Members
For the benefits of becoming a BMACHO member, Organisational or Individual, access here
Organisational Members |
Description |
Contact |
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| Blue Mountain Education and Research Trust | Blue Mountain Education and Research Trust (BMERT), Lawson was legally established in May 2008, with initial capital derived from the sales of Blue Mountains Dreaming (Winmalee 1993) It’s aims:
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| Blue Mountains Branch (National Trust) | Meetings, talks, events, excursions, field activities. See Everglades Historic House and Garden, Norman Lindsay Gallery and Woodford Academy. Contact: 02 4739 3692 |
WEBSITE EMAIL |
| Blue Mountains City Libraries Local Studies | Blue Mountains Local Studies collection and photographs and Springwood Historical Society collection and photographs in Braemar, access via Springwood Library, Springwood. | WEBSITE EMAIL |
| Blue Mountains Family History Society Inc | Based in the Springwood Library with reference materials where assistance is given to help researchers. Meetings, talks, workshops, excursions, publications, seminars. | WEBSITE EMAIL |
| Blue Mountains Historical Society Inc | Hobby’s Reach, Wentworth Falls. Substantial local history archives of documents maps & photographs, plus reference library. Research services available. Meeting Room, monthly talks first Saturday of each month, February to November. Tarella Cottage Museum with 1890s & early 20th Century furniture & memorabilia of the period. Open 10am-3pm on the last Sunday of the month (except December). | WEBSITE EMAIL |
| Bygone Beautys Treasured Teapot Museum and Tearooms | Nestled in the village of Leura, within the Greater Blue Mountains Heritage Area. Home of the world’s largest private collection of teapots, most items are on display in the Treasured Teapot Museum. The tearooms and showrooms offer visitors a truly memorable experience. | WEBSITE EMAIL FACEBOOK |
| Colo Shire Family History Group Inc | The Colo Shire Family History Group is dedicated to researching, recording, preserving and promoting the history of families in the area of the old Colo Shire Council and other areas of the Hawkesbury. Email or contact Secretary at PO Box 206, Richmond NSW 2753. | |
| Eskbank House & Museum | One of the oldest residences in the Lithgow Valley, Eskbank House was built in 1842 by local Stonemason Alexander Binning for the first Industrialist to the Lithgow Valley Mr Thomas Brown MLA. Today Eskbank House operates as a historic home and museum. | WEBSITE EMAIL |
| Everglades Historic House and Garden | Thirteen acres of European style gardens and native bushland. Stunning views, terraced lawns, winding paths, stone walls, art deco house. Art Gallery and Tea Rooms open daily. Contact: 02 4784 1938. | WEBSITE EMAIL |
| Friends of the Paragon | The Friends of The Paragon (FoTP) was formed in 2013. Our aims are to:
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WEBSITE EMAIL |
| Glenbrook & District Historical Society inc. | Museum Hours: 1st & 3rd Saturday of the month (not January), where you will find a rich archive of local history. Enter via the Park Street gates. The museum is in the first weatherboard building on your left. See the programme for History Walks under ‘Planned Events’ on this website. For History Walk bookings – phone Doug Knowles on 02 4751 3275. | FACEBOOK EMAIL |
| Hartley Historic Site, National Parks & Wildlife Service NSW | Hartley Historic Site is a rare living museum that chronicles inland Australian settlement. Centred around the imposing Hartley Courthouse, built in 1837 by Colonial Architect Mortimer Lewis, Hartley is one of the first administrative, commercial, and social centres west of the Blue Mountains. Hartley prospered from the 1830s until it was bypassed by the Main Western Railway in 1877. With the discovery of Jenolan Caves a new road came in 1887, breathing fresh life into Hartley as a popular resting point and tourist destination. The site is now managed by NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service and the former Farmers Inn building is where you can access the Hartley Visitor Centre, open Tuesday – Sunday from 10am to 4pm. For information email or phone (02) 6355 2117. | |
| Hawkesbury Historical Society Inc | Established in 1956, the Hawkesbury Historical Society promotes and encourages the study of the history of the Hawkesbury and collects and preserves matter relating to the history of the Hawkesbury. Membership is open to all residents of the City of Hawkesbury and others who agree with the objects and rules of the Association and who attend a general meeting of the Association. The Hawkesbury Regional Museum has been operating since 1962, originally run by the Society in premises in Thompson Square, but now the historical collection, owned by the Society, is housed in a purpose built museum at 8 Baker Street Windsor, directly behind the previous building. The Hawkesbury City Council now operates the museum. The museum is open from 10 am to 4 pm six days per week. Closed Tuesday (except by appointment for guided groups). Public holidays: Closed Christmas Day, Boxing Day and Good Friday. | WEBSITE EMAIL |
| Kurrajong-Comleroy Historical Society inc. | Research of local and family history in the Kurrajong Region, west of the Hawkesbury River from North Richmond to Bilpin, Grose Vale to Colo, including Wilberforce, Ebenezer, Glossodia, Tennyson, Freemans Reach and Bowen Mountain. The Society holds bi-monthly General Meetings with guest speakers, regular excursions to places of interest. Easy access via their website to a collection of over 5000 heritage images from the region. Contact 02 4576 1371. | WEBSITE EMAIL |
| Lithgow and District Family History Society Inc | Extensive material to assist researchers. Meetings, talks, workshops, excursions, publications. Contact 02-6353 1089 | WEBSITE EMAIL |
| Lithgow Regional Library/Local Studies | Extensive Local Studies Collection of books, maps, newspapers, documents, council records & historical photos. | WEBSITE EMAIL |
| Mount Wilson & Mount Irvine Historical Society Inc & Turkish Bath Museum | The Society has an extensive archive of documents, images and artefacts which tell the story of pre-settlement, exploration and the European settlement of Mt Wilson and Mt Irvine from 1875 to the present. The first major project undertaken by the Society was the restoration and conservation of the 1880s Turkish Bath building situated within the Wynstay Estate. The Society maintains and operates the Turkish Bath as a museum of local history, showing earlier life and times in the two villages. Group tours are also welcome by arrangement. | WEBSITE EMAIL |
| Mt Victoria and District Historical Society inc and Museum | Located in Railway Station (former Railway Refreshment Rooms). substantial collections on crossing and early settlement of the Blue Mountains. | WEBSITE EMAIL |
| Nepean District Historical Society Inc and “The Arms of Australia Inn” | The Arms of Australia Inn is situated in the Penrith Valley at the gateway to the Blue Mountains National Park. The inn was once a staging post for travellers making the trip from Sydney over the Blue Mountains to Bathurst and the goldfields. Built in two sections, the fist in 1826, it is one of the oldest buildings in Penrith. The Nepean District Historical Society meets at the inn on the 4th Saturday of each month at 1.00 pm and includes a guest speaker. The inn is also the home of the NSW Corps of Marines who recreate the lives and times of the First Fleet Marines, sailors, convicts, gentlemen of quality and their ladies. The museum is open Monday, Wednesday, Thursday 9.00 am to 2.00 pm and the first and third Sunday each month 1.00 pm to 4.00 pm. Open other times by appointment. | WEBSITE EMAIL |
| Norman Lindsay Gallery and Museum | Former home and gardens of distinguished artist, Norman Lindsay. Galleries, original studio, restaurant, gift shop. | WEBSITE EMAIL |
| Penrith RSL Sub-Branch Military History Museum | New member. The Penrith RSL Club is currently being renovated and the Penrith RSL Sub-Branch Military History Museum hopes to be able to open their Museum early 2024. We look forward to the launch. | |
| Scenic World Katoomba | Located in original 1878 mine adit. AV displays, miners’ tools & camp site. Skyway, walkway, cableway, railway. Restaurant, cafe, gift shop and book shop. Annual Sculpture in the Valley exhibition. | WEBSITE EMAIL |
| Springwood Historical Society | Meetings 3rd Friday of the month in the small Presbyterian Church Hall, Springwood. Guided town heritage walks available by arrangement. | WEBSITE EMAIL |
| The City of Greater Lithgow Mining Museum | The Lithgow State Mine Heritage Park (the museum) is a multiple award winning museum of mining and industry situated on the site of former Lithgow State Coal Mine. The museum is operated by The City of Greater Lithgow Mining Museum Inc (CGLMM). The museum is a complex and multi-faceted operation responsible for showcasing the industrial history of the New South Wales Western Coalfield. Responding to the need for positive cash flows to manage the museum the Board has developed multiple business activities. | WEBSITE EMAIL |
| Valley Heights Locomotive Depot Heritage Museum | Set in and around a 1914 roundhouse, includes locomotives, carriages wagons & small exhibits covering 130 years of Blue Mountains railway history. See model rooms, art works & photographic displays. Steam or diesel rides on most Open Days (usually 2nd/4th Sunday each month) – included in admission fee. See website for details. | WEBSITE EMAIL |
| Woodford Academy | Oldest public building in the Mountains, built 1830s, maintained by the National Trust and managed by the Woodford Academy Management Committee. Initially an Inn, later a School. | WEBSITE EMAIL |
| Zig Zag Railway Co-op ltd. | Built in the 1860s, full size, narrow gauge railway. Steam trains & diesel rail motors. The Zig Zag Railway has reopened to the public as of Saturday 27 May 2023. Check their website for dates of operation and cost. | WEBSITE EMAIL |
Individual Members |
Brief Biography |
Contact |
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| Fiona Burn (Individual Member) | Fiona Burn was Assistant Director of the Access and Communication program in the Sydney Office of the National Archives of Australia, being responsible for managing the reference and access service until August 2011. She was Federal Councillor of the Australian Society of Archivists Inc, representative on the General Council of the History Council of New South Wales 1999-2012 and is a Past President of the Blue Mountains Historical Society.
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| Sue Collins (Individual Member) | Sue is a Leura local who owns and operates Mountains Tales. She has a passion for local Blue Mountains History and a “gift of the gab” for storytelling. These two elements combine to offer well researched, quality tours to both locals and visitors alike. Sue’s walking tours; The Leura Story and The Katoomba Story are a must for anyone wanting to learn about mountain villages. Sue also offers history focused coach commentary tours for groups wanting to see more of the Blue Mountains. Sue’s particular history focus is social history – Looking at the events and the people of the past, and their legacy.
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| Philip Hammon (Individual Member) | Phil was born in Katoomba and has lived most of his life there. Since her retired from Managing Director of ScenicWorld, he has spent much of his time researching the mining history of the Katoomba area. He has co-published a book, “The Burning Mists of Time” with Phillip Pells and updated the BMHS publication “John Britty North & The Katoomba Coal Mine “. He has also written 21 papers, submitted to the BMHS website, on various mining topics, as well as the construction of the Katoomba and Leura Sewerage Filter Beds. He is constantly researching mining artifacts in the Katoomba area, with the aim of expanding our knowledge of mining of Coal and Oil Shale in the 19th and 20th Centuries.
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| Wayne Hanley (Individual Member) | Wayne Hanley is former President of the Blue Mountains Historical Society. After an early career as an academic he spent the remainder of his working life in the construction industry. Now retired, he continues to pursue his lifelong interest in historical research and writing, particularly in association with the structure and evolution of the built environment.
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| Gay Hendriksen (Individual Member) | Gay Hendriksen has worked as an art and history curator, writer, educator and director in the museum and gallery environment for 30 years researching and interpreting cultural, local and family histories. She has specialised in women’s history within Australian cultural heritage.
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| Louella McCarthy (Individual Member) | Louella McCarthy is a social historian specialising in gender and history. Until stepping down from her position at the end of 2021, she was an academic in the School of Medicine at the University of Wollongong. Louella worked across disciplines to embed a humanities perspective in the medical program. Her work spanned community engagement theory and practice, the history and heritage of medicine, and women and gender history. She is particularly concerned with the interactions between medicine and society examining the changing nature of medicine and its practice over time. This incorporates both practitioners and patients, as well as the ‘spatial’, locating both the sites of medical practice and the influences of place for people. As an ‘engaged scholar’ Louella seeks to foster collaborations with people outside of the university. The History of Prison Medical Services is a current example of engaged research. Other research projects she is involved with include the History of Rural Medicine and a history of the Australian Federation of Medical Women. Louella is Vice-President and a Past President of the ANZSHM, co-edit museum reviews for Health & History and medical history for Metascience, and is a co-editor with Dr Amanda Capern (University of Hull), for the Palgrave series Gender and History.
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| Ian Milliss (Iindividual Member) | Ian Milliss is an artist, writer and art historian. He is also President of Kandos School of Cultural Adaptation (KSCA) and Vice President of Modern Arts Projects Blue Mountains (MAP BM), an artists advocacy and exhibiting organisation. Ian has been an Individual Member of BMACHO since shortly after its formation, in recognition of his work with local National Trust branches and as a heritage consultant in addition to his ongoing art historical writing.
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| Patsy Moppett (Individual Member) | Patsy Moppett worked as a town planner and heritage officer in local government in the central west of NSW for some 25 years, her work including management of heritage programs, heritage advisory services, heritage committees and local heritage funds. She has worked in private consulting, undertaking planning, heritage and environmental research and reporting, and was a member of the National Trust for many years. Patsy is the editor of the “Heritage” newsletter and she lives at Portland.
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| Keith Painter (Individual Member) | Keith Painter served a printing apprenticeship in typesetting way back in the days of “hot metal”. Instead of becoming a “dinosaur” as that part of the trade died, he moved into offset printing and spent many years in mission printing in Australia, Solomon Islands and Papua New Guinea. A natural move into editorial work followed and then the opportunity to write and publish the Pocket Pal series of Blue Mountains bushwalking guides (8 titles so far) of which over 5,000 copies have been sold. He runs a tiny publishing operation called Mountain Mist Books. His last Pocket Pal, “Great Walks at Mount Victoria”, led him into local history and he has written two books on the 1920s chert industry at Mount Victoria. He retired in 2015 after ten years as a casual guide at Jenolan Caves and has more bushwalking and local history books in the planning basket. He is currently working on “The Hassans Walls Story 1815-2016”. He lives at Windradyne.
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| Peter Rickwood (Individual Member) | Peter Rickwood is Editor of the Blue Mountains History Journal; Public Officer and Past-President of the Blue Mountains Historical Society; and Visiting Senior Research Fellow at the University of New South Wales.
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| Robert Strange (Individual Member) | Rob Strange has a background in building physics and engineering which has led to engagement in the preservation, conservation and upgrade of many historic buildings in both private and government sectors. Since attempting to retire to the Blue Mountains he has been able to indulge a lifelong interest in cultural heritage and history of the built environment. The commitment within the regional communities to heritage and quality historic research is impressive and Rob is pleased to support the work of BMACHO and its members.
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