours,
although Tuesday mornings are preferred.
2013 ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING
The AGM for 2013 was held at the CWA Rooms in Market Street on Monday 19 th August which saw a
return of the present Executive office bearers:
President: John Broadley
Vice-President: Barry Wells
Secretary: Pauline Bassingthwaighte
Treasurer: Thelma Meers
President John Broadley highlighted the achievements and events of the previous twelve months:
Achievements
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Participation by curators in a regional workshops in fabric conservation and significance assessment
Field Days 2013 participation: education theme and general promotion
Two successful garage sale fundraisers
Installation of security lighting
Setting up the blacksmith’s shop
Installation of additional laserlite panels in roof of big shed
Restoration of a rare thatching machine
Donation of bulk of President’s historical archives
Shop overhaul
Visiting Groups
Seniors Week morning tea, Red Cross presentation, Breast Cancer Support Group, Joey Scouts, St Matthew’s
School, Mudgee
Congratulations

Member Barry Stutsel on publication of his autobiography
Commiserations to the family and friends of members:
Ella Hohnhorst, Lister Wilson, Brian Palmer and Mary Lester
Thanks
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Secretary Pauline for zealous attention to duties and her successful application to Council for our annual
grant
Treasurer Thelma for her financial acumen and attention to detail
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THE MUSE: No 172. September 2013 Journal of the Mudgee Historical Society Inc
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Vice-President Barry for his support
Bob Byfield for liaising on firearms licence renewal
Mid-Western Regional Council and Peabody Energy for financial contributions for the new curators’
shed (plaque now affixed)
Councillors and staff of the Mid-Western Regional Council for their continued financial support
The Mudgee Guardian/Weekly for its promotional articles
Holly Manning and the staff of MRTI for their promotion of the museum
Lawrence Bennett Portelli, honorary accountants
Dear Loneragan Hogan, honorary solicitors
The wonderful active volunteer members for their dedication in maintaining our wonderful collection
and museum
ALL members for their interest in and support of the Society and its operations
Future/continued projects
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Book project: priority will be given to this in the next year
Church drainage: guttering and downpipes and linking to stormwater
Maintenance issues of roof of main museum building
Ongoing cleanup of the museum grounds
Ongoing signage enhancement
Ongoing rejigging of the big shed
Ongoing enhancement of farm machinery displays with boxed edging and aggregate
Packard engine restoration
INCREASED MEMBERSHIP FEES
Membership fees have not increased for many years. As current membership fees barely cover the cost
of printing and postage of the four quarterly newsletters, the Society has no choice but to increase
membership fees, effective from 1st July 2014 for the membership year 2014 – 2015.
Adult membership: $20.00
Children: $5.00
MUSEUM ENTRY FEES:
It has also been several years since entry fees to the museum were last increased. Entry fees effective
from 20th August 2013 are:
Adults: $6.00 Concession: $5.00 Children: $2.00
BOOK LAUNCH: LAWSON COUNTRY BY KEVIN PYE
Congratulations to Mudgee Historical Society member Kevin Pye on the launch of his latest tome
of verse Lawson Country on Saturday 31st August 2013 at Club Mudgee. Another great tome which
manages to combine nostalgia with humour, always drawing upon his personal experiences and
incorporating his great love of history and his family heritage. Well done, Kevin.
BOOK LAUNCH: KANDOS HISTORY
Kandos writer and historian Pam O’Connor, under the pseudonym of Kay Andos, has recently
launched Rocky Mountain Spirit, a history of Kandos from a people and family history perspective. Pam
has published several books and it is great to see more books of an historical nature being published in
our wonderful region. Copies are available from Pam in Kandos or from the Colonial Inn Museum
($70).
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THE MUSE: No 172. September 2013 Journal of the Mudgee Historical Society Inc
OUR COLLECTION: HOME-MADE TOYS
The Colonial Inn Museum has a special room on the ground floor of the main building which is
dedicated to children. This room is full of many rare and unique toys, all with a story to tell. While
many older members may consider the youth of today to be over-indulged at Christmas and for
birthdays, they would remember the sparser Christmas stockings and inexpensive birthday presents of
yesteryear. In earlier days families were not as prosperous generally and fewer presents were given, but
that is not to say with any less thought or love.
The Great Depression of the 1930s affected the majority of families in Australia financially, then the
advent of WWII (1939–1945) led to a cessation of trade and the diversion of production to the war
effort. This had a drastic effect on the availability of toys. The Japanese were the major manufacturers
of plastic and celluloid toys, while the German were the leading manufacturers of tin toys; both
countries were large producers of dolls. As both Germany and Japan were the enemies of Australia
during the war period, only locally-manufactured toys, generally of a lesser quality, were available to
Australia. Consequently, many Australian children received home-made toys made by an assortment of
relatives and family friends or received second hand or hand-me-down toys.
The two-seated doll rocker, below left, was made for Muriel Daniel, nee Marskell, by her brother for
Christmas in 1922. The dainty rustic doll’s house furniture, below right, was also hand-crafted.
SIR DAVID GRIFFIN
The late Sir David Griffin (1915–2004), was a distinguished
Australian who made numerous contributions to our nation’s civic
and business life (see painting at left in his mayoral robes as Lord
Mayor of Sydney). His mother, Nellie Devenish Meares, was a
daughter of Mudgee solicitor Charles Devenish Meares and Louisa,
nee Cox. As a young boy Sir David frequently visited his
grandparents’ house, Clarendon in Madeira Road, Mudgee, where
they lived for some forty years from the mid 1880s until the mid
1920s.
When the author of this article visited him in the mid 1990s at his
house in a magnificent 11 acre garden at Mittagong, he spoke
fondly of his grandparents and their way of life. His grandmother,
Louisa, was a granddaughter of Mudgee pioneer George Cox of
Burrundulla and a daughter of Charles Clarendon Cox who
established the noted but short-lived Broombee merino stud. Sir
David was very proud of his descent from the Cox family, and
through his father, Eric Griffin, from the Suttor family of Bathurst.
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THE MUSE: No 172. September 2013 Journal of the Mudgee Historical Society Inc
David Griffin completed his secondary schooling at Cranbrook in Sydney and graduated in law from
Sydney University in 1938. He joined the army when war broke out and married Jean Whyte a few
weeks before being sent to Singapore in 1941. He was in hospital in Singapore in February 1942 when
the city surrendered to the Japanese.
He was ultimately imprisoned in Changi until the end of the war and during his internment he was
involved in creating a rather unique Christmas present, the circumstances of which he related to me on
the day of my visit and which I found rather poignant. Many British children were also interned in
Changi and for the first Christmas the prisoners decided to make gifts for the children to lift their
spirits, using any materials they could lay their hands on. Many prisoners were carpenters or handymen
who actually made toys. David Griffin’s talent lay in writing, however, so he decided to write the text of
a book, with illustrations by an Englishman, Leslie Greener, a talented artist. Their output was called
The Happiness Box which the children never got to see, as the Japanese viewed it suspiciously and
ordered for it to be destroyed. Fortunately, it was buried and managed to survive the war.
David Griffin took the book back to Australia and
published it two years later; further reprints have since been
done, a signed copy of which was given to me by Sir David
which I greatly value. Many years later he published Changi
Days: The Prisoner as Poet, an anthology of poetry written in
Changi by his fellow prisoners which he had salvaged.
He resumed his legal career after the war and then went on
to become a highly successful businessman, being much
involved with the establishment and management of
Nabalco. He served on numerous corporate boards,
including Fairfax, served as a Councillor of the Royal
Agricultural Society of NSW, and was elected to the Sydney
City Council in 1962, serving as Lord Mayor from 1972–
1973. He was awarded an OBE in 1972 for services to
industry and knighted in 1974 for his services to the
community.
Sir David was a great lover of Australian history, and enjoyed writing and public speaking, always
incorporating a subtle sense of humour. He especially excelled in giving moving eulogies at funeral and
memorial services. In 2008 Dr Judy White of Belltrees, Scone, published a collection of Sir David’s
works: When Gentlemen Were Gentlemen. Speeches by Sir David Griffin 1972–1996. A tall and distinguished
man, well spoken and greatly respected by all who met him, Sir David Griffin indeed left his mark on
Australia.
Sir David contributed a wonderful nostalgic excerpt on his grandparents for inclusion in my book
Historic Houses of Mudgee, as their house, Clarendon, was included:
“As undisputed head of the Clarendon establishment my grandmother reigned as absolute monarch. She was at the
pinnacle of Mudgee society – an invitation of any kind to Clarendon was a distinction and an invitation to dinner,
the ultimate distinction. Somewhere in the garden there was a riot of Lady Hillingdon climbing roses and I can
recall so clearly my grandmother with a woven flower basket cutting the flowers with special scissors which
prevented the flowers, when cut, from falling to the ground. The lazy intoxicating scent, the sound of the bees and
my grandmother in a hat which would have been fashionable at Balmoral or Osborne, if not at Windsor Castle, will
remain with me always.
Charles Devenish Meares was a remarkable man – small with delicate features and slim, refined hands. He was a
fine cricketer and a leg spin bowler of great dexterity. When, as a small boy, I accompanied him to the Clarendon
fowl-house, to amuse me he threw each egg up high in the air and caught it behind his back – no egg ever fell on
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THE MUSE: No 172. September 2013 Journal of the Mudgee Historical Society Inc
the ground! He was renowned as a wit and a superb reader aloud. People would come to Clarendon from far and
wide to hear him read from On Our Selection and other amusing stories. He read very quietly with no attempt to
impersonate the characters, but his timing, dry delivery and dead pan intonation were irresistibly amusing.
When my aunt Sylvia married Edward Watkins the reception was held at Clarendon. It must have been a dry period
because there was absolutely nothing in the garden. Accordingly, all hands (the bride included) spent a day planting
flowers in pots, so that when the happy pair arrived for the reception they walked up the path through a blaze of
colour.
Clarendon often rang with the sound of music. My Aunt Lorna was an excellent pianist and also sang to her own
accompaniment songs of Amy Woodford-Finden, Tosti and other favourites of the Victorian era. Her performance
of the Indian Love Lyrics was the most moving I have heard. My grandmother also sang and my mother played the
cello and each of the girls other instruments. Lorna and my grandmother, regularly played the organ in the Mudgee
Anglican Church. My grandmother also worked the most beautiful stoles and altar cloths sitting at a little table in
the Clarendon drawing room”.
Charles Devenish Meares
Louisa Devenish Meares, nee Cox
Sir David generously agreed to write the Foreword for my book, but sadly he died before I managed to
publish it. It was fitting that Dr Judy White, therefore, consented to both write the Foreword and
launch the book in February 2012 at Putta Bucca House in Mudgee
RYLSTONE HISTORICAL SOCIETY 50TH
Congratulations to the Rylstone and District Historical Society Inc which will celebrate its 50th
anniversary in October 2013. The early 1960s was evidently a period when people in our region became
conscious of the need to preserve and record history, as Gulgong Historical Society was formed in
1962, Rylstone Historical Society in 1963, and Mudgee Historical Society in 1964. Our Society will look
forward to celebrating its anniversary next year.
THE MUDGEE CLUB
The Mudgee Club in Lovejoy Street is one of Mudgee’s iconic buildings. A quaint, perhaps bizarre,
assymetrical building typical of the Federation era of Australian architecture, it was designed by
Rylstone-born and Mudgee–resident architect Harold Hardwick. The Club was formed in 1900, with
local squire George Henry Cox MLC of Burrundulla as its founding President. The aim of the club was
to provide a non-sectarian venue where the town’s prominent men could socialize. Initially the Club
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THE MUSE: No 172. September 2013 Journal of the Mudgee Historical Society Inc
utilized premises next door (later the Red Cross rooms and the Bijou restaurant, since burnt down)
before the existing Club building was constructed, believed to be 1911.
Over time the building has been extended at the rear and the interior has been modified, but the billiard
room, situated behind the set of four windows on the left of the front facade has changed little since
the building was constructed.
A few years ago the Club merged with the Mudgee Golf Club which made good use of the premises
when its own premises burnt down recently. The Club will be wound down in the near future and
many archival documents have already been handed to the Mudgee Historical Society Inc for posterity.
Mudgee Historical Society Inc member Bob Lamond is also a member of the Mudgee Club and he has
recently finished compiling a history of the Club using what archival records have survived;
unfortunately, there are many gap periods, particularly in the early years of the Club’s existence and
again in more recent years. The history relates many amusing stories of events that happened at the
Club over the years, and no doubt there are many more which have not been, or perhaps should not
be, recorded!!! The Club’s executive, which includes current President Chris Cox, a great grandson of
the first President, hopes that Bob’s history will be published so that every current member has a copy.
The Mudgee Gentleman’s Club
Architect Harold Hardwick
Ultimately the premises will be sold and hopefully a sympathetic adaptive reuse will give the building a
new lease of life.
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