Ben Bullen in 1909

Located 10 km south of Capertee on the Mudgee Road is the hamlet of Ben Bullen. While never a large village, it was certainly a more vibrant community a century ago when it had a flourishing local mining and agricultural industry. In 1909 two new residents were Annie and George Crossman who were employed by the New South Wales Government Railway. Writing as Mrs George Crossman, Annie wrote of her impressions of Ben Bullen to a friend in her home town of Penrith which was later printed in the Christmas edition of the Nepean Times of 1909. Her published letter gives us a wonderful snapshot of Ben Bullen in the years leading up to the start of the Great War.

Ben Bullen railway station

I arrived here nine months ago on the 17^th of this month. I have found the work at post office and railway station agreeable and pleasant, and the people are genial and affable, very generous in thought and action. They are principally sheep-farmers. There are some splendid orchards in the district, apples and pears being the principal fruit grown. Last year there was a splendid crop. I’ve seen one man alone send away two tons of apples daily in the season. Then tomatoes and potatoes are plentifully grown. This year, however, there is a failure in nearly everything, the late frosts, which lasted up till last week, having cut up fruit of all kinds, and the corn, tomatoes, peas and beans are nearly all destroyed, and the continued dry weather is drying up the grass and all vegetation, and water is getting short.

The strike has upset things a little. The timber-getters are thrown out of work, as they were getting timber for the mines at Lithgow, Cobar and other places. Hoskins’ limestone quarry is not doing much, the lack of coal hindering them from running their engine to the quarry and bringing the limestone to the station. They were short of water at first, but they soon sunk for a spring, cutting a hole about 7ft deep and 9ft across, thus getting plenty of water. Hoskins soon had a pumping engine at work. They have constructed two large dams, but we have not had the rain to put water in them sufficient for pumping purposes. The trains are not running regularly. The mail train is running only three times a week, passenger trains have stopped altogether, and the daily mixed train is only running three times a week. The people have not got used to it yet, and, of course, there is a little discomfiture, as there are no shops or stores of any kind here, the people getting their goods from Wallerawang, Lithgow and Sydney daily. But now they often post their letters the wrong day for the mail, and sometimes come for their goods before their letters have left Ben Bullen. They get their meat from Rylstone by the mail train on Friday nights.

Ben Bullen has no hotel, consequently the young men are not seen standing around public house corners holding up verandah posts; neither do they obstruct the footpath, for there are none. The roads are very fair. There is only one church here, a united one. Only the Church of England and Methodist people avail themselves of the privilege of holding services in it, however, and as the preachers are a long distance off we don’t get service every Sunday. The Methodist minister’s home is at Rylstone, and the Church of England’s at Capertee. Ben Bullen church people have provided themselves with a new organ last week – a very nice one indeed. It has a lovely tone, and the people delighted with their newly-acquired property. Several young ladies are talking of taking lessons, so that the organ may not be idle for want of players.

Though things are going pleasantly and well here, yet I often long for home, and Penrith is home to me – a home that will ever be dear to me for its many years of association and many dear friends that I miss here; and also I have several dear ones at rest lying there too, so Penrith will ever be home to me.

The Railway Guide to New South Wales (part one)

The expansion of the New South Wales railway network led to the NSW Government publishing the The Railway Guide of New South Wales: for the use of Tourists, Excursionists, and Others in 1879. Further network expansion led to an updated illustrated edition in 1884. Below we read the first entry on the partially opened section of the Wallerawang to Mudgee branch line. At the time of writing the end of the line was at Capertee.

Original kerosene mine, Hartly Vale
from The Railway Guide to NSW (1884)

Extension, Wallerawang to Mudgee

There is now in progress an extension from Wallerawang to Mudgee, a distance of about 85 miles. In May, 1882, a section of this line from Wallerawang to Capertee, a distance of 22 miles, was opened for traffic. The line passes through very rough country, the scenery resembling that passed between Mt. Victoria and Emu Plains, and in the vicinity of Capertee are some views that are unsupassed by the most noted on the Blue Mountains. Of the views near Capertee may be mentioned the Crown Ridge, a lofty and rocky mountain, from which a magnificent view is obtained; the Gorge, the rocks here resembling the rocks at the entrance to Port Jackson; and the Capertee Caves, interesting on account of the many impressions, apparently made by human hands, on the sides and walls. A great deal of traffic now passes through Capertee, making it a busy place. The station lies on the border of the extensive mining area embracing Gulgong, Mudgee, Cudgegong, Windeyer, Hargraves, Sofala, &c., and goods are received for these places. In other parts agriculture is carried on, and there is also forwarded from Capertee a considerable amount of pastoral produce and live stock. The extension to Mudgee is being pushed forward with all speed, and the opening is to take place on the 30th June 1884. With the extension of the line beyond Capertee this station will lose much of its present importance. Between Wallerawang and Capertee are some extensive lime quarries, and in the district splendid seams of coal exist, which however are not at present worked. Capertee contains three hotels.

Local Plants: Pin-cushions in the long paddock

Whether we like it or not many exotics have naturalised in our area. One cheerful immigrant is the Pin-cushion flower (Scabiosa atropurpurea), a plant that's become a common site on local road verges during late spring and summer. This annual or short lived perennial has many flowering varieties and in our area is most commonly seen in its lilac-mauve or dark red forms. This plant grows to about 30-40 cm high and is highly attractive to bees, butterfly's and other insects that feed from its daisy-like flowers. The plant reproduces by seed which are easily spread by the strong winds found on road edges.

The lilac-mauve forms of 
this plant seem the most common

Pin-cushion plants originate from south-west Europe and North Africa and seem to have arrived in our area as a garden escape. The plant enjoys the climatic conditions of the central tablelands. Extremely hardy these plants can take temperatures of -20 C as well as scorching summer heat. They prefer a neutral pH soil so enjoy the less acidic conditions found in the villages of our region, especially near the the town of Portland which is famous for its lime deposits.

The dark red form of this plant
is sometimes known as the Egyptian Rose

While the pin-cushion plant has found a place along many local roadsides there is little evidence of the plant encroaching into bushland. The green roadside strip, sometimes known as the long paddock, is a fertile place to grow for some plants as water regularly runs off the gentle camber of the highway while the granite road base below the thin soil provides valuable minerals not usually found elsewhere. The plants toughness may account for the Scabiosa becoming a common weed around the world.

So next time you drive along the highway lookout for these charming exotic world traveller.