Today I stumbled across this photo of the Lambton Ker-rai Creek that runs through Lambton Park. The photo is from the naming ceremony that took place back in 2003.
Twenty years on, the growth of trees and vegetation along the creek has made a stark and improved change to the scene.
Some things change, some things stay the same. When we look at Ralph Snowball’s photograph of Morehead St Lambton from 125 years ago, the most striking difference is a complete absence of cars. Occupying the street instead is something very familiar to us, people enjoying an outdoor activity on a public holiday. The photo, from the morning of 13 October 1898, shows a group of cyclists at Lambton about to set off on the next leg of a “cycling century run”, a 100-mile ride to Stroud and back.
The event was held as part of the Eight-Hour Day celebrations, the forerunner of our Labour Day public holiday. The ride was a test of endurance rather than speed. There were no trophies for the fastest, but a badge for everyone who finished within the allotted time. The ride was intended for fun, but within limits. At a planning meeting for the ride the committee noted that “any exhibition of larrikinism will lead to disqualification.”
The ride was divided into several legs, with predefined stops where participants would have a paper ticket punched by an official. At 6:30am, 46 cyclists set off from Newcastle Post Office, with the first leg detouring through Adamstown to Lambton to make the total distance up to 100 miles. With the next leg to Raymond Terrace the cyclists enjoyed a short break as they crossed the Hunter River on the Hexham punt. The group reached Stroud at 12.26pm and after an appetising snack commenced the return journey at 1.09pm. Despite darkness falling, and the necessity of walking their bikes up the Sandgate hill due to road repairs, 38 participants arrived back at Newcastle Post Office by 7:30pm, having completed the 100 miles in under 13 hours. Special mention must be made of the three women who completed the course, not only keeping up with the men, but doing so while wearing highly impractical ankle length skirts!
The article above was first published in the September 2023 edition of The Local.
The full text of the newspaper report on the cycling century run is reproduced below.
The Cycling Century Run. This event came off yesterday, and proved a thorough success. The route was to Stroud and back, a deviation being made in the morning through Hamilton and Lambton and across to Waratah to make up a deficiency in the mileage. The start, was made very nearly sharp to time, 6.30, though there were several laggards, who came on late. Forty-six started, including four ladies, with the intention of trying to get right though, and there were two others who went as far as the Twelve Mile only. Mr. J. D. Smith set the pace to Hexham Punt, 14 miles, which was reached at 7.57, three minutes late, some delay occurring at Lambton, where the second puncturing of tickets was made, because the secretary had hung behind with the puncturing instrument to puncture the tickets of the idle starters. The punt was left at 8.10. From this point Mr. W. T. Gibb, jun., set the pace. The Terrace, six miles, was reached at 8.40, about 6 min being made up, loss 1 min, and after 15min spell, another start was made for McNiven’s, Derlang, or the Twelve Mile, Mr. Gibb still pacing. The Twelve Mile was reached at 10.3, time table time exactly. Here a most excellent breakfast was provided. Sharp to time. 10.33, another start was made, Mr. H. A. Graham setting the pace to Stroud, F. Woods’ hotel (21 miles). On this section the pacemaker being as a matter of fact paced pace was broken, and despite an unprogrammed halt of 10 minutes being called halfway, the arrival at Stroud was made at 12.26, 13 minutes ahead of schedule time. A most appetising snack was here provided, a rest being taken of 30 minutes for those who ran to time, the scorchers, and among them the pacer and his hustlers, and those who allowed themselves to be bustled with him, getting 43 minutes. Nevertheless there was some complaining. Mr. Flood provided a very appetising snack. Sharp at 1.9-the schedule time-the return, journey was commenced, Mr. Brett setting the pace back to Witt’s Half-way House at Limeburner’s Creek for dinner, the bustled pacemaker on his last century closing up the rear. Witt’s was reached (16 miles) at 2.50, five minutes behind schedule time a five-minute spell (uncatalogued) being taken half-way. The three nasty hills, up and down, up and down in sharp succession, going into and coming out of Stroud, proved very trying. Mr. Witt provided a very excellent dinner. Leaving Witts’ to time, 3.45, the run to Raymond Terrace (16 miles) was made with Mr. Krempin setting the pace, inside schedule time, the arrival being made at 5.15 instead of 5.21. Leaving here at 5.36, after 21 minutes’ spell, Hexham punt was made, in schedule time, and the departure thence, with plenty in hand for completing the journey in schedule time, despite the darkness and the necessity for walking the Sandgate Hill, now under repair. From Hexham punt to Waratah Mr. D. Gordon set the pace, and thence home, Mr. H. Warr. Thirty-eight tickets were handed in at the Newcastle Post-office, which was reached at 7.28, two minutes inside schedule time, the distance proving fully the 100 miles, cyclometers saying 101 to 102. It is reasonably believed that one name may have to be added to the list, that of a rider who had to inflate his tyres every three quarters of a mile or so, and who is believed, to have arrived home at about 10 minutes to 8, and to have been unable to find the secretary to hand in his ticket, though that functionary was standing at the Criterion Hotel corner till 7.45 on the lookout for stragglers. It was a very pleasant day, and although the heat was pretty severe, and the dust rather bad in places, it must necessarily be called a pleasant ride of its kind, no wind of any moment interfering either way; and regarding these century runs it has always to be remembered that there are scores of young athletic men about to whom they are by no means a severe trial. All the same, they are a very fair average test of one’s capabilities of enduring physical fatigue; and, for instance, those able to perform such a feat are fit, without, much preliminary hardening, for active military service in emergency. Skill, however, is of course no small item in the programme. The names of those who handed in their tickets at the post office are given hereunder: – Ladies: Mesdames Snow (North Sydney Bicycle Club), Greenwood, and Harry. Men: Messrs. W. T. Gibb, jun., T. Snow (North Sydney Bicycle Club), – Patey, T. S. Everett, F. Hughes, F. W. Krempin, H. Warr, Albert Hopkins, E. Barnes, George Proctor, A. W. Judd, W. J Greenwood, Percy Taylor, – Hawthorne, Walter Taylor, D. Meldrum, J. H. Parker, – Garrett, D. Gordon, C. Sanders (pumping for an obscure puncture every five miles), T. Lee, D. Murray, W. Brett, J. Quinn, E. Bruderlin, R. Gordon, H. A. Graham, J. T. Smith, James Blanch, W. Welford, A. Quinn, D. Powell, W. H. Bartrop (Singleton), D. J. Young, and J. D. Smith.
Newcastle Morning Herald and Miners’ Advocate, 14 October 1988.
| Article Date Event Date | Notes |
|---|---|
| 3 Sep 1898 | "Matters in connection with the proposed century run on Eight Hour Day are in active progress, and in the hands of a reliable committee. Newcastle to Singleton and return will probably be the chosen route, in consequence of the immediate proximity of the road to the railway line, which would give exhausted wheelers a chance to take the services of the train if so desired." |
| 10 Sep 1898 9 Sep 1898 | A meeting of the committee organising the cycling century run. Decision to ride to Stroud and back. "Any riders passing the pace-makers will be disqualified, and any exhibition of larrikinism will also lead to disqualification. Those successfully completing the journey will receive a badge." |
| 7 Oct 1898 5 Oct 1898 | A meeting of the committee organising the cycling century run. |
| 14 Oct 1898 13 Oct 1898 | A report on the cycling century run, a 100 mile ride from Newcastle Post Office to Stroud and return. |
| 14 Oct 1898 13 Oct 1898 | Report on the Eight Hours Day procession. |
I recently found in the Living Histories site of the University of Newcastle, a photo of the Lambton Park rotunda from 1973. The rotunda was looking so sad and disheveled, and so different from current day appearances that my initial reaction on seeing the photo was that it was mis-labeled and was a rotunda somewhere else.
Constructed in 1890, the rotunda initially had iron palisade railings. By 1925 the rotunda had fallen into a bad condition. Extensive repairs were undertaken, including replacing the iron railings with arched brickwork, and replacing the wooden floor with reinforced concrete.
Newcastle Council later renovated the rotunda, reinstating the look of the original, including iron railings, a wooden floor, and the dome and spire above the main roof.
Lambton Park has been used for many events in both tranquil and troubled times. This month’s photograph from 1896 captures a key moment in a turbulent year for miners and their families.
Steadily rising demand for coal had caused the selling price to reach a peak of 10 shillings per ton in 1890. However, economic depression in 1892-93 combined with increasing production, nearly halved the price by 1896. In February, the proprietors of Lambton mine announced the pit would close unless wages were cut. The miners, believing the company was using this as an excuse to increase profits at their expense, downed tools and called for a district wide meeting.
Nearly 2000 miners gathered at Lambton Park on 29 February 1896, and resolved that unless wages were increased, they would hold a ballot for a general strike. No increase was granted, and in March a majority voted to cease work. Negotiations continued into April, but …
Easter dawns upon us with anything but a happy outlook. The district is threatened with a great industrial strike, which is calculated to bring privation upon many poor families. Already the shopkeepers are complaining about a falling off in business, the housewives evidently buying only the bare necessaries of life.
Newcastle Morning Herald and Miners’ Advocate, 2 April 1896.
With no settlement reached, on 27 April 1896 …
… the strike began in real earnest, no less than 3500 miners and others refusing to continue working under the existing conditions.
Newcastle Morning Herald and Miners’ Advocate, 28 April 1896.
The economy suffered …
The grocers cannot give credit, and the housewives have little or no ready cash to spend.
Newcastle Morning Herald and Miners’ Advocate
Families were displaced …
Men who have managed to save a little money are leaving the district for Western Australia, New Zealand, Victoria, and Wollongong.
Newcastle Morning Herald and Miners’ Advocate
After 11 weeks it was clear that the coal prices would not increase, and wages could not be raised. On 16 July 1896 the men returned to work, at a lower hewing rate than before. Summing up the futility of the strike, a newspaper editorial stated …
Undoubtedly, when the history of this miserable struggle has to be more fully written, the best feature of it will be declaring it ‘off’.
Newcastle Morning Herald and Miners’ Advocate, 13 July 1896.
The article above was first published in the February 2023 edition of The Local.
In the article I talk about ‘the selling price’ of coal. This is a simplification as there was no single value, but the selling price differed between large and small coal, it differed from one colliery to another depending on quality, and it could differ according to contracts agreed between collieries and buyers.
To track the trend in coal prices, I extracted from the Department of Mines annual reports, the quantity and value of coal sold by the Lambton Colliery for each year from 1875 to 1903. From this the average price of coal per ton for each year can be calculated. The trend shows that the price remained close to 10s per ton from 1885 to 1890. However, the following years saw a steady decline to a low of 6.24 shillings per ton in 1896, the year of the miners’ general strike.
| Year | Employees | Quantity (tons) |
Value (pounds) |
Avg per ton |
| 1875 | 280 | 148573 | 94096 | 12.67 |
| 1876 | 391 | 160990 | 103304 | 12.83 |
| 1877 | 421 | 164267 | not specified | ? |
| 1878 | 436 | 213332 | 119881 | 11.24 |
| 1879 | 440 | 225788 | 144088 | 12.76 |
| 1880 | 453 | 239234 | 107655 | 9.00 |
| 1881 | 269 | 120563 | 42416 | 7.04 |
| 1882 | 358 | 236168 | 107238 | 9.08 |
| 1883 | 416 | 252044 | 123857 | 9.83 |
| 1884 | 446 | 267096 | 126842 | 9.50 |
| 1885 | 460 | 223030 | 111515 | 10.00 |
| 1886 | 510 | 113972 | 56416 | 9.90 |
| 1887 | 400 | 167355 | 83677 | 10.00 |
| 1888 | 469 | 164048 | 80304 | 9.79 |
| 1889 | 505 | 243256 | 120134 | 9.88 |
| 1890 | 440 | 139375 | 69751 | 10.01 |
| 1891 | 480 | 189382 | 94024 | 9.93 |
| 1892 | 480 | 224498 | 101373 | 9.03 |
| 1893 | 435 | 159100 | 69840 | 8.78 |
| 1894 | 412 | 178495 | 60584 | 6.79 |
| 1895 | 304 | 112368 | 35092 | 6.25 |
| 1896 | 173 | 47505 | 14813 | 6.24 |
| 1897 | 210 | 86340 | 27378 | 6.34 |
| 1898 | 208 | 105219 | 32602 | 6.20 |
| 1899 | 196 | 85932 | 31650 | 7.37 |
| 1900 | 196 | 92145 | 34383 | 7.46 |
| 1901 | 197 | 80945 | 41437 | 10.24 |
| 1902 | 190 | 62419 | 29175 | 9.35 |
| 1903 | 170 | 79663 | 33699 | 8.46 |
From 1904 the Department of Mines annual reports do not contain data on coal output and value from individual mines.
The “Farishes Flat” portion of Lambton colliery was leased to Charles Noble on 3 November 1904, and
| Article Date Event Date | Notes |
|---|---|
| 14 Jun 1890 | "The Associated Colliery Proprietors are considering the advisability of reducing the selling price of coal … from 11s to 9s per ton … Under their mutual agreement the coal from the associated mines is sold at 11s per ton, and each mine has a stipulated output or vend for the year. No such agreement, however, exists among the other companies, many of which are now selling their coal at a price in some instances as low as 9s per ton. That this is the main reason why a reduction is mooted there can be no doubt. The majority of the larger collieries, and nearly all the older ones, belong to the association, and at present they raise about 70 per cent. of the total district output, but new mines are opening constantly, and, so far, none of them have shown any inclination to become parties to the Associated Proprietors agreement. " |
| 22 Feb 1896 21 Feb 1896 | "A special meeting of the delegate board of the Miners' Association was held at the Trades Hall for the purpose of considering principally the position of the Lambton miners. It was also decided to hold an aggregate meeting on pay-Saturday, the 29th instant, at the Lambton Park, at 11 a.m. , to discuss the whole situation as it affects the miners." |
| 22 Feb 1896 | "Mr. Thomas Croudace, the general manager of the Scottish-Australian Mining Company, says it will be impossible for him to re-open the Lambton pit while he has to paying a hewing rate altogether out of proportion to the selling price of the coal … the miners hold a very different view from Mr. Croudace. They contend that the action has been decided upon solely for the purpose of reducing wages" |
| 28 Feb 1896 | Letter from Amalgamated Miners' Association to miners … " it has been resolved to hold an aggregate meeting of miners in the Lambton Park on Saturday, 29th instant, to consider the advisability of seeking an advance in the hewing rates. It is needless to remind you of the successive reductions in wages during a period extending over two years, and the imposition of the most exacting and degrading conditions it has been possible to impose at many collieries." |
| 28 Feb 1896 | "There is no movement with regard to the Lambton Colliery and no apparent prospect of work being resumed. Of the 182 miners who cameout against the reduction in the yardage rates 96 have either succeeded in obtain work at neighbouring collieries, or have left for Western Australia, some 20 having sailed for that colony, leaving 86 still without employment, although some of those remaining are also making preparations for going west. This pleasing result, after barely two weeks' idleness, is hailed with satisfaction in the town, not unmixed, however, with regret that the bone and sinew of the place should be driven from their homes to seek scope for their energies elsewhere." |
| 29 Feb 1896 | "The result of the aggregate meeting of miners at Lambton Park is anxiously looked forward to by all in the coal trade. It is anticipated that the principal resolutions will be in favour of a ballot being taken as to whether a general strike shall take place or not. Very unpleasant rumours now fill the air.” |
| 1 Mar 1896 29 Feb 1896 | Report on the aggregate meeting, where about 2000 persons were present. Two resolutions were moved and passed unanimously.
|
| 2 Mar 1896 29 Feb 1896 | Detailed report on the miners' aggregate meeting in Lambton Park. |
| 2 Mar 1896 | Lengthy editorial report on the miners’ aggregate meeting. "Every representation that can be made will not restore a nearly-worked-out mine to its pristine condition, neither will it raise the price of coal in the markets of the world, in which we are now competitors. While we admit the ruinous undercutting of the selling price which has been going on for some time past, the broad fact stares us in the face that any attempt to remedy that state of affairs by the mutual action of the proprietors or their co-operation with the miners has proved ineffectual." |
| 14 Mar 1896 | "The [Lambton] mine still remains closed down, with no apparent signs of a resumption of work. Consequently, matters are very gloomy in the town. It is, however, gratifying to learn that out of a total of 182 miners thrown out of employment 120 have succeeded in securing work elsewhere in the district, or have left for Western Australia." |
| 16 Mar 1896 | "The members of the Miners' Association will be asked to ballot for or against a strike, and on this point even the non-unionist miners in the district are to be invited to express an opinion. The history of past struggles of a like kind is of so depressing a character that it is hoped men will not commit themselves to another of a similar nature without giving ample consideration to all the surroundings of the case." |
| 18 Mar 1896 | "The time having expired for the colliery proprietors to reply to the demand made upon them by the miners for a hewing rate of 3s 6d per ton … the situation is, therefore, now before the miners themselves, who are to be asked to decide by ballot whether there should be a general strike. To bring about this end it will be necessary to have a two-thirds majority of the votes of every miner, whether unionist or non-unionist. Ballot papers are now being distributed throughout the whole of the district." |
| 25 Mar 1896 | "The question of a general strike, will be placed before the delegate board of the Miners' Association today. In deciding upon this great and serious question they will have before them not only the result of the ballot, but also all the letters sent by the proprietors ... Mr. Thomas Croudace, for instance, suggests an eleventh hour attempt at a conference." |
| 26 Mar 1896 25 Mar 1896 | Result of the ballot: 2624 for a strike; 587 against a strike. Miners called to hand in their 14 days notice on 6 April. An invitiation is extended to the mine proprietors to meet the miners in conference before 2 April, in order to avert a strike. |
| 2 Apr 1896 | "Easter dawns upon us with, unfortunately, anything but a happy outlook. The district is threatened with a great industrial strike, which is calculated to bring privation upon many poor families. Already the shopkeepers are complaining about a falling off in business, the housewives evidently buying only the bare necessaries of life." |
| 4 Apr 1896 2 Apr 1896 | Conference between the miners assoication and the colliery proprietors, in an effort to avert a general strike. The conference was relatively amicable, but in the end of little consequence, owing to the absence of proprietors from three of the large coal companies. |
| 8 Apr 1896 | Miners at 15 collieries have now handed in their 14 days notice to cease work. "If the notices sent in should be carried into effect after Saturday week, there will be something like 4000 miners on strike." |
| 11 Apr 1896 | "From all the information procurable on the local mining situation every thing points to the strong likelihood of a cessation of work at many collieries in this district on Saturday, 18th inst." |
| 14 Apr 1896 | "The proposal unanimously adopted was that the members of the [municipal] conference, accompanied by the members for the district, meet the Premier to-night on his arrival at Newcastle en route from Queensland for the purpose of representing to him the advisableness of appointing without delay a court of arbitration in relation to the matters now in dispute." |
| 15 Apr 1896 | "The miners had given in 14 days' notice on a ballot of a five to one majority to strike." The Premier (George Reid) is asked by alderman of Newcastle Council to intervene to avert the strike. |
| 15 Apr 1896 | "The fervent hope expressed by many is that at this late hour a strike may be averted; but to suggest means to that end is a difficult matter, as so many of the proprietors refuse to meet the miners' representatives in conference as requested by them." |
| 28 Apr 1896 27 Apr 1896 | "The strike began in real earnest yesterday, no less than 3500 miners and others refusing to continue working under the existing conditions. " |
| 16 May 1896 | "With the exception of some Sea Pit miners, the majority of the strikers seem more than ever determined to stand out. Old residents who have grown weary of strikes in this district declare that they have seldom, if ever, witnessed a more stubborn resistance between capital and labour." |
| 13 Jul 1896 | "A moderate estimate of the loss of wages alone is £100,000, without taking into consideration the indirect effects of the stoppage to the general community, which is therefore poorer by the above amount than it would have been if there had been no strike … Undoubtedly, when the history of this miserable struggle has to be more fully written, the best feature of it will be declaring it 'off'." |
| 17 Jul 1896 | Lengthy editorial reflecting on the lessons of the strike … "The principal lesson taught by the result of the strike is one which is not a personal matter between employer and employed. It is the fact that if consumers cannot give a higher price to those having coal to sell, the latter are unable to increase the earnings of those who have the work of winning it." |
When the old Lambton colliery ceased operation, the pit paddock with its offices and buildings lay idle for a decade. Then 75 years ago, in 1947, a new enterprise began on the site with the opening of Leonora Glass Industries, founded by David Marr and three highly skilled Czechoslovakian glass workers.
Joseph and Henry Vecera and Josef Tvrdik came to Australia from Europe in 1934 to teach glass making at a Sydney factory. They later moved to Newcastle to work in the Electric Lamp Manufacturers Australia factory at Hamilton North. In 1946 the three men and their families became Australian citizens. The following year, along with David Marr (manager) and Alan Little (engineer), they set out to create their own glass making business, renting a portion of the Lambton colliery and setting up furnaces in the former colliery workshop.
In August 1947 they registered their enterprise as “Leonora Glass Industries”, possibly inspired by the town of Lenora in the Czech Republic, just 30km from Josef Tvrdik’s birthplace, where a famous glassworks had operated since 1834. Manufacturing commenced the following month and by December 1948 the works employed 23 people including several young apprentices. At this time they were making 2000 lamp shades a week. In the following years they produced many items such as wine glasses, dishes, ash trays, and car headlight lenses.
While the bulk of Leonora’s output was utilitarian in nature, they also handcrafted fine glassware such as jugs, vases, and decorative ornaments. Museums across Australia hold examples of these works in their collections. In July 1957 glassmaking in Lambton came to an abrupt halt when a fire destroyed the Leonora works. The company quickly recovered, purchasing 14 acres of land on Douglas St Wallsend to set up a new factory. In 1960 the multinational firm Philips Industries took over the glassworks to focus on the manufacture of light fittings. Although business expanded in the 1960s, increasing pressure from low cost overseas competitors in the 1970s led to the eventual closure of the works in 1982
The article above was first published in the October 2022 edition of The Local.
The following personal details of the three Czechoslovakian founders of Leonora Glass were extracted from National Archives of Australia records searches.
| Name | Henry Vecera | Josef Vecera | Josef Tvrdik |
| Birth | 15 Aug 1901, Uhrovec, Slovakia | 19 Mar 1899, Uhrovec, Slovakia | 12 Jan 1904, Nova Hut, Czechia |
| Arrival in Australia | 11 Nov 1934 | 9 Nov 1934 | |
| Naturalised | 30 Aug 1946 | 9 Dec 1946 | 3 Dec 1946 |
| Family | Wife, Julia; daughter, Henrietta Julia, born 1928 | Wife, Cecile; twin sons, Milon Edward and Joseph Henry, born 1931 | Wife, Coralie Violet Mary |
A search of the ASIC Registers shows that Leonora Glass Industries Pty Ltd was registered as a company on 11 August 1947.
I have no direct evidence for the naming of “Leonora Glass Industries”, and what follows is just a reasoned guess.
We know from the notification of intention to apply for naturalisation, that Josef Tvrdik was born in “Nova Hut” in Czechoslovakia. This is the village of Nové Hute in the Czech Republic today.
Just 17km away (28km by road) from Nove Hute is the village of Lenora. The tourism website for the Šumava region describes the origin of the town.
The village of Lenora was founded as a settlement around one of the last glass- works established in the Šumava mountains by Jan Meyer in 1834. Later on the glass-works were taken over by Meyer’s nephew Vilém Kralik. The village was named Eleonorenhain after the Princess Eleonora (1812-1873), the wife of the lord of the estates John Adolf of Schwarzenberg. Czech translation of the name is “Eleonora’s Paradise”. Later on the village adopted Czech version of the name, Lenora.
Sumavanet tourism website
Note that while there is Leonora Parade in Waratah West, it appears to have no connection to the Leonora glassworks. The street was formerly a section of Platt Street, and was renamed to Leonora Parade in 1968.
| Article Date Event Date | Notes |
|---|---|
| 6 Apr 1946 | Notice of intention by Henry Vecera, Josef Vecera, and Josef Trvdik to apply for naturalisation. Josef Tvrdik, born at Nova Hut, Czechoslovakia, resident over 11 yers. Josef Vecera, Born at Uhrovec, resident over 11 years, living in Adamstown. Henry Vecera, Born at Uhrovec, resident over 11 years, living in Pearson St Lambton. |
| 7 Oct 1947 | "A GLASS factory, now operating in a disused building which once was part of the Old Lambton coalmine, aims to produce the finest glass and crystal ware. The company--Leonora Glass Industries Pty. Ltd.- comprises Messrs. Jospeh and Henry Vecera, Mr. Jospeh Tvrdik. Mr. David Marr (manager) and Mr. Alan Little (engineer). Messrs Vecera and Tvrdik are Czech-Australians, who came to Australia in 1934 to teach glass-making at a Sydney factory." |
| 23 Nov 1948 | “The strange bulbous Dali-like shapes, coloured in streaky and marbled patterns, which yesterday made an appearance as part of the Christmas dressing of a Hunter-street store are not painted marrows or solid-seeming balloons ... they are made of glass. The result of a brain-wave on the part of the window dresser (Miss E. Ritchie), they were specially blown at the Leonora Glass Works at New Lambton.” |
| 3 Dec 1948 | The development of the fine glass industry in Newcastle by two Newcastle engineers and three Czechoslovakian glassworkers in a factory at Lambton is giving Newcastle boys an opportunity to learn the trade. The factory, which employs 23 after 12 months of operation, turns out 2000 lamp shades a week and some 400 water sets. Production of fine glass-wine glasses and ground glass-is starting. |
| 11 Dec 1948 | Photo of twins Joseph and Milon Vecera, on the steps of the old Lambton Colliery office, near to where they work in the Leonora Glassworks. |
| 11 Dec 1948 | Story on Ernest Sandgren, immigrant from Sweden, and Australian weight-lifting champion for 7 years, working as a cutter of fine crystal at Leonora Glassworks. |
| 3 Feb 1949 | "It was planned with the Leonora glass factory at Lambton to make Newcastle a centre of the fine glass industry in Australia, the Managing Director (Mr. D. Marr) told Newcastle Business Men's Club yesterday. The factory was still in its initial development. It had been operating for 18 months. In the factory there were three Czechs of world-wide experience in the manufacture of hollow blown ware, including the art of stemware. They came from generations of art craftsmen." |
| 8 Mar 1950 | “The factory is now producing heat-resistant glass in large quantities. About 100,000 such articles have been produced for distribution throughout Australia, in the past 12 months. The Manager (Mr. David Marr) said he believed this was the first time pyrex-type glass had been made in Newcastle.” |
| 4 Jan 1952 | "MILON and Joseph Vecera, twin sons of Mr. and Mrs. J. Vecera, of Croudace street, Lambton, celebrated their 21st birthday, which was on New Year's Day,' with a party, on New Year's Eve. About 40 people attended the party. Milon and Joseph, who were born in Lausanne, Switzerland, came to Australia when they were four. They are both glass craftsmen at Leonora Glass Works, Lambton, and both play the piano, violin and piano-accordion." |
| 26 May 1953 | The factory is turning to a new type of glass manufacture for Newcastle. This is the manufacture of pressed glass. A glass moulding press has been installed to manufacture pressed glass dishes, car headlight lenses, ash trays and other goods. The machine is in trial production. When producing fully, it will turn out 1500 articles a day.” |
The content of this post has been moved to this page.
This black pillar appeared recently adjacent to the Howe St walkway in Lambton Park. Just like the monolith in Kubrick’s “2001: A Space Odyssey”, I have no idea what it’s for.
The replacement of the Lambton pool water slide looks to have been completed this week.
