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Wagga Wagga Teachers' College was established in 1947 to provide a two year course for the training of infant and primary school teachers. (1) Nine lecturers were appointed in January 1947 with George Leslie Blakemore, B.A., as Principal and Griffiths Duncan, M.A. as Deputy Principal. (2)

Under section 17(1) of the Higher Education Act 1969 (Act No.29, 1969) Wagga Wagga Teachers College was declared a College of Advanced Education within the Department of Education from 1 September 1971. (3)

From 1 January 1972 under section 17 (1) of the Higher Education Act 1969, the Wagga Wagga Teachers' College was amalgamated with the Riverina College of Advanced Education, becoming the School of Teacher Training. (4)

Endnotes:

1. Charles Sturt University - Mitchell, p.9.
2. Public Service List, 1947.Sydney, NSW Government Printer, 1948, p.108.
3. NSW Government Gazette No.95, 27 August 1971, p.3299.
4. Charles Sturt University - Mitchell, p.9; NSW Government Gazette No.129, 5 November 1971, p.4278.

Tubbo Station, located near Whitton, still stands as one of the richest and largest grazing and sheep properties in the Riverina.

Tubbo was first established during the mid-1800's by a Scottish squatter, John Peter, who managed successfully almost twenty runs, or over 740 000 acres, throughout this region by 1866. John Peter's financial health was equally blessed by his fortunate marriage to the widow of the Gumly Gumly Station owner, Mrs Mary Bourke in 1837. His contribution to the growth of Wagga Wagga was also integral. He was particularly influential in lobbying for the establishment of a permanent Court of Petty Sessions in Wagga Wagga and he would often serve as magistrate for the Bench in the Wagga Wagga district. Moreover, John Peter's Tubbo rose from meagre beginnings to become almost a village within itself, comprising of 7 smaller stations, a school, blacksmith and general store for its employees and their families. All of John Peter's stations boasted a reputed annual income of £40 000.

An investment company later purchased the Tubbo run from John Peter's Estate in 1887 at a cost of over £361 000. The Tubbo Estate Company, which consisted of directors Archibald Fisken, John Archibald Campbell, William Peter McGregor and Andrew McGregor, bought the 200 000 acre run and continued to manage it as predominantly a sheep station. In its first year of operation as a company, Tubbo prided itself on its shearing output, clipping as many as 121 847 sheep, which was the third largest amount shorn in New South Wales. Much of the initial shearing was, however, carried out by non-union shearers.

Inevitably, Tubbo became the centre of unionist activity by the end of 1888, forcing the first manager, Neil McCallum, to hire the services of the police for protection. McCallum was not afraid to use the law to discipline workers. In one case of industrial sabotage, an engineer who had worked on a steam engine was dismissed because there was no employment for him. The engineer had tampered with the machinery with the intention of injuring the next operator. McCallum assembled a party of policemen and pursued the fleeing worker, catching him later at Narrandera. The engineer was charged and eventually released on bail at £400 and summoned to appear at Wagga Wagga Court House.

The historical significance of Tubbo Station cannot be underestimated, since it is one of the few remaining stations that managed to avoid losing much of its holdings to government subdivision and soldier settlement. Maps of Tubbo held in the collection illustrate the shrewd efforts of early management in retaining much of its river frontage, despite the existence of a reliable underground water source. Back blocks were cultivated eventually, or dressed up and sold off to the government for the purposes of closer settlement. The Tubbo collection is rather large and comprehensive, offering researchers of grazing and rural studies a fine reflection of the management practices that have taken place on bigger stations from the colonial days up until the 1970s.

History compiled by James Logan and Troy Whitford (1999).

References:
R. J. E. Gormly Card Indexes on Wagga; Morris, Mervyn J., Tubbo Station: a study in industrial relations 1888-1900. UNE Bachelor of Letters thesis, 1982; Swan, Keith J., A History of Wagga Wagga. City of Wagga Wagga, 1970; Whitford, Troy "An Historical Analysis of Cattle Grazing Practices on the Murrumbidgee River Flood Plain 1895-1996", Rural Society, vol.9 no. 2, 1999, pp. 457-471.

Junee South Public School, in the County of Clarendon, was opened in March 1880. (1) Public Schools were basic elementary schools in the New South Wales education system. By 1880 20 students were required for the establishment of a School of this classification. (2)

Until 1881 the School was known as Junee South, when it was re-named Junee Junction. It continued to be known as this until October 1893 when it was again renamed as Junee (2) Public School . (3)

The school was converted to a Superior Public School in April 1900. (4) Superior Public Schools were public schools that provided post-primary education to their students who had completed the primary course. (5) In 1927 the School became a District School. (6) District Schools were established in rural areas. They contained both primary and secondary departments offering academic courses similar to those taught in Intermediate High Schools and High Schools. (7)

Junee Intermediate High School replaced Junee District School in January 1929. (8) Intermediate High Schools were formed to cater for children qualified for but unable to enrol in the State’s small number of High Schools. In 1944 all Intermediate High Schools were classified as Central Schools, that is they took in students from neighbouring towns. (9) Thus Junee Intermediate High School may also have been known as Junee Central School.

In January 1961 the School was converted to a Public School when a separate Junee High School was created. (10)

Endnotes

1. Government Schools of NSW 1848-2003. NSW Department of Education and Training, 2003, p.80.
2. Ibid., p.18.
3. Ibid., p.80. Another school at Old Junee was earlier known as Junee (1) Public School. See Agency 3137.
4. Government Schools of NSW 1848-2003. NSW Department of Education and Training, 2003, p.80.
5. Ibid., p.18.
6. Ibid., p.80.
7. Ibid., pp.15-16.
8. Ibid., p.80.
9. Ibid., p.17.
10. Ibid., p.80.

Commonwealth National Country Party, House of Representatives Member for Riverina, 1974-1977.

In 1971, the AMV-4 Television Station (based in Albury) and the RVN-2 Television Station (based in Wagga Wagga) merged to become one company, called the Riverina and North East Victoria Television Ltd.
RVN-2 had officially begun transmission on 19 June 1964 at 7pm, providing the people of the Riverina and South-West Slopes with their own local news and programming. AMV-4 followed just a few months later on 7 September 1964 at 5pm.
Paul Ramsay and the Ramsay Corporation gained a majority control of Riverina and North-East Television Ltd on 3 June 1985 and in November the company formed an alliance with Country Television Services Ltd (Mid-State Television) which soon formed "The Prime Network".

The first issue of the Wagga Wagga Advertiser was released on 10 October 1868 for the cost of 6 pence. The paper was co-founded by two wealthy local pastoralists, Auber George Jones and Thomas Darlow, whilst the first editor was Frank Hutchison, an Oxford graduate. These men believed that the growing prosperity and importance of the Wagga Wagga district required greater representation in the press. The paper would aim to give proper importance to the subject of agriculture and to be devoted to people from all socio-economic levels.

Originally the Wagga Wagga Advertiser was only published bi-weekly, on Wednesday and Saturday, and would consist of only 4 pages. By February 1880, the paper was published tri-weekly, on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday, due to popular demand. In 1881, the paper was reduced in price from 6 pence to 2 pence, to make it more affordable. The paper finally became 'daily' on 31 December 1910.

At about the same time, the newspapers' offices relocated from Fitzmaurice Street to Trail Street under the guidance of owner Stephen Sullivan, who originally joined the paper in 1868 as a 21 year old printer. When the partnership between Jones and Darlow dissolved in 1871, Sullivan and his father-in-law, J. Mackay, bought the 'Advertiser' in partnership. Sullivan was to continue an association with the paper until shortly before his death in 1933, a total of a little over 60 years.

With Sullivan's death, The Daily Advertiser was left to his daughters, Alice and Forbie, who sold the paper to a company owned by Rupert "Rags" Henderson and Hanne Anderson (later, Fairfax) about 20 years later. On 23 July 1962, the Wagga Wagga Daily Advertiser was reduced in size from a broadsheet to the smaller 'tabloid' size. When the paper celebrated its centenary in October 1968, it was only the fourth provincial daily newspaper in NSW to do so.

It was during Henderson's time as owner that the Riverina Media Group was created. General Managers of the Group included: John Charles Jackson (1961- 992), Graham Gorrel (1992-2000), Wayne Geale (April 2000- ?), Paul McLoughlin (?- present). After Henderson's death, the company passed to his daughter, Margaret Jarrett, and then to her daughter in turn, Alicia Jarrett in 2002.

In 2007, Rural Press Ltd bought the Riverina Media Group, just a few weeks before Rural Press itself was merged into Fairfax Media. At the time, the Group published 7 newspapers in the Riverina (including The Daily Advertiser (Wagga), Riverina Leader (Wagga), The Rural, The Area News (Griffith), The Southern Cross (Junee), The Colypoint Observer (Coleambally and Darlington Point), and The Irrigator (Leeton) and the "Seniors Newspapers" for five states.

Since 1962, editors of The Daily Advertiser have included Taffy Davies (1962-1963), Jack Dennis (1964-1978), Greg Walker (1978-1979), Graham Gorrel (1979-1992), Michael McCormack (1992 - 2002), Paul McLoughlin (2002 - ?), Daniel Johns (2015-2017) and Ross Tyson (2017-present).

The Daily Advertiser is currently a subsidiary of Fairfax.

The Wagga Agricultural School and Experiment Farm was established in October 1892. Students were accepted from 1 October 1896.
The entry age for boys was set at 15 years of age (1). Being also a research station for improvement in cereal strains, it was intended that the students would be provided with the practical knowledge of farm operations. They worked a 48 hour week, and were taught by the research staff and the workmen employed on the Experiment Farm. (2)
The students received instruction in cultivation, propagating and grading of crops as well as care and handling of livestock and blacksmithing. (3) The Experiment Farm provided a two year course of instruction in agriculture which led to a certificate. However, it was not uncommon for some students to leave as soon as they had accomplished their goals and thus did not stay to complete the course. (4)
In 1948 the Minister for Agriculture proposed the establishment of an Agricultural College at Wagga offering a three year diploma course, and on the 9 September 1949 the Wagga Experiment Farm was converted into the Wagga Agricultural College. (5)

Endnotes

1. June Sutherland, From Farm Boys to Ph D's: Agricultural Education at Wagga Wagga, 1896-1996, Charles Sturt University, 1996, p.153.
2. Op. cit.
3. Op. cit.
4. Ibid., pp.74, 153.
5. Ibid., pp.73-74.

In October 1948 the Minister for Agriculture proposed that the Wagga Agricultural College should be established on the site of the Wagga Experiment Farm. (1) Although the first students attended lectures on 3 March 1949, the official opening and naming did not take place until 9 September 1949. (2)
The advances in agricultural studies were reflected in the courses studied at the Wagga Agricultural College. The subjects included: agriculture; livestock; agricultural chemistry; soil physics; agricultural botany; business principles; farm meteorology; economic entomology; farm mechanics; farm book-keeping and elementary veterinary science. (3)
The methods of instruction differed greatly from those used at the previous Experiment Farm. The students were taught through full-time lectures and by 1965 practical work had been reduced to 25% of the course. (4) The students were expected to have the Intermediate Certificate as a basic educational requirement and instead of being awarded a certificate on the completion of the course they were awarded a Diploma of Agriculture. (5)
Initially the College title still included "Experiment Farm", but in 1950 the plans for an Agricultural Research Institute commenced and this marked the next stage in the consolidation of the experimental work. (6)
In 1963 there was a reform of the entrance procedures. New admissions were not to be based on priority of application but on the results of the Intermediate Certificate in order of merit. The entry age was raised to 17 years, and English, mathematics, and science were pre-requisite subjects. (7)
In 1965 the Martin Report found that students were coming to Wagga Agricultural College with a higher standard of education and fewer diplomates were returning to farming as an occupation. The Report recommended that the academic standing of institutions like agricultural colleges be upgraded to the status of Colleges of Advanced Education. (8)
By 1970 the progress in the discipline of agricultural training outside universities had advanced sufficiently for the Wagga Agricultural College to be accorded the status of a college of advanced education. (9) As a consequence there were changes in the academic staffing, and the shifting from a set course of study to a range of options which could be tailored to the students needs. (10)
Although colleges of advanced education in New South Wales were brought under the control of the Minister for Education in 1969, the agricultural colleges remained under the jurisdiction of the Department of Agriculture. (11) From 1 January 1972 Wagga Agricultural College was declared a College of Advanced Education within the Department of Agriculture under section 17(1) of the Higher Education Act 1969 (Act No.29, 1969). (12)
In 1972 the first female students were enrolled at the Wagga Agricultural College. (13)
It was not until the Wagga Agricultural College amalgamated with the Riverina College of Advanced Education in 1976 that it was brought under the jurisdiction of the Department of Technical Education, responsible to the Minister for Education. (14) Following the amalgamation, the Wagga Agricultural College became the School of Agriculture within the Riverina College of Advanced Education. (15)

Endnotes

1. From farm boys to Ph D's: Agricultural Education at Wagga Wagga, 1896-1996, by June Sutherland, CSU, 1996, p.73.
2. Ibid., p.74.
3. Ibid., p.153.
4. Op. cit.
5. Ibid p.76.
6. Op. cit.
7. Ibid., p.97.
8. Ibid., p.103.
9. Ibid., p.112.
10. Op. cit.
11. Ibid., p.112.
12. NSW Government Gazette No.131, 12 November 1971, p.4365.
13. Sutherland, op. cit., p.116.
14. Ibid., p.130.
15. Charles Sturt University-Mitchell Handbook, p.9.

Mary Gilmore was born in 1865 near Goulburn, Australia, the eldest child of David Cameron and Mary Ann Beattie. Her father was a man of many trades, working as a farmer, carpenter, builder and innkeeper throughout his life, while her mother shared Mary’s literary passions, writing for both the ‘Australian Town and Country Journal’ and the ‘Daily Telegraph’. While the family lived in several areas around south-western NSW, Mary spent many of her formative years in Wagga Wagga. She was educated in several Wagga schools throughout her youth where she developed her deep love and appreciation for writing. Mary described learning to write as if “… the gates of the world had opened. I had wings. I could not help writing”. After completing her education, Mary was employed as a pupil-teacher at Wagga Wagga Public School. She continued to teach in and around Wagga for several years. Despite her many travels and adventures later in life, Mary maintained a deep appreciation for the nature and people in Wagga, which she often expressed through her poetry and writings.

In 1890, Mary moved to Sydney and began to teach at Neutral Bay Public School. While in the city, Mary became increasingly entrenched in the radical movements of her day. She became particularly invested in the New Australia movement led by William Lane, often writing for the New Australia Settlement Association’s journal. In 1895, Mary set sail for Cosme, the New Australia Colony in Paraguay, where she would continue to teach and write. It was here that she met and married her husband, William Gilmore. Mary gave birth to their only child, William Dysart Cameron Gilmore in 1898, near Cosme, Paraguay. However, Mary became increasingly unhappy at Cosme and she and her husband resigned from the colony in 1899. They continued to live and work and Paraguay for three years before eventually making their way back to Australia.

After arriving back in Australia, Mary continued to write, becoming increasingly involved in the literary community. She wrote for several bulletins and journals and published her first collection of poetry, ‘Marri’d and other Verses’, in 1910. Mary continued to publish poetry and prose over the next five decades, becoming particularly prolific throughout the Second World War. Mary also became increasingly involved in political activism. She was a champion for Aboriginal rights, industrial arbitration, prison reform, and freedom of the press and often discussed these causes in her poetry and other works. As a friend of her described, “one almost senses an invisible army behind Mary Gilmore when her sense of justice is aroused”. Both her literary works and her activism has made Mary Gilmore an important figure in Australian history. She is now commemorated in Australia by being featured on the ten-dollar bill.

One of the Riverina's most successful political stories is that of the Hon. Edgar Hugh Graham. Born in January 1897, Edgar, affectionately known as 'Eddie', was the son of Edward Graham, a pioneer of the Wagga Wagga district. Edgar attended Lake Albert Public School, yet finished his schooling at Wagga Wagga Public School in Gurwood Street. Upon completing his education Graham gave carpentry a try, but soon left to work on his father's farm, 'Summer Glen'.

After some years on the land he entered into the butchery trade in 1917 and established his own business, the Marble Arch Butchery. Whilst making a successful career out of the meat retail industry he also gained valuable experience in judging stock. With a passion for travel and the outdoor life he sold his business and became engaged in buying stock for a large business firm. Graham then moved into the pig stud business, establishing the famous Kinilibah Stud Farm in 1932. He exhibited pigs for a number of years at both Sydney and Melbourne Shows, taking out a number of prizes and medals.

It's difficult to ascertain Graham's motives to enter politics. However, he had always been active in rural groups and associations. From 1925-41 he served as President of the Wagga Wagga District Junior Farmers' Club. His first entrance into the political arena was when he entered State politics in 1941, becoming Minister for Agriculture and Food Production within the McKell Labor Government in 1944. Edgar served as Minister for a record ten years. During this time, he initiated many reforms in the agricultural industry. Of particular merit to Graham was the establishment of country meat killing centres, encouragement of ruminative prices for wheat and the establishment of artificial insemination programs for stock breeders.

Aside from initiatives in agriculture, Graham also worked to benefit the electorate in terms of creating education opportunities. During his term, Graham advocated the building of a teachers and technical college, and pressed for repairs to many of the primary schools in the district. He also made representations to the Minister for Health, which resulted in the addition of maternity units to Junee and Wagga Wagga hospitals, as well as improvements to the operating theatre at Wagga Wagga Base Hospital.

Graham's contribution to the agricultural industry and other rural services are well remembered with numerous memorials erected in his honour and still visible today. The Graham Block stands at Charles Sturt University, the EH Graham Centre for Agricultural Innovation is named after him, and a park was also named for him at Berry on the South Coast.

Graham remained in office until his death in 1957. On the 16 March 1962, the Posthumous Honour of Freedom of the City was conferred on this notable product of Wagga Wagga.

History compiled by Troy Whitford (c.1999).

References:
The Edgar H. Graham Papers, RW22, RW43, RW115 at CSU Regional Archives.

The inaugural general meeting of the current incarnation of the Wagga Wagga and District Historical Society took place at the Wagga Wagga Teachers' College on 17 September 1962.

The Albury Court of Petty Sessions was created on 21 December 1846 under the provisions of s.17 of the Offenders Punishment and Justices Summary Jurisdiction Act of 1832 (3 Wil.IV No.3). (1)

Matters relating to the licensing of premises for the sale of liquor were dealt with by the court until 1 March 1883 when a separate system of licensing courts was established. After 1924 the Court resumed responsibility for routine matters in relation to liquor licensing while Albury Licensing Court (1924 - 1983) and the Licensing Court of New South Wales after 1983 dealt with the more complex licensing issues. (2)

The Albury Court of Petty Sessions was abolished on 31 December 1984 when the Local Courts Act 1982 (Act No.164, 1982) abolished all Courts of Petty Sessions and replaced these with Local Courts. (3)

Endnotes

1. NSW Government Gazette No.106, 22 December 1846, p.1603.
2. Agencies 4001, 4002 and 3835.
3. Local Courts Act 1982 (Act No.164, 1982) s.9; NSW Government Gazette No.178, 21 December 1984, p.6296.

In accordance with Section 67 of the Mining Act, 1874 (37 Vic. No.13), the Albury Warden's Court was established by proclamation on 12 May 1874, and was to be held at the Albury Court House. (1)

An Act to make better provision for the regulation of Mining, 1874 (37 Vic. No.13) provided for the establishment of Warden’s Courts at places the Governor determined. (2) The Courts were Courts of Record and the Wardens had the power to issue summonses and warrants. (3)

The Courts had original jurisdiction over the claims concerning a) the possession or occupation of Crown Land by virtue of a miner’s right or mineral lease of license; b) recovery of land, race, drain. dam or reservoir abandoned or forfeited under an Act or regulation and the right to any profits; c) the use, enjoyment and sale of water due to holding a miner’s right or mineral lease or license; d) trespass or damage to property, unlawful abstraction of water and the exclusion of any person from use and enjoyment of water; e) debt or damages consequent to any contract or agreement relating to gold or mineral mining; f) claims to gold and minerals mined; g) contracts and partnerships formed to mine gold or minerals; h) contributions to working expenses or mines; mortgages or assignments of land used for mining purposes i) boundaries of mining leases; j) possession and occupation of mining leases; and any other disputes arising out of the right to mine on Crown Land. (4) The decision of a Warden’s Court was final if the sum in dispute was £50 or less.

The hearings of the Warden’s Court commenced with a summons being issued to the defendant. The summons was to clearly describe the matter in dispute. The case was heard in the presence of all interested parties. (5) Either party could request that two Mining Assessors be present at the hearing or the Warden could recommend this prior to the hearing. A fee was required to be paid for the attendance of the Assessors. (6) The Warden could, on the request of either party hold a matter aside in order to forward a question in the form of a ‘special case’ to the Supreme Court of New South Wales. (7)

Defendants could pay the amount in dispute in addition to the fee for the lodgement of the complaint prior to the matter coming to court and the hearing could be dispensed with. (8) If the case did not concern a demand for money or damages at the discretion of the Warden and with the consent of the parties it could be heard summarily (without formal proceedings). The decision of the Warden in these cases was final. (9)

Each Warden was to maintain a Register of Complaints listing all of the matters which came before him. The entries were to be arranged in order of appearance and to be numbered consecutively. The Register was to include the names of the parties with their last known address, a summary of the dispute including amount if money was sought. Cases heard summarily were to be included in the Register. A minute recording the decision of the Court was entered into the Register whether a full hearing was conducted or the case was held summarily. (10)

If either party to the dispute was order to pay money to the services of bailiffs, police and other law enforcement officers could be used to enforce payment. (11) Appeal was available from decisions of the Warden’s Court (other than those for which Warden’s decision was final) to the District Courts in its Mining jurisdiction. In order to gather evidence and to ensure that justice was done the Warden could seize gold, minerals or earth, enter an adjacent claim, make an injunction or order the deposit of gold. (12)

An Act to legalise mining on Private Lands, 1894 (57 Vic. No.32) extended the jurisdiction, powers and authorities of Mining Wardens beyond Crown Land. (13) In particular Wardens could authorise those in possession of miners’ rights or mineral leases to examine the surfaces of privately owned land. (14) The Wardens heard claims relating to the compensation of the owners or occupants of property if they were unsatisfied with the amount determined by Mining Appraisers. (15)

The Mining Laws Amendment Act, 1896 (60 Vic. No.40) further enunciated the responsibilities of the Warden to include determining whether the land entered for mining purposes was suitable for the mineral concerned; (16) discretion to set a fee payable to the owner for entry to property; (17) conducting inquiries to assess the extent of surface damage and the amount of compensation to be paid prior to the commencement of mining operations; (18) assessing the market value of land resumed for mining purposes. (19)

The Justices Act, 1902 (Act No.27, 1902) set up a process for appeal to the Supreme Court against the decisions of a Warden’s Court when a party believed that there was a mistake in interpretation of law. (20)

Appeal against the assessment of resumed land could be made to the Supreme Court where the appellate court consisted of a Supreme Court Judge and two assessors one appointed by the Minister and the other by the owner of the land. (21)

The Mining Act 1973 (Act No.42, 1973) added to the powers of the rulings of Wardens including the right to rule that any money be paid in instalments (22) and for the Warden to ensure that the rulings of the court be put into effect including that property is delivered to the rightful owner; the party at fault ceases using water and similar instructions. (23)

The Mining (Amendment) Act, 1976 (Act No.27, 1976) gave the Warden the extra responsibility of determining the legitimacy of claims by holding an inquiry and reporting to the Mining registrar. (24)

The Mining (Amendment) Act, 1980 (Act No.81, 1980) substituted the word ‘property’ for ‘race, drain, dam, reservoir, water, machinery or easement’ the terminology which had been use in the various Mining Acts since 1874. (25)

The office of Mining Warden was continued by the Mining Act, 1992 (Act No.29, 1992).

The office of Mining Warden was usually held in conjunction with other offices including Police Magistrate or Clerk of Petty Sessions, but the court was a separate legal identity.

On 7 April 2009, all of the Warden’s Courts were abolished under the Court and Crimes Legislation Further Amendment Act 2008 (Act No.107, 2008). (26) The jurisdiction conferred on the Warden’s Courts and the Wardens by the Mining Act 1992 (Act No.29, 1992) was transferred to the Land and Environment Court. (27)

Endnotes
(1) NSW Government Gazette No.112, 12 May 1874, pp.1460-1461.
(2) Mining Regulation Act, 1874 s.67.
(3) Ibid. s.68.
(4) Ibid. s.69.
(5) Ibid. s.70
(6) Ibid. s.76.
(7) Ibid. s.79.
(8) Ibid. s.73.
(9) Ibid. s.71.
(10) Ibid. s.72.
(11) Ibid. s.84.
(12) Ibid. ss.85-89.
(13) Mining on Private Lands Act, 1894 s.36.
(14) Ibid. s.8.
(15) Ibid. ss.16-17 and 20.
(16) Mining Laws Amendment Act, 1896 s.2(a).
(17) Ibid. s.2 (b).
(18 Ibid. s.2 (d).
(19) Ibid. s.4.
(20) Justices Act, 1902 s.101.
(21) Mining Act, 1906 s.159.
(22) Mining Act, 1973 s.141.
(23) Ibid. s.142.
(24) Mining (Amendment) Act, 1976 Schedule 7 (2) New Section 178a of the Mining Act, 1973.
(25) Mining (Amendment) Act, 1980 Schedule 8 (1) (a) Amending Section 144 (1) of the Mining Act, 1973.
(26) Courts and Crimes Legislation Further Amendment Act, 2008 Schedule 19 (54) Amending Schedule 6 of the Mining Act 1992; Commencement Proclamation under the Courts and Crimes Legislation Further Amendment Act 2008 (Act No.107, 2008), published NSW Legislation Website (2009-112), 3 April 2009, Explanatory note.
(27) Ibid. Commencement proclamation, Explanatory note.

No definitive date exists for the creation of the Albury Crown Lands Agent's Office, however the appointment of the first Crown Land Agent for the District of Albury (H.S. Elliott) was announced in the NSW Government Gazette on 19 December 1861. (1)

Both the Crown Lands Alienation Act, 1861 (25 Vic. No. 1, 1861) and the Crown Lands Occupation Act, 1861 (25 Vic. No. 2, 1861) which set out the duties of land agents received assent on 18 October, 1861. The former dealt with the sale of land. The duties of a land agent under this Act included:
(a) accepting written applications for conditional purchases of land between 40 and 120 acres (2)
(b) receiving deposits of 25% of the purchase price (3)
(c) determining by lot the successful purchaser (if two or more applications are made for the same land) (4)
(d) recording particulars of applications for provisional purchases into a book (5)
(e) forwarding particulars of applications to 'the proper officer of government' each week. (6)
(f) arranging refunds if a purchaser withdrew from a conditional purchase of unsurveyed land within one year of application (7)
(g) Certifying occupancy and improvements to conditionally purchased land final purchase of the land (8)
(h) Making land available to other purchasers if the deposit has not been paid (9)
(I) recording in a book all sales made by him under the Act. (10)

Under the Crown Lands Alienation Act, 1861 the Land Agent:
(a) received payments of renewals of leases (11)
(b) Converted leases under the Crown Land Regulations, 1848 to those under the Crown Lands Alienation Act, 1861 (12)
(c) arranged leases for land which was not bid for at auction (13)

Regulations under the Acts were published in pamphlet form and were available from 15 November, 1861 (14)

The Crown Lands Acts on 1861 were repealed by An Act to regulate the Alienation Occupation and Management of Crown Lands and for other purposes, 1884 (48 Vic. No.18, 1884) which retained Land Agents whose duties were prescribed by the Act and the Regulations in pursuance of the Act published on 2 January, 1885. Agents, however increasingly became officers of the Local Land Boards.

Land Agents were to:
(1) keep separate registers for - Conditional Purchases, Improvement Purchases in Gold-fields, Conditional Leases, Homestead Leases, Purchases under Preferment Right, After auction purchases of leases and other matters respectively. The registers were to contain particulars of applications, deposits and declarations and kept in the form prescribed by the Minister.
(2) Precisely date all forms handed to him
(3) Forward all forms received by him to the Local Land Board Office each Monday
(4) Transmit funds received by him to the Colonial Treasurer in accordance with regulations for collectors of Revenue
(5) Display lists of applications for Conditional Purchases, Conditional Leases and homestead leases prominently in his office for 14 days after their receipt
(6) Receive all applications for purchases and leases if made on the correct form and accompanied by the appropriate fee. If he believed it was out or order he was required to advise the client verbally and to make a note for the Land Board for determination
(7) Verify alterations an applications
(8) Be present at the office in the prescribed hours as advised in the NSW Government Gazette and during this time to give information to clients without charge. (15)

From 1927 Land Agents under the Crown Lands, Closer Settlemement, Returned Soldiers Settlement and Western Lands Acts were registered by the Land and Environment Court. Six months after the proclamation of the Act it was illegal to work as an Agent unless registered. (16)

End Notes:
(1) NSW Government Gazette, 20 December 1861, pg.2706.
(2) Crown Lands Alienation Act, 1861 (25 Victoria Act No. 1) s. 13
(3) Ibid.
(4) Ibid
(5) Ibid. s. 15
(6) Loc. Cit.
(7) Ibid. s. 16
(8) Ibid. s. 18
(9) Ibid. s. 26
(10) Ibid. s. 27
(11) Crown Lands Occupation Act, 1861 s. 12 (3)
(12) Ibid. s. 12 (4)
(13) Ibid. s. 12(12)
(14) NSW Government Gazette 15 November, 1861 p. 2446
(15) Regulations made in pursuance of the Crown Lands Act of 1884 paragraphs 6-12 Duties of Land Agents
(16) Land Agents Act, 1927 (Act No 3, 1927) s. 4

The Albury District Court was established on 9 December 1858 within the Southern District, utilising the boundaries of the Albury Police District. (1)

The District Court Act of 1858 (22 Vic No 18) was assented to on 12 November 1858. This Act established District Courts to replace Courts of Requests and had jurisdiction in civil cases where the values of the property involved did not exceed £200. (2)

The District Court performed the function of an intermediate Court between the Small Debts and Supreme Courts. Sittings occured at least twice each year in major country towns. Cases were normally heard by a Judge but either party could call for the empanelment of a jury if the amount in dispute exceeded £100. The Court's jurisdiction covered equity, probate, some divorce proceedings referred to it by the Supreme Courts and some common law matters where the amount in dispute was below £6000 or below £400 if land title was involved. Appeal, where available, was to the Appellate Jurisdiction of the Supreme Court decisions of the Supreme Court were over those actions cognisable on the common law side of the Supreme Court. (3)

The District Court Act 1973 (Act No 9, 1973), which came into effect on 1 July 1973 (4), abolished the existing District Courts and Courts of Quarter Sessions and the District Court was reconstituted as a single Court with both criminal and civil jurisdiction throughout New South Wales. (5)

Endnotes
(1) NSW Government Gazette, 9 December 1858, p.2173
(2) NSW Government Gazette, 12 November 1858, p.1899
(3) Official Yearbook of NSW, 1966. pp 380-1
(4) NSW Government Gazette, 8 June 1973, p. 2158
(5) The District Courts Act, 1973 s. 8 and s.9

In accordance with Section 67 of the Mining Act, 1874 (37 Vic. No.13), the Ten-Mile Creek Warden’s Court was established by proclamation on 12 May 1874, and was to be held at the Ten-Mile Creek Police Station. (1)
In 1880, the Ten-Mile Creek Court of Petty Sessions was renamed Germanton “that being the present designation of the town and parish”. Therefore, the Ten-Mile Creek Warden’s Court also was later known as Germanton Warden’s Court. (2)
On 30 November 1915, Germanton Warden’s Court was renamed Holbrook Warden's Court [I]. (3)
The Holbrook Warden’s Court [I] was abolished with the Holbrook Mining Division of the Tumut and Adelong Mining District on 24 April 1942. (4)
In accordance with Section 131 of the Mining Act, 1906 (Act No.49, 1906) (as amended), the Holbrook Warden's Court was again established by proclamation on 13 December 1946. (5)
The Holbrook Warden's Court [II] was abolished with the Holbrook Mining Division of the Tumut and Adelong Mining District on 1 December 1970. (6)

Endnotes
(1) NSW Government Gazette No.112, 12 May 1874, pp.1460-1461.
(2) NSW Government Gazette No. 356, 3 September 1880, p.4554; Geographical Names Board Website, http://www.gnb.nsw.gov.au/name_search/extract?id=MaIOZxrXGH, Geographical Names Register Extract, (cited 2 September 2009); Greater Hume Shire Council Website, http://www.greaterhume.nsw.gov.au/VistOurShire/Holbrook/tabid/98/98/Defa... (cited 3 September 2009).
(3) NSW Government Gazette No.219, 8 December 1915, p.7382.
(4) NSW Government Gazette No.64, 24 April 1942, p.1456.
(5) NSW Government Gazette No.138, 13 December 1946, p.2842.
(6) NSW Government Gazette No.153, 27 November 1970, pp.4793-4795.

The New Zealand Loan and Mercantile Agency was first registered in April 1865. (1)
A branch office was opened in Wagga Wagga in September 1922 after absorbing the firm of Dill and Watson and was located in Gurwood Street.(2) The branch office closed in 1927 and a new firm under the title of Mackie, Docker and Co. became the agents of New Zealand Loan and also took over the offices in Gurwood Street. (3)
A new branch office was opened in Wagga Wagga on 26 December 1946 after the company acquired the business of Tapscott, Thorne and Co. (4)

Endnotes
(1) Australian National University Archives, New Zealand Loan and Mercantile Agency Company Limited
(2) The Sydney Stock and Station Journal, 29 Sep 1922, pg.13
(3) The Daily Advertiser, 4 Jun 1927, pg.4
(4) The Farmer and Settler, 20 Dec 1946, pg.15

In May 1925, Rod Hore purchased an interest in the real estate firm of Thomas Flanagan and Co. and the business began trading as Flanagan and Hore. Hore and CW Macintosh took over in October 1928. The offices of Hore and Macintosh were located in Fitzmaurice Street, opposite the Wagga Wagga Post Office, probably within the Australian Hotel Buildings.
Mr JB Docker purchased the interests of CW Macintosh from 1 July 1934, however the firm only changed its name to Hore and Docker from 1 January 1947.

A new Land Board District with a Head Office at Cootamundra was established by removing land from districts controlled by the Forbes, Goulburn and Wagga Wagga Land Boards.

Timothy Andrew Fischer was born on 3 May 1946, in Lockhart, New South Wales (NSW), Australia. Born to Julius Ralph Fischer and Barbara Mary Fischer, Fischer was educated at Boree Creek Public School and then at Xavier College in Melbourne, Victoria. He continued to military service at the Officer Training Unit (OUT), Scheyville and graduated in December, 1966. On 16 November 1992, he married Judy Brewer and survived by 2 sons.

From January 1967 to March 1969, Fischer served as 2nd Lieutenant with the 1st Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment, which served in the Vietnam War. Following his discharge from the Australian Army as a Vietnam War veteran and rank of 2nd Lieutenant, he became a farmer at Boree Creek.

Fischer served as an Australian diplomat and politician, who held a number of parliamentary positions in national and local government. Initially starting as an active member of the Country Party, now known as the National Party of Australia, NSW or NSW Nationals, he continued to serve as a House of Representative Member for Sturt (1971-1980), Murray (1981-1984) and Farrer (1981-2001). In 1990, Fischer was appointed as the 9th leader of the National Party. From 1996 to 1999, Fischer was elected to serve as both Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Trade in the Howard Government. He continued in office, from 2009 to 2012, serving as an Australian Ambassador to the Holy See.

Fischer held memberships at the Corowa Golf Club, Lockhart ex-Serviceman’s Club, Albury Commercial Club, Livestock Gain Producers Association, Rotary and the Returned Serviceman’s League.

Timothy Andrew Fischer died on 22 August 2019, in Albury, NSW.

Keith J. Swan's contribution to our regional history has been by far the most significant to date. An Honours graduate (1950) with a Master of Arts from Sydney University (1958), Swan was awarded an honorary doctorate from Charles Sturt University in April 1995. Before his death in September 1996, Swan charted the region's history in thirteen books and monographs as well as many articles.
Commissioned by the Wagga Wagga City Council, Swan published perhaps his best known work, A History of Wagga Wagga, in 1970. The book was reviewed as an original and pioneering piece of local history, since it was one of the first studies to address Aboriginal history prior to white settlement. He also edited and contributed to a book entitled Historians at Work in which he highlighted the methodology involved in writing and researching regional histories.
Swan began his teaching career in this region in 1950 at the newly established Wagga Wagga Teachers' College. Following the formation of the Riverina College of Advanced Education, Swan was appointed senior lecturer in history in 1972, and became Acting Dean of the School of Business and Liberal Studies one year later.
His contribution to the tertiary education sector was recognised in the 1974 New Year Honours (BEM) and a lecture theatre dedicated in his name on Charles Sturt University's Riverina campus. Whilst working as a professional historian and academic, Swan re-established the Wagga Wagga and District Historical Society in 1962. He subsequently served as President and initiated the Society's archival collection.
Swan's collecting initiatives continued with the suggestion that the College form a Riverina Collection of archival material and printed sources to complement regional research and teaching. Following the suggestion by the College Principal Cliff Blake, Swan accepted a consultancy and oversaw the Collection's development. Accompanied by his wife, Vera Swan, who was also a librarian for the College and equally responsible for the Collection's germination, Swan visited a number of archive and library sites in the US, Canada and the UK during 1977 and 1978. Upon his return, he recommended to the College Council that the Collection be split and managed separately, with the printed material forming the basis of the Margaret Carnegie Collection of Australiana, and the archival material kept and housed in the College's new Riverina Archives.

Compiled by James Logan and Troy Whitford.

The Wagga Wagga Free City Library was officially opened on 24 May 1946 by the NSW Director-General of Education, Mr JG McKenzie. Miss Jean Hay was appointed the first librarian, with aproximately 5000 books in her care. The majority of the book collection was from the Wagga School of Arts Library. The remainder was purchased from the NSW State Library.

Ernest Henningham moved to Wagga Wagga from Sydney and joined James Fiddes in his photography business for about three years before branching out on his own in 1888. He built his photographic studio on the western side of Fitzmaurice Street, Wagga Wagga, very close to the Wollundry Lagoon Bridge. (1)
Henningham died in 1949, aged 49 years. His son, Geoffrey returned to Wagga in 1924 to take over his father's business. (2)

(1) Wagga Wagga Advertiser, 30 October 1888, https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/101950780.
(2) Daily Advertiser, 18 October 1924, https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/143347703

Wagga Wagga District Hospital opened on 1 July 1856 and was situated in a slab cottage on the sandhill in Kincaid Street. In 1859, land was granted to the Hospital Committee to erect a new building on the corner of Tarcutta and Johnston Streets. By 1900, the hospital had outgrown this land and looked to rebuild on the edge of the township. In 1910 the hospital opened on its new site at the corner of Edward Street and Albury Road (later, Docker Street). In 1938 the name of the hospital changed to the Wagga Wagga Base Hospital.
In 2016 it was briefly named the Wagga Wagga Rural Referral Hospital before once again becoming the Wagga Wagga Base Hospital in February 2018.

Dr Egbert Florance, a well-known member of the Cootamundra community, spent 25 years looking after the health concerns of the residents of his adopted district. He arrived in Cootamundra about 1893 and ran his practice there until his death in 1928 at the age of 84 years.

Egbert was born in Chester, England, on March 19, 1845, the son of Dr William Florance, the Medical Officer for the Chester and Hollyhead Railway Company in England. William emigrated from London to Australia and arrived in Melbourne aboard the “California” in October 1853. Egbert and his seven siblings arrived in Geelong with their mother Eliza aboard the “Maria Hay” on 17 August 1855, two years after his father arrived in Victoria.

In 1861, at the age of sixteen years, Egbert stowed away on a small brig headed for Dunedin, New Zealand. He later claimed his medical career began when he billeted with Dr W Jackson. Prior to a 50-bed wooden hospital being built in 1863, Dr Jackson started a tent hospital, the first in Dunstan in the Otago Region of New Zealand. Egbert looked after patients and assisted in operations.

In 1863, Egbert volunteered during the Maori War and was appointed to the 3rd Regiment, Waikato Militia, Company No.8. In 1864, Cambridge on the Waikato River was founded and Egbert remained there seventeen months before he resigned from the Regiment having taken part in a number of confrontations with the Maori people.

Egbert returned to Australia at some point and married Leila Gertrude Paton in 1874 at Geelong, Victoria, and went to Avenal, then Mooroopna, to work as a doctor. In about 1881, Egbert and his family went to the United States where he enrolled in the School of Medicine at Pennsylvania University. He graduated as a Doctor of Medicine on 1 May 1884 with an Honourable Mention, having written a thesis on Snake Bite.

The Florance family returned to Australia and Egbert opened practices in Bungendore [1884], Cooma [1885-1887], Bungendore again [May 1888-1890], and Braidwood [1890-1893]. He went to practice in Cootamundra from 1893 until his death in 1928.

Compiled by June Dietrich.

References:
The Florance Family Collection, RW253 at CSU Regional Archives;
The Australian Medical Pioneers Index;
The Victorian Gazette Pharmaceutical List;
The University of Pennsylvania, catalogue and announcements, 1884-1885.

James Fiddes ran a furnituture store, with an attached photographic studio, on the western side of Fitzmaurice Street between Johnston Street and the Wollundry Lagoon (1873 - 1906).

The Quilter family owned properties called 'Claris Park' and Yaralla' in the Junee area from the late 1800s.

The Riverina Movement was launched on the banks of Wagga Wagga beach on 28 February 1931, when 10, 000 people gathered in an anti-government rally aimed principally at NSW Premier J. T. Lang (1876-1975). Representatives from across the Riverina, including leading pastoralists, graziers, businessmen and politicians joined an army of local protesters, and heard Charles Hardy jnr (1898-1941), leader and chief organiser, deliver an ultimatum to both State and Federal Governments that was, in their eyes, long overdue. In summary, the ultimatum demanded immediate reduction in taxation and financial relief to primary producers. It also stipulated that if neither government acted by 31 March, a referendum would be held deciding the right of Riverina to determine its own affairs.

Much of the enthusiasm at the rally was in support of the charismatic Hardy jnr, who, at aged 33, possessed a magnetic personality and a charm which appealed to the emotions of country people. Born in Wagga Wagga in 1898, Hardy jnr worked at his family's firm, a successful building company, C. Hardy & Co., in Wagga Wagga, which he took over after his father died in 1934. Outside work Hardy jnr took a keen interest in politics, forming the Riverina Development League in 1928, joining the United Australia Association in 1930, and becoming leader of the Riverina Movement a year later.

The success of the river bank rally was repeated in Narrandera a week later. This time 5,000 people attended to hear the same resolutions carried with equal enthusiasm. In the following months other meetings were staged at Deniliquin, Hay, Tocumwal and Jerilderie, which prompted Smith's Weekly to comment: "the countryside is blazing more and more with dangerous passions of resentment against city politicians".

Country people turned on Premier Lang soon after his 1930 plan to repudiate interest repayments from overseas loans valued at just over £950, 000. Lang was already under fire for his mismanagement of the NSW economy. Excessive taxation, mass unemployment and a fall in world prices for primary products only exacerbated the situation in country areas. Lang's repudiation proposal soon became, what biographer Bede Nairn described as, "the epicentre of a social and political earthquake" which brought to the fore a flurry of right-wing, anti-Lang, anti-Labor and anti-Communist forces.

One week after the Narrandera rally about 200 delegates met again and formulated a policy to place the Riverina Movement on a more permanent footing. Hardy jnr had already softened his stance on action. He was no longer advocating secession. He also downplayed the idea that the Riverina would break away and form its own state. What Hardy jnr did want was to abolish all state governments and replace them with self-governing provincial councils. The New England Movement, which had been active since the 1920s, rejected the provincial plan, and instead, continued to push for new statism in the north. Over the following months, Hardy came to blows with the New England Movement leaders on just what model would suit provincial and regional NSW should both regions break away from the rest of the state.

As the 31 March approached, neither State nor Commonwealth Governments seemed to act on the resolutions set forth at the riverbank rally. Riverina Movement leaders now feared that if they did not carry out the threat of secession they would lose support. Some had little idea of how they were going to carry out this task when the time came. The date did arrive, and the movement failed to act. Inevitably, by early April support for the movement began to wane.

By July 1931, up to 60, 000 had signed a petition asking for the abolition of state parliament and the creation of provincial units. In September, a deputation of fifteen men from the Riverina Movement, including Hardy jnr, presented the petition to the Prime Minister, James Scullin (1876-1953). A month later, Scullin resurfaced and denounced the petition, much to the disappointment of Hardy jnr and his fellow new staters in New England. By this stage, the Riverina Movement had already joined forces with the New England, Western and Monaro-South Coast movements as the United Country Movement (UCM), to press for reforms and to establish a political base. Shortly afterwards, consensus was reached between the regional movements to merge the UCM with the Country Party. Not all within the Riverina Movement were happy. For many, the politicisation of the UCM represented a step back from its anti-political idealism.

Meanwhile, the atmosphere in Sydney by early 1932 had become tense. After Lang announced that NSW would be half a million pounds short of meeting its interest commitments, the new Commonwealth government, made up of the conservative-led United Australia Party (UAP), introduced legislation to recover moneys from the State's revenue. Lang contested this in the High Court in April, but the legislation was found valid. Lang responded by locking the doors of the State Treasury, preventing the Commonwealth from viewing its official records. He also tried to appeal to the Privy Council, but to no avail. The State's finances seemed to be on the verge of complete collapse. As a desperate measure to put the State's finances back on track, Lang rushed through parliament a bill imposing a 10 per cent capital Levy on all mortgages. Business leaders were up in arms. A petition was sent to the NSW Governor, Sir Philip Game (1876-1961), pleading that he reserve his assent on the grounds that it would destroy the business community. In response to Lang's recovery bill, the Commonwealth passed legislation to nullify it. On 10 May, Lang issued a circular to all NSW government officials aimed at ensuring that State public moneys be withheld from the Commonwealth. This was the final nail in the coffin for Lang. Governor Game learnt of the circular on 12 May, and the next day, dismissed Lang from office on the grounds that the premier had issued and refused to withdraw a circular which contravened Commonwealth law. A Provisional Government made up of the UAP and Country Party was also formed, and within weeks things settled down.

In August 1933, under the new Provisional Government of NSW, a Royal Commission was convened to inquire into, and report on areas of New South Wales suitable for new states, and to ascertain the opinions of electors in those areas proposing self-government. The Commission met on 18 October, and heard evidence from each movement for approximately fourteen months. When the Commission released its findings in early-1935, it found that three areas, including southern New South Wales (Riverina), were suitable as states, and recommended that a referendum be held to determine the voice of the people. Nothing was done. The NSW Government did not act.

With Lang out of the picture, much of the enthusiasm and idealism, which was witnessed in the early days of the Riverina Movement, had well and truly disappeared. Once the Riverina Movement was subsumed by the Country Party, its programme tended to follow more orthodox lines of piecemeal improvements.

Compiled by : James Logan.

Sources : Blacklow, Nancy, Regional Support for Riverina New State Movements in the 1920s and 1930s, BA (Honours) Thesis, Charles Sturt University, 1992; __, "'Riverina Roused': representative support for the Riverina New States Movements of the 1920s and 1930s", Journal of the Royal Australian Historical Society: Special Riverina Issue, Vol. 80, Parts 3 and 4, December 1994, pp. 176-194; Ellis, Ulrich, The Country Party: a political and social history of the party in New South Wales. F. W. Cheshire: Melbourne, 1958; Moore, Andrew, The Secret Army and the Premier: conservation paramilitary organisations in New South Wales 1930-32. NSW University Press: Kensington, 1989; Morris, Sherry, Wagga Wagga: a history. The Council of the City of Wagga Wagga, 1999.