History Archives - Page 19 of 23 - Destination's Journey

24 May 202224 May 2022

Alison Homestead Wyong Australia

Alison Homestead Wyong Australia

Set on one of the original land grants in the area, dating from 1825, the Alison Homestead is the home of the Wyong District Museum & Historical Society. Although the original homestead was the subject of an arson attack in 2011, the rebuilt building has many great items generously donated by the local community. The other buildings on the property were not damaged in the fire.

How to get There

Located near the old Wyong Milk Factory on Cape Road, Alison Homestead is easily accessible from the M1 Pacific Motorway. Driving from Sydney it’s just over an hour north of the city or around the same time south of Newcastle. Parking is plentiful at the back of the homestead.

Driving in check out the Ned Kelly letterbox and the phone box with a Superman inside.

Alison Homestead Wyong — Entrance to the homestead

Refreshments

A small café is also where you pay a small entry fee, so we had a coffee and scones and watched the sheep in the field out the front. Also near the café is a sapling of the Lone Pine from Gallipoli, in commemoration of Australian service personnel.

Lone Pine Memorial Alison Homestead Wyong — Lone Pine Memorial

Displays

In the Homestead and other buildings onsite, there are displays of memorabilia, photos, furniture, toys and other household items, equipment, machinery and tools all relating to the early settling of Wyong and surrounds. There is an old slab hut which was part of Yarramalong Public School with displays of furniture, equipment, books, maps and memorabilia relating to the history of early school days in the area.

As the museum is quite new, the displays are well laid out and easy to understand. Some local museums seem to have items cluttered together, making them difficult to see.

Vintage travelling suitcase Alison Homestead Wyong — Display Room

Buildings

The schoolhouse is setup as if a lesson is about to begin, taking you back to the early 1900s. Nearby, the slab hut shows how early settlers lived in the area. Some of these huts were still occupied in the 1920s.

School Room Alison Homestead Wyong — Old Slab Hut

Scale Models and Miniatures

Something we were not expecting to see was a collection of model ships and miniature buildings.

The ships range from Nelson’s HMS Victory to the World War One SMS Emden and HMAS Sydney. Emden and Sydney fought a duel in the war, with Sydney victorious. These are great models and worth checking out the room they are in because a great deal of effort has gone into them.

The miniature buildings show the homestead and buildings from other properties in the area. Again, a lot of effort and detail has gone into them.

SMS Emden German Light Cruiser — SMS Emden

HMAS Sydney Light Cruiser Alison Homestead Wyong — SMS Emden

Miniature Farm Alison Homestead Wyong — Miniature Farm

What Did We Think of Alison Homestead?

A great little museum with some unexpected displays. Really worth the visit and wander around.

17 May 202215 May 2022

Gunnedah Rural Museum

Arriving at the museum we were greeted by a happy volunteer who gave us a map of the layout and told us to help ourselves to a tea or coffee.

With our travels we have found rural museums occupy old houses, so are quite small. Not the Gunnedah Rural Museum, it takes up several large industrial size sheds with its huge collection. Its extensive collection covers farm equipment like tractors and harvesters, cars, old children’s’ toys, old household goods and a Coca Cola bottle collection. There was even an old dentist’s chair. Walking around, you would think no one in Gunnedah had ever thrown anything out.

If you are interested in rural life in Australia from the late 1800s to late 1900s this is a fantastic place to visit. We particularly liked the tractor and car collection, as they were extensive and in good condition. The museum also has a model railway out the front for rail enthusiasts. We really enjoyed this laid back huge museum.

Old Telephone Collection Gunnedah Rural Museum — Old Telephone Collection

Gas light Gunnedah Rural Museum — Old Telephone Collection

12 May 202211 May 2022

Greta Museum and Migrant Camp

Located in the New South Wales Hunter Valley, Greta once housed a large Australian Army camp, which later became a post-war migrant camp. Little remains of the camp apart from foundations and scattered stones. If the local museum did not keep the memory alive, it might have been forgotten completely.

Housed in the old Council Chambers, the Greta Museum has displays showing the town’s past as a coal mining centre, army camp and migrant camp.

During the Second World War, over 60,000 Australian soldiers trained at the camp. However, in 1949, it became the second largest migrant camp in Australia, housing displaced people from Europe. During its 11 years of operation, over 100,000 people passed through the camp, with the most at any one time being 9,000.

Passage to Australia was free, but men were required to fulfil a 2-year contract once they arrived in Australia. This was often away from their families in Cairns, Sydney or the Snowy Mountains, however, some worked at BHP in Newcastle and came home on weekends.

Living in an old army camp would have been hard, with no heating for winter and very hot in summer. Amenities were limited but did include a school and hospital.

Apart from the exhibits, the museum has a book for sale written by a former resident at the camp, detailing his experiences.

The only memorials to the camp are a small one in the main street and another at the gate to the camp. Access to the camp is not permitted, because it is on private land.

Other interesting exhibits include old school class photos, a plaque of Great mayors and some mining equipment.