scraze
Why is the Matthew Flinders Hotel a local institution?
How beer, AC/DC, violence and pokies created a local institution.
top of page
Search
scraze
- Mar 11
- 11 min
Ashburton and the Friday Night Fights
When I started this blog, I did not want to shy away from the darker history of Ashburton and the surrounding areas. From writing about...
24 views0 comments
scraze
- Feb 23
- 5 min
J & T Electrical Services
The other day I was scrolling mindlessly through my phone when I came across a Bored Panda article called “40 Young People Share what...
22 views0 comments
scraze
- Feb 7
- 11 min
Does Ashburton need a Historical Society?
First up: I am keen to keep doing my potted histories of Ashburton’s iconic shops. Now the kids are back at school I have all this space...
27 views0 comments
scraze
- Jan 18
- 12 min
Why the Gold Coast is not like anywhere else in Australia
Writing about the local history of Ashburton and its surrounds for two years has given me a new appreciation for the way Australian...
19 views0 comments
scraze
- Dec 16, 2022
- 3 min
End of Year Updates
A big thank you to my readers! I've really enjoyed writing this blog this year and will be back with more on Ashburton and its surrounds...
33 views0 comments
scraze
- Dec 9, 2022
- 3 min
Ashburton's icons: Ken Ross Jewellers
Over the summer – should that ever arrive – I hope to run a series on some of Ashburton’s longest continuously operated shops. On High...
48 views0 comments
scraze
- Nov 22, 2022
- 8 min
The Stocks Family and the Ashburton Dairy
If you’re a reader of a certain age, you may remember waking up very very early in the morning – far too early for your mother’s liking –...
64 views0 comments
scraze
- Nov 2, 2022
- 14 min
The Ashburton Stigma
Few people want to go on record with their pre-conceived judgements and assumptions about Ashburton. Or for any other suburb for that...
123 views0 comments
scraze
- Oct 17, 2022
- 9 min
The History of the Outer Circle Linear Park/Anniversary Trail
In this post, I’m taking a break from writing about Ashburton’s growing list of murderers to cover something far more pleasant: the...
95 views0 comments
scraze
- Oct 8, 2022
- 1 min
A History of Ashburton's Green Spaces
This week, I gave a presentation at Ashburton Library for Victorian History Month on the history of Ashburton's green spaces. The...
23 views0 comments
scraze
- Sep 26, 2022
- 5 min
Places to BYO kayak near Eden, NSW
I realise this is a complete departure from the usual subject matter of this blog. However, as I was unable to find much information...
13 views0 comments
scraze
- Sep 8, 2022
- 19 min
The lasting tragedy of Valerie Dunn’s 1968 murder
Almost a year ago, I began documenting the 1965 murder of a young Jordanville woman called Maureen Ferrari by an Ashburton man. Since I...
114 views0 comments
scraze
- Aug 25, 2022
- 9 min
For Book Week: a brief history of Camberwell and Ashburton libraries
It’s Book Week! Or, as I call it in my house, F#@king Book Week. I love books. I love them so much I wrote one. You don’t become a...
19 views0 comments
scraze
- Aug 11, 2022
- 10 min
A Murderer Calls on Glen Iris
On a cool Sunday morning on 8 August 1980, Bertha “Beth” Miller called out a farewell greeting to her housemate/brother-in-law Bill Ross....
98 views0 comments
scraze
- Jul 29, 2022
- 13 min
The battle to play sport in Camberwell on Sunday
I recently presented on this topic at the Royal Historical Society of Victoria. Just as High Street turns down the hill towards Glen Iris...
57 views0 comments
scraze
- Jul 8, 2022
- 8 min
Ashburton and the rise of Chadstone Shopping Centre
This is the second post in my series on interesting things I find in Ashburton’s old community newspaper Progress Press (1946-63) In the...
72 views0 comments
scraze
- Jun 17, 2022
- 10 min
Eight new things I learnt about Ashburton reading Progress Press (1946-56)
Once upon a time in Ashburton, there was a community newspaper called Progress Press. This was a locally produced and edited publication...
65 views0 comments
scraze
- May 27, 2022
- 12 min
Neville Lee and the fight for Ashburton's kindergartens
When I first started writing this local history blog, a major resource was a document I found called ‘Ashburton through the Ages’, by...
66 views0 comments
scraze
- May 25, 2022
- 10 min
How to run an Election Day ‘Democracy’ Sausage Sizzle and Cake Stall
For the 2022 Federal Election, the parents of Ashburton Primary School (located in Melbourne's Eastern Suburbs) ran a Sausage Sizzle and...
28 views0 comments
bottom of page