The mysterious world of Land Surveying, the meaning of the survey marks, presented by Heritage Land Surveyor Kevin Song
2026-06-28 14:00 - 16:00 (Australia/Sydney) | Summer Hill Community Centre, 131 Smith Street, Summer Hill, NSW
Heritage Land Surveyor Kevin Song will lead us in to the mysterious world of Land Surveying, the meaning of the survey marks we see in odd places, and the arcane process of land identification.

The connection between Ashfield, Summer Hill, the rabbit plagues, and the Australian Steel Industry
2026-07-12 14:00 - 16:00 | Summer Hill Community Centre, 131 Smith Street, Summer Hill, NSW
Ashfield, Summer Hill, and the Rabbit Plague

For over 100 years, the Lysaght Wire Mill at Chiswick produced most of Australia’s fencing materials, significantly the wire netting of which thousands of Kilometres was used in rabbit-control fencing, in a never-quite-successful attempt to eradicate these cute, fluffy introduced creatures which were determined to destroy our farming industry.Ashfield and Summer Hill, perhaps surprisingly, played a part in the battle to control the burgeoning population of these pests, being heavily involved in the distribution of Lysaght’s products throughout Australia during much of last century.Much of engineer Brian Gray’s working life was spent in this industry, and his travels and experiences facilitating effective use of these products in the unending pursuit of the pesky rabbits provide him with much to tell us about this phase of our local history.

History Week: The Evolution of the Federation Style
2026-09-13 14:00 - 16:00 | Summer Hill Community Centre, 131 Smith Street, Summer Hill, NSW
Mark Sabolch will explore the cultural trends that enabled the Federation style to replace the formerly popular Victorian Italianate

Tour of the Chapel of the Good Shepherd Sisters at Glentworth, Ashfield.
2026-10-04 14:00 - 16:00 | Chapel of the Good Shepherd Sisters, 137 Victoria Street, Ashfield, New South Wales
Daf Hewson, a Society member,will lead guided viewing of accessible parts of Glentwoth House and the Cardinal Freeman Village, followed by Choral Vespers in the magnificent Chapel afterwards. Meeting point to be advised..

This stunning Romanesque Revival Chapel was built by the Sisters of the Good Shepherd in 1942. Glentworth is one of Ashfield’s largest old mansions and is a heritage listed property. It was built in 1886 for Frederick Clissold, who was a member of the first Ashfield Council and owned much vacant land in the municipality.

House Inspection; Caroline Stott’s remarkable Federation house in Tintern Road
2026-10-18 14:00 - 16:00 | NSW
A close view of Caroline Stott’s remarkable Federation house in Tintern Road. Mark Sabolch and Caroline will collaborate in explaining significant features of the style

Address in Tintern Road will be emailed to participants

"How and why did the Burra Charter come into existence in 1979?". The Writing of the Burra Charter; Bronwyn Hanna
2026-11-08 14:00 - 16:00 | Summer Hill Community Centre, 131 Smith Street, Summer Hill, NSW
This presentation aims to explain why the Burra Charter has been so influential on the way heritage is conceived and practised across the globe and also offers insights into the broader history of heritage practice in Australia.

The Burra Charter was the result of two weekends of concentrated discussion in 1979 by a small committee of Australia ICOMOS experts. Subsequent revisions were made by ICOMOS members in 1999 and 2013.

Dr Bronwyn Hanna is a heritage consultant who trained as an Australianarchitectural historian at the University of Sydney, completed a PhD on the history of women architects in NSW in 1999 at UNSW, and co-authored two books on the topic. She has worked for government, industry and community groups on many heritage places including the Sydney Opera House, the Parramatta Female Factory and the Brewarrina Fish Traps.
