Spraying and spray carts will be the subject of Orange and District Historical Society's next meeting in its popular fruit growing history series at the Gladstone Hotel on Tuesday, September 22 at 7pm for a 7.30pm start. Pests have been a problem in orchards from the earliest days and spraying has been a major task for Orange district orchardists for more than 100 years. Spraying was initially carried out by hand-pumps and later motor-driven pumps were introduced using hand wands. Spray pumps were for many years horse-drawn, then merged into tractor-drawn in the 1950s. Booms and air-blast sprayers became the norm in the 1960s and 1970s until the present day. There have been a number of weird and wonderful variations of all of these machines and there is no-one better to tell us the story than Eddie Wilson, of Forest Reefs, who has experimented with many types of sprayers. Eddie won a Land Inventor of the Year award at the Australian National Field Days with a self-propelled, fully enclosed front mounted sprayer, which was developed for commercial production by his brother Don, the latest model of which was rolled out only last year. A number of other "old hands" will be in the audience to add their stories. The meeting takes place at the Gladstone Hotel function room at 7 for 7.30pm. There is a small charge of $3 for members of Orange and District Historical Society and $5 for non-members, to cover costs. Light refreshments will be served. If you have any inquiries or would like to attend the meeting, please RSVP to Phil Stevenson on 6362-3257, mobile 0402 412 188 or email ibiswines@bigpond.com

Forest Reefs is barely more than a crossroads today, with the hotel the one remaining commercial building. Who would have thought that this was once a thriving mining area of more than 500 people, dozens of mines and shafts, wine shanties, hotels, three churches, a school and many shops and other businesses.

Orange and District Historical Society's next mining meeting, to be held at the Gladstone Hotel on Tuesday, August 25, will focus on the mines and the people in this once thriving area. The larger and more famous mines include the Great Extended, the Ballarat of NSW (developed by Henry Newman of Lucknow fame), the Little Emma, the Ironclad, the Austral and the Lumpy Lead. Like the other mining areas east and south of Orange, Forest Reefs went through many ups and downs depending on economic conditions.

Gold was first discovered in the district in the1860s and mining steadily progressed until 1870 when the Lumpy Swamp (Beneree) Goldfield was proclaimed. During the 1870s larger companies were formed and employed expensive machinery to mine and pump on a large scale. The peak of activity was in the late 1800s before declining in the early 1900s. Mining never ceased, however, and as late as the 1950s some gold was still being extracted. Exploration licences over the area have never lapsed and are currently held by the Cadia operator, Newcrest Mining

There will be two speakers at the meeting eminently suited to tell the Forest Reefs story. On the geological side there will be consulting geologist Max Rangott, who was previously involved with exploration in the area. To tell the social history will be historian and teacher Trevor Pascoe, whose family have lived in the area for more than 130 years, some having worked in the Forest Reefs mines.

Everyone is welcome to attend the meeting, which starts at 7 for 7.30pm. Entry is $3 for society members and $5 for non-members to assist in the important work of the society in preserving the district's history. A light supper will be served after the meeting.

If you would like to attend, please RSVP to Phil Stevenson on 6362-3257, mobile 0402 412 188 or email ibiswines@bigpond.com

Mining at Guyong, Byng and the Carangara copper mine will be the focus of Orange and District Historical Society's next mining meeting at the Gladstone Hotel function room on Tuesday, April 28 at 7 for 7.30pm.

The Vale of Byng is a picturesque valley tucked away along the Lewis Ponds Creek south-east of Orange. Though in the 1880s it was surveyed as a town, in 2009 it is merely a locality on the creek which runs north from Guyong to Byng, then Lewis Ponds and Ophir.

Today Byng has neither public buildings nor stores, just a delightful lovingly restored sandstone church, opened in 1873, and the historic homesteads of Springfield, Bookanon and Pendarves. Copper was discovered in 1848 and mining commenced, expanding rapidly and by 1850 the population was more than 200. Many of the miners were Cornishmen who had travelled from the Copper Hill mine at Molong or Burra in South Australia, bringing with them a distinctive cultural identity, and the area became known as the Cornish Settlement.

However, the discovery of gold at Ophir, and other places nearby in 1851 drew miners away and delayed further development until companies such as the Carangara Copper Mining Company took up the challenge in 1854. Mining for copper, gold and silver continued to at least 1907. The Carangara shaft of John Glasson and Richard Lane was just one of many, with names such as Brittania, Old Ophir, Icely, Big Bell, Belmore, Moonta, Nelson and Whitney Green.

The two speakers at the meeting will be Tony Gordon, a Glasson family descendant and owner of 'Godolphin' at Guyong, and Jeff Vassallo, who is senior exploration geologist with Clancy Exploration, which is currently carrying out mineral exploration in the area.

Everyone is welcome to attend the meeting. Entry is $3 for society members and $5 for non-members to assist in the important work of the society in preserving the district's history.A light supper will be served after the meeting.

If you would like to attend, please RSVP to Phil Stevenson on 6362-3257, mobile 0402 412 188 or email ibiswines@bigpond.com

Lucknow may be on Orange's doorstep but how much do you know about its history, geology and boom days? If you would like to find out more, join Orange & District Historical Society for an open day on Sunday, February 22.

The day will include talks from experts on the mining history of the village, its social history, including prominent people and businesses in the area, and current exploration.There will also the chance to meet the experts and old hands and ask about aspects of Lucknow's history.Guest speakers will include Tully Richards, Elizabeth Griffin, John Holliday, Jack Brown, Bill Schmich and Doug Crossman.

After lunch there will be a guided walk to Wentworth Mine's above-ground workings, followed by a discussion on what might be done to further preserve the history of Lucknow and enhance its character to the benefit of townsfolk and tourists. An exhibition of historical maps documents objects and mineral samples from Lucknow will be on display at the Lucknow School Hall.

The day will start at 9.30am with morning tea and end at 4pm.Tickets ($25) will include morning and afternoon teas and lunch.Bookings are essential by Monday, February 16 and can be made at Book City, 230 Summer Street, Orange, (cash only) or by credit card through Phil Stevenson, Ibis Wines, phone 6362-3257.

For inquiries, contact society president Phil Stevenson on the above number or mobile 0402 412 188 or email ibiswines@bigpond.com

The early orchards to the east of Orange will be the focus of the next orchard evening organised by Orange and District Historical Society.Guest speakers at the meeting, to be held at Gladstone Hotel on Tuesday, November 25, will be Rob Williams and Sue Milne.

Sue is the daughter of John Milne, whose family, together with the related Spurway family, had orchards in the Glenroi and Bloomfield areas and east of Lone Pine Avenue.

Rob Williams' family had orchards along Steele's Lane, Malabar and Dairy Creek Road and still has one in the area. The speakers will mention these as well as orchards further east at Lucknow, Shadforth, Guyong and Byng.

Through these public meetings and other activities, the society aims to preserve the history of the fruit growing industry. The meetings have all been recorded and when time and manpower permits, they will be transcribed, edited and published. The society is now in a position to photograph or scan archives that people may have. It only requires copies and the originals will be returned to their owners.

Anyone is welcome to attend the meeting and there will be a chance to ask questions.Entry is free but a donation would be appreciated to help continue the society's valuable work in preserving the history of Orange and district.The Society's president, Phil Stevenson, says he hopes the meetings will trigger more research, collection of memoirs, photos and memorabilia.

The meeting will be held at 7 for 7.30pm in the Gladstone's function room. Light refreshments will be served.

If you have any inquiries or would like to attend the meeting, please RSVP to Phil Stevenson on 6362-3257, mobile 0402 412 188 or email ibiswines@bigpond.com