Trust News Western Australia May 2017

Trust News EDITION 02 | MAY - JULY 2017

Giving voice to Western Australia’s Heritage GINA PICKERING | EDITOR

An exhibition of exceptional quilts celebrating Whadjuk activist Fanny Balbuk Yooreel provided an inspirational start to the 2017 Australian Heritage Festival at City of Perth Library on Tuesday 18 April. Mr John Carey MLA, Parliamentary Secretary representing the Hon David Templeman MLA, Minister for Local Government; Heritage; Culture and The Arts launched the event attended by more than 50 people at the City of Perth Library.

ABOVE: Invited guests included Noongar community representatives (left to right) Beverley Rebbeck, Robyn Stack-Walley, Dr Richard Walley OAM, Noongar Elder Bev Port-Louis, Fanny Balbuk Yooreel Guiding Committee member Diane Yappo listen as John Carey MLA, Parliamentary Secretary launches the Festival.

While Mr Carey voiced support for the benefits of the annual festival to the state, he also drew a more personal connection to the values associated with the exhibition, noting his mother was a keen quilter and the emotions of all quilters were embedded in their work.

National Trust of Western Australia President Max Kay Cit WA said this year’s Festival theme, Having a Voice, acknowledges the 50th anniversary of the 1967 referendum enabling Aboriginal people to be counted in the national census.

“Community groups across the state have also embraced the theme to share seldom heard Western Australian voices through more than 130 events,

performances, exhibitions, walks, talks and workshops during the festival which runs until 21 May,” Mr Kay said.

The National Trust has led this year’s theme of Having a Voice through a program of events about Fanny Balbuk Yooreel, a traditional Swan River woman who lived through the colonisation of Perth first hand and who passionately protested the impact of development on her homelands and culture.

Whadjuk Ballardong Elder Marie Taylor provided a welcome to guests and a compelling overview of Fanny Balbuk Yooreel’s life in early Perth, east to Northam and north to Jurien Bay.

“The Trust has been guided by Noongar women and their extended families in partnership with the City of Perth, ARC Centre of Excellence for the History of Emotions and the Department of Aboriginal Affairs and Lotterywest to share this rarely heard voice with the Perth Community,” Mr Kay said.

The Festival which is coordinated by the National Trust raises awareness of and appreciation for shared heritage in cities and towns across the state. continued page 2

INSIDE THIS ISSUE PERSPECTIVES

INNOVATION

PLACES CONNECTIONS

PLACES

OUT AND ABOUT OUT ‘N’ ABOUT

PERSPECTIVES

CEO Message JULIAN DONALDSON | CEO NATIONAL TRUST OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA

The National Trust is currently presenting the Australian Heritage Festival, which commenced on 18 April and runs to 21 May. This is our flagship program aimed at encouraging all West Australians to celebrate the rich and diverse heritage of our state. With over 130 events across the breadth of WA and metropolitan Perth there are many opportunities for participation and enrichment. As 2017 is the 50th anniversary of the referendum which voted in favour of recognising Aboriginal people in the census, the festival theme Having a Voice is a profound reminder of this significant event in our country’s path to reconciliation.

Trust staff and volunteers have been busy with a number of other important events over the past months at places across the State. These have included Encounter, a two part event (a panel session and a cultural tour at Old Farm, Strawberry Hill), held at the PIAF Writers Festival in the Great Southern; Meet the Composer, held at Gallop House in February; Paul Hardisty delivered the CY O’Connor Lecture on water and sustainability held in March; Coming to Terms, a talk by WA Art Gallery Curator Melissa Harpley, on representation of Aboriginal people in paintings of the Albany coast by early explorers held in March; the Anzac Sunset Service held at Peninsula Farm on Anzac Day; Guildford to Gallipoli held at Woodbridge House on Anzac Day and also on Remembrance Day last year; Carols at Peninsula Farm just before Christmas; and in October you will be invited to attend the annual Curtin Family Home Lecture. Each of these events provides an opportunity to connect the National Trust with our members and the broader community. In addition to the public programs, the Trust sees over 10,000 students in a year participate in its school education and learning program. Trust News is another important connection we make with our members and those interested in our work. I encourage you to subscribe to our e-news if you have not done so already. Finally, the second edition of our new national publication Trust has just been delivered to members.

This magazine provides a rich array of stories on a range of heritage topics and many will find it is now a must keep collectable. I welcome your suggestions on ways you think we can enhance our community connections to ensure members and the public at large are kept informed of the importance of valuing heritage in Western Australia.

continued from page 1 National Trust Chair the Hon Michael Murray AM QC said the National Trust is delighted to work with the community to organise the event annually and a great many heritage experiences are free and low cost.

The 2017 Australian Heritage Festival is supported by funding from the Australian Government, Lotterywest and promotion

by Curtin FM. The Festival program is available at bit.ly/AHFWA17

INSIDE THIS ISSUE 2 PERSPECTIVES Giving voice to Western Australia’s Heritage CEO Message Heritage Watch

4 INNOVATION Inspired Quilters What can we do with water the next 20 years?

9 PLACES Expanding our vision at Old Farm, Strawberry Hill

10 PLACES Covenanting program responds to floods Property Wrap Traditional Skills Training at Central Greenough

13 CATALYST Volunteers’ Liaison Officer Still in living memory

14 OUT ‘N’ ABOUT Gallop Gardeners

7 CONNECTIONS A traditional building experience An approaching bicentenary Scan the code to access the National Trust of Australia (WA) home page.

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PERSPECTIVES

Heritage Watch WA STATE ELECTION 2017 The WA State election in March has seen a change of government in Western Australia with the Australian Labor Party, led by Premier Mark McGowan, taking office. The Hon David Templeman MLA has been appointed Minister for Local Government; Heritage; Culture and the Arts.

One of the first outcomes of the change of government has been the end of the controversial Roe 8 Highway extension affecting the Aboriginal and natural heritage of the Beeliar Wetlands, a Bush Forever site, and a Class A reserve. Work was suspended on the project within 24 hours of the election results, and the government of Premier Mark McGowan has pledged to rehabilitate land already cleared.

The Beeliar Wetlands are a sanctuary for wildlife, showcasing outstanding biodiversity, including rare native species and migratory wading birds. More than 220 plant species and 123 bird species including the endangered Carnaby’s Black Cockatoo and Peregrine Falcon. The Bibra Lakes are used by migratory waterbirds such as Greenshanks, Dotterels, Plovers and Sandpipers, which are protected by international agreements which Australia is a party to.

The Beeliar Wetlands are also a significant site of Aboriginal heritage in Perth, south of the Swan River. Waugyl, Firestick and Spirit Children Dreaming stories are integral to the site.

GUILDFORD’S FAST FOOD VENTURE A McDonald’s restaurant has been proposed next to the Guildford Hotel which reopened last year after being left derelict since 2008 when fire almost destroyed the building. This lot is currently utilized for parking but has been under development pressure with a multi-storied apartment building proposed in 2016. This caused a great deal of controversy as a development of this scale would have been the first in the historic centre of Guildford. A McDonald’s restaurant would result in a less intensive use of the site being only single storey. However, there are issues surrounding design and functionality which will need to be carefully addressed. The National Trust has made a submission regarding the proposal and the application is under assessment by the City of Swan.

NATIONAL HERITAGE LISTING FOR CANBERRA? The city of Canberra is being considered for inclusion on the National Heritage List. Planned by Walter Burley Griffin and Marion Mahony Griffin as the capital in the early 1900s, Canberra has high significance as it was entirely planned from its establishment, similar to Washington DC in the USA. The listing of a whole city raises particular questions, concerns as well as opportunities. The National Trust in Western Australia for example, has classified several towns as ‘Historic Towns’ and while this listing is not statutory, it forms part of the Trust’s education and advocacy activities.

Recognition and conservation of heritage places, such as the towns classified by the Trust, does not limit change.

Canberra’s layout with a wheel and spoke, circular network and careful consideration of the built environment and views from within and around the city, its lake and landscapes form part of this significance. If National Listing is

ABOVE: Birds eye view of Canberra

approved, this recognition will not hinder development as many of these characteristics are already regulated via existing planning processes in every city and town. Nevertheless, it will be interesting to see how this debate

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unfolds and what impacts it will have on the discussions about heritage significance and how this can be recognised, managed and conserved.

INNOVATION

Inspired Quilters

INSET: Quilt by Hilary Arbar

ELIZABETH HUMPHREYS | WA INSPIRED ART QUILTERS

After we displayed our quilts at the National Trust‘s 2016 CY O’Connor lecture, Gina Pickering mentioned that we might consider making quilts on the topic of Fanny Balbuk as a person of interest and perhaps Heirisson Island at the time of white settlement. No clues were given about what might be done with the quilts, but we thought ‘why not’.

We separately set to work and the outcomes are on display at the City of Perth Library until 17 May. A highlight of the project was meeting two women of Fanny’s family group, arranged by the National Trust. My quilting colleagues have been changed by the experience.

“I was blown away by the old maps of the Swan River crossing area drawn up in the early 1800s.

The maps brought a realisation of how important the string of islands had been to local people particularly to Balbuk’s family.” Hilary Arbar “My decision to stitch footprints came after reading Fanny Balbuk followed well-trodden pathways, crossing the mudflats taking her to the river in order to reach Heirisson Island.”

Denise Mallon

“I drew on childhood memories of the construction of the ‘New Causeway Bridge’ linking the Island to the banks of the Swan.

And thought about how it might have been for a strong woman, walking a well defined track in search of her favourite food. Due to settlement, this could no longer happen.” Roberta Chantler

ABOVE: Quilt by Hillary Arber BELOW: Inspired quilters busy at work. G Pickering

ABOVE: Quilts by Pat Forster

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LEFT: Quilt by Elizabeth Humphreys

RIGHT: Quilt by Meg Cowey

“The paintings of early European Settlers and interest in native plants and animals inspired me. “I admired the strength and determination of a woman fighting to maintain her right to move along the tracks to collect the necessities of her traditional life.” Elizabeth Humphreys

“I imagined that Fanny probably enjoyed river dolphins like I do which inspired the dolphin quilt.” Pat Forster Reading Daisy Bate’s accounts of Fanny, and papers on women’s food gathering led me to make four small bushtucker quilts. Subsequently, I came to admire the Aboriginal people who had sustained life on so little.”

Pat Forster

“I had heard about Fanny Balbuk Yooreel’s spirited resistance to European settlement. My involvement in this project enabled me to understand the full extent to which the Whadjuk people were impacted.” Stella King

RIGHT: Quilt by Roberta Chantler

“Fanny Balbuk persistently defended her right to walk the traditional path from Heirisson Island to her great grandmother’s burial site. If she could have foreseen the development of a hundred years, would she have resisted even more determinedly or surrendered in despair?”

Meg Cowey

INNOVATION

What can we do with water - the next 20 years?

ANNE BRAKE | MANAGER COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT

The National Trust of Western Australia’s 2017 CY O’Connor Lecture was delivered by Professor Paul Hardisty a dynamic and energetic environmental engineer who was, until earlier this year, the Director of CSIRO’s Land and Water. This unit focuses on research into land and water resources, ecosystems and climate adaptation.

ABOVE (L-R): Julian Donaldson (CEO, National Trust), Catherine Ferrari (General Manager, Communications, Water Corporation) CY O’Connor Lecture presenter, Professor Paul Hardisty and Max Kay AM Cit WA (President, National Trust). S Thomas/NTWA

Paul’s passion for the role engineers can and should play in designing and delivering solutions to the world’s resource challenges was key to his presentation, during question time and in discussions with attendees during refreshments after the lecture.

Paul was able to balance his technical knowledge with humour and humanity – important ingredients when dealing with potentially complex information.

The take home message was there are already existing engineering solutions to all of our water, energy, food and climate challenges while protecting, and even repairing, the natural world.

ABOVE: Members of CY O’Connor’s family celebrating his life.

However, implementation is not without its challenges. Studies suggest food production will have to double by 2050 to meet projected population growth and increasing expectations for a materially comfortable lifestyle.

Paul is an Adjunct Professor at the University of Western Australia and a Visiting Professor at Imperial College, University of London and has written two textbooks, most recently Environmental and Economic Sustainability. He has been Global Director of EcoNomicsTM and Sustainability for Worley Parsons and a partner in an international environmental consultancy.

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A capacity crowd gathered at the State Library of Western Australia’s theatre for the lecture which is a key event in the National Trust’s calendar. Our thanks go to the Water Corporation for its generous sponsorship which reflects the strong partnership between the two organisations and a shared commitment to conserving and interpreting the nationally significant Goldfields Water Supply Scheme.

You’ll find Paul Hardisty’s presentation on the National Trust website along with previous CY O’Connor Lectures. www.nationaltrust.org.au/ event/2017-c-y-oconnor-lecture

CONNECTIONS

A traditional building experience CAROLINE STOKES | CONSERVATION ARCHITECT

The Lotterywest funded upgrade of Ellensbrook at Margaret River in the state’s southwest is nine months into the planning phase, setting the stage for conservation of the 19th century built house.

ABOVE : Traditional owners are providing advice on appropriate building materials for the workshops. C Stokes

ABOVE: John Purdue from Caves Road Sands supplies prepares a sample for the National Trust architect, to test for suitability for upcoming repairs to Ellensbrook house. C Stokes

The National Trust is working with traditional owners, South West Aboriginal Land and Sea Council and Department of Parks and Wildlife to source natural materials including limestone, granite and sands for upcoming community conservation workshops on site between 14-19 May and 21-26 May. The workshops are comprehensive and include a five and a half day format to extend the benefits of the project to community members, professionals and construction industry practitioners.

ABOVE: Ellensbrook. S Murphy

The workshops will introduce and develop knowledge about traditional building crafts including salt damp remediation, manufacturing of traditional lime mortars, stone masonry and lime washing techniques.

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All of the works are specified by National Trust conservation architects with materials investigation by David Young, structural engineering by Peter Baxendale and timber advice from Greg Meacham.

Meantime, a heritage survey of the location is underway while a draft interpretation plan has been prepared to more fully reveal the values of the site to visitors and inform signage placements as well as rest and gathering nodes. Plans are being made to return the waterwheel to its original location.

For more information visit bit.ly/EllensbrookHeritageTraining

CONNECTIONS

An approaching bicentenary

ANNE BRAKE | MANAGER COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT

Fewer than ten years remain before the bicentenary of European settlement in Western Australia and Old Farm, Strawberry Hill (OFSH) in Albany is strategically placed to become a key element in the upcoming bicentenary program. The National Trust wants to ensure the place is ready to receive the additional attention and is now reviewing the Master Plan and is keen to involve the community through events, partnerships, joint programs or business opportunities.

ABOVE: Consultation with OFSH volunteers is important to understand how visitors engage with and react to this important site. A Brake

ABOVE (L-R): Kelly Rippingale, Conservation Architect, National Trust, with Noongars Carol Peterson, Harley Coyne and Cheryle James-Wallace during a recent consultation trip to Albany. A Brake

A small expedition of convicts, led by Major Edmund Lockyer, was sent from Sydney to take possession of the western third of the country in the name of the British Empire. They arrived at King George Sound on 26 December 1826 and the land now known as OFSH was established as the government farm soon after.

OFSH is known to the Menang Noongars as Barmup. Areas near the creek and small lake were important meeting and camping places for thousands of years prior to European settlement.

Since then, only two families have owned the site; the Spencers and the Birds. The property was transferred to the town of Albany in 1956 and, in 1960, became the first property of the newly formed National Trust of Australia (WA).

The site has many stories to tell and the Trust is working to ensure physical remnants of its many histories are carefully protected.

Master planning for the site was undertaken five years ago and a number of recommendations have been implemented.

Those interested in learning more or contributing to our understanding of this important place, are invited to complete the online survey at https://www.getfeedback.com/r/rR3t7yGp by 31 May 2017 or contact the National Trust on 9321 6088 or trust@ntwa.com.au.

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PLACES

Expanding our vision at Old Farm, Strawberry Hill ANNE BRAKE | MANAGER COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT

The National Trust works with a variety of community partners to highlight the Aboriginal significance of the land associated with its places.

On Wednesday 29 March, Art Gallery of Western Australia curator Melissa Harpley delivered a lecture to a capacity crowd on the representation of Aboriginal people in the art produced during early exploration of the south west of Western Australia and the first years of colonial settlement. The images chosen included works made during British and French expeditions as well as the beautiful amateur watercolour of Old Farm, Strawberry Hill purchased by the National Trust in 2010. Through these images Melissa explored potential meaning in the representation through the different genres.

ABOVE : A tour of Old Farm, Strawberry Hill was led by Harley Coyne as part of the PIAF Writer’s Festival event (NTWA, Anne Brake)

Melissa’s talk was recorded and is available on the National Trust website for viewing.

The lecture was supported by UWA Albany, the WA Museum Great Southern and the Art Gallery of Western Australia.

At Old Farm, Strawberry Hill, Albany on the evening of Friday 24 February, Noongar novelist Prof Kim Scott was joined on stage by historian Dr Murray Arnold, Vernice Gillies and Lindsay Dean, (also Noongars) who both worked on the seminal Yurlmun: Mokare mia boodja exhibition from the British Museum featuring Aboriginal material from King George Sound. This fascinating session, facilitated by National Trust CEO Julian Donaldson, opened the Great Southern PIAF Writer’s Festival. It explored the challenges in finding and interrogating resources and understanding protocols to guide writing and understanding Aboriginal history - both fiction and nonfiction. The following day, a cultural tour was led by Noongar man Harley Coyne through the grounds of Old Farm, Strawberry Hill.

ABOVE : The watercolour of Old Farm, Strawberry Hill was believed to have been painted in the early 1840s possibly

by Sir Richard Spencer’s daughter, Mary-Anne or her mother in law, Jane Trimmer. National Trust Collection

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PLACES

Covenanting program responds to floods MELISSA HOWE | COVENANTING OFFICER

The extensive February floods impacted eighty-nine shires throughout Western Australia from the Kimberley to the South Coast. Numerous bushland properties with National Trust conservation covenants in the Wheatbelt within the Shires of Dumbleyung and Lake Grace and on the South Coast within the Shires of Esperance, Ravensthorpe and Jerramungup were impacted.

These Shires were proclaimed natural disaster zones due to the destructive impact of widespread flooding. Ravensthorpe was cut off from Esperance and Albany via the South Coast Highway due to flood damaged bridges and roads including the Phillips River bridge which was washed away about 80 metres downstream.

Depending how reliable your rain gauge was, Lake Grace and Dumbleyung received between 100 to 180mm of rain with the majority falling within two consecutive days in February.

Jerdacuttup, Munglinup and East Munglinup received between 175 to 200mm falling over 5 consecutive days in February.

After the February flooding, covenanters in Dumbleyung and Munglinup reported bushland and creekline erosion but the main issues were erosion of paddocks, fencing damage and livestock losses. It has been estimated that stock losses, infrastructure damage and land erosion totals more than $5 million and affected 250 properties in the Esperance/ Ravensthorpe area.

The bushland in the Shire of Dumbleyung managed well during the heavy downpours according to Dumbleyung Landcare Zone Manager, Claudia Hadlow, although she has since noticed many fallen Salmon gum trees within bushland and along roadsides.

She has also reported paddock erosion on many properties.

ABOVE: Covenanted property in East Munglinup-Shire of Esperance prior to the February 2017 flood event. M Howe

This flooding has been devastating in many ways, but I am hopeful there will be some environmental benefits that these flood events can trigger and in the meantime, I’m brushing up on my waterbird identification skills.

The ‘Flooding in Western Australia (January and February 2017)’ event has been proclaimed an eligible disaster under the Western Australia Natural Disaster Relief and Recovery Arrangements (WANDRRA).

Affected primary producers may be eligible for funding assistance under the WANDRRA scheme. Primary producers are eligible for grants of $5,000 up to $15,000 to assist with clean-up, removal of debris and restoration of infrastructure.

Further information is available by calling DAFWA’s Rural Business Development Unit on Freecall 1800 198 231 (8.00am to 5.00pm Monday to Friday) or the WANDRRA webpage of the Department website. Applications for primary producers should be lodged online before 13 August 2017.

ABOVE: Oldfield River in Munglinup-Shire of Ravensthorpe-before the February 2017 flood event. M Howe

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Places

Property Wrap Avondale

Several houses at Avondale will be upgraded for short term accommodation thanks to $200,000 in Royalties for Regions funding through the Wheatbelt Development Commission.

Several regional studies have highlighted a need for short term accommodation in the Beverley area and the Shire is working with other towns in the Avon Valley to promote tourism. To assist with activation of the site, the key recommendations from Avondale’s master plan have also been highlighted to assist with a community survey. It is hoped that new interest and volunteer support can be found from further afield. Please follow this link to provide your input: https://www.nationaltrust.org.au/initiatives/ avondale-priorities Jarrahdale

The Mill Manager’s House at Jarrahdale is also a successful recipient of Royalties for Regions funding, with a $215,000 grant made available through the Peel Development Commission. This substantial single storey timber house has historic significance as the residence for Jarrahdale mill managers from 1881 to 1985 and a direct association with more than a century of the history of the State’s timber industry. It was constructed when the timber station at Jarrahdale was the largest industrial operation in the colony and is now rare as one of a few surviving purpose built

mill managers’ residences that remains in its original context and setting.

The simple yet elegant Victorian Georgian building has been vacant for many years and forms the centrepiece of the Jarrahdale Heritage Park. It is hoped that conservation of the building will enable an appropriate new use to be found. The Trust is working closely with the Shire of Serpentine-Jarrahdale in planning for the future community use of the Jarrahdale Heritage Park which incorporates the Mill Manager’s House.

Woodbridge, West Midland

The Trust’s conservation team has been assessing statutory compliance issues relating to toilets, parking and access at Woodbridge to clarify issues associated with the site. The work will provide new perspectives on the capacity for visitors and consider new ways in which a café could be best incorporated into the place.

Bill Sewell Centre, Geraldton

Mission Australia is the new tenant of Campbell House (1897), one of three buildings that comprised Geraldton’s Victoria Hospital. Campbell House is a Federation Filigrees style building constructed of stone, with timber detailing and a corrugated asbestos cement roof. Originally designed to house the kitchen, staff dining room and nursing staff accommodation, its construction represented a major change in the status of nursing, which had been considered a lowly vocation.

The former hospital at Bill Sewell Complex is a rare example in Western Australia of a pavilion design hospital dating from the Victorian and early Federation periods, and has a substantial number of fine, relatively intact, late Victorian and early Federation period hospital buildings, including the operating room, possibly the earliest surviving purpose designed and separately built such facility in the State as well as one of the earliest surviving purpose built Medical Officer’s Quarters (Margaret House).

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Places

Traditional Skills Training at Central Greenough KELLY RIPPINGALE | COSERVATION ARCHITECT

ABOVE: Hackett’s Store before and after conservation works. E Hancock

The National Trust has embarked on an ambitious program of work at Central Greenough thanks to a Royalties for Regions Grant through the Mid West Development Commission.

The work involves squads of Section 95 prisoners and their officers from Geraldton Regional Prison working under the supervision of Applied Building Conservation Training and local stonemason Errol Tilbrook of Keboda Stone Construction.

The first program completed work on the Greenough Police Station, Courthouse and Lock-up Buildings and Convent including repair and repointing of five chimneys, external wall repointing and lime washing. Some internal cement render was removed and re-rendered in a lime/sand mix and damaged brick quoins to window openings of the convent were also repaired.

In addition to stonemasonry, two weeks of carpentry conservation skills training and one week of conservation of remnant historic gardens have been completed. The carpentry training enabled repair of rotten verandah posts and floor boards to Hackett’s Store and the former Greenough Store. Ground levels were reduced, and drainage installed, while verandah posts were replaced and new recycled floorboards installed.

The gardening project focussed on the remnant landscape around Cliff Grange. Original plants were identified including bougainvillea, Seville orange, a range of succulent species, carob tree, orange blossom, plumbago, grape vine, pepper trees.

The trainees removed Chinese peppers which have engulfed the landscape killing early plantings such as the Jacaranda trees.

Early plantings in the Midwest were introduced by Afghan Merchants and include dates, wild mustard, pomegranates and citrus varieties to name a few.

The vegetation removal opened the house to the vistas of Clinches Mill and the Greenough historic settlement providing a new context of the overall site.

The second half of the project is expected to be completed by September.

DEMONSTRATION DAY A traditional masonry skills demonstration will be held on 3 May from 9.30am to 3pm as part of the Australian Heritage Festival. A Master Stonemason will give traditional masonry conservation skills including salt damp remediation, working with lime, making lime mortar, removing inappropriate or failed mortars, repairing mortar joints, lime rendering and making/applying limewash.

For information visit www.nationaltrust.org.au/event/traditional-masonry-skills-demonstrations-day ABOVE: Timber conservation training at Central Greenough. E Hancock

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CATALYST

Volunteers’ Liaison Officer

ANNE BRAKE | MANAGER COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT

Bronwen Channon has joined the National Trust as the Volunteers’ Liaison Officer (VLO) to assist with the important task of coordinating the more than 400 volunteers who work for the National Trust of Western Australia.

The management of this diverse and committed group, spread across the state and undertaking a variety of tasks, has been a challenge for the Trust which acknowledges the importance of being proactive, consistent and strategic.

Through the VLO position the Trust aims to find the right balance for volunteers and the organisation. Recognition, satisfaction and a sense of achievement are key elements of a successful volunteer program and the Trust wants to be better at providing this.

Bronwen will update the systems and procedures for volunteering at the Trust and work with staff to identify new opportunities including alternative ways

to volunteer such as completing a task in your own time and your own space which may attract new people to the Trust’s program.

Most importantly, Bronwen is the first point of call for volunteers already in the field and for potential new recruits.

Bronwen is well prepared for the task and has been volunteering in various roles for 30 years, most recently planting the garden and native bank at Gallop House.

Bronwen is in the office Wednesdays and Thursdays. Bronwen.Channon@ntwa. com.au.

RIGHT Bronwen Channon, Volunteers’ Liason Officer.

S Guerrero

Still in living memory

SARAH MURPHY | DIRECTOR CONSERVATION

Contractors undertaking works on the Perth Airport estate as part of the Forrestfield – Airport Link rail project noticed a broken headstone during earth levelling works late last year. inaugural president of the WA Cricket Association) and Rebecca Catherine James (eldest daughter of Charles and Maria Clifton). John died in 1899 and was buried in the Church of England Cemetery (grave #642). Rebecca died and was buried in Devon, England in 1901 (she is memorialised on her husband’s grave marker).

So how did Madeline’s broken headstone end up so far away?

Associated with the headstone were pieces of broken dinnerware and bottles dating from the 1950s. This matches with the period in which the East Perth Cemeteries were under the management of the State Gardens Board. It did a tidy up, removed any broken headstones and railings and added them to landfill.

ABOVE (L-R): The grave of Madeline’s father John James located at East Perth

Cemeteries. The broken headstone discovered during works at Forrestfield – Airport Link rail project. S Murphy

Mystified by the discovery of a headstone on airport land, the contractors stopped work and brought in an archaeologist to investigate. A brief investigation quickly linked the headstone to East Perth Cemeteries and the National Trust.

The headstone is that of Madeline Clifton James who died 4 April 1891 at the age of seven months. She was the daughter of John Charles Horsey James (WA’s first Commissioner of Land Titles and

Further research will be undertaken to establish if Madeline is buried in the same grave as her father or elsewhere. If there is a way in which the headstone can be conserved and mounted it will be reinstated to the most accurate and appropriate location. For now it is safely in storage.

The discovery of little Madeline James’ headstone is a reminder of the high mortality rate in 19th century Perth. It has been estimated a staggering 32% of the burials at East Perth Cemeteries are those of infants. Doubtless never forgotten by her parents John and Rebecca, now 126 years after her death we have a tangible prompt for Madeline’s continued memory.

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OUT ‘N’ ABOUT

Gallop Gardeners

BRONWEN CHANNON | VOUNTEERS’ LIAISON OFFICER

While Gallop House in Dalkeith, Perth has recently undergone refurbishment to become a private residence for the national Prelude composer-in-residence program, its gardens are in the care of National Trust volunteers.

ABOVE: A Gallop garden skink in the good hands of Anna Pederson with father Paul Pederson looking on. H Pederson

An information day was held in March and seven volunteers signed on to plant out and maintain the original limestone vegetable beds.

The group meets one morning every month and will plant vegetables and fruit chosen from an extensive list of the original species brought out from England in the 1880s.

European Species grape vine nectarines currants quince asparagus NZ spinach peas celery melon watermelon capsicum Jerusalem artichoke

pears plums gooseberry potatoes seakale leeks lettuce endives cucumbers tobacco beet rhubarb

apples cherries raspberry strawberries parsnip French beans cabbage celeriac gourds sea beet horse radish peaches

Noongar Elder Neville Collard has provided advice on native Bush Tucker varieties for the site and how they have been used by the traditional local people.

Native Species Wilyawa Coojong Barilla Pudjak Mudja Mardja Pulboorn Kurulbrang

Red Eyed Wattle Black Wattle Grey Saltbush Parrot Bush Bloodroot Running Postman Mangles Kangaroo Paw

When the house and land was occupied by the Gallop family, Dalkeith Farm, as it was known, supplied Perth and Fremantle with much of its fresh produce via a jetty that previously existed on the riverfront. As well as planting, the Gardening group will propagate fruit trees, to ensure the continuity of the species linked to this State Registered place.

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Peninsula Tea Gardens

ENJOY A TRADITIONAL HIGH TEA AND MUCH MORE OVERLOOKING THE SWAN RIVER

ADJACENT TO PENINSULA FARM, JOHNSON ROAD, MAYLANDS WA PH: 08 9272 8894

Come and Volunteer at the National Trust

Open every day including public holidays 8am - 5pm

OLD FARM, STRAWBERRY HILL

The National Trust of Western Australia appreciates the great contribution by all its volunteers.

Volunteering opportunities are available in our gardens, in caring for our collections and in greeting visitors at our places.

If you’d like to contribute to Western Australia’s heritage through the National Trust, we would be delighted to hear from you.

We have vacancies available at all our places.

Please contact the National Trust of Western Australia on 9321 6088 or at trust@ntwa.com.au during office hours.

EXPLORE ABORIGINAL CONNECTIONS, THE NEW EXHIBITION AND CONSERVATION WORK AT WESTERN AUSTRALIA’S OLDEST FARM.

174 MIDDLETON ROAD, ALBANY PH: 08 9841 3735

Open every day between 10am and 4pm

Your gift for the future

Collecting, conserving and sharing stories is our reason for being.

Those stories are reflected in the places we manage, the buildings we conserve, the objects we share and the experiences we provide. We connect past, current and future generations with stories, places and memories making sure that our culture and our heritage is respected and valued in the future.

As you plan for the future, we invite you to consider how you can join the National Trust in sharing stories of our State and preserving our treasures. Leaving a gift in your Will is a powerful legacy for the future.

The people of Western Australia trust us with their stories, their heritage and their culture. You become part of that trust when you decide to make a bequest in your Will.

Please contact us if you would like to talk about your Will and your decision to make a gift for the future.

Call CEO Julian Donaldson on 9212 1119 or visit ntwa.com.au/bequests

TRUST NEWS | 15 | WESTERN AUSTRALIA

National Trust places

you can visit for a GREAT day out!

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Kalgoorlie Coolgardie

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York Mundaring Jarrahdale Pinjarra

Busselton Leinster

Margaret River

Albany

PERTH East Perth Cemeteries: Bronte Street, East Perth. Tel: 08 9221 4022. Open Sunday 2pm to 4pm. Groups by appointment.

Kep Track: Starts at Mundaring Weir Hall, Mundaring Weir Road, Mundaring to Northam.

Multi-use trail open every day.

Tel: 08 9321 6088 No 1 Pump Station: Open Saturdays and Sundays and most public holidays 12pm to 4pm. Open for group bookings during the week by appointment. Tel: 08 9321 6088

O’Connor Trail: Starts at Mundaring Weir Hall, Mundaring Weir Road, Mundaring. 5.3km (2.5 hr walk approximately). Open every day.

Tel: 08 9321 6088.

Weir Walk: Starts at No 1 Pump Station, Mundaring Weir Road, Mundaring.

1.9km (1 hr walk approximately).

Open every day. Tel: 08 9321 6088.

Peninsula Farm: Johnson Road, Maylands.

Tel: 08 9272 2630. Open Friday to Sunday 12:30pm to 4pm.

Woodbridge: Ford Street, Woodbridge.

Tel: 08 9274 2432. Open Thursday to Sunday 1pm to 4pm. Café open 9am to 5pm Thursday to Tuesday.

Old Blythewood: 6161 South Western Highway, Pinjarra. Tel: 08 9531 1485.

Open Saturday 10.30am to 3.30pm, Sunday 12.30pm to 3.30pm.

York Courthouse Complex: 132 Avon Terrace, York. Tel: 08 9641 2072.

Open Thursday to Monday 10am to 4pm.

WITHIN 90 MINUTES DRIVE OF PERTH Jarrahdale Heritage Park: Jarrahdale Road, Jarrahdale. Tel: 08 9525 5255.

Open every day.

WITHIN 3 HOURS DRIVE OF PERTH Ellensbrook: Ellensbrook Road, Margaret River. Tel: 08 9755 5173.

Open Thursday to Saturday 10am to 4pm.

Wonnerup: Layman Road, Busselton.

Tel: 08 9752 2039. Open 10am to 4pm Thursday to Monday.

OVERNIGHT Central Greenough (historic settlement): Brand Highway, Greenough Tel: 08 9926 1084. Open Monday to Sunday 9am to 4pm. Café open during nominated opening hours. Closed Christmas Day only.

Golden Pipeline Heritage Trail: Extends across 650km from Mundaring to Kalgoorlie. Tel: 08 9321 6088 or visit www.nationaltrust.org.au/wa

Old Farm, Strawberry Hill: 174 Middleton Road, Albany. Tel: 08 9841 3735.

Open 7 days per week 10am to 4pm.

Mangowine Homestead: Karomin North Road, Nungarin. Tel: 08 9046 5149.

Open Thursday to Tuesday 1pm to 4pm.

Property opening times were correct at the time of print and are subject to change. The National Trust recommends you check directly with the property to confirm.

Warden Finnerty’s Residence: 2 McKenzie Street, Coolgardie.

Tel: 9026 6028. Open Thursday to Monday.

Phone for opening times. Closed Christmas Day and Good Friday.

www.nationaltrust.org.au/wa