A young film maker was in Glen Innes recently recording stories and memories of his elders to preserve them for future generations.
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“The younger generations will now be able to learn their history from their elders long after they have passed.”
- Brendan Blacklock
Some of the stories relate back to Blacklock brothers Alex and Dudley getting married to Brown sisters Aileen and June in the early 1900’s.
Brendan Blacklock of Blacklock Media said that he wanted to gather his elders and take them ‘back to country’ to record their stories.
“I have heard many stories from so many different relatives over the years and thought we need to get these on film,” he said.
“It was hard work convincing 80 year olds to tell their stories in front of a camera but well worth the trip.
“Uncle Alex was born in the Glen Innes hospital and when I found out it was now a museum I thought that would be the perfect place to set the cameras up and make use of the museums amazing rooms as a back drop for the interviews.”
Glen Innes and District Historical Society Museum Manager Eve Chappell said that it is important to record history for future generations.
“In a world of modern technology it is wonderful to be able to preserve the tradition of oral history and digitally record it for posterity and for future generations to learn from,” she said.
“Brendan was so enthusiastic in bringing these family members together and we were delighted they chose the museum setting for such a wonderful project.”
The journey to Glen Innes was not only a fact finding and history trip for Mr Blacklock, but it also forms part of a documentary being filmed on Ray Blacklock; a famous footballer from the 70s and 80’s who played football for Penrith Panthers, Newtown Jets and Canberra Raiders with league legends like Tommy Raudonikis, Phil ‘Gus’ Gould and John ‘Chicka’ Ferguson.
“To me this time away was priceless in a few ways, spending time with the family and learning about our history has been a truly amazing experience and the fact we have it on film is a bonus,” he said.
“Although Alex, Aileen, Dudley and June all moved to Sydney as teenagers looking for work they grew up in the areas of Guyra, Glen Innes and Tingha in the New England region.
“The younger generations will now be able to learn their history from their elders long after they have passed.”
