© 2018 Greg & Sylvia RAY

Trove, Australia’s digital history resource

When there was talk a year or so ago of the Australian Government de-funding Trove, I could hardly believe it was a real discussion. Losing Trove - or even seeing Trove prevented from continuing to grow - would be a tragedy. Trove is a national treasure of the first rank. It's a digital portal - administered by the National Library of Australia - that gives access to historical newspapers, to magazines and gazettes, to photographs and to all sorts of other material. As a research tool for journalists, writers, genealogists and historians its value is beyond…

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Childhood memories of The Newcastle Show

Newcastle Show, to me as a child in the 1960s, was an extravagant feast for the senses that marked it as one of the great highlights of the year. The smells, sounds, lights and crowds of the nighttime show made it seem to me like a magical town, with its streets and alleys and the big public square of the main ring. I drank in the excitement of the event with wide-eyed enthusiasm. The Show really seemed like a city to me – so huge, with so many different areas, each with an entirely different feel,…

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Read more about the article A gallery of motorcycle photos
Mount Hudson, past Rose Brook, Hunter Valley, NSW. Photo by Doug Brown.

A gallery of motorcycle photos

Rummaging among collections and albums of old photographs and negatives I very often find images of motorcycles. And from talking to old-timers I gather that motorbikes were seen for many years as a relatively inexpensive means of transport. When coupled with a sidecar they were cheaper than a small car - both to buy and to run. That's not to say they didn't have an aura of glamour about them. Here's a selection of some vintage motorcycle photos, gathered from a variety of sources. It's got pedals, but it's also got a motor. Does that make…

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