After returning home each evening, weary from work, Morpeth furniture craftsman Joseph George White (1822-1912) probably followed the fashion of his fellow Victorian era gentlemen. Retreating to a quiet room in his home after dinner, he probably put on a smoking jacket and this smoking cap. But did he then light up a pipe and […]
The steam engine hummed and clanged to a steady beat and the machines buzzed and whizzed. Fine sawdust scented the air and coated every surface. From the 1860s, J.G. White’s furniture factory in Morpeth was equipped with all the newly invented, thoroughly modern power tools, saving countless hours of laborious hand sawing and carving. It […]
Mothers regularly pushed their prams up the ramp of the local courthouse in 1950s Morpeth. But it was not a judge and jury that they were to there to see—it was a baby health nurse. In this unlikely place from 1954, about ten years after the the building had been closed as a court house, […]
On sunny days, this leadlight windowpane once created shafts of ruby, gold and turquoise light that pierced the darkness inside St James’ Anglican Church, Morpeth. Since the building’s construction in 1837-40, it had been part of a lancet (pointed arch) window installed in the tower, on either the northern or southern side. A lack of […]
This little green book of religious instruction has been cared for by generations of women. Wilson on the Lord’s Supper was first published in 1733 by a bishop from the Isle of Man. His words reached the small settlement of Morpeth in New South Wales, via the early St James’s Church of England parishioners. Among […]
When 20-year-old Lincolnshire born woman Sarah Ingall (1829-1902) married at Morpeth in 1849, she probably accepted, as did most brides of her era, that motherhood would be her natural occupation. During her life Sarah gave birth to nine children, spending over twenty-five years pregnant, breast-feeding babies and raising children. This fancy day cap, with its […]
Step inside Morpeth’s Commercial Hotel today and you’ll find distinctive Federation-era features throughout, with an upstairs balcony overlooking the Hunter River (Coquun) and the town’s celebrated white wooden bridge crossing. It’s a pub that’s stood the test of time, evolving to cater to contemporary tastes with a cocktail bar and a nano brewery onsite offering […]
Onboard the ship Eliza when she docked in Sydney on 25 June, 1828, were 158 convicts sent from Britain. Among them was James Redding, a man seemingly condemned for life, as he faced an uncertain future in an unknown land. In the years that immediately followed his arrival, James’ days were dictated by the tick […]
An unassuming piece of history stands on High Street, Morpeth. The once-thriving Astor Picture Palace and Ballroom was always alive with activity during its heyday in the 1930s. Locals gathered there for flower shows, choir practice, mid-week dances and the annual debutante ball, among other events. On quieter occasions the busy dancefloor gave way to […]
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