AFTER going into recess at the end of last year, and with its future in doubt, the Oberon District Museum has found a new lease of life and plans to open its doors again within the next month.
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A new management committee was elected at the members’ AGM last week. Col Roberts is the president, Laurie McMahon vice-president, Pam Dellow is secretary, and Astrid Kriening, Warren Rawson and Maree Arrow are committee members. Ms Arrow is also publicity officer.
Ray McMahon has taken on an advisory role, sharing his extensive knowledge of the history of the museum’s items and of Oberon itself.
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The new committee members say they are excited at the prospect of revitalising the museum, attracting new members and showcasing the many artefacts.
This year marks the 30th anniversary of the “birth” of the museum, from a concept in Laurie McMahon’s head, and then the acquisition, with council’s support, of a home at the railway station, to the separate entity it is today. The committee is counting on the ongoing support of the Oberon community to keep this valuable asset viable and vigorous.
On Sunday, the new committee members were taken on a familiarisation tour of the museum.
Of the many artefacts, some of the outstanding ones were photos of Sir Charles Kingsford Smith’s plane crash in 1921 in the vicinity of where the CLC church now stands, the replica of the township of Oberon in the 1930s built by the Day Care Centre, the Fordson tractor built about 1922 in County Cork in Ireland and reported to be Oberon’s first wheel tractor, and the first weatherboard cottage in the Oberon area, circa 1887, transported to the museum in 1994, and containing furniture-filled rooms displaying how life was lived back in those times.
Information about the committee’s plans, how to become a member, and how to offer help will be published in the coming weeks.
The committee says the Oberon museum is a treasure with a bright future and lots of opportunity for expansion and improvement. The committee hopes the Oberon community will share its excitement at the museum’s re-emergence.
