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Article: Jane Barker's letters from Canberra.
- Article from:
- M A R G I N: life & letters in early Australia
- Article date:
- April 1, 2008
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2008 Mulini Press. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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In October 1855, Jane Barker wrote from the Church of England parsonage on the Limestone Plains to her sister in England. She was a good horsewoman, and she described the 30 mile ride that she enjoyed that day. 'It was a pretty sight, the nine riders abreast, cantering briskly over miles of unenclosed plains, and very exhilarating.'
Those 'unenclosed plains' now include the southern suburbs of Canberra. From Mrs. Barker's letters, now in the Mitchell Library in Sydney, we gain a vivid picture of life in the little community 150 years ago.
Jane was the wife of Frederic Barker, the newly appointed Bishop of Sydney. She and her husband arrived in the ...