100 years ago
MILDURA BRIDGE: At the present time timber is being delivered on the ground near where the Mildura Bridge is to be erected. A beginning will be made today with the construction of buildings, including an office. Plant and material is coming forward, the staff will soon be very busy – there is much work assembling the plant. The main bridge across the river will be over 800ft, consisting of four main openings or river spans being of lattice work of steel girder construction, the spans on either side of the bridge being of concrete piles and plate girders. in connection with the main spans the river piers are throughout of reinforced concrete supported on foundation piles.
LIGHT: The first meeting of the new year of the Electric Light Committee of the Mildura Town Council will be held tonight. Among other matters to be discussed are the special verandah lighting in the town area and the wood supply for the coming 12 months. The ordinary meetings have been discontinued during the holiday period.
WIRELESS: Wentworth wireless sets have been in great demand during the week and the opportunity of receiving the scores of the Test match within an hour of the drawing of the stumps is appreciated. It is hardly necessary to ask anybody the scores, one has to only stand in Darling Street and listen for a minute and somebody is sure to call “Did you hear the latest – Obbs 99 not out!”.
75 years ago
RED CLIFFS: A protest against the narrowness of bridges and culverts in the Red Cliffs area has been made to the Minister for Water Supply (Mr Bolte) by Red Cliffs and District Central Council of Progress Associations. The letter said that many of the bridges allowed only one line of traffic and were at right angles to channels irrespective of the line of the roadway. This had been the cause of many accidents – one a recent fatality. It was suggested a policy be adopted to widen bridges and culverts on main roads first then other roads.
ADFA: The Mildura Shire Council decided yesterday to take no action on a request that it should consider paying a bounty for eggs and heads of starlings and sparrows. The request came from the Mildura District Council of the Australian Dried Fruits Association. Cr W Middleton said if the ADFA was serious in its suggestion it should provide the bounty.
BOOK: A graphic story of atom bombed Hiroshima and its struggle for new life has been written by Sergeant W. Sherriff, of Mildura, at present with the British Commonwealth Occupational Force in Japan. Sgt Sherriff, 23, was educated at Mildura High School and was on the staff of the Victorian Railways before joining the Second Australian Imperial Force in 1944. Serving two years in New Guinea with the Allied War Crimes Commission photographing major war criminals.
50 years ago
POACHERS: District growers of watermelons and other melons may be getting good prices for their products in Melbourne – but they are also having trouble with feathery poachers. Ducks which have been plentiful since the start of the heavy rains and the floods are munching into the melon patches causing losses to crops along both the Murray and the Darling Rivers.
COWS: Two old Friesian cows sold for $1 a head at Mildura’s weekly market in what was described as the worst cattle sale ever held here. About eight months ago the $1 cows would have fetched $30 and $40 a head. Calves which were selling for between $15 and $30 seven months ago sold for $1.50. Vealers up about $100 each last year sold from $40 to $30 while prime bullocks and steers sold at $70.
FREIGHT: One reasonable wheat crop in the Mildura area every five years is needed to pay the rail freights for wheat moved from the crops of the other four years, was claimed by Millewa farmers. The “block trains” the railways have need using on the Millewa line will continue hauling wheat out from all recital stations until storages are empty. The Millewa this year had a very good wheat season.
25 years ago
PLANT: Although humans have been selecting plants with improved characteristics for thousands of years, it is only in the last few decades that scientists have begun to understand just how complex plant functions are. Techniques for studying processes such as germination, growth and flowering have become more sophisticated, and the development of molecular genetics now enables scientists to explore very specific plants characteristics and events. The Merbein CSIRO Branch has been at the forefront of this research with the appointment of Dr Steve Swain.
AUCTION: The Murray River Cancer Challenge Gala Dinner has met with an outstanding outpouring of support locally and nationally. A rare collection of sporting memorabilia from some of Australia’s biggest sporting stars is set to go under the Auctioneer’s hammer at the Club Da Vinci. Stemming from the tireless efforts of Michael Allford, Tony Jones and Mildura Police Sergeant Jim Mason, the gala dinner is expected to raise about $30,000 which will be used to help purchase life-saving cancer treatment equipment. Thirty rare items include a Hawthorn football jumper signed by the 1999 team, a T-shirt signed by Peter Brock and a Tasmanian Holiday.
DREAMS: Bob Wilde wants to see the local youngsters have their dreams come true. As president of the Sunraysia Branch of the Make-a-Wish Foundation, he said the organisation aimed to grant special wishes to children with life threatening illnesses. The Branch had raised over $48,000 throughout its various fund-raising activities this year helping to put a smile on faces. One little girl wanted to swim with dolphins – another a stereo – every wish was different – also providing precious memories for parents.
