When food was first canned in the early 1800s, manufacturers spent a long time working out how to preserve the contents while giving little thought to how one might get to the goods inside. Early cans were thick and heavy, sometimes weighing more than their contents. Made from wrought iron and lined with tin, the […]
Where do you expect to find a mortar and pestle? Most people would immediately recall the grinding up of fragrant spices in a familiar kitchen. However, for pharmacist John Tregurtha (d. 2009), he likely thought of hours spent grinding fine powders to make medications for his community. John began working as a pharmacist at Emmaville […]
Growing up, it might have seemed unlikely that Loo Loo Ruth Amesbury (1885-1961) could truly follow in her father’s footsteps. After all, Edward Percy Amesbury (1842-1912) was the local dentist in the town of Glen Innes, on Ngoorabul country, and becoming an apprentice dentist was not what most would consider ‘women’s work’ at the time. […]
It’s hard to imagine that we once relied on horses and bullocks to take bulky produce to market, move heavy loads, and travel long distances. Back then, saddlers were essential because they made and repaired harnesses and leatherwork. In the 1870s, John Priest (born c. 1851) was one of the first saddlers to open in […]
Hiding a fascinating story behind its deceptively simple appearance, this wooden shuttle was used during the Pacific War (1944 – 1945) to weave green camouflage netting, intended to be used by soldiers stationed in the Pacific. World War II placed an unprecedented demand on Australian communities. As men answered the call to fight, women increasingly […]
The Glen Innes Examiner – formerly the Glen Innes Examiner and General Advertiser – has been a source of news for the Glen Innes community of New South Wales for a hundred and fifty years. First established in 1874, the newspaper played an important role in the early days of the town. Spreading information about […]
During the late nineteenth century and early twentieth century, dentistry in Australia was developing at a rapid pace. In NSW, the Dentistry Act was legislated in January 1901, which established dentistry as a profession. New regulations offered a structure to assess the legitimacy of practising dentists and stop those who were unqualified from operating questionable […]
These days, many people are familiar with dental braces and trying to create the perfect smile. However, you might be surprised to know that braces have been around for thousands of years – worn by even the ancient Egyptians! Straight teeth have been aesthetically sought after for a very long time. Ancient Egyptians, Romans, and […]
In the late 1800s, wind-up toys emerged in Europe and captivated young hearts across the continent. This phenomenon began with simple designs, but soon evolved into the production of intricate and enchanting toys which could move seemingly of their own accord. The whir of mechanised hands and feet, the clatter of tin wheels on wooden […]
Percy Puck Sing Young must have been impressed when he walked into the Kwong Sing War store (later known as Kwong Sing & Co.) in 1894. The owner, Wong Chee, had recently erected a new building for the business in Glen Innes, northern NSW, and it stocked a huge range of items. Young soon got […]
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