Shows / Urban Ambling
Urban Ambling
Gerard Mercator was born in Flanders ( now part of Belgium ) in 1512. It is unlikely that he ever travelled more than 100 kms from where he was born. Despite this, he devised a projection which resulted in maps of the then known world. The book of maps he produced was named ‘An Atlas ‘. He gave us the word. His map projection was still in use 400 years later! We spend so much time travelling to other places that we forget there is much to see and learn in our own surroundings. There is interest…
Episodes
- Urban Ambling
Maps. You can not please everyone.
A map is never neutral, and always involve compromise. You cannot flatten a globe without distorting something, and that distortion shapes what people think…
- Urban Ambling
The Mouth of Hawkesbury: The Lambert Penninsula and Barrenjoey
As you travel down from Brooklyn to the rivers mouth at Cowan Water you will see ahead a high ridge of land. This is the Lambert Penninsula. Behind it to the…
- Urban Ambling
Brooklyn: A Great Hawkesbury Town.
Brooklyn is on Sydney’s northern edge, but is totally different to the rest of the city.It is a small isolated settlement on the Hawkesbury River. Arriving by…
- Urban Ambling
The Greenway
An historic goods railway corridor becomes a link between the Parramatta and Cooks River. If I had to choose only two words to describe The Greenway, then they…
- Urban Ambling
Bloodworth and his bricks
James Bloodworth, like James Smith, was an early arrival in Sydney Town. The similarity ends there, however, as Smith's time was not successful, but Bloodworth…
- Urban Ambling
Has History Missed James Smith?
At 47 years of age , James Smith paid his fare for a passage to Botany Bay with the First Fleet. The arrangement was made with Captain Sever of the Lady…
- Urban Ambling
Not a Convenient Drain - The Cooks River
Abused, Ignored and avoided were apt descriptions of the Cooks River over the years from 1788 to the mid 1970’s. It started as a Arcadian Wonderland, but…
- Urban Ambling
Of Chance, Dams and Moriarty
A passing mention of an engineer, Moriarty, on an historical plaque by the Moruya River, leads to some enquiries. These, oddly enough, result in learning that…
- Urban Ambling
From Parramatta to Premier
It is apt that Martin Place, like the man after whom it is named, progressed from humble beginnings to pre-eminence. Such was the life of James Martin, who…
- Urban Ambling
The first direct radio message from England was received in Australia
On the 22nd of September,1918 the first direct radio message from England was received in Australia. Surprisingly, it was sent from a Transmitting Station in…
- Urban Ambling
Eccelston Du Faur, A forgotten Sydney Benefactor
Despite the fabulous name , this is not about a Spike Milligan or Barry Humphreys character. There really was an Eccleston Frederick Du Faur. He left a…
- Urban Ambling
Rags to Riches - The mysterious 42 Million Dollar Man - John Henry Challis.
In 1890 the University of Sydney received 250,000 Pounds from the Estate of John H Challis. It was the first major private benefaction. In today's money , that…
- Urban Ambling
Not only a Statue but an Obelisk as well - Allan Cunningham
There is a statue of Allan Cunningham on the Bent Street frontage of the Lands Department , at the corner with Loftus Street. There is an obelisk to his memory…
- Urban Ambling
Mr George Bass
Naval Surgeon, Explorer, Adventurer, and perhaps a would-be Smuggler George Bass was an extraordinary person, enormously talented and incredibly brave. It was…
- Urban Ambling
To Observatory Hill Sydney's Forgotten Gem
If you are visiting Sydney, and only have a day or two and you’re wondering what the best thing would be to do. Then I don’t think there’s much doubt that you…
- Urban Ambling
Windmills and Millers Point
In this episode we return to Churchill, which is on the Rocks Ridge, and move away from the valley of the tank stream heading down towards Darling Harbour, and…
- Urban Ambling
An amble in Randwick leads to a story about a most interesting person
An amble in Randwick gives glimpses of the founding and development of the area together with some potted histories of a number of significant early homes. The…
- Urban Ambling
Sydney - A City Of Windmills
This episode takes us up Grosvenor Street to Church Hill. During the 19th Century , this was a very fashionable area. This was probably due to the elevation…
- Urban Ambling
Who was Peter Dodds McCormick?
Most Australians should know this name. I suspect however, that most like me had never heard of this person. That changed for me when I serendipitously noticed…
- Urban Ambling
T.S. Mort
The imposing statue of T. S. Mort dominates the southern edge of Macquarie Place , which is opposite the Lands Department Building. Mort was an interesting and…
- Urban Ambling
Sydney's Connection To The South Seas
Near the western end of Bridge Street, there is a wonderful Victorian Building called Burns Philip House. It is worth just standing and quietly taking it in…
- Urban Ambling
Perhaps The Finest Street In Sydney
Someone once said that Bridge Street in Sydney was the finest of its streets, in a place that has a lot of competitors for that title. I will not debate that…