Night of culture |
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by The Tintinara hall was seen in a new light on Friday when it provided a backdrop for a night of literature and art. More than 400 current and former residents, some of whom had travelled from as far afield as China, America and all corners of Australia, enjoyed a feast of the senses that will go down in local history as "one of the best". Along with gaining a taste of the region's cultural history, they also savoured the best of local food and wine. The evening was sponsored by the Tintinara Hotel and local vineyard, Alderseys, who proudly launched their first white wine, a Semillon Chardonnay Riesling that perfectly complemented the endless platters of finger food. When entering the hall guests were hit with a feeling of nostalgia, not only in seeing familiar faces, but also with the captivating displays representing the multifaceted history of the district.
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Past and present residents awaiting the book launch
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Agricultural progress from the horse and plough through to huge tractors, the importance of sport, and the changing face of transport and decreasing reliance on rail were just some of the images portrayed. The evening featured the much awaited launch of the Tintinara, Culburra and district history book, Shut Six Gates. The publication represented the culmination of three years hard work for the dedicated history book committee, led by chairperson, Melody Twelftree and executive members, Ros Harkness and Alyson Prosser. The group was formed in 2003 after a history group meeting where Audrey Tucker mentioned it would be a good idea to update Pat Twelftree's earlier Tintinara history booklet. It soon became obvious that it would be easier to write a completely new book, so the search for an author began, with Elizabeth Nicholls being the successful applicant. Elizabeth's brief was to collate the personal stories and anecdotes of residents into an easy to read history book, a task that consumed the lives of committee members and author from the start.
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Author Elizabeth Nicholls
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Book Committee members Ros Harkness, Alysson Prosser
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Melody commented that ‘push, pluck, patience, prudence and perseverance’, the five qualities an early contributor said were needed to survive in the 90 Mile Desert, were the same attributes needed to write the book. The choice of title that remained a well kept secret in the lead-up to centenary celebrations, was finally revealed at the launch. But why “Shut Six Gates”? The answer to this was that…it’s short; it’s catchy and it’s original, and the book committee felt it would also pay tribute to Pat Twelftree and other pioneer women. In her memoirs Pat described the problems and heartache of a city girl living in the 90 Mile Desert, and how when she visited her friend and nearest neighbour she had to ‘…open and shut six gates to get there….’. Elizabeth, who was commissioned to write the book in January 2004, is a published author and Jabuk farmer. From the start she knew there were mysteries to be solved and enjoyed discovering the intricacies as they unfolded. The book ended up-being much bigger than intended, reflecting the amount of information collected by the historical society - with so many stories that couldn't be left out. "I am very happy for the community itself, as people have put a lot of work into the book, gathering much material over the years", the author said. "They have done a marvellous job and I am pleased the community now have their history down in black and white. The book follows on nicely from Pat Twelftree’s history of the Tintinara District.” She urged everyone who had an affinity with the district to "Enjoy a passing glance of your own history". Shut Six Gates is the story of hard times and struggle, sacrifice and indomitable spirit not only of the early European pioneers, but also the local Aboriginal population, with the scarcity of water having made life difficult. Melody thanked the many people and organisations who helped financially with the preparation of the book, especially the Coorong District Council, The Lions, Action and Basketball Clubs, the RSL, and private contributors who pledged large sums of money to enable this mammoth project to come to its natural conclusion. Special thanks were extended to the Book Committee, Ros Harkness and Alyson Prosser, as well as her husband Doug for their hard work and support. Much loved third generation former resident, and citizen of the year, John Filmer, launched the book. He spoke of the changing face of agriculture, and the hardships faced in the past. John described how men and women cleared the land with horse and plough, using half the crop to feed the horse team and grubbing stumps and yaccas by hand. John also spoke of the loneliness for women and the dangers of isolation. He wondered how today's young farmers who enjoy the conveniences of modern technology; electricity, cars, telephones, internet, and tractors with computer guidance and air-conditioning, would have coped in those times. Similarly he questioned if the early pioneers could have ever comprehended how far agriculture would come in one century. After congratulating all involved in presenting the district with such a valuable historical record, John unwrapped the book, and "Shut Six Gates - A History of Tintinara, Culburra and District" was officially launched. |
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John Filmer launching the book |
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