History
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Families with goldfields link reconnect
Bendigo resident and keen historian Lynne Cooper is delighted to report that she has tracked down the descendants of former Castlemaine Goldfields police sergeant, Daniel Nowlan.
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Bid to unearth goldfields relic
Bendigo resident and keen historian Lynne Cooper is in the final throes of completing a fascinating new biography on the colourful life of her great grandfather, former Castlemaine Goldfields police sergeant Henry William Frood. Sergeant Frood served on the goldfields for 32 years from 1857 to 1889 in Castlemaine, Sandhurst, Daylesford, Horsham and Stawell, and…
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Artist moved to mark history
Inspired by our report on the campaign to rename Hutton Street in Kyneton due to its namesake’s links to an Indigenous massacre in 1839, Woodend artist Dr Ray Hearn created a collage to acknowledge this history.In recognition of Reconciliation Week 2021, Hearn shared his work with us. “The collage deals with the Campaspe Downs massacre…
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Sign of the times – Churches slated for sale
A ‘sign of the times’ is the way the looming sale of two historic Uniting Churches is being described by what remains of their once-strong congregations at Yandoit and Newstead. The two historic churches are earmarked for sale with the much-diminished and ageing congregations in each location struggling to cover costs for their ongoing maintenance…
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Memories of war
Jim Foreman was just 17 years old when he shipped out to sea. Now aged 94, it’s taken the WWII veteran a lifetime to talk about what he saw at war. It was 1944 and the war was intensifying, so along with many other boys who left school in Kyneton, Jim joined the Navy. “Don…
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Journey back to our past
Take a journey back to our mechanical past at the Mount Alexander Vintage Engine Club’s 24th Annual Vintage Engine Rally this weekend. The rally will take place at MAVEC’s home base at the Dave Bennett Reserve alongside the Muckleford Railway Station and is always a great day out for the whole family. The popular annual…
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Bridge on Froomes decision time looms
The future of Castlemaine’s Froomes Road Bridge is expected to become clearer after next month’s Mount Alexander Shire Council meeting. Whether it will be replaced with a single or double-lane structure remains a matter of controversy since the former council last year ratified awarding a $1,018,300.10 contract to VEC Pty Ltd to replace the current…
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Hospital reno soon
The Old Kyneton Hospital is a step closer to seeing new life pour through its doors as the first part of Embracia Victoria’s plan for the site got aired last week. The aged-care provider aims to use the site at 67 Simpson Street for co-located childcare and aged-care facilities, purchasing the property in November 2019.…
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Gaze-grabber! Retro carriage now ready to roll
With it’s bold retro livery and carefully crafted timbers, VGR’s newly restored heritage refrigerator car is certain to turn heads as it gets rolling on the Castlemaine-Maldon tourist railway line for the first of many outings. Restoring the extremely rare early 1900s railway car has been a labour of love for the Victorian Goldfields Railways’…
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Balcony restoration for grand old icon
As scaffolding was erected alongside Castlemaine’s gracious old Midland Hotel in recent days it could not help but draw attention. The iconic Midland featuring balcony with lavish flourish of yesteryear lace ironwork, framed by resident handsome established palm tree, is the face that greets all alighting at the town’s railway station. And so it was…
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Woodend Bowling Club celebrates 130 years
On Christmas Day this year, Woodend Bowling Club will celebrate 130 years since the very first green was opened – December 25, 1890. The origins of the club dated back just over six months from then when, on June 1, it was decided at a well-attended meeting to establish a bowls, croquet and lawn tennis…
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Maldon pioneer settlement sold
Maldon’s former ‘Porcupine Township’ Pioneer Settlement has sold to a Victorian buyer for an undisclosed sum. The unique 15-acre property offers visitor accommodation and a glimpse into our colonial past. The 1850s-themed attraction was created by Peter and Cristina Mitz back in the early 1990s and opened to the public in 1992. It ran very…