1880 – Young Parkes flour mill worker Joseph Sim was riding his horse over a hurdle at a Boxing Day event, when it caught on the post and fell on him. “He was immediately removed in an impossible condition to the hospital for medical attendance’’, where he died without recovering consciousness. While newspaper reports say the event happened onContinue reading “Boxing day tragedy”
Author Archives: Sharyn Moodie
Such was (Grace’s short) life
‘Such is life’ has long been a quintessentially Australian saying, grounded firmly in its supposed last-minute utterance by famous bushranger Ned Kelly. And it so neatly rounded up people’s forebearance of the tragedies of life that it appeared on the headstone of a one-month-old girl in Charters Towers in Queensland, Australia about 1888. The stoneContinue reading “Such was (Grace’s short) life”
Cameleer lived to 107
The Afghan cameleers of early Australia are an iconic part of our pioneering history. Bye Khan, who died in Bourke, NSW, aged 107, deserves a starring role in that history, not only for his longevity. Like most “Afghan’’ cameleers, he would have come to Australia from the north-west regions of India, to train and handleContinue reading “Cameleer lived to 107”
Eileen didn’t get to father for Christmas
1921 – Seventeen-year-old Eileen Flynn’s “splendid physique’ (as described by the newspapers) wasn’t enough to save her life when she went horse riding. She and her mother had been living apart from their father/husband for two years, while he was at their home in Broken Hill. This arrangement was a result of industrial unrest atContinue reading “Eileen didn’t get to father for Christmas”
Three children die on their way to town’s day of fun
August 15, 1888 – Almost all of the children of Bourke, country New South Wales, were in the back of horse-drawn vehicles heading to the country town’s picnic ground by the Darling River. The Annual Children’s Picnic procession would have been full of laughter and expectation, as the annual event brought the town together. ThereContinue reading “Three children die on their way to town’s day of fun”
Rumours flew over missing man
1896 – There was great suspicion about Kalgoorlie when James Moore went missing for a day. He had acted as accountant/confidential clerk for local auctioneer J Miller and Co for two months and had gained the confidence of his employers. However, he was missing, and so were the keys to the business safe. Moreover, heContinue reading “Rumours flew over missing man”
Siblings drown while fetching water
While a river-side plaque tells the story of a sad drowning in Menindee’s Darling River, the nearby cemetery reinforces just how dangerous it was to early settlers. Robert and Elizabeth Scobie, aged 9 and 7, had only been in Australia for six months when they drowned in 1883. They had emigrated from Scotland, and theirContinue reading “Siblings drown while fetching water”
Ruby remembered with racist headlines
This story has been written as a snapshot of media attitudes and language regarding First Nations people in the 1940s. It highlights how much things have changed, and how much they haven’t. None of the attitudes reported in any way reflect my personal views. Ruby Jackson’s final resting place lies at the end of aContinue reading “Ruby remembered with racist headlines”
Gone and quite forgotten
Headstones are an effort to leave a permanent reminder of our demise. But they too, return to dust. There are countless gravestones like this over our big country, decaying, decayed, destroyed. I shall tell the sad story of two of them now, and revive their memory, if only for a short time. James Gray’s crackedContinue reading “Gone and quite forgotten”
Grim demise for Gaiety Girl
1906, Kalgoorlie – Lilian Harcourt, 34, died a barmaid, but she had packed some excitement into her short life. She ‘breathed her last’ at the Shamrock Hotel, one of two hotels she had worked in for the majority of the past five years. “Rheumatic gout, upon which supervened a wasting complaint, was the cause ofContinue reading “Grim demise for Gaiety Girl”
Way to go Australia 