Gunning & District Historical Society

Radical, left wing historical revisionists are questioning whether we should continue to honour Gunning founding father William Grovenor as we look back at past events in these enlightened times. An earlier article on this site,  Gunning's First Ever Magpie Shooting Competition a Banging Success , reported on a live bird shooting tournament organised by Mr William Grovenor in 1880 during which nine eminent local Knights of the Trigger shot and killed 17 or more magpies. Comments and questions on Facebook soon followed. This article attempts to address the issues  people have raised in these posts as well as adding some new information and clarification. So, here follows: Should Grovenor Street be renamed in the light of Mr Grovenor's role in initiating and managing such a barbarous magpie murdering event? Gunning's Elite - the high cost of joining the Knights of the Trigger. The culinary qualities of the Australian Magpie. Retraction and a...

Nine Magpies   Etching by Joseph Austin reproduced by permission of the artist. The Gunning sportsmen put paid to more than nine such birds in 1880 In March 1880 the Goulburn Herald and Chronicle 's Gunning correspondent reported on a novel sporting event: " Magpie Shooting - Nearly all the male population of Gunning and a sprinkling of the fair sex, assembled on and about the flat on Monday afternoon to take part in and witness the sweep-shooting.  Magpies were used in place of pigeons, both as being cheaper and more easily procurable. Mr W Grovenor procured the birds;  in fact that gentleman is to be thanked for his enterprise in getting up the sport. Everything passed all very pleasantly and satisfactorily, there being an unexpectedly large number of competitors. Match Report Summary There were two events, an open competition with a 5 shilling prize and a handicap sweep for 3 shillings - both with 3 birds per competitor.  Between them 10 competito...

Gunning Court House 1885: Photo via Flikr, State Library of NSW, Public Domain CONCERT A concert was held according to advertisement at the court house last Friday evening in aid of the local cricket club. The audience was not as large as had been anticipated, but all the best class of people in the town were present, and the general deportment of the audience was by far better than at any other entertainment I have ever attended in Gunning. Either the larrikin element was absent or else our larrikins have reformed and learned to comport themselves as gentlemen. The entertainment passed off smoothly without a hitch, and those present were very enthusiastic in expressions of enjoyment. J. F. Kenyon Esq. J.P., president of the cricket club, presided. The entertainment was opened with a pianoforte solo by Miss James, which was very ably rendered. This young lady, who has been far from well for some time, was unable to sing, but notwithstanding severe indisposition, rod...

NSW Railways Staff c1900  ( K iama Library, Flickr cc-by-2.0) The following article appeared on page 2 of the Goulburn Herald and Chronicle on 5 January 1880. The original article is available on Trove . A Canard.- About one o'clock on last Friday afternoon a small boy came rushing through the street, telling everybody he met that Mr. Morphy, the well-known and universally-liked porter at the railway-station, had been thrown from a cart and instantly killed.   The boy had been told to go for the police, and Constable Clifford started with all possible speed for the scene of the reported dire disaster, which was something over a mile from town, The constable called on his way for Mr. Collins to accompany him in case there might be still some hopes of saving the life of the unfortunate man.  The intelligence, like all bad news; spread like wild-fire and in a few minutes nearly the whole male population of the town was pouring across the flat in the rear ...