The Lost Post Offices of Australia - Teralba (2284)

"This now little township, which has sprung up like a mushroom, has some comfortable miners residences already built in it. Mr. T. Williams, late of Minmi, has just opened a new hotel there, which is situated close to the edge of the lake. He seems to be one of the right sort, and is doing a flourishing trade, as it is the only hotel within several miles. There are two butchers' shops, two stores, and a baker's shop to supply the people's wants, with a good school for the children." - The Maitland Mercury & Hunter River General Advertiser 13th December 1887.


It would seem that our good correspondent from the Maitland Mercury forgot to add that Teralba also had a Post Office, although the Post Office was known as Winding Creek at that time.

original letter/newspaper receiver  

Teralba is a small community situated on the northern edge of Lake Macquarie (about 20 kilometres from Newcastle) and is part of an area of 914 acres that was originally granted to Capt. James St. John Ranclaud in the 1830's. Upon his death in 1842 the title passed to James Mitchell, who combined the Ranclaud land with his existing Lake Macquarie holdings and the area became known as the Awaba Park Estate. Upon his death in 1896, the Mitchell estate was then bequeathed to his daughter, Margaret Quigley, who continued to develop the land for pastoral enterprises. 


In the 1880's the NSW Government decided to extend the railway from Homebush to Newcastle and so it was from this great engineering achievement that the town of Teralba (or Tirelbah, as it was known to the local aborigines) began to rise from the scrub. The site was chosen by the contractors because of the access to a fresh water stream and that they were able to quarry the much needed ballast from a site that was known as 'Big Hill'

Teralba PO - 1920's  (NLA C4076)

As men sought employment on the railway, a town quickly established around the quarry and by 1885 there were over one hundred men employed in the quarry. A lot of these workers were accompanied by their families, living in rudimentary accommodation, mostly tents and dealing with the harsh environment of the Australian bush. It should also be remembered that at the time there were also over 45 children living in the fledgling camp as well ... hard days indeed!    

As the camp expanded the needs of a Post Office were required and so on the 1st January 1885 the Winding Creek Post Office opened, with Mr S.G. Hooper appointed as the first Postmaster. Who Mr Hooper was I can't ascertain, however, as most of the business owners can be identified, Mr Hooper could have been a mine manager at the  Amos & Co. gravel quarry, which was not uncommon in the early days of the Post Office. The mail was initially conveyed from Wallsend to Teralba (Winding Creek) three times per week via horse/coach and was incorporated into the existing Wallsend to Cooranbong mail run.

Street Posting Box circa 1870's

Luckily for the residents of Teralba a viable coal seam was also opened up in 1886, so once the railway reached Teralba in August 1887, the little township continued to thrive. Also coinciding with the arrival of the railway, the postal and telegraph operations were transferred to the railway station on the 1st January 1888 with the Officer in Charge Mr H.F. Nesbitt appointed the new Postmaster, his remuneration for performance both tasks was £150 p.a. ($115,000). The arrival of the railway also provided Teralba with a direct link to Sydney with the mail now arriving daily at 4.30pm without it having to come via Newcastle and Wallsend. The Teralba Post Office continued to grow, becoming a Money Order Office  (3/6/1889) and then a branch of the Government Savings Bank (1/10/1895). 
   


The growth of the Post Office was forcing more and more people to cross the busy main north railway so calls were made to find a more suitable location for the Post Office. The site that was eventually chosen on the western side of William St (possibly at 61 William St ) and the 'new' £700 ($85,500) non official Post Office was eventually opened on the 12th August 1904 with Miss M. O'Shannessy  appointed Postmistress.


According to the Sydney Morning Herald, on the 4th October 1924 the Postmaster-General called for tenders for the "Removal and re erection of post office building, repairs and painting, and installation of electric light". Who accepted the tender and when the work was actually done is still unclear, however we do know that the Post Office, including of the original building,  were moved from it's William St location to 42 York St in 1924/25. In 1996 Teralba became a Licensed Post Office (LPO) and then the current owners, Llynda & Peter Cleary, finally moved the Post Office from the cramped 100 year old building to combine the Teralba Post Office with their newsagency next door.


So it doesn't matter if it is called Tirelbah, Awaba Park Estate, Fresh Water Creek, Winding Creek, Big Hill, Glen Mitchell, Gravel Pits, Ballast Pit, Billy Goat Hill, Hillsborough, Quigley Estate or even Monkey Town .... the present day Teralba is still being served by Australia Post, as it has been for over 125 years!  

I would like to thank the NCC Library, LMCC Library, Trove Australia, Newcastle Family History Assoc. and Llynda & Peter Cleary for their assistance in compiling this blog.  

Teralba Update -  Teralba no longer has a Post Office. A few weeks ago the newsagency ceased to be an LPO & the licence has been downgraded to a CPA (Community Postal Agency).


P.S. I mentioned in an earlier blog about how I come across some interesting side stories during my research. However, some of those stories are tragic and with the railway running through the middle of town, some of those stories are truly heart wrenching. On the 17th December 1911, one week prior to Christmas, two young girls were killed in a terrible tragedy. Below this is the SMH report from Monday 18/12/1911 -

“A double fatality occurred line near Teralba yesterday, when two little girls were dashed to death by a passing train

At about 3.15 yesterday afternoon Ada Duncan, aged 10 years and 9 months; Clara Duncan, aged 8 years; and Gladys Duncan passed through tho wicket-gates about half a mile north of the Teralba railway station. They were about to cross the rails, when they noticed an empty ballast train travelling from Teralba towards Newcastle. As their attention was directed towards this train, they   failed to notice the Tamworth mail, which was dashing along towards Sydney. When the ballast train had passed, the children attempted to cross, but Ada and Clara were struck by the englne of the Tamworth mail. Ada was dragged about half a dozen yards, and was killed instantaneously. Clara was thrown clear of the rails, but was badly injured. She was brought on to Newcastle, and taken to the Newcastle Hospital, where she died at 17.30 last night.

Gladys appears to have had a narrow escape. The little girl Ada, who was killed instantaneously, was a cousin to the two other girls. Ada had arrived from Dora Creek at about midday, and the three children were taking a walk when the accldent occurred. Clara and Gladys were sisters, and lived with their mother In Victoria Street, Teralba. Their father, Robert Duncan, died recently.

An inquest will be held at the Courthouse, Teralba, at 10 o'clock tomorrow morning"

site of the former wicket gates at Teralba

That makes this tragic accident 100 years old this year and so I plan to give reflection on the 17/12/2011 to the two young lives, Ada and Clara Duncan, who were snatched away well before their time.


   

Fading Into Night

One the magical things you can do on Newcastle Harbour is to organise a dinner cruise and take in a different perspective of our wonderful city.


I've been on a few of these type of cruises before, one on Lake Macquarie and a couple on Sydney Harbour, but what really sets Newcastle apart is the fact that it is a working harbour. While some may scoff at the idea of cruising a working port, Newcastle is spectacular as you wend you way along the row of ships loading/unloading all kinds of products and produce, although coal is still our main export.


Although I was aching to take the Canon 400D, once again I had to content myself with the Sanyo 1275s, as I correctly predicted that the boat would be pretty full of diners and the bulkiness of the Canon would restrict where I would be able to move around. So armed with the compact Sanyo 1275s we departed Newcastle Marina at Wickham just before sunset. The day itself wasn't a typical Newcastle summers day, which is normally warm and clear and usually tempered with a nor' easterly in the late afternoon, this day had a lot of cloud, with a light southerly, which was, initially, a bit disappointing..


But as they say, every cloud has a silver lining!


The cloud cover wasn't 100% and so as the sun sunk, the broken cloud reflected this wonderful event, changing from purple, to a spectacular golden glow, then finally to the most intense display of orange I have seen in quite some time. It was truly amazing and although I only had the little Sanyo, it picked up every colour nuance perfectly.  


As the sun slowly sunk away into the west taking its wonderful display with it, the harbour then took on a different perspective as the arc lighting begin to take effect and began reflecting off the water in shimmering hues of orange, red, silver and blue. As well as all this there were also the lights of Newcastle itself  including Christ Church Cathedral, Fort Scratchley, Nobbys, Queens  Wharf and the lights of the CBD all glittering like a thousand jewels on the shoreline.


So if you ever want to see a different side of my wonderful city, book a dinner cruise with either Moonshadow Cruises - http://www.moonshadow.com.au/ or Nova Cruises - http://www.novacruises.com.au/ and enjoy a wonderful night on our very special harbour.


Oh, and as I always say .... make sure you take your camera!  

The Lost Post Offices of Australia - Kurri Kurri (2327)

The Kurri Kurri Times was the local area newspaper for the newly established coalfields district and it was known for some straight talking when it came to local issues. An example of this was on Friday, May 12, 1905, in the Town Talk column it noted that,

"Another week has passed and the slow-moving old gentlemen who control the Postal Department have not yet sent along that letter-carrier.
There is nothing like making haste slowly, but the postal dignitaries please us a wee bit too well" ... ouch!

Kurri Kurri itself  was established in October 1902 as a 'government' town to service needs of Stanford Merthyr and Pelaw Main collieries, just two of the burgeoning mining operations located on the fast growing South Maitland coalfields. 


When Stanford Merthry commenced operations in February 1901 (the mine was officially opened on the 6th Sept. 1901), the area that surrounded the mine was virgin bushland and the early mineworkers were forced to erect shacks, on leased company land, for rudimentary accommodation. The Miners Union considered this arrangement to be an imposition on the families and so began pressuring the state government to open up allotments of freehold land for auction. The basic form of the township of Kurri Kurri was drawn up and the first auctions were held on the 10th January1903.


It is surprising how quickly the town grew and of course one of the first requirements of the area was the provision of a Post Office. Local shopkeeper Mr C.J. Darke was appointed the towns first Postmaster on the 17th August 1903, less than 8 months after the first land sales!  


As the town grew so did the pressure for better postal facilities, with a telephone service (7/11/03), Government Savings Bank (1/2/04) and finally a telegram service (22/8/05). With each new service came increasing pressure for Mr Darke to employ more staff and acquire better facilities. When the Post Office moved to larger premises on the 1st August 1905, the erstwhile Postmaster, Mr Darke forgot to inform the good citizens of Kurri Kurri, which earned him a light-hearted rebuke from the Kurri Kurri Times,


"Scores of people were fooled on arriving at the old Post Office on Tuesday. It had been vacated early in the morning without notice.
The new office, next to Lewis' Hall, is much more commodious and convenient"


On the 11th January 1906 Kurri Kurri finally became an official Post Office and Mr R. Galloway took over the duties of Postmaster from the very popular Mr Darke. As there was still no official Post Office building, the department continued the lease on Mr Darkes former Post Office premises. Also, staffing continued to be a problem and the letter carrier tendered his resignation soon after the appointment of Mr Galloway because of the heavy work load, which was also not helped by the fact that he was also responsible for delivery of the telegrams. This situation was finally resolved with the employment of a telegram boy.  


Although expectations were high for a brand new Post Office, especially after the appointment of Mr Galloway, progress was painfully slow and it wasn't until the 1st July 1907 that the new building on the Cnr of Victoria & Lang Streets was completed at a cost of £867 ($610,000).


The designed followed Walter Vernons standard Federation Bungalow Style design for country Post Offices with its homely simplicity and robust honesty, a design that reflected the nature of the people it served.

Unfortunately even this wonderful example of Walter Vernons' federation design couldn't escape the rationalisation of Australia Post property portfolio and in December 1998 the property was sold into private hands.


Today Kurri Kurri is still served by Australia Post, but as is the fashion in these less romantic days, it is located in a convenient shopping centre, with easy access, plenty of parking and in a building with all the architectural style of a besser block. That is progress I guess!


So where did Kurri Kurri gets it unique name from? Apparently it is derived from the local aboriginal Wanaruah people and it means the very first and as Kurri Kurri was the first 'planned' town in NSW, it is a very apt name indeed

I'd like to thank the assistance of the Coalfields Heritage Group, Brian Andrews, the staff at the Newcastle Family History & Historical Society and the online resources of the Newcastle Museum.
   

Scars On The Landscape - Greta

Most of us have seen those old gritty films that feature coal mining, movies like "How Green Was My Valley (1941) & "Coal Miner's Daughter" (1980), they are just two that come readily to mind. Both these films portray a hard working life in the Welsh and Kentucky coal fields, where the countryside was as hard as the miners that dug for the black ore.


However, here in the Hunter Valley, while the miners were as tough and as gritty as any miners in the world, the country was, for want of a better word .... nice. 


There was no bitingly cold snow laden winters or towns trapped in dank valleys where the sun rarely shone or where misery was worn like a shawl that wrapped itself around generations of mining families condemned to work in the pits

No, the Hunter Valley coal mines, even from the time of the first pits, right through to today can be considered a rather pleasant working environment, mining accidents not withstanding.


Now while the coal industry had been a thriving concern in Newcastle and the Hunter region since the early 1800's, it was a discovery of a few precious lumps on the banks of Anvil Creek (21 kilometres north of Maitland) that was to establish the Hunter Region as the worlds leading supplier of high quality low ash coal.


The honour of that find goes to William Farthing whose tenacity proved correct when in 1861 he obtained a lease on Anvil Creek and commenced operations in 1862 (which was known as Farthings Pit). From these small beginnings, helped along by the arrival of the Great Northern Railway 1869 and then by the geological findings of Sir T.W. Edgeworth David who declared in 1886 that this area was sitting atop some of the richest coalfields in Australia, the small rural village of Greta quickly expanded with at least eight coal mines beginning operations in this small area by 1910.

It hard to envisage today that this sleepy village  at the height of mining operations, had over 7,000 inhabitants and the town boasted no less than 11 hotels! As with al these towns the local Post Office played an important role in the towns development and Greta was no different. The local Post Office began operations as a non official office in 1874 at Anvil Creek and then in early 1877 it was operating from the new  £1800 ($1.5million) Farthings Platform ( which was then renamed Greta Railway Station in 1878) and was still called Anvil Creek Post Office (are you confused yet?). However, eventually commonsense prevailed and Anvil Creek Post Office was renamed Greta in October 1886. Then in 1889 with the mines around Anvil Creek closing and most of the population moving closer to the Greta township the Post Office at the railway station was closed and transferred to High Street (New England Highway) and was made an official Post Office with Mr M.J. Sheppard appointed Postmaster. The original Greta Post Office is still standing today, however the Post Office (which then became non official, or LPO, in 1979) has changed locations, now co-located with the newsagent next door and still providing the Greta community with postal services as it has done for over 120 years.     


As for William Farthing, well his mining ventures didn't flourish as he'd hoped they would, mainly due to fires that ravaged his pits in 1871 and so he settled into the Greta district, ultimately becoming the local Magistrate for both Greta and Branxton Courthouses. On the 6th August 1886 William Farthing died suddenly while sitting in front of the fire with his wife Lillias, he was aged 68 years old. While others went on to claim higher honours for achieving less, William Farthing should never be forgotten for his contribution to the Hunter Valley and its mining heritage.    


Not much remains of Greta's extensive mining heritage, no grand memorials, sculptures or dedications and mines such as Anvil Creek, Farthings Pit, Leconfield. Whitburn and Central Greta are now just scars on the landscape. Today it is difficult to see where these mines once operated, where proud men worked and died, however, these old mining ventures can give up subtle clues to their proud heritage ... if you know where to look.

I'd like to thank the online resources of the Newcastle Regional Library & especially the excellent contribution by the late John Delaney  - http://archive.amol.org.au/newcastle/greta/background.html

P.S. There is a small dedication to the 36 miners who died whilst working in the various Greta pits and also to the one miner shot dead by the police during the Rothbury Riot. This small, but important memorial is located in Water St, outside the Greta Arts & Sports Community Hall.


William Farthing and his wife Lillias are buried in a small unpretentious plot in the Presbyterian section of the East Maitland cemetery.  

The Lost Post Offices of Australia - Waratah (2298)

What an honour it must have been for 17 year old John Banfield to be appointed the Postmaster at the Waratah Post Office when the Post Office achieved its official status on the 23rd June 1877. Initially he was paid a salary of £52 per annum ($46,000), but what he wasn't so pleased about  was that the Postmaster-Generals Department was charging him £1 per week for board and lodgings!


Reluctantly, the Postmaster-General did eventually agree to double his wages after young John made representations to him about how the low wage was making it hard to make ends meet.

Waratah was another one of our Hunter towns that was basically founded on the coal boom of the 1800's (the town did exist as early as the 1820's with small scale mining and brickmaking being the main employment) . The colliery at Waratah (established 1862) was made more attractive when the railway from Newcastle arrived in March 1858 making it easier to use that infrastructure to transport the black gold to Newcastle wharves and also to their own coal loaders located at Port Waratah.   


As was the fashion of that period the Postmaster-General on the decided to place a Post Office at Waratah Station with station master, Mr Pat Dwyer, appointed the first Postmaster on the 1st February 1860. For his extra postal duties Mr Dwyer was paid £12 per annum ($13,000), plus commission on stamps sold, not a bad little earner even today!


Although the mine wasn't a real success in tonnage, Waratah began to thrive as a residential suburb and when Mr Thomas Grove opened up the new Hanbury Estate, both area's, Hanbury and Waratah started to boom as people took advantage of property close to Newcastle with easy access to the railway. As the town grew so did the Post Office, with the addition of money order facilities (1868) and a Government Savings Bank facility (1871).

In 1877 after the then station master (and Postmaster) Mr Mattingley was transferred, the Postmaster-General decide to amalgamate the Telegraph and Post Offices to save costs. The telegraph which arrived in 1863, initially was separate from the Post Office and so in 1877 the Post Office was moved into the Telegraph Office located in Cross Street (now named Tighe Street), with young John Banfield, the former Telegraph Operator, now appointed as Postmaster. The building was cramped and the accommodation deemed unsuitable, when the next Postmaster, a family man, Mr William Harris became the next Postmaster in November 1878 (this was a position he held for the next 35 years!). New rented premises were then obtained in High Street in January 1879 as an interim measure whilst a brand new purpose built building was constructed.


The site selected was on the Cnr of Turton Road and Station Street and Government Architect James Barnet designed the single storey building of a simple design with cement rendered walls and hipped corrugated iron roof (which dismayed the local council), at a cost of £1050 . The contract was awarded to W.H. Galbraith and on the 1st March 1881, Waratah welcomed it own, purpose built, Post Office (the mail room addition occurred sometime in 1901)    

Waratah Post Office, after 115 years of service eventually became part of Australia Posts property rationalisation and in 1996 this wonderful 19th century building was sold off with the Post Office transferring operations to the Waratah Village Shopping Centre and becoming just another retail shop, albeit a very busy one,  in another bland shopping centre.


The bond between the Post Office and they community they serve becomes severed with every one of these asset disposals, with the memory of past deeds and tribulations lost, while we pursue the lure of the easy dollar. It may surprise some to learn that Waratah Post Office turned 150 years old this year, but on Monday the 1st February 2010, this momentous fact passed unnoticed by everyone and so it became just being another day in a suburban shopping centre.

Congratulations to Waratah Post Office on celebrating their Sesquicentennial this year.

Many thanks to the Newcastle Library, the Ralph Snowball Collection & the Newcastle Family History & Historical Society 
          .

The Lost Post Offices of Australia - Mayfield (2304)

 In 1881 Mr John Schoely decided it might be a good idea to subdivide some of his property in an area of what was then know as North Waratah. He called his new estate Mayfield, naming it after his youngest daughter May and sold the blocks in large 'on site' auctions with no interest finance. The Mayfield Estate was marketed as a prestegious suburb, with Hunter River frontages, vineyards and easy access to Newcastle either by a 4 minute walk to Waratah Station or a 20 minute sulky drive to the city. Indeed the suburb did flourish, with many prominent citizens moving out to this very exclusive area of Newcastle, at one stage it was even described as 'The Toorak of Newcastle". That was until the arrival of the BHP Steelworks in 1915 and then the modern phrase of "hero to zero" is more appropriate.


Funnily enough though, the Post Office wasn't a strong feature of the towns early development, mainly due to the fact that there was already quite a substantial Post & Telegraph Office operating at Waratah which was close by and servicing the needs of the nearby colliery, so although the Mayfield citizens weren't initially happy with the arrangement, they had to wait until the population grew to accommodate an expansion of postal services.


A Post Office & Money Order Office did eventually open in Mayfield on the 15th October 1910, when Mr A.Clendinning was appointed Postmaster. Unfortunately I have been unable to locate where this first Post Office was located and which will require further investigation in the future. A Mr Ellerton was then mentioned as the next Mayfield Postmaster when he built a new Post Office (combined with his General Store), which opened on the 21st March 1921 on the Cnr Kerr St & Maitland Rd. This was quite a unique building in Mayfield for ALL the materials used inthe construction came entirely from Mayfield and cost £900 to complete. Mr Ellerton is quoted  as saying that he was happy to use local products, even though it cost him an extra £100 in building costs!


On the 11th August 1925, Mayfield at last became an official Post Office with Mr A.C. Battey appointed the Postmaster.


It was between this time and 1938 the Australian Postmaster-General constructed a purpose built Post Office on the Cnr Elizabeth St & Maitland Rd. I tend to think it was around 1938, because from what I can gather a new automatic Telephone Exchange was also listed as beginning operations at Mayfield and so I assume this was at the same time as the new Post Office, but again much more information is needed


After around 30 years of operation, the Postmaster-General once again decided to upgrade its premises and left the old premises vacant (the Police service eventually annexed  the site as the Mayfield Police Station was already operating next door). On the 8th December 1969, the Post Office moved into the brand new building at 125 Maitland Rd (opposite Valencia St) which at the time at a cost of $105,360 to build. These premises were once again refurbished in the early to mid 1980's, with a new street frontage and contemporary colour scheme and it was one of many Australia Post properties that were upgraded to update its staid public image.


However times move on, those cosmetic changes that were fresh and dynamic in the 80's, are now over 20 years old and make the premises look tired and dated.


Mayfield Post Office, now called Mayfield Post Shop, is still operating, serving the good citizens of postcode 2304, as it has done for nearly 100 years and while many changes may have taken place, the one constant in all the turmoil of change is the Post Office, the rock that the suburb of Mayfield is built around.


Congratulations Mayfield Post Office on a centenary of service! 
      

      
I'd like to thank the staff at NCC Library & the staff at Newcastle Family History Society for all their invaluable assistance.

The Lost Post Offices of Australia - Weston (2326)

The Weston Post Office has a rather unique claim to fame, it was one of the last of three Post Office's to be constructed by the NSW Government in 1916, the others were at Warren and Delungra. It is also interesting to note that while the Australian Postmaster-Generals Department was established at Federation, full control of the postal powers and operations  were not handed over to the Commonwealth till 1917 in NSW.


The quaint Federation Bungalow style was the chosen design for country Post Offices of the period and this is the style that was chosen for Weston. There was no hint of the 'Italianate' beauty that was a hallmark of the James Barnett period, nor neither the 'baroque' elegance of  the Walter Vernon's period, by this stage Post Office design had become standardised and functional. The halcyon days of Post Office design faded during the tenure of George McRae, as responsibility and costs were slowly transferred to the Commonwealth.

The history of Weston and many other Lower Hunter coalfields towns, were founded on what was known as the Greta Coal Measures, a 245 million year old coal seam that runs from the Illawarra escarpment to southern Queensland and uplifts in the Cessnock area. This uplift was extensively mapped by Sir T.W. Edgeworth David in 1886 and proved attractive to the major coal companies, as the Newcastle coal seams had started to peter out by the late 1800's. The Australian Agricultural Company (A.A.C.) decided to begin operations on this seam around the turn of the century and in late 1902 they advised the government that they were about to sink its first shaft at the new Hebburn Colliery.


Weston, developed close to the Hebburn No.1 Colliery, was originally called Geordietown and was one of many Hunter coalfields towns that were built by private companies (such as AAC), with blocks of land sold in massive auctions to potential employees. When people started moving into these coalfield towns, one of their first demands, after a hotel, was the Post Office and Weston was no different in these demands.


Postal services were established relatively quickly, when compared to other rural area's (probably with the urging of the mining companies) and so on the 25th January 1904, Mr William Walters was appointed the postmaster and he ran the Post Office from his premises on the Cnr of Station Rd and Third Ave. The Morse telegraph arrived in August 1904, after the line was strung from Kurri Kurri and by December 1905, the telephone had arrived in town. Weston was proving to be quite a goldmine for postal services, the quantity of mail alone in 1905 was;


26,988 - mail articles sent, &
32,768 - mail articles received


In 1906 the Postmaster-General must have been more than happy with Mr Walters as they extended his contract for another 3 years and included mail deliveries (1/2 mile radius) and telegram deliveries (1 mile radius) in the new contract.


It was with this new extended contract that proved to be the last, as business had expanded so much, so quickly, that Mr Walters even had to employ children to do the letter delivery side of the business. In 1910, the Postmaster-General decided to upgrade the Post Office to official status and Mr Walters took his retirement. The Postmaster-General took over the lease of the existing Post Office premises from Mr Walters for £52 per annum ($37,000). However, the public were soon demanding a better Post Office and one located closer to the main town.


After much agonising over the location and delays bought on by the outbreak World War 1, in 1916, Weston finally had its own purpose built Post Office.

This fine building survived in the Australia Post property portfolio for the next 80 years, becoming part of community, living through, economic Depression, various wars and mine closures (Hebburn No.1 closed in 1972). As the population drifted, so did the requirement for a dedicated Post Office and so in 1996, as with many Post Offices around that time, the building was sold off and the operations transferred to LPO status.


Today the Post Office is combined with a video/DVD rental store and is struggling to maintain revenues during the current postal downturn. However their fight to survive is testament to the tenacious attitude of the coalfields people in that they continue to fight for their town, hoping that the coal trains that are now once again rumbling along the nearby train tracks will herald a resurgence in the towns prosperity.  


Perhaps the postman will, once again ring twice, for the tiny coalfields town of Weston. 
  

I'd to thank Brian Andrews & the staff from Sir Edgeworth David Memorial Museum at Kurri Kurri for all their assistance in compiling this blog.

The Lost Post Offices of Australia - Lambton (2299)

It must have seemed like an exciting time for the residents of Lambton, when in 1950, the then Postmaster-General , Mr Anthony advised the Lambton community that they would soon have a brand new Post Office, with modern delivery facilities and amenities  to replace the aging existing building that was opened in 1884. To assist in the transition, the burgeoning mail sorting and deliveries would be handled from the front room of the Lambton Mechanics' and Miners' Institute in Elder St.


The new building never eventuated.


The deliveries and mail sorting were eventually transferred to the Broadmeadow Mail Centre , then  later to Hamilton Delivery Centre and now to Warabrook Delivery Facilty. The Post Office itself would eventually succumb to Australia Posts property rationalisation programme and in May 1996 this wonderful building was listed for sale. With the sale completed in 1997 the postal facility was downgraded to LPO status and now resides in the newsagency in Elder St.


However, the postal history of Lambton is still a rich one and can be traced back to the mid 1860's, even well before the establishment on the township in 1870! Actually the area is another Hunter town that came into existance on the back of a coal mining venture, this time initiated by the Scottish-Australian Mining Co., in 1862.


As with most of these towns, due to the influx of miners who settle close to the pits, they quickly flourish, and once you have residents, one of the first thing they demand is a reliable postal service to satisfy the needs of their community and Lambton was no different. On the 1st March1865 Lambton had their first Postmaster when Mr Daniel Jones was appointed, a position he held for six years. Mr Davies became the next Postmaster and ran the Post Office from his house in Grainger Street. It was during his tenure that the magic of the telegraph arrived in 1875, Lambton was certainly a town on the move!


In 1880 the first approaches were made to the NSW Postmaster-General to upgrade the Post Office to  official  status and erect a purpose built Post and Telegraph office to better serve the community. The deputation produced figures to show that over 48,000 mail articles had been posted and revenues were around £400. The Postmaster-General initially baulked at the idea, however by 1882 the NSW Colonial Government had committed to building a new Post Office  in Dickson St.

So on the 27th June 1884, the good citizens of Lambton were finally greeted with their new £1848 ($1.5 million) Post Office, which also incorporated the Telegraph Office and the Government Savings Bank. Once again the Post Office was constructed in the style of the day for country Post Offices, that being of Victorian Italianate 2 storey design, cement rendered over brick, with a front veranda and iron roofed, much in the style favoured by James Barnet, who was NSW Chief Architect at the time (it should be noted however, that Barnet was not listed as the architect on this project, which, for the period was intriguing!). Due to the slope of the land this building also had basement constructed from Pyrmont sandstone which bought up from Sydney. Another feature that was later added to the font veranda wall was the Lambton Post Office Roll of Honour in memory of those locals who had laid down their lives in World War 1 and was erected by Lambton Ladies Anzac Club in 1916.  


The current owners, Hann Insurance Brokers, have beautifully restored this wonderful building to its original late 19th century grandeur and is a credit to them and the Lambton community.


I think the Newcastle Morning Herald summed up my feelings about this beautiful building when on the 27th June 1884 they wrote " The building, as a whole, is one of the most handsome and substantial of its class in the Northern District, and, to all appearances, will stand for centuries." ..... Unfortunately not as part of Australia Posts' shrinking property portfolio.   
      

I like to take this opportunity to acknowledge the invaluable assistance of The Newcastle Family History Society Inc. (The Story of Lambton - a Suburb of Newcastle, NSW) and the Newcastle City Library in the research of this article.

The Lost Post Offices of Australia - Wallsend (2287)

On the 14th September 1914, Pte William King was one of the eventual 300 brave men from the Wallsend area that signed up to join the ranks to fight the dreaded Hun during World War 1. However, on the 24th May 1915 at the age of 21, he, along with thousands of other fresh faced youths laid down their lives in the Dardnelles campaign in Turkey. William, as a member of the Wallsend & Plattsburg model band, would have played merry contemporary music in the rotunda, opposite Wallsend Post Office, the same Post Office that would bring home the tragic news of his death to his loved ones & fellow bandsmen. The plaque erected on the rotunda opposite the Post Office is testament to his sacrifice.

The Wallsend area was first surveyed in 1822 by Henry Dangar & the surrounding lands were keenly sought after, with the first grant going Mr J.Weller in 1824. Originally farming was the mainstay of this small rural community, however following the discovery of coal in the local area during the 1850's, big mining companies turned their attentions to the farms located around the Ironbark Creek vicinity. 


It was the consortium of the Newcastle-Wallsend Coal Company (NWCCo) in the late 1850's,  that put in place the infrastructure & on the 9th March 1861 Wallsend coal mine was officially opened.


The township quickly grew & with steady employment, 1 acre building blocks were selling for £120 - 150 & houses were being built for £50. The first Post Office was established as an agency in 1861 with Mr T.Johnson operating the agency from his hotel, which he renamed the Post Office Hotel! In 1876 deputations were made to the Postmaster General for a separate, more permanent building be considered & so in 1880 work commenced on the new Wallsend Post Office on the corner of Harris & Tyrrell Streets, formerly known as the Lemongrove Estate.


On the 25th March 1882, Wallsend finally had a Post Office it could call its own. It was  constructed in the Victorian Regency style of the day, solid brick construction with a painted stucco finish. I have no reports about the opening of this fine building, however I'm sure that it would have been a grand event.


The design did change over the years with such alterations such as a bathroom (1899), buggy space (1903), telephone exchange (1907), formal entrance lobby (1914) & sometime after 1907 a front verandah (pulled down in 1952). In 1952 the most hideous alteration took place when Australia Post built a wood & iron addition to the side of the building which thankfully was pulled down when the building was renovated after Australia Post vacated in July 1994.


Although I'm usually hard on the efforts of Australia Post in vacating these wonderful buildings, I can see the logic in this move, there was no parking in the area & terrible access/egress to the building, so the move to Wallsend Plaza was a positive step in raising customer expectations.    


The old Wallsend Post Office still reflects the stoic nature of the community that was prevelant around the turn of the 19th century, with its solid construction & domination of the local landscape. This was also a time when the Post Office was woven into the vibrant fabric of the towns that they served, something we have seemed to have lost in our quest for growth.

  
I'd like to thank the staff at NCC, Stocklands & the Wallsend Library for their assistance in compiling this blog