The Society will meet at the Royal Hotel, 5.30pm on Tuesday, 21st April where the guestspeaker will be Phillip Jones, who will give a talk on his father’s work in the tree-planting programme, The Beautification of Armidale.
At this time each year we particularly show gratitude for the work of this pioneering team of tree planters who created leafy streetscapes, aiming for and achieving, lasting environmental and beautifying benefits to the city.
The next meeting of the Society will be at the Royal Hotel, cnr Marsh and Beardy sts. on Tuesday, 17th March , 5.30 pm when the speaker will be Dr John Atchison OAM.
Topic: The Australian Agricultural Company and Northern New South Wales
John will outline the importance of the Australian Agricultural Company in the establishment of the wool, beef and coal industries and the major influence it has been in the development of Newcastle, the Hunter Valley, Liverpool Plains, the New England, Queensland and the Northern Territory since 1824.
All are welcome to attend and those wishing to stay on for dinner need to place their orders prior to the meeting.
A new year dawns for the Society with plans for the new talks, new projects and hopes for less extremes of weather and worldly behaviour. Our first meeting for 2026 will be at 5.30pm on Tuesday, 17th February at the Royal Hotel (cnr Marsh and Beardy Sts.). Dinner orders should be placed prior to the meeting. All are welcome. The guest speaker will be Wayne Hoppe of the Armidale Family History Group providing: An Update on the Old Armidale Burial Ground.
The last meeting for 2025 will be held on Tuesday 21 October, 5.30pm at the Royal Hotel. The topic for the meeting will be a presentation by Alan Wilkinson, Julie Harm, David Betts and Judith Grieve featuring the Goldrush at Melrose (1889 –1891), when Melrose, South East of Armidale became a bustling village of around 500 men, women and children.
Newsletter for September 2025
The next Society will meeting will be held at The Royal Hotel, cnr Beardy and Marsh Streets on Tuesday, 16th September at 5.30pm. The speaker will be Shirley Dawson, Archivist for St Peter’s Cathedral speaking on Women in the Cathedral.
The next monthly meeting of the Society will be on Tuesday, 19th August, 5.30pm at
the Royal Hotel, Beardy Street, Armidale.
The guest speaker will be Max Tavener OAM.
The History of Legacy in the Armidale District: Max served with the Royal Australian Navy and has been assisting war widows and their families in the Tableland area in the post war years. The role of Legacy has been changing over this time, which Max will share.
The next meeting of the Society will include the Annual General meeting and the monthly meeting at 5.30pm on Tuesday, 15th July at the Royal Hotel. The speaker at the July meeting will be former Stock and Station Agent Michael Fittler – Some reminiscences from being a Stock and Station Agent 1956-70. Michael will share some of his experiences during this time and mention others who have worked in Armidale over the years as Real Estate and Stock and Station Agents.
The next monthly meeting of the Society will be held at the Royal Hotel at 5.30pm on Tuesday 17th June. The speaker will be David Betts and the topic David Henry Drummond – The early years, 1890-1910 We are aware of the great debt Armidale owes to the Honourable David Drummond, (1890-1965) as the member for Northern Tablelands and of New England and as Minister for Education. However, his early life was not an easy one and perhaps provided him with the impetus and determination as a politician to make a significant difference to the opportunities available in post war life.
The next meeting of the Society will be at the Royal Hotel on Tuesday, 20th May when Sue Tanner will present A Damn Good Question: Who Made the Bricks?
The brickmakers of Armidale have not been easy to research and Sue has been able
to ‘unearth’ information regarding who they were.
Membership for 2025-26: A membership renewal is included in this newsletter, with details of payment options. The Annual General Meeting will be in July and payment by 30th June would be appreciated.
The next monthly meeting of the Society will be held at the Royal Hotel on Tuesday 15th April at 5.30pm. The speaker will be Caroline Chapman, and her talk, based on documents held at the University of New England Regional Archives and Heritage Centre is titled – Dr Ellen Kent Hughes OBE – Letters from Armidale. “Kentie” as she was widely known, served Armidale for over forty years She was a legend in her time and has provided a valuable history of those year in Armidale through correspondence with her son.