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SA Australiana Study Group 50
th Meeting, 7
th November 2019
We recommend readers to the Australiana Society website
https://www.australiana.org.au/ and encourage membership.
Attendance: 22
An Australian specimen timber work box, Tasmania C1860 or earlier.
Width 33cm, depth 30cm, height 17cm.
By an unknown maker, the rectangular box is veneered with a number of native timbers,
including huon pine, musk, myrtle, honeysuckle, cedar and ebony. To the front is an inlay of
two stars, while the top features a striking compass-like design. Formerly in the collection of
Dale Frank, it is illustrated in Australian Furniture Pictorial History and Dictionary 1788-
1938, Kevin Fahy and Andrew Simpson, Casuarina Press, Sydney 1988, page 206, plate 82.
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Boomerang from Ooldea siding, Nullarbor Plain, SA dated 27 February 1945. 44cm
The boomerang has pokerwork depicting a kangaroo, three emus and a swan on the
front and on the back hand written ‘Ooldea Tran’s Line 27th
Feb 1945’.
This boomerang was purchased on the 27th
February, 1945 by Mrs Pearl Wiseman from
Perth, at Ooldea siding, while travelling with her son Les, to see her husband, Les’ father,
who was on leave prior to his being deployed with the RAAF to the islands during WW2.
He served with Airfield Construction as a mechanic.
The Aboriginal people sold their craft to the passengers, while the steam train stopped to
refill with water, as they did at all the rail sidings at that time, making the journey a slow trip.
At the time boomerangs were selling for between four and six shillings.
Ooldea was an important camp during construction of the railway, as it is near a permanent
waterhole, first discovered by Europeans when Ernest Giles used it in 1875. On 17 October
1917 the final link of the railway was completed at Ooldea, linking the western section from
Kalgoorlie to the eastern section to Port Augusta. The town was dependent on the Tea and
Sugar Train for the delivery of supplies until 1996 when the train was withdrawn. The
longest dead straight section of railway line in the world starts west of Ooldea before Watson
at the 797 km post and continues to a point between Loongana and Nurina, a distance of 478
km.
Ooldea was the site of a mission for Aboriginal children which was visited twice by
Norman Tindale and was home for many years to Daisy Bates, both of whom were concerned
with understanding and protecting Aboriginal culture. The historic Ooldea Soak and former
United Aborigines Mission site and Daisy Bates' campsite are listed on the South Australian
Heritage Register.
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Queensland fretwork cabinet Toilet & Novelties / For Qld Australia.
Made from plywood, maker unknown. 66x62x25 cm
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On both outer sides of the box there is a page from The Queenslander, an illustrated weekly
magazine, price 6d, and dated 5th
May 1932. The magazine is accessible in Trove, and a
search through the magazine for that date does not show any reference to such a cabinet.
In the early years of the Great Depression the Queensland Preference League was
established to promote the state’s produce and manufactured goods by holding ‘Made in
Queensland Exhibitions’ and promoted the song ‘Queensland First’ written by Mrs M
Forrest. The exhibitions focused on commercial aspects of buying factory items and produce
grown in the state; the cabinet, whilst not ‘factory made’, has been attributed to this era and
would be closely associated with it. The cabinet was most likely exhibited at a regional
agricultural show. The previous owner believed it was made in the Ipswich region.
Scrimshaw of a Boobook Owl mounted in cedar. New South Wales, mid nineteenth
century.
Height 17.4 cm, width at base 19.3 cm.
A finely detailed scrimshaw of a Boobook Owl on a slice of ivory, and set in a wedge of
roughly worked Australian red cedar that functions as a standing frame. A scrap of label
formerly attached to the base was inscribed "1850".
When being purchased, it came with the story that it was made by a whaler, who then
turned to timber cutting in the cedar forests of New South Wales. On seeing a nesting
Boobook Owl in one of the trees he left it standing. When later finding the tree cut down, he
souvenired a piece of the timber and scrimshawed a picture of the owl as a memento.
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Silver meat dish from the service of Queen Adelaide (1792-1849), by Garrards of
London, 1827/28. 40.7 x 33.5 cm.
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Made by the London firm of Garrard, gold and silversmiths, the meat dish was hallmarked
at the London Assay Office in 1827/28. It is engraved with the arms of William Henry, third
son of King George III as Duke of Clarence, acolée with those of Princess Adelaide
(Adelheid), the eldest daughter of the Duke and Duchess of Saxe-Meiningen in Germany,
whom he married in 1818.
On the death of his brother, the extravagant and unpopular King George IV, William came
to the throne in 1830 with Adelaide as his Consort. It was also in 1830 that Garrard was
appointed Crown Goldsmiths. During his short seven year reign William saw the passage of
the Reform Bill through parliament. This was also the time during which the colonisation of
South Australia was planned and enacted.
There had been a suggestion to name the future capital of the new colony Wellington, after
the Duke, hero and statesman of the day, but that was already the proposed name for the
capital of New Zealand. Then the names of the King or Queen were suggested, with
Governor Hindmarsh being advised before departure for the colony that the King “…desired
that the capital might be named Adelaide.”
On the death of William in 1837 Adelaide became the Dowager Queen, leaving Windsor
Castle as Queen Victoria came to the throne. It would have been during this later period, but
before her own death in 1849, that the crowned monogram of Adelaide would have been
added, engraved on her family silverware.
The hallmarks shown are the lion passant (for sterling silver), the leopard’s head (to denote
the London Assay Office at Goldsmiths’ Hall), the date letter for the 1827/28 assay year, and
the sovereign’s head to show duty had been paid. Alongside these is the registered mark
entered by Robert Garrard as the responsible entity for the standard of the silver, the crowned
RG
Wax relief portrait medallion, Theresa Walker (1807-1876), Adelaide c 1840s.
The wax is mounted on slate, and the circular wooden frame is modern, similar to
original frames, outer diameter 21 cm
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Wax relief double portrait medallion, Theresa Walker (1807-1876), Adelaide c 1840s.
Glass 9.5 x 11 cm
In the early 19thC, making a modelled profile portrait head in wax was a very popular form
of recording famous people or family members. The original was often carved from a circular
block of wax, from which it was possible to make a mould and then produce several identical
profile portraits of the person concerned.
Theresa Walker’s works were shown at the Royal Academy Summer Exhibition of 1841,
and it is thought that they were perhaps taken back to London by her father William
Chauncey when he returned to England after visiting his two daughters in Adelaide - the
other was Martha Berkeley - earlier in the same year. The two profile wax portraits shown in
London, of Kertamaroo and Pretty Mary, were distinctive in that they are the only known
aboriginal portraits of the day in wax relief – and their framing, in velvet and carved wood
was also very unusual. These two works are currently on display in the Elder Wing of the Art
Gallery of South Australia.
On the night of the 50th
meeting two wax relief portraits were shown. Both are thought to
be by Theresa Walker. One, of a female head, has not been identified, but it was suggested
that the second example which was of the heads of two children, could possibly be the
profiles of Martha Berkeley’s first two daughters – Georgina and Emily.
To conclude the evening, a newly discovered Marriage Proposal from Charles Berkeley to
Martha Chauncey was read out – with much laughter at the polite but entreating words of a
desperate suitor trying to win the hand of a woman he knew would be sailing on the same
ship – the John Renwick. Together with Theresa Chauncey, they all arrived in Holdfast Bay,
South Australia on 10 February 1837.
N.B. An account of Theresa Walker is to be found in Colonial Sisters – Martha Berkeley
and Theresa Walker by Jane Hylton, published by the Art Gallery of South Australia in 1994
to accompany the exhibition of the same title. ISBN: 0730830721.
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Transfer printed jug commemorating the coronation of King William IV and Queen
Adelaide in 1831. Height 19 cm.
A glazed earthenware jug transfer printed with half-length portraits of King William IV
and Queen Adelaide. The King is shown wearing the Order of the Garter, and with a banner
above reading His Most Gracious / Majesty / King William. Queen Adelaide, quill in hand,
has a banner above reading Her Most Gracious / Majesty / Queen Adelaide. Other decoration
includes floral garlands emblematic of the nation, and to the front, the royal crown within a
garland.
One of the many commemorative objects produced by British potteries to cash in on the
coronation, this example is of higher quality than most, but is unmarked. It is noted that the
image of Queen Adelaide is based on the portrait of Adelaide as Duchess of Clarence by
Samuel Raven, dated to the year of her wedding in 1818 (Art Gallery of South Australia).
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Transfer printed jug commemorating the coronation of King William IV and Queen
Adelaide in 1831. Height 18.5 cm.
Similar to the previous item, this transfer printed earthenware jug is of slightly lesser
quality, but bears a reference to the Reform Bill which passed in 1832, and extended the
voting franchise (but not to women). Each of the portraits sits above the name of the sitter,
and the date of the coronation, 8 September 1831. Included on the portrait transfers is the
name of the presumed portraitist credited with the image, by the name of Kennedy. It is
somewhat ironical that Queen Adelaide was opposed to the passage of the Reform Bill.
The graceful trademark printed on the base of the jug of C&R has been credited to the firm
of Chesworth and Robinson of Staffordshire (1825-1840), or possibly another Staffordshire
factory, that of Chetham and Robinson (1822-1837).
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South Australian Volunteer Military Force water bottle, "Italian pattern", 1874 - 1882,
manufactured by 'Fratelli Gugielminetti', Turin, Italy. Height 19.5 cm, diam. at base
10.5 cm
Following the Russo-Turkish war of 1877-78 and the threat of Russian expansion into
India, colonial defence in South Australia was reviewed. By the end of 1877 the South
Australian Military Force was reorganised around volunteer rifle companies (the 'Adelaide
Rifles') and two volunteer artillery companies. Construction began at Fort Glanville in 1878
and HMCS Protector was ordered in 1882. After the British defeat by the Zulus in 1879 the
government also volunteered to send troops to South Africa.
The Italian pattern water bottle was standard issue to the British army and colonial forces
from 1874 - 82. It is constructed from a hollowed out single piece of timber and is D-shaped
in cross section. Our example is stamped, in the timber, with a broad arrow and "SA" (South
Australia). Manufactured in Italy, they continued to be used by the Italian Army until the end
of WW1.
This item was destined for a skip when rescued by its new owner the day before our
meeting.
Please note that if the metal band around the bottle is considered to be galvanised iron, as
opposed to just iron, this tightens the date range to 1877 - 82.
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Commemorative teaspoon for the South Australian sesquicentenary of 1986.
Length 10.8 cm.
The spoon, apparently cast and stamped, was produced as one of many souvenirs of the
sesquicentenary celebration of the 1836 establishment of the colony of South Australia. The
finial represents the ship HMS Buffalo, which carried the first governor to SA, Captain John
Hindmarsh. Built in India in 1813, and launched as the Hindostan, she was bought by the
Royal Navy and renamed, then put into service as a storeship and timber carrier. In a varied
career, the ship carried convicts to Australia, British forces to Quebec to put down a
rebellion, and was the scene of a foiled mutiny. Eventually reverting to carrying timber, she
was wrecked in New Zealand in 1840.
The silver plated spoon carries the mark of the supplier, the initials W.A.P.W. Numerous
internet references to such marks have been found, crediting the name to the Wales
Association of Pewter Works, but without giving any concrete provenance.
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Adelaide International Jubilee Exhibition 1887, cased medal awarded to F.H. Faulding
& Co. Bronze, 76 mm.
Obverse: Bust of Queen Victoria facing left, surrounded by ADELAIDE JUBILEE
INTERNATIONAL EXHIBITION MDCCCXXXVII and in minute letters under the
bust the engravers name and address: EA ALTMANN MELBOURNE [engraver]
Reverse: FIRST ORDER OF MERIT within a wreath. Edge: plain. Struck at Stokes &
Martin, Melbourne.
F.H. Faulding & Co was a pharmaceutical company founded in Adelaide by Francis Hardey
Faulding (1816-1868) who arrived in Adelaide in 1845 and opened a pharmacy that year in
Rundle Street, and later established a manufacturing and wholesale business in Clarence
Place also in the city. In 1861 Luther Scammell (1826–1910) became a partner in the
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business and upon the death of the founder in 1868 he became the sole proprietor. At the time
of the Adelaide Exhibition the head office was in James Place, Adelaide. The company has
changed hands a number of occasions and the current owner is Pfizer, a New York based
company.
In all, 1970 First Order of Merit medals were awarded. These medals were given for the
exhibit being of a high standard rather than ‘the best’. Seventeen South Australian firms were
awarded this medal (and a Diploma) under the ‘Jury III Chemical Manufactures’ section and
the above medal being one of those. Fauldings exhibited ‘Eucalyptus preparations’.
The Exhibition organizers held a competition offering ten guineas to design the medal, 39
submissions were received and the judges were appalled at all the mediocracy of designs, and
decided on a ‘sort of copy on a large scale of a [British] shilling or sixpence’. There was
confusion amongst the design artists; was the exhibition to celebrate the colony’s jubilee or
the Queens Jubilee! Local designers held a protest but nothing came of it. Ernest August
Altmann (c 1850-1900) of Melbourne won the contract to engrave the dies and strike the
medals and it appears all his medals were struck at Stokes or the Royal Mint, Melbourne. He
also made the dies for the Exhibition’s ‘For Services’ medal. .
South London School of Pharmacy Junior Chemistry award medal presented to Mr
L.R. Scammell in 1879 Bronze 52 mm
Obverse: Centre, SOUTH LONDON SCHOOL OF CHEMISTRY AND PHARMACY
within a shield, supported by two standing figures, all within a wreath. Above: a ribbon
with a Latin motto and pot. Below: in minute letters NEAL [medal manufacturer], and
PRIZE MEDAL Reverse: Engraved: PRESENTED TO / Mr. L.R. SCAMMELL. /
JUNIOR CHEMISTRY / APRIL 1879. Edge: Plain.
Luther R Scammell (1858-1940) was born in Hindmarsh, a suburb of Adelaide, and his
father, Luther Scammell (1826–1910) was at the time a partner of F.H. Fauldings & Co. LR
Scammell studied at the South London School of Pharmacy in the 1870s and was awarded
the above medal. Upon his return to Adelaide he worked for his father’s company, and in
1889 with his brother WJ Scammell became directors in the family business and later LR
Scammell became managing director and chairman of the Board.
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A carton of six “Metal Petal” drinks holders, 1950s. Length each approx. 56 cm.
Manufactured originally by the SA firm of Rainsford Metal Products, established in 1954,
these colourful and useful novelties were originally made (by some accounts) as a way to
make use of metal offcuts. Rainsford designed and manufactured light engineering products,
such as wheelbarrows, roof racks, swimming pool liners, as well as sunroofs, mirrors and
seatbelts for cars. In the mid-1980s the business was purchased by Britax International plc of
the UK and changed direction, concentrating of making automotive mirrors for the (then)
Australian motor industry and building exports, and phasing out other products.
The popularity of “metal petals” and their nostalgic appeal has seen them return to the
market, being made in Adelaide and Melbourne, and again in a bright range of colours. So
very convenient for that barbecue in the backyard or the park!
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Carte de visite photographs of two pages from the Adelaide edition of the "Illustrated
Melbourne Post" (June 1865), depicting engravings of the bushrangers Ben Hall and
John Gilbert. "Anson & Francis" photographers, Adelaide, 1865. 9 x 6 cm.
Carte de visite format photographic prints were introduced to Adelaide in 1861. Normally
used for portraits, photographic prints were also made of items of general interest and sold as
souvenirs. These two cartes - with their focus on the dramatic deaths of the infamous
bushrangers Ben Hall and John Gilbert - were pirated from the "Illustrated Melbourne Post"
(1862 - 1868). This monthly periodical (the Adelaide edition carrying a page of Adelaide
advertising), extensively illustrated with engravings, was published by the daily Herald
newspaper. Aimed at an urban middle class readership it frequently ran stories and images of
bush life and this style of publication is said to have influenced Tom Roberts and Frederick
McCubbin. Three of the four woodcut engravings here are by the prolific engraver Samuel
Calvert (1828 -1913) who migrated to Adelaide (1848 - 1852) before moving to Melbourne.
Henry Anson and William Francis were brothers in law whose partnership in Rundle Street
ran from 1863 - 1866. Both continued as photographers afterwards, with Francis
photographing the Barossa Goldfields in 1868.
Ben Hall (age 27) and John Gilbert (age 23) were members of the same gang. They were
ambushed and shot dead, eight days apart, near Forbes, by New South Wales police, in May
1865.
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H. Beaufoy Merlin & Charles Bayliss, B. O. Holtermann with 'Holtermann nugget', 1872.
albumen silver carte-de-visite, mounted on paper, hand-coloured. 9 x 6 cm. (variable)
H. Beaufoy Merlin & Charles Bayliss, Hawkins Hill, Hill End, NSW. c.1872, two
albumen silver photographs, mounted on card. 58 x 78 cm.
Photographers H. Beaufoy Merlin (1830-73) & Charles Bayliss (1850-97) of the American
and Australasian Photographic Company were commissioned by one of the most successful
Hill End miners, Bernhardt O. Holtermann to record all of the built structures in the township
of Hill End. Holtermann was part owner of the Star Of Hope Mine, on Hawkins Hill, where
the largest single nugget of gold ever found was extracted. It weighed 630 pounds (285kg),
stood 4’ 9” (1.45m) high, was 2’ 2” (.66m) wide and comprised an average thickness of 4”
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(.1m). It is reputed to have taken more than a dozen men to raise the nugget from the mine.
Keast Burke (Gold & Silver Photographs of Australian Goldfields from the Holtermann
Collection, 1974, p.19) records that the Star Of Hope Mine was the fourth built structure from
the right hand side, demarcated as structure No. 18 on this original photograph.
The view-point of the photograph is appropriately known as Merlin’s Lookout, where the
photographer had a special platform constructed from which he managed the exposure and
development of his large plate negatives. The Holtermann Collection of 3,500 negatives were
donated to the Mitchell Library in 1952 by Bernhardt O. Holtermann’s grandson, Bernhard
Holtermann, after having been discovered in a garden shed in Chatswood, where they had
lain undisturbed in cedar boxes and lacquered tins for nearly 80 years.
A Parramatta River Steam Tram travel pass for six months, late 19th
to early 20th
century, struck in unmarked silver. 26 x 29 mm high.
The obverse shows a large ringed numeral 2 believed to refer to a section, surrounded by
the initials P R S T. The reverse is machine engraved with a large letter B, the owner’s
identity number 196, and the period 6 Months. The pass would have been attached to a key
ring or watch chain for ready identification.
The Parramatta River Steam Tram service opened in October 1883 and ran from its
terminus in George Street at the Park Gates, through the town and then through the tract of
land known as Elizabeth Farm Estate and continued on to its terminus at the wharf at
Redbank near where the Parramatta River meets Duck River. The tram transported
passengers as well as goods and serviced a number of industries from sidings along the main
line, and at the wharf passengers and cargo transferred to the Parramatta River Ferry and
travelled on to Sydney. The entire trip from Parramatta to Sydney took over an hour, but
considerable time was saved by using the tram for the initial part of the journey. The tramway
eventually closed on the 31st March 1943. The identification number of 196 on the pass
suggests that at least 196 were produced, but most passes have since been lost or destroyed
and we now know of only six examples remaining.
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Book Blood, Sweat and Fears by Verco, Summers, Swain and Jelly.
ISBN 9780646927503
Published in 2014 by the Army Museum of South Australia in Adelaide, and written by an
eminent group of medical friends, members of the South Australian Medical Heritage
Society, This book records the military service of the Royal Australian Army Medical Corps
in SA. This initial volume covers the period of WWI, including those who were born,
educated, or practised in SA before the war, regardless of where they enlisted or served, or in
which branch of the Australian or British armed services they served.
The book records details of the 215 doctors from South Australia who served, including ten
who died, 18 who received the Military Cross (MC), 12 who received the Distinguished
Service Order (DSO), and the Military Medal awarded to Phoebe Chapple (who as a woman
could not be deployed and thus although recommended for an MC was not eligible).
The individual stories recorded of this remarkable group of medicos range from those
serving on the home front to those in the most harrowing and dangerous fields of battle.
Many returned to the armed services in WW2, and were there were those who went on to
achieve remarkable careers in medicine. The authors met regularly over several years at the
naval Military and Air Force Club of SA to discuss and collate their research, and have also
produced a Volume II under the same title covering the period from the end of WW2 to the
end of the official Vietnam War in 1975.
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Bernaldo Recollections, A lifetime with Water Colours.
Heritage Australian Art Series, published 1976, 59 pages
This publication reveals the life and thoughts of a Victorian based artist and illustrates
many of his paintings. Allan Thomas Bernaldo was born in 1900 (he recorded his year of
birth as 1898 when he enlisted) at Creswick, Victoria. His father was of Spanish stock and his
mother was of Scottish descent. He was the first-born of four children born to Thomas
Bernaldo and his wife Florence.
Having won a senior technical scholarship awarded by the Victorian State Government, he
entered the Ballarat School of Mines, Art and Industry in 1914 to study architecture.
In June, 1918, he enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force and was demobilized in.
December, 1918. Following his return to civilian life Allan studied for his D.T.S.C. (Com.
Art Cert.), at Ballarat Technical Art School. On completion of his course at Ballarat
Technical Art School, under the tutelage of Harold B. Herbert, Allan joined the Victorian
Artists’ Society,
In 1920 Allan Bernaldo moved to Melbourne and took his first job with the Successful
Advertising Agency in Collins House. The experience gained over the subsequent two years
as a commercial artist, plus his previous studies, enabled him to enter the teaching profession
as Industrial Art Teacher at Brighton Technical School in Berwick Street, Brighton.
In 1928 he married Miss Florence Elliott in Sydney. Early in the 1930s he painted floral
works of art, which were exhibited with much success and, at the same time, continuing his
teaching career at Brighton Technical School. Upon retirement Allan and his wife travelled to
Europe and the United Kingdom where Allan painted extensively.
His work often appears at auctions particularly in Melbourne and as such many of his
paintings can easily be found on the internet.
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Linen lace cloth with Tenerife lace detail. 162.0 x 42.0cm
Unknown maker: possibly Isobel Spink 1779-1816 or Hannah Johnstone 1801-1878.
A reference to the collection from which this cloth is derived was made in an article in the
Adelaide newspaper, News, Wednesday 28th
June, 1933. The article celebrated the 100th
birthday of a woman who remembered Victoria’s marriage to “that wee bit German laddie.”
Agnes, the birthday girl was seventeen when she left Arbroath with her parents and seven
siblings to relocate to South Australia on the Hydaspes. Placing this in historical context, the
family arrived in Adelaide in 1851, just fifteen years after the Proclamation of the South
Australian colony.
So what has this linen seen? The linen was in stored in a large case in the hold of the
Hydaspes and Agnes recalled convincing the First Mate to check on the trunk. When she
spied it down below, she said “yons ma kist”, a phrase the First Mate tormented her with for
the rest of the journey. The family travelled by bullock wagon to Strathalbyn to join the
Scottish enclave there. The linen was in a trunk on the bullock wagon when they passed a
number of Aboriginal men on whom she commented to the reporter of the News article: one
who wore a widow’s bonnet and white collar, another called ‘Old King’ wore just a coat and
she remarked that his grandson was called Bonaparte and very friendly towards her. To put it
expediently, this cloth has seen women’s enfranchisement, Federation, two World Wars and
various depressions, recessions and booms.
Why did Agnes mention it at the anniversary of her 100th
birthday? Arbroath was a centre
of linen production at the time that Agnes was born. The flax (and hemp) was imported from
Russia and processed there in pits of rancid water to soften it before it was cleaned, spun and
woven. Much was used for sail cloth. This linen cloth was not Agnes’s because she never
married. It belonged to successive female ancestors before her, and descendants after her.
Agnes’s own mother, Hannah, was given it in a chest of linen upon her marriage as the first
born girl as was the tradition. In 1933, the 100 year old Agnes told the reporter that some of
the linen given to her mother in her marriage chest, which was by then was over 200 year old,
still existed in the custodianship of relatives
Therefore, this cloth is an early remnant of fabric used in the first 50 years of South
Australia as a colony.