tiabunna's photos with the keyword: Braidwood

This bandstand sits in Ryrie Park in central Braidwood. I don't know its history, but I'll guess early 20th century. I'm heading away and will be offline for several days from tomorrow, but that combination of a fence in the background and a bench in the foreground should cover me until I return! :-) Happy Fence Friday and have a great weekend everyone.

The Braidwood Courthouse is a Federation style brick building, built in 1900 to replace an earlier one. It is not now in use as a courthouse, but is used for government offices and the local police station. It is alongside the Post Office (earlier image in PiP). Happy Wednesday Wall, everyone. .

Braidwood is the only entire township on the Heritage Register for New South Wales, as it still retains almost all the buildings from the 1800s. This is the Post Office, built in 1865 as the telegraph Office. In the background is the old courthouse. Happy Bench Monday, everyone.

The Criterion Hotel was built in Braidwood in 1870. It was restored some years ago and is heritage listed - but it could be suggested that another restoration is due! I think most of this damage was caused when masses of ivy were removed a few years ago. Happy Wednesday Wall, everyone.

The row of poplars alongside the coast road near Braidwood, with autumn commencing a few days later at the start of April. They will be at their best late in April.

Braidwood was the first township in NSW to be heritage listed. The following is from the NSW Heritage website. "Braidwood and its setting are of state significance as an excellent surviving example of a Georgian period town plan, dating from the late 1830s. The town buildings reflect key phases of development, commencing with the initial construction period in the 1840s, and consolidation in the later half of the century following the gold boom. The integrity of Wallace Street as a fine collection of 19th century buildings makes it particularly significant." Well, it's Friday already! Somehow the week has escaped, so I shall wish everyone HFF and a great weekend ahead.

Australia's trees are almost all evergreen, but up in the tablelands there have been plantings of deciduous trees, such as this avenue of Poplars outside Braidwood. They look spectacular as they make the change to their autumn colours. Yes, there's a fence there too, though you'll have to view large and it's still hard to find! :-) HFF everyone and best wishes for the weekend.

The window at St Andrews Anglican church in Braidwood, where Pauline's life was celebrated with a beautiful memorial service yesterday. The organ is shown in a PiP. In the way things have been for some time, there was yet another surprise. Unfortunately, after days of heavy rain, the road to the cemetery where Pauline will be laid to rest has been badly affected and had already been cut by flooding at several places. As a consequence, only the funeral memorial service was able to be held, the funeral deferred until later and the rain still continuing heavily until today. We now are hoping to complete Pauline's funeral next week when hopefully the roads will again be usable.

St Bede's in Braidwood was built from local granite in 1852. The funeral service for the Special Constables was held here, prior to them being buried in the local cemetery where a memorial column marks their grave (PiPs). Explored.

This Braidwood building is named "Tidmarsh". The house has been restored to its original condition in recent years, complete with a shingle roof. HFF and have a great weekend, everyone. Back in the early 1860s this was used as a police barracks. Later it became the residence of the Superintendent in charge of the local police force. With the problems caused by the Clarke gang of bushrangers, the police numbers grew to about 150, by far the largest in any country district. It is worth noting at this point that it seems there was a rather 'distant' relationship between the police and the Special Constables (details with previous image).

"Bedervale" (see also PiP) is a heritage National Trust listed homestead 2km from Braidwood in the Southern Tablelands of New South Wales, Australia. HFF and best wishes for the weekend, everyone. Explored. John Coghill was the captain and part owner of a convict ship. He sold it and purchased some 23 sq km of land in the Braidwood area, where he built (1836-42) and operated “Bedervale”. Convict labour was part of the equation for all these large land owners and Coghill had some 70 labourers assigned to him. It is interesting that “Bedervale” still has a cellar with iron rings on walls where any troublemakers were imprisoned! The transportation of convicts to NSW ceased in 1840 and the social fabric of the colony changed forever with the discovery of gold in 1851.

In the early 1800s, small portions of land were made available for sale or tenancy to free settlers or to emancipated convicts. One of those was John Clarke, a convict transported in 1828 for seven years and allocated to work for the owner of one of the large properties in the area. This view of the open land beyond the trees shows the general area where the Clarke family were tenants of a cottage (no longer there) on a small portion of land. Brick Kiln Creek, currently dry because of the drought, normally flows through the wooded foreground area. Explored.

What now is the Braidwood Museum was built as the Royal Hotel in the 1840s. The pink building (also in PiP) is the Braidwood Hotel, built in 1850, still operating and restored as near as possible to original condition. These buildings would have been frequented by the people in my history story and are close to the former (now removed) Braidwood Gaol, mentioned below. Continuing my bushranger story: I should give some background: back in the 1850s-60s, this was isolated and frontier territory. Travel to Sydney took several days, there were few facilities and no schools for the children of small farmers or working families on the large properties. Tom Clarke and his brothers were totally uneducated. Horse and cattle theft was common and there was an element of camaraderie between families and friends. Tom Clarke, like most of his family, was involved in stock theft and normally would have expected a local trial and a light sentence, if any, when he surrendered to the police in July 1865. Instead, he found himself on more substantial charges, including the highway robbery of three Chinese. Pending trial, likely to be tried elsewhere and with a less receptive jury, he was placed in gaol and faced a long sentence. Early on the morning of 3 October 1865 he climbed over the gaol fence and onto a racehorse that someone had tethered outside, then galloped away. A subsequent review found that several prison guards had links to the Clarke family. A reward of 50 pounds was offered for the Tom's capture. And, I guess, this is where the story really begins..... Explored.

The Monga National Park has areas of Pinkwood trees (Eucryphia_moorei in right foreground), with relatives in Tasmania and South America. The treeferns Dicksonia antarctica also have relatives in South Africa and New Zealand. Apart from the eucalypts at the right rear, forests such as this very much relate to the former continent of Gondwana. Plunge in by viewing large.

Rural road bridge (best viewed large). Here's a musical link.

We're heading away interstate for a while and, for a time, my visits will be "occasional". On our way, we shall pass the Braidwood Hotel, carefully restored as nearly as possible to its original 1850 form (shingle roof and all). HFF, everyone.

Taken on the southern tablelands of NSW, with a weather trough moving along the coast and beginning to come over the coastal ranges. HFF.