Experience Maitland colonial life

A HISTORICAL weekend in the Hunter Valley includes tales of Australia's toughest gaol, smuggled lamingtons and fainting Victorian heroines, writes Brian Johnston.

maitland Escape

LADIES, be glad you didn't live in the 1870s, because that was the decade the bustle was introduced to Australia.

It involved a framework padded with horsehair and tied around the waist, often pulled so tight it damaged internal organs. No wonder Victorian heroines frequently fainted.

It would certainly have prevented you from exerting yourself but not to worry. Your weekend entertainment would only have involved making felt flowers or playing the harmonium.

You might have had a chat with your beau in a chaperone chair, so called because it was divided into three to make sure the conversation didn't get too fruity.

It's funny how the past is so romanticised in movies, novels and the tourism business. For most people, most of the time, the past was far from fun.

Still, there's no denying history is fascinating and, for a historical weekend away, Maitland, in the Hunter Valley, presents the past with bustles, warts and all.

At Grossmann House, you'll find out about the bustles, because the National Trust property has a textile collection that includes women's formal clothing and bonnets.

It was built by Isaac Beckett, an Englishman who came to Maitland in the mid-1800s and ran a successful general store in the colonial boom town.

The house reflects prosperous life in the 1870s. The felt flowers and harmonium are displayed in the family room, the chaperone chair on the upper landing.

Public receiving rooms are more elaborate, with ornate cornices, grand fireplaces and polished wooden furniture. The details are wonderful, from the toy train on the nursery mantelpiece to the beautiful wallpaper in the dining room and the cupboards of the butler's pantry.

Beckett was a colonial success story but not everyone prospered. Some ended up in rather less salubrious accommodation. Maitland

Gaol couldn't be a greater contrast to Grossmann House but it's just as intriguing.

Built in 1844, the gaol was notorious as Australia's toughest prison, and operated until 1998. Its buildings are empty and a visit could be more interactive but an excellent self-guided audio tour is fair compensation.

It takes you around the prison facilities and relates stories of daring escapes, murders and prison life over 150 years, with commentary from former inmates and guards.

Discover how inmates escaped from a steamed-up shower room and how an Anglican chaplain left an incriminating trail of white powder on the floor. It turned out to be coconut shavings from smuggled lamingtons, which made his services far more popular than those of the Catholic priest.

After the claustrophobia and terrible tales of Maitland Gaol, the slightly provocative humour of Anne Blackwell, owner of the Red Lion Inn down the road, cheers me up.

This B&B has excellent historical credentials. It started in the 1830s as a licensed inn and took on its present appearance in the 1850s, when a second storey was added.

Blackwell has diligently documented the history of the Georgian sandstone building and its previous owners. It was acquired in payment of a debt in 1860 by former convict Samuel Clift, who went on to create a prosperous colonial dynasty.

Stay at the Red Lion and it's easy to get immersed in local history and, as you leaf through Clift family photos, be reminded of all that Australia's early pioneers achieved.

Rattle your giant keys, enjoy the claw-foot bath and soak up the period charm. If it's character and eccentricity you want, this B&B provides. And that's just the owner.

But don't expect Blackwell to be wearing a bustle at breakfast. She might love her local history and encourage you to explore, but who would actually want to live it? 

-- The writer was a guest of Maitland City Council.

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MAITLAND

-- Getting there

Maitland is 45 minutes from Newcastle or a 2 1/2-hour drive north of Sydney along the F3 Freeway and New England Highway.

-- Staying there

Red Lion Inn has four period guestrooms and two shared bathrooms, as well as a guest lounge and full, cooked breakfast. Rooms from $140 a night. See redlioninn.com.au, ph 4934 6822.

-- Eating there

Favourite Chair is a new cafe at 344 High St in Maitland, with a warm, retro ambience and adjacent bookshop.

It serves light meals and snacks such as salads, frittatas and BLT sandwiches, as well as excellent coffee.
Ph 0407 910 978.

-- Doing there

Grossman House, see grossman.org.au, ph 4933 6452.

Maitland Gaol, see maitlandgaol.com.au, ph 4936 6482.

More: See maitlandhunter valley.com.au or ph 4931 2800.