Author Archives: Peter McHugh

Today, the 1st of September, marks the official beginning of Spring in the southern hemisphere, and wattles are starting to flower in the bush and in gardens around the country. Wattles feature prominently in Australian ceremonies, literature, poetry, art and song from the 1830s to the early 1900s. But until the early 1980s, three setsContinue reading “Wattle Day – First Day of Spring.”

This photo from the State Library comes in black and white as well as colour versions, so I guess it was sold as a postcard. It also features in the Leader Newspaper published on 30 August 1902. The caption says the road was recently constructed with an unemployment scheme. I clambered all over those soggyContinue reading “Black Butt – Mt Fatigue.”

Hardwood poles have always been a very high value forest product with a royalty much higher than sawlogs. In 1946 the Forests Commission produced some 250,000 lineal feet (76.2 km) of telephone and electric power poles, mostly for the Post Master General (PMG) and State Electricity Commission (SEC). From about 1947, as the power gridContinue reading “Power Poles.”

Sundial Peak in the Grampians National Park sits at the southern end of the Wonderland Range and overlooks Lake Bellfield. It was named by early settlers who noticed that the 2360-foot-high peak received the first and last rays of sun each day. In 1968, form-five students at nearby Stawell Technical School, under the guidance ofContinue reading “Sundial Peak – Grampians.”

The Sherbrooke Forest pole plot is at the southern end of Coles Ridge Track, between Belgrave and Kallista. The study plot in wet forest was paired with another site in drier bush near Winton, on the old Hume Highway. Both research plots are thought to have been established in the 1930s by Post Master GeneralContinue reading “Pole Plot – Sherbrooke Forest.”

In about 1900, experiments were conducted in England by Mr William Powell to perfect a new process of preserving wood. Mr Powell, who owned a sugar refinery in Liverpool, had noticed that the wooden staves supporting the vats on the side where the molasses was spilt lasted longer than those untouched by the solution. PonderingContinue reading “Powell Wood Process – Powelltown.”

Timber bridges demonstrate the fundamental significance that State forests played in the rapid development of the new colony of Victoria after the gold rush of 1851. Two Acts of Parliament passed in December 1880 and December 1884, authorised the construction of 89 new railway lines, more than doubling Victoria’s network to over 2,900 miles byContinue reading “Muckleford Creek Railway Bridge.”

The Army Reserve was always willing to help the Forests Commission and rural municipalities blow stuff up. In November 1976, sappers in the 7 Field Engineers Regiment (7FER) from Ringwood, plus some other engineers from Gippsland, helped the Horsham Shire remove an old wooden bridge on Bulgana Road, east of Stawell. About 63 kg ofContinue reading “More blowing stuff up.”

The Forests Commission Victoria (FCV) had a large and active engineering branch for making stuff… as well as breaking stuff… Most overseers, as well as some foresters, were trained in the use of explosives to “blow stuff up” such as removing stumps and rocks from roads. Districts usually had a small powder magazine tucked awayContinue reading “Blowing stuff up.”

Edge-notched index cards were invented in about 1896 and have holes punched around the borders. The top right-hand corner is also clipped to help stacking the deck. The holes could be clipped to search and sort information. For foresters, these cards were commonly used to identify timber samples. Using a 10X magnifying lens, or aContinue reading “The knitting needle computer.”