N. Guinea Goldfield Pioneers
p. 19 · Read in the full issue
HERE is an interesting old photograph kindly loaned to us by New Guinea old-timer Jim Hoile, now residing at Terrigal, NSW. It was taken about 22 years ago, in front of the original bar and billiard-room of the Salamaua Hotel, then in course of construction.
That corrugated iron shelter repre sented the only “bright lights” avail able to the hundreds of enterprising men who were then crowding into the newly discovered Morobe goldfield. They would spend a few months under the incredibly rough conditions of the interior at Edie Creek, Kaindi, etc. —and then they would come out to Salamaua for relaxation.
Old-timers still tell stories of those periods of relaxation.
Mr. Hoile writes: “The ceiling of this building was lined with champagne bottle corks. I don’t know why per haps Otto Rossiter was thirsty. He still is, so they say!”
Reading from left to right, the follow ing are the names of the men in the group. Where one man is standing im mediately in front of another, the name of the man in front is given first;— Marny Blackford, hotel building con tractor, Salamaua. Now dead.
Bert Warren, miner, Lower Watut.
Now dead.
Otto Rossiter, miner. Everywhere.
Babbington (head only), finder of Wampit Goldfield.
Bill Cameron, now a miner at Edie Creek.
Bernard, Ramu Valley; miner, Arthur Newman; miner.
Budge Beckett Pentlands would-be pilot and a miner. Now dead.
Unknown.
Ross Soden, BE2c Pilot. Now dead.
Toby Miller, miner, Upper Edie.
Next four unknown, Tapsell, market gardener, Bulolo.
Isenbert, miner, Upper Watut.
Clem Hendry, storekeeper; Salamaua pioneer; now dead.
Chiu Kitt, Storekeeper.