History & heritage

Despite years of warnings, public protests, approaches to Ministers and Members of Parliament, and, in particular, the vocal opposition of the very active Community Action for Windsor Bridge (CAWB) group, Roads & Maritime Services in NSW insisted on building the new Windsor Bridge across the Hawkesbury River in exactly the wrong location.

Dr Samantha Disbray. The project Ankkinyi Apparr, Ankkinyi Mangurr brings together old stories, language and art.

A special tribute to merchant marine has been gaining plenty of attention in its off-beat location. You can find it at the 7th tee at Carpentaria Golf Club in Weipa. Erected by team members from Smit Lamnalco, the anchor in the garden bed is a tribute “to honour the Australian Merchant Navy who sailed in all wars, past, present and future”.

After nearly 20 years of waiting, a rare World War II artefact has finally been restored to its former glory and unveiled to the public. The 40mm Bofur gun – one of only 11 produced during the wartime year of 1942 – has been part of the Whyalla Maritime Museum collection since the early 1990s, desperately awaiting restoration due to age-related deterioration.

When it was built in 1924, the Rockhampton War Memorial was the largest and most expensive war memorial to be built in Queensland, outside of Brisbane. The plants surrounding the spire are symmetrically apart at precisely 30 °– this allows the daylight shadow cast by the spire to cross the encircling palms like the hour hand of a clock from sunrise to sunset

The knowledge of the Rainbow Serpent has been told in a new documentary – The Serpent’s Tale – in an effort to highlight the importance of protecting the Kimberley region’s Martuwarra or Fitzroy River.

The new Gee Gee Bridge over the Wakool River and flood approach have been utilised since their opening last year. The project’s completion was a welcome relief to farmers and road transporters as load restrictions have been in place for some time. The original Gee Gee Bridge’s long and interesting history has now come to an end after removal of the bridge.

The Civic Hall was once the pride and joy of Casino, and a major landmark built at an important time in the town's history, Richmond Valley mayor Robert Mustow said. Now the interior of the hall has been repainted and restored to its glory. Next the drab exterior of the 84-year-old Art Deco hall is to get a lift.

"The new church stands upon an excellent site in the township of Dunoon which has been purchased from Mr. W. Munro. It has been built and furnished at the cost of £635, and the price of the site was £100. An Estey organ has been provided by Messrs. Paling and Co. at the cost of £35 18s. The total outlay is therefore £770 18s, of which £161 9s has been raised by subscriptions, fairs ..."

Ballarat’s signature festivals the Ballarat Begonia Festival and Ballarat Heritage Festival, formerly Ballarat Heritage Weekend, will be celebrated over an extended period this year.

Chris Murray. On the 12th of October, 1936, the Daily Telegraph in Sydney voiced some vague anxiety about the welfare of a small motor launch, the Mystery Star, en route from Lord Howe to Sydney: "If the 16ft launch, Mystery Star, making the trip from Lord Howe Island to Sydney, 525 miles, does not reach Australia today, there is every likelihood it will encounter rough weather.

The Finch family are thrilled the Australian War Memorial has accepted their father's medals for display. The medals of Kyogle's Frederick Bradley Finch OAM, known...

The 1899 timber bridge at Tabulam is doomed to be demolished tomorrow unless a court delays or stops it. Security guards have been spotted at the bridge since the weekend.

History has a new home 40m from the Evans River. The Evans Head Living Museum has been chronicling the marine, military, fishing, agricultural, natural and social history for 18 years.