Gunning & District Historical Society

 November Bird of the Month Latham's Snipe:  Image courtesy Mark Lethlean    Image courtesy Wayne Weatherstone This is number eleven in a 12 part series in which we take a bird recorded in Gladstone Weatherstone's notebook between 1962 and 1981, see if anything is different today and, if so, try to explain why.   Gladstone was an expert amateur naturalist who lived on Lyndfield Park near Gunning from 1941 until 1996.             The Visitor from Japan On 11 November 1971 Gladstone wrote, “Japanese Snipe flushed today from reeds in creek.  First recording here” .  His words show no emotion, but he must have been excited.  This small wetland bird, weighing only around 200 grams, had just fetched up on his farm after flying some 8000 or more kilometres from Japan and south-east Siberia!     Snipe have been making their annual journey to Australia for perhaps thousands of years.  Their...

  Part 1 Stereoscope As part of our AGM this year we had a bit of a ‘Show and Tell’ Presentation where you could bring along an item of historical or sentimental value, tell a story about an ancestor or relate a story that resonated.   John Searl who is also the Deputy Mayor of the Upper Lachlan Shire is a bit of an Antiques buff and from his incredible collection he brought in this amazing item called a ‘Stereoscope’. The forerunner to the modern day ‘Viewfinder’.  Remember them when you were a kid, where you put the reel in the machine and turned the pictures round with your hand, then if you were lucky you got upgraded to the ones that also had sound. Gifted the Stereoscope in 2008 from a local of Dalton, this device is c1900 and it is a wonderful example of the design work of Oliver Wendell Holmes. In about 1860, Oliver who was already renowned for being an American physician, poet and polymath, turned his attention to making the Stereoscope in a simpler version. ...

Keith Brown - What an Achievement! by the President, GDHS At our AGM last Sunday 18th October 2020, I had the privilege of bestowing upon Keith Brown Life-time Membership to the Gunning & District Historical Society for his unwavering dedication since he joined in 2008. I also had the esteemed honour of presenting Keith with a Certificate of Achievement and pin from the Royal Australian Historical Society.  There are only a handful of these awards given out each year and to those whose contribution is significant and noteworthy to both their society and community. Usually this would take place at the RAHS Conference in Sydney but had to be cancelled due to Covid. I was asked to bestow this distinction within our own Society. His achievement will be announced in an upcoming issue of the society’s History Magazine.  Keith’s grace and benevolence are qualities that make him a very valued member of our team. We congratulate him on his well-deserved Achievements. Deputy Mayor...

  Mount Gambier, Springsure,  Dalton and Gunning: Alchins & WW1 by Garry Norman Smith         A number of Alchin men have varying histories relating to World War One – The Great War.  Many more with name Allchin also have similar relationships with The Great War. But let’s limit this discussion to those with name Alchin and leave the name comparisons for another story.           Despite the first two Alchins mentioned here coming from South Australia and Queensland respectively, both have forebears dating back to County Kent in England as do my own Alchins from New South Wales, Gunning, Goulburn, Crookwell and Dalton especially.           Archie Ernest Alchin (born Allchin) was born and raised in Mount Gambier, South Australia. His forebears go back into the 16th century to Warwickshire and Kent, his grandfather, Christopher Wood Allchin became an early settler in Mount Gambier ...

"Crimson Chat."   by  Laurie R B  is licensed under  CC BY-SA 2.0   October Bird of the Month:  the Crimson Chat Image courtesy Wayne Weatherstone  This is number 10 of a 12 part series in which we take a bird recorded in Gladstone Weatherstone's notebook between 1962 and 1981, see if anything is different today and, if so, try to explain why.   Gladstone was an expert amateur naturalist who lived on Lyndfield Park near Gunning from 1941 until 1996.   1969:  A Unusual Year   Image:  Brett Donald, Own Work CC BY- SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons. Gladstone's notebook tells us " 1969 was the mildest Winter since coming here in 1941 " and, as a result, "many of the normal migratory species remained throughout; viz Blue Jays, Honey-eaters, Kestrels, Gill-birds and one or two others ".  His "Blue Jays" we know as Black-faced Cuckoo-shrikes [pictured at right] and "Gill-birds" are our very familiar Red Wattle-birds. The ...