Author: admin
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The Ansonia Kitchen Clock
THE ANSONIA KITCHEN CLOCK. In pride of place on the kitchen mantelpiece is the Ansonia kitchen clock, now happily marking each hour and half hour with the appropriate number of gongs. The clock dates from the early twentieth century and was made by the Ansonia Clock Co., New York. This clock is the “Kirkwood’ model…
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Bill’s Horse Trough.
The Annis and George Bills horse trough at the Blacksmith’s Cottage is a survivor of a series of troughs donated by the estate of Annis and George Bills. When he died in 1927, George Bills left his estate of 80,000 pounds to ‘construct and erect and pay for horse troughs wherever they……..are desirable for the…
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The Blue Sulky.
Harness racing, or “trotting”, has long been associated with the Melton-Toolern Vale – Bacchus Marsh area. So close has this association been that when the major harness racing venue was moved from Moonee Valley, the chosen location was Melton. Tabcorp Park is now a well-known landmark on the Western Highway. Trotting tracks can still be…
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Gliders at the Cottage
The Australian Gliding Museum at the Bacchus Marsh airfield is one of the area’s little-known treasures. As part of the National Trust Heritage Month, 16th April-29th May, the Museum is mounting a display of model gliders and the history of gliding in Australia in the buildings and grounds of the historic Cottage and Forge. Come…
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Harvest Festival in the Cottage 2016
PUMPKINS, POMEGRANATES AND PENSTEMONS Harvest Festival time at the cottage was a time of produce, people and flowers. Veggie patches and gardens yielded a splash of colour to the 1850s cottage. Pumpkins bedecked the hay bales in the yard and tomatoes and pomegranates spoke of autumn and winter dishes to come. Double Delight roses and…
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Our flag has risen.
Australia Day -Tuesday, 26 January 2016 – the flag was raised. Our small ceremony was possible only through the endeavors of Alan Turner, our expert wood turner, together with the digging out and securing of the sleeve by Russ and Tony, and Geoff was our flag raiser on the day. Thank you to everyone who…
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The Flagpole felled..
Our complex had an unexpected disaster in the grounds at the end of 2015. Our flagpole lay across the Cottage’s entry pathway. At first it was thought the recent winds at the time did the damage. A wonderful local wood expert, Alan Turner (aptly named), came to the rescue. Upon his investigation, the flagpole’s tunnels…
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Christmas at Home in the Cottage.
Christmas Day has come and gone. It was just a couple of weeks when we enjoyed our special open day featuring an Aussie Christmas at Home. Christmas at the Cottage is always a special time with the rooms decorated in the old-fashioned way, using the materials to hand. Our visitors often commented upon how beautiful…
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The Cup That Cheers
Robur, Bushell’s, TyneeTips, are all names that evoke an era when tea was made with leaves and not bags. Making the tea was quite a ritual, and for special occasions (if there were visitors!) the best china was put out. We were lucky enough to receive a donation recently of two English china tea settings:…