Monday, July 8th to Saturday, July 13th, 2024 - Country Towns - Gundagai, Hay and Narrandera

Dog on the Tucker Box, 'Nine Miles From Gundagai'

If you ever find yourself travelling he Hume Highway (between Sydney and Melbourne), it is worth a brief detour to stop at this iconic little statue, the 'Dog on the Tucker Box'. It's actually not nine miles away from Gundagai - more like five miles in reality, but a poem and song decided on nine miles!

Alwynne and Nadine, at The Tucker Box, January, 1959

Our family visited the statue in 1959 during one of our moves between the two cities. That's me half out of the photo. I'm amused that I was already showing the tendency back then to say.....Ooh, what's over there! Let's explore the next thing! Future traveler? Nadine did a great job of posing for the camera. The shop in the background is exactly the same today.

Bill Lamp in 1980

Then I had to show it to Bill when we visited Australia in 1980, before we were married. I was pleased to see that the fence has now been removed and the buildings behind are gone - it results in a much cleaner view.

This statue tells a story about a teamster, Bill the Bullocky, who ended up here, defeated after a rough day in the 1850's. His wagon had become bogged in a creek.  Then one of the bullocks broke the yoke and poked the eye out of the leaders eye. It was probably just the cap on an already rough day. Bill the Bullocky gave up and went to have his lunch, only to find that his dog was sitting (or worse, the sign says - perhaps they left off an 'h') on his tucker box. Apparently his teamster mates thought the whole thing quite amusing and there are a variety of poems telling his sorry tale. Here's a link to more about Bill the Bullocky and his dog. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dog_on_the_Tuckerbox

Hay Main Street

Hay is a town on the Murrumbidgee River, with a population just under 3,000 in 2021. The area was occupied by the Nari Nari and Wiradjuri Aborigines prior to white settlement in the late half of the 1800's. It was named after one of the early white settlers. It is now a prosperous and productive agricultural area, part of the Riverina and at the junction of three highways. Mid-way between Adelaide and Sydney it is relatively prosperous for such a small town.

Victorian Lacework

There were many lovely old buildings that were still being well maintained and I really enjoyed my wander down the wide main street, looking at the old architecture. Nadine said they made the streets wide enough for a team of bullocks to turn around. It results in lovely space today, with plenty of room for cars - however one must back into parking spots - Eeek!

Foodworks, Hay

Even a grocery store did a nice job of keeping the old and provided a lovely mural of the Murrumbidgee River with a bullock dray and boat.

Our 'Hotel' - Tom's Place of 'The Convent Boutique Accommodation', Hay

We were a little nonplussed when Google maps told us we had arrived at our accommodation, to find this rather forbidding fence. Rather than staying in hotels, we like the communal space provided by AirBNB type accommodation. When searching we had not found a great deal of non-hotel accommodation available, so when we found this we  thought a nice 'boutique' place associated with a convent might be nice!

At Least a Carport for Dry Unpacking

It was quite spare - I guess that's where the 'convent' likeness came in - but it was very clean and served us just fine. They had a great selection of tea bags! As it had been raining much of the afternoon, (the rain that had been causing problems in Mungo before it came here) so we were quite pleased to be able to pull under the carport. I call this architectural style, 'Australian Industrial'! Very basic, pragmatic and gets the job done!

Old Train Station and POW Museum

Local historians have done a good job of memorializing a World War II history of refugees and prisoners of war who were sent to Hay - probably a milder form of Guantanamo - to remove them far from the possibility of making trouble for the Allies in Europe. The POWs were Japanese, German and Italian.

Artifacts From the POW Camp

Some of the prisoners stayed in Hay, working in agriculture and enriching the cultural life of the town.

The Platform Where Foreigners Arrived

A video presentation described the great curiosity that arose when hundreds of foreign-speaking men arrived into the little town - the locals gathered to hear the sounds of foreign tongues and get a glimpse of people from lands far away. I was particularly touched by the story of the Dunera Boys, a group of  about 2,500 Jewish refugees who had sought safety in Britain, to escape European persecution. By 1940, the British decided they were enemy aliens, and sent them to this other side of the world. The flat and barren land must have been a shocker to these poor souls. The Dunera was the name of the ship they came on from England and the passengers were sent to a number of different regions of Australia. A local resident tearfully recounted that one of the Dunera men had told him that his journey on the train had been the first time in his life that he had felt treated as a human. It's an odd statement coming from a prisoner - either the sort of hype to make one feel less guilt, or a testament to how bad the conditions had been in Europe for the Jews. In case you're interested in more information, here's a link. https://www.nma.gov.au/defining-moments/resources/dunera-boys

Water Tower Art, Hay

Pride in their World War II history, was also evident in the water tower art in Hay. Created in 2020, it memorializes the town's role in both the First and Second World Wars. It displays the portraits of five local residents who served - but is also testament to the hundreds of people from this tiny community who observed the call to arms in distant lands.

 The 'Power of One', Outside Lands Office and Council Offices

My favorite discovery in Hay was a collection of charming sheep statues outside the Land's Office and Council offices, commemorating Mrs. McGrath, who was a bridge operator here in the 1920's and 30's.

It was installed in 2022.

Mrs. McGrath and Her Pet Sheep

It seems Mrs. McGrath went above and beyond in her duties as a bridge operator. When sheep drovers arrived with their large mobs, they had difficulty convincing the scared animals to cross the Murrumbidgee River on the strange surface. Mrs. McGrath had a flock of pet sheep who were confident on the bridge, so for a small fee, she would lead the drover's mob across the bridge into town, with her sheep as guides. I loved the sheep statue with the hat and the book reader shown in the previous photo. The one sitting down with the saddle was designed for children to ride on. If you could zoom into Mrs. McGrath's hand, you would see a tiny little bronze mouse curled up in it. Perhaps testament to her compassion? Don't know, but a nice touch.

 Royal  Mail Hotel,Narrandea, built 1888

On our way home, we stayed in Narrandera, another small town on the Murrumbidgee River, also in the Riverina. It has a slightly larger population than Hay with about 5,500 in the 2021 census. The area was occupied by the Wiradjuri Aborigines prior to white settlement in the early half of the 1800's. The name came from one of the tribes clans, called the 'Narrungdera', which means it was the place of a lizard. A bit worse than a Crow's Nest, I think! 

Walking its main street it seemed not quite as well kept as Hay had been, and was dominated by old hotel/pubs rather than public buildings. This one, the Royal Mail Hotel had 30 rooms. 

The Former Royal Hotel, Built 1862

The former Royal Hotel, built in 1862 is one of the earliest buildings in Narrandera. When first constructed, there was little else here, so it served as post office, court, church, and council premises. It was delicensed in 1938.

Narrandera Council Chambers, Opened 1930

The council chambers were a little more modern. A brochure we got from the Visitor's Center described it as an example of inter-war classicism.......so there you go!

National Australia Bank, Constructed 1884

This older Victorian style building has been operating as a bank for over 100 years. It was one of my favorites in town.

Royal Doulton Ceramic Fountain - the Hankinson Fountain

A source of pride for the town is this Royal Doulton ceramic fountain which was donated by a prominent citizen in 1922, to commemorate those who served in the First World War. It is unique to Australia - the only other Royal Doulton fountain known to exist is in Pakistan. It is sad to find out that it was vandalized and has only recently been re-built.

A Typical Bungalow

I could show you photos of many more pub/hotels, but instead you might be interested in seeing a couple of example of typical old-style country homes. The galvanized iron roof, with the curved overhand on the porch is common, as is the decorative mesh on the front doors. The designs lead to some protection from the summer heat with the shading provided  by the porch, which often extends around the house on all sides. My guess would be this could date from the 40's or 50's - but it's just a guess!

Typical Bungalow With Pull-Down Shades

In this bungalow, you can see the way the porch extends around the house. The shades can be used as needed seasonally to create more shade, to keep the house cooler.

A Grand Old House

This example is probably a little older - perhaps from 1920's or 30's. It would have been built by one of the more prosperous families in town. It reminded me of my grandmother's house in Hobart. The roof is tile - which would have been much more expensive due to the distance from city centers, but it also had verandahs around much of it. The vegetation would also have provided more shade. All these examples would have led to quite dark spaces inside - before the days of air conditioning, this equated to the chance of a little more coolness.

The Yard, Coffee Shop

Modern Narrandera looked as if it was bursting with color and quirkiness. We stopped at this coffee shop which was mostly outside. One was served from an old fashioned caravan.

A Table-Top Replica of the Caravan

I don't like my photos of the caravan, so instead I'm giving you this quirky table decoration, which was one of many within 'The Yard'. It was quite fun and very similar to the little old-fashioned caravan where food and drinks were made.

The Italian Barber - Cuts Hair Good

Not far from 'The Yard' I discovered this charming gentleman who had set up shop as a barber just a few months ago. He said he grew up in Narrandera, bought the building four years ago and has been renovating this space to look like an old-fashioned barber shop, with himself as the old-fashioned barber. I was pleased that he agreed to pose for me.

Window Decor at The Italian Barber

He had done a great job collecting all sorts of antiques which made the place a great deal of fun. I particularly liked this window display, along with an old-fashioned cash register that still worked.

A Modern Customer at The Italian Barber

I was quite thrilled when a customer came in and also agreed to let me take his photo. As you can tell, I was completely charmed by this place.

Water Tower Art, Narrandea

Not wanting to miss out on a trend, Narrandera also has a water tower that has ben painted. I love seeing art in public places - out of the museum - so for me as a traveler passing through, it makes art very accessible. This particular medium seems to be a new thing and there are many examples throughout Australian towns. I understand it is also happening in the US - water towers and silos. I liked the cheeriness of the artwork in Narrandera with the koala and other mages representing the local area. 

The Artwork

The process of painting these things must be pretty taxing on the body and brain - takes more than just a paint brush! I was surprised to read that it only took 11 days to create - but lots of supportive equipment. Not quite Sistine Chapel endurance!

Historic Star Lodge

I'm sorry, but I can't leave Narrandera without sharing one more photo of a former hotel/pub. This one, the Historic Star Lodge was built in 1916 and is said to be 'Federation' style architecture. It is now a Bed and Breakfast, with a restaurant. I liked the state of repair and style of the building, so had to stop and take a photo as we left town.

I was hoping to add additional photos from other small towns we stopped in briefly, but I think you've worked hard to get this far and need a break. I'll include a few of them in the next blog when we come back to Canberra.