A story long believed to be false by researchers in convict history may have been proved true by an amature historian. The English teacher who is based in Japan, along with a volunteer manuscript reading group translated a c1830s description of the arrival of ship Cyprus to the Japanese coast. The crew were a group of convicts who had hijacked the brig as it was on it's way from Hobart to Macquarie Harbour in 1829. Together, they traveled as far as China, with their journey being recorded in later documents from their trail for piracy.

For more information, please see the following link:
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2017/may/28/australian-convict-pirates-in-japan-evidence-of-1830-voyage-unearthed?platform=hootsuite

Navin Officer Heritage Consultants (NOHC) archaeologists have begun work unearthing some of the Canberra region’s early European settlement - a lost nineteenth century schoolhouse in Googong. The dig is being run by Googong Township Pty Ltd in partnership with NOHC and is part of the extensive environmental and heritage survey works being undertaken at Googong. NOHC project Excavation Director and ANU archaeology graduate Dr Rebecca Parkes said the school was a missing piece of local history.

“The school operated into the 20th century but there are very few historical records for it and nobody could remember where it was, so it was lost. We’re hoping the project gives us a nice window into rural life in that period, as there has been very little archaeological evidence found from that period in this area before.”

People are invited to view the archaeological site. Spots are strictly limited and must be booked in advance.

All visitors must wear enclosed flat shoes and be able to comfortably walk along a gently undulating farm trail for approx 800m-1km from the meeting spot to the site (10 minute walk), where they will receive a talk and tour of the site of approximately 30 minutes before returning to their cars. The event is subject to weather. Children must be under the care of a responsible adult at all times.

What:  Archaeological site visit of Googong's first school c.1880's.

When: Saturday 24 June 2017. Session times are strictly 10am, 11am, 12pm and 1pm. A max of 20 people can be booked in each session. Sessions are one hour each.

Registrations: Bookings are strictly limited and may be made via email to enquiries@googong.net. Please be sure to include your preferred session time, your full name and mobile number, and the full names of individuals in your party. We will confirm your booking via email and include details of where to meet.

The Broken Hill City Council are taking steps to discover if the city is able to be added to the World Heritage Register, following it being recently added to the National Heritage Register in 2015. Through the potential listing, the Council aims to diversify the economy in the area, by increasing tourism and tackling the population decline that it is currently experiencing.

For more information, please see the following links:
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-06-12/push-to-get-broken-hill-on-world-heritage-city-list/8610180?platform=hootsuite

http://www.environment.gov.au/cgi-bin/ahdb/search.pl?mode=place_detail;place_id=105861

Image: Broken Hill Town Hall, sourced from the National Heritage Listing website, as above.