Lost Newcastle - Carol Duncan

10 Years of History and Mystery - ABC Newcastle August 2022

It started with a brick and has led to a community of nearly 70,000 people connecting over a love of history and mystery. 

This is Lost Newcastle. A corner of the internet where you can have nice things! 

ABC Newcastle's Kia Handley spoke to founder Carol Duncan.

Did Little Richard REALLY throw his jewellery into Newcastle’s Hunter River?

It's often rumoured that Little Richard - considered the founding father of rock music - suddenly found God while on tour in Australia in 1957 and threw his jewellery into Newcastle's Hunter River.

But is it true?

It is known that Little Richard, born Richard Wayne Penniman, came from a deeply evangelical background in Macon, Georgia, and that after his Australian tour he returned to the US and began studying theology.

In this episode, Carol Duncan speaks with Dr Roland Bannister about his research in finding out the truth behind this amazing story.

Roland Bannister - Hunter Valley Ancestors

Dr Roland Bannister lived his early life in Waratah. After training as a carpenter, Roland because a music teacher and studied at the Newcastle Conservatorium of Music. Moving further inland in NSW for many years, Roland taught at Glen Innes High School and for 32 years as a music academic at Charles Sturt University’s Wagga Wagga Campus. 

 

Roland's book, 'Hunter Valley Ancestors - An Incomplete Chronicle of the families Burns, Puxty, Hewitt, Longworth, Poile, Pascoe, Kenny, and Hancock' is out now and available by emailing rsbannister@gmail.com

 

Lost Newcastle - Carol Duncan speaks with Ruth Cotton, author and local historian

Ruth Cotton is well known to many in Newcastle for her huge body of local history work on the multicultural hub of Hamilton. Her Hidden Hamilton blog began as a way for her to find out more about the suburb she was moving to from northern NSW! Hundreds of stories and two books later, Ruth is still just as passionate about her adoptive home.

But Ruth has released a new book, a memoir called A Fragile Hold which details her 1997 diagnosis with multiple sclerosis and the changes to her life from that point. In 2020, just as the pandemic locked us in our homes with huge uncertainty, Ruth’s husband became unwell.

 

 

Newcastle 1899 Diorama - Ross Balderson

In June 2018, Ross Balderson shared a photo in the Lost Newcastle Facebook Group of a scale model scene of Newcastle 1899 that he was building. Not only did people not mind Ross sharing a photo of his incredible model work, the photos and conversations have continued ever since.

Ross says he was inspired to build the scale model after seeing a Ralph Snowball photograph of the city - a labor of love that took ten years to complete!

Ross has finally been able to bring his diorama of Newcastle in 1899 to Newcastle Museum, complete with operating scale model trains that work their way around the harbour and models of ships that are historically accurate and visitors to the port of Newcastle.

Lost Newcastle founder, Carol Duncan, caught up with Ross Balderson at Newcastle Museum.

Glamour on Glass Exhibition - Isabel Whittle

Glamour on Glass is a stunning exhibition curated by University of Newcastle history student and Vera Deacon Scholar, Isabel Whittle, focusing on the portrayal of women and fashion in the Newcastle Sun.

Featuring photographic prints of fashion models in structured daywear and glamorous evening wear, the exhibition explores the impact of the Great Depression on fashion trends and garment production during the 1930s.

Also on display are items on loan from The Australian Museum of Clothing and Textiles, including accessories chosen by women of the 1930s to complement the fashions of the day.

Rick Pointon - Hey Rock n Roll

Art Ryan describes Rick Pointon as 'Newcastle rock royalty', and Rick is perhaps best known for his work with the legendary Benny & The Jets. At their peak, Benny & The Jets performed more than 300 nights each year and have worked with some incredible Australian and international industry figures. If you grew up with Johnny O'Keefe in your ears and seeing bands at venues like the Palais, the Impala or even Bus Stop - you'll love the stories Rick tells in his book. What was 'Henry Mousetraps', and what did Sandra the Go Go Girl have to do with Barry Gibb's secret visit to Newcastle in 1977? Rick also lays to rest the oft-told tale of Little Richard's religious epiphany that led him to throw his jewellery into the harbour.