The Settlers Hut - Berrima, Circa 1840! The Hut was originally built in Wheeo, twenty kilometres south west of Crookwell, in the high country of the Southern Tablelands; a bushmans hut of a pioneering settler family named Frost. In early 1840 Frost arrived from County Clare in Ireland, an immigrant and perhaps one of the early squatters in the Crookwell region. Marrying Marie Clune of Goulburn in 1843, they had ten children, which is amazing given the size of the hut, with just one living area. Typical of the colonial Bushmen, the Settlers Hut was built of rough hewn timber slabs and had a roof made from bark which was later replaced by shingles and later corrugated iron. The facade of a hut was often decorated with more refined weatherboards if they were available from the local sawmill. The hut remained in the family for over a century and with the death of the last descendant in1962, it fell into a state of disrepair. It was subsequently dismantled and re-erected in its current location in Berrima in the 1990s, receiving some much needed attention. With old weatherboards and verandah, the front of the hut is as it was originally. Slabs from the remains of a derelict house of the same era located near the town of Bevendale replaced the missing external slabs. With faithful reconstruction, the internal slabs and floorboards are original. The internal lining boards were recovered from an1880s Goulburn house during its demolition. Bitumen coated marine ply has been placed behind the exterior slabs with insulating material between the ply and internal lining boards to provide extra insulation. A modern brick open fireplace was added to the living room, it has been disguised externally by a traditional covering of corrugated iron. A classic early Kooka gas stove was installed in the fireplace alcove in the kitchen and the bathroom renovated in period style.
Posted on: Sat, 15 Nov 2014 04:31:39 +0000
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