Christmas Celebration
18th December 11 am – 2 pm: Annual Christmas Lunch at the Bayswater Rail Museum and the nearby Bassendean Hotel for lunch.
If you have not already indicated your attendance, please reply to this email NOW to let me know if you can come.
Email james@coolzy.com
Mt Henry Bridge – Heritage Marker Unveiling Ceremony
About 50 former and serving engineers gathered at Deepwater Point last Friday morning to witness the official unveiling of the WA Heritage Marker which will be installed at either end of the pedestrian deck and cycleways on the bridge. This is the culmination of more than a year’s work by Gerry Hofmann who prepared the heritage submission and led the organisation of the ceremony.
Noongar elder Barry Winmar performed a moving welcome to country, emphasising the role of the bridge in bringing communities together.
Jillian Formentin, who has just been awarded the national accolade “Australian Professional Engineer of the Year”, described the history of the two bridges that overlap, giving the impression of a single bridge. John Erceg, Managing Director of Main Roads WA then helped Allanah McTiernan unveil the Heritage Marker Interpretation Panel. Allanah McTiernan, who was Minister for Transport and Infrastructure at the time the second bridge was built, then spoke, echoing the theme of connecting communities, thanking the engineers who contributed so much to the WA community. John Erceg concluded the ceremony, thanking Engineers Australia staff for organising the event and also thanking the engineers whose work we could all see from the ceremony location at Deepwater Point.
Sikh Heritage in WA: Adenia Park, Riverton
Dr. Didar Cheema has offered to arrange a guided visit to this special heritage site in Riverton (WA Register of Heritage 20968).
It is the first heritage listed site in Australia recognising the contribution of Sikhs from the Punjab plains of India (part of which is now the major province of Pakistan). The Sikh Empire governed Punjab before it became a British dominion from 1849 onward.
At that time, WA had also become a British colony. Many people from India and other British colonies arrived after gold was discovered the 1880s. Sikhs from Punjab contributed significantly to the early development of WA and its hinterland as well other Australian.
Adenia Park contains the cremation site vested to Punjab Sikhs, based on their petition first filed in 1893, legalised in 1929 and finally gazetted in 1932 as the official Sikh cremation site.
This site represents a rare phenomenon in the history and cultural heritage of WA and Australia, being formal recognition of special practices, traditions, and requirements of a specific cultural group. At the time, conformity with established English practice was the norm across Australia, especially after federation in 1901.
A special monument was installed at the behest of the late historian John Parker. Visitors to the site will see it.
The site is an attractive picnic location as well.
Please register your interest to attend a special guided visit at which you will meet experts in the history of Sikhs in Western Australia and their contributions to the state.
Email: didarsinghcheema@live.com.au.
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