17th February 2024
Compiled from the Daily Advertiser by the Wagga Wagga & District Historical Society.
25 Years Ago
- Allen Thompson, a Wagga building designer who devoted his own time to design a new home for the city’s Red Cross branch expressed disbelief that Wiradjuri Estate residents would oppose such a development.
- Lake Albert residents welcomed the axing of a controversial halfway house programme for former prisoners operated by an arm of the Anglican Church in the suburb.
- Member for Riverina, Kay Hull presented $8000 to the community care task force at Yathong Lodge to assist the Horizon Club inter-agency dementia day and respite program.
- A $5.6 million capital works project will see a dramatic increase in training facilities at Kapooka Army Base, securing a subsequent increase in recruits put through Kapooka.
- Stuart Pottie took sister city visitors, Mayor of Leavenworth, H B Weeks along with Ken and Bobby Bower and Gary Carlson for a ride on the miniature railway at the Botanic Gardens.
- School captains at Sacred Heart School for the coming year are captains Ashley Carter and Mathew Wilkinson and vice-captains, Kate Bradley, and Joshua Paul.
- Three of Wagga’s gifted gymnasts, Ben Sullivan, Paul Mulrooney and Luke Ryan are leaving for San Francisco to join another 14 Australian gymnasts competing in the Peter Vidmar International Invitational competition.
- Matthew Rava, Joe Williams, Alison Bradley, Gary Dowling, Andrew Hendry, and Lincoln Murdoch all received one of the highest awards possible, winning Blues awards at the NSW Combined Catholic Colleges Blues award presentation.
- Chairman of the Wagga Economic Development Board, Pat Brassil, said that a Very Fast Train link between Melbourne and Sydney would bring significant benefits to regional towns along its route.
- A public meeting gave Wagga’s rural residents a chance to have their say on how council spends the money it allocates for sealing rural roads.
- Police have asked the Wagga Traffic Committee to slash the speed limit from 60km/h to 40km/h in Wagga’s new-look central business district.
- Dual international, Arthur Summons led the chorus of outcry condemning the actions of North Sydney Rugby League players at a Wagga nightclub last weekend.
- The Haven board are confident they will be able to raise most of the five million dollars needed for a major upgrade of the Wendy Hucker Nursing Home.
- Trinity Senior High School maintained its recent domination of the Byrnes Shield cricket by easily accounting for Wagga Technology High School at Forest Hill.
- Kooringal High School won the Katrina Powell Shield for girls’ softball for the fourth consecutive year.
50 Years Ago
- After sixteen months running a successful delicatessen in the Australian Arcade, Neville Chapple has opened a coffee shop, The Big Wheel, in vacated premises across the arcade. Prices include 35 cents for a toasted sandwich and 25 cents for cappuccino coffee.
- Fearne’s Pleasure Tours are advertising a 24-day Heart of Australia Safari Tour including Darwin, Ayers Rock, and Alice Springs for $225 including all meals.
- In three years of collecting, Peter Bungay, a local observer for the Australian Museum in Sydney has discovered 23 species of butterflies in the Wagga District.
- Student leaders of Kooringal Primary School, captains, Margaret Byrns and Andrew Hartwig and vice-captains Jacqueline Duff and Richard Thorn for invested by assistant Area Director of Education in the Riverina, Mr D Buchanan.
- Mr Paul Vonarx who has been with the Gas Department in Wagga for nine years is going to Parkes as the Gasworks manager and was farewelled by colleagues including Wayne Carswell, Bert Schmidt, Kevin Young, Keith Huntsman, Ron Lancaster, John Newton, and Lyle Case at the Riverina Australian Football Club.
- 75-year-old Selwyn Sampson has grown a 55 lb pumpkin measuring four feet six inches in circumference.
- Mr and Mrs George Doswell celebrated their Golden Wedding Anniversary.
- Total rainfall in most Riverina and Southwest Slopes centres in 1973 were well above the annual average with Wagga recording 3136 points compared to the average of 2162 points.
- Most candidates in the coming Wagga City Council election have refused to complete a questionnaire compiled by the Wagga branch of the Women’s Electoral Lobby which includes questions on issues such as the establishment of a Wagga clinic to offer abortion counselling and family planning.
- The Christian Brothers are celebrating the 60th anniversary of their arrival in Wagga.
- Nine cooks are completing the last week of a seven weeks’ Intermediate Cooking and Kitchen Supervision Course at the RAAF Base Wagga which is culminating in a graduation buffet luncheon in the Caterers Training Section at the base.
- Wagga Architect, Steve O’Halloran has been honoured as a “Paul Harris Fellow” by the Rotary Foundation for his “sincere and incessant devotion to the advancement of Rotary…”
- Coolamon Shire Council has agreed to help Wagga City Council provide housing for decentralisation personnel.
Membership of the Wagga Wagga and District Historical Society is open to anyone with an interest in the local and regional history of Wagga Wagga, New South Wales, Australia. For more information about us and information on how to join our Society visit our website at https://www.wwdhs.org.au/about-us/members
