© 2018 Greg & Sylvia RAY

Two odd tales of shifting gates

On March 21, 1907, thousands of citizens of Newcastle, NSW, attended the Upper Reserve (nowadays more commonly known as King Edward Park) to witness the grand opening of a special gift to the city. The donor was businessman Joseph Wood, best remembered for his involvement in the city's Castlemaine Brewery but active in many other spheres. Mr Wood had donated a pair of splendid ornamental gates to mark his 50th year in Newcastle, and these were officially opened in the evening. Festoons of electric lights were strung from the gates at the top of Watt Street…

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Read more about the article Elva delivered the ice, rain hail or shine
Fred Princehorn's ice truck

Elva delivered the ice, rain hail or shine

During World War II Islington ice carrier Fred Princehorn had trouble getting employees to help him on his run. Not surprising, since most employable men were either in the armed forces or in protected industries. Luckily Fred had his 15-year-old daughter Elva at home, and she put up her hand to be his delivery assistant. It was a job Elva loved, despite the early mornings. Elva's dad would wake her at 1am, they'd have breakfast and hop on the truck for the trip to Dark's ice works in Newcastle where they would load up with blocks…

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When Winn’s was the place to shop, eat, and dance

As a small boy in Newcastle, NSW, in the 1960s, I remember Winn's store mostly for its cafeteria where, if I was lucky on a day out with my Mum, I might be treated to my favourite salmon sandwich and chocolate milkshake. Winn's was a revered Newcastle retail institution with a history that stretched back to October 1878, when local brothers Isaac and William Winn and William Winn's widowed sister-in-law Marian Aird decided to set up shop as drapers on Hunter Street. The brothers had been raised in Newcastle, mostly by their mother, Harriett, since their…

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