Emu Bay Railway

A bushman and his dogs

Herbert Illichmann has provided some bits and pieces about a gentleman called Harry Fisher. Unfortunately, information about Harry is scant, but there are references to him in Kim McDermott’s excellent book Last of the Wildcats and the memoirs of Herbert’s father-in-law, Lindsay Wilson. There are also a couple of newspaper articles about Harry, but because …

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A fiery summer in north-west Tasmania

Introduction The summer of 1933-34 was very dry across most of Australia, including Tasmania. It began a pronounced drought period that lasted until early 1939.  Victoria had significant bushfires in 1932. “Red Tuesday” on 19 January saw many fires in almost every part of the state, particularly West Gippsland, where nine people died. In the Dandenong …

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A lost opportunity or a wise decision – the plans for a smelter on Surrey (or Hampshire) Hills

After European settlement, Surrey and Hampshire Hills were utilised for grazing and farming under the ownership of the Van Diemen’s Land Company (VDL Co.). The only significant industrial development on those estates was the construction of the Emu Bay Railway. After ownership changed hands to companies associated with Associated Pulp and Paper Mills (APPM), the …

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Growing up in Guildford

This month’s guest blog is by Lloyd Wilson. I met Lloyd online and on the phone when writing “Fires, Farms and Forests”. He enthusiastically provided me with a lot of material for the Guildford chapter of the book. Born at Guildford in 1946, Lloyd spent his childhood living there. Despite its isolation and persistently cold …

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