cGroup of Telecom workers who received an award for maintaining communications in Lorne during the 1983 Ash Wednesday Fires. Left to Right: S. Rayner; B. Dickinson; B. Floyd; M. Yorke; B. Weller; A. Freametelecomworkers, ash wednesday fires 1983, s.rayner, b.dickinson, b. floyd, m.yorke, b. weller, a.freame, communications, awards

Nancy Hawley requested one of a pair come to the Emerald Museum . It was brought back from Japan by a friend of Noni Smith after World War 2. Noni Smith was Mr Murphy's nurse for many years Noni died at the age of 90 years . She was principal of Emerald Primary School. She was very involved with the recovery after Ash Wednesday 1983 firesJapanese Incense Burner Circa early 19th centuryFloral Bowl with Figured Legs and Topjapanese insense burner

A photo of Badge Day in the 1960s, with Ivan Layton, Mrs Mack and Legatee Bert Davis counting the donations near a Legacy Appeal tin. Ivan Layton was the Chief Executive Officer for many years. Legatee Bert Davis was the Chief Financial Officer in the early sixties. Mrs Mack was a generous fundraiser. She lived at Mount Macedon and opened her beautiful garden to the public on a regular basis to assist Legacy with fundraising. She was given a Legacy lone pine tree by a grateful Legacy to add to her garden. The letter accompanying the photo said the garden and tree was lost in the Ash Wednesday fires in 1983. Further research shows that Mrs Margaret Mack and her husband Mr John D. (Jack) Mack first opened their garden at Dreamthorpe, Mt Macedon, in April 1950 for a garden fete. It raised £140 for Legacy (source: Trove). The exact date of the photo is unknown but would be early 1960s. Photo donated by Legatee Bert Davis' daughters.An excellent record of important people in Legacy's history.Black and white photo of Ivan Layton, Mrs Mack and Legatee Bert Davis on Badge Day.badge day, ivan layton, bert davis

Robert Ulmann was born in Zurich, Switzerland, where he studied sculpture and painting, exhibiting annually with the National Art Society of Switzerland and in Paris, Munich and Stockholm. He migrated to Canada in 1956 and became a Canadian citizen. After working on the restoration of sculpture on the west wing of the Parliament Buildings Ottawa, he took up a Government appointment as one of six artist advisers to the Eskimos, initiating handicraft and sculpture programs in isolated settlements across the Central Arctic. He arrived in Australia with his Australian wife, Helen, in 1969, after two adventurous years backpacking and sketching through the United States, Central and South America and the South Pacific. From 1970 to 1972 he was employed by the Northern Territory Administration as a manual arts instructor to the aboriginal people of Docker River, a remote settlement west of Ayers Rock. A series of drawings from this period was exhibited by the Department of the Interior in Canberra, Sydney and Adelaide. Robert Ulmann’s paintings and prints of wildlife from Australia and overseas fill a beautiful studio overlooking the famous Logans Beach whale nursery at Warrnambool in the Western District of Victoria. His previous studio and home, together with 13 years of field sketches and his best work collected together for two books were destroyed by the Ash Wednesday fires at Naringal in 1983. Rob exhibited in Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide and Perth as well as in the Regional Galleries of Warrnambool, Ballarat, Portland and Horsham, and, among numerous prizes, he won the award for watercolour at six of the annual exhibitions of the Wildlife Art Society of Australasia, between 1978 and 1983. Although his principal interest was in drawing and painting, he retained a fascination with sculpture. His works range from two stone fountains with figures commissioned by the City of Zurich, while he was still a student, to a 4 ½ ton sculpture in bluestone commissioned in 1977 as a memorial to Sir Fletcher Jones., a five metre representation of whale tails in steel, and a life-size bronze of St. John of God commissioned for a private hospital.Image of a goat beginning to rise from a seated position, possible struggling out of mud. Painted in yellow and brown tones, with blue shadows. Earth colours form a rough ground area surrounding the goat. A brown wash provides a cursory background behind the goat's head. Dark cream matt surrounds image. Gold painted wooden frame, with glass.Front: Robert Ulmann (lower centre, paint) Back: (no inscriptions)

Events and information concerning the 10th Eltham Community Festival held 16-18 November, 1984 [Photo of Keir Baker of Research Primary School] On the reverse (page 1) Fireman officially honoured, Diamond Valley News, Tuesday, October 23, 1984, p1 Opening of the Panton Hill Firemen's Memorial Park by the Member for Evelyn, Mr Max McDonald on Sunday 21 October, 1984 in memory of the five firemen who lost their lives on Ash Wednesday (1983) fighting the fire at Upper Beaconsfield - Maurie Atkinson, Stuart Duff, Neville Jeffrey, Bill Marsden and Peter Singleton [Photo of the memorial and Mr Max McDonald]]Newsprint1984, apex club, eltham community festival, eltham festival, eltham jazz festival, eltham living and learning centre, eltham rotary, eltham service club, eltham town park, grand parade, jaycees, keir baker, lions club eltham, main road, phoenix club, research primary school, ash wednesday, bill marsden, cal martin, diamond valley big band, evelyn, maurie atkinson, max mcdonald mp, neville jeffrey, panton hill firemen's memorial park, peter singleton, stuart duff, victorian bushfires - 1983

Five volunteer fire fighters who died in Upper Beaconsfield on Ash Wednesday, February 16, 1983, are honoured by the Panton Hill Fire Fighters Memorial Park on the main road. Published: Nillumbik Now and Then /​ Marguerite Marshall 2008; photographs Alan King with Marguerite Marshall.; p119This collection of almost 130 photos about places and people within the Shire of Nillumbik, an urban and rural municipality in Melbourne's north, contributes to an understanding of the history of the Shire. Published in 2008 immediately prior to the Black Saturday bushfires of February 7, 2009, it documents sites that were impacted, and in some cases destroyed by the fires. It includes photographs taken especially for the publication, creating a unique time capsule representing the Shire in the early 21st century. It remains the most recent comprehenesive publication devoted to the Shire's history connecting local residents to the past. nillumbik now and then (marshall-king) collection, panton hill fire fighters memorial park

Police motorbike riding through a bushfire zone between Cockatoo and Belgrave around the time of the Ash Wednesday fires. In the background is a signpost that has been relatively untouched but melted into a twisted shape by the heat of the fire. Circa 1983.police vehicles; motor transport branch; motor transport section; wireless patrol; motor cycle patrol; police motorcycles

This magazine was published to raise money for the State Disaster appeal. It was a tribute to the photographers and reporters who contributed to the coverage of the Ash Wednesday bushfires for these publications.this item is a contemporary record of a major fire disaster in Victoria and is a useful reference tool.A large 78 pp stapled magazine. On the front cover is a coloured photograph of the town of Macedon the morning after the bush fires in February 1983. It has white ASH WEDNESDAY in print on a red background above the photograph and 1983 BUSHFIRES in white print on a red background belop the photograph. The photograph extends to the back cover. The magazine contains black/white photographs, stories and reports.bushfires ash-wednesday magazine disasters-victoria

In 1976, the Shire of Pakenham recognising that Cockatoo was the second largest township within the shire, acknowledged requests for the provision of recreation facilities. Council purchased four hectares of land strategically located in the Town Centre and in conjunction with the local community, embarked upon a programme of staged development of the site. The first stage saw the construction of the kindergarten building which was opened in 1977, followed by the bowling green, tennis courts, netball courts and public toilets. The Community Complex Building was the final development of the site.The Cockatoo Community Complex building, was the final stage of the development and was opened on the 20th November 1982. It was a replacement for the old Cockatoo Hall, which had not been renovated since 1936. The old Cockatoo Hall was lost in the Ash Wednesday fires on the 16th February 1983. The community complex played an integral part in the recovery stages after Ash Wednesday.Four page document, including Acknowledgements, Order of Ceremony, Menu and Site Plan of the Cockatoo community ComplexTwo punctured holes for folder storagecockatoo community complex, cockatoo hall, hall opening, cockatoo

This spinning wheel originates from New Zealand; however, it has no distinguishing features relating to its creator such as an inscription, so its exact maker is not known. Gill Stange remembers buying the wheel on Bridge Road in Richmond, approximately 30 years ago. Gill had joined her local Spinners and Weavers Guild after the Ash Wednesday bushfires of 1983. She was a then resident of Mount Macedon and lost everything in the fires. Moving to Melbourne to get away from the scene of much pain, Gill was also in need of a new hobby to help occupy her mind. That is when spinning and weaving entered her life. The local Spinners and Weavers Guild was a great support network for her and with their recommendation, she purchased her own spinning wheel. Her passion was started, and the wheel was to become a treasured item in Gill’s home. She had several spinning wheels within her possession over the years, however, this wheel was her first and always her favourite. When the time came for Gill to downsize, there was simply no longer room for her spinning wheel. This is when she decided to donate the wheel to the National Wool Museum. Gill remembers one highlight was weaving a tablecloth from a traditional German design. It took her two years to complete, with Gill spinning all the wool herself on this wheel. The tablecloth won the first prize in the Melbourne Show in 1987. Gill also used the wheel to teach programs to school children on how to spin and knit wool. She would take the easily transported little wheel, and its accompanying seat, with her to schools. Its small size enabled her to teach children to knit and spin, bringing others the joy that spinning had brought her. Not just limited to schools, Gill also taught programs with the wheel here at the National Wool Museum. It is a fitting home for the wheel, which Gill donated to the National Wool Museum in 2021.Dark varnished wood in a Castle style spinning wheel. The wheel has 8 small spokes which meet a thick outside rim. The outside rim has four golden disc weights on the bottom edge, to aid in the turning of the wheel. The spinning wheel has four legs of turned wood giving a sculptural form, a design pattern which is continued throughout. The wheel has a single medium sized foot pedal. This pedal is well worn with varnish missing from years of use. The wheel is completed with its accompanying chair. Made of the same dark varnished wood, its legs are also of turned wood, continuing the design pattern and uniting the two objects. The chair is very simple outside of the legs, with a medium size base and a thin backrest ending in a rounded head. The chair’s varnish is also starting to fade from years of use. The chair is small, designed to keep the spinning wheel operator at the appropriate height when spinning on the equally small and compact Castle style spinning wheel. Additional parts were donated with the Spinning Wheel. - 3 x Lazy Kates - Spare Maiden. - 450mm Niddy Noddy - Steel teeth brushspinning wool, spinning wheel, ash wednesday, mount macedon, textile production

Coloured photograph of a dust storm over Mitcham in February 1983, on the day before the Ash Wednesday fires.dust storm, mitcham

A 27 page booklet outlining policies adopted by the Shire of Gisbourne for rebuilding the local community after the 1983 bush fires. The cream pages have sepia photographs throughout the booklet of a variety of buildings and sites throughout the area that were affected by the fires.non-fictionA booklet outlining the policy guidelines adopted by Shire of Gisborne Council to rebuild the community after the 1983 bushfires.mt. macedon, macedon ranges, ash wednesday fires, bush fires

Used to mince fuel samples to measure moisture content Representative samples of fuel such as bark, leaves, twigs etc were minced and the moisture measured The availability of fuel to burn depends largely on its moisture content. When it exceeds 20-25% not much will burn, whereas 12-15% is generally ideal for fuel reduction burning, but if the moisture content drops as low as 7-10% virtually everything will ignite, and fire behaviour becomes extreme. During the afternoon of the Ash Wednesday bushfires on 16 February 1983 fuel moisture contents were recorded at Stawell as low as 2.7%. Fine fuels like leaves and bark can rapidly absorb moisture after a shower of rain, or from the air when the Relative Humidity (RH) is high, and the temperature is low. Conversely, they can also dry out very quickly. So even though the overall fuel quantity in the forest doesn’t change, the fine fuel availability can increase rapidly from zero after rain to many tonnes per hectare as the fuel dries out. This can happen over a few hours on hot and windy days. Heavy fuels like logs on the ground take longer to dry out. Fuel mincer Made at Altona as an alternative design to the commercial Spong Mincer With wooden plug to push fuel into the mincer and glass jar to collect sampleforests commission victoria (fcv), bushfire, forest measurement

Used to mince fuel samples to measure moisture content Representative samples of fuel such as bark, leaves, twigs etc were minced and the moisture measured The availability of fuel to burn depends largely on its moisture content. When it exceeds 20-25% not much will burn, whereas 12-15% is generally ideal for fuel reduction burning, but if the moisture content drops as low as 7-10% virtually everything will ignite, and fire behaviour becomes extreme. During the afternoon of the Ash Wednesday bushfires on 16 February 1983 fuel moisture contents were recorded at Stawell as low as 2.7%. Fine fuels like leaves and bark can rapidly absorb moisture after a shower of rain, or from the air when the Relative Humidity (RH) is high, and the temperature is low. Conversely, they can also dry out very quickly. So even though the overall fuel quantity in the forest doesn’t change, the fine fuel availability can increase rapidly from zero after rain to many tonnes per hectare as the fuel dries out. This can happen over a few hours on hot and windy days. Heavy fuels like logs on the ground take longer to dry out. Battery operated Fuel mincer. Plugs into 12 volt car cigarette lighter socket Adaption using parts from commercial food processor Made at Altona as an alternative design to the commercial Spong Mincer Glass jar to collect sampleforests commission victoria (fcv), bushfire, forest measurement

Used to measure moisture content by electric current resistance Representative samples of fuel such as bark, leaves, twigs etc were minced and the moisture measured The availability of fuel to burn depends largely on its moisture content. When it exceeds 20-25% not much will burn, whereas 12-15% is generally ideal for fuel reduction burning, but if the moisture content drops as low as 7-10% virtually everything will ignite, and fire behaviour becomes extreme. During the afternoon of the Ash Wednesday bushfires on 16 February 1983 fuel moisture contents were recorded at Stawell as low as 2.7%. Fine fuels like leaves and bark can rapidly absorb moisture after a shower of rain, or from the air when the Relative Humidity (RH) is high, and the temperature is low. Conversely, they can also dry out very quickly. So even though the overall fuel quantity in the forest doesn’t change, the fine fuel availability can increase rapidly from zero after rain to many tonnes per hectare as the fuel dries out. This can happen over a few hours on hot and windy days. Heavy fuels like logs on the ground take longer to dry out. Commercial timber moisture meter used to measure fuelDCR9-Tforests commission victoria (fcv), bushfire, forest measurement

Used to measure fuel moisture content Representative samples of fuel such as bark, leaves, twigs etc were minced and the moisture measured The availability of fuel to burn depends largely on its moisture content. When it exceeds 20-25% not much will burn, whereas 12-15% is generally ideal for fuel reduction burning, but if the moisture content drops as low as 7-10% virtually everything will ignite, and fire behaviour becomes extreme. During the afternoon of the Ash Wednesday bushfires on 16 February 1983 fuel moisture contents were recorded at Stawell as low as 2.7%. Fine fuels like leaves and bark can rapidly absorb moisture after a shower of rain, or from the air when the Relative Humidity (RH) is high, and the temperature is low. Conversely, they can also dry out very quickly. So even though the overall fuel quantity in the forest doesn’t change, the fine fuel availability can increase rapidly from zero after rain to many tonnes per hectare as the fuel dries out. This can happen over a few hours on hot and windy days. Heavy fuels like logs on the ground take longer to dry out. Adaption of a commercial timber moisture meter measure fuelTF 933 Cforests commission victoria (fcv), bushfire, forest measurement

94 p.; 22 cmnon-fictionAsh Wednesday fires with personal stories of the people involvedcockatoo (vic.), ash wednesday bushfires 1983

114 p.; 21 cmnon-fictionA short history of the Upper Beaconsfield Rural Fire Brigade and Auxiliaryupper beaconsfield (vic.), upper beaconsfield rural fire brigade, ash wednesday bushfires 1983

124 p. : maps ; 21 cm.non-fictionThe town of Cockatoo was destroyed by fire in 1983. This book tells the story of the building up of the parish of St. Luke's Anglican Church and the building of the Church in the four years following the fires. It is written by Peter Crawford who became the vicar of the Emerald-Cockatoo parish on the outskirts of Melbourne. cockatoo (vic.), ash wednesday bushfires 1983

Used to prepare fuel samples to measure their moisture content. Representative samples of fine fuel such as bark, leaves, twigs etc were minced first through a course mincing plate, then a fine plate and the moisture content measured with a Speedy moisture meter or other device. The availability of fuel to burn depends largely on its moisture content. When it exceeds 20-25% not much will burn, whereas 12-15% is generally ideal for fuel reduction burning, but if the moisture content drops as low as 7-10% virtually everything will ignite, and fire behaviour becomes extreme. During the afternoon of the Ash Wednesday bushfires on 16 February 1983 fuel moisture contents were recorded at Stawell as low as 2.7%. Fine fuels like leaves and bark can rapidly absorb moisture after a shower of rain, or from the air when the Relative Humidity (RH) is high, and the temperature is low. Conversely, they can also dry out very quickly. So even though the overall fuel quantity in the forest doesn’t change, the fine fuel availability can increase rapidly from zero after rain to many tonnes per hectare as the fuel dries out. This can happen over a few hours on hot and windy days. Heavy fuels like logs on the ground take longer to dry out. Spong No 10 food mincerforests commission victoria (fcv), bushfire, forest measurement

Bushfire behaviour is influenced by many things including temperature, relative humidity, forest type, fuel quantity and fuel dryness, topography and even slope. Wind has a dominant effect on the Rate of Spread (ROS), and also bushfire size, shape and direction. Fuel arrangement is as important as fuel quantity (tonnes/ha). Fibrous and ribbon bark, together with elevated and near-surface scrub fuels act as ladders which lead flames into the tree canopy. But the availability of fuel to burn depends largely on its moisture content. When it exceeds 20-25% not much will burn, whereas 12-15% is generally ideal for fuel reduction burning, but if the moisture content drops as low as 7-10% virtually everything will ignite, and fire behaviour becomes extreme. During the afternoon of the Ash Wednesday bushfires on 16 February 1983 fuel moisture contents were recorded at Stawell as low as 2.7%. Fine fuels like leaves and bark can rapidly absorb moisture after a shower of rain, or from the air when the Relative Humidity (RH) is high, and the temperature is low. Conversely, they can also dry out very quickly. So even though the overall fuel quantity in the forest doesn’t change, the fine fuel availability can increase rapidly from zero after rain to many tonnes per hectare as the fuel dries out. This can happen over a few hours on hot and windy days. Heavy fuels like logs on the ground take longer to dry out. Since the 1930s foresters, firefighters and researchers have been working to develop quick and reliable techniques for measuring fuel moisture content. One of the most accurate methods is slowly drying a sample of fuel in a conventional oven for 24-48 hours to remove all the moisture and measuring the weight difference, but this takes time and is not practical in the field when rapid measurements are needed. But oven drying is often used as a benchmark to compare other methods. Microwave ovens are faster but can cause uneven drying and even char the fuel. They are also not very practical for use in the field. Some mathematical models rely on weather records such as rainfall, wind speed, evaporation, cloud cover, shading, relative humidity, slope, aspect and season of the year to predict soil and fuel moisture. The Keetch-Byram Drought Index of soil dryness is the most common. But complex fuels with leaves, twigs, grass etc make the predictive models often inadequate for fine fuels. The most common technique in Victorian forests until recently was the trusty Speedy Moisture Meter. Originally developed in England during the 1920s for measuring moisture in wheat and other grains it was adapted for Australian forest fuels in the 1950s (I think). Fuel was first ground using a Spong mincer, often attached to the bullbar of a vehicle, and a small sample placed into the Speedy together with a measure of calcium carbide and then sealed. A chemical reaction created gas pressure which was read on the external dial. There were important techniques with cleaning, mincing and using the chemicals with the Speedy to give reliable readings, but it was quick, inexpensive, robust, portable and practical in the field. It was used routinely before igniting a fuel reduction burn or measuring fuel moisture differentials on slash burns. But in about 1996, Karen Chatto and Kevin Tolhurst from the Department’s Creswick Research Station developed the Wiltronics Fuel Moisture meter which measured electrical resistance. Wiltronics is an Australian owned company operating from Ballarat. The final result was a kit that was portable, accurate and could reliably measure fuel moisture contents between 3% and 200%. Although expensive, it is now widely used by fire agencies around the world which has virtually relegated the Speedy to the back cupboard.Prototype Fuel moisture meterT-H Fine Fuel Meterforests commission victoria (fcv), bushfire, forest measurement

Representative samples of fuel such as bark, leaves, twigs etc were minced and the moisture measured The availability of fuel to burn depends largely on its moisture content. When it exceeds 20-25% not much will burn, whereas 12-15% is generally ideal for fuel reduction burning, but if the moisture content drops as low as 7-10% virtually everything will ignite, and fire behaviour becomes extreme. During the afternoon of the Ash Wednesday bushfires on 16 February 1983 fuel moisture contents were recorded at Stawell as low as 2.7%. Fine fuels like leaves and bark can rapidly absorb moisture after a shower of rain, or from the air when the Relative Humidity (RH) is high, and the temperature is low. Conversely, they can also dry out very quickly. So even though the overall fuel quantity in the forest doesn’t change, the fine fuel availability can increase rapidly from zero after rain to many tonnes per hectare as the fuel dries out. This can happen over a few hours on hot and windy days. Heavy fuels like logs on the ground take longer to dry out. Adaption of a timber moisture meter made by the FCV radio lab to measure fuelforests commission victoria (fcv), bushfire, forest measurement