Biological Loss of the Big Scrub, New South Wales

https://forestwoodfolkart.wordpress.com/2026/06/27/biological-loss-of-the-big-scrub-new-south-wales/

Ōtautau - Township Businesses- Central Garage, Froude's Ownership, March 2020

Prior to the current owners today (2022) Central Garage was owned by Graeme & Shirley Froude, father of present owner Keith Froude and his wife Thelma. The family have owned the garage since 1973.

These photos were taken by myself (the digitising archivist of this new community heritage project) and they were snapped during the first Covid Lockdown in early 2020 to show the effects of the pandemic on the local businesses in Ōtautau. I felt it was important as a community historian and archivist, to preserve the events of the pandemic for future generations to observe the changes in life for us all. I always say that today's events are tomorrow's history so thought I had better practise making sure that I collected as much as possible of it. I note as the garage now sports a lovely sunshine yellow paint, all the Covid posters strangely compliment the bright colour palette of the building!

Of note, as someone who worked in the vicinity of this building for around 6 years, usually the doors are open and the yard is full of vehicles being serviced. As the Covid Lockdown only allowed for "essential services" to remain open, many businesses including this one saw a large downturn in work and customers, although in rural areas like ours, this was less, due to the continuing necessity of maintaining the agricultural industry, which our district and town heavily relies on.

It is of note that this building has one of the oldest histories of any in the township. The site started off as the towns very first General Store in 1876, run by Robert Campbell for many years. It has now been made into a Motor Garage for most of it's long life, with a range of different names and owners. More can be seen about this in a prior entry on its history under CWA.159.105.010 so look out for this that.

Some of the earlier owners and garage names are recalled by Peter Campbell, a grandson of one of the town's early residents as being:
JH Thomas & Co
Norman Guise
Bob Buchanan
Western District Motors
Tom Milburn
Frank Hazlett
George McMillan
Jack Anderson
R (Bob) L Thomson
Bill Ireland
And finally the Froude family it is still currently owned by.

Information above is researched by and copyright under a CC BY Licence to “Between River & Stream”, early history of Ōtautau book, and is kindly gifted by that project to our online community archive so everyone can view it.

This account will definitely be added to, as we have had quite a few people from the district continue to donate quantities of photo and record documents to the archive, which we are extremely privileged to have been gifted to share with you all. Time constraints alone at this moment, have prevented all of these from being shared right now.

However, if you or anyone you know has got any more photos, information or accounts of this building, the varying Motor Garages run from here over the years, or on any aspects of business or community life that has taken place here, make a comment in the space provided under the image page. Please let us know if you have more records to add to these, so we all benefit. Kia ora, thank you.
Central and Western Murihiku Southland Archive via DigitalNZ

http://api.digitalnz.org/records/50737078/source

#Settlers #Agriculture #Murihiku #Pioneers #Southland #Fuel #MotorGarages #GeneralStores #TransportOrVehicles #DigitalOnlyImageInArchive

⚡️ Pioneers of Pagonia just got 1.4.0: editor upgrades and user-scenario support are live in the Steam Beta Branch. BETA.

They rebuilt map data structures, added custom objectives and narrative elements, and made global changes to the core data model to give modders more flexibility. Improvements touch Meadowsong and the base game; devs published mod samples and ask you to test and drop feedback on Steam and Discord 🎮

#SteamAndEpic #Steam #BETA #Improvements #Meadowsong #Pioneers

⚠️ Pioneers of Pagonia, the island Meadowsong is struck by a mysterious Blight and a coven of witches has appeared.

The update brings a full scenario map, 6 new building types and fresh production chains: pig farms, chicken coops, vineyards and fruit farms for wine and processing. Players will need to investigate the Blight, protect harvests and rebuild the island's economy, devs hint the witches might be tied to the disease.

#SteamAndEpic #Blight #Meadowsong #Pioneers #Pagonia #Players

🍇 Big update for Pioneers of Pagonia: the island Meadowsong is being eaten by a creeping blight, The Withering, and a mysterious coven of witches may be tied to it.

The patch adds 6 new building types, pig farms, coops, vineyards, fruit farms, plus fresh production chains and a full scenario map. Players will have to investigate the source of The Withering, protect harvests and rebuild the island's economy under constant pres...

#SteamAndEpic #Withering #Meadowsong #Pioneers #Pagonia #Players

Samuel White's Flour Mill

From a tower beside his flour mill, Samuel White could signal passing ships by semaphore and receive back the current price of flour in Melbourne before anyone else in the district knew it; by 1867 he was insolvent and bound for New Zealand, and the mill closed a decade later.

https://www.fieldstobarrels.com/posts/samuel-whites-flour-mill/

#AustralianHistory #Adelaide #LocalHistory #Heritage #Aldinga #Mills #Pioneers

The Doctor's House, Hackham

Built in 1866 and large enough to earn the nickname Folly Hall, the stone house at the corner of Main South Road and Doctor's Road at Hackham became home to a succession of district doctors — including one who never made it back to it.

https://www.fieldstobarrels.com/posts/doctors-house-hackham/

#AustralianHistory #Adelaide #LocalHistory #Heritage #Pioneers #Hackham

The Old Cave — Cellar No. 1, Reynella

The oldest surviving wine cellar in Australia is a grass-covered mound at Reynella, dug by hand into limestone in 1845. John Reynell built it the year after his first vintage; it outlasted his family, several corporate owners, and nearly 180 years of South Australian summers.

https://www.fieldstobarrels.com/posts/old-cave-cellar-reynella/

#AustralianHistory #Adelaide #LocalHistory #Heritage #Reynella #Wine #Pioneers

The Three Rifles Monument

The Three Rifles Monument at O'Halloran Hill — now part of Keane War Memorial Gardens — was built on land donated by a family that had already given a son to the war, and spent twenty-six years without its defining feature after the replacement rifles were stolen.

https://www.fieldstobarrels.com/posts/three-rifles-monument/

#AustralianHistory #Adelaide #LocalHistory #Heritage #O'halloranHill #Military #Memorials #Pioneers