The Picnic – tragedy in the great drought

The day dawned still and sure, as the first day might have dawned. No wind whispered across the white dust. This was a day like any other. But she knew it was not! By Frannie HOPKIRK The woman had slept fitfully through the hot night. Her slumber the shallow sad unrest of one tormented by life, […]

Child of the Woodline – grave tales

Some years ago I posted the following photograph and although I said I had no idea who was the child buried  in this sad little grave in the Kalgoorlie Cemetery, it was shared many thousands of times. It evokes all the sadness of a family who were unable to afford a proper memorial so they […]

An Old Timer Remembers

OLD-TIMER’S LETTER  –   Employee in First Post Office in Kalgoorlie Kalgoorlie Miner 17 May 1950, page 2 Mr. Lionel  J. Dudley, an old-timer, sent an interesting account of some of his experiences in the early days of the goldfields to Mr. J. D. Teahan, Mayor of Boulder. Once an employee in the first post […]

Dan Dill’s Working Holiday – book review

Dan Dill’s Working Holiday in Australia – by Paul Dillon I was recently sent two copies of the latest publication by Paul Dillon. He had originally envisioned a set of four books culminating in his research into his family history. However, after seeing the letters that Dan wrote back to his family in Ireland, the […]

Sensational Suicide at Red Hill -Grave Tales

From the Kalgoorlie Miner 13th May 1905 MAN BLOWS HIS FACE AWAY Towards 5 o’clock yesterday afternoon a man named Henry Colley describing himself as a miner, residing at Red Hill (Former name of Kambalda), reported to the Kalgoorlie police that about 10 o’clock that morning a man named Edward Clayton (whose real name was […]