A man with an eye for passing trade, Mr John Selfe built the Imperial Hotel on what was to become Wee Waa’s main road. The 40-room hotel had already changed hands a few times and was leased by Mr W. Maher when a fire consumed the street on Valentine’s Day in 1912. The blaze started […]
Amateur racing clubs thrived in country NSW during the early 1900s. Unlike the tightly regulated metropolitan tracks, amateur clubs accepted a wider range of weights, ages, and skill, thrilling spectators with predictably unpredictable outcomes. Unpredictability was not confined to the track at Lightning Ridge Amateur Race Club (LRARC). In a curious twist, there were not […]
Rail travel to remote NSW was available long before cars and petrol stations became commonplace. However, the railways weren’t built for sightseeing or leisure; they existed to haul goods from the small towns that grew up around industries like farming and mining. The pace of travel was sedate, and large stretches of countryside were the […]
Founded and funded by altruistic opal miner, Madeleine Lenz (1917–2009), the Lightning Ridge Bowling Club was unofficially opened in 1967 by NSW’s Governor General, Lord Richard Casey (1890-1976). Attended by members only, the celebrations were jubilant, and the outback bowlers pulled together to make it a day to remember. Madeleine was a devout Catholic with […]
The Lightning Ridge Bowling Club has been the community’s beating heart since its official opening, but its journey to that milestone was not easy. The club opened its doors in Morilla Street in 1966, but it wasn’t until April 1969 that its first official competition as a member of the Royal NSW Bowling Association was […]
In April 1924, King George V (1865-1936) opened the British Empire Exhibition in Wembley to revive a war-weary economy. The 215-acre trade fair and amusement park showcased the resources of his Empire, uniting fifty-six colonies and dominions in a bid to boost prosperity and trade networks. Australia’s pavilion was abuzz, boasting dioramas with life-sized butter […]
Found at the former settlement of Nettleton near Lightning Ridge in north-west NSW, this brass seal was used at the local post office from 1912 when the area was bustling with opal miners and their families. As well as the post office, Nettleton once boasted a school, boarding house, and shops selling flour and tea, […]
It’s a familiar tale in the outback. A city slicker, rolling into a mining town with dreams of striking it rich, only to be met with the brutal reality of life in the desert. Brian Maloney’s cartoon satirically depicts what Lightning Ridge locals refer to as ‘Going Gougin’,’ reminding us that opal mining isn’t for […]
When Madeleine Lenz (1917-2009) first visited Lightning Ridge in the 1950s, it was a rough, remote outpost with just 64 residents. The settlement had no town water, power or police—just a pub, a small store, and dirt roads riddled with potholes. The nearest doctor was fifty miles away at Walgett. Despite its harsh conditions, Madeleine […]
Imagine if your monthly grocery shopping took nearly a week! In the colony’s early years, settler women and their children living on remote properties often had to travel a few days by buggy on dirt tracks to get to the nearest township for supplies. Overnight stays at inns and hotels were common, and a good […]
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