Get to Know Your neighbours

We cancelled our plans to holiday in Victoria this winter, and decided to stay home and explore. Partly because we have a lot on, and partly because we want to explore. Because of Don’s job we have seen a lot of the state but always enjoy finding out more, sometimes we have felt that we explored more of an area than the people who lived there did.

Because it is NAIDOC week, Don chose for us to go to Kingston’s Historic house at Marino. Not an obvious connection to our First Nation’s peoples, until you take a step out to the edge of a cliff and see the beautiful sculpture created by the renowned sculptor, John Dowie. It’s a starkly beautiful piece situated as it is, facing Gulf St Vincent. The dreamtime story is of love and loss, and explains for the people the creation story of the waterholes and springs in the area, as well as familial love. (Picture of the plaque and sculpture below.)

National NAIDOC Week celebrations are held across Australia in the first week of July each year (Sunday to Sunday), to celebrate and recognise the history, culture and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. NAIDOC Week is an opportunity for all Australians to learn about First Nations cultures and histories and participate in celebrations of the oldest, continuous living cultures on earth. You can support and get to know your local Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander communities through activities and events held across the country. 

Kingston’s Historic House “Built in 1840, Kingston House is one of South Australia’s oldest remaining houses. It is still being used today. The quiet beauty and hidden charm of the House and Reserve make it a favourite picnic spot for visitors.” There are many more impressive and beautiful houses in the state, but the story of Charles Kingston is what draws you in. He was so much revered - despite being a bit of a ratbag - that the state government bought his house some time after his death. An excerpt from the section about him on the Kingston’s house website: “He was a great social reformer and is noted for introducing the following legislations:

• the first factory regulations

• set wages for set hours

• industrial conciliation

• establishment of the State Bank guaranteeing deposits

• Married Women’s Property Act

• female suffrage (second in the world), and

• women’s right to stand for Parliament (first in the world).”

So you can see why he would have appealed to me. After a lovely Devonshire Tea - provided by the volunteers who look after the house, we were given a talk by Coralie, who knows her subject, and who understands well Charles Kingston’s place in our state, and Australia’s history.

Visiting many historic places as we do, coming across those people with a passion for passing on all those wonderful details about each place and tidbits about the lives of those who were associated with them is what makes history come alive. We also felt that recently when we visited ‘The Cedars' - definitely worth another visit.

Meantime, another ‘Meet Your Neighbours’ event to prepare for, and trying to keep warm!

A nice day in

Well, the latest newsletter has been ‘put to bed’ and I can relax for a week or two, although I’m always on the lookout for news or interesting items.

I remember back to my first newsletter (June 2015) when I thought that if I got four pages I’d be lucky. We were talking about establishing an incorporated body to take over the running of our council assets - The Soldiers’ Memorial Hall and Talunga Park. In some ways we’ve advanced, and in others, it feels like we’ve been standing still, and it seems we have many of the same issues still not being addressed properly.

The Caravan Park is making more money than ever, and I’m sure it’s due in no small part to our Caretaker Dave Mac - who turns 50 this month. The park always seems to be full and those who stay there long term seem very happy. Many of the residents have integrated really well with the community and several of them are members of various clubs and organisations, we are lucky to have them.

Nowadays the newsletter is more likely to be in excess of 16 pages and there are reports and articles from all over. I try to include as much as I can from The Barossa Council, as I doubt many people have the time (or the willpower) to read through the hundreds of pages of Agendas, Minutes and attachments. Gareth Saunders has taken up the task of sending me a report from the Progress Association and Kath Fisher makes sure we know what the CWA, Red Cross and Friends of the Hospital are up to. Occasionally we get information form the Men’s Shed, but often they are busy off helping people and don’t get time to send things through.

Paula as usual is a fount of knowledge with all things Historic, and this month she told me about a Mt Pleasant connection with Simpson and his Donkey - and how one of the soldiers he took up to be looked after by the medics was Alec Bax - who lived in our house with this parents and siblings. Sadly not even the heroic John Simpson Kirkpatrick could save Alec, and he died shortly after. The Bax family also lost Murray and Ben as a result of the First World War, something that is almost impossible to comprehend now.

Paula also mentioned that it was thought that Captain Starlight visited Palmer (and possibly mount pleasant) when he was getting rid of his rustled cattle. Captain Starlight was the subject of our first Australian Classic movie that we showed towards the end of July, and it went over so well, we will continue it fortnightly - the next showing being ‘The Shiralee’ with Bryan Brown. We supplied hot soup and rolls with the movie, and I will attach the recipe for the Peanut and Chicken soup here, as so many people have asked for it. (If you don’t like things hot, only add half a teaspoon of Cayenne. Also, if your guests are ‘allergic’ to Coriander (Cilantro), omit it. It’s a lovely, tasty soup and freezes well.)

Although the nights have been foggy and cold, the days have been sunny and crisp, and that’s got to cheer you up in these odd times. Take care and stay warm!

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That's life

I am still waiting for the modem Telstra seems to think will fix my computing woes - in the meantime, I’m still hot spotting and hoping my phone doesn’t run out of data. Yes, I know I could ring and ask for more, but I think I’ve spent enough time on the phone.

A few interesting things in the district lately - not COVID-19 related - including the partial dismantling of a part of the railway line in the Barossa, to accommodate a roundabout.

As you know, I am all about my own district and not as enamoured of others that seem to have had large bites off yummy pies over the years, but I was dismayed to hear about this. Railway lines are a great part of our history. Without the rails, much of the outback would never have been further explored, and certainly not serviced. The local line - ours included - were a major part of our social history, and once dismantled, will never be reinstated.

Take a cue from Peterborough and Terowie. The two towns were amazingly crucial to our links with the eastern states. When all lines were different gauges, thew places are where cargo was swapped and dispersed throughout the state. If you ever have the chance to visit Peterborough, stay in the old Railway Carriages and check our the Railway Museum. In small rural towns that are struggling, keeping these assets are paramount, and it would have been a much bigger drawcard if the link between Peterborough and Tarcowie had remained.

in the past there was a wine train that operated spasmodically in the Barossa region, and although it eventually proved unviable, it will never be resurrected now. I feel it was shortsighted of the state government to pull up the tracks - even though the proposed alternative was much more expensive - that history is gone forever. With the Angaston Rail Precinct now a reality, expansion has effectively been squashed. With drink-driving a bigger issue than ever, the business model of catering for people who want to tour the wineries without driving seems a pipe dream. Of course, apart from the few high-end places to stay in the Barossa, the rest of the accommodation could do with an upgrade, or it will continue to benefit more from local traffic than the overseas visitors they are aiming for.

In the meantime, as the daily briefings from the US seem to get more bizarre, it’s worth watching Chas and John try to make sense of it all on ‘Planet America’, on ABC and iView.