Ghost Towns Of Australia

by George Farwell

Despite its comparatively short history of white settlement, the map of Australia is spattered with the names of towns that are now only a handful of ruins, or ess than that, or linger on, each with its once busy streets lined with glassless windows except for perhaps those of perhaps half a dozen houses, a store, and a shady pub with decaying veranda...

Some were killed when the gold petered out. Some languished when lack of rain, and erosion, forced the farmer off the surrounding marginal lands. And some just died. In Ghost Towns of Australia, George Farwell writes of a number of the most colourful - telling of their past glories, the reasons for their decline, and their picturesque decay.
The book may be described as filling in, from the reader's point of view, a number of the emptying spaces of Australia.

Genres: Australia, History, Nonfiction

247 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1974

About the author

Farwell was born in Bath, Somerset, England and was educated at a number of different schools, ending with Forest School, Walthamstow, which he left at age 17. He lost both his parents at about the same time, and after struggling to make a living in Depression-era London, he left for an eighteen-month expedition to French Polynesia. This led to a life of fairly constant travel.

Arriving in Sydney in 1935, he worked in or near that city at various jobs such as deckhand, dock labourer and gold miner, and contributed articles to the Sydney Mail at the same time.

Although Farwell experienced a number of lean years in Sydney, he kept on writing about the various experiences he had on the job, as well as on his travels to various parts of the world. His first book, Down Argent Street, telling the story of Broken Hill, New South Wales, was published in 1948. He published twenty two books in all, including an autobiography and biographies of Charles Sturt and E. D. S. Ogilvie.

His articles and short stories have appeared in numerous publications, including The Bulletin and Walkabout.[

Reviews

[Brian · Rating 4 out of 5]

You must keep in mind that this book was published in 1965, almost 50 years before my reading of it.

My interest in these towns was initially piqued when my wife and I toured Australia for the first time in 2012, and in doing so visited many of these places.

Some have continued in decline, or stayed basically dead, others have staged a remarkable comeback and are now booming towns, even cities. Which shows that history is a living dynamic, those present today can never seriously predict what will take place in half a century hence.

The book self is well researched and written and gives valuable insights into the people, politics and country that have lead to the present day Australia.

There are any number of secondhand copies about, so it must have been a good seller in is day. Worth every cent of the $2 I paid for my copy at the Lifeline book fair in Canberra.

[Tracey · Rating 3 out of 5]

In some ways this is a book of its time. Published back in the early 1970’s it chronicles a series of Australian towns that have either been abandoned or are in serious decline. Though the town of Clunes in Victoria may currently dispute its status in the book.
I love these books of Australian history as there is a personal element to the stories and capture of what is unique.
It is worth the read as it does make you want to travel those outback roads and try to discover what has happened to these towns.

[David Vernon · Rating 4 out of 5]

An entertaining read. Well written, well researched and containing many interesting anecdotes about Australia's lost towns. George Farwell has a clear understanding of the Australian ethos (particularly for a Pom). I will try and find more of his books to read now.

[Raymond · Rating 5 out of 5]

I didn't so much find this book for sale somewhere as hear about it first. It was mentioned in the foreword of the 2002 book Australian Ghost Towns by Barry McGowan as the inspiration for his own book of the very same ilk. So if you enjoyed George Farwell's 1964 book, which appeared to sell very well in numerous reprints of both soft and hardcovers, then you might want to seek out the Barry McGowan book too.

I eventually came across the original softcover novel of Farwell's book at the University Of Newcastle's two-yearly book fair in 2011. It became my much anticipated bedtime reading after work each day for about a month around October of that year. Farwell had a talented way of combining colourful history with his personal experiences of visiting these towns and regions. They were places that sprang up for one reason or another, usually agriculture or mining, and after their roaring days either died completely or faded into a state close to death. As Australian history goes, it doesn't get much better than this.

[Rhonda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not so much as spent an evening skipping through, reading bits here and there, entire sections on towns I knew (eg Clunes, which is not a ghost town but qualifies as it's slow and sleepy and apparently populated only by small holdings farmers) and looking at fascinating photos from last century of wide, empty dirt streets lined with vacant buildings sinking into the earth plus a local leaning against something. It was satisfying as these things always are to me.