Stories


Prominent Place - Bathurst Airport A bit about Bathurst Airport by Erik Mol The first aeroplane to land in Bathurst was at the Showground in 1912, a Bleriot monoplane. (It’s interesting to reflect that this is only nine years after the first successful powered flight at Kittyhawk). There were 4 areas used as landing fields prior to 1932; Shute’s Paddock in what is now the Kelso industrial area, The Kelso Flats where the hockey fields are now in Learmonth Park, A holding paddock on Vale Rd and The Eglinton Racecourse where the 2BS aerials now stand. Read more...	Prominent Place - Bathurst Airport	Erik Mol	2024-12-02 13:00:00Z
Message from the President-November Thankyou to all who have helped with our major fundraising activities such as Bunnings BBQ and Daybreak Delights. A big shout out to Gaye and Graham for taking the lead, thankyou so much for stepping up. We have the venue booked for Science and Engineering Challenge 2025, so save the date 1/4/2025 which is a Tuesday. This weekend we have the Bunnings BBQ so please help if you can and prepare to assist in December. This Saturday is the Scholarship Winners concert from the Mitchell Conservatorium of Music and I will be there to present a certificate to our student Olivia Bellamy. I will be taking a bit of a step back from activities due to my dad being sick as I need to be with him in Orange so please help with the club running if you can whilst I am away. Sonia	Message from the President-November	Sonia Bostjancic	2024-11-04 13:00:00Z
Prominent People - James Thurling James Thurling James Thurling established his blacksmith shop on the Great Western Highway, between what is now Bunnings and Lee St. There is a small brick cottage still standing on the corner of Lee St and the highway. This five roomed cottage was built for a Miss Cousins, who rented it to the Thurlings, and within that branch of the family it is still called Granny Thurling's cottage. The business grew, with three sons, Alfred, James jr and John, joining their father in it. James snr established a good reputation for the manufacture and repair of tools, ploughs, horseshoes, household goods and other metal items as needed. He was particularly well known for the repair of drays and wagons, with his sons achieving a similar reputation when cars became more common, fixing or making springs and axles. The family worshipped at the Holy Trinity Church, Kelso, where they appeared to have been very involved, as there are several plaques there dedicated to James and Hannah, and some of their children. James died in 1898 at 67; Hannah died in 1920 at 84. They and many of their descendants were buried in the Church cemetery. Note: James Thurling is not RotarianTony's direct ancestor but a distant relative. Most of the information in this story was compiled by Karen Lloyd, great granddaughter, and Russell Thurling, great grandson of James Thurling. Karen and Russell are cousins. Read more...	Prominent People - James Thurling	Tony Thurling	2024-11-04 13:00:00Z
Signwriting Changes On 16 October, Richard Fulton from RJ Signs was our Guest Speaker. He gave as a picture of how much signwriting has changed in the last few decades	Signwriting Changes	Doug Kinlyside	2024-11-04 13:00:00Z
Bathurst Theatre Sports Bronwyn, Kirsty and Briar were our Guest Speakers on 9th October Theatresports is improvised theatre! Actors use loosely based structures and games to create dramatic scenes in the moment. These games include Space jump, Bus stop and Replay amongst others! Theatresports is pure creativity and imagination from a collective group of actors, but can be performed solo too. The actors perform funny and dramatic scenes, masked mime and Commedia Dell’arte. They also perform with live jazz musicians, marrying free form music with free form theatre. All ages and all levels welcome! Theatresports meet every Thursday at 7:15pm at the CWA Hall (172 Russell St, Bathurst). Build confidence, make friends and build improvisation skills or just come for fun and a laugh. Email Bronwyn: lealbronwyn@gmail.com for more information Or message Bathurst Theatre Company Facebook page Also see below the link to our Doco/Mockumentary 'The White Kangaroo' 😆 https://www.facebook.com/100063896131416/videos/289525247460286/	Bathurst Theatre Sports	Doug Kinlyside	2024-11-03 13:00:00Z
RARE Work in Bathurst - Done RARE (Rotary Australia Repurposing Equipment) DIK Co-ordinated by Bathurst Daybreak, our members, with assistance from Bathurst Rotary Club and Andrew Evetts, spent a Wednesday morning preparing to load just over eighty hospital electric beds and mattresses on to local removalist (Dawsons) trucks. The beds and will be transported to the RARE warehouse in Sydney. Also included was other was aged care medical item equipment that remained at the old St Catherines Aged Care facility in Bathurst. The building and surrounding area is proposed for development by Kirana Property Group. Bathurst Daybreak Rotary very much thanks Andrew Evetts, Managing Director of Kirana, for the opportunity to repurpose the equipment for uses in less fortunate communities. Read more...	RARE Work in Bathurst - Done	Doug Kinlyside	2024-10-08 13:00:00Z
Charles Sturt University - Bathurst Campus CSU Bathurst Campus In 1850 the Bathurst Town Reserve was established. Area in which CSU now occupies. It was known as the Park. Its main use in those days was as a racecourse. In 1895 the Bathurst Experimental Farm was established and the first students enrolled in 1897. Provided a two course. Only 14 students and no permanent academic staff. Logan Brae which was built in 1876, became the first headquarters for the farm – 1896 – 1908. By 1913 it had become well established and some of the lovely old buildings on the campus erected – Hefron House, the cottage, Cunningham house, Pontyn theatre. Accommodation for 34 students and there were also some day students. Operations suspended in 1941 – war – used as an ordnance dept until 1946, then farm continued to operate until 1949. In 1951, the site became the Bathurst Teacher’s College. It offered a two year course training primary school teachers. The course length was extended to three years in 1968. In 1969, Colleges of Advanced Education were introduced in Australia and Mitchell College of Advanced Education was established on the site. The Bathurst Teachers College became the School of Teacher Education at MCAE. The primary role of MCAE was vocational undergraduate training – education, social welfare, nursing etc using a number of modes – full-time, part-time, external and continuing education. In the 1980s, the Federal Govt decided to get rid of the binary tertiary education system and CAEs were converted into universities. Lots of unhappiness. In July 1989, CSU was proclaimed and it merged to rival CAE’s – MCAE and Riverina-Murray Institute of Higher Education (Wagga Wagga and Albury). It was set up as a federated network university with semi-independent member campuses with a central administration. In 1998 the relevant act was amended and it became an integrated multi-campus organisation where faculties and schools became the focus rather than the campus. While the headquarters of CSU is situated on the Bathurst campus, there has been a decline in the Mitchell campus.	Charles Sturt University - Bathurst Campus	Graham Tyson	2024-09-30 14:00:00Z
Bathurst Prominent People - Bluey BLUEY WILKINSON World Champion Speedway Rider 1939 Arthur Geoge Wilkinson was born in Millthorpe, New South Wales on 27 August 1911. At the age of four, Bluey's family moved to Bathurst. The home was at 14 Violet Street. He really considered Bathurst to be his home town. He was working as a butcher boy when speedway first started at the Bathurst Sports Ground in 1928. It was love at first sight for Wilkinson and he promptly gave up a rugby league career and invested his savings in a battered old belt driven Rudge. On the Rudge, Bluey Wilkinson wasn't a world-beater, but when Sydney and international star rider Lionel Van Praag came to Bathurst, he loaned Wilkinson one of his spare bikes. In a battle of future World Champions, Wilkinson defeated Van Praag in a match race. In 1929, at age 17, he headed for England in an effort to be noticed by rich Speedway clubs. He rode in the lower divisions for three seasons before he was offered a contract by the West Ham Hammers and stayed with the London based club until 1939. Wilkinson's 1938 championship win was considered a gutsy effort after he had actually broken his left collarbone in a meeting for West Ham the night before the World Final. Determined not to miss the final, Bluey had the Tottenham Hotspur club doctor put his arm and shoulder in plaster. He ignored the pain he was in to win his first four rides before finishing a safe second in his fifth and last to clinch the World Championship before a crowd of 95,000. Bluey Wilkinson retired from riding in 1939 to become the promoter at the Sheffield Speedway. After being involved in dozens of spectacular crashes during his speedway career and walking away from them all, Bluey was killed in a road accident in the Sydney suburb of Bondi on 27 July 1940. Riding a motorcycle with his wife Muriel as pillion he was struck by a lorry which had swerved to avoid a car. He was killed almost instantly with a fractured skull. Muriel survived the accident physically with only little more than a few cuts and bruises. Bluey was buried in Bathurst. In 2017 Inducted into the Australian Motor Sport Hall of Fame	Bathurst Prominent People - Bluey	Doug Kinlyside	2024-09-30 14:00:00Z
Prominent People & Places Read more...	Prominent People & Places	Doug Kinlyside	2024-07-01 14:00:00Z
We support local schools As well as supporting secondary students attending Rotary Youth programs, at the end of each academic year, the Club as provides support to the following local Bathurst and surrounding village schools: Denison College (Kelso campus) Mackillop College Kelso Public School Wattle Flat Public School Perthville Public School Meadow Flat Public School Rockley Public School	We support local schools	Doug Kinlyside	2019-09-23 14:00:00Z
Welcome to our website! Do you want to: Make a difference in your community Help others Learn new things Make new friends Have fun Come and enjoy breakfast and our friendship at Bathurst Daybreak Read more... New Website	Welcome to our website!	Doug Kinlyside	2019-06-04 14:00:00Z	New Website