Anderson’s-Terrace
Eastern side of Park Street (Number 20 at left)
Anderson’s Terrace (20 to 32 Park Street, Erskineville) is located on the eastern side of Park Street, close to Solander Park. Originally a row of six two-storey terraces, the relatively recent incorporation of an additional terrace at the southern end of the row (number 32) makes seven.
What is there in life more tragic than the young woman who soon after marriage begins to fade and prematurely shows the sign of age, while her husband keeps his youthful health and vigour. The careworn wife and the youthful husband are to be seen everywhere.
Advertisements featuring the testimonial of Mrs. William Callaway of 14 Baldwin Street Erskineville appeared in newspapers around Australia from about September 1908, and continued until the beginning of 1910. Mrs. Callaway sought treatment at Prince Alfred Hospital in Sydney for a kidney complaint, but finding no relief from the treatment and medicines prescribed to her Mrs. Callaway instead followed the recommendation of a friend. Commencing an eighteen-bottle course of treatment Mrs. Callaway found herself completely cured of her kidney complaint, and incidently found the pills very effective in the treatment of her headaches: Continue reading
A Clever Trick
A clever instance of police impersonation, which unfortunately allowed the ends of justice to be defeated, is reported from Erskineville…
The Express and Telegraph (Adelaide) Wednesday, 28 May 1902
On the night of Saturday 24 May 1902 Mr. James Sanders, a grocer, had his attention attracted to a man who was upon the balcony of his premises, and whose actions were decidedly suspicious… Continue reading
Doreen Dulcie Webb, aged 2 years and one month; and Edward Eric Webb aged 4 years and 8 months of 11a Burren Street Erskineville appeared in an advertisement for Arnott’s Milk Arrowroot Biscuits in February 1919:
On 22 February 1920 a request from ‘Elsie’ of St. Leonards appeared in the ‘Housewives Exchange’ – a column within ‘The World of Women’ page of Sydney’s The Sun newspaper.
‘any kind of useful wrinkle concerning the home-cooking,
dressmaking, care of children-will find a place in this column.’
The Sun (Sydney) 22 February 1920
The request for a recipe for Lemon Rings was one of many requests published in The Sun on that particular Sunday, appearing amongst appeals for getting rid of small black ants; a method for turning beef and mutton suet into soap; and a request for how to make pumpkin jam.
The following week the ‘Housewives Exchange’ column included a response to Elsie’s request from someone not willing to identify themselves beyond the moniker ‘Reader (Erskineville).’ The recipe for Lemon Rings was amongst three published on the day, which otherwise included helpful advice from Ada for cooks who have trouble grilling the breakfast meal (Ada has to prepare breakfast for seven persons, and has no maid); and a useful recipe for ‘Claret Cup’ for ‘J.H.’ of Redfern.
The recipe provided by ‘Reader’ of Erskineville for Lemon Rings is as follows:
The Sun (Sydney) Sunday, 29 February 1920
Here it is again, a little clearer:
LEMON RINGS
This recipe is sent to Elsie (St. Leonards) by Reader (Erskineville):
Beat 4 oz. butter to a cream and add 2 beaten eggs, separately. Mix in 6oz. sugar, 1lb flour, sifted with 2 teaspoons baking powder, grated rind of a lemon, and a little milk. Make into a paste, roll out about ¼in. thick, cut into rounds, and cut out the centres to form rings, and fry to a light brown in plenty of hot fat.
Lemon Rings
Two houses, Nos. 1 and 3 JOHN-STREET, close to Erskineville-road, of brick, front and side cemented, verandahs and balconies in front, and each containing 4 rooms and kitchen, shed with bath, &c. The land has about 33ft. frontage to John-street, depth through to George-street [Charles-street], to which the frontage is about 8ft.
The Sydney Morning Herald, 13 January 1900
John’s Terrace (1 and 3 John Street Erskineville) is comprised of two adjoining two-storey terraces on the east side of John Street near Erskineville Road.
The terrace makes its first appearance in the Macdonald Town Assessment Book in the assessable year commencing February 1880. This suggests that the terrace was completed some time the previous year. The entry notes the ownership of the two houses by ‘P. (Patrick) O’Farrell’ -pencilled in at first, then overwritten in ink. The entry notes also that both houses were also occupied by Patrick O’Farrell. Continue reading
Dorothy Kathleen Cronin – the beautiful daughter of Mrs. Cronin – of 122 Union Street Erskineville was featured in newspapers around Australia for several years as ‘One of Arnott’s Living Pictures’ – appearing for the first time in print towards the end of 1910. Advertisements featuring young Dorothy appeared regularly throughout 1911 and 1912, and continued, on and off until around the middle of 1917.
The Murchison Times and Day Dawn Gazette (WA) Saturday, 21 October 1911
The Arnott’s celebrates 150 years website describes the ‘Living Pictures’ advertising campaign as running from 1892 until the 1950s and as having involved tens of thousands of proud mothers sending in testimonials with portraits and photographs of their well–fed babies. The lucky few would have portraits of their children featured in print. Continue reading
Helplessley Crippled – Wheeled About in a Chair;
Hospital Treatment Hopeless. No Power to Move.
Restored to Active Health by
DR. WILLIAMS’ PINK PILLS.
‘As bad a case of rheumatism as there is on record, in which the patient had given up hope of ever regaining health, has just been cured by Dr. Williams’ Pink Pills. The patient in question is Mrs. E. J. Curtis, of 1 Flora-st., Erskineville, Sydney, and the facts of her case are known to hundreds.’ Continue reading
In 1919, Daisy of Erskineville submitted her recipe for Dripping Biscuits to the ‘Women’s Sphere’ page of Sydney’s The Sun Newspaper. Daisy’s recipe appeared in the ‘Housewives’ Exchange’ column: ‘any kind of useful wrinkle concerning the home-cooking,
dressmaking, care of children-will find a place in this column.’
The recipe for dripping biscuits appeared amongst several recipes submitted by residents of Sydney, which included wheatmeal pastry, apple strudel, sponge cake, carrot pudding, and honey toffee.
The Sun (Sydney) Sunday, 12 October 1919
Daisy’s recipe uses dripping, or beef fat in place of the butter or oil that most biscuit recipes tend to use today. In 1919 beef dripping would have been an inexpensive ingredient, a by-product of family cooking, dripping being the fat that dripped from roasting meat. Today, beef dripping is sold at the supermarket at great expense as a gourmet ingredient.
The recipe appears pretty straight forward right up until the direction is reached to add ‘sufficient flour’ and ‘bake in a brisk oven’ and finally ‘a little cornflour added to the flour is an improvement.’ How much? How hot? For how long?
Would that be a Britsh Imperial measure of sufficiency?
Well, there’s nothing for it but to pre-heat the oven to ‘brisk’ and get down to business with a beater and some rendered beef fat…
Daisy’s Dripping Biscuits
Chamberlain Terrace Erskineville
Chamberlain Terrace (64, 66, & 68 John Street Erskineville) is located on the western side of John Street Erskineville, near Albert Street. The terrace makes its first appearance in the 1885 edition of the Sands Directory, indicating it was likely completed the previous year. Continue reading
Know the past, know yourself
Australian Pub Project
Discover the intriguing world of Australia's outlaws, rogues and highwaymen
The stories behind Newtown Voices poems
Ideas, reviews and research from a nineteenth-century cultural historian
Our region and our church, since 1838
Adventures in the world of history
Oscillating between generosity and irony
A photographic archive of Australia in the early 20th Century
Revealing traces of a former Sydney
For the love of Erskineville
For the love of Erskineville
For the love of Erskineville
For the love of Erskineville
For the love of Erskineville
Exploring hidden Sydney
For the love of Erskineville
The Macdonaldtown Bicycle Club 