Losing Ground Interview Transcripts
Hawkesbury-Nepean Enviromental Changes Oral History Transcript - Dick Nixon - Camden
Dick Nixon was 73 years old when interviewed and had lived near the Nepean his entire life. He wandered the banks as a school boy and later worked in the] Dairy Farmers Milk Company, who's factory was the first building in the area that floodwaters enter, and the last building that they leave. He has an excellent memory of the river and the riverine environment and the changes he observed over his lifetime.
Hawkesbury-Nepean Enviromental Changes Oral History Transcript - Chris Niccol - Emu Plains
Chris Niccol had lived at Huntingdon Hall on the western bank of the Nepean since the 1930s. His personal memories date until the 1950s. he also has a particular knowledge of Knapsack Creek, which he remembers as being completely grassed with long grass and the water crystal clear. Chris recalled that about 1960.
Hawkesbury-Nepean Enviromental Changes Oral History Transcript - Chester Smith - Cambridge Reach
Chester Smith can trace his ancestry to the First Fleet. The family established the Dargle Ski Gardens, but prior to that had farmed grain and were also involved in orcharding on the river. Chester had been on Dargle from the age of 14 in 1925 and had family up and down the river. He is able to talk about both the impacts of farming and tourism on the river.
Hawkesbury-Nepean Enviromental Changes Oral History Transcript - Bruce Ferguson - Camden
Bruce Ferguson was 76 years old when interviewed he came from a family that had owned land by the Nepean for generations. His property to the immediate south-west of Camden was the site of Ferguson’s Australia Nursery. Later in life he was Mayor of Camden and was in an official capacity with issues related to the water usage and the health of the river.
Hawkesbury-Nepean Enviromental Changes Oral History Transcript - Athol Kemp - Ebenezer
Athol Kemp has lived on a farm at Upper Crescent Reach, from birth in 1925. He was a descendant of convict Peter Kemp. Athol who was an orchardist has witnessed a great deal of change in the river and was able to relate stories from his father as well.