When we think of a 19th century Christmas, I suspect most of us think of an idealized image – the decorated tree with toys and gifts, stockings hanging from the mantelpiece stuffed with oranges and nuts, the table groaning under the weight of roast beef, ham and roasted potatoes, not to mention the flaming brandy … Continue reading Christmas – A Time of Cheer for All in Hobart Town
Hobart
‘WANTED a BOY to make himself generally useful.’
In the 19th century the front page of newspapers was not the place for lurid headlines and large photographs designed to catch the eye. It was a serious place where births, marriages and deaths were announced; timetables for ferries listed; ‘superior’ accommodation, government tenders and everything from grain, newly milled flour and candles to ladies’ … Continue reading ‘WANTED a BOY to make himself generally useful.’
An Unseasonal Christmas – Rain, Wind and Snow in 1878
Snow on kunanyi / Mount Wellington In less than one hundred years of British settlement in Australia, settlers had developed certain expectations of Christmas – the weather would be warm, dinner could be taken al fresco, the afternoon would be spent in outdoor activities. But 1878 was a year when the ‘clerk of the weather’ decided … Continue reading An Unseasonal Christmas – Rain, Wind and Snow in 1878
Hobart 1879
Not strictly speaking a photograph but definitely almost photographic in its detail. This pictorial map of Hobart in 1879 by A.C. Cooke is an invaluable resource for researchers and writers. It gives an idea of the life of Hobart at the time - buildings that no longer exist such as the Campbell Street Gaol, unpopulated … Continue reading Hobart 1879
Catherine Meyrick 