Diary 22.3.1883

Thursday 22nd March

We left Glasgow 10:30 on the morning of the 22nd March 1883 in the steam tug "Hero", had a pleasant ride down the Clyde, we had a good sight of the shipbuilding, it is really a great sight to see ship after ship half-built and full of workmen, we got to ship between 1 and 2 o’clock.
After we got on board we had dinner which was soup and beef and potatoes, enjoyed the beef very fair but soup was nothing but water, tea at 6 o’clock of bread and butter then to bed at 10 o’clock.

Blogging and history

While blogging is a recent event, it is being utilised to contribute to history.

The following story was found at: http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2008/01/05/1198950127422.html
“War still raging, 90 years on, in blog time”
The story of a First World War soldier is keeping people around the world on tenterhooks after his account of life in the trenches was turned into a real-time blog - www.wwar1.blogspot.com
Private Harry Lamin's letters home are being posted as an online diary, with each dispatch published 90 years to the day it was written. Most of his letters are to his elder sister Kate and elder brother Jack. The letters are also supplemented by electronic maps of the campaigns - this is the beauty of the atributes of the Web, which can add to the whole experience.
Now readers of Private Lamin's story are waiting to see whether he survived to see his family or died in battle.
Publishing the bulletins in real time was the brainchild of his grandson, Bill Lamin, who painstakingly pieced together the remnants of his grandfather's wartime correspondence.

I was inspired by Bill’s idea of blogging historical material in real time, especially as this year is 125 years since the diary was written. The diary is a ship-board journal of Emily Ann Foster (some entries were by her husband) sailing from Glasgow to Bundaberg in 1883. The photos and maps are from a variety of sources – family, books and the Net. The spelling and grammar has been left as written. My comments are in brackets.

The author Emily was my Great-great-grandmother. Born in 1856, she lived in Salt Street, Manningham, Bradford, England. She married John Edwin at 23 years, they were both confectioners. Ruth Emmeline was their first child.
The SV Nairnshire, an iron barque, was built in 1877, it measured 204’ by 33’ (all ship info from clydesite). Nairnshire was a county on the northern coastline of Scotland. Each day I intend to add the relevant entry for that day on the day (ignore that the date & time stamp on each of my posts is U.S. time - I'm working on Australian dates, so Emily's Thursday 22nd of March 1883 entry will be posted on Saturday 22nd March 2008) and add this logo to distinguish the diary from other posts.

Photos of the year

“ANZANG nature and landscape the fourth collection photographer of the year”, is edited by Stuart Miller.
ANZANG Nature is an organisation aiming to focus awareness of the natural heritage of the Gondwana bio-region, by encouraging photography of its nature and wilderness.
To this end they conduct an annual Nature and Landscape Photographer of the Year award. This book contains more than 100 of the 2007 competition submissions.
Winner of the Wilderness Landscape section was ‘Bushfire burning on Razorback Ridge’ by Calista Lyon. Winner of the Botanical Subject section was 'Flannel flowers’ by Chris Ross.Highly commended in the Black & White section was ‘Feather duster worm’ by Wayne Osborne. To see the overall winner – borrow the book!

The art of libraries

I was directed to this site a couple of weeks ago.

http://curiousexpeditions.org/2007/09/a_librophiliacs_love_letter_1.html

The site states that "Everyone has some kind of place that makes them feel transported to a magical realm. For some people it’s castles with their noble history and crumbling towers. For others it’s abandoned factories, ivy choked, a sense of foreboding around every corner. For us here at Curious Expeditions, there has always been something about libraries."

For me I guess it's all of the above!
Here I've chosen just a couple of libraries that appeal to me - the art-work, the carved shelves, we don't make libraries like these any longer, more's the pity.

Abbey Library St. Gallen, Switzerland
The Abbey Library dates from1758. This baroque library is gorgeous from floor to ceiling, with a lovely interior design and wonderfully warm woodwork of walnut and cherry. The incredibly ornate vaulted ceiling is typical rococo style. The library and the abbey precinct were included in the UNESCO list of global cultural heritage sites in 1983.

Waldsassen Abbey Library, Bavaria, Germany
The magnificent Abbey at Waldsassen in Germany dates from 1585, again in the baroque style, it has extraordinarywood carvings around the walls. There are 10 more or lesslife-size carved figures, which support the library galleries, and their costumes and features suggest that they are depictions of fools.

Truly abandoned in Dim

The Dimboola Hotel was damaged by fire early on Sunday October 26th 2003. 10 people inside the hotel at the time escaped down a ladder via a first floor balcony, 40 fire fighters then fought the blaze.

The Hotel was sold for $1 (one dollar) in 2004.



Hindmarsh Shire has raised concern about the stability of the building and gave the site's owner until June 2007 to show why it should not be demolished. An engineering assessment stated that an internal wall could collapse.
The site has been home to a hotel of some sort since the 1860s. Finally on Monday 25th Febuary, more than 4 years after the fire, the demolition has started. The wreckers removing the rear of the building, apparently the street facade will remain.
The photos were taken on Sunday 13th January 2008. Newspaper photos from the Wimmera Mail Times.

Combining books, poetry, tv and music

"The mystery of Eilean Mor" is based on the true story of the Eilean Mor lighthouse, author Gary Crew investigates what secrets the lighthouse hides, in this hauntingly beautiful picture book illustrated by Jeremy Geddes.
The Flannan Isles Lighthouse, designed by Mr D Alan Stevenson, was erected in December 1899. It stands on Eileen Mor, one of the Flannan Islands off Scotland. Just over a year after the light was first exhibited. In December 1900, a disaster occurred which has since captured the imagination of the public in much the same way as the "Marie Celeste”. A vessel passed the Flannan Islands about midnight on 15 December and on arrival in port reported that the light was not seen. The Lighthouse Tender Hesperus arrived at the Flannans during the afternoon of 26 December, there was no sign of life to be seen on the island. The relieving keeper was landed on the Island, went up to the lighthouse, but found no one there.
The disappearance was immediately investigated, indications showed that the men disappeared on the afternoon of Saturday 15 December, and from the traces found, it was evident that very bad weather had been experienced on the Island. It was concluded that the men must have left the lighthouse for some purpose or other, probably to secure some gear or to ascertain what damage had been done at one of the landing places, (110 feet in all above the sea level). The investigative report findings believed the men had been washed out to sea by a massive wave.
The lighthouse remained manned until 28th September 1971, when it became an automatic light.

At school I had to memorise Wilfrid Wilson Gibson's poem "Flannan Isle" - 'Though three men dwell on Flannan Isle, To keep the lamp alight,...' so I found this book all the more poignant. Part of this poem was quoted during Dr Who's "The horror of Fang Rock", and it was also the basis for the Genesis song "The Mystery of Flannan Isle Lighthouse".

Abandoned at Pleasant Creek

The Pleasant Creek Centre was the site of the first local hospital in Stawell, which was opened in 1850 (the only hospital in western Victoria between the South Australian border, Ballarat and the Murray River). Local landowners and miners subscribed to its construction. It was reserved in 1861 and again in 1883. Part of the building remains on the site, there were more elaborate alterations in 1881, it featured a Benevolent Ward for elderly miners. The area has a long history of community use, initially as a health service and subsequently as the Pleasant Creek Training Centre, an area where people with intellectual disabilities were accommodated and educated and participated in day programs.

For many years a school was located on the site as well as accommodation for children, teenagers and latterly disabled adults. Following changes to the way the intellectual disabled were housed, the Department of Human Services transferred the clients from the Pleasant Creek Centre into community housing.

Many ideas for the land by the council include a retirement village; a backpackers facility; hospitality facilities; restaurants; corporate offices; a transit facility for use by V/Line and other coach lines; a fast food outlet; a commercial laundry; a museum; and even a brewery.
Now parliamentary legislation has removed the final reservation on the land and the 13 hectares of land has been identified as having no further public purpose and has been made available for public sale.

Henley & Patriots

Last weekend Edenhope celebrated its 150 years, with a street procession featuring its usual mix of poltically incorrect floats.

The Shirref's 'Save the whale' float

Randall, Sam, Toby, etc also took a swipe at the Japanese whaling (any excuse for them to squirt water at the audience), they won first prize in the Most Humourous section. Other slogans were "Watch out Flipper your next", "Special of the day Moby Dick $5.99 kg", "Japs keep ur hands off our free Willys!"

Tne Ozenkadnook Dragon was still in working condition, having made its first appearance in the Henley procession 50 years ago, only the St George has changed.

Most years the Connewirricoo Tennis Club come up with a topical idea for the procession, this year it was prompted the Prime Minister's Sorry statement, it won Best Club float. Slogans on the other side read "John Elliott apologises to ... Elders, Waterwheel, Fosters, IXL & Carlton", "Australia says sorry to Japan bacause they have to go so far to get whales".
In the afternoon Chris Sperou the former Australian aerobatic champion returned and piloted his Pitt Special bi-plane above the dry lake performing loops and rolls and low passes over the crowd.

After dark it was fireworks on the lake, with the added spectacular of the fire trucks having to extinguish the fairy grass which caught alight from stray sparks.

Following a pancake breakfast the next morning, it was off to photograph some bridges (to be another post) and to Portland to see the oil rig - the Ocean Patriot which was in the harbour for repairs, it was a sight both during the day and at night.

Unshelved again