What's Coming Up in June
On the 1st of June, in the first episode of a two-part podcast, Benita Parker from the West Wallsend District Heritage Group takes listeners on a journey into the early, ambitious efforts to uncover coal deposits In the Shadow of Mount Sugarloaf. She examines the lives, triumphs, and struggles of the early settlers whose determination laid the groundwork for a thriving coal industry.
On the 8th of June we present an audio excerpt from the Society’s Female Convicts of the Hunter Valley seminar, held in March 2025. In this recording, Dr. Jude Conway shares the remarkable story of Elizabeth Hannell, tracing her journey from a transported convict to a key figure in Newcastle’s colonial past.
On the 15th of June, Narelle Austen presents the final episode of her creative non-fiction series, Birds of a Feather. In this concluding chapter, new arrivals bring fresh layers to the story of the penal settlement, while the main characters reflect on their time at Coal River and contemplate what the future may hold.
(AI generated voices are used in some podcasts.)
