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House of Assembly - Fifty-Fifth Parliament, First Session (55-1)
2023-05-31 Daily Xml
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Grievance Debate

History Month

Ms PRATT (Frome) (15:10): It is with great enthusiasm that I rise to take the opportunity to talk about History Month—we mark the end of it today, of course—and all the fabulous activities that took place in the electorate of Frome. I was really run off my feet trying to get as many events as possible.

On the weekend, at the opening of the transport gallery at the Mallala Museum I got to meet Glen Dix. I was very pleased to cross paths with the fabulous Grand Prix flag waver, but of course it was about celebrating a local country asset, with displays dedicated to the penny-farthing ridden by the Tenby family for 40 years in the Christmas Pageant, as well as the Abbott buggy that was once delivered by John Pratt of Mallala.

On the same day, just down the road, down the nine-mile, in Balaklava at the Urlwin Park Agricultural Museum I was very happy to speak at the dedication and unveiling of the Illman hay elevator. This is something to behold. You really need to go onto social media to see the size and the scope. What we were celebrating with about 50 descendants of the Illman family was, in fact, a business based in Mallala that was responsible in the early 1900s for some of the largest ag machinery built in Australia—very, very significant.

The week before that, I was in Wasleys. The town was marking its 150th year, and of course the whole town came out for a day to celebrate the rich history and the curious history. From memory, it was once Mudla Wirra and Ridleyton. One side had the 6 o'clock lockout and one did not, so you can imagine that crossing the street at 6 o'clock was a sight to behold. The Light council has developed a Discover the Light app, and I know the member for Schubert will be interested to know that not only Gomersal and Gumeracha but Kapunda and Wasleys are virtual tours that can be conducted on that app.

One of the highlights for me was to participate in the wonders of Watervale—again, a walking or a driving tour of the town's history. Of significance and personal interest to me was to pop into St Mary's Church of England and discover that the organ that my nanna, Gertrude Pratt, had played in the Blyth Anglican Church had made its way up to Watervale. Of particular note for the current member for Flinders and the former member for Flinders, Peter Treloar, was that a walk through the cemetery at Watervale also uncovered the significant history of Francis Treloar, who was responsible for planting the first vines in the Watervale region. We know that has gone on to deliver some of the best riesling this country has tasted.

I really want to bring special attention to an extraordinary Australian, Sir Hubert Wilkins, who was born in a large sibling group of six or seven brothers and sisters in Mount Bryan. He went on to be one of our most remarkable pioneers and explorers and had quite a derring-do approach to life, almost in the vein of a young Winston Churchill. He was particularly noted for his firsts, including flights across the Arctic and Antarctica. He took a submarine below the frozen Arctic Ocean, the first to do so. He was also a war correspondent, a very brave man, a cinematographer, a naturalist, a geographer and a pioneering climatologist. In Mount Bryan a few weeks ago as part of History Week—we got History Month—we got to celebrate some of the cinematography that he took, the original footage from World War I.

I finally want to make special mention of two extraordinary women, Emily Riggs and Ali Paulett, who were both nominees in the AgriFutures Rural Women's Award. They both have a special, poignant mother-daughter story. Emily's mother sadly passed away from cancer, and Emily was a young girl also suffering from cancer. Ali Paulett and her daughter Jaz are supporting each other through Jaz's surgery at the moment, so a big shout-out to Jaz. These are extraordinary women living in the electorate of Frome, who, through their own industry and innovation, are delivering back to the community. Congratulations to Ali Paulett on winning that statewide award, and I wish her best on the national stage.

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