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 Amazing contrast by iandsmith
When arriving from the north (Sydney) this building is clearly visible on the western side of the main road.
The graveyard has many memories of historical people, not least among them Hovell, of Hume and Hovell fame, one of Australia's most famous exploring teams in the early 1800's.
The Hume and Hovell expedition was one of the most important journeys of explorations undertaken in eastern Australia. In 1824 the Governor of New South Wales, Sir Thomas Brisbane, commissioned Hamilton Hume and former Royal Navy Captain William Hovell to lead an expedition to find new grazing land in the south of the colony, and also to find an answer to the mystery of where New South Wales's western rivers flowed.
The party set out from Appin, near Sydney, in October 1824 and travelled south to the Murrumbidgee River near the site of Tumut. They crossed "a noble stream" which they named the Hume (now the Murray River) near the site of Albury, and then advanced into what is now Victoria.
They proceeded south crossing the Ovens River and Goulbourn River by a route further to the east of the Hume Highway and closer to the foothills of Mount Buffalo. They reached the Great Dividing range in rugged country around Mount Disappointment by following an aboriginal track roughly along the Yea to Kinglake road. They were disturbed by aboriginal burning off and were unable to find a way through the range. They then retraced their steps to what is now the Straths Creek road at Flowerdale then moved west along Sunday Creek to Mount Piper near Broadford.
(continued) Leave a Comment
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 Is this the world's only
natural green church? by iandsmith
It's known as the St. Peter and Paul's Cathedral (two for the price of one, even better!) and inside it contains a World Heritage listed organ, its 1,500 pipes and fittings recently refurbished over a twenty year period.
Unfortunately, it is no longer a cathedral (the word means "bishop's seat") as the bishop has moved to another parish.
The building you see now was built next to a smaller one dating from 1843. Though the foundation stone was blessed in 1871, the official opening didn't happen till 1890 when the organ was installed. It is contructed from a local green diorite porphyrite stone and dressed with Marulan Sandstone. A government geologist from the time wrote " it is a fire-formed igneous rock that was intruded into the silurian sediments of the district. Its age is post Silurian and very old. It will improve in colour as years go by. It is in perfect condition as you have it, a rare rock..."
There is some rising damp currently pervading the building that is affecting some of the sandstone base and it's also being attended to.
For the record, the architects were Stombucco and Spadacini and the builders were O'Brien and Wilkie Bros.
One interesting sidelight is that part of it was built around the existing church which was then demolished and brought out through the doors of this one! Leave a Comment
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 Fancy a taste? by iandsmith
You can also have a Devonshire Tea here or even accommodate yourself in the historic buildings. Leave a Comment Directions: Just east of the main town, about 1 kilometre.
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 Goulburn's history preserved by iandsmith
This building, I assume to be the old station master's house due to its location adjacent to the railway station, is indicative of the lovely Federation style places all around Goulburn. Leave a Comment
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After Post Offices, Australia's consistently most notable buildings seem to be court houses and this is a fine example.
Planned by Colonial Architect James Barnet and opened in 1887 it is set in picturesque grounds and designed in Victorian Italianate style.
Also of interest at the rear is the old morgue, now used as a gardener's shed. Leave a Comment Address: Montague StreetDirections: Opposite Belmore Park and not far from the Tourist Information Centre
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 All this for some letters by iandsmithLeave a Comment
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Honestly there is nothing to do in Goulburn, unless you are into a massive 3 story sheep to stand and look at for 5 minutes ( unless you`re a kiwi *eyes buldge) lol.. what next?
- We have some kind of a race track out the back of someones house if you are into that ! heard it on the radio,,, lol
- 4 cheap $1 type shops
- OHHH we do have a blues and jazz festival every year.. but it`s no mosh pit,,lol
- We do have a cinema and I am not joking when I say they made 4 small rooms out of one big cinema room so now each room holds only like 20-30 people in it.... with 4 movies being showed at the same time... true,,, actually I made that sound bad it`s new renovated and is very comfortable and at only $6.50 an adult and $5.50 a child it`s value is hard to beat.. You pay 3-4 times that in a Sydney cinema and parking costs ,, it does cost a small fortune there
ANYWAY
I mean you drive past a cemetary and a maximum security prison when you drive into goulburn... is that not enough for you people??? Address: LIKE I SAID LEAVE !Directions: Canberra is only 45 minutes down the road,, KEEP DRIVING........... SOUTH... you will see the Canberra signs.......thank me later
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One thing you cannot fail to see if you're on the main road through Goulburn is the massive giant merino that supports a tourist shop inside. For over 20 years it's been an icon for the town and its artist is no less interesting.
Though born in Germany, Silvio Apponyi emigrated to Australia when he was just 18 months old. He hasn't stopped travelling since.
He got his arts degree in South Australia and got a scholarship to return to Germany, Munich specifically. Whilst in Europe he roamed various countries, taking particular interest in public sculpture and fountains.
On his return to Australia he won a number of awards and added to his resume by learning woodblock printing in Japan.
From 1994-1996 he was resident artist at Mulgara Gallery at Ayers Rock Resort.
His work has been shown in such diverse places as London, Japan and Kuala Lumpur and he has worked with many mediums other than the granite you see here. Wood, bronze and marble to name but a few.
In additon to sculpting people he has an obvious passion for Australian wildlife with pieces ranging from kookaburras and lizards to sea lions and whale's tails and 26 of his works on that theme can be seen at Woodville Gardens in South Australia.
Undoubtedly his largest and most seen work though is the giant merino at Goulburn
(see intro for pic) Leave a Comment Address: Hume highway, Gouburn
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Ta to David Clark for the following:
"Over three quarters of Australia's 136 million sheep are merinos and the Big Merino pays homage to this region's fine-wool past. The brainchild of Big Things visionaries Louis and Attila Mokany (who were also responsible for the Big Oyster at Taree, now a car yard, and the Big Prawn at Ballina), the Big Merino was modelled on a real-life, prize-winning local stud ram named Rambo from the Bullamallita Stud. And if you like your Big Things big, you can't fault this woolly mammoth for shear size – it's 15.2 metres high, 18 metres long and tips the scales at 98 tonnes.
Glenn Industries constructed the giant steel frame and covered and shaped it with wire mesh. It was then sprayed and detailed with reinforced concrete by Adelaide sculptor Silvio Apponyi. It took six months to build and in its first year attracted over 1.2 million visitors.
There was a storm of controversy a week before the opening when Canberra Times journalist Ian Warden dismissed the new ram as 'tasteless and a monstrosity', bringing a swift rebuff from local MP John Sharp. The Goulburn Post described the media madness on opening day, 20 September 1985, as a 'ram jam'. Federal Minister for Sport and Tourism John Brown presided over the official opening and said, 'Anyone who doesn't like the ram is not a true Australian.'
You can also get fleeced at the gift shop, wedged below its tail end, which is well stocked with Big Merino (and other sheep-related) memorabilia, including postcards, tea towels, coffee mugs, fridge magnets and highly prized snowdomes. Upstairs, the complex houses an educational display featuring the history of wool in Austrlaia and from there you can climb to the top level and peer out from the eyes for a 'sheep's eye' view over the town. A pair of giant testicles are also visible on the roof of the souvenir shop, upon which they discreetly lie.
Sadly, Goulburn and the Big Merino were bypassed by the freeway in 1994, but the mighty ram still draws crowds."
See my opening page for a picture. Leave a Comment
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 The Big Merino by knerten
A souvenir and gift shop specialising in sheepskin and woollen products as well as other Australian items and crafts.
An educational display featuring the history of wool and the wool industry.
A view through the sheep's eyes, albeit there's not much too see. Leave a Comment
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