sale yards

Sorell Library

Miss W. 1971-2000, Buildings, Services , , , , ,

INTERVIEW: Christine – librarian 2008

The present Sorell library opened 17th of December 1988. Before that it was at the Sorell Council Chambers and before that it was at the Sorell Memorial Hall. The piano at the Sorell library was donated by the Rotary Club, Lions Club and the Sorell Council on the 22nd of March 1991. Some of the pictures were donated when it was first opened.

Around 1986-1987 the library was too small for the amount of people using it. Eileen Brooker circulated a petition amongst the community proposing that a library be built to commemorate Australia’s bicentenary. This is the building they’re in now. It was built through funding from the local government and the state library. This year 2008 they celebrate their 20th birthday. It was purposely built for a library. Before it was built on, the land was part of the saleyards.

Every now and again they have authors speak at the library. People who have spoken there are Roy Bridges, Neil Davis and some local authors. For 138 years the Sorell library was moved around until it reached the place it’s in now. Until 1978 the libraries were run by the council or the Red Cross. In 1978, it started being run by the state library.

An early record of another library was where the antiques shop use to be, then it moved to the cottage on the corner where Mitre Ten is, then it moved to the memorial hall in the ladies cloakroom, then it was moved to the old Sorell Council Chambers. The children from Sorell School use to go down to the cottage and pick books. During the second World War the librarian use to take the books up to the school in boxes for the children to choose their books.

Around 1980 the library moved back to the Magistrates Court behind the council chambers.

Pictures taken by Brad and Sean

Sorell Saleyards

Miss W. 1851-1880, General information, Services , , , , ,

The Sorell Saleyards were first opened in 1876. Brohde’s great Grandparents Faye and Jabez Little with their four children who lived in Forcett attended the Sales for three decades and also in the Seventies with their grandson Jerry (my dad.) They spent many happy times at the Sorell Saleyards.

Everyone that attended the Sales (every second Monday) found it a time to catch up with family and friends. The day the Sales closed for good was in 1984 and everything was dismantled. The Sorell Sales were right in the centre of Sorell, and the purpose of the Sales was like a Market. At the Saleyards they sold things such as cattle, sheep, pigs, chickens, and vegetables.

The Auctioneer in the fifties, sixties and seventies and up to 1982 when the Sales were finally closed down was David Stringer. He was also accompanied by auctioneers John Denholm and Geoff Brown. Lots of people went to the Sales. About 300!

The Sales would get their animals transported in a cart. The Saleyards were set out in pens, there was a big shed for poultry sales and stock yards for cattle and sheep, there was also another big shed to keep vegetables in. Farmers used to bring their vegetables that they had grown and they sold the fresh produce to all residents of the local municipality and beyond. It was also very good for the local business people, the hotels would do a roaring trade and the local takeaway shops and bakeries also benefited. The Sales ran for about 50 years but now, there are know remains of the Sorell Saleyards. But then they wanted bigger and better that’s why they wanted to build Woolworths.

Tasmanian Archives, Libraries Tasmania, Arch Rollings Collection, NS1553-1-106

In our days these would be the costings of their products:

Sheep:25 pence
Pigs:80 pence
Cattle:20 cents
Chickens:5 cents
Vegetables:1 cent

Over time, many country saleyards have gone by the wayside, but many of the memories attached to them live on.

Dal Hyland was born at Sorell, but lived at Cambridge, and spent many happy times as a child at the Sorell saleyards in the late 1940’s. The saleyard was smack bang in the heart of Sorell, the post and rail fences are long gone and the site asphalted over, for a supermarket car park.

Dal Hyland can remember regular extended family gatherings on sale days with his grandparents, retired farmers who had moved to Sorell.

“The saleyards were all set out in pens, all post and rail fences; there was a big shed for poultry sales. Another shed for veggie sales and different farmers would bring in their vegetables for sale, market gardeners. I remember Mr Bresnehan from out the back of Forcett driving in with his vegetables with his horse and buggy.”

“There was a gentlemen from Bellerive that had a corner shop, he used to go down every sale day, he would stand up on a platform and he would cut the potatoes or the turnips in half and hold them up, so people could see what they were bidding for, the quality of them.”

Dal says the day was more than just a day to buy and sell; it was also a day to catch up on news and renew friendships.

“It was very good for the local business people; farmers wives would come in and buy their groceries, the hotels would do a roaring trade. I had a wag of a cousin he used to call it handshake day.”

Sources
We interviewed a couple of people: Mary Thornberry and my nan Zelda

Members of the Paynter and Green family gave us most of our information.