HISTORICAL HOUSE VISIT
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Last Saturday afternoon over thirty people took the opportunity to visit the home of Jay and Kerry Gribbin, once the Police Barracks in Gunning’s early days. The house was the subject of an episode of ABC TV’s series “Who’s Been Sleeping in my House” and this was played during the visit. Even for those who had previously seen the episode, it was very atmospheric to watch it in the grounds where it had been filmed some four years earlier. What a picture was painted of turbulent times on the frontier back in 1842 with bushrangers, settlers and felons galore.
Jay and Kerry together with Keith Brown were able to fill in much of the background information including what had not made it into the episode. This included invaluable observations by a heritage specialist from Tasmania who did a quick sketch on a handy lunch bag, of the house as it would have been in earlier times. This sketch is now a treasured memento of what was an intense week of filming. Sammi Southwell was interviewed as her father once lived in the house but regrettably this did not make it past the editing process either.
The expert crew that carried out the archaeological dig in the grounds had been in Canberra to train AFP officers on how to professionally unearth evidence without corrupting it. One of these experts had also recently returned from giving evidence to the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia.
The Gribbins are reluctantly placing their history filled home on the market to explore pastures new. Many thanks Jay and Kerry for allowing us the opportunity to tour your home and for sharing its stories.
DUNKLEY MURDER LINK?
The episode explored the possibility that Lucretia Dunkley had been held in the police cells under the house after the murder of her husband Henry by her lover Martin Beech. However it was conclusively established that this was not the case.
The group later visited the grave of Henry Dunkley in what was the police horse paddock, later to become the Gunning sewerage works. The grave was only discovered by Gunning School pupils clearing blackberries.
The Dunkley murder has been comprehensively researched by Keith Brown and his book “The Day that Dunkley Died” is available from the Historical Society or at local outlets.
MINI TROTS
There were 165 ponies competing over the Easter weekend at the Mini Trots Championships at Gunning Showground, ranging in height about that of a St Bernard dog to 13hh. Every conceivable colour known to the equine world was on view. There were ponies that looked like shaggy forty-fours on pegs to elegant high stepping dandies. They came from far and wide including the Cain family from Logan Valley, Queensland with parents Erroll and Debra hosted at local resident Carol Sharps’ AirBnb.
The first day of competition had heats in which pony height was the only criterion. From their individual times based on a metre/second ratio the organisers worked out the handicaps for the next day. So in any one race there could be miniature ponies (no higher than 87cm), Shetlands and larger ponies of varying heights. In some cases the back marker was as much as half a track behind the start with some of the slowest ponies many metres ahead of it. The handicaps were pretty accurate, making for many an exciting finish down the home straight as the little miniatures and Shetlands gamely battled on with the much faster moving ponies weaving through the field as they closed on the finish line!
Incidentally it seemed that the smaller the pony the bigger the rig that accompanied it or am I thinking of something else!
MATURE AND RESPONSIBLE
I was surprised to find out that like the adult version of trotting and horse racing generally, there were some youthful drivers who race multiple ponies for non-driving owners. One of these is 13yo Grace Panella, who campaigned the Cain family pony McLeod’s Daughter, reaching the finals but ultimately unsuccessful in placing. At age sixteen some of these drivers graduate to become the professional drivers of the future.
Once I had stopped marvelling at the ‘cute’ factor of little kids from the age of five upwards, in cut down spiders driving various sized ponies, I started to think about what maturity, responsibility and skill these little tykes displayed. We often hear about how our children are too cosseted, too wrapped in cottonwool with too much helicopter parenting. Seeing these youngsters so competently handling their ponies certainly spoke to me about the importance of offering children the opportunity to experience challenges.
One such little tyke was Sarah Prophet from Bowen Mountain who has a place in the Guinness Book of Records as the smallest driver on record. At Gunning she was helping campaign her 9yo son Corey Shadlow with his pony Top Gear, but as a five year old she weighed a shrimp-like fifteen kilos when she was driving her pony Storm Walker. She appeared on the TV program Healthy, Wealthy and Wise.
This was the third time the Mini Trots have been held in Gunning and the organisers did a fantastic job of keeping the races running safely and in a timely fashion and providing an entertaining and informative commentary for the many who attended, whether as competitors, supporters or audience.
SPANISH GUITARIST
The program for the classical guitar recital by Spanish performer Carlos Alberto Perez on Sunday 10 April in the Gunning Courthouse at 2pm includes a number of works by Astor Piazzolla, the Argentinian tango composer and player. Also included are pieces from Roland Dyers, Stanley Meyers and one of my personal favourites “Memories of Alhambra” by Francisco Tarrega composed in 1896 in Granada.
This recital organised by the Gunning Focus Group promises to be a very special afternoon’s entertainment with two people from Western Australia already booked! For information and bookings, please phone either 4845 1566 or 0417 663 045.
SNOOKER CLUB
Awards were made at the presentation night for the Telegraph Hotel Snooker Club to the following people: snooker - Henry Patton, Mel Lawrence, Tony Smith, Steve Cosgrove, Katie Yeo and Trista Batchelor; billiards - Tony Smith, Alicia Hull, Steve Cosgrove, Eileen Smith and Mel Lawrence. Spring competition winners were Brydie Malone, Billy Dowling, Dale Smith, Steve Glover, Steve Cosgrove and Ronnie Ryan.
COMING UP
Sun 10/4 Garden Club meets @ Don Priol’s home, Info 4845 1021
Sun 24/4 Lions Markets 8am–2pm, Stalls & info John 0403 539 482
Mon 25/4 ANZAC Day, Dawn service 5.45am; 11am main service