Interesting reminiscences of Coffs Harbour and the Bucca district in the late '90's and early 1900's were given at the weekly dinner of Coffs Harbour Rotary Club by Mr. W. Parry, a visitor from Narrogin, Western Australia, who spent his early life with his father on the Bucca and Mounte Browne goldfields. In those days Coffs Harbour was a small settlement of about ten houses and its only communication with Sydney was by a very irregular boat service.

Mr. Parry, who proved himself an entertaining speaker, said he missed the big trees from the district, as he often spoke of them to his children. He had found some big stumps and showed them to his wife, who accompanied him on the trip, as verification of his statements.

The address was as follows :— "My family came to the district in 1896 and left in 1901 for Western Australia. We resided at Bucca Creek, where my father worked on the goldfields. - The Duncan family, well-known to Coffs Harbour and district, were also there.

"Some 250 men wete employed seeking for gold but the supply ran out after about two and a half years and we moved to Mount Browne, where we stayed two years. Our homes in both places were constructed of slabs, with bark roof and earth floors.

"Although there was plenty of gold at Mount Browne, it was difficult to obtain and my father went prospecting and was fortunate enough to obtain about £600 worth of gold in pure white quartz from Bucca Creek. As the Western Australian goldfields were booming, he decided to leave the Coffs Harbour district and try his luck in the West.

"The gold my father obtained was very heavy and I had the job of bringing it to Coffs Harbour by pack horse. It was deposited with the local storekeeper.

"This was about the time of the bank smash and people in the district had little money. Produce from, the farms was shipped to Sydney. The boats were very irregular and it took a long time for the money to come back.

"Land was very cheap and my father was offefed one of the best river bank farms on the Orara for the money he obtained for his gold. He refused the offer. The farm today must be worth many thousands oifpounds.

"At Bucca Creek snakes like to live in the bark roofs. On one occasion my father saw a head dangling from the roof. He rushed for his shot gun and fired. He blew a beautiful hole in the roof, but the snake still dangled. It was of the carpet variety.

"The hotel at Bucca was owned by a man named Smith. He was a very generous man and did a great amount of good among the miners. (The speaker was referring to the late Mr. Joe Smith, who passed away three years ago—Ed.).

"At Mount Browne I remember the coaches of Cobb and Co. as they passed through on their way to Grafton. Passengers by them had a hard trip and often suffered from liver trouble for years afterwards."

"The staple food was maize, which also provided our bedding. The husks were as good as kapok—or seemed so to us.

"Birds and animals abounded in the bush and along the river banks. I still remember the cat birds, which woke us in the morning and sent us to bed in the evening. They meowed like cats at dawn and sunset. There were also bower birds, lyre birds, and koalas, wallabies, kangaroo rats and kangaroos. The rivers were teeming with wild fowl.

"At Coramba I recollect there were plenty of platypus and they could be seen swimming in the river if the watcher kept very quiet. Two hundred yards from our home at Mount Browne a bower bird was making its nest and I often took visitors up to see it.

"Over the hill a few settlers were trying to establish orchards, but the flying foxes came over in clouds and spoiled the fruit. At times I have seen them obscure the moon.

"Our family found Kalgoorlie a different world, inhabited by people in all walks of life from all parts of Australia, joined irr; the search for gold. Kalgoorlie has the richest mile of earth in the world and on the "Golden Mile' there is 2 to 3 million pounds worth of machinery."

Speaking of Narrogin, Mr. Parry said the sports area is between. 140 and 160 acres in extent. It includes a racecourse, trotting ground, cricket, hockey and football grounds (in the centre of the racecourse), a bowling green of 14 rinks, 12 tennis courts and a four rink croquet lawn. An 18 hole golf course is also provided, a feature of which is that every green can be seen from the clubhouse. At one time the town had 105 tennis courts.

After being absent from Coffs Harbour for so long, Mr. Parry is naturally very interested in the progress of the town, which has amazed him. Fellow Rotarians expressed appreciation of his address, which they described as very interesting.

Despite the wet weather experienced during then holiday, Mr. and Mrs. Parry have found much to interest them and have met many people, the families of whom Mr. Parry recollects in the early days. 

[Source: (1950, October 17). Coffs Harbour Advocate (NSW : 1907 - 1942; 1946 - 1954), p. 6. http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-page21530463]