Memories of the Armidale-Kempsey Road 1

I started writing this post and then got very embarrassed.

Back on 16 June, Gordon Smith let me know that the Armidale/Kempsey Road had been reclassified as a local road rather than as a road of regional significance. It's bad enough that I have let that email sit for a month, but there is worse. Then I suddenly realised that I had dome something far worse!

Back in January 2010 in response to a post I wrote on that road, Jamie Schmidt wrote to me:

 Hi Jim my name is Jamie Schmidt my ancestor Henry Sauer built several sections on the Armidale to Kempsey road between 1878 and 1881.The section at Flying fox cutting sent him bankrupt as the superintendent asked him to widen it, perhaps unwisely he borrowed to pay for the work but the government refused to pay him.I have a great article from the Macleay Chronicle 28.04 1904 in which he explains some of the difficulties experienced in building the road.

Jamie sent me a copy of the clipping, but I never responded. I put it aside to do so, it got packed in a box and then vanished! Jamie, my apologies. I will write a post on the road, but in the meantime here is a photo from John Caling showing bullock drays on that road. 

New England's vanished towns - Kookaburra

In some ways, the New England landscape is littered with the remains of past settlements. 

Gordon Smith has been exploring the Carrai Plateau, a huge granite area surrounded by steep escarpments that drop to Kunderang Brook and the Macleay River.

The little settlement of Kookaburra was a tiny saw milling centre. This photo shows the Kookaburra Fire Station. Gordon wondered just what might have been stored inside!

Aeradio and the 1949 Kempsey Floods

In Belshaw's World - Kempsey disaster – six killed, huge damage, I tried to tell the story of the 1949 Kempsey floods. In doing so, I drew from the story of Kempsey Aeradio.

This photo shows the submerged Aeradio facilities at Kempsey aerodrome. You can seethe extent of the flooding pretty clearly. 

Following a series of crashes especially along the east coast aviation route, the stations were established to try to improve safety by providing radio contact with pilots.

The next photo shows two of the Aeradio team (Charles Peddell (left) and J Pickles) operating from temporary headquarters in the Kempsey police station. Communications was a major problem during the flood, phone lines and the local radio station were both down, so the Aeradio people's radio skills came in handy. Charles Peddell was later awarded a Certificate of Merit by the NSW Commissioner of Police for his work on restoring communications during the flood.

Armidale-Kempsey Road - pretty but difficult

This photo by Gordon Smith shows the main road between the central New England Tablelands and the Macleay Valley.

The road is very pretty, but for some obscure reason most people take the longer, more roundabout, route. The distance between Kempsey and Armidale is not great, but I would not recommend trying the road at night.

New England Australia's Aborigines - Dainggati Entry Page

The Dainggatti are are a Macleay Valley language group with close Tablelands' connections. As part of my historical reseach, I have created a page to provide an entry point to all my posts on the Dainggatti

Congratulations to UNE's (and Kempsey's) Phil Schubert

I see from the Macleay Argus (11 December) that Phil Schubert has graduated from UNE with a combined bachelor's degree in arts and law.

Phil studied at the now defunct Collombatti Rail Primary school and then Kempsey High. He gained early admission to UNE through the Principal's admission scheme.

I mention Phil because he combined study with extra-curricula life, something that I as a UNE alumnus value highly. Phil was President of the Students' Association in 2004, a member of the University Council 2004-2206, and recipient of the New England Award for services to the university community.

My congratulation to Phil and his family including dad Graeme and grand mum Nettie.

New England Beer - Murray's Craft Brewing Co

In my last post I commented on the demise of the Grafton brewery. I have now discovered a new New England beer. My thanks to the Australian Regional Food Guide for alerting me to it.

In an earlier story on Slim Dusty I referred to his classic song The Pub with no Beer. The pub in question was located at Taylor's Arm (population 50) on New England's Mid North Coast.

I now find that Murray ’s Craft Brewing Co. was launched in December 2005 and is based at the Pub With No Beer. The unconventional brewer has quickly gained a reputation for brewing distinctive and adventurous beers, with the world class quality of its ales recognised not only through a fast-growing following of beer lovers, but also through beer awards.

Murray' s Craft Brewing Co. has won Silver medals for both its entrants in this year’s Australian International Beer Awards (AIBA) - Murray’s Nirvana Pale Ale and Murray’s Sassy Blonde.

With results announced in Melbourne last Thursday, the AIBA is Australia’s most prestigious beer event and the second largest awards of its type in the world. The awards were established in 1987 to reward excellence in the field of brewing and to assist in the promotion of the Australian brewing industry. A renowned barometer of diversity in beer brewing across the world, the 2007 event attracted 941 beers from a record 189 exhibitors across 39 countries.

Murray's Nirvana Pale Ale won Silver in the American Style Pale Ale class and Murray's Sassy Blonde, a Belgian-style Pale Ale believed to be the only beer of its kind brewed in the southern hemisphere, took out a Silver medal in the Other category of Packaged Ales.

The AIBA accolades follow two medal wins at the inaugural Sydney Royal Beer Competition, announced in February this year, which saw Murray's Nirvana Pale Ale receive a Silver medal (the highest award issued), and Murray’s Sassy Blonde a Bronze medal.

"The Silver medals are a great result for our little brewery, given the standard of competition this year. We’re especially thrilled to have our Sassy Blonde recognised at this level among its international peers. We’ve come a long way in just 18 months," says Assistant Brewer, Shawn Sherlock.

You can get a feel for the brewery from this you tube item.

You can buy the beer at the pub or by order. Details can be found on the Murray's site. This also includes a beer blog.

Macleay Valley - The Slim Dusty Centre Project

Photo: Slim Dusty (1927-2003), an iconic figure in the development of Australian music. The biographical material is drawn from the official Slim Dusty site given in the above link.

David Gordon Kirkpatrick was born at Kempsey in the Macleay Valley on 13 June 1927 .

Brought up at a nearby Nulla Nulla Creek dairy farm, he wrote his first song - The Way The Cowboy Dies - in 1937 aged 10. The following year he adopted the stage name Slim Dusty, the name he was to carry all his professional life.

In 1942 the fifteen year old Slim gate-crashed Radio 2KM Kempsey and also made his his first recording at own expense... Song For The Aussies and My Final Song. Also in 1942 he copyrighted his first songs.

Their recent discovery by Australian Archives created national interest. I actually find it quite remarkable that a fifteen year old living in what was then a remote location should have so much foresight, but he was obviously always a very determined boy. For those who are interested, the Australian Archives link includes reproductions of the early material.

In 1945 while still living at Nulla Nulla Creek Slim wrote his first country music classic, When The Rain Tumbles Down In July. This led in 1946 to his first recording contract with the Columbia Graphophone Co. for the Regal Zonophone label. Six titles were recorded, including When The Rain Tumbles Down In July.

From 1948 Slim pursued a part-time show business career with intermittent radio, hall show and tent show appearances. In 1951 he married country singer-songwriter Joy McKean. Daughter Anne Kirkpatrick, herself a well known country musician, was born in 1952 followed by son David in 1958.

From 1954 Slim commenced a full-time show business career, launching the first travelling Slim Dusty Show. Then in 1956 he established in partnership with showman Frankie Foster the Slim Dusty Show as a large tent show on the showground circuit. I remember this from my childhood.

In 1957 Slim recorded the Gordon Parsons written song A Pub With No Beer -- at that time the biggest selling record ever by an Australian. I think most Australians still remember at least some of the opening lines:

It's lonesome away from your kindred and all
By the campfire at night where the wild dingos call
But there's nothin' so lonesome, so dull or so drear
Than to stand in the bar of a pub with no beer

From this point came a string of successes, including the 1980 super hit Duncan.

I love to have a beer with Duncan, I love to have a beer with Dunc
We drink in moderation, and we never, never ever get rolling drunk.
We drink at the Town & Country where the atmosphere is great
I love to have a beer with Duncan ‘cause Duncan’s me mate.

By the time Slim died in 2003 he had achieved true iconic status in Australian popular music. A key reason for this is that he captured the whimsy, the sometimes irreverence, of one stream of the Australian experience.

Now Slim's family and supporters have combined to work towards the establishment of the Slim Dusty Centre in Kempsey to celebrate his life. Those interested can find the details here, including ways to make a tax deductible donation. The Kempsey location is truly fitting, since the Macleay Valley is the place where Slim developed his initial ideas and particular vision.

Transport Pioneers - The Robinson Family: a further note

Photo: Passenger vehicle used by Robinson Bros Motor Service, Kempsey.

As I dig into New England's past, I find it interesting that the influence of certain families keeps on recurring in particular sectors.

In earlier posts I spoke of the Robinsons and Virtues in the context of New England Airways and the development of civil aviation in New England and beyond (see stocktake on transport posts). Now reading Marie Neil's Valley of the Macleay (Wentworth Book, Sydney 1972 pp-79-80) I found out that the Robinson family's connection with New England actually began in the Macleay Valley.

Around 1859 George Robinson came to the Macleay Valley, soon after selecting land at Jerseyville in the Macleay delta downstream from Kempsey. He and his brother John ran a river boat service for some years (river transport was critical to Valley transport and communication) until the partnership was dissolved and George became a storekeeper at Jerseyville.

No less than four of George's sons were to become well-known in the early days of motor transport on the North Coast.

George A Robinson who was to go on to found New England Airways began conveying passengers in a sulky or buggy. In 1910 he began a charter service using a two cylinder Talbot car (and here) followed by a four cylinder Clement Bayard (here, in French I'm afraid) used to provide a twice weekly passenger service to Taree.

In 1911 George A acquired a vehicle capable of carrying ten to twelve passengers on the run and was joined in the venture by brother William T Robinson. George A was to move to Lismore and leave the partnership, although I am not sure of the exact chronology of events since Robinson Bros also (I think) operated out of Lismore.

William carried the business on, adding more vehicles and extending runs to Newcastle and Grafton before he too left the district, moving to Grafton where he later became mayor.

In addition to George and William, Walter and Albert Robinson also became involved in land transport, running early mail and passenger services between Kempsey and South West Rocks.

These early days of motor transport could be strenuous and adventurous. The often heavily laden cars travelled over unformed dirt roads that were often rough, dusty when dry, boggy when wet.

Life in the Macleay Valley - the glacial age

Update One (5 January 2007): I am adding references on the geology of the Valley to the end of this post.

A few years ago I read a very good book by John Mulvaney on the aborigines. This dealt, among other things, with the nature of geological change.

Unfortunately I did not take notes. I was reading just for pleasure, so I missed recording his key points. However, now that I am again writing with purpose, I need to look at New England's geological history.

As in my first post on the Macleay Valley, the material in this post is drawn especially from Marie H Neil's book, Valley of the Macleay. The History of Kempsey and the Macleay River District (Wentworth books, Sydney 1972). While my focus is on the Macleay, I am also using the post to set a broader context.

Over the period from 20,000 to 800,000 years ago there have been four ice ages in New England during which sea levels rose and fell.

Around 125,oo years ago the sea level was around 25 feet higher than it is now, so much of the lower Macleay Valley was under water.

In the fourth ice age which began about 100,000 years ago, the sea level began to fall. This moved the shore line out about six to ten miles, creating a large coastal plain that stretched along the current New England coastline.

Around 20,000 years ago, the sea level began to rise again, submerging the coastal plain. This rise continued until about 5,000 to 6,000 years ago, then slowed down. I do not have dates for the arrival of the first aborigines in the Macleay Valley, but it seems likely that they would have experienced this change.

During this period, great quantities of sand were deposited to the north of the emerging coastal islands, creating great spits. These eventually grew into large sand borders or dunes, linking the coastal islands (now headlands) along a line approximating the present coastline.

The current Macleay River deltaic plane came into existence as the River changed its course several times seeking new ways to the sea through the growing sand barriers. In so doing, great deposits of silt were carried down and left inside the sand barriers, creating the delta we can see today. Over large areas these alluvial deposits are more than 100 feet deep.

Additional References on the Macleay

Dr Tim Cohen, The geomorphology of the Macleay River Estuary, study prepared for the Kempsey Shire Council, September 2005
Damon Telfer, Macleay River Estuary Data Compilation Study, GECO Environmental, October 2005

Life in the Macleay Valley - setting the scene

Having just come back from South West Rocks, this is the first of a series of short posts on the Macleay Valley.

They will be drawn especially from Marie H Neil's book, Valley of the Macleay. The History of Kempsey and the Macleay River District (Wentworth books, Sydney 1972), a book that I have to return to the South West Rocks library in the not too distant future.

Just to set the scene for those who do not know the Valley, it is long, narrow and relatively small, 11,241 square kilometers (4,340 square miles).

In the west, the Macleay River has its source along the eastern edge of the Northern Tablelands from Walcha to just north of Armidale, making for a reasonably large catchment area. In the south, the Valley is separated from the Hastings Valley by the Hastings Range, in the north from the Nambucca Valley by the Snowy Mountain Range.

In the east, the River flows out to the sea at South West Rocks, wandering through a 647 square kilometer (250 square mile) deltaic plane created by the River over thousands of years.

The Macleay Valley is an attractive place. The backing mountain ranges to the south, north and especially the east with peaks as high as 5,000 feet provide an attractive backdrop, while the Valley itself packs a variety of scenery into its small area.

The total population of the Valley (I do not have the most recent figures) is around 28,000, of which some 11,000 live in Kempsey, the biggest centre and the Valley's commercial hub.

There are a number of seaside villages on the coast of which South West Rocks (population now around 5,000) is the largest. The resident population of these, while still relatively small, has grown reasonably significantly over recent years.

Between Kempsey and the sea there are a number of smaller agricultural villages on the delta. This, in combination with the farms, makes for a varied human landscape.

The Upper Macleay is very different. Here grazing is the main activity in the generally narrow winding valley with small rural service centres at Willawarrin and Bellbrook.