Draft Conservation Management Plan

Prepared for Scott Still

MALACHI GILMORE HALL OBERON STREET, OBERON

By

Isobel Hoegh-Guldberg

55 Whiteley Road, Oberon 2787 September 2009

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Preface

My late wife Isobel worked, during a decade of effort, to promote the case for reinstating the Malachi Gilmore Hall as a public multi-purpose venue. In 2003, she succeeded in having the building heritage-listed by the NSW Government.

Heritage adviser to Oberon Council, Bathurst architect Christo Aitken, suggested that despite the success with the listing, it might be appropriate to write a formal Conservation Management Plan as background for further communications. Isobel went through several drafts, of which her final seventh was dated September 2009. This is essentially the version presented here, with some minor amendments.

Christo Aitken was helpful and constructive in his comments throughout the process, which is greatly appreciated. He did have further comments so the current edition remains essentially a draft. Since the heritage listing, the main function of this conservation management plan is as stated above: to present background information for further action.

Isobel anticipated in the manuscript that the illustrations specified at the end of each chapter would be added in a final version. Some of these illustrations are available, others may be harder to procure. For the time being the presentation is made without adding them.

The same goes for Appendix 2 and 3, which she planned to contain lists of films and advertisements shown at the Malachi. I actually located them as Excel files after finishing the work on the CMP, and will make them available as separate documents.

Isobel also planned to write an executive summary. It can be added if required.

There are a few loose ends in the story, indicated by question marks, but the narrative is not significantly disturbed. Most question marks are in Isobel’s script, a few added by me.

Hans Hoegh-Guldberg

1 April 2014

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Table of Contents

1 Background ...... 5 1.1 Aims and Objectives ...... 6 1.1.1 Authorship ...... 6 1.1.2 Limitations ...... 6 1.1.3 Terminology ...... 6 1.1.4 Acknowledgements ...... 6 2 Introduction ...... 7 2.1 The Original Inhabitants ...... 7 2.2 Explorers ...... 8 2.3 Early settlement ...... 10 2.4 Oberon in the Twentieth Century ...... 12 3 Catholic Church in ...... 13 3.1 Bathurst Diocese ...... 16 3.2 Catholic Church in Oberon ...... 18 4 The Malachi Gilmore Hall ...... 21 4.1 1865 – 1936 – Gilmore Family ...... 21 4.2 1936 – 1965 – Catholic Church ...... 21 4.3 1965 – 1986 –Herb David ...... 23 4.4 1987 – 1998 – Betta Wools ...... 23 4.5 1998 – present – Scott Still ...... 23 5 History of the Use of the Hall ...... 24 5.1 1936 – 1965 - Catholic Church ...... 24 5.2 Malachi Gilmore Hall – Overview of Events ...... 27 6 Development of Cinemas ...... 29 6.1 American Cinema Influence ...... 29 6.2 Cinema Design in Australia ...... 30 6.3 Regional Cinema ...... 31 6.4 Cinemas in NSW ...... 33 6.5 Other regional cinemas ...... 34 6.5.1 Bingara ...... 34 6.5.2 Goondiwindi ...... 36 6.5.3 Bowraville ...... 36 6.5.4 The Crystal , Portland, NSW...... 37 7 Oberon Timeline – Alan Brown ...... 39 8 Bibliography ...... 42 9 Acknowledgments ...... 44

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10 Some Personal Comments about Dad, by Robyn David ...... 45 11 Physical Evidence – Site Description...... 49 12 Statement of Significance ...... 52

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1 Background The Malachi Gilmore Hall is located in Oberon Street, the main street in the town of Oberon, in Central West NSW, first settled in 1823 and proclaimed a village in 1863. It was designed as a dance hall and cinema by the Catholic Church in Oberon for the whole community. Its intended location was the corner of Elizabeth Street and Fleming Street but it was relocated, through an exchange of lots, to its present site in the main street where it has been the major landmark in the town’s centre for over 70 years. The hall is at present in private ownership and has only sustained minor temporary alterations for use as a wool store with the foyer area housing a craft shop. The Malachi Gilmore Hall is listed on the State Heritage Register (SHR 01680) as of 5 December 2003. There is considerable support for the return of this building to public use and access on account of its landmark position and its important social heritage being the venue for all formal and private occasions of note (1937 – 1977) in Oberon. The land for the building of the hall was donated by the Gilmore family who were typical of the early settlers of Oberon and the lifestyle of the period. Malachi Gilmore was not a resident of Oberon but a family member who lived in Redfern and was a frequent visitor to the area.1 It is important in the history of the Catholic Church in NSW rural areas and in particular the Bathurst diocese. Dr Gummer who proposed building the Malachi Gilmore Hall was born in Perthville and educated by the Sisters of St Joseph at the Perthville convent, then known as Charlotte Vale. Bishop Quinn, first bishop of Bathurst, asked Fr Julian Tennyson Woods and Mary Mackillop to establish an institute for the education of children in his diocese. Mary Mackillop was the founder of the Sisters of St Joseph and is Australia’s first candidate for sainthood.2 The Malachi Gilmore Hall is typical of a in the development of regional cinema in NSW and Australia. It is closely associated with Herb David of the era of the travelling ‘picture show man’, independent and inventive. The cinema, originally known as ‘The Magna’, represents a rare example of Art Deco cinema architecture in Australia. It is one of Australia’s few remaining miniature ‘picture palaces’ though not used in 25 years. It adds great character to the main street of Oberon. The Malachi Gilmore Hall’s social significance as a community venue and cinema is well recognised by those in the community directly associated with it between 1937 and 1977. The composition of the community is however changing significantly with tourism playing an important role in economic development in addition to farming and grazing and an established timber industry. From being a community mainly comprised of long time residents, many descending from the original land holders and their convict employees, it is receiving an influx of persons and families from other areas of NSW, in particular the Blue Mountains and Sydney areas. There is a need for the history of the building to be documented and its significance to local and state heritage to be more widely recognised. This document will be important in achieving this. It is important to the significance of the building that it resumes its role as community centre and part time cinema with its fabric intact and any changes which may be necessary for it to function as a living community centre be carried out in a way that supports its significance.

1 Source: Agnes Gilmore, grandniece of Malachi Gilmore, in conversation. 2 She was canonised in 2010 (HHG 31.3.14) 5

Illustrations: Aerial view, streetscape present and past, Dawn’s drawing

1.1 Aims and Objectives  To understand the role of the Malachi Gilmore Hall in the context of the history of Oberon district and community; the fabric of the building and its potential for architectural research.  To develop a statement of significance examining all main aspects of its importance as community venue and cinema, its Art Deco architecture and its connection with the Catholic Church.  As a basis for the development of a conservation policy to guide future development and on-going maintenance  Look at proposals for reuse and development and how these can be achieved consistent with this significance.

1.1.1 Authorship This report is prepared by Isobel and Hans Hoegh-Guldberg, Economic Strategies, Oberon. NSW, 2787.3

1.1.2 Limitations This report was prepared on a volunteer basis and limited by a minimal budget.

1.1.3 Terminology The authors wish to acknowledge the assistance given by members of the David family and Fr Adrian Horgan of the Roman Catholic Parish of Oberon.

1.1.4 Acknowledgements This report is based on the guidelines and structure outlined in James Semple Kerr’s the sixth Edition Conservation Plan, 2004, The Burra Charter, Conservation Management Plan, and NSW Heritage Office Conservation Management Documents (Site plan).

3 Isobel was the author. My role was to support and edit. The firm, Economic Strategies, was the vehicle of my economic consulting business between 1984 and 2011. HHG 31.3.14. 6

2 Introduction

Oberon is a town of approximately 2,800 people situated in Central West NSW, largely on a plateau of 1,100 metres and more, marginally higher than and to the west of the Blue Mountains. It is part of the Oberon Council Area which has about 5,000 inhabitants. The boundaries of the area are defined by rivers such as the Fish, Duckmaloi, Cox’s, Kowmung, Abercrombie, Isabella and Campbell. There are numerous other rivers intersecting the area and springs abound. The land, as perceived by first explorers as invitingly green, was often swampy. Even folks in 2000 could remember having to cross bogs, six of them between Oberon and Black Springs, by throwing rocks into them. The rugged mountainous nature of the country and a climate with the temperature falling to around -10 degrees in winter, with occasional falls of snow, was inclined to deter settlers. The Great Dividing Range passes through the council area east of Oberon town. Oberon is a watershed with the eastern rivers passing into , the Sydney water supply, and on to the Nepean River and the Pacific Ocean. The western rivers enter the Murray-Darling River System and finally arrive at the sea in South Australia. The plateau consists of sandstone and shale and where these are worn away there are outcrops of granite. South and east of Oberon lie the Kanangra Boyd and Blue Mountains National Parks now part of the Blue Mountains World Heritage Area. Here over millions of years stream erosion has given rise to the spectacular cliffs of Kanangra Walls. Ground waters have seeped through a limestone layer to form a complexity of caves including Jenolan Caves, much visited by tourists. Recent studies of the caves show them to be much older than previously thought and that they are carved out of the limestone by water bubbling up from below. 4 Illustrations: Kanangra, Jenolan, map of district and river system, town maps

2.1 The Original Inhabitants The original inhabitants of the area were the Wiradjuri people whose land extended from the western side of the Blue Mountains to the Darling River and from around the centre of NSW to the Victorian border. The Wiradjuri people generally occupied the land to the west and north of the Oberon district while the Gundungurra (from the Blue Mountains and areas further south) moved over the eastern part. Boundaries of their respective territories are still not well defined. They travelled in extended family groups of up to 30 individuals in an established territory, hunting, fishing and gathering food. These small local groups formed the basis of Aboriginal society. With these relationships came rights, obligations rewards and appropriate ways of behaving. The breaking of these codes resulted in harsh punishments overseen by tribal elders. Separation from this ‘collective morale’ caused stress. By sharing economic and ceremonial dealings with other groups they kept close kinship and marriage ties with a vast network. They gathered at defined places for ceremonial occasions. Carved trees mark burial sites and initiation sites. Many of these carved trees show marks of metal tools indicating carving after European contact.5 Artefacts are found all over the area with concentrations indicating workshops. From the wide coverage of artefacts it seems that Aboriginal people lived and moved over the whole of the Oberon area. They probably lived there in all seasons including winter, having made possum skin capes and having knowledge of herbs that could be rubbed on the body to

4 Quantum ABC Caves 12th October 2000. State Records Authority of NSW 5 Macquarie Atlas of Indigenous Australia 2005, ed Bill Arthur and Frances Morphy 7 inhibit cold. Aboriginal people are said to be able to regulate body temperature so as not to be affected by cold; sleeping naked by a fire.6 There was a wide network of exchange between Aboriginal groups and tribes facilitated by a vast network of tracks including those across the Blue Mountains. Notably, without the assistance of Aboriginal knowledge and guides, explorers and settlers could not have negotiated the crossing of the mountains. Most expeditions by explorers had Aboriginal guides though this was not always recorded. On early explorations Aboriginal people were seen at a distance or the remains of their camp sites noted. Accidental meetings caused them to flee in fear. There were and are collections of Aboriginal artefacts from all over the Oberon area. Up until 1820 Governor Macquarie had protected the land west of the mountains from close settlement. He also believed in fair treatment of emancipated convicts and respectful coexistence with the Aboriginals. The Colonial Office regarded the aborigines as having the same rights as Europeans excluding ownership of their traditional lands. This policy was at odds with the view of the ‘exclusionists’, absentee landlords and pastoralists, and retribution was swift and severe for attacks on stock and abuse of Aboriginal women. The British government instigated an enquiry by Commissioner John Thomas Brigge which resulted in pro exclusionist recommendations, a new system of land grants and sales and the end of Macquarie’s position as governor in 1821. It signalled the arrival of an increasing number of settlers onto the land west of the Blue Mountains. As a result the original inhabitants found waterholes, sacred places, disturbed by water tanks and watering cattle, hunting grounds disrupted with the flight of native animals. 7 By 1824 they were faced with a shortage of their original food and in the light of their different interpretations of ownership they began hunting livestock and open hostilities developed with the pastoralists. The Aboriginal leader of this insurgency in the Bathurst area was the legendary warrior Windradyne. Windradyne’s family were killed in one of the many massacres in the area which led him to declare war on the settlers. Settlers retaliated by arming the convicts to defend their property and other more unconscionable methods. Martial Law was declared in 1824 despite the fact that Earl Bathurst, Secretary of State for the Colonies, had refused Governor Brisbane’s request to implement Martial Law. There followed a four-month slaughter and ended with the appearance of Windradyne and his supporters at the Governor’s Annual Conference in in 1825 marking the end of hostilities. Despite the hostilities Windradyne had formed a firm friendship with English settler William Suttor, who spoke Wiradjuri, and he is buried on the Suttor property Brucedale and access is assured for Wiradjuri people to the site. Illustrations: Grave, artefacts, other of Wiradjuri person. Mt Vic? Landscapes from past. (The Webb family, original settlers and long-time residents, report in their family history groups of Aboriginals living around Evans Crown as late as 1900.)

2.2 Explorers First excursions into the area were probably made by escaped convicts and curious adventurers. The earliest explorers were motivated by scientific curiosity, to learn more about the flora and fauna and the geography of the new land. The first recorded white men to enter the Oberon district (1802) were Francis Barrallier, a refugee from the French revolution, aide-de-camp of Governor King, and five others

6 Peter Brokensha. The Pitjantjatjara and their Crafts. 1975. Sydney. (Australia Council) 7 Macquarie Atlas of Indigenous Australia, 2005. ed Bill Arthur and Frances Morphy 8 accompanied by two young Aboriginal men. They set out from a supply depot at and penetrated 161 miles into the mountains discovering the Tonalli and Burrogorang valleys only to be stopped from reaching the Great Divide by a seemingly impassable waterfall, Johnson’s Falls. Had they travelled a further day’s march they would have crossed the main divide between Oberon and Jenolan Caves. This failure may have deterred other attempts to cross the mountains for a number of years.8 In 1813, Gregory Blaxland (35), William Lawson (39) and William Charles Wentworth (21) made a plan to cross the Blue Mountains by following the ridges between valleys. Blaxland was initially motivated by the desire to find new grazing land for his sheep. By persistence, hard work and clever planning they reached what became known as Mt Blaxland and looked down on a vast area of grassland and forest. Governor Macquarie was a great supporter of the development of the colony and wanted to make the most of the newly discovered lands. He commissioned Assistant Surveyor-general George William Evans to further explore along the route crossing the Blue Mountains. After following the earlier route to Mt Blaxland, Evans and his four companions travelled along the Fish River to its junction with Campbell’s River. They then followed a river they named Macquarie, after the Governor, over open fertile plains to the present site of Bathurst. George William Evans then was the first recorded white man to cross into the country beyond the mountains in 1813. Governor Macquarie lost no time in ordering the building of a road over the mountains following the explorers’ route. This road building task was entrusted to William Cox who with a convict team completed the task in less than six months in 1814. The road passed about 11 km north of Oberon. Governor Macquarie made a substantial land grant to Evans in where he was to be installed as deputy surveyor, land grants to the two free men that accompanied him and pardons and a small portion of land to the three convicts. In 1815 Macquarie made the journey across the mountains naming Springwood and Blackheath and selected the site for present day Bathurst.9 Because of the distance from Bathurst to the centre of the colony a commandant, Cox, was proposed but the office was never formally approved and later William Lawson assumed the role. Land grants were held back awaiting the approval of the Colonial secretary. The government was the biggest stock owner in the colony, supplying meat to the thousands of convicts, soldiers and others provided for from government stores. Exception was made for Cox and Lawson. Land grants issued during the 1808-09 were cancelled by Governor Macquarie but those which had been granted to ‘very deserving and meritorious persons’ he later renewed.10 This included and meritorious Indigenous persons. Complaints did arise concerning Macquarie’s administration in regard to land grants to the extent he offered his resignation. The offer was ignored. 1819 a commissioner, John Thomas Bigge, was appointed to investigate the affairs in NSW. Under Governor ’s stewardship peaceful coexistence was given high priority11. He used convicts for the benefit of the colony and as an incentive to carry out their tasks they were rewarded with freedom or land grants. He appointed two as magistrates. He believed that a convict, on the expiry or remission of his sentence, provided he was well-

8 Australian Dictionary of Biography 9 Blue Mountains web 10 HRA 1.7.268. (State Records Authority of NSW?) 11 Hawkesbury Historical Society, dinner 2002 9 behaved, ought to be treated as if he had never transgressed the law and should possess the same rights as a free man. This ‘ policy’ was at odds with the ‘exclusivist’ policy of the absentee landlords and pastoralists who used convicts as agricultural labourers and did not believe they deserved these rights and were treated too leniently. The settlers’ view prevailed with the British government and was confirmed by the Bigge report. Macquarie’s resignation from 1817 was finally recognised and he prepared to leave the colony. Macquarie’s concept of a land populated by small landholders with large areas as Government reserves and land grants given to deserving persons had degenerated into confusion with the location of many grants undetermined.12 While the grant system continued tickets of occupation were issued pending award of a secure title and land actually sold, including crown land. One requirement was that those securing grants should accept the responsibility of one convict per 100 acres. , a naval surgeon, arrived in Sydney in 1802. He came to the notice of Governor King for his abilities in the fields of health and administration. In 1805 he commanded the settlement in Newcastle before taking up land grants south in the and Southern Highlands. From here he made journeys into the country south and west. In 1819, accompanied by Joseph Wild, his servant, and Aboriginal guides he pioneered a route from Moss Vale to Bathurst thus opening up fertile country which Macquarie believed would satisfy the needs of settlers for many years to come. Macquarie gave him a 1,000 acres land grant and rewards for his servants. He further charged him with the construction of a road from the Cowpastures to Bathurst. Surveyor General , an Irish emancipist, disagreed with Throsby as to the value of this country. Governor Macquarie was obliged to at first accept this judgment but later sang the praises of both Throsby and the country he opened up.13 Charles Throsby and his party were the first recorded white people to pass through the Oberon area, in 1819. Illustrations: Governor Macquarie, Evans, Throsby, Blue Mts crossing.

2.3 Early settlement Cattle were introduced into the Oberon area in 1819 by William Lawson and the first land grant was made to him in 1823 and the property named Macquarie. All land west of the Macquarie River was declared government stock reserve. Lawson’s tenure was under a ‘ticket of occupation’ and when it was required by settlers he was had to move and take up land further north. The first permanent acquisition of land in the Oberon district was by Captain Phillip Parker King, son of Governor King (1800-1806) he was granted permission to acquire 2,000 acres by purchase at the head of Captain King’s Creek in 1823. Captain King was not resident and the property was managed by shepherds. On the northern boundary of Oberon there is a small creek still known as Captain King’s Stockyard Creek and it is thought that the cattle may have been mustered there and then moved down to the Fish River flats for grazing, hence Bullock Flat became the original name for Oberon.14 Earliest selector was Wilcox15 in Tuglow Hole Valley. The earliest recorded settlers

12 Theo Barker, History of Bathurst, Vol 1, p56 13 Australian Dictionary of Biography 14 Alan Brown’s Historical Notes – Watson A. Steel, 1926, in SMH and Lithgow Mercury. 15 A selector had to be a free settler and pay the government about 10 shillings a year, fence the land and make certain improvements prescribed by the inspector of selectors and live on the land for 10 years before selling it) 10 to actually live in the Oberon district were Irish rebels, Philip Hogan, William Davis and Edward Redmond who travelled north from the Wingecarribee possibly before the crossing of the Blue Mountains. They were amongst the many Irish for their part in the rebellion against the abolition of the Irish parliament and Ireland’s incorporation into Great Britain and the ensuing religious and economic oppression (24% of convicts were Irish).16 Most Irish spoke Gaelic. Some were convicted of petty thieving but many were transported for offences under the Insurrection Act, often as simple as attending a meeting. These Defenders regarded their actions as justifiable and patriotic and there was no way they could accept the regime. To add to their desperation, many arrived without official Indent papers so details of the length of sentences were lost and all were condemned to a life sentence regardless of original sentences. The earliest evidence of settlement by the Hogans is a land grant in 1831 to Henry Hogan, Philip’s son. Both Davis and Redmond were Irish landholders. They were absentee landlords on their grants in Oberon. They did however provide opportunities of employment for their less fortunate compatriots who had not owned land in Ireland and did not receive reasonable grants of land in NSW. Philip Hogan and his wife Mary, said to be some of the first landholders on the Oberon district, had come out on the same ship as William Davis. Philip was a United Irishman, a group consisting of Roman Catholics as well as Methodists, Presbyterians and other Protestants; Irish who wanted ‘to break the connection with England’. He acquired a grant of 120 acres at South Creek. He and his son Michael also acquired land near Charles Throsby in the Southern Highlands who as mentioned above had explored a track from that area to Bathurst, passing through the Oberon area. Their landholding was not made official until 1837 when John Hogan, son of Philip, took up land next to Edward Redmond. Patrick Hanrahan who had received a pardon for his work on Cox’s Road married Catherine, daughter of Philip and Mary Hogan who were the first white settlers in Black Springs. Philip died in 1829. Mary Hogan died in 1859 and is buried in the cemetery at Black Springs being related by birth or marriage to almost all the other occupants. Patrick’s son, Patrick junior, married the youngest daughter of Philip and Mary Hogan. Patrick Grady, born 1788 in Ireland, was transported to Australia on a life sentence around 1820 leaving behind his wife Mary and five children. Patrick was assigned to Rev. Thomas Hassell. He was awarded a ticket-of-leave in 1832 and he and his extended family moved to the Brisbane Valley on the Fish River near Oberon. Patrick Grady was possibly the first person to have land in this area. During the 1840s many fellow countrymen with similar backgrounds in Northern Ireland, often County Tyrone, migrated from Ireland for economic or other reasons. Life was hard for these first settlers. Dwellings were erected out of pit sawn slabs, roofs were of bark and floors of beaten earth and it was a hard battle to clear enough bush for rough grazing of a few animals, a little grain and vegetables. Settlers were troubled by and it was in connection with a hunt for a , McKeown, that Jenolan Caves were discovered in 1838. Charles Whalan, born in 1777, was sentenced to seven years’ transportation for catching a fish on private property at the age of 14 years. Because he could write he was employed as a clerk in government stores. After 16 months he was given a pardon on the condition he joined the Corps where he served honourably and was given a land grant at Prospect on Macquarie’s departure form Australia. Charles Whalan’s son Charles jnr was a close companion of Macquarie’s son Lachlan and took up land named ‘Glyndwr’ (running water) at

16 Early European History of the Tuglow Caves Area 2007 compiled by Nigel Price 11

Fish River Creek in 1837 on the eastern side of the present town of Oberon. Charles Whalan adopted Methodism and gave land for the building of the first Methodist church in 1872. In 1861 an area of land was set aside for a village adjacent to Bullock Flat. The plans were forwarded by Staff Surveyor J. F. Mann to the Surveyor General in 1863. On these plans the name Oberon was superimposed on that of Bullock Flat. The name Oberon was the choice of Elizabeth Whalan, wife of Charles Whalan.17 After the first recorded discovery of gold near Tarana, Oberon went on to experience gold fever to a moderate degree in 1860s and 1870s with the main site being Native Dog Creek where there were at one time 1,500 diggers, most of them Chinese. Despite disturbances there was no loss of life.

2.4 Oberon in the Twentieth Century Oberon entered the twentieth century as a relatively small and isolated community, off the main route from the coast to the inland, restricted by lack of infrastructure and a relatively inhospitable climate. Cattle and sheep projects failed to reach real potential until more efficient methods of land clearing were realised, pastures improved and the problem of liver fluke in sheep was overcome in the 1920s. Peas and potatoes proved successful in the first 50 years. Before the mechanical harvesting of peas, some 2,000 pea pickers could be camped around on farms at harvest times.18 Produce was transported to market in Sydney via the Tarana-Oberon railway from its inception in 1923 until it closed in 1979. During the depression the main industry was rabbit trapping (10,000 pairs a week) for skins and meat; sent to Sydney by rail from Tarana or consumed and used on the spot. The second half of the century brought greater prosperity, the building of the Oberon Dam and sealing of roads. Hardwood timber was transported to Broken Hill to be milled into mine props and when that ran out it was replaced by the planting of Pinus radiata. From this developed Oberon’s major industry of the present day, and the manufacturing of particle board and medium density fibreboard. Change is once more making itself felt with an influx of people from the area towards the coast establishing hobby farms or holiday homes. There is a growth of tourism, taking advantage of its closeness to Sydney and the Blue Mountains and of close proximity to Jenolan Caves and Kanangra Boyd National Park with many natural attractions and opportunities for outdoor pursuits. To complement these there is a growing appreciation of the area’s early history and many noteworthy items of European heritage including a pisé barn reported to be the oldest standing earth construction in Australia. Interest in restoring the Tarana – Oberon railway as a tourist attraction is high. Illustrations: early pioneers, landscapes, agriculture

17 Alan Brown., introduction to Mick Joffe’s Living Treasures 2001 18 Oberon-Jenolan district, Historical Notebook. 1969. Wheeler and Garland 12

3 Catholic Church in Australia

Within Australia the Church hierarchy is made up of Metropolitan Archdioceses and Dioceses. Each Diocese is served by a bishop, while each Archdiocese is served by an Archbishop. Australia has three living members of the College of Cardinals, including the current Archbishop of Sydney, George Cardinal Pell, Edward Cardinal Clancy and Edward Cardinal Cassidy.19 The association of the Catholic faith and Australia began long before the . Fr Victorio Riccio, a Dominican priest in the Philippines, in 1676 suggested the idea of forming a prefecture (similar to a bishopric) including Australia. This was approved by the cardinals but never realized before his death.20 When the La Perouse expedition arrived in Australia in 1788 there were two Catholic priests on board. One of them died and is buried in La Perouse, possibly the first burial of a European on Australian soil. The British government gave little thought to religion in the establishing of the penal colony and only in the last minute before setting out, Rev. Richard Johnson, was appointed as Anglican chaplain to the colony with a salary paid by the government. The civil authorities recognised the value of some degree of religious ministry for the sake of law and order, but in their eyes the only valid one, was the Established Church of England. One-tenth of all convicts transported to Australia were Catholic, and half of these were born in Ireland, while a good proportion of the others were English-born but of Irish extraction. Most of the rest were English or Scottish. No Catholic priest was allowed to accompany the 300 convicts in the First Fleet. The English and Scottish soldiers and prisoners were largely protestants and from urban areas. Many of the Irish were from rural areas; many spoke little English, only Gaelic. They tended to congregate in a separate group. Amongst these there were criminals but also men of principle who because they were Irishmen who rebelled against English oppression, saw themselves as victims of political injustice and religious persecution. Mass was officially celebrated for the first time in 1803 by Fr James Dixon. Father Dixon was one of the three convict priests transported from Ireland along with 560 Irishmen punished after the 1798 Rebellion of the United Irishmen, a joint Protestant and Catholic uprising inspired by the French Revolution principles of liberty, equality and fraternity. Having at first been allowed to carry out religious duties, only months later, in 1804, his permission to function was revoked after the Castle Hill uprising where convicts, mainly political prisoners from the Irish rebellion of 1798, rebelled and made a bid for freedom. The uprising was quelled and the ban remained in place for 16 years. Father Dixon ministered surreptitiously away from the eyes of the authorities, until he returned to Ireland in 1808, leaving the colony without any priests to serve the needs of the community. Fr O’Flynn had served a somewhat controversial time21 as a priest in the West Indies and had to go to Rome to answer charges of intrusion and incompetence. He successfully defended the charges but at the time came under the influence of the representative of the Irish Catholic

19 Wikipedia. (This still applies today. Cardinal Clancy was born in 1924 and Cardinal Cassidy in 1923. HHG 31.3.14) 20 Catholic Enquiry Centre. 2008.

21 Australian Dictionary of Biography on line 13

Association in Rome, whose brother, Michael Hayes, a convict transported to New South Wales, had urged him to secure priests for the Irish convicts in the colony. Fr O’Flynn and two other priests sought permission to take up missions in Australia. The request was ignore by the British government. Fr O’Flynn proceeded to London to appeal but Earl Bathurst, Secretary of State for the Colonies, who was a strong supporter of the Church of England in the colonies, refused on the grounds of O’Flynn’s ‘insufficient education and poor language skills’. Fr O’Flynn sailed to Australia in 1817 without the authority of the British government or the bishops of England. Permission to stay was first refused by Governor Macquarie for Fr O’Flynn but granted as long as he did not function as a priest. This pledge he broke by surreptitiously celebrating mass in private homes and baptising and marrying Irish in the colony. Macquarie became alarmed at the number of people converting to Catholicism and congregating together and ordered and forced him to be deported. In England he took up the cause for legal status for Catholics in NSW. A Commission of Inquiry, the Bigge Commision, into the conditions in the colony was instituted. This led to the curtailing of the governor’s powers and his final resignation. Two chaplains to the colony were appointed in 1820. Governor Macquarie’s emancipist policy (1810-1822) was based on his belief ‘that a convict, on the expiry or remission of his sentence, provided he were well-behaved, ought to be treated as if he had never transgressed the law and should possess the same rights as a free man’. 22 Macquarie had shown the Catholic community favour and goodwill though he had set a personal example, and had compelled many of the convicts to attend Anglican services. The government removed all children of Catholic convicts during the first 16 years and had them baptised and educated in the Anglican faith.23 This practice ceased due to the influence of Fr John Therry who arrived in Sydney on 3rd May 1820. Governor Macquarie gave land for the Catholic chapel in Sydney, donated 20 guineas to the building and laid its foundation stone in 1821. When in 1820 two chaplains, Fr Connolly and Fr Therry arrived they had fallen out on the voyage and Fr Connolly, the senior chaplain, moved to Tasmania. Fr Therry remained with responsibility of administering to NSW. The majority of the NSW Irish were not common criminals but political prisoners from the rebellion of 1798. By 1809 many were emancipated or pardoned and had acquired substantial tracks of land. For the first decade Fr Therry carried out his duties of dealing with the common necessities of birth and death for the Irish population of 6,000 – 15,000 as required by the government but in 1831 his attitude changed to protesting against what he deemed injustice. This saw him dismissed from the role of official chaplain because of frequent clashes with government and ordered to leave the country; which he did not. He died in Sydney in 1864. Therry was a loyal servant of the institutionalised church but above all he was loyal to the struggle for the freedom of Ireland and the Irish. There was still no overriding local Catholic authority in the colony. Fr William Bernard Ullathorne (1806-1889) was instrumental in influencing Pope Gregory XVI to establish the Catholic hierarchy in Australia. Ullathorne was in Australia from 1833-1836 as vicar- general to Bishop William Morris (1794-1872), whose jurisdiction extended over the Australian missions. In 1837 he published a paper ‘the Catholic Mission in Australasia’ which aroused concern about the harshness of the penal system. In 1840 transportation to the East Coast of Australia ended.

22 Hawkesbury Historical Society, Australia Day Dinner,2002). 23 Catholic Enquiry Centre,2002 14

Ullathorne became a marked man by William Wentworth and the squatters who were dependent on convict labour. In 1834, the Vicariate Apostolic of was erected and Dr John Bede Polding, an English Benedictine monk, appointed Vicar Apostolic with jurisdiction over what is now the Commonwealth of Australia. In 1842 the Archdiocese of Sydney, which covered the whole Easter portion of the continent, came into being with Dr John Bede Polding as resident archbishop. Since freedom of religion had been proclaimed in all British colonies in 1829 he was recognised by the British government and held the same privileges as the Anglican Bishop Broughton. In a male-dominated Australian church there were women like Caroline Chisholm and Mary McKillop making their influence felt. Caroline Chisholm, an English woman, and a convert to Catholicism, came to Australia in 1838 with her husband who was on leave from India. She worked mainly with women immigrants helping them with accommodation and employment. She worked to eliminate poverty, religious prejudice and racism without any support from the bishops, but with the active support of her husband, Captain Chisholm. She returned to England between 1848 and 1854 where she agitated for better conditions for migrants, and finally left Australia with her husband in 1866. Both died in poverty and obscurity in 1877.24 Mary McKillop was born in Melbourne in 1842. She moved to Penola, South Australia, to act as25 governess to her uncle’s children where she met Fr Julian Edmund Woods. Fr Julian conducted his ministry around Penola but earlier, while a novice in France met groups of the Sisters of St Joseph and was very impressed with their work in simple circumstances in rural areas educating peasant girls; giving them sufficient skills to be self supporting. When Sister Mary expressed a wish to enter a religious order but could not find an order that appealed to her he recalled the Sisters of St Joseph. The Australian order of the Sisters of St Joseph of the Sacred Heart was jointly formed by Fr Julien Edmund Woods and Mary Mackillop in Penola in 1867. Mary Mackillop began her religious life in Penola; establishing the first free Catholic school in Australia but later she and her companions moved to Adelaide where Fr Woods was called on to establish a Catholic education system. The prime mission of the order was education but their role extended beyond schools to hospitals, jails and sheltering the homeless. The group of sisters suffered difficulties and disagreements with Bishop Sheil of Adelaide mainly over the Rule26, first written by Fr Woods, whereby the Sisters lived. Sister Mary’s aim was to create an Order which was specifically for Australian members not owning property and unlike most orders all were equal. No distinction was made in duties which were concentrated around developing women of practical skills rather than refined young ladies. The church was then very much male-dominated and the sisters of St Joseph needed Father Woods to gain recognition in the church. The sisters were governed by a head Sister accountable to the authorities in Rome rather than under the control of a local bishop. This central government was justified by the wide spread of Orders in the colonies but ran into controversy with the bishops, first in their time in Brisbane where James Quinn, brother of later first Bishop of Bathurst, Mathew Quinn, had been appointed. This same controversy was to arise later in Adelaide. The bishops could not accept that the head of an order was a nun answerable directly to Rome and not subject to the authority of a bishop. This central government of the Institute provided a unity among Sisters working in widespread and isolated areas. Bishop Mathew Quinn was appointed to look into this situation in Adelaide. He

24 Isobel’s reference was left blank. The most complete story I have found on the internet.is at http://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/chisholm-caroline-1894. HHG 31.3.14. 25 Perthville Convent, http://perthvillesisters.catholic.org.au/history_2html) 26 The ‘aims of the Order and the way in which its members should live their lives and perform their duties to best achieve their goals’. Mary MacKillop Unveiled, Lesley O’Brien 15 was most impressed with their work and invited Fr Woods and Mary McKillop to form an educational foundation in his diocese, the Diocese of Bathurst. Fr Woods set out in 1871 to make preparations and decided on Queen Charlotte’s Vale later to become known as Perthville. There were three Sisters: Sister Teresa MacDonald, Sister Joseph, born Mary Dwyer in Ireland in 1850, Sister Hyacinth, born Bridget Quinlan in South Australia in 1850, and one lay woman Sister Braham, born in London in 1854, a convert from Judaism. Their mission began in 1872. The sisterhood soon ran into difficulties and Bishop Sheil had Mary excommunicated in 1871 for insubordination. The order went into recess and most of the schools closed but Bishop Sheil retracted the decision five months later and the Josephites were able to continue their work. Mary MacKillop travelled to Rome in 1873 seeking papal approval for their work. And was encouraged by Pope Pius IX. On return from Ireland and Rome Mary MacKillop visited the Bathurst foundation. In Ireland she had been pressing (questioning? HHG) the rules for the order written by Fr Woods but had been given new rules and tacit approval to proceed. Bishop Quinn, wishing to retain control, informed the sisters that only those who supported the original rules should remain in the diocese at The Vale under his authority. Those who chose the new rules were to be given the convent at Wattle Flat. The sisters made their choices and only Fr Woods, Sister Hyacinth and Sister Evangelist remained at The Vale. Mary relocated her headquarters to Sydney where bishop Moran was more sympathetic. In 1888 Cardinal Moran returned from Rome with a decree from the Vatican settling the dispute. Central government was accepted as well as separate diocesan congregations. The two groups were to have different religious dress. Those who remained affiliated with the Sydney motherhouse wore brown habits, and those under the jurisdiction of the bishops wore black. From that time on the two groups have generally been known as "Brown Josephites" or Black Josephites." This order grew and prospered. Teachers were provided for many small settlements in the Bathurst diocese and to other places in Australia and New Zealand. Communities sprang up following the gold fields at places like Wattle Flat and Trunkey Creek where the sisters lived among and served the people. Later they followed the settlements along the rail lines and later again the farming communities and finally as permanent residents in the towns. Dr Alfred Gummer, who conceived the idea of the Malachi Gilmore Hall, was educated in Perthville and his sister entered the Perthville convent. The sisters came from Perthville to establish a school with 60 pupils, the idea of J. M. Cooney, in Oberon They lived in a small brick cottage in Oberon Street until the convent was built in 1914. The school was a galvanised building which served also as a church until the new church was built in 1937. The school then remained in that building until the new school was built in 1957??? Their influence in schools declined with the introduction of State aid for Catholic schools and the employment of more lay teachers. Numbers joining the order declined in the late twentieth century and the Sisters of St Joseph turned their energies to other religious aspects. Perthville still is involved with adolescent girls and other ministries. Illustrations: Chisholm, Mackillop, early pictures of convent, school, Hazelgrove, Perthvillle.

3.1 Bathurst Diocese The first official note of the Catholic Church in NSW was marked by the arrival of Fr. J. J. Therry and Philip Connolly in 1820. A Catholic priest visited Bathurst as early as 1829 and the first mass in Bathurst was in 1830 conducted by Rev. J. J. Therry when he was called to witness the execution of convict Ralf Entwistle. There was no church building at the time and the place where the mass was held is unknown. It is suggested that the first religious group to hold 16 regular services in Bathurst were Catholics. Some form of worship was conducted by laymen until a permanent mission was established in 1838 and by 1839 a bark chapel possibly was in use.27 Fr William Ullathorne visited Bathurst in 1833 but it was not until he was replaced by Bishop John Bede Polding in 1838 that Fr Michael O’Reilly and Rev Thomas Slattery, recently arrived from Ireland, were appointed to Bathurst. They administered to Catholic communities in Mt Victoria, Mudgee, Wellington, Dubbo and Bathurst. There was no church building as such. In 1838 the governor granted land for a church, St Michaels and St Johns which was in use in 1841 though unfinished and first consecrated in 1862. The area of the Bathurst mission was broken down in size as new mission centres opened. Hartley/Lithgow was already recognised as a mission centre as far back as 1842. Five other missions – Carcoar (1847), Kandos (1851), Mudgee (1852), Wellington (1856) and Orange (1864) – came into being before the Diocese was formally established in 1865. By 1853, Catholic schools in Bathurst had a roll call of 90 boys and 130 girls. Arriving that year, Fr Dean Grant was to devote eight years of his life to the building and development of the Catholic Church in the Bathurst district and it was his responsibility to raise the funds needed for a new school house and new cathedral, St Michael and St John. The foundation stone was laid by the Archbishop of Sydney, Dr John Polding, and opened in April 1861. New mission centres opened. Hartley/Lithgow was recognised as a mission centre as far back as 1842. Five other missions – Carcoar (1847), Kandos (1851), Mudgee (1852), Wellington (1856) and Orange (1864) followed. By 1864 there were priests located in Carcoar, Sofala, Mudgee, Wellington and Orange and Catholic schools were being established; two in Bathurst. Bathurst continued to be under the authority of the Archdiocese of Sydney, covering a vast area west of the mountains, until a petition was presented to Pope Pius XI asking for consideration to be given to the establishment of a new diocese. The diocese of Bathurst was established in 1865 and Fr Mathew Quinn was installed as the first bishop. In 1866 the Public School Act was introduced, establishing a council of education to administer all schools in the colony. Bishop Quinn foresaw that state aid for Catholic schools would not last and joined the crusade for a Catholic education system independent of the State. The extension of missions and schools put pressure on bishops to find priests and nuns to carry out the duties involved. Bishop Quinn drew first on volunteers from the Convent of Mercy, Charlevillle, Ireland which was under his authority as bishop. Later he sought volunteers from South Australia, the Sisters of St Joseph, formed in 1866 by Mary MacKillop and Father Julian Woods. Father Julian was invited to conduct some missions resulting in the establishment of the order in Perthville which was to have a profound influence on Catholicism in Oberon. Oberon, Lithgow and Katoomba came under Hartley (Father Adrian)Bishops of Bathurst Matthew Quinn 1865-1885 Joseph Patrick Byrne 1885-1901 John Mary Dunne 1901-1919 Michael O'Farrell CM 1920-1928 John Francis Norton (Coadjutor Bishop 1926-1928) 1928-1963 Albert Reuben Edward Thomas 1963-1983 Patrick Dougherty 1983-2009

27 Theo Barker, History of Bathurst Vol 1, p156. 17

Michael McKenna 2009-present

Illustrations: St Michaels, Polding, early priests buildings.

3.2 Catholic Church in Oberon The first settlers entering the Oberon district in the 1820s brought with them their religious faiths but in the beginning there was little support other than the periodic visits of priests and ministers. There were no churches. They travelled on horseback or on foot, accommodation was in local houses, and religious services, baptisms, marriages and funerals were conducted in these houses. The first church in the Oberon district, a Church of England, a rammed earth building, was built in O’Connell by the Rev. Thomas Hassall in 1826. While all traces of that church have disappeared, the associated barn still exists and is considered the oldest rammed earth building in Australia. The first church on the higher Oberon plateau was built on land donated by pioneer settler Charles Whalan, a Wesleyan Methodist, just outside the present town of Oberon, in 1845. The first Catholic Church in the Oberon district was not in Oberon town but at Slippery Creek (Hazelgrove). The church, St Dominic’s, was reportedly moved from Hartley to Slippery Creek during the time of Fr Phelan who was based in Hartley. The Hartley circuit encompassed Oberon, Mt Olive, Stony Creek (Wiseman’s Creek), Edith and Tarana. The name Slippery Creek was derived from the fact that in wet weather sulkies and other vehicles had to be physically helped up the muddy hill to the church.28 Hazelgrove became the Catholic centre to which people travelled from Duckmaloi, known as ‘Irish Corner’ because of the predominance of free Irish settlers there, and Oberon. Dances and sports days were held in the hall there. In Black Springs priests visited rarely (from Bathurst or Hartley). They stayed in homes. Mass was held in these homes, many marriages performed and children baptised. Baptisms were written up on the priest’s return to Bathurst. On occasions eight or more babies, with one or two sponsors, were baptised on the same day. During a special mission to Black Springs in 1885 mass was celebrated in a tent on the Kangaroo Flat where St Aidans Church of England now stands. 29 Oberon Parish, then known as the Fish River district, was established in 1868 as part of the Bathurst Diocese. Mass was first said in a private house in Ross Street until the first St Ignatius was built. This first church, a galvanised iron building, served as church and was used as a school hall. The first parish priest was the Reverend Father Chastagon, a Frenchman, who served 1868–1871. Reverend Father Dunne succeeded him, and then by Father McGrath—you can see the Irish influence coming in now. Father Kelly was parish priest from 1881 to 1884 and in succeeding years there were Fathers Walsh, Dowd, Davaron, McGee and Doran until 1911. In 1911 Reverend Father Cooney was appointed in charge30. During the 1890s small churches were built in places like Shooters Hill, Porters Retreat, Isabella, and Brisbane Vale. This meant many hours of arduous travel for the parish priest on horseback and in adverse weather with snow and rain.

28 Sister Marie Therese, Oberon Convent. 29 Paddy Grady Wozencraft, The Black Springs Story, 1978 30 Gerard Martin, Oberon Catholic Parish: 140th Anniversary . 18

In 1912 two nuns from Perthville Sisters of St Joseph came to Oberon to establish a school in a building which served as both church and school. They lived in a small cottage in Oberon Street until the convent was built in 1914. At this time Rev Fr Casey was in charge. He was followed in 1922 by Rev. Fr O’Reilly and then Rev. Dr A. J. Gummer who was responsible for the building of the first St Ignatius church and the Malachi Gilmore Hall. The Southern Cross Hall on the corner of Fleming Street and Queen Street was built for the Catholic Church at a cost of 1,600 pounds. This hall was later relocated to Porters Retreat. Its prime purpose was to raise funds for a new church. It was used 'as a picture theatre and for all dances and concerts, bazaars, market days, held by the various organisations in Oberon; Country Women Association, ambulances, football clubs etc.' Fr D M. O'Reilly, trustee of the Southern Cross Hall, let the hall to Edward English, 'hotel keeper and picture proprietor' for 'talkies' and the power plant for this purpose for 1 pd sterling per night' for three years.31 The Catholic Church had priority over Show Week and public holidays and Inglish had priority over all other Saturday nights.32 Les Anstiss was a plasterer and son of a plasterer in Blacktown and later Wentworthville. He taught himself projection in the Southern Cross Hall. The first film screenings were powered a steam engine borrowed from Bert Cunynghame combined with a generator but the results were poor. Les Anstiss installed a power plant and when the Malachi Gilmore Hall was built he transferred showings to that hall for many years with Bruce Stevenson working alongside as projectionist. Films were brought in on the train to Oberon and after the closing of the line to Oberon they were offloaded in Tarana for transfer to Oberon. Dr Gummer was born 18th March 1899 in Perthville. He was the eighth child of ten. He was educated at St Joseph’s, Perthville, and would have followed the traditional pattern of elementary school and returned to help his parents on the farm had his teacher, Sister Brigid, not seen his potential for a more academic career. He proceeded to secondary education and decided to become a priest. This involved six years’ study first at St Columbia’s College, Springwood (1915) and at St Patrick’s College in Manly (1917). These roads led to Propaganda College in Rome where students gathered from all over the world. Cardinal Gilroy was amongst his fellow students. He was ordained on 31 March 1923 and having obtained his Doctorate of Divinity he returned to Bathurst. He was then successively appointed at Dubbo and Wellington and then parish priest in Oberon (where he was appointed Inspector of Schools and Supervisor of Religion in Schools?). He was dedicated to the care of youth in schools and out of schools. Appointed as Parish Priest in Oberon he used much energy in improving the St Joseph’s School. While serving as parish priest in Oberon he was consecrated as fourth Bishop of Geraldton in Bathurst Cathedral on March 19th 1942 by the then Archbishop (later Cardinal) Gilroy. In Geraldton he visited even the most remote outposts in ‘territorially the largest diocese in Australia or in the world, spread over one fifth of Australia’33 and officially opened many new churches and schools. He died in his sleep in Geraldton 4th April 1962 at the age of sixty-three years. Dr Gummer’s specific task in Oberon was to build a new church to replace the wooden one that had served the community as church and classroom during the time from the arrival of the Sisters of St Joseph in 1912. He ‘had tremendous drive, grand ideas, enthusiasm, anything was possible. There were no half measures with him.’34

31 Letter, November 1932, O’Reilly to Inglis. 32 Letter from T.J. Purcell, solicitor, Strathkyle, 19 Bligh Street near Hunter Street, Sydney, December 1, 1933. 33 Carnarvon Cathedral Chronicle July 1981) 34 Sister Marie Therese, Oberon Convent 19

Being an admirer of European architecture he had built a church in Romanesque style, a replica of one he admired in Rome (possibly St John Lateran).35 The architect was Bolton Millane of Agabiti and Millane Associates, Wingelo House, Angel Place, Sydney (from original architectural drawings)36 and the builder Mr Sweetnam also of Sydney. A specially designed brick made in Lithgow was used in constructing the striking arches and columns in the church. These special bull-nosed bricks were used for the first time west of the Blue Mountains. The church was designed to seat 300 with a possibility of extensions accommodating a further 150 people. Windows and lights were of amber glass giving a soft ambience in daylight. Stonework was from Pyrmont. All joinery was in Queensland maple. The foundation stone, laid by Bishop Norton on March 7th 1937 was of Finland red granite and the holy water stoup was a clam shell from the Great Barrier Reef. The total cost 4,500 pounds, leaving the parish with a debt of 3,700 pounds 37. Cardinal Gilroy congratulated Dr Gummer and Oberon for ‘having one of the most magnificent churches in the whole of Australia’38). The extensions were not completed to accommodate the growing community. As only the left transept was finished, it was out of balance, cracks appeared in the ceiling and a decision was made to dismantle it in 1986. The present church, using much material from the earlier church opened on 20th October 1987. Illustrations: Southern Cross, Original St Ignatius

35 Farther Adrian, Parish Priest, Oberon 36 Western Times March 8 1937 37 W Times, March 24 1938. 38 Western Times, March 24 1938 20

4 The Malachi Gilmore Hall

The history of land ownership splits into several periods indicated by the subheadings following.

4.1 1865 – 1936 – Gilmore Family Original grant of Lot 6 part of allotment 3 & 4 Section 21, Oberon, County Westmoreland was made to Malachi Gilmore of 74 Pitt Street, Newtown on 9th August 1865 . Malachi Gilmore was never resident in Oberon. He lived in 74 Pitt Street, Newtown, above his mixed grocery store. He was involved in surveying and in that way got into the property business.39 He owned substantial property around the old showground in Sydney. His sons Frank and Joe received Papal Honours and served as mayors of Redfern and their sister Elizabeth was mayoress of Redfern. Malachi’s brother, Michael, bought ‘Royal Oaks’ in Duckmaloi where Malachi was a frequent visitor. Malachi was one of the early pioneers of getting away from the city to enjoy the hunting and fishing life style of Oberon and helping on the farm; a tradition that persists today. Unfortunately Michael died young and his son Frank, only 13 years, was left in charge of the farm which he ran with the help of neighbours and with Malachi Gilmore’s support. Frank had a close relationship with Oberon as vice president of Oberon Railway League and of the Potato Growers Association and opened the 43rd Oberon show. After his father’s death the farm was eventually sold and Frank and family moved to Picton where he was a successful dairy farmer and became Mayor of Picton 1927.40 Some time after Malachi’s death in 1921, Malachi’s children followed a Gilmore tradition and gave land to the Catholic Church in his memory. Up until this time the land was not built on and leased to……………….

4.2 1936 – 1965 – Catholic Church The land originally designated was Lot 3 on the corner of Fleming Street and Queen Street was the lot for which the hall was designed. The Gilmore family had suggested that a church be built on land in the main street, lot 6. This was too far from the Convent and Presbytery so the plan of the hall was reversed to fit the present site in Oberon Street. Lot 6 was transferred to John Francis Norton, Bishop of Bathurst and the right Reverend Monsignor Edmund Patrick O’Donnell, parish priest, of Dubbo, as joint tenants, trustees of the Roman Catholic Church, on 24th March 1936 and the change of site approved by council 8th August 1936.41 The inspiration for the design and realisation of the building of the Hall came from Reverend Dr Alfred Gummer, parish priest in Oberon. There was much speculation for and against building this new hall including some rivalry over the control of entertainment in the community. At the time, September 1937, the Oberon Council applied through C. A. Kelly MLA for government funding of 2,000 pounds from the government to make extensions to the Council Chambers and Memorial Hall. The Memorial Hall was built by the citizens and Oberon Shire Council in 1927 on the corner of Dudley and Oberon Street. The council took up office in the

39 Agnes Gilmore, in conversation 40 Agnes Chalker,, in conversation, grandniece of Malachi Gilmore 41 Oberon Council minutes 21 hall (now part of the RSL) and remained there until moving into the Council Chambers in its present location in Oberon Street (when?). The request was refused. The Show Society had started to hold a Show Ball and it was felt that given better accommodation they ‘could close them down and have the field to themselves’. A statement to the bishop concerning the Southern Cross Hall said that it was unlikely that the hall would ‘get a very tempting offer’ (?) More accommodation was needed for dancing and a supper room. The operating box had been condemned by inspectors and ‘was barely water proof and certainly not fire proof’. Dr Gummer wisely decided that, because of its position (proposed on Lot 6) and the community need, the hall should be a structure worthy of the township and available to all’.42 The bishop commented, ‘The whole project does not excite any enthusiasm in me, and yet I can’t see how we could avoid building it and having built it that we have not a valuable asset.’ Some points concerning the project were: Pro  We save an asset which has cost us approx. 1,600 pounds  We have assured us control of the amusement hall of the town, sp. dances and cinema.  We gain a valuable piece of land  We pay no rentals for church functions (a considerable item with a building program ahead of us)  Public pays, by its rentals, for a fine property that eventually becomes ours, a building of brick and concrete. Contra  Cost of the new building for tenders between $3,195 and $3,800  The responsibility of the debt  The loss of the present hall rentals for the parish account. The building of the hall began in 1936. In March 1937 Bishop John Francis Norton travelled by car with Mgr Flanagan, Fathers Sullivan, Fahey and Connaughton for the official opening of the Malachi Gilmore Hall. It was built as a cinema and dance hall and literally paid for by the community with their sponsoring of bricks and glass bricks and money raised by Queen Competitions. The Gilmore family contributed money to the building of the hall. The inspiration for the Art Deco design hall came from Dr Gummer’s love of European architecture. The builder was H.A.Taylor of 1 Lancelot Street, Concord who tendered for the erection of the Malachi Gilmore Hall in May (1936?) for the sum of 3,094 pounds to be completed in 18 weeks.43 It was a very adventurous project for its day. Although the Catholic Church felt it would be away from the Convent and Presbytery but ‘that it seemed good business to accept the land and build a hall on it’.44 The Gilmores made the condition that the hall be named the Gilmore Hall. The site was to comprise 64 feet of land giving it a value of 800 pounds. The balance of land was to be sold at 12 to 10 pounds a foot. ‘The hall would have to be such that it

42 Sister Marie Therese, Oberon convent, in conversation 43 Letter H.A.Taylor 1936(?) 44 Diary of Bishop John Francis North, Fifth Bishop of Bathurst (edited by Rosemary Dusselaar). 22 would prevent anyone else attempting to rival ours.‘ was ‘ the reason why we spent 3,000 pounds on the Malachi Gilmore Hall.’ The plans were prepared by Bolton Millane, of Agabiti and Millane of Sydney, architects known for their work for the Catholic Church.45 The tenders for the new building were between 3,195 and 3,800 pounds. In a letter46 to Dr Gummer, Dr J Norton, bishop of the Bathurst diocese, states that he had handed the sketches for the new hall back to Mr Millane and said, ‘He asked me if I objected to a futuristic design, but I told him it was not for a church, I did not mind if it was as futuristic as 1978, provided you were satisfied’. The then Chair of the Heritage Council, Michael Collins, has described the hall as ‘unique’, ‘one of the most idiosyncratic Art Deco buildings in NSW.’ It has a picture palace façade which stands out dramatically in the streetscape of a Central West country town. Ross Thorne, cinema guru, describes it as ‘a unique building’, as ‘unusual and futuristic even by today’s standards’. A document from the Heritage Council if New South Wales quotes a decision from the Heritage Council 4th July 1985, 30566. This document states: ‘The exterior of this theatre is unique in a kind of west coast 1930s style with a vague Frank Lloyd Wright influence style produced by the horizontality (in parts). It also has a very strong vertical element at the front and glass bricks in the manner of ‘Depression modern’47 even for today and the word has it that he nearly went broke in the process. The complete builder’s specifications are in safekeeping with the Friends of the Malachi Gilmore Hall. The builder’s plans were passed on to the convent (Sister Maria Theresa passed them on to the Presbytery; at the moment whereabouts unknown). 1937 The hall was leased, soon after completion, by Les Anstiss who also showed films in the Southern Cross Hal and set up the power supply in town. His film activities were eventually transferred to the Magna Cinema in Malachi Gilmore Hall where he was joined by Herb David. When Les’s health declined Herb David took over his responsibilities. The theatre was known as the Magna and the projectors were also known as Magdas In 1964 the Catholic Church decided to sell the hall. First offer went to Oberon Council. On refusal of this offer it was bought by Herb David.

4.3 1965 – 1986 –Herb David When Herb David died in 1985 the ownership passed to his daughters who decided the property must be sold. In 1985 the Bicentennial Committee gave top priority to restoration of the Malachi Gilmore Hall for use of funds allocated but Oberon Council found this not possible.

4.4 1987 – 1998 – Betta Wools After lengthy discussions between Oberon Council and the Bicentennial Committee the property was sold to Betta Wools for use as a wool store. In …. The foyer and the balcony area were leased to the Cobweb Craft Shop.

4.5 1998 – present – Scott Still

45 Or was it Virgil Cizzio (as suggested in The Spirit of Progress, Art Deco in Australia, by Patrick van Daele and Roy Lumby), who according to the register of the Royal Australian Institute of Architects designed the Great Southern, Sydney and the Imperial Hotel, Erskineville? 46 Oberon Review, 7th Oct 1978 47 Grief ‘Depression Modern: the Thirties Style in America’ New York, Universe Books 1957. 23

5 History of the Use of the Hall

5.1 1936 – 1965 - Catholic Church 1937: The hall was leased to Herb David who operated a cinema known as the Magna. Films were screened every Saturday night with Saturday matinees. He also loaded up his equipment and travelled around the district showing films in whatever was available as a good venue remembering that cinema equipment was at this stage quite portable. 1938: A debutante ball was held to celebrate the opening of the new St Ignatius Church with the attendance of Archbishop, later Cardinal, Gilroy. During the period of ownership of the hall by the Catholic Church the hall was the venue for concerts and balls connected with not only the church but a wide range of organisations from sporting, school and private individuals. It was the venue for numerous auction sales. There were approximately 6 balls per year. In 1943 there was the Buffalo Lodge Ball and in 1945 the Victory in the Pacific Ball (see appendix). There were many football balls, school frolics and speech nights, wedding receptions and birthdays, flower shows and market days, concerts and lectures. It was frequently used for Anzac services. In the 40s its jarrah floor survived the onslaught of roller skating. The 60s saw a by the Bathurst Society of Music. The foyer housed smaller functions and card parties. There were civic receptions including one for the Governor, Lt General Sir Erik Woodward in 1946. Herb David, very much ‘the picture show man’, ran the Malachi and town electricity supply. Down the back of the hall was a shed containing two big generators; the back-up supply, which was probably earlier part of the town power plant which Les and Herb originally ran. The powerhouse was situated beside 23 Ross Street where Herb David lived until his death (now No 2). The powerhouse burned down at some stage? Films were a regular part of town life. The films he shown included Flash Gordon, Waterloo Bridge, Gone with the Wind, The Quiet Man, Doctor Doolittle, and Born Free. (See list) In the 60s Herb with Ted Quigg organised many concerts for the town where Little Patty, Col Joye and Jimmy Little performed. The hall was packed out on these occasions. 1965 negotiations took place for the sale of the hall with first offer going to Oberon Council. The offer was refused and the hall bought by Herb David. 1965 - 1986 - Herb David George Herbert David was born in Oberon on 7th June 1915 and lived at 2 Ross Street except for a time in Rose Bay and ran the Watson Bay picture theatre.48 He worked with projectors from the age of 12. Herb grew up in a mud brick house at the back of his father Nicholas David’s s shop in the main street (where there is now a service station) which at that time doglegged around the shop. He was born at the Reef and only moved to the main street when the house was built. It had two very large bedrooms, one for the six boys and one for the six girls. Nicholas David, Herb’s father, travelled round with a cart and horse selling haberdashery and clothing. He was part French and part Egyptian and came from Beirut. His ledgers started in Arabic and ended in English. He married Mabel Harrison of Leichhardt. She was 17 and he was 40. Of their 12 children Herb was number two. Behind the shop was an orchard which contained many grafted trees bearing several species of fruit as well as a fruit salad tree with

48 Western Times 11/3/82 24 peaches, nectarines and what?. There was a grape vine along the side from which the family got leaves to make dolmens. Herb made his own cheese which he hung to cool in a well behind the shop. Garlic always grew in a particular spot in the yard. The shop was eventually taken apart brick by brick and used for a building in Tarana. Houses were built on the land. The shop was full of new and recycled goods; he threw nothing away. He was a qualified , extremely well read and kind. He could fix anything. Daughter Robyn says of him (see further Appendix 1): He was often paid in kind and I frequently remember a side of lamb, or a few trout caught in the dam as being payment for fixing a television, a fridge, or a stove. He styled himself ‘The Count of no Account’.49 The barter system worked very well in Oberon. All the local children knew that Herb fixed their bikes or their toys. He taught many of us to ride those same bikes that he had revamped, on the path from the hospital corner to the shop. Dad also did a lot of work for the prison camp outside the town and had a good relationship with both the inmates and warders (I remember them coming into the shop with warders, and dad organising the purchase of transistor radios and the like on time payment for them. The itinerant workers, many of whom were from Aboriginal backgrounds spent a lot of time with dad. He was one of the most tolerant, understanding people I have ever known. He helped them get on their feet, and never discriminated (remember this was the time when like Bowraville on the north coast still had a white side and a blacks side in the theatre.)\ I often saw him give them money to help out, especially if there were children involved. Mum tutored many, many of the Aboriginal girls for what was known as the “nurses’ entrance exam” in the back room of the shop. I think in many ways he was conscious of his migrant background and as a younger person there was discrimination against him, so he could not tolerate this. I really think one of his greatest attributes was the way he championed the underprivileged. He could start a conversation with anyone from the PM to the lowest of the low, the ex criminals, the Aboriginal people, the migrants. He was always the first on the scene in a crisis, and the amount of money that changed hands if he saw someone in need was really amazing. I don’t think that was something many of the locals knew. It was true altruistic service!! Herb joined the Second AIF in the Second World War as an electrical technician. He was attached to the armoured regiment in Western Australia for a few years before an extended period in New Guinea where he showed films to troops. He returned to NSW in 1942 to marry Miss Jean Holmes, a local school teacher, and settled in Oberon. They had three daughters, Robyn (Mrs Guy Campbell), Judi (Mrs Stuart White), and Jenny (Mrs Greg Evans). Both he and his wife Jean are buried in the Oberon cemetery. He was very involved in community affairs including the formation of the fire brigade, all volunteers, providing their own brass helmets. He became a life member of the Oberon show having, amongst other things, built a public address system for the show; probably the first in the state. A very active member of the RSL he become a Life Member. He was for many years Secretary or President ‘in charge of vice’ (own words). As such he wrote many letters in support of local returned servicemen requesting pensions/support and fought for the recognition of the Vietnam veterans. On the block next to his house in Dart Street he had a big shed and another two besides. Here he kept his cinema collection. He was a pioneer of cinema and started out with hand-cranked projectors. These were largely built by C & W Model K on Raymac Heads. The sound wasn’t on the film but on disk and had to be synchronised with the film. He donated these hand cranked projectors to the film archives along with many films, in , now ScreenSound, but

49 Ron Burton, in conversation 25 unfortunately a search by Jennifer Gurzola of their archives found no trace of them and only two short films; one for Pat O’Leary’s timber yard in Bathurst and one called Time, Tick, Tick were found. During his time Herb showed almost every Australian film available for hire including one about a dog called Caesar. The producer came to Oberon and brought the dog with him as part of the show. Herb was part of the last film search in 1977 which went around Australia collecting nitrate films. The motto of the search was ‘Nitrate won’t wait’. There were three great old film canisters left in the Malachi which the Still family passed on to the Friends of the Malachi Gilmore Hall, The Farrer Story and Murder Incorporated and an unlabelled canister with some small reels of Christmas cartoons and a couple of black and white short films. According to Herb David’s daughter Judi, The Farrer Story was sent to the archives for copying and later returned. There is also a large collection of glass colour slides with ads for local business and for the films shown in the Magna in the 40s. The ABC made a documentary in 1977 called Flicks which showed Herb David near the fireplace in the cinema in his old work clothes. He had a good sense of appropriate dress; wore overalls for work, navy wool suits or fine tweed jackets for more formal occasions. The series was presented by Alan Finney and was a program of 6 episodes, the first of which was on Oberon and the Oberon Magna Theatre. Herb David was introduced to film through an association with Aussie English at Double Bay cinema. There were two projectors, one operated by Bruce Stevenson at Rockley School of Arts, one operated by Herb in Oberon. Blayney and Millthorpe were included in the circuit. Herb had a huge collection of rocks of various sizes (including the huge lump of petrified wood which stood beside the door of the shop for many years. He panned for gold, polished stones and generally tinkered. He avidly collected stones, built the tumblers for polishing them, had samples of gemstones in the shop. He was a jack of all trades but a master of film presentation. Herb’s wife died in 1973 and he tried to keep the cinema running with the help of daughter Robyn operating and Jenny selling tickets. Both were at university at the time. After four or five years Herb decided to convert the hall for roller skating to make ends meet. He continued to run the cinema until in 1977 ill health forced him to give up. He died in 1985. According to Herb David’s will the property was to be sold and the money to be divided between the three daughters. Judi, the eldest and sole executive gave first offer to the Council but their response was considered too low by the family and the hall stood grey and desolate while the debate about its future raged. 1985: a survey in connection with the Bicentennial Committee showed the acquisition and restoration of the Malachi Gilmore Hall as a top community priority for use of bicentennial money. Oberon Council found the restoration money inadequate and the time too short to satisfactorily carry out this project and the money was allocated to the development of the Common in Ross Street, and to the Oberon Tapestries project. A resolution passed on 25th March 1986 stated: ‘That Council make a firm commitment to the provision of a new building to meet the community social and cultural needs, to be funded by council, with community assistance, to a minimum profit from the Oberon Hills subdivision, such undertaking be completed by 31st December 1988’ This did not eventuate. 1986 - 1998 - Betta Wools 26

For about 10 months the Council was indecisive over the approval of the application for the change of usage application. Despite a protest petition of 300 people the hall was sold to a consortium known as Betta Wools in 1986 for use as a wool store on the condition the façade was maintained in present style. This group received a heritage award for the restoration of the façade of the hall and a presentation was made to the designer of the colour scheme, devised by Kim Rabbidge. In 1988 a public meeting was held because a member of the community thought they had found a source of funding for the purchase of the hall. This funding proved to be applicable to only refurbishment, not purchase. 1997: The festive atmosphere of past times was recaptured when the 60th anniversary of the halls open was celebrated by the 60s Bash in where the community came dressed in 20’s fashion and danced the night away to a lively band. 1997: the Oberon Arts Council investigated the possibility of acquiring the hall as a Community Centre. No action was taken. Following this, the Friends of the Malachi group was formed and a submission was made to Regional Solutions, under the sponsorship of Oberon Arts Council for funding to purchase the hall. The submission was not successful mainly because it lacked local government backing and active community support. In 2000, despite lack of support from Council, a State Heritage Inventory was lodged with the NSW Heritage Council by the Friends of the Malachi supported by the Oberon Arts Council. The Malachi Gilmore Hall was subsequently listed on the State Heritage Register in 2003. 1998 – 2009 - Scott Still Betta Wools continue its activities, storing wool bales in the hall and leasing the foyer to the Cobweb Craft Shop.

5.2 Malachi Gilmore Hall – Overview of Events 1935 Land donated to the Catholic Church by Irish pioneer settler Malachi Gilmore’s children 1936 Building commenced 1937 Building completed 1937 Les Anstiss leased both Southern Cross and Malachi50 1937 Films screened Friday/Saturday nights. Saturday matinees. Herb David lessee and? operator 1938 Debutante ball to celebrate opening of St Ignatius. Archbishop Gilroy 1943 Buffalo Ball 1943 CWA Ball 1943 Boxing Day Ball 1945 Victory in the Pacific Ball 1947 21st Birthday 1948 Wedding reception 1948 Footballer’s Ball

50 Louise Eddy, Oberon Review 10/7/86. 27

1948 School Frolic 1957 Hall leased to Herb David 1964 Catholic Church desirous of selling MGH first offer to be given to Council. 1964 Bathurst Society of Music – ‘Tobias and the Angel’ 1964 Civic reception for the Governor, Lt. Gen. Sir Eric Woodward. 1965 Public meeting call re provision of community centre in Oberon. Possible acquisition of MGH 1965 Council refuses first offer from the Catholic Church 1965 Hall bought by Herb David – the picture show man 1967 Dance for local benefit appeal 1969 Oberon Amateur Theatrical ‘Brigadoon’ 1957 H David would consider selling MGH 1977 Last film screenings 1977 ‘Magna’ and Herb David feature in ABC series ‘Flicks’ 1977 Last Debutante Ball 1977 Herb David takes part in the ‘Last film Hunt’ for archiving old Australian films of the Central West NSW. 1977 First offer to purchase the hall declined by Oberon Shire Council 1985 Oberon Bicentennial Committee survey shows acquisition of and restoration of the Malachi Gilmore Hall as top priority for use of any bicentennial funding 1986 Oberon Shire Council finds restoration of the Malachi Gilmore Hall unacceptable because of cost involved. Funds allocated to creating Oberon Common. 1986 Hall purchased by Betta Wools for use as a wool store 1987 Heritage award to Betta Wools for restoration of the façade 1997 60th Birthday Bash held in Hall 1997 Betta Wools prepared to sell Hall 1997 Oberon Arts Council investigating possibility of acquiring Hall as Community Centre. No action. 1998 Hall sold to Scott Still 1998 Public meeting held. No action possible as no funding available for purchase of infrastructure. 1998 Friends of the Malachi Gilmore Hall formed. 2001 State Heritage Inventory form lodged with NSW Heritage Council for possible State listing. Council declined support 2003 Hall listed on State Heritage List. SHR 01680.

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6 Development of Cinemas

6.1 American Cinema Influence The development of American cinema prototypes clearly influenced cinema design and presentation in Australia. According to Ross Thorne, 51 ‘the influence from USA was possibly stronger in this country than in any other outside the American continent’. The first moving pictures in America were shown as part of vaudeville shows. By 1908 they were shown in small theatres or nickelodeons with 5 cents admission. From 1910, as cinemas grew larger and cost of entry rose the name nickelodeon gave way to the name, picture palaces. The word ‘palace’ was originally used for live theatre, palaces of variety (Thorne p7). The first period of picture palaces, a period of revivalist architecture, were eclectic and luxurious. Motives for the plaster decor were borrowed from buildings and art works all over Europe. Even the small cinemas had uniformed staff and music to enhance the experience. Added to this in the picture palaces was very ornate décor with lots of gold, flowers and indirect lighting. One of the persons most influential in changing the way films were presented was Samuel L Rothapfel (1882–1936). He was not so much associated with the architecture as with the presentation of films, the atmosphere of the cinema, which aimed to create an experience away from the everyday. Rothapfel and the architects that designed these ‘palaces’ had a conviction that they were not only progressing the industry but developing an appreciation of the finer things in the general public. By 1909 elaborate picture theatre fronts were in demand, one evoking the appearance of Swiss cottages with pilasters on the side walls made to represent trees, another that of a log cabin, and others Edwardian style. These ornate fronts made the theatre stand out in the streetscape (‘the cinema should virtually leap out of the streetscape’). There was little lobby space in these early 1907–1911 cinemas. It was more like a recess off the sidewalk with the ticket office at the centre. The earlier theatres possessed a small balcony or dress circle, if any at all. By 1918 there were grand palaces being built. Tivoli in Chicago seated 4,500 people and was modelled on the chapel in the Palace of Versailles. George L and C W Rapp who designed this theatre and other cinemas, similarly extravagant, toured Europe in 1911-1912 seeking inspiration. Both studied Italian architecture. By the 1920s picture palaces reach their heights with ‘atmospheric design’ simulating fantastic and foreign settings. Egyptian, Persian, Chinese motives were featured to such a degree they became excessive. John Eberson, a Romanian who became known as the ‘Frank Lloyd Wright of theatre design’, settled in America and produced designs which created an indoor-outdoor atmosphere by simulating ‘sky’ ceilings with twinkling stars or open window vistas of gardens. He designed Sydney’s Capitol Theatre. Art Deco was born out of the Exposition Internationale de Arts Decoratifs et Industriels Modernes in Paris 1925 but the term Art Deco was first coined in 1966 by a writer compiling a catalogue for a retrospective of the Paris exhibition. The exhibition was designed to showcase the best in modern French art and design with displays in boutiques and department stores; with pavilions on the bridges and streets all enveloped in a festival of fountains and light. Countries as diverse as Britain, Japan, Czechoslovakia, Denmark and Russia participated. It was visited by over 16,000 people and its influence spread throughout the world, particularly to America. Art Deco was adaptable; it was able to modernise traditional styles, take in exotic themes, new colours, new materials, old and

51 Ross Thorne,Cinemas of Australia via USA . Sydney. 1981. General reference for section following. 29 new techniques. ‘Art Deco came to represent a new set of aspirations and desires – youth, glamour, fantasy, and fun’.52 1930 saw the emergence of twentieth century design. Out went the Corinthian columns and elaborate embellishment inspired by heritage architecture. This was replaced by unadorned surfaces and simplified forms, inspired by cubist designs. ‘In general, lavish in the twenties, streamlined in the thirties.’53 The designs and motives were quickly adopted by American architects. Heavily ornamented picture palaces did not sit well with the economic depression gripping America where some cinemas were being declared bankrupt. New materials like chrome, stainless steel and glass blocks offered new opportunities in architectural design; offered renewal. The first Art Deco skyscrapers appeared in 1929, some featuring exteriors with decorative metal work such as Sunset Towers in Los Angeles. The first Art Deco picture palace was Hollywood Plantages from 1930. Art Deco influence spread to all fields of design, be it automobiles, ceramics, furnishings, ornaments and to parts of the world as diverse as Cuba, Indonesia and Australia. Illustrations: nickelodeons, picture palaces, ornate fronts, Hollywood Plantages.

6.2 Cinema Design in Australia Australian film has a long history. The earliest known feature length narrative film in the world was an Australian production, The Story of the Kelly Gang (1906). Viewing of films has been a popular form of entertainment in Australia since 1910. The first commercial showings of films were strips of pictures viewed in ‘Kinetescopes’ (a small screen an individual looked through to watch moving pictures) in 1894. When films were first projected publicly in 1896 it was in venues also used for stage shows. It was not until 1909 that the first purpose built cinema was built, Bijou Picture Palace in Railway Square. It was described as ‘a small theatre having an Edwardian façade, a marble foyer and a roof opening out over the street to make it the coolest entertainment place in Sydney’.54 By 1918 there were 18 inner city cinemas and 97 suburban cinemas. By 1920 the cinema industry was established in more permanent and decorative buildings. Films accompanied by sound, ‘Talkies’, first appeared in 1926. It was not until the building of the Crystal Palace in circa 1925 that cinemas assumed very decorative interiors. In the lower end of Sydney, towards Hay Street, the Belmore Markets had opened in 1869. This area was to become the site of a hippodrome featuring circus, vaudeville, house, theatre and early silent movie pictures. From 1916 to 1926 it was leased to Wirth’s Circus and saw not only circus but all types of entertainment, whatever could draw a large audience. In 1926 it failed and Union Theatres began the construction of the Capitol Theatre within the walls of the Hippodrome in 1928. It was one of three atmospheric theatres built in Sydney and Melbourne by Union Theatres Limited, the other two being the State in Sydney and Capitol in Melbourne. In rural areas and some outer suburbs films were shown in sheds, public halls and Schools of Arts by travelling showmen. Live music often accompanied the films. Some venues had associated open air viewing areas.

52 Source? 53 Art Deco Architecture, Patricia Bayer 54 (Charles Leski Auctions on line???). 30

Many of these decorative cinemas were designed or existing unembellished venues refurbished by architects like Kaberry and Chard. In the 1930s many cinemas were designed or redesigned in Art Deco style. The 20s and 30s represent the most prosperous period of the cinema first in urban areas and spreading into the countryside. There were rural towns supporting more than one venue. Most of these cinemas were independently owned and run. Going to the movies was more than the viewing of a film. It was an outing with family and friends to be enjoyed in luxurious and imaginative surroundings. There was a sense of occasion, of social significance. This social significance is demonstrated by the fact that from about 1920 to 1960, statistics show that every Australian attended, on average, twenty times per year’ 55 The 50s and 60s, with the advent of television and video, saw the closing of cinemas with many readapted for other use, left empty or demolished. Those in the rural areas survived best. Multiplex venues were introduced in 1980s and heralded a new expansion of the film industry. Multiplexes offer a wide variety of films, wide screens and stereophonic sound, allowing full appreciation of modern film technology. Local industry statistics show that at the end of 1988 there were 712 screens operating in Australia, and by the end of 2002 this number had risen to 1872 – representing an increase of 163%.56 During this period attendance figures experienced a corresponding rise – a static result from 2001 to 2002 being only the second time admissions did not rise in 15 years.57 Jack Richie contends that these two periods of expansion, the 1920s - 1930s and the 1980s - 1990s, are significant enough in themselves and in contrast to the preceding and intervening periods to be respectively considered the ‘first wave’ and ‘second wave’ in the history of cinema construction and exhibition. The proliferation of multiplex has resulted in the compounding of the ownership of cinemas and distribution of films and the concentration of cinemas in the suburbs, where they can sustain the cost of multiplex in finance and in numbers, and less in the rural areas. The result is that many areas of rural NSW were without a commercial theatrical service. Reading in the press that some of the Sydney cinemas like Valhalla were closing implied that home entertainment was the competition. Paul Hoegh-Guldberg of Vox Associates, Los Angeles, says that they are noticing a slight fall back in cinema attendance but that the multiplexes are the ones most likely to suffer. They may be around for the next 10 years and then be gone. If you are just going out ‘to see a film’ you tend to opt for seeing it at home. A number of cinemas in LA are offering extras, like coffee or a drink, a nice snack or an interesting talk, other entertainment as well as watching the movie. It has to be an experience, ‘a night out’. They talk of the ‘supper club’ atmosphere. It is harking back to the Wurlitzer time. Our local cinema at Mount Victoria follows this style successfully. Illustrations: bijou, Capital Cremorne, multiplex.

6.3 Regional Cinema ‘Although the expansion in screens associated with the second wave has not penetrated these regional areas, the associated rise in the demand for theatrical cinema exhibition has. There

55 Ross Thorne, ‘Paddocks, Palaces and Picture Shows’ 1996. 56 Australian Film Commission. 57 George S 2003 in J. Richie’s ‘Single Screen Cinemas are History.’

31 are clear indications that access to cinema going is something which people in regional NSW desire.’58 As a result there are many instances where community members and organizations, often in partnership with local councils, have used their time, energy and resources in establishing regular film screenings in theatrical settings some of which are in new premises, others in historic buildings. Towns like Gunnedah and Narrabri have invested in new purpose-built premises, while Tenterfield has included a cinema area in their historic School of Arts which already housed a library and museum. Young has remodelled the School of Arts to accommodate film viewing. There are reports of other similar projects in Tibooburra, Brewarrina, Coonamble, Gulargambone, Bellingen, Coonabarabran and Culcairn. Activities in connection with historic cinemas include Bingara where the Art Deco Roxy, part of a former grand scheme designed by two Greek migrants, was bought by the Gwydir Council and reopened in 2004 after extensive restoration. The Bowraville Theatre was reopened and is run by the Bowraville Arts Council. Others include the ‘Roxy’ at Leeton (the oldest community cinema in NSW), the ‘Montreal’ in Tumut; the ‘Crystal Theatre’ in Portland; the ‘Prince of Wales Opera House’ in Gulgong; and the ‘James Theatre’ in Dungog. Further examples exist of historic cinemas for which restoration campaigns are being run or which are already in the process of restoration. They include the ‘Liberty Theatre’ in Yass, the ‘Athenium’ at Junee and the ‘Theatre Royal’ in Balranald. These projects are as individual as the communities themselves, being dependent on the possible venues, the resources available, and the preparedness of the local council and community to get involved. The one common factor which stands out is that the majority is non-profit and volunteer-staffed. All required substantial input of capital in the set-up stage which has often been provided by the NSW State government. In 1996 a report was prepared by the Regional Arts Development Officer (RADO) for the North West region of NSW, outlining an argument for the re-establishment of cinema in regional NSW. In this report Jack Ritchie made a clear link between the demand for access to cinema by people in regional towns out of range of a commercial operator, the possibilities for re- establishing cinema in these places and the potential to revive the many underutilised historic cinemas which remain from the 1920s and 1930s. In response, the Local Government and Shires Association (LGSA) of NSW conducted a survey which confirmed ‘that while cinema was one of the most desired entertainment activities, over 50% of towns in NSW had limited or no access to cinema or film activities.’59 As a result, in 1998, a regional cinema working party was formed with representatives from the NSW Ministry for the Arts, Regional Arts NSW, the New South Wales Film and Television Office (FTO) and the Local Government Society of Australia (LGSA) to examine the issue of the reintroduction of cinema into regional areas. An early focus on the development and circulation of information and resources to encourage and facilitate local cinema initiatives led to the creation of a regional cinema officer position at the FTO in 2001 to develop and deliver the regional cinema program. Many regional cinema projects have received crucial financial support from the NSW Ministry for the Arts Capital Infrastructure Program (NSW Ministry for the Arts 2003). With this and local government support, projects would also be eligible for federal funding through programs focused on regional development.

58 Jack Richie, Single Screen Cinemas are History, 2004. 59 Smith, B. O. ‘Bringing the Movies Back to the Country’: Regional Cinema in New South Wales.’ Metro Autumn/Winter (127-128): 200, p50-52). 32

The Regional Cinema Program took out Bronze in the 2004 Premier’s Public Sector awards for Services to rural NSW. The Regional Digital Screen Network (RDSN) is a network of eight cinema venues in Albany (WA), Devonport (Tas), Hervey Bay (Qld), Katherine (NT), Port Augusta (SA), Singleton (NSW), Wagga Wagga (NSW) and Yarram (Vic) - all of which have AFC-funded Kodak digital cinema equipment installed to enable them to screen Australian films in a digital format. The upshot of this is that these regional centres will now be able to unveil new Australian films in line with the metropolitan release. They will also be provided with special screenings by the AFC, mini festivals featuring films not screened in these locations before. What is going on in regional cinema? Recent boost to Australian film production? Illustrations: Roxy and other regional cinemas

6.4 Art Deco Cinemas in NSW As already noted, the term Art Deco was coined in 1966 by a writer compiling a catalogue for a retrospective exhibition of items from the Exposition Internationale des Arts Decoratifs et Industriels Modernes held in Paris in 1925. 60 Elements of art deco design spread throughout Australia and evidence remains in houses and in public buildings like council chambers and cinemas. Movie audiences were strong in the 40s and 50s and there were 600 cinemas in NSW.61 ‘Some dated back 100 years and now only about twenty historically significant cinemas survive.’ 62 In the USA some 300 are being conserved. One of the most significant Art Deco cinemas in NSW is the Cremorne Orpheum built for the Vergona family and designed by theatrical architect George Kenworthy in 1935 and opened on October 3 of that year with a seating capacity of 1,700 on two levels. The theatre was extensively restored in 1987 with replication of all Art Deco fittings and lightings. The Enmore Theatre was first opened in 1908 and ran for many years as a photo-play63 theatre. It was extensively remodelled in 1920 with a new façade and an interior decor reflecting 100 years of the influence of Art Nouveau, Edwardian, Art Moderne, and various styles of Art Deco remaining today. ‘Unlike so many of its sister city theatres the Enmore defied demolition. Like Paddington, Glebe and Newtown, Enmore was never pro-development until the early 1980s. It was during this period that the majestic Regent Theatre was demolished, the Capitol condemned and closed and the Walter Burley Griffin designed Paris destroyed for redevelopment. This left a deep void and created a demand for a theatre of the Enmore’s capacity, staging facilities and heritage ambience and appeal.’ Enmore theatre remains a much sought-after live theatre venue. The Tivoli in Brisbane is an elegant Art Deco style theatre with state-of-the-art technical facilities presenting film alongside live theatre and private functions. Perth has classical Art Deco cinemas: Cygnet, Windsor and Luna. Because of the climate there are outdoor areas and cinemas and it is still possible to experience drive-in theatres. Melbourne’s oldest functioning cinema, the Westgarth, 1921, reopened in 2006 when bought by Palace and extensively refurbished retaining its Art Deco style with the addition of two screens. The Regent, Yarram, part of the Regional Digital Screen Network is an Art Deco cinema that has operated for 75 years and while its central theme is cinema it also hosts live theatre,

60 Mark Ferson and Mary Nilsson, ‘Sunrise over the Pacific’, Art Deco in Australia, 2001). 61G. Quint, National Trust 62 National Trust 63 A filmed or arranged for filming as a movie 33 weddings and even funerals. The Palace, Balwyn, is also in Art Deco style. The original Sun Cinema in Melbourne opened in 1938 in luxurious style and thrived until the 50s and 60s when television reduced attendance. After 20 years of decline the cinema was revived through the success of a film society and now boasts six cinemas all in Art Deco style, restored and enhanced. Many of these theatres have the support of a film society. Most provide refreshments and are multipurpose, featuring live theatre, special occasions and film festivals, with state-of-the-art seating and sound equipment. Many are linked with schools for film studies, providing a venue for display of student-made films; some have a kids’ club with reward cards. Rock Kirby, founder of Village, had a saying that there are three ingredients that make a great theatre, S.S.S., seating, screens and sound. Some would add, ‘style’. Adelaide can boast the oldest mainland theatre, The Queens Theatre, built in 1845. Good examples of Art Deco cinemas are the Capri, home of the Theatre Organ Society, and the Piccadilly. Toowoomba’s Empire Theatre is a heritage Art Deco listed venue, Australia’s largest performing arts complex and showcases international as well as local talent as well as film. Influence of this exhibition flowed through to design in Australia in the form of surface decorations; stylized flowers, clouds, ocean waves and female figures. Panels and in particular doors were richly veneered in dramatic shapes of light and dark exotic woods. Much was made of geometric though not strictly geometric shapes. “The fight to save historic cinemas is vital, especially in smaller communities because these theatres help to maintain the social fabric of country towns. They provide a venue, not only for film, but other forms of entertainment,” he (George Quint?) said.

6.5 Other regional cinemas

6.5.1 Bingara Population 2,500 CONDENSED HISTORY OF THE ROXY, BINGARA, SEPTEMBER 2005 In 1925 two newly arrived Greek immigrants from the island of Kythera, Peter Feros and Emanuel Aroney, moved to Bingara to establish a successful café. Around 1930, a third Greek man, George Psaltis arrived in Bingara and collectively they formed the partnership, Peters & Co. In the mid-1930s, Peters & Co. embarked on a highly ambitious construction project, to build a state of the art theatre described at the opening in 1936 by the His Worship the Mayor (Mr C. Doherty) as “a monument to the town and one of the finest buildings of its kind outside the city.” Once complete, The Roxy incorporated a modern cinema, 140 seat café, three independent shops, as well as accommodation in the form of two guest houses located directed behind the complex. The Roxy officially opened to the public on the 28th March 1936. The following article appeared in the Bingara Advocate, 2 April 1936, describing the event: “Probably no event in the history of Bingara has caused more interest and excitement than the opening of the new Roxy Theatre, which took place on Saturday night last. The crowd which stormed the streets in the vicinity of the theatre even eclipsed that second show night crowd, and long before opening time, it was impossible to wend one’s way through the crowd in front of the main entrance.

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It was estimated that over 700 persons were present on the opening night, and a large number was unable to gain admission.” By November of the same year, Peters & Co. had signed over the lease of The Roxy resulting in the three partners leaving Bingara. It is understood that the ambitious project had drained them of financial resources. It is testimony to their vision however that the Roxy lives on today. In 1936 children were invited to join in the cowboy community singing, or to become members of the Popeye Club which was “all the rage everywhere”, or to line up for their Buck Rodgers badges. The ‘spectacular’ array of adult entertainment included the latest and greatest musicals, romances and horror films, with a £1 reward offered to any Lady who was brave enough to sit alone in the Theatre for a midnight screening of Boris Karloff in “the Black Room.” The Roxy operated as a cinema until 1958, over the years providing “the best in Entertainment and Modern Theatre Comfort” which included the films, the stars, stage shows, , spectacular dancing and wonderful music, newsreels, serials and sing-a-longs. From 1958, The Roxy lay dormant, except for the occasional boxing or wrestling match, roller- disco and movie screening. In 1999 the building was purchased by the then Bingara Shire Council who set about its restoration. The Roxy was officially reopened by the NSW Premier, Bob Carr in May 2004. A manager was appointed to The Roxy in July 2004. The Roxy has been operating as a cinema and multi- purpose performing arts venue, with the capacity to act as a function centre for a variety of events. The Roxy also houses the Bingara Tourist Information Centre. The Information Centre has experienced a vast increase in visitation numbers since the opening of The Roxy, and numbers continue to rise exponentially. Ownership: Privately owned, bought by Council 1999 Salaried manager cooperating with Special Events Group of Council.

Costs of refurbishing: Feasibility study arranged by Council, private consultant, including restoration cost and possible income. Financing: Total $630.000. $300.000 federal; $130.000 State ($300,000 Council. $100.000 Ministry + $75.000). No heritage; no community. Use of hall: Tourist staff of one in part of foyer. Tours $3; visual presentation about the history of the hall; reel of coming events. Cinema, live , community functions, small functions in foyer 25/30 persons. Dressing rooms at rear, stage built by TAFE students which comes apart to form tables. Small, well equipped kitchen. Cost of hire: negotiable. Community fund-raising $50 donation; corporate $250; weddings $500 Viability: films still bread and butter but increasing community functions; meetings, health and energy conferences, Department of Education, 6/7 weddings per year. Cinema: Date of operating: Dormant for 40 years: Reopened May 2004 Projectors: 35 mm, DVD, 16 mm Heating: Reverse air conditioning

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Seating: 192 permanent seating; rest of floor clear. Projectionists: Two FTO and volunteer trained Program: Manager in consultation with Special Events Committee. Audience: Two main: Seniors once a month; kids’ holidays, work-out program to fit in with vacation care. Publicity: Through local papers and radio. Free tickets given General staff: Salaried manager; all volunteer for canteen, ushering Tickets: $8 adults; $6 concession; $25 family. The Roxy has hosted two extremely successful Film Festivals: the North West Film Festival focused on youth. 2007 drew internationally acclaimed artist and director Ivan Sen (Beneath Clouds) as judge. Workshops and screenings of young peoples’ films. The Bingara Festival celebrating contemporary Australian Cinema. Tours include SSO, OZ Opera in conjunction with a schools visit, The café next door, once part of the building complex, bought by Council to be restored in Art deco style as a café. In year 1 July 2004 – 30 June 2005, 10,806 visited the Roxy for a tour or attend an event.

6.5.2 Goondiwindi Owned by Council, built 1937. $300,000 from the State to restore it. Probably $900,000 total (?) with manager in charge. False walls in cinema to protect Art Deco glass lighting panels. Used as a town hall and for roller skating. Protection of panels was a condition for the conversion to a cinema. Original wooden furniture in Board Room. Clock made in Switzerland. Special windows installed to let out sound. Restored at cost of $20,000. Heritage $15 woods, Tom Sullivan (former mayor)

6.5.3 Bowraville Population 2,000 + Bowraville cinema has from its beginning been subject to segregation where Aboriginal people not only had to buy their tickets from a separate office but were forced to sit in a segregated area. An attempt to break this situation was made by a young Aboriginal student during the Freedom Riders visit in 60s, without success. The theatre closed in 1965. In 2000 two local people decided to form Bowraville Arts Council with the aim of restoring the cinema and proceeded to get funding from the Department of Transport and Regional Solutions Program ($225,000) and the NSW Ministry for the Arts ($225,000). Nambucca Shire contributed $75,000 and a task force was set up and in 2001 the council bought the cinema building. At this junction a very able person, Dr Lisa Milner, appeared and took on the management of the project backed by an army of volunteers. Fund raising began and continues today with generous support from other community organisations in the town. A buy a seat ($500) was launched. A part of the reopening ceremony was a smoke ceremony performed by the Gumbaynggirr elders to cleanse the building of past segregation practices. Classic was also initiated in April, intended as an annual showcase of surfing films by NSW filmmakers. The theatre has hosted a number of events featuring local talent since 2003. Unlike venues in the New England region, Bowraville has had trouble attracting audiences to mainstream screenings, but has had considerable success hosting special events such as the Travelling Sydney Film Festival and the Tropfest tour program. Additionally, a small band of 36 amateur and professional filmmakers residing in the area have formed Verandah Post Films, which has produced 2 works that have already won awards at local festivals: Jacqueline Melilli’s Outside the Square and Rosie Sutherland’s Dear Old Dad.

6.5.4 The Crystal Theatre, Portland, NSW. Portland population 2,000+ Present building (1927) replaces earlier theatre (1920). Screening ceased in 1965 – became the property of Blaxland Shire Council in 1972 (now Lithgow Shire Council). Public pressure against demolition saw the conversion of the theatre to a Sports Centre (1968) with council funding and community labour, but it was never fully completed or used for that function. The community had a strong desire to restore the theatre as a cinema and multipurpose venue. The conservation and heritage analysis and restoration master plan was completed. May 2004 finds:  Significant as a representative of stage 4 cinema in regional NSW  Of high cultural significance to the town both social and landscape aesthetics  Supports the listing of the Crystal Theatre as a local heritage item on the Lithgow Heritage Register.

Renewal of cinema for Portland – Time Frame Desire for restoration initiated 13th February 2003 meeting between  NSW Ministry for the Arts  NSW Film and Television Office  NSW Heritage Office  Lithgow Council  Community members.

Results – support from all concerned  recommendation from the FTO to screen three trial films February- March – corporate funding (Delta Electricity) to run trials obtained  sponsorship of local film producer to supply some films free of charge  10% population survey to establish times, film selection and willingness to volunteer assistance  projectionist with mobile setup secured to travel to Portland

April - May– six films presented over three Saturdays (matinee and evening) with positive results Winter – 2003 – Committee formed and incorporated  Key decisions – establishing of regular screenings  retain low entry price as facilities are poor  commitment to children’s matinee  Sponsorship sought from: small business (95% success)

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Corporate funding  High level publicity utilising all sources  Fund raisers and raffles held  Member trained and qualified as projectionist

September 2003 - Regular screenings commence 2nd Saturday of each month 2pm and 7.30 pm.  Committee manages and runs cinema, entirely voluntary (10 members)  Shop operated by committee since January 2004  16mm projector donated to committee by RSL sub-branch in Lithgow in February  Sound equipment on loan from member  Screen made by local quilters group

Grants  Council covered painting of exterior to original 1927 colour scheme plus funding for Heritage architects analysis and master plan.  Recently received grant from NSW Premier’s Office to purchase 35mm projector (not carbon arc), full sound equipment, screen and rewind and slicing gear from the closing Mecca at Kogarah. During winter recess (made necessary by present lack of heating) new equipment was installed.  $3,000 raised from community organisations toward restoration  Council budget 2004/5 allotted $75,000 towards restorations  $ for $ grant application lodged with NSW Ministry for the Arts for restoration of the interior.

The theatre is currently used for major community events e.g. art exhibitions, dances and now renewed concert and cinema usage.

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7 Oberon Timeline – Alan Brown

Previously Summer fishing by Waradjuri from west. Eastern areas sometimes visited by Sydney tribes 1800-1806 Governor King 1789/90-1830s Runaway convicts, assigned servants, convicts and bushrangers 1802 Barralier explores as far as Kanangra 1804 First official mass celebrated Fr Dixon 1810-1821 Governor Macquarie 1813 First crossing of Blue Mountains 1814 First road over Blue Mountains 1815 Governor Macquarie travels over the Blue Mountains to Site of Bathurst 1817 Fr Flynn arrives without authority from England 1820 Fr Philip Connolly and Fr John Joseph Therry arrive 1818 Settlers along Fish (near Tarana) and Macquarie Rivers 1819 Charles Throsby crosses just west of Oberon. Bigge report into colonial affairs. Cattle introduced into Oberon 1820 Mainly Irish (e.g. Hogans) start moving into southern end of shire from Goulburn side. Porters Retreat etc 1821-1825 Governor Brisbane 1823 Extensive grazing near Oberon by Captain Kings Shepherds 1823 First recorded gold discovery in Australia (near Tarana) 1823 First land grant to Lawson 1824 Martial law proclaimed 1825 End of hostilities between (with?) Wiradjuri 1830 First mass in Bathurst said by Fr Therry 1831-1837 Governor Bourke 1833-1836 William Bernard Ullathorne 1834 Vicar Apostolic of New Holland with jurisdiction over New Holland. Dean Polding 1838 First discovery of Jenolan Caves – bushranger McKeown 1839 Charles Whalan first permanent resident near Oberon itself 1840 Transportation ceased 1842 Archdiocese of Sydney covering the whole eastern part of the continent. Dean Polding Archbishop 1850 Methodism established in Oberon through Charles Whalan 1850-1860 Village growth begins – Edith, Black Springs. First postal services - O'Connell nearest point. Sheep, grain, English fruit and vegetables 1863 Proclamation of the village of Oberon 1865-1885 Separate diocese of Bathurst – Bishop Quinn 1860-1870 Various involvements in gold seeking including Native Dog creek riots between Chinese and other diggers 1870-1900 Silver, especially in North West and various relating to minerals, gold, copper from most parts of the district, especially Wiseman’s Creek, Mt Werrong, Yerranderie in Southeast

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1866 Jenolan, a reserve proclaimed

1868 First Roman Catholic service in the Fish River District – Essington homestead commenced 1869 St Barnabas church 1872 Wesleyan Church 1872 Railway contact by line through Rydal, Tarana to Kelso 1880-1890 First telegraph service – diphtheria epidemic – walnut tree planted 1885-1901 Bishop Byrne 1890-1900 Seventh Day Adventist Church begins 1901-1919 Bishop Dunne 1905 Ramsgate built 1905-1960 Pea growing a major industry 1906 Establishment of Oberon Shire Council 1912 St Joseph’s School, Oberon, founded 1914 Oberon convent built 1918 Present Jenolan Caves house 1919 Influenza epidemic 1920-1928 Bishop O’Farrell 1920-1930 Carbon tetrachloride against liver fluke and superphosphate introduced 1923 Railway link Tarana Oberon established after campaign started in 1870 1928-1963 Bishop Norton 1931 Commencement of Prison Camp – extensive planting of radiata pine 1937 New Ignatius Catholic Church built – Malachi Gilmore Hall built 1943 Establishment of the timber industries now owned by Boral 1944 Oberon Hospital established – Oberon Dam built 1946 Oberon Central School built 1950-1960 Establishment of R.S.L. CLUB, Golf Club, Southern Mitchell County Council 1950-1970 Sealing of roads to Sydney, Bathurst, part-way to Goulburn 1960 Declaration of Kanangra-Boyd National Park 1963-1983 Bishop Thomas 1969 First production by Pyneboard. 1970 Last regular rail service in the district 1975-1975 Malachi Gilmore Hall listed on National Trust 1980-2000 Era of protests over environmental issues power line, quarry Woodchem plant. 1981 O.C.S.Secondary Department commenced - upgrading Primary Department? 1983 – 2009 Bishop Dougherty 1985 Arts Council formed 1986-1986 International Year of Youth mural 1987 Arrival of natural gas 1988 Establishment of Fibron Industries (M.D.F.) 1989 Big Trout Motel opened 1992 New library buildings

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1993 Oberon High School replaced Oberon Central School 1996 Modern swimming pool 1997 Communications tower - street beautification 2000 New hospital, Multi-purpose Service 2003 Malachi Gilmore Hall listed on State Heritage Register

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8 Bibliography

Peter Prineas, Katsehamos and the Great Idea, Plateia, Sydney 2006. Quantum, ABC television, 2000 Macquarie Atlas of Indigenous Australia ed Bill Arthur and Frances Morphy 2005 Australian Dictionary of Biography, Melbourne University Press on line Blue Mountains web HRA 1.7.268. (State Records Authority of NSW) Hawkesbury Historical Society, Australia Day dinner 2002 Alan Brown’s Historical Notes – Watson A Steel, 1926, in SMH and Lithgow Mercury The early European History of the Tuglow Caves Area compiled by Nigel Price 2007 Alan Brown introduction to Living Treasures, Mick Joffe Oberon-Jenolan district, Historical Notebook Wheeler and Garland Catholic Enquiry Centre on line 2008 Catholic Diocese of Bathurst The Black Springs Story, Paddy Grady Wozencraft 1978 Our Early History, extracts from the diary of Bishop John Francis Norton, fifth Bishop of Bathurst Ross Thorne, Cinemas of Australia via USA J. Richie’s Single Screen Cinemas are History Art Deco 1910 – 1939, Art Gallery of Victoria, 2008 Paddocks, Palaces and Picture Shows, Brendan Connolly and Les Todd, Australian Cinema and Theatre Society, Inc 1996 ‘Bringing the Movies Back to the Country: Regional Cinema in New South Wales.’ Metro Autumn/Winter Art Deco in Australia ‘Sunrise over the Pacific’, Mark Ferson and Mary Nilsson 2001). Geraldton Cathedral Chronicle Statement submitted to the Bishop and ……, letter Depression Modern: the Thirties Style in America’ New York, Universe Books 1975. Oberon Review Flicks documentary, ABC, 1974 Peter Brokensha. The Pitjantjatjara and their Crafts 1975 Lesley O’Brien, Mary MacKillop Unveiled, Mick Joffe’s Living Treasures 2001 M. Barron Stofik, Saving South Street, 2005 Art Deco 1910 – 1939, National Art Gallery of Victoria, 2008 Patricia Bayer, Art Deco Architecture, 1992

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Theo Barker, History of Bathurst, 1992 Other Hibbins, Fahey and Askew, A Handbook for Local Enthusiasts, 1985 Ken Fry, Beyond the Barrier, Bathurst 1818 – 1848, 1993 Lynette Ramsay Silver, The Battle of vinegar Hill, Alan Brown, Time Line Ken Leevers 2006, First Contact/Expansion in the Wingecarrabie area between 1798 – 1821.Exploration and Analysis

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9 Acknowledgments

Ross Adams, Lithgow cinema and Dress Circle magazine Sandra McNaughton, Manager, Bingara ‘Roxy’ Hannah Semler, Arts OutWest CEO Ron and Elaine (nee David) Lee Father Adrian Sister Maria Therese Agnes Gilmore, grandniece of Malachi Gilmore Robyn David Judi David Les Stevenson Tony Still Mary Behan Ron Burton Joan Harman Cath Conynghame

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10 Some Personal Comments about Dad, by Robyn David

SOME PERSONAL COMMENTS ABOUT DAD THAT I THOUGHT MIGHT INTEREST YOU and which are probably not included above. Where do I start? My picture of my father is of a tallish, somewhat stooped man, very dark in his colouring, with curly almost black hair. He was always “skinny” even though he had a good appetite. His usual work attire was a pair of grey overalls, leather shoes (usually handmade by his mate, Ned Anthony), a hand knitted jumper, a flannelette shirt and to top it off, a navy blue beret. Oh, and he always had a cigarette in his mouth!!!! He did however, dress up!! In the Harris Tweed jacket and wool pants, and still the beret!! Suits were always navy blue wool!! Dad knew everyone in the town and everyone knew him. Fiercely good looking even as he aged, he was a real ladies man and would charm any woman, but even though he and mum could argue fiercely I have no doubt he was always incredibly loyal to her. When she died, 10 years before him, he claimed he was missing his spring partner. He really was a local icon. He strolled round town, spoke to everyone and was everyone’s friend. He could spend hours talking to people, having a good yarn, and he knew the family history of virtually everyone in the town. He had an intense interest in people and as such he was a loyal friend and was always there to lend a helping hand. He had an infectious laugh and was always the source of a good story. His supply of jokes was endless, and they all started with “did you hear the one about……..” He always had a dog of some kind – usually dachshunds, who tended to follow him around everywhere. Dad knew everyone in the town but outside there he had many friends and acquaintances especially through the RSL, in Bathurst, in Lithgow. Of course we often visited the neighbouring picture theatres at Millthorpe, Lithgow, Blayney. He never forgot a face or a name. Dad always expected the best of people, including his daughters, and believed you would live up to his expectations – he would be bitterly disappointed if you didn’t do so!! He was a strict but loving father who was intensely proud of his daughters, lavished them with whatever he could afford and at times spoilt them!!! He didn’t tolerate bad behaviour under any circumstances and we grew up knowing just what he expected of us. Dad was a child at heart. He related brilliantly to children of all ages, because he could fix their toys, their bikes and often their hearts!!! I don’t know if it was his laugh or his smile or his really warm personality, or his interest in the same things as they were interested in!! He had a fascination for toys of all kinds – tools (of which he had thousands!!), gadgets, lenses. He would sit and show the workings of any of these to anyone who would take the time and show interest. I think my career in science was because of the ingrained curiosity I got from Dad. He was an inventor – who else in the town had a string of wind powered lights which led from the house to the outside toilet in the 1950s. Who else would have thought to divert the hot water system through the fireplace in the dining room so you used all heat to heat the water, not just the donkey boiler? He had an expression “you know, a man could do …………..” He could always come up with a solution to any problem. Dad’s fascination for anything novel meant he was the first to have a TV in Oberon. It was in the front window of the shop (similar to that shown in Flame trees on YouTube).

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Illustrations: David family photos His closest friends? Not that any will still be alive Len Williams, who had the Mobil Garage opposite. Len and Vera were his refuge from the shop Ned Anthony, the local bootmaker, who had the house and shop next to our shop (between there and the hospital). He helped Ned to set up the bootmaker’s business after the depression. Ned had been the pianist on radio 2GB. Leo Cosgrove, farmer and then the local milkman, RSL colleague and good mate – father of Peter and??? Ronny and Norma Burton, who had the stock and station agents in the main street, just down from the shop and on the same side as the hall. Ron was the auctioneer on Herb’s estate. Bessie and Allan Armstrong, owners of Nestlebrae, Parents of Sharon Shepherd Lucy Shepherd – local funeral director Alan was killed in the late 60s in a plane crash on his property. Joan Harman (wife of the chief guide at Jenolan Caves) local nurse (I think their friendship went back to New Guinea). He had absolutely no regard for time. If the shop wasn’t open on time, everyone knew where to find him. If a job took three hours instead of 20 minutes it was probably that he was having a yarn, or afternoon tea or helping someone with a task. He never charged by the hour, often charged far too little for the jobs he did and gave freely of his time in community projects. Dad was the given the local Rotary Citizenship Award in 1981 – I have the mug from this. Organizations he belonged to RSL – he was a life member of the sub branch and the club, frequent secretary of these, Vice President. Fire Brigade – volunteer originally with most of the local businessman. Show society – Life member of this also. The relationship he had with many of the local showies is still remembered. He was both Life Patron and Life Member. Lapidary Club. He was a great rock hunter, had lots of polishing machines, and I know he had a miners’ right, on an amethyst mine, but don’t know where. We frequently spent lots of time panning for gold – Native Dog Creek was his favourite place. He also collected sapphires from the local creeks. We had lots of slabs of agates from round the area. Hospital Auxilliary – he was a frequent patient, and did lots in terms of helping out the hospital. Housing Commission – I know he was instrumental in this organization but don’t know in what role. It wasn’t only for returned servicemen.

Dad was a devout Catholic. He was always good friends with the local priests and nuns and was well respected by them. I remember him doing special screenings of films for them (Sound of Music, and some religious based films which I can’t think of yet) in the hall because the nuns could not attend public screenings. He had a special relationship with the Black Josephite nuns as he was educated by them. Marie, his younger sister was in the

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Brown Josephite order for many years. Notwithstanding this he got on with all religions. The local clerics could not decide who should conduct his funeral service, so to avoid arguments Lucy Shepherd invited all of them and they did the service together, a sign of the respect in which dad was held. The whole town closed down for his funeral and even though his instructions to me were that it was to be held at 7.00 AM in the morning and the hearse was to go down the road at 60 kph, there was no way I could have carried out those instructions. He was far too well respected and admired for that. The local RSL threw its doors open for the “wake”. I think it was the biggest funeral I have ever been to.

Dad was in WW2 as a volunteer. I have lots of photos in an album of this, but few are annotated. He was in a “spy force” type of role-within z special, but there seems to be a lot of secrecy still surrounding this and I am having trouble finding out much detail. I know he was in New Guinea, and that he was involved in blowing up Japanese Power Generation Plants. I also know that he was in a group which was high risk, and he lied about being married, as he was not allowed to be in the group if he was. When I search the archives his regiment etc comes up quite differently to what I have been told by him and to what the photos I have depict. From what I can gather this is not unusual for someone who was in such an elite group. Dad had incredible short wave radio knowledge and knowledge of power generation plants so the war museum tells me there is information that is still somewhat censored. He did suffer war neurosis, and had had malaria. His legs were covered in tropical ulcers, onto which he used to put leeches to suck out the poison. He had massive shrapnel wounds on his legs, about which he never spoke. The little I know of his war service I think attests to the fact that he was in some rather different situations. I know he was in a regiment targeted for the Middle East, but was withdrawn to an elite training camp as the boat sailed. He had souvenirs of Western Australia so he probably spent time there in training (war museum predicted about 6 weeks) but I am not sure how long. I am sure however, that it was NOT two years. He was intensely proud of the fact that he had served oversees. I have lots of photos of places I think are Bougainville and Milne Bay (his writing is on the back). There are also photos of Wewak. So this supports the overseas service. His rank was sergeant.

Generous to a fault, Dad never saw anyone go without. I often saw 10 and 20 pound notes taken from the till and “slipped” to people, in his words, “in a bit of strife” His sister, Marie, as a Josephite nun, ran St Anthony’s home for unmarried mothers and I know he secured places for several of the local girls there when they became pregnant. I also recall many adoptions which went through Dad over the years.

Another association I remember was with Southern Cross Windmills. I know dad installed these and maintained them for many years and remember as a child going out to farms to maintain the generators and pumps associated with them. In later years he set up a wind generation plant for one of the communes I think at Mt Defiance. He was a real pioneer of alternative technology. I think the battery charging bay which was at the side of the shop was for batteries charged by the wind powered generators but am not sure.

In later years Dad suffered poor health. He had a coronary in his early 40s, and then at 55 was diagnosed with diabetes. As an insulin dependent diabetic he spent a lot of time in Oberon Hospital. Mary Behan who was the matron at the time can probably fill you in with lots of details about him. He frequently “signed himself out” and went walkabout to see 47

Len or one of his mates. I think there were times that he became somewhat of a fixture at the Hospital, but they were able to support him. Probably war neurosis was at the root of a lot of his problems as was the case with many of his age group.

He was nominated on one occasion for an OBE (other bastard’s efforts, in his words!!) but refused to fill in his own testimonial to support the nomination! The park up the top of the main street was named after Dad, but as we were not even notified of this, I have no idea of the year!!! I do know that he would be pleased that it had good old fashioned equipment in it, stuff that allowed kids to take a risk!!

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11 Physical Evidence – Site Description

The Malachi Gilmore Hall occupies a central position in Oberon Street, the main street of the town. It extends back to a lane, Ramsgate Lane, running between Fleming Street and Ross Street. The grounds are 64’ by 160’and the hall 48’ by 100’. The Hall fronts on to a paved area of which the footpath is part. Until 1945 the streets were unsealed. The paving was only added in…..A level ramp runs from the footpath to a side entrance to the main body of the hall. The building is self-contained. A generator shed was constructed in the area behind the hall. From 1946 the toilets, until then housed in the building, were moved to a toilet block behind the hall and near the lane boundary. In 1947 these toilets were in use as public toilets but were later demolished. The present toilet block was built in the small park on the opposite side of Oberon Street. Date? 1. The Hall The Exterior (full on picture of hall) (aerial photo) The roof is of corrugated metal sheeting. The front portion of the building roughcast rendered concrete and contains the foyer, gallery, rewinding rooms and projection box. The street front is in its original design and all windows are original. The present colour scheme was devised when the building was bought by its present owners. Earlier it was unpainted (2857). All this wall area is concrete overlaid by Morene plaster applied by use of a knife rather than a brush and carried out by Italian craftsmen. (2867). The sponge type pattern used here is one of several found in different areas of the building. The glass brick wall’s original glass (2822) was replaced because of vandalism. The original design of the glass bricks can be seen on the tower and are pointed in shaped. (?) They were a great point of interest for local people, who had never seen them before.64 These were no longer manufactured. The curved glass wall is topped by a balcony with metal railing. (2875). To the left hand side the entrance to the cinema, on the wall, is the frame which originally displayed the coming attractions poster. Superimposed in this is a glass cased notice board of recent vintage. To the right hand side of the entrance was the ticket office window. The main body of the hall is built of red brick from the Bathurst Brick Company and weather board. (2829). Tom O’Connell carried most of the bricks. Plumbing was carried out by Mr P. R. Metz of 10 Austinham Road, Leichhardt.65 The weatherboard section is a later addition possibly at the time the lower area was prepared for the supper room. (2832). A door and a window on that side have been bricked up and similarly on both sides of the building. Windows are original though some glass has been replaced because of vandalism. The Interior The interior roof is of Cellotex which is described as ‘a bagasse fibrous composite for ceilings or walls’ (2807). Originating in America in 1921 it was internationally used and well established in Australia in 1920s. Made from sugarcane it had good insulating and acoustic qualities. Painting the surface reduced its acoustic qualities so for this reason it was left in its warm natural colour.

64 Mary Behan, in conversation 65 Letter to Dr Gummer August 1937 49

The foyer and main hall flooring is of solid Australian jarrah, secretly nailed66 as a dance floor and used in the 60s and 70s as a skating rink. During this period there were rails around the floor area. The boards are narrow and tightly clamped. (2809). The jarrah flooring was extended in under the stage line to allow for future possible extensions. The stage is relatively small and at some time a moveable extension was built. This was stored and its fate is unknown. After 1998 when the hall was adapted for use as a wool store a large middle section of the stage was removed (2840) to allow wool bales to be loaded on to a truck below. The stage curtain and chairs, which originally came from the Tivoli Theatre in Sydney, were reportedly sold67 to the Orange Dramatic Society. No further information or confirmation has emerged. The interior walls generally exhibit a plaster work with a wave type (2802) or circular pattern (2804) quite different to the sponge type pattern of plaster work on the façade. The wall vents all have attractive motifs (2840). The wooden doors are generally original. The end of the hall adjacent to the foyer the balcony section has been shut off with a false wall. The hall has about 3,000 sq ft of dancing space, exclusive of some 700 sq ft of foyer. The number of persons who may be seated in the main hall is 697 and in the gallery 50.68 On the floor level on the right hand side, a small toilet facility has been added. The doors from the foyer have also been closed off but underneath the original walls and plaster work are still intact (2814). Primitive wooden stairs lead down on the right hand side of the stage to an extensive space which remained with an earth floor until 1947 when the floor was concreted and walls prepared for use as a supper room. Similar stairs on the left hand side lead down to the ladies cloak room. The rest of the quite large space contained a cooking area and a larger space used as a supper room. ‘Out in the empty blocks surrounding the hall women boiled water in kerosene tins for tea while others slaved over an old fuel–fired copper in the hall’s basement amidst a pall of smoke as they washed up. But this dedication was not wasted, and found its expression in a keen sense of ownership and upward pride of achievement and fierce independence. It also housed a donkey boiler which heated the water for the radiators in the hall. This was originally wood/coal fired but Herb David converted it to oil. The radiators didn’t always69 cope with the large space in Oberon’s very cold climate so patrons brought their hot water bottles and rugs on cold nights. 70 The Foyer The small room directly to the right of the entrance housed the ticket office. It also houses a very large original switchboard and room for cleaning gear. Directly behind it are shuttered windows. Cloak rooms? There was no candy bar but patrons could buy ice creams and lollies from ‘lolly boys’ trays. On the other side of the entrance and towards the stairs was the gentlemen’s cloak room. The entrances from the foyer to the hall are blocked off with a temporary wall (2845). Stairs with a metal railing lead up to the balcony projection

66 Secret nailing is done from the underside of the flooring material and at an angle. 67 Bob Bearup 68 Licence Chief Secretary’s Office, 12th March 1942. 69 Dr Lance Robey and Oberon, Dr Grant Rodwell and Dr Lance Robey 70 Cath Conynghame, in conversation 50 room and winding room (2842). The foyer features a brick fireplace (2844) in which an open fire was lit on special occasions.71 Glass bricks are formed into a Pharaoh’s pylon.72 (2843). Balcony area The opening to the hall is blocked off with a temporary wall. On the right hand side is a doorway leading to projection room and winding room. The ceiling of the projection room was curved, now flat. There is also a door leading on to a curved balcony over the glass wall which was enjoyed by patrons at intervals. (2851). The concrete floor was originally sloping, now level. Opposite this is the wall of the projection room (2850). The ceiling has plaster finish and has three ornamental ‘roses’. ______Final notes (HHG 1.4.14) The numerical references above not yet identified this time but the source was available in 2009. Not completed: List of films shown in the Malachi – to be provided as separate Excel file List of ads shown in the Malachi – ditto.

71 Flicks ABC documentary 1974 72 Explain what that means in a later version (Isobel’s note). 51

12 Statement of Significance

The following criteria for assessing significance are taken from the guidelines set out in the NSW Heritage Office’s Assessment of Heritage Significance 2001. Criterion (a) An item is important in the course, or pattern of, NSW’s cultural or natural history (or the cultural or natural history of the local area) In local cultural history the MGH represents a time when entertainment was in the town itself. It was the venue for cinema, theatre, dancing, singing ceremonies. A pattern that has disappeared. Criterion (b) An item has strong or special association with the life or works of a person, or group of persons, of importance in NSW cultural or natural history (the cultural or natural history of the local area) Criterion (c) An item is important in demonstrating aesthetic characteristics and/or a high degree of technical achievement in NSW (or the local area) Criterion (d) An item has strong or special association with a particular community or cultural group in NSW (or of the local area) for social, cultural or spiritual reasons. Criterion (e) An item has potential to yield information that will contribute to an understanding of NSW’s cultural or natural history (or the cultural or natural history of the local area) Criterion (f) An item possesses uncommon, rare or endangered aspects of NSW’S cultural of natural history (or the cultural or natural history of the local area) Criterion (g) An item is important in demonstrating the principal characteristics of a class of NSW’s natural places; or cultural and natural environments (or class of a local area’s or natural places; or cultural and natural environments) Summary of Significance Would compensate for the following deficiencies (note left by Isobel at end of script, would need a lot more work. HHG 1.4.14):  lack of a quality venue for arts activity  heritage buildings without (an appropriate) use  lack of entertainment for youth and the community.

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